We're in our mahjong era, thanks to tile-riffic instructor Claire Ryan.

Ryan runs Mahj with Claire, a local chapter of the Oh My Mahjong network. Ryan is one of the company's ~70 certified instructors who teaches mahjong strategy and hosts open play sessions in the community.

The four-person game is played by drawing and trading tiles to match one of dozens of hands, similar to a game of rummy. To make it more difficult, hands change annually.

"I've always loved playing games — cards, especially," Ryan told ATXtoday. "There's always something new to learn with mahjong."

City Editor Figi here. I sat in on one of Ryan's sessions recently and having never played before, I was surprised at the games' complexity. After watching two games, I felt like I could confidently play with friends.

Want to play? Sign up for one of her monthly open play sessions for $30 per seat or lessons starting at $75 each.