Bluffing my way through Sluff

I sat in the group of four couples frozen in horror.  I had just agreed to play a card game, an  activity which is totally out of my comfort zone. Is this an American game?"  I asked. "I've never heard of it." "Well , we are American" was the answer. (It was called Sluff. I'm sure we wouldn't even spell it like that in Canada. This is comparable to the blank look I got when I said I was knitting a toque for a baby.  "Is that a baby bonnet?" asked the same lady.) Another lady who was not playing took pity on me and sat beside me to coach me.  I lay down my card each round, not really knowing the object of the game.  At the beginning, when people explain the rules of card games, I never get it.  It would take too long to really understand all the rules, so I just go ahead and bluff my way through.  Terry, on the other hand, got it right away, although he had someone leaning over his shoulder as well, pointing out the cards he should lay down. At the end of the game, my coach thought I was catching on, but I was just relieved that the game was over.