Mondo Croquet

Mondo Croquet - played with bowling balls and sledge hammers.... (sent in as a comment to my story on Collosal Croquet).

I must apparently add an observation: Mondo Croquet is perhaps the junkiest expression of junkyard sports that I've so far encountered. Sledge hammers. So deliciously tool-like and constructively destructive in their veritable essence. Bowling ball - clearly, bowling balls of the used persuasion - getting hit and chipped and potentially utterly disfigured by the carefully channeled violence of it all. Smashing. Simply smashing.

Thanks to Singlenesia for the find.

Learning by Dying - again

I was delighted to find my article Learning by Dying republished on a blog devoted to educational technology.

I was even more delighted to find Dr Gee's remarkable article "Literacy, Learning and Good Games" on the same blog, in which he says things like: "...the real message we should take from good video games is not necessarily to use games for learning, though that is a fine thing, but to use the sorts of learning principles that good games incorporate in our curricula, whether a game is involved or not."

It is reassuring to see this alignment of playful wisdom. Read the articles. Be reassured.

Robert J. Lang Origami

This remarkable figure of an elk was made out of one sheet of paper. Uncut.

To further your amazement, and amusement, you can download the actual crease pattern. Lang explains: "Conventional origami diagrams describe a figure by a folding sequence — a linear step-by-step pattern of progression. Crease patterns, by contrast, provide a one-step connection from the unfolded square to the folded form, compressing hundreds of creases, and sometimes hours of folding, into a single diagram!...Puzzling out crease patterns can be fun; if you get hooked, there are many more scattered around the internet. Enjoy!"

It is one of hundreds of amazing feats of folding produced by Robert J. Lang Origami - each one a genuine testimony to the power of play.

Lang has been exceedingly generous in sharing his mastery of the art, and science or Origami with the virtual world. He is clearly a gifted practitioner of his art, which makes the gift of his site that much more valuable.

New Games at USC, time lapsed

Yes, a lot time has lapsed since New Games started in, what, 1974.

And today, courtesy of David Lopez and USC, a time-lapsed view of a New Games / Snoopy Thanksgiving celebration, 30 years later.

Yeah, I know, the parachute and Earth Ball are not the official New Games versions. The Earth Ball had an image of the globe painted on it and the parachutes were usually standard military white or grey. But these new-fangled, multi-colored renditions of the aforesaid make the event look like a work of art. Which it is, in deed.

To see the clip, click here and either download the zipped file (22.4 megs) or click and wait very patiently to see it online.

(thanks Janine for letting me know about the clip, and thanks Tracy and cohorts for making this happen)

RPS - 25, as in Rock / Paper / Scissors plus 22

RPS - 25. Rock, Paper, Scissors, that is, the game, thereof, only with more than your basic rock, scissors and paper. Way, actually, more. Like for example: gun, dynamite, nuke, lightning, devil and on, and on, in a manner much like this.

Thanks for this plethora of pointless playfulness go to Bill Harris, author of things like this.

Further thanks, insofar as this is a day devoted to such, to my son Elyon and daughter-in-law Julie, for the birth of my grandson, Zev, one-year-old today.

And thank you, too, for everything.

Finger Food Roulette

It's not so much because of the turkey or the Pilgrims, this holiday. It's because of each other, this Thanksgiving getting together. Hence, the appropriateness of this FunCast being devoted to one of my favorite family food games



Finger Food Roulette

1) Select a variety of finger foods: celery sticks, carrot sticks, pistachios, peanuts, etc. Place each in a separate serving dish. In each dish, place enough of the selected finger food to feed one-third to one-half of the extended family.

1.1) If there are more people than finger foods (as is often the case), prepare two or perhaps even three dishes from each.

1.2) Thus making certain that each finger food is equally represented, and each participant equally finger fed.

1.2.1) For example, were there only three snacks and some 12 people, there would be 4 portions of each finger food.

2) At the appropriate time, distribute the finger food platters randomly, placing one in front of each food fingerer (sic).

2.1) Instruct all participants to take a handful of the snack in front of them, and then to

2.2) pass their platter to the clockwisenly (also sic) adjacent person.

2.3) Continue in like manner: finger-feeding, passing, finger-feeding, passing.

3) The last finger-food left loses.

games, movies and academia

I teach a design class, called "Experiments in Interactivity" with Tracy Fullerton at USC.

Here she is in an article from today's actual New York Times:

"There are definitely some people in the game industry who wonder why academia is taking an interest in them after all this time," Ms. Fullerton said. "It reminds me that there was a moment when film studies really took off and the guys at the studios were like, 'Who are these Spielbergs and Lucases and Coppolas coming out of these film schools with these crazy ideas?' They'll come around."

I am proud to know her.

The International Bone Rollers' Guild

The International Bone Rollers' Guild is more than a treasury of dice games, it's a portal to the art and science of playing with chance. The game collection is formidable enough. I especially appreciated the clarity and practicality of Mitch Klink's classification system: a list of games arranged by the number of dice used, home and family dice games, bar games, games for large groups, skill games and casino games.

Aside from his collection of games, I particularly enjoyed the well-illustrated and apparently comprehensive history of dice. Here's a taste:

"Man's very earliest written records mention dice and dice games... and crooked dice, as well. Archeological evidence points to the fact that dice games were played by both peasants and pharaohs in ancient Egypt. King Rameses III (c. 1182-1151 B.C.) had himself portrayed on the high gate of the temple of Medinet Haboo playing a dice game with two ladies of his harem. Ancient Egyptian religious writings mention dice games that are played by the spirits of the departed in the underworld."

Polyhedral Ponderings - an informed exploration of the relationships between different dice shapes and how they can impact the odds of throwing a particular number is worthy of any text book on solid geometry or game design.

Finally, don't overlook the section on how dice are used in fortune telling. The connections between even the simplest dice games and our attempts to control our personal destinies are numerous and profound, and reveal as much about our psyche as

See also this directory of other dicey sites.

Candles, Mirrors and Blogging

Nancy White, one of my personal heroines, makes a little Quicktime video explaining the connection between blogs, mirrors and candles. It is, as one would expect from Nancy, poetic and profound.

It comes to us via the Weblog Project and my poetic and profound CoWorking colleague Gerrit Visser.

FunCast: Minor Fun

Today's FunCast is about Minor Fun - the kind of fun that generally goes unnoticed, and yet turns out to be, well, fundamental, as it were, to our very sanity.

If you'd like to read this piece, see this.

Junkyard Golf at Southwest Airlines

"The Junkyard Golf experience was a success! We went junk hunting (similar to trick or treating) throughout our Headquarters and collected lots of fun things to use in our golf event.

"We divided up the Teams into nine groups of four. Each was designated a hole. They had 15 minutes to create their miniature golf hole. Then two from each Team played a round of nine holes, and then switched with the next two. They thoroughly enjoyed the game and really got into the creation of their own hole. We gave away Four awards (ribbons) to the most creative hole that truly demonstrated junkyard golf... We also gave one to the highest score and to the lowest (the best golfers) AND to the most enthusiastic Team who really cheered and coached players as they played their Team hole. (We handed out score cards to keep score.... Our Leaders really like competition and this added this particular element for the game)

"Looks like we have an activity that is a keeper for future Camp Cultures. Thank you again for the Guide and most of all for a great idea for a Team Builder, fun event. This fit perfectly with the environment and goal for the morning's activity."

- Cheryl, Director, Leadership Training, Southwest Airlines

(more photos)

Cubicle Bowling

Cubicle Bowling, a cross between bowling and curling and sheer silliness invented by Daniel Saakes of the ID-Studiolab at the University of Delft in Holland, provides us with at least one meaningful answer to the eternal question: "what should we do with all these extra empty water jugs?"

For yet more clarity, see this video.

Collosal Croquet

Croquet. Very big croquet. Collosal, even. Think about it. Do something about it, like these people at Burning Man 2005. And these people, shown here, who apparently played with a truck for a mallet. Whilst here we see a scaled-down, more accessible, beach ball-using croquet thingy as played on the rainy streets of Toronto's Kensington Market.

And then there's the veritable World Giant Croquet Federation, even.

Let me know if you find any more of these Collosal games. Croquet, bowling, golf, whatever. I'm big game hunting.

World Games Fun Day

The World Games Fun Day features 50: "playful first encounters with sports ranging – alphabetically – from aikido to water ski. These exercises were developed by German sports pedagogues (under the lead of Christoph Gehrt-Butry on behalf of the Duisburg Sports Council and the Organizing Committee for The World Games 2005) for physical education classes to be held at schools in North Rhine-Westphalia. But many of the exercises can be easily adapted to all-ages programs elsewhere: from psychomotor education in a kindergarten all the way to fitness classes for senior citizens and even parties. They are flexible and ageless. Above all, they’re for fun!"

You can download a PDF file of all 50 of these game/exercises here. They are in many cases the very essence of Junkyard Sports - physical, unthreatening, and, as they say, they are, above all, all for fun.

Original German Version by the Duisburg Organizing Committee 2005

Adapted to English for Worldwide Use by the International World Games Association (IWGA) as an International Year of Sport and Physical Education Project

FunCast: Relaxed Playfulness and the Inner Tire Swing

The text for today's FunCast can be found here.

One Free Minute : Anonymous Public Speech

One Free Minute : Anonymous Public Speech

"One Free Minute is a mobile sculpture designed to allow for instances of anonymous public speech. When you call the cellphone inside One Free Minute, you get connected for exactly a minute to a 200 watt amplifier and speaker. The speech produced by the speaker can be heard clearly more than 150 feet away from the sculpture."

There's a wonderful explanation of the mission behind the mayhem. Though it doesn't do well at describing the inherent fun of all this (which is why you are reading about it here), it does describe how they were able to justify perpetrating this bizarre experience on the unsuspecting many.

thanks for the find, in4mador

Plext

Plext is a Boggle-ish word game that is unique and, consequently, uniquely fun. Designed by Chris Handy, who also designed the Major FUN Award-winning game "Handy," Plext features a set of 14 letter dice. The dice are rolled and then placed in a tray so they line up end-to-end. Players then compete to list the FEWEST ("fewest" is definitely a new idea for word games) words that contain ALL 14 letters, in the order in which those letters appear.

We had a little trouble initially understanding the full implication of FEWEST and "in order." So, here's the deal. It doesn't matter how many letters you add. All you have to do is use up all of the existing letters, in the order that they're, um, in, and in as few words as possible. Let's say that your letter array is: PFGBWOSMYHPCVD. A first word like "preferring" would use the P, F and G. For the next word, you try "worship" to get rid of the W, O, and S. That's two words and six letters. For your third word, you reach the veritable apogee of verbal verisimilitude and write "mythopoetic." Mythopoetic? Yes, indeed. In the dictionary and everything. Swallowing M, Y, H, P, and C! All that's left is a mere V and D. "Void" will work perfectly. As would "Valid" or even "Envisioned." So in four words, you use up all 14 letters.

We were surprised at how absorbing and fun, and unique, this little game proved to be. We were not, however, in the least bit surprised by the quality of the components and packaging. Like almost all the games manufactured by SimplyFun, Plext is lovingly packaged and presented, and the pieces well-finished and durable.

The game is recommended for 2-6 word-game players, ages 10 and up, with about 45 minutes to play.

Do Mobula Rays Fly for Fun?

"Whoosh! Without warning, a mobula emerges from below the surface, its long flat body glistening in the evening light and whip for a tail trailing behind. Flap, flap, flap, maybe a somersault or two, and then smack! It happened again and again. Single flips. Straight-up belly flops. Double flips. I see a single mobula leap a few times in succession; others leap only once and then disappear. I witness mobulas partially emerging from the water, one third of the wingtip still immersed, and rotate around that tip. Sometimes, I don't even see that. All that is visible is the swirl of water left behind...

"...it's hard not to believe this behavior is not some manner of play — it certainly looks that way. Among fish, mobula rays have disproportionately large and complex brains. In fact, the weight of their brains relative to their body weight is comparable to many mammals.

"Some mobulids, manta rays in particular, are known to exhibit un-fishlike playful behavior amongst themselves and with human divers. Some of these creatures will seek out human contact and will approach divers to solicit attention, a scratch, or just apparently, to feel a diver's bubbles against their skin."

This is a magnificent mystery - this union between species at play. It causes in us awe, disbelief, maybe even humility. We are not alone in the ability to play. We are not the only beings capable of exuberance. Not the only creatures we can celebrate with. Not the only celebrators.

Office Madness

Apparently, dangerous and/or destructive fun and office life go hand-in-hand, or is it pen-in-band? I am not sure what the appeal is, but it is clear from such activities as those described on the Office Guns and Office Olympics sites, that there are a significant few who, in seeking solace from the daily acts of psycho-sabatoge that permeate the white collar world, turn to acts of petty violence.

What we need must duly note, however, is the degree of creativity, excitement and genuine delight that seems to result from these illegal and clearly silly demonstrations of undercover rebellion. Play on, I say, play on!

FunCast: A Mirror Game for Serious and Silly

I'm calling today's FunCast "A Mirror Game for Serious and Silly." You could also call it "Silly and Serious at play in the Inner Sandbox," but then you'd be leaving out the mirror part. It comes from a recent "Recess for the Soul" performance. You can read most of the text here.

You, too, can be an Imaginary Success

"You, too, can be an Imaginary Success" - see: "Imaginary Multimedia Wants You."

Inner eyeMovie™

Inner eyeMovie™, Imaginary Multimedia's most recent intellectual software release, is, as purported, conceptually based on a software product created by the better, and far smaller of two major computer producers. These similarities are completely unauthorized and do not in any way reflect a relationship between Imaginary Multimedia and that fruit-named organization, nor in any way do they imply disrespect or disregard for the proprietary design elements created by the aforementioned. Just thought you'd want to know.

ME-WE - a meditation

Breathe in (or out) every time you see the word "ME."

Breathe out (or in) every time you see the word "WE."

"ME" is the person you call yourself whenever you call yourself "me."

"WE" is "ME" and everything connected to its: mind, heart, stomach, liver, nose, ears, eyes.

Breathe out (or in) every time you see the word "ME."

Breathe in (or out) every time you see the word "WE."

Do it one way until you discover you are doing it the other.


from: "ME-WE - a meditation" spinning ME/WE graphic by Steve Childs, Mediocre Man

Pete's Pond

Pete's Pond

I never really liked zoos. I know. It's hard to believe that the Fun Guy himself doesn't like zoos. I like seeing all the people un their festive familial mode. But I get too compassionate with the animals, you know what I mean, too involved to appreciate how beautiful they are in captivity. So it's like there's a fun that I'm missing - that is somehow connected to seeing wild animals.

Courtesy of National Geographic's Wildcam Africa, I can actually watch wild animals, in the actual wild somewhere near Botswana, doing their wild things, like getting a drink from a pond. And I got to tell you, I exprience a playfulness of the most delicious kind, even though I'm only sitting there, in front of my computer, looking at a webcam. Similar if not precisely the same kind of playfulness previously classified as "relaxed playfulness," don't you know. Peacefully delighted.



Pete's Pond found its way to my desktop via One Trick Cyberpony.