often i head to the center where i work thinking i have a great activity planned for my boys. sometimes, i am right. sometime, i am wrong, very wrong.
i was recently inspired by the section of ayun halliday's book, dirty sugar cookies, covering her middle school lunchtime adventures. she mentions playing the, "this is a _______" game and i thought, "what a great idea!. did you ever play it? it's hard to explain (especially in spanish). basically, each player has an object and sings a little song in unison and at the end of the song the object is passed to the person to each player's right.
each person sings:
(to the player to the right): this is a spoon.
(a spoon being the object this player is currently holding.)
(to the player to the left): a what?
(to the right): a spoon.
(to the left): a what?
(to the right): a spoon.
(to the left): oh, a book.
(a book being the next object this player would sing about.)
and then the same song is sung. this time with the book.
everyone gets into the rythm and the objects can be passed on and on for hours. or so i thought! when my kids eventually caught on (which took many versions of me modeling with volunteers, followed by playing in spanish, and then eventually in english) i thought we were all going to have great fun playing and playing and playing. nope. in case you were considering trying it with your group of ecuadorian teenage boys, don't! they love "head, shoulder, knees and toes" but "this is a _________" is BORING.
oh, and if you are interested in ayun's book then you can also check out her food blog. i like the book, but i like her blog more. and i like her zine, the east village inky the best (see an example of one of her cute little drawings to the left). especially now that she lives in my old neighborhood in brooklyn.(although, doesn't everbody these days?) her zine is full of funny stories and observations about daily life. yes, ayun is one silly lady but you can be assured that i'm never again playing one of her favorite childhood games with my boys. sorry ms. halliday.
and on a completely different note: one of my favorite artists, carson ellis, now has her very own blog.
Oh my goodness, I had not thought of that game in years, we used to play that on long bus trips to theater competitions in high school...it can also be played as a drinking game...though obviously not with children.
Posted by: stilettoheights | January 16, 2007 at 01:18 PM
I have a quick question- i haven't been to your blog in a while, and while looking at your back posts, I noticed this absolutely smashing polka dot cardigan! I have looked EVERYWHERE for it, and i cannot seem to find one like it. I am a polka dot addict, and I think quite possibly i realllllly need one of those. Would you mind revealing the secret!? It would be so much appreciated!!
Posted by: kelsey | January 16, 2007 at 01:58 PM
stiletto - i think my boys would have preferred it as a drinking game. actually, i know they would. the fact that they are there for drug treatment, however, leads me to believe this would not have gone over well with the other staff. :)
kelsey - the cardigan is from boden...i'm not sure if they still have some available on sale (how i snagged mind) but i saw some other cute polka-dot cardigans in their new spring line.
Posted by: risa | January 16, 2007 at 02:01 PM
you get big bonus points for trying!
i LOVE that little illustration of the kid w/ the scissors. adore actually.
and isn't it funny how hip brooklyn has become???
Posted by: lisa s | January 16, 2007 at 06:19 PM
ooooh, i can't wait to tell heath and michelle you mentioned them on your blog! they're gonna flip...
as for your game, it reminds me a lot of the games we used to play at sleepover parties in elementary school. this one in particular reminds me of "wanna buy a duck? a what? a duck! does it quack? of course it quacks!" maybe you should try around the world with them instead. :)
Posted by: jillypickle | January 16, 2007 at 06:45 PM
Oh no. I can imagine the disapointment at their disinterest. I do not like planning things that others do not find amusing. Oh well. It is kinda funny though, once you look back at it??? How long do you think the package I sent will take to get to you???
Posted by: Vanessa | January 16, 2007 at 06:59 PM
Hi Risa! you can find more argentinian illustrators' portfolios at www.forodeilustradores.com. Thanks for your comments in my blog! see you!
Posted by: valeria | January 16, 2007 at 08:25 PM
Ahhh... bless you for trying..it must have been so frustrating!
And love carson ellis - probably found thru you!!! xxx
Posted by: julie | January 17, 2007 at 02:47 AM
I guess playing games with kids is always a trail and error process, I can imagine their faces looking blankly :) Love the cute illustrations, thanks.
Posted by: cruststation | January 17, 2007 at 03:46 AM
Sounds like you had a slightly traumatic day... Still I'm sure you're doing a fantastic job, personally I'd have no idea how to entertain a class of teenagers.
Posted by: louise | January 17, 2007 at 06:08 AM
What dear story! It does seem like a clever game to play. Luckily her blog is super clever,how creative to put wasabi in your Bloody Mary!
Posted by: jungle dream pagoda | January 17, 2007 at 10:55 AM
what a funny story... i remember that game from my childhood and i can only imagine trying to explain it in spanish! though i did once see a girl try to explain the concept of "radical cheerleading" to a group of folks in the guatemalan campo, which was a hoot.
i love ayun halliday's bust columns & zine... thanks for the blog link!
Posted by: amisha | January 17, 2007 at 02:20 PM
Yes how sometimes things can be so frustrating...you just have to laugh about it :)
I need to check the links you left me curious.
Posted by: simple me | January 18, 2007 at 04:41 AM
i love that they love head, shoulders, knees and toes though. so funny. and yes yes, i love the little guy with the scissors, just perfect. and thank you for the link to carson's blog ~ awesome! xo~!
Posted by: jerusha | January 31, 2007 at 08:16 PM