
Tag: humor
Practicing gratitude: Lessons learned from duct tape and diarrhea
Gratitude. What’s so special about it, how can we cultivate more of it in our lives and what does it have to do with a wicked case of diarrhea?
What goes around comes around: Lessons from butt clay
You gotta love instant karma…
Like this story? Then check out my book Misadventure Musings: Lessons learned from life’s awesome and absurd moments.
The power of words: Lessons from mushy French cauliflower
Forget the Eiffel Tower: the most memorable parts of my trip to France were trying not to vomit on my host family and learning to choose my words carefully.
Like this story? Then check out my book Misadventure Musings: Lessons learned from life’s awesome and absurd moments.
What Meghan in the mud taught me about letting go
In the spirit of this story, this week’s Badge of Awesome goes to Caroline D. James for her article on Tiny Buddha “How High Expectations Can Lead to Disappointment, Depression, and Anxiety.” Thanks for the inspiration, Caroline! Continue reading
Keep it Simple: Lessons learned from an idiotic Christmas tree
Putting in extra effort to make an event or experience extra special is great. But sometimes — like my disastrous attempt to find the PERFECT Christmas tree for my mom — you can overdo it.
Like this story? Then check out my book Misadventure Musings: Lessons learned from life’s awesome and absurd moments. Continue reading
Why “Never give up” can be awful advice: Lessons learned from sleeping on a woodpile in a snowstorm
Perseverance and commitment are awesome. But as an ill-fated camping trip in March taught me, sometimes we just need to know when to quit.
The Importance of Community: Lessons learned from chasing a Killer at 2 a.m.
It’s 2 A.M., there’s a killer on the loose, and it’s up to me to catch him…
No, that’s not the opening line to my new thriller novel. That exact situation literally happened to me recently. Now, I really wish I could leave it at that and have you believe I’m some badass secret agent. But I feel obliged to reveal a couple other minor details about that night. Continue reading
Owning Up to Our Mistakes: Lessons learned from getting shot in the eye with a pellet gun
“Kids these days.” It’s a familiar expression used to express disapproval of how far today’s youth have drifted from the virtuous and well-behaved ways of their elders. But you only need to hear a few stories from my dad about his ridiculous childhood shenanigans to see what a crock that is.
Case in point: the fateful Christmas he got a BB gun. Continue reading
Benefits of Camping: Lesssons learned from five farting men in a yurt
Farts. The butt of so many jokes. The joke of so many butts. Growing up, I firmly believed that flatulence was infinitely funny; that cranking one out and laughter went hand in hand. Always.
But a winter camping trip with some friends proved I was wrong. Dead, stinking wrong. Emphasis on the stinking. Continue reading
Thinking Things Through: Lessons learned from nearly swallowing a severed human toe
There are 3 items on my ultimate bucket list. Joining Captain Dick’s World Famous Sour Toe Cocktail Club is one of them. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this… unusual… drinking tradition, Sour Toe cocktails are found exclusively at the Downtown Hotel bar in Dawson City, Yukon, Canada. Entry into the prestigious club is easy enough: you simply have to drink a shot of whiskey… Oh yeah, and your class has a severed human toe in it, which must touch your lips as you take your drink. Continue reading
Failing Your Way to Success: Lessons learned from being blindfolded and left in a farmer’s field
Whenever my extended family gets together you can usually count on three things: a lot of boxed wine, a lot of Euchre and a lot of jackassery. Our Easter celebration a couple years ago delivered on all three counts and included an activity that my Van Osch cousins came up with: the Blindfold Game. Continue reading
[Blog] 20 awesome activities involving 1 item or less
Editor’s note: This post was originally published on my Josh Martin Ink blog.
In an age of iPads, Xboxes and $200 shoes, our sources of entertainment and activity require increasingly sophisticated technology, equipment and infrastructure.
But there’s something to be said for the simpler activities. Activities that nurture creativity, ingenuity and imagination.
In 2005 the cardboard box was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame in Rochester, New York. The stick made the cut in 2008. “[T]here aren’t any rules or instructions for its use,” said Christopher Bensch, the museum’s curator of collections. “It can be a Wild West horse, a medieval knight’s sword, a boat on a stream or a slingshot with a rubber band.”
In a time when it seems that every toy requires 17 triple-A batteries and every activity requires mountains of gear, it’s nice to see the simple stick and cardboard box be recognized for the limitless entertainment potential that can be unlocked through imagination.
Here are twenty activity ideas for children and adults alike that require one item or less. Feel free to whip out this list if you ever hear a kid whining that they’re bored.
- Tag. I don’t mean tagging your friend puking on a cop on Facebook. I can’t count how many hours I’ve spent chasing friends around the schoolyard yelling “You’re it!”
- Soccer. It’s no surprise soccer is the most popular sport in the world. Whether you’re from Richmond Hill or Rwanda, all you need is a soccer ball and some open space.
- Ultimate Frisbee. Like soccer, but for hippies, the only thing you need for Ultimate is a disc (and perhaps granola).
- Cards. There are hundreds of games you can squeeze out of a single deck of playing cards. Perfect for games night or a rainy day. I come from a huge card-playing family. Euchre, Bugger your Neighbour, Hearts, Pork Chop—we grew up playing them all.
- Hopscotch. Any sidewalk or blacktop can be transformed into a playground with a bit of chalk and imagination.
- Yoga. Although many people go to yoga studios and gyms for this activity, all you really need is a yoga mat and a familiarity with the bizarrely-named poses.
- Red Rover. Oh man. No other game has been responsible for more clotheslines, bruised wrists and sprained fingers than Red Rover. “Red Rover, Red Rover, we call the paramedic over!” A personal favourite.
- Hide and Seek. Another favourite. All you need is a group of people and a good place to hide. Just don’t hide next to a bee hive like I did as a kid. That hurts.
- Charades. Great party game that doesn’t require anything fancy. Giving an easily embarrassed guest something x-rated to act out is always hilarious.
- Arm wrestling/thumb wrestling. Requires nothing but your own bodies. Think this is a lame activity? Watch Sylvester Stallone’s “Over the Top” and think again, buddy.
- Duck Duck Goose. Thrilling suspense. High speed chases. Patting people on the head. This classic has got it all.
- Bloody Knuckles. Taking turns rapping each other’s knuckles until they bleed is admittedly a bit violent and juvenile. But I wanted to mention this because it was a pretty common activity with my schoolmates.
- Touch football. If you remove the contact element from football you remove the need for all the pads, helmets and mouth guards. And the need for medical attention (in most cases).
- What time is it Mr. Wolf? I’m not sure how familiar people are with this game. It involves players calling out “what time is it Mr. Wolf?” to the “wolf” who has her back turned to them. The wolf calls out a time, like “7 o’clock!” and the players take seven steps toward her. This continues until the wolf thinks the players are close enough to catch and the next time they ask “what time is it Mr. Wolf?” she replies “LUNCH TIME!” and chases the squealing players around the playground.
- P.I.G. All you need is any sort of projectile – a ball, Frisbee, hard-boiled egg – that gets tossed back and forth between players. Drop the item and get a letter. When you spell P-I-G, you’re out.
- Rock Paper Scissors. I’m pretty sure more decisions have been made amongst my friends using Rock, Paper, Scissors than by thoughtful discussion.
- Tai Chi. A great activity I’ve wanted to try since my days in Taiwan. All you need is some instruction (and a cool paper fan if you want to look extra awesome).
- Tabletop football. Two players on opposite ends of a table. Object is to move a coin across the table in 4 or less pushes/flicks (downs) and have the coin partially hanging over the edge of the opponent’s end of the table (end zone) without it falling over. Harder than it sounds.
- I went on a camping trip/other car games. Before the days of DVD players in cars, iPods and PSPs, families going on a road trip had to occupy the long hours with driving games like “I went on a camping trip”, “eye spy” and “would you rather”.
- Debating. Probably the easiest way to pass the time of all these ideas is to open a controversial topic up for discussion.
These are just some of the ideas that came to my mind. What are your favourite simple activities?
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Visit the museum of broken relationships: Zagreb, Croatia
Ah, love. The heady surge of endorphins. The joy. The companionship. The matching tattoos. The disgustingly sweet pet names that make your friends want to punch you in the throat.
But of course, love and break-ups go hand-in-hand. The pain. The binge eating. The binge drinking. The sweatpants. The Sarah McLaughlin purchases on iTunes. The mopey “poor me” demeanour that makes your friends want to punch you in the throat. Continue reading
Have a Glow-in-the-dark Fight
Picture this. You’re in a pitch black room. You strain your eyes in an attempt to see something–anything!–but it’s no use. Fear and adrenaline course through your veins and you just hope the enemy can’t hear the heart pounding in your chest. Continue reading
Do a jungle tour, drink some jungle beer: Banos, Ecuador
Is it a problem that so many of my memorable travel experiences involve alcohol? I’ve already told you about the gin I shared with a chief in Africa, and the shot of whiskey I had in the Yukon that contained a human toe. For this week’s Blue Marble Badge, we head to the jungles of Ecuador, where a wretched drink known as jungle beer awaits. Continue reading
Play the Fan Game: A bedtime activity for kids
What’s funnier than a pair of underwear landing on someone’s head? Nothing. If you’re looking for a unique way to entertain your little kids, consider the Fan Game: an underwear flingin’ good time. Continue reading
Catch and eat your own shrimp dinner: Chiayi, Taiwan
It may not be as hardcore as hiring a ship in the Louisiana bayou to catch your own dinner. But still, the shrimp pool restaurants in Taiwan are pretty awesome. I can’t remember the name of the one I went to, (and likely couldn’t spell it if I did remember) but you’ll find these unique dining halls throughout the country. Continue reading
Take a Delicious Road Trip
Road trips rock. Road trips that end in deliciousness rock even harder. For a lot of people, summertime means great local food is in season. Whether it’s an established farmer’s market or a roadside stall selling homemade pies and sweet corn, local food tastes better, supports our farmers and helps connect us with the food we eat. Continue reading
[Blog] I am a Hobo Torpedo: Friends over stuff
By Josh Martin
“My friends are my estate.” – Emily Dickinson
Waterloo, Ontario—It’s ten-thirty at night and I’m hurtling down a deserted street inside a shopping cart, like some hobo torpedo. As my mobile, metal coffin rattles down the road at mach five I suddenly realize something—I’m an idiot.
It had all started two minutes earlier when my “friend” Royce offered to push me to the local bar in a shopping cart. Royce and I lived together in university with four other buddies in a dump of a student house on Marshall Street, a few blocks from the bar we were headed to. Never one to pass up a free ride, I accepted the shopping cart offer without a second thought.
I sat in the shopping cart facing forward and cheered Royce on as he pushed me faster and faster down the darkened street. Before long, my courage faltered.
“OK, Royce!” I yelled over the clatter of the rattling shopping cart. “Slow down!… Slow down, Royce!… ROYCE!?”
The cart showed no signs of slowing down. I risked a glance over my shoulder to sternly insist that my good and trusted friend stop the cart immediately. Unfortunately, my good and trusted friend was now twenty yards behind me with a stupid grin on his face. He had let go of the cart and sent me hurtling into the night.
Turning forward once again I realized that I was drifting to the right. To my horror I found myself heading straight for a fire hydrant. I vainly attempted to extricate myself from my impending doom. But leaping from a speeding shopping cart is more difficult then you might imagine.
I crashed squarely into the hydrant and was launched from the cart as if from a catapult. I flipped head over heels, cleared the fire hydrant and landed on my back in the grass on the other side with a dull thud.
Yup, I thought to myself. I’m an idiot.
A good reminder for myself
My life on Marshall Street was far from luxurious. We lived in a house that was near collapse. Our diets would make any nutritionist weep. All our furniture was second-hand and exuded a wide range of odours. None of us owned a car. And if our bank accounts were towns from the Wild West, there’d be tumbleweeds rolling through them.
And yet, despite the squalor in which we willingly spent our days and nights, I’ve never laughed so hard or had so much fun. Some of my greatest memories, like being launched from a shopping cart, are from those days in university and I think it says a lot about what’s really important in life.
Principle #2 of the Badge of Awesome Ethos: experiential riches trump material wealth.
Our culture places a lot of emphasis on high-paying jobs, big houses, cars, and other material benchmarks of success. In pursuit of these acquisitions however, we often sacrifice time and relationships with the people that make life so memorable.
Before making a decision, consider the social implications. Maybe buying that new big screen TV will mean you can’t afford to go on that camping weekend with the old gang. And maybe that house in the ‘burbs is big and awesome. But will it mean being far away from the people you enjoy hanging out with?
Cherish your friendships don’t let the material stuff in life get in the way of them. If that means riding a shopping cart to the bar instead of a Ferrari, then I say giddy’up—as long as Royce isn’t driving, of course.
The above story is actually adapted from my book, Simple(ton) Living: Lessons in balance from life’s absurd moments. Check out the Store to find out how you can get your own copy.
Play the Blindfold Game
This week’s Backyard Badge goes to the Blindfold Game – one of the most disorienting and entertaining activities you’ll ever play. Thanks to the Van Osch family for submitting this week’s winner – your Backyard Badge of Awesome and free ebook are on their way!
I recently had the pleasure of joining the Van Osches in the Blindfold Game. Here’s how it works: Continue reading
Go for a Canyon Swing: New Zealand
My Dad built a kick-ass swing set in our backyard when we were kids. It was pretty awesome. Awesome as it was, however, it still pales in comparison to this week’s Blue Marble Badge recipient: the Shotover Canyon Swing in New Zealand. Continue reading
Ride a 400-metre Jungle Waterslide: Costa Rica
Waterslides aren’t always awesome. Take for instance the “waterslides” I used to play on as a kid: a length of cheap plastic stretched across our gently sloping lawn and a garden hose. Continue reading
Build a Human Foosball game
In recent years the “dude-that’s-awesome” factor at my extended family’s Thanksgiving get-togethers has increased 10-fold. Why? Two words: human foosball.
You may have seen this Backyard Badge recipient at a corporate event or summer festival. But as my Aunt Jackie and Uncle Art demonstrated, there’s nothing stopping you from bringing it to your own backyard. Continue reading
Sip Gin at the Stilted Village: Nzulezo, Ghana
I’ve woken up in my fair share of strange places after a night of drinking. But looking out my window at 6 am and seeing this has got to be one of the strangest. And, incidentally, one of the most awesome. Continue reading