Monthly Archives: July 2012

hopscotch

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Hopscotch is a kids game for practicing balance and agility. It seems rather silly to someone who has pretty good balance and can hop on one foot, but children are still learning how to coordinate their limbs, so games are a handy way to get some necessary practice. And they don’t know they are practicing anything – it’s just a game!

As an adult, if you’ve managed to hold onto any spark of your childish fun and wonder, you will probably still enjoy playing this game. Don’t remember? Go find some chalk (preferably colorful) and draw a hopscotch on your front walkway! You’ll feel rather silly and awkward at first, but once you get the hang of it, your learned inhibitions will slide off and you will be having unadulterated (ha! pun!) fun!

I took this information from this website

“Game origin:
Hopscotch began in ancient Britain during the early Roman Empire. The original hopscotch courts were over 100 feet long! Can you imagine that? They were used for military training exercises.

“Hey, Claudius! how bout a game of Hopscotch?” “Okay Brutus, but first I have to put my gear on! Hang a minute and wait for me?”

Roman foot soldiers ran the course in full armor and field packs, and it was thought that Hopscotch would improve their foot work. Roman children imitated the soldiers by drawing their own boards, and creating a scoring system, and “Hopscotch” spread through Europe. In France the game is called “Marelles”, in Germany, “Templehupfen” (try saying that three times fast!) “Hinklebaan” in the Netherlands (probably played with Heineken beer cans) “Ekaria Dukaria” (played while watching Daria) in India, “Pico” in Vietnam, and “Rayuela in Argentina.”

In order to begin the game, each player must start with a marker. Common stones were used in the days of the Roman Empire, but in more modern times, items such as bean bags, pennies, and other assorted items were used.

Hopscotch boards were usually found in playgrounds, but if there weren’t any, a good piece of chalk could easily remedy that.”

How cool is that?!

If you would like to know more about hopscotch and it’s very interesting and worldwide history (it didn’t start as a ‘girls game’  ) check out this Wikipedia article.

damage assessment

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I read an article the other day about how living in cities makes you dumber (#1 in the list!) We all know that it’s stressful, but did you know that being in a city actually gives us, “worse memory, poor attention and learning problems?”

The article also goes on to cite a study that says that being in nature is good for our brains. Now, anyone who has spent any time in the country knows this. You can feel it. Unless you can’t. My dad and I used to call the amount of weird you feel when leaving the city for the country “damage assessment.” The bigger/more overwhelming that feeling is indicates how much damage living in the city has done to you.

Try it out! I dare you.

Immerse yourself in a city. Just go full-force. Check out the shows, go to the bars, spend lots of time downtown. Rush hour traffic. Horns. Construction. Frenetic pace. Then… go into the country. Get out of your car and walk aimlessly in a field or woods. If there is a rushing sound in your ears, a nervousness in your body, and your brain is making lists of things it thinks you should be doing instead of this frivolous walk… you have been damaged by city life. Spend some time there. Immerse yourself in the country. Smell flowers, go on nature hikes, lie in a field at night and make up constellations. Then go into the city. It will freak you out. Quick! Go back to the trees!

But I digress.

This post started off from me thinking about the idea of “community” and how much I miss living in an area where I can walk down the street and see people I know. This exists in cities and small towns alike, and if you are lucky enough to live in an area of a city that is a true neighborhood that includes a walkable cafe and/or bar where you can go and visit with friends, then perhaps your “damage assessment” will end up being lower since you aren’t having to battle traffic and noise and hassle just to hang out.

I miss porches and sidewalks and little walk-able cafes and friendly neighbors. I miss starry nights and drifting days. I grew up in the country, but there were a few other houses within walking distance (1/4 – 2 miles) and other kids my age. Before I could drive, this was my community. I would walk out of my house down the road to a friend’s house, or take my dog with me to the lake for a swim, or wander in the forest and make up stories while trying to catch snakes and avoid poison ivy. When I got older, I could drive into town and hang out on friends porches on those hazy hot summer days.

Of course the phrase, “you can never go home again” is not referring to a location, but a state of mind. My town is still there, changed, but still there. However, my relationship to it has changed drastically. I’ve been living in cities for so many years, I think I’ve forgotten how to relax. My damage assessment quotient is high. Sometimes I wonder if I moved back to a small town how long it would take for me to get back to that more calm state of mind where worry moves to the back burner, and time moves a little slower.