Trick or Treat

A world-wide-weirdie from Ken Reid via Monster Brains

Happy Halloween

Do I have to wear that costume? 

If you want candy, you do. 

But don't take a picture. 

Okay. (I lied.)

Hobo Pippi Longstocking: Umm, does that beard itch? 

Lumberjack with foam Legoland hatchet: No! Okay! Stop talking about it!

Do I have to wear that costume?

It's the only one that fits you in the dress-up clothes.

But do I have to?

If you want candy you do.

Okay. But don't take a picture.

Okay. (I lied. Again.)

Now smile. One, two, three, cheese

Much better. Have an oddballkidfun Halloween!

Zombie Apocalypse For Kids - How To Practice

As a concerned parent, I'm sure you've asked yourself,  "How can I prepare my kids for the Zombie Apocalypse?"

The answer is, of course, practice, practice, practice. Once every few months, just like a school fire drill, all families should practice how to behave in the Zombie Apocalypse until what to do becomes second nature.

Luckily, the practicing part is fun, painless, and pretty easy. We're going to play a game. Gather up anywhere from 5 to 40 participants and play a zombie version of tag. There are two good games: Zombie Tag and Doctor's Antidote.

Zombie Tag is a lot like a playground tag game with a few small differences. To start playing Zombie Tag an original zombie must be chosen. This person is "it" to start. The original zombie's goal is to tag any other human and turn them into a zombie. Once the original zombie tags someone they are also a zombie and now both zombies will chase the rest of the players until there is only human left. The last human is the winner.

During the game the zombies should identify themselves by saying "Brains,brains, brains" or walking with their arms outstretched or limping. Zombies should walk or jog but they shouldn't run. There is also no safe place for humans to go to during the game. Remember, no one is safe from a zombie apocalypse!

A more involved game is Doctor's Antidote. This one begins with one player called the doctor. The players gather around the doctor before the game starts and close their eyes. The doctor quietly taps about half the players on the shoulder to become zombies. The players keep there eyes closed and stay quiet until the doctor is finished.

Now the game can start. The players are in two groups: humans and zombies. Everyone waits with their eyes closed as the doctor hides. It might take a couple of minutes for the doctor to find a good hiding spot. Once the humans give enough time for the doctor to hide they can open their eyes and start looking for the doctor. The zombies then start their own count to thirty to give humans a head start. Once the zombies finish counting they can open their eyes and start looking for the humans.

Th object of this game is for the humans to find the doctor, who has the zombie antidote and bring him or her to a pre-chosen location- the hospital. If the humans bring the doctor to the hospital then humans win. If the zombies tag all of the humans before they bring the doctor to the hospital then the zombies win.

There are a few rules for Doctor's Antidote. Zombies can only walk in this game- no running. They cannot guard the doctor if they find him before the humans. Zombies aren't that smart! The doctor cannot hide close to the hospital before the start of the zombie attack. Also, tagging the doctor does nothing because with the antidote he or she is immune to the zombies.

Now that we know how to practice for a Zombie Apocalypse, all we need is a good park to play in. I'll cover that in another post.

Good luck and stay safe when the Zombie Apocalypse reaches your town.

Global Cardboard Challenge At Caine's Arcade

On Saturday my son and I spent a few hours enjoying the first Global Cardboard Challenge at Caine's Arcade. The event was one of more than 200 events in over 30 countries across the world. The event was created by the team behind the Caine's Arcade films and their Imagination Foundation which was formed to find, foster, and fund creativity and entrepreneurship in kids.

We've visited Caine's Arcade a few times. It's always a treat. This time we created our own cardboard game from a mailing tube, boxes, a Twix cereal box, a pencil, duct tape, and some Gatorade caps. Our goal was to create a small copy of one of my son's favorite ticket redemption games at Chuck E. Cheese - The Smokin' Token.

Here's our cardboard game...

And the original...

While we were there we helped out a group of kids and adults create a cardboard tunnel maze. The ingenious pieces used to connect the cardboard were donated by a company called makedo. 

The maze tunnel started off as a small painted cardboard entry and a few boxes but by the end of the day covered as much space as a basketball court. All of the maze was built that day by kids, parents, and volunteers. 

The maze included secret rooms, a fort, and many twisting pathways. Local school kids spent so much time exploring and crawling through the maze that they would come out covered in sweat. Friends played hide and seek once the maze grew. 

The event had places to build using only recycled items, cardboard boxes, and imagination. The street was blocked off toward the end of the event to have a kid parade. Kids marched in a row showing off their creations and hand made musical instruments with all the adults standing in a long line giving the kids high fives. 

Every time I've visited any Caine's Arcade event I've been impressed. The events are a genuine appreciation and recognition of kid's creativity and sense of fun. 

Most places dedicated to engaging kids and families - from kid's museums to Disneyland - try hard to look clean and new with bright colors and shiny surfaces. Caine's Arcade, on the other hand, gets dirty cardboard, tons of paint and packaging tape and tells the kids to have fun. Even great kid-focused art programs at almost every museum will have the kids put on smocks to keep the paint off their clothes. Caine's Arcade events seem to encourage kids to sit on a messy floor and get their hands dirty.

This is my son after the event. His knees are covered in dirt, he's sweaty from crawling through the tunnel maze, and he's proudly displaying a few of the things he put together at the event: a cardboard tube bazooka, a cardboard and packaging tape drum, and a large cardboard tube he squeezed into and rolled around in before the kid's high five parade. 

Caine's Arcade inspires kids to create without rules and have fun trying things out. The leaders of the Imagination Foundation behind the Global Cardboard Challenge encourage kids to be kids. This is a place where looking forward to a four square game is commonplace. 

The best part of the day for me was during a visit by L.A.'s mayor and a city councilman. Before the speech most of the volunteers were herded behind the podium. A group of kids visiting from local programs were also seated behind the mayor for the cameras. But there were still a few kids running around. And during the mayor's speech, while the audience was quiet, you could hear a handful of kids playing hide and seek in the tunnel maze. They would laugh, then yell, then laugh again and chase each other. I thought that was a great moment. The mayor came to speak at a family event and some kids didn't care, they just wanted to play. That's what Caine's Arcade is about for me- letting kids imagine, play, and create- not because adults tell them to but because they want to. And because it's fun. 

Halloween Candy Mashup

Jerry Seinfeld's routine about candy, kids, and Halloween mashed up with Pinkie Pie from My Little Pony. Created by MysteryLarry. Enjoy the sugar-coated sweetness.