Going through our archives, we came across this great post by Dr. AnnMaria De Mars from May 13, 2016 “Four daughters, a dolphin suit and a caged weasel” that we wanted to share in case you missed it the first time around.
I was listening to the Moth podcast today – recommended by my daughter, Jennifer and well worth the time, by the way – and a man was telling a story about rowing across the English Channel in a bathtub.
He even wrote a book about it called All at Sea: One Man, one bathtub, one really bad idea.
Listening to it, I had a very good idea. He made the point that you could do something really hard like climb Mount Everest or circumnavigate and the British public will say,
“Pssh! That’s not that hard”
(The above is how I imagine British people talk.) However, he says, climb Mount Everest in a dolphin suit or walk around the globe carrying a caged weasel and people will say,
“Woo-hoo. Amazing! Get that man a medal!”
(I may have paraphrased about the weasel, but you get the idea.)
I’ve been trying to get more attention for 7 Generation Games, particularly our new game, Forgotten Trail, which is really good and going to be even more awesomely good because it is online and we can update it easily every month.
So, here, I thought, is an opportunity. Find something difficult that people do, like kayak the length of the Potomac or hike the Appalachian trail and then do it with all four daughters, while one of them is wearing a dolphin suit and carrying a caged weasel. That should attract attention! We could trade off on carrying the weasel.
Actually, this may be a ferret
Now, I only need three things:
1. An activity to do. It can’t involve too much running – no 100 mile races or anything like that, because I had one knee replaced and just came back from seeing the orthopedist about the other. Also, I HATE cold weather so tobogganing and other ice related things are out. We could walk every trail in the Santa Monica mountains or swim a mile in every pool in the United States – the weasel will have to be on the pool deck. We could drive cross country and stop at the dumbest tourist attraction in every state – world’s largest statue of a buffalo, Corn Palace and largest ball of twine, I’m looking at YOU!
2. A dolphin suit.
3. A caged weasel.
Hey, I have an idea that involves all four of you guys, a dolphin suit and a ferret. Call me back!
I’ll call you when I get inside, Mom. The Uber driver is just dropping me at my house. I just got back from having the cat shaved.
What the hell did that cat ever do to you?
She questioned my authority.
Now I know that readers of this blog have a wide range of experiences and creativity, so it would be greatly appreciated if any of you could provide me with:
– A recommended activity for setting a record, doable by people with bad knees and an aversion to cold.
– A dolphin suit
– A weasel or possibly ferret
——————————
OR …
You could just buy Forgotten Trail. It’s only $4.99.
Hi, Dr. Annmaria. I still suggest renting that van or r.v. while visiting rural schools. You could record all your rants and positive experiences. I also recommend having a “coffee time.” The visual and sound of coffee being poured has a strong affect on people. (Just watch Seinfeld’s comedians in Cars and you’ll understand.)
I’ve noticed that Chile has passed legislation regarding recycling. Perhaps you could create games for young students that address recycling, counting, colours etc.. I would pitch this to different levels of government.
Take care!