Are You NUTS Yet? Heres A Couple Corona Quarantine Cabin Fever Slayers

WE FOUND SOME LEGIT COMPLETELY UNIQUE THINGS TO DO...

When the Corona Virus hit our lands blogging just didn't seem like a worthy way to spend ones time. Now that some time has passed it occurred to me that maybe I was a wrong about my thoughts on that.

This realization came to me in a funny way. Bonnie and I were finalizing our preparations for the lockdown. We decided to double check our food supply decisions by comparing them to some online prepper lists.

booze on every list

I was surprised to see that booze was on pretty much every list. The reason for being there-- morale. It seemed weird at first until I thought more on it. Then it made perfect sense. We didn't think about morale. I'd imagine many of you are like us... grinding it out plenty hard already and then news of a pandemic whammy. It was all we could do to just be somewhat ready on vital matters. As for morale and entertainment/activities for that matter...notta. Hence resuming the blog with this post in the event you made our mistake too.

are they trying to play games here?

I looked online for activities and the suggestions... were... pretty lame. Not lame as in the activities themselves but rather the suggestions were lame because the majority of them were painfully obvious activities. It occurred to me that 90% of the suggested activities were activities people would be doing already and that by the time they wore those out they'd be Googling new ones only to find suggestions pointing to the things they've already done. lol. Thats a potential morale snubbing discovery in it's own right.

I started thinking more creatively about what I could suggest that would be unique. After some time passed It hit me like a brick. I need to think-- and we need to act-- like we did before we all had smartphones. In those days we didn't have anything of the sort and time passed fine, arguably better and certainly more healthily.

The following are the first pre-smartphone doozies we came up with. More to follow soon. Enjoy!

1. LIGHTER TOSS

This has been a round for awhile. I don't recall learning it. I recall me and some buddies thinking it up snowed-in in a cabin in Wondervu, Colorado roughly 25 years ago. I don't think we originated it because I soon met others who played it.

Lighter Toss is a game that sounds so stupid having it explained to you that you are certain the person is joking. BUT.... it isn't. It's stupidly addicting once you get a feel for it. It can be played alone or with as many people as will fit in the room within reason. It can be played just for the volley or it can be played by score. It can have stakes or beer swig penalties or any other thing you can drum up adding to it.

Lighter toss is a game of catch, a volley with yourself from hand to hand ( same or different hand ) or with 2 or more people a volley of any reasonable distance. Essentially the lighter is thrown from one person to the next. The person receiving the pitch catches the lighter on the back of their hand and without touching the lighter with their other hand throws it back or to the next person or any person in the group.

The addicting part of this game is when you learn how to catch the lighter ( It happens quickly ). Here's a tip or two...When the lighter is hurling your way you assess the arc, speed and angle of approach. This is vital because when your hand, palm down of course, contacts the lighter in flight it cannot have any resistance to the lighter's trajectory-- or else its hard plastic to bone and the lighter will deflect away. Having calculated the trajectory your hand will be moving with the lighter ( towards you not towards the lighter) when it catches it. You then absorb the impact of the catch and end up with the lighter resting on the back of your hand. Once you get good, which is very quickly, you'll be absorbing the catch and then recoiling around for the throw in one fluid motion. Here is a video of a young fella playing Lighter Toss by himself.

2. INDICATED

This game is certain to cause someone to storm out of the room eventually... but they'll be right back begging to get back in the loop. We played this with the kids and their friends for years around the fire at camp. The game can only be played once with a set group of people... that is if they figure it out anyway. You see... this game is based on a wee little bit of deception and careful choice of words so as to keep the secret safe.

Beforehand: First you will need an accomplice-- One person in the group playing that knows what's REALLY going on. It's vital that neither of you divulge the secret allegiance nor give the secret away by not carefully choosing your words. This will make more sense in a second.

It works like this: Whoever is 'IT' has 5 small sticks ( this will be you ). Any small sticks of any lengths or tooth picks or chop stix will do. The truth of the matter is that they are irrelevant but only you and your secret accomplice know this. You will lay the sticks out in front of you in any sort of grid pattern. The game works best playing on the ground but will work at a table also. The reason the ground is ideal is that it gives you a reason to sort of lean forward requiring both of your hands to be on the ground. Having laid your sticks out and both hands on the ground you then ask the other players...

"Who have I indicated?"

Here's the funny part... The assumption is that the pattern of sticks is indicating one of the other players. If any of the players guesses who, they get to be 'IT'. It will not be possible for them to know so even if they guess right by chance the very first time simply tell them no. Everyone gets one chance to guess in every round. They ALL tell you there answer and THEN you tell them if they are right or wrong.

Let the matter go in this way for a round or 3 before your accomplice hops in with a correct answer. Your accomplice will know from the first round exactly who you have indicated because they know where to look. The sticks don't matter... the indication is being made by either of your hands on the ground...simply pointing at the person. I mention 1 or 3 rounds before your partner in crime kicks in because it's up to you to gauge how upset or disinterested the other players are getting. It's also vital to keep them rallied up, encouraging them that they will get it.

When it seems like the right time... your accomplice will burst out... "OMG!! I GOT IT!!" and then say the correct name. You will congratulate them and say you can't believe how quickly they figured it out-- stating that it took you forever. It would then by the accomplice's turn. You'll know right away too of course but take a sec or minute to 'read the sticks' and be sure to never look directly at the telling hands.

In this way it'll go back and forth between you and the accomplice being 'IT'. During the game as it continues you and your accomplice will small talk about how EASY it is once you figure it out... that they can't believe they didn't get it immediately. Effectively, your accomplice 'getting it' will reignite optimism in the other players and the small talk between you two will do that AND frazzle them at the same time.

If people are getting too frustrated as play continues you can subtly get another players attention and carefully divulge the secret by knowing suggestive glances. If they catch on and get it the rest of the players will be encouraged once again.

There is no real actual winner in INDICATED just a loser unfortunately. Someone is going to get it last or not at all. Note that that person will be kinda pissed off. LOL. But all is well once they find out what the real deal is.

3. AMBITIOUS TEEN BONDING BY WAY OF TAZING

Before everyone gets all bent out of shape, we didn't actually TAZE each other. O.K.? Kidding, we tazed the stew out of those mongrels. LOL. Kidding, Kidding... we all tazed ourselves. Well, technically I did taze my daughter Josie also but in all fairness she did in fact taze me first. And I guess Josie did taze Zane and Josie's friend tazed me... There was just all sorts of tazing going on really--had a noted Tazapalooza kinda vibe to it-- so the lines are a little blurry. This video footage below is a wee taste of it towards the end...

Jokes aside there is a very particular reason this activity was included. Clearly I don't recommend you taze your children... unless there is a tazer there that your daughter's friend's dad gave her for safety and everyone is laughing at the idea of it and you then just kinda up tazing one another lovingly. And as not serious and an attempt at a joke as that might sound it isn't. I say that because the point of this entry is about connecting with kids. In this case... teens-- which is even considered in many schools of thought as impossible. lol.

Something seems to happen along the way in today's families. It as pandemic as Covid 19 really. It's like one day we are a happy family at the t-ball game and then as if overnight everything is different. The communication wanes. The smiles go away. The silent desperation begins for we parents as our little babies become strangers with cracking voices and periods and cars and boyfriends and all going down at hyper warp speed in a youth culture that has changed so drastically that we parents don't even have so much as a hope to be relevant in or accepted into.

We were there. We know what it's like. And about it I'll say this. Take time during this isolation to bridge some gaps or prevent some from happening by sewing into your kids relationally. What does that look like? It looks like a tazer. It looks like a late night walk and maybe even a ding dong ditch episode. Whatever it takes. I mean... I'm not saying rob a bank or enter permanent friend zone. What I am saying is that if you become willing to take some of this time we now all have to that effect... you'll know what to do. And we wish you God speed in it

4. AN AWESOME CAMP OR BACKYARD FIRE TECHNIQUE TO LEARN AS A FAMILY.

This simple technique in preparing for a fire works better than any I know of. Just a simple preliminary step that will insure fire every time. You'll be happy you learned it and it's perfect to do with the little ones or the teens.

So that's what we've drummed up so far that'll fit here anyway. haha. Hope it gives you a little time off from thumb twiddling if you are like us and have already been isolated for awhile.

If you have any extra time we'd consider it an owed-in-return-fist-bump-solid for you to give the site a look over with constructive feedback in mind.

Those of y'all that have been around the discussions enough to know the bigger picture objectives of Story Moto ADV and Motorcycle. Camp. Cook. as they apply to our sport understand why it's so important to offer the best content possible. It occurred to me that we really need input in that regard and all you receiving this would be the folks to ask for exactly that feedback. Thanks so much and for everything.

ONGOING GEAR DEALS...

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BONNIE & BILLY J PODCAST INTERVIEW

BY ZEE TRAVELER & DAKOTA HOWARD

Billy J is co-founder of Story Moto ADV, a dual sport / adventure riding brand with strategic initiatives serving the health of the adventure touring community in order to develop a unified voice for speaking resolution into motorcycle land closures in the U.S. due to overcrowding and other public land use conflicts. He has been a rider for 45 years, an extreme adventurer for 31, and an avid dual sport adventure rider for 20. His first time living on a motorcycle for more than a year was in 1988 and most recently for 16 months living and riding full time with his wife Bonnie J and their kids on a tour that wrapped up in the summer of 2019. The are plugging away at the Story Moto ADV compound for another round set to commence in the Summer of 2020.