Booby Traps

As evidenced by the huge success of the "Home Alone" franchise, kids love booby traps. After watching that movie my kid spent days threading string through the house, hiding, and setting traps of his own design. Although I don't suggest getting in the way of that exploration, after a while, it is time to show a kid how to catch food, or crooks, if they need to.
The trap, or treadle snare as it is more rightly called, that we are going to make is modified from its most practical application (left) for tamer indoor fun. The way we will build this snare won't kill your cat, but will be a blast for the kids and demonstrate the principles involved. That being said, to avoid any random accident, and to teach good skills, always watch the traps while playing with them, and disarm them when not monitoring them personally.

You will need, 4-8 rubber bands, string, pencil (unsharpened) or dowel, Ottoman or stool, and a couple of narrow (1/4") sticks ; Your particular arrangement will determine the necessary lengths. Light weight material is better for the cross member, as the tension the rubber bands provide to the string and noose need to hold its weight (lest it slip and release the trap).

1. With the rubber bands make a chain.
2. Tie a length of string to each end of the chain. The rubber bands will provide the spring tension that the sapling does in the illustration above.
3. Tie one end to an anchor point, and thread it under the chair or ottoman.
4. on the opposite end make a 5" diameter noose and then tie the pencil, in the middle about 8" back toward the rubber band chain.
5. Now set up the trap as you see below, and above.
6.Two cross members the top usually being part of the stool or ottoman, and at least two treadles laid on top of the bottom cross member at one end and the ground at the other. The string should be pulled tight, the noose laid open on top of the treadles, and the trigger set; by putting the pencil in position, perpendicular to the cross members.
Now you can throw a small stuffed animal on top and watch what happens. The trapped item will vanish it gets snatched so fast. If things aren't quite right the trap may need adjusting; make sure the noose is large enough, tension tight enough on string, and that the object you are trapping has something about it that makes it easy for the snare to grab. The item in our video is a dog toy with lots of little arms.

Beach Combing

Fantastic finds can be made at the beach without the aid of a medal detector. All sorts of debris is washed up or left behind. From rocks and bottle glass, to a sharks tooth or a "My Little Pony."

Hit the beach and make a project of searching for treasure. Build it up with talk of treasure all the way to the beach. It's all about perceived value and the better yo say it's gonna be, the better it will be assuming you've got enough game to keep the fun rolling when you get to the beach. If you don't, take someone who does. Everything counts as treasure when it's found. Trash can go in the dumpster when you leave the beach and you'll have done the sand a service. Below is our last haul. All of it was wrapped in seaweed or buried mostly in sand when we found it, and it stayed sticky until we got a chance to wash it in fresh water. You're the only one who notices, the kids usually don't care. Also, they will pick up sticks and seaweed, and even carcasses. My son found and kept the castle wall, "My Little Pony" and the red plastic heart went to his cousin Sara, also on the expedition, and the bucket and shovel went to the youngest member of team.

These are artifacts of one of my personal best days. It was Ocean Beach circa 1994. I went at lunch from San Francisco State and there where ribbons
of gorgeous rock of all different colors. Plus I scored the tooth! I keep this in a cigar box I lined with velvet, and still enjoy opening it to remember that day. Treasure in a box. As promised.

Extreme Gutter Racing

When you are a kid getting wet is just about as good as it gets. In the summer my son has always been a fool for the pool, the sprinkler, water balloons or any other vehicle for wetness. That love of wet isn’t seasonal for kids. Most kids will head out into the rain and splash and get dripped on until they are forced to come in and get dry.

Water appeals to our limbic senses; like fire, it fascinates. For a developing brain, so much is gleamed in play with water. Mix that with a good race and you’ve got a winning activity. A gutter race is a race in a gutter flowing with water, and can be run by anything that will float and be carried by the gutter’s current: Leafs, corks, paper boats, and even sticks can work well.

Extreme gutter racing however requires a small investment of time. First a premium course needs to be scouted out. This is a great activity, and can give a purpose to those walks through the neighborhood. You are seeking a nice down hill course uninterrupted by intersections (unless the water keeps flowing at the turn). The longer the course, the better. Ideally few parked cars and low traffic as well. Also, inside and outside bends, and even rapids as the water travels over cracks in the concrete or over drains (assuming they won't eat the boats. So this can require some true scouting.

College campuses often have a section of road off limits to cars and perfect for the job. The best course I have found recently is an hour plane ride from my house. It was a long utility driveway from a public parking lot down to the beach. Because it was unplanned we had to use what was available to us. With some experimenting we found the best leaves we could and had at it. To keep the race fair, use the same item as your opponent for a boat. But in extreme gutter racing anything goes. Build obstacles with small collections of rocks.

The next required element for Extreme gutter racing is time invested in building a boat. Corks are great because they never stop. But the ante can be up’d by using something that could get loaded up with water and sink, like a bottle cap raft made out of a few caps glued together. Put a sail on it. Paint it. Name your ship, and head out to the races.

Find your spot. Make your boats. Wait for the right day. Race. With all the time invested we teach long term goals, and elements of planning larger projects. And, as always, the more invested, the more enjoyed.