banana!
(cross posted at Midcentury Modern Moms)
whenever I spot a yellow car these days, the word "banana" springs into my head.
It's a little bit of silliness I learned from my daughters. Let me explain.
You all know how to play punch buggy, right? that game has become so famous, Volkswagon actually incoroporated it into their 2010 superbowl commercial.when my girls were younger they played punch buggy frequently. of course, my rule was that there could be no actual "punching", there could only be "touching." of course, anyone who has ever dealt with two siblings in the back seat of a car knows that even "touching" can get out of hand, and there were times when I had to call a moratorium on punch buggy.
then one day, a few years ago, Jen taught us how to play "banana". this is a game that has to have been invented by an exasperated "punch buggy" veteran, because there is no "touching" involved in the game.
a "banana" is any yellow passenger vehicle. school busses and commercial vehicles do not count.a taxi is not a "banana", a pick up truck is a "banana" if it's being used as a passenger vehicle but not if it has commerical writing or advertisments.the first person to spot a yellow car and say "banana" gets the point. however, if you call "banana" and the vehicle turns out to be a taxi or other commercial vehicle, the penalty is that you cannot call "banana" again until you have found an orange car.
the rules are simple, the game is silly.
and yet...
we played the game the day we drove Jen to college for the very first time. my ex and I in the front seats of his van, our two daughters in the back, a 4-hour drive to her freshman dorm punctuated by frequent cries of "banana". I may not remember what I ate for breakfast yesterday, but I clearly remember playing that game ...
it's silliness like "banana" that forges links between us and our children, I guess.
whenever I spot a yellow car these days, the word "banana" springs into my head.
It's a little bit of silliness I learned from my daughters. Let me explain.
You all know how to play punch buggy, right? that game has become so famous, Volkswagon actually incoroporated it into their 2010 superbowl commercial.when my girls were younger they played punch buggy frequently. of course, my rule was that there could be no actual "punching", there could only be "touching." of course, anyone who has ever dealt with two siblings in the back seat of a car knows that even "touching" can get out of hand, and there were times when I had to call a moratorium on punch buggy.
then one day, a few years ago, Jen taught us how to play "banana". this is a game that has to have been invented by an exasperated "punch buggy" veteran, because there is no "touching" involved in the game.
a "banana" is any yellow passenger vehicle. school busses and commercial vehicles do not count.a taxi is not a "banana", a pick up truck is a "banana" if it's being used as a passenger vehicle but not if it has commerical writing or advertisments.the first person to spot a yellow car and say "banana" gets the point. however, if you call "banana" and the vehicle turns out to be a taxi or other commercial vehicle, the penalty is that you cannot call "banana" again until you have found an orange car.
the rules are simple, the game is silly.
and yet...
we played the game the day we drove Jen to college for the very first time. my ex and I in the front seats of his van, our two daughters in the back, a 4-hour drive to her freshman dorm punctuated by frequent cries of "banana". I may not remember what I ate for breakfast yesterday, but I clearly remember playing that game ...
it's silliness like "banana" that forges links between us and our children, I guess.
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