Summer fun, task 37: Learn games of the past- like kick the can!

Hello everyone,

It's me, your fun SUMMER guide here to talk about task 37 (Learn games of the past- like kick the can!) from the must-read SUMMER fun guide. I just want to point out that this task in incredibly non-specific, which is a blessing and a curse. You could take the opportunity to learn about any game that has been played previously, ever. That is good news for us, as we come from diverse backgrounds and might enjoy learning about some games more than others! Feel free to learn about any game that tickles your fancy, unless it's one you are inventing right now! Then you will have to wait a few minutes for it to be a game of the past! I digress.

Today, I will focus us in on the recommendation within the parentheticals: "like kick the can!" Games of the past like kick the can... Where can we go with this!? I direct your attention to the online resource Wikipedia for the completion of this task. Their list of traditional "children's" games serves as a great catch-all for anyone wanting to learn about "games of the past" (and present and future, as it were). The list is presented through the framing of "children's" games, which is a bit of a misnomer. Don't be fooled, these are games for anyone and everyone. I must admit that this page of Wikipedia was poorly cared for and disastrously organized, so I reorganized it and added jumping jacks to the list (a terrible omission). I guess I am going a bit above and beyond being a guide for just the FNB community this summer, as I originally intended. I'm sort of a guide for all of humanity now, if you think about it. Pretty big contribution.

Some of my favorite games that I learned about were basketball, baseball, football, kickball, tennis, etc--the classics. There were a few I had never heard anything about, such as Ampe and Poohsticks. Those are good games I would like to play.

As your fun SUMMER guide I encourage you to also learn about these games, even if you aren't going to play them right now. Maybe you will have the opportunity to play them later, so it doesn't hurt to be prepared. Sure, some of them may seem like childish "playground" games, but if you think you're too good for playground games, you've forgotten where you've walked. (Yes, even you were a kid once, unless you are an A.I. program reading this entry for data analysis.) Learning about them will both broaden your horizons and add the potential of having a dream where you play these games, which could be a lot of fun. Worth a shot.

Always yours, xxoo
-Frank

SUMMER fun guide

Hello everyone!

I came across this SUMMER fun guide and it gave me a great idea: For the remainder of the summer (which started on April 10th this year--the 107th Day of Christmas, you might remember), I will serve as your fun SUMMER guide!

We've already lost some valuable time, as today (the 158th Day of Christmas) is the 52nd Day of Summer. (For those who are good with numbers, you probably noticed Christmas has been 32.9% summer so far.) On the bright side, this resource gives us a great way to direct our energy over the remaining days of summer...

As your fun SUMMER guide it will be my pleasure to take us through this "101 fun things to do with your SUMMER!" checklist, straight from the SUMMER fun guide.

I've already checked off task 48 (Host a yard or garage sale- learn the value of money and making change) and task 88 (Visit a library and ask about their summer activities). Obviously I am well aware of the value of money and providing change for any overpaying that may occur, so I have already achieved above and beyond task 48. The yard or garage sale is merely busy work leading to that greater goal. Task 88 was super easy, too. Since it's 2019, you can visit a library on the web and discover their summer activities with ease! In fact, you can visit multiple libraries in the same time it would take to visit a single library in person. There are times when you can let technology do the leg work for you.

So that's our first 2 items completed. I wouldn't be a very good guide if I didn't put together this handy digital checklist for our loyal readers to monitor the progress we've made:

I guess that counts as task 97 (Do a random act of kindness) fulfilled as well!

This will definitely be fun, alright. xxoo
-Frank

Monday Minute 011

The Monday Minute! is a new series that will provide weekly updates for loyal readers on the titles that have been added to the Jumjax™ Database and our newly accessible IMDb tracking lists.

Jumjax™ Database: New Additions

Yes, I know it is a Tuesday. Yesterday was the 154th Day of Christmas (aka Memorial Day), so the FNB team was out enjoying the holiday.

• Films and Television Shows That Utilize Jumping Jacks
• Films and Television Shows That Do Not Utilize Jumping Jacks

The newly added title is as follows:

Blood Simple (1984) - 99 minutes

The horror! The betrayal! The unease! The incredible (by incredible I mean: "Ha ha, I can't believe it happened like that--that's incredible.") series of events unfolding! The misunderstanding! The lack of jumping jacks. So much for the Coen brothers you hear so much about. No dice in this one. 1/10. Not recommended.

After all these weeks, I discovered a mistake in our records! We somehow got off track and accidentally skipped Monday Minute 007! This isn't a huge issue, luckily, and we will take advantage of this accident to do something cool, very cool. Yes, everyone's favorite secret agent, James Bond (007) currently does not have a feature that features him in the Jumjax™ Database. Monday Minute 007 will release as a Special Edition Monday Minute wherein every James Bond flick to date will be analyzed for jumping jack activity. Let's just say you should keep your eyes peeled on the 007th day of the 007th month...

xxoo, always yours

-Frank

Monday Minute 010

The Monday Minute! is a new series that will provide weekly updates for loyal readers on the titles that have been added to the Jumjax™ Database and our newly accessible IMDb tracking lists.

Jumjax™ Database: New Additions

Double digits! 10 weeks of updates.

• Films and Television Shows That Utilize Jumping Jacks
• Films and Television Shows That Do Not Utilize Jumping Jacks

The newly added titles are as follows:

Terminator Genisys (2015) - 126 minutes

Time travel! Another flick for the time travel database (not an actual database, just a joke). This one doesn't have Evangeline Lilly, unfortunately. And it doesn't have jumping jacks either. Kind of weird, since jumping jacks were a big hit in the 80s, which is when this movie partially takes place. Plenty of opportunity to put in jumping jacks, and none of them used. Call me crazy, but I think terminators need to keep themselves limber, and to make sure every "muscle" is working at capacity, a jumping jack would be a great stress test. 1/10. Not recommended.

John Wick: Capter 3 - Parabellum (1943) - 79 minutes

Lots of fighting and violence. Hitmen fighting hitmen, guns, knives, horses. It really had a lot going, but amidst all that action, couldn't find a moment to show a jumping jack. Gross violence, sure. Guys getting their privates smashed, yes. Jumping jacks? Nope. Here's an idea: John Wick pops out a few quick jumping jacks to get his blood pumping before going into a fight. Or maybe to jazz himself back up after getting his wound fixed by the doctor. Or maybe we see some bodyguards do some jumping jacks to keep their focus and energy levels up. Maybe if they had done some jumping jacks, they wouldn't have been massacred by John Wick and his lady friend and her dogs. 1/10. Not recommended.

Game of Thrones (2011-2019): Season 8, Episode 6 [TV]

I didn't actually watch this episode but I know if I did I would just be disappointed by the lack of jumping jacks. If someone watches it and they do have jumping jacks I will plead for forgiveness, but I have a sixth sense about these things and I know there aren't any jumping jacks. Poor show. Really didn't live up to the hype. Everyone rants and raves about this show, but you don't see that kind of audience energy for Corporate (2018-), a show that was willing to take the jump and show Jumjax™ on television. Maybe jumping jacks are just for the more intelligent, niche audience. Might re-evaluate my search pattern. 1/10. Not recommended. Does anyone know if the earlier seasons had jumping jacks? I am overall disappointed this season didn't live up to the hype. And there were so many good opportunities to utilize jumping jacks.

You can't always win.

xxoo, always yours

-Frank

Monday Minute 009

The Monday Minute! is a new series that will provide weekly updates for loyal readers on the titles that have been added to the Jumjax™ Database and our newly accessible IMDb tracking lists.

Jumjax™ Database: New Additions

The search continues.

• Films and Television Shows That Utilize Jumping Jacks
• Films and Television Shows That Do Not Utilize Jumping Jacks

The newly added titles are as follows:

Foreign Correspondent (1940) - 120 minutes

Alfred Hitchcock is world renown for his film craft, but this one could have been crafted better. There is a lot of plotting and intrigue going on here, mixed with suspenseful sneaking and snooping. You can't help but wonder how the protagonist keeps such a sharp mind and also remains physically capable to the challenges he faces, but the film never dares to explain. An oversight. I think showing him doing some jumping jacks would have been a simple, albeit ideal way to accomplish this. 1/10. Not recommended.

Sanshiro Sugata (1943) - 79 minutes

Akira Kurosawa is also world renown for his film craft, and while Sanshiro Sugata (1943) seems like it is a physical-exercise-positive flick with it's jujitsu and judo juxta positioning, one can't help but feel an opportunity was missed by not showing Sanshiro training with jumping jacks, the most efficient exercise (something I would hope great martial arts masters would understand). 1/10. Not recommended.

Game of Thrones (2011- ): Season 8, Episode 5 [TV]

A lot going on in this episode, but when the ash clears I think the consensus will be it would have been much better if it had shown less rubble and instead opted for the more methodical, suspense inducing army preparation--tactical build up. (A perfect place to insert jumping jacks, I might add.) THEN it could flip the switch from that point, but really missing that stability which jumping jacks provide. 1/10. Not recommended at this moment. (1 episode left in this season of the show, and then I will have to watch the earlier seasons to see if there are any redeeming qualities in those episodes and learn more about the characters. I don't see what all the hype is about watching this current season, but maybe the knights have been training with jumping jacks previously, and showing it again in this season was for some reason deemed an unnecessary repetition by the show creators. One can hope.)

Might throw together a supercut with all the jumping jacks instances we've found so far.

xxoo, always yours

-Frank