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Mumbly peg
/ Mumbley Peg
A game played with pocket knives (probably now illegal in our
democrat-controlled judicial system)
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Drop-the-clothespins-in-the-mason-jar
game
Stand above an open Mason
jar and take turns dropping 10 clothes pins to see who gets the most in.
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Homemade Hoop Roller
Dad took an old metal band that was about
12" in diameter (I don't know what it was off of, a barrel maybe?)
Then he got a piece of round metal stock (off a discarded wreath holder) &
bent one end so it would hold a wooden spool.
Next, he whittled out and drilled a handle to slip over the other end.
You could run along behind the hoop and make it roll all over the yard.
You could turn it and even catch it when you wanted to.
[Here's a pic someone sent me of a crude
version of dad's hoop roller, but you get the idea.]
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Homemade Willow Whistle
Willow whistles were made in spring when
the trees were full of sap. A straight piece cut from a branch was tapped on all
sides until the tube of bark was loosened enough to be slipped off of the woody
core. You cut a notch near one end, blew into the end and slid the core slid in
and out to play tunes.
Homemade Crawler made by my dad from a wooden
thread spool, a rubber band & two sticks.
Dad used a wooden spool, a small stick
or dowel about three inches long, a match stick and a rubber band.
He would cut a notch in one end so the match stick would rest in it, he would
lube the other side with soap, run the rubber band through the spool with the
stick on one side and the match on the other. You would then crank the 3"
stick, set it down and watch it go.
Marbles
I used to go to school with only my taw (shooting
marble). At recess I would go to where there was a game of marbles going
on and say: "Stick me for my taw." It's sorta like putting
your favorite watch up at a poker game. If, when the game was over, I
couldn't give the guy a marble back he got my taw. (It was a poor risk
for those fellows because I would come home with both pockets bulging
with marbles I'd won that day.) I NEVER lost a taw! I was pretty dang
good. When I outgrew marbles, I had a 5 gallon bucket full and I got a
flip and shot every dang one of 'em. DAMMIT!
(Does anyone remember yelling before a marble game started:
"Sticks, dubs 'n everthang!" And, "No grabs when the bell
rings!" "No stomps!" "No pee-wees!" "No
halvies!" "No steelie-balls" ????)
Poppers
Made from the tall plantain weed that grows in yards.
You bend the stem around into a loop and pull so the head pops off.
Bug Trap
Made for me by Bill Dixon
who lived across the road when I was small.
She would weave stems of the plantain weed. Bugs would go in, but couldn't get out.
(I've gotta get Mrs. Dixon to show me how she did that while she's still
alive.)
Catching a honey bee in a
Mason jar......
I would turn a Mason jar
upside down, find a honey bee on some clover, lower the jar, the bee
would fly to the top and I could carry the jar around while the bee
tries to fly up. (I guess they're too stupid to fly down?)
Lighting Bug Lanterns
We would catch them in Mason jars, punch holes in the lid and watch 'em
light up.
Tin Can Walkie-Talkies /
Telephone
(Two tin cans and a string
would work, but the ones that worked best were plastic cups and fishing
line.)
Homemade Parachute
I would tie strings to the corners of a handkerchief and tie the other
ends to a small rock or other weighted item.
