Flog the Side of the Head Wednesday!

Hello, me buckos.  

Today is Wednesday, two days before National Talk Like a Pirate Day, and... the day of the week when we whack the side of our head in order to solve a problem or to improve an idea.  We need everyone whacking today's idea or... risk having to walk the plank!

But first, some party planning.  

As of right now only two saucy wenches will earn a patch for hosting five or more people - Mad Ethel Bonney and Mad Ethel Rackham.  Who else?  Anybody, anybody?

Whether you're hosting a whole house of landlubbers, pirates or just a few lads or lasses, there are simple things we can do to make National Talk Like a Pirate Day extra special.

GRUB:  We're serving up fish 'n chips and gold (chicken) nuggets.  To drink the lads and lasses will have Sharks Blood (red punch ice cubes placed in a cup with sprite poured on top).  The older dogs will go down ye hatch with Rum Runners.  Bottoms Up!  Dessert will be pirate cupcakes - chocolate with white frosting, red bandannas and black patches (made with mini oreos, I think).

DECORATIONS: Old maps will be turned into place mats, though I did consider using brown paper bags to make treasure maps with a big "X" marks the spot.  Fish netting, shells, and a Halloween skeleton will help add to the atmosphere.  Place cards at each seat, sporting their fun new pirate names are a must.

SIGNS:  Poster board and paper bags will be turned into fun signs, allowing me to transform my home into the hull of a pirate ship.  And of a course we will hoist the Jolly Roger.  

GAMES:  Pirate Bingo is the main event at our house, but not before the wee lads go digging for treasure.  A small treasure hunt will lead them to chest filled with doubloons and other treats.

COSTUMES:  No one gets passed me door without first putting on a red sash, a bandanna, and a eye patch.  A gold earring, knickers, and a peg leg are optional.

Party planning underway.  Settin' sail and movin' on...

Flogging the side of your head...  We have nine great prizes for Friday night's Virtual Pirate Bingo and we're only playing three rounds of Bingo.  That leaves 6 prizes to be had.  One of the six will claimed by one of the eight people who were spirited enough to talk in pirate-ese yesterday.  Still... that leaves five more treasures to be awarded.  

That there is what we'll be flogging... How best do we give away the five remaining prizes?

Here's what Cap'n von Oech had to say...

Hear the Knock of Opportunity: A leading business school did a study that showed that its graduates did well at first, but in ten years, they were overtaken by a more streetwise, pragmatic group.  The reason according to the professor who ran the study: "We taught them how to solve problems, not recognize opportunities."  Where do you hear opportunity knocking?  How can you answer it?  

It's true.  It's not everyday that we have great prizes to give away.  Aghast!  This is no problem.  It's an opportunity.  How can I use these prizes to promote the purpose and goals of highlowaha? For instance...

How can we use the 5 additional prizes as an opportunity to...

• Raise the maximum amount of money for the family we are sponsoring this holiday season?
• Recognize loyal readers?
  
• Get to know lurkers?
  
• Reach our goal of 9,153 readers by September 30 (we need 2,138 more in the next 12 days).
• Recruit a new reader?
• Spread the Spirit of 218 (The lost day symbolizing our commitment to make time for things we might not otherwise do... without that gentle push from highlowaha).

Here's a quick thought to get us started.  

Did you know Talk Like A Pirate Day was "invented" in 1995 by two guys from Corvallis, Oregon?  Oregon... a place from which only 22 views of highlowaha have ever been recorded.  And, notta one of those views came from the town of Corvallis.  Surely, native Corvallian's can appreciate our celebration of Talk Like a Pirate Day and of our Virtual Pirate Bingo game.  Can we award one of our nine prizes to the person who brings us a reader from Corvillian, Oregon?  

May I remind you... it was a stunt like this that brought us Kelly from Montana!  And, for that we are forever grateful to Tera... and, of course, Kelly herself.  

 

Announcements:

• Virtual Bingo: Remember, I need Virtual Bingo cards by this Friday at 3:00.  I've already started receiving some.  Below is a picture of yet another prize donated for Friday's Virtual Bingo Party.  This was the prize titled, Rainy Day in a Box.  AS you can see, it is chock full of treats that any child would love to have.  That's great, as I expect there will be kids playing along with us on Friday night (or... have it sent to a child you know, as a Random Act of Kindness).
  

• Paint the Town Red:  We have all but one of our Regional Directors for Paint the Town Red.  The only region still playing hard to get is MAAHLA(to figure out which region you are in, see the post from 9/13 titled, Paint the Town Red).  States included in the this region include: South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, and North Dakota.  I suppose it's too much to think that Julie A. Cole might volunteer to be our Regional Director.  I know these states are not our most populated, but surely we can find one lone reader who would be willing to step up to the leadership plate.  Just one.  Does anybody know anybody we can tap into?  Yesterday's comment section includes all the names and email addresses of our Regional Directors.  I will work on getting them listed in a central location.
  

Fair winds.  Dirty Charity Flint signing off until tomorrow...