I love campfire roasted oysters! I love wood fired pizza ovens, saunas and showers too!
photo by Laura Killian
I recently read that the clown tells us failure can be fun. I embarrassed myself by presenting some not-fully-realized routines smashed up with established gags. Also I had to compete with a group of adults on drums and guitar, a group of adults playing chess, and a group of adults otherwise occupied. However, I wrote post-show self-review notes, successes and EBI’s [even better if's].
- If I juggle scarves under low-hanging branches it will be funny when they get stuck there
- Rubber snakes are funny, especially outdoors
(with rubber snake wrapped around arm) “It’s great to be here in Sherwood forest. I love the great outdoors. I love camping in the fresh air, nature, all the wild life, the cute little animals: birds… foxes… deer… oysters… snakes… SNAKES?! AAAAAAAA!
- A smaller rubber snake is still funny. I recently embellished a wooden Tetley’s tea box with a hand drawn version of the scotched (red/black) Jusby (trying to mimic Titanic Condensed). Into the box I stashed two silk hankies and a silky (polyester?) camouflaged nightie belt all knotted together with a tiny rubber snake at the end.
“As I was saying, I love the outdoors, but I feel my allergies kicking in and I think I’m kinda stuffed up. Is my nose red? I think I need to blow it. Let me get a hankie. (Pulling and pulling scarf gag) It’s important to bring enough supplies. You need to take care of your health. Bring medicine and bandages, so you can feel snake. SAFE! SNAKE!! AAAAAA!” (Then grab the hatchet and start attacking the snake.)
- Signing the Waiver before juggling the hatchet: If I’m going to pretend to sharpen my giant pencil (from the Grand Canyon) with my plastic hatchet I probably can’t overdo it with the palmed flying wood shavings. But I need to use a pen for an important legal document like a waiver. Then I switch a reticulated wood snake pen! AAAAA! Then I can switch to the Laser pointer that looks like a pen. Then I need a final pen, but instead of signing the paper waiver, I sign my palm and show everybody the WAVER! Juggle hatchet poorly and scream in pain. AAAAAAA!
- Setting the table for dinner~ I’ve got the four mini balls for sports: soccer, football, baseball and basketball. I ask what each is and juggle three of them: “I’m a tri-athlete. I’m an Iron Man!” Then I ask what the big end of the year game is for each: World Cup, Super Bowl, World Series and uh… dunno. Then I try to figure out what they have in common. Well, where do you go to score in Baseball? Home plate! Cup, Bowl, Plate, table’s set! What’s for dinner? I’ll juggle three fish: one fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish… yellow fish?! [here's a learning part: PUT WATER INTO THE FISH AND GET SQUIRTED BY IT!] Eventually, I have to realize the end of Basketball is The Final Four… THEN juggle the FOUR golf balls. [Two white, one yellow, and one cat bell toy]
- Juggling the golf balls in the Hot Wheels tube. I had to experiment afterwards until I discovered that the cap opens easily on one particular side, so I’ve marked it. Now I can drop a golf ball in the tube and it will fall out the bottom every time! The yellow practice ball isn’t heavy enough to knock open the back. Neither is the cat toy. I also have to practice the bend down and pick up one ball while the other rolls out the top. Furthermore, it will make sense that the big annual golf championship is called the US OPEN!
- Must remember that sports would not be complete without FANS and then introduce the Indonesian fans and move into culture and language.
- Juggling Fire! Start with unopened box of matches. Light three wooden matches when they burn my fingers and fall to the ground… SQUIRT ‘EM with the fish.
- Keep making eye contact with the few adults who are looking, especially during punchlines!
- The kid is always right. Probably the only way to distract them from the “You’re Orion’s dad!” refrain is to go along with it. In retrospect I probably could have made a bigger and louder deal of it. My instinct was to say, “Shhh. It spoils it if you give it away.”
Jokes I generated ~
What do you call Confident Lumber? Sherwood.
Knock-knock’s based on names of the people and things around.
K-K. W.T? Willow. Willow Who? Will low tide be soon?
K-K. W.T? Cedar. Cedar Who? Cedar clown through der peephole!
K-K. W.T? Pine. Pine Who? Pie-in-the face!
K-K. W.T? Rose. Rose Who? Rose early and Stayed Up Late!
K-K. W.T? Branwen. Branwen Who? Bran when you’re outta oats!
K-K. W.T? Sherwood. Sherwood Who? Sherwood like you to open the door!
K-K. W.T? The Syrup. The Syrup Who? The Syrup of Nottingham.
Feedback from campers.
Adults who didn’t pay close attention to the finer details thought that it had ‘good clown energy’ and ‘kept the kids engaged’.
Kids were more straightforward. Even though I didn’t completely get the white out of my eyebrows afterwards one girl asked if I was the clown, and when she thought that it was ‘probably someone else’ she shared that ‘he wasn’t very funny’. OUCH!
Torston had very specific advice:
- Learn more jokes
- Learn at least one really good magic trick
- Leave out the electronic disco thing. (the ZizzleZounds) [It's a new toy for me, and it needs loving care to stay in the act. The best part is the cube that will record your voice. At the time it said, "Juggle Me"]
- Put in some classic physical comedy like the pie-in-the-face. [Well, DUH! The idea of the pie was planted on the 3rd but not delivered on the 4th.]
