A Blog of Frogs

Our Purpose

2015-10-24T13:29:00.002-05:00

Leapin’ Leap frogs! Why would a class at Illinois State University create a blog about people playing the childhood game of leap frog? In our Advanced Exposition class, we have been discussing global moments—those moments that are shared throughout a community, and even perhaps the whole world. They are the moments that prove to us that we are not so different after all. In class, we watched Matt Harding’s dancing videos. He went around the world and danced—anywhere and everywhere, at different locations, and others joined in the dancing. It was a remarkable sight! It made each of us feel like we all truly had things in common with everyone in the world. So, we decided to create our own version. We came up with ideas and decided upon the game of leap frog . We are using the blog to bring our ideas together and to show our own methods and experiences of leap frog. We are all unique yet we share the love of a childhood game. Here it is—our experiences and our own versions of our global moment. Feel free to contribute to our project with your own videos or pictures of leap frog by submitting them to Corey at leapfrog246@yahoo.com. Let’s leap frog!

A Halloween Treat

2008-11-05T00:58:00.001-06:00

Walking off the bus on an unusually warm October 31 I suddenly come to a halt. There is a massive line coming from the entrance of the local watering hole. I am forced to wait with a group of my friends at the end of the line, while about 20 people in front of us. There is an argument at the front door between a bouncer and a clown. Apparently dressing up on Halloween still doesn’t get you into your favorite bar with a fake id. While we were waiting I decided to inform my friends that they had to play leap frog with me when we got back home. After another two minutes of the clown failing miserably to deal his way into getting into our bar, my friend Chris came up with an idea of epic proportions. “Why don’t we play leapfrog here?” he said coyly. We could try to get everyone else in line to do it while we wait, and it will get us to the front of the line.

“My God!” I thought, “not since Thomas Ford has there been an idea of such magnitude!” my mind went on. Looking back on the night, libation may have affected my excitement of the idea. None the less, our group of Vampires, basketball players, and a couple police officers decided that this was an idea just crazy enough to work. We started from the back of the line and slowly convinced everyone in line to join in, some with a little more prodding than others.

One leap at a time I slowly got my way to the front of the line. About halfway through the line I noticed that the once grumbling and annoyed strangers in the crowd slowly became a sort of laughing, happy, family. Once I got to the start of the line, where my friends were already starting to show their licenses and go into the bar, I looked back and saw that the rest of the line was actually still playing leap frog. There were some onlookers, but for the most part everyone joined in on the fun and had a great time. When we all got inside and were ordering drinks, a couple of the people in line came up to us and told us that we had made their night. They stuck around for a while and proved to be fun people.

So I must recommend playing a game like leapfrog every once in a while. You never know when it could get you a better spot in line or even a new friend.

A Hoppity Halloween

2008-11-04T15:09:00.004-06:00

When I was first given the task of going out and playing leapfrog, I had no idea how exactly I would go about accomplishing it. I wanted to do something fun and unique! But asking some random strangers to allow me to jump over them didn’t seem like the most comfortable idea. With Halloween coming up and all the costume party goodness it entails, I thought what better and more fun way to play leapfrog was there than in costumes? So I convinced my brother and all the people at his party to get down and dirty, and really make that party hoppin!

It was a lot of fun even though some of the leaps were difficult because of the costumes. Everyone couldn’t help but laugh and get in the spirit as we all tripped and awkwardly leaped over one another. I’m sure it was a sight to see that night as vampires, witches, gangsters, and a particularly tipsy Batman fell all over each other. It really brought the whole party together and we all had a great time.

It connected all of us at the party because no one had played leapfrog since childhood and it brought a sense of nostalgia. Also I don’t think any of us had ever done so in full Halloween costume attire, so we had an entirely unique experience that we could all remember. It left me wondering how my classmates went about getting their leapfrog experiences finished. But it also left me thinking about how we all had to come up with our own individual ways, involving other people and bringing them into our leapfrog circle. In these ways, my classmates, their peers and I were all connected through our simple game. We were all small parts of something larger and that links everyone involved into a special community.

"A Nice Leapfrog Gathering"

2008-11-03T21:26:00.010-06:00

I am currently directing a play at a local high school and decided to use leap frog as a warm up exercise for my cast. To add a fun twist into it, they had to leap over one another while remaining in character. The breakdown of the characters are as follows: Mom is in her early 60's and is in the early stages of Alzheimer's, Dad is a ghost, the oldest son is a doctor in his mid 30's and married to a very emotional wife, the middle child is in his early 30's, and the youngest daughter is in her late 20's and is pregnant. Seeing the students participate in this activity, that was clearly not a day to day event was very amusing indeed. I was impressed by how well they stayed in character even though they were leaping over one another. What was very interesting to see was that I did not give them any more specific instructions other than to play leapfrog in character, they could have chosen to be silent as they played, however they engaged in conversation the entire time teasing each other just as a family would do. They all made decisions based on their characters: being a ghost dad "walked through" them (as explained to me when I asked what he was doing), the pregnant daughter walked around everyone deciding it was best not to jump around while pregnant, the emotional wife began crying when she could not make it over one of her taller cast mates and the doctor tried to organize and discuss the "best strategy" in completing this task.

Overall, I would say that our leapfrog warm-up was a success. The cast really seemed to enjoy it when we held a discussion about the activity afterwards. We talked about the idea that strange situations really bring people together and since we are working on building "family connections" among the cast, this activity was perfect. Everyone had to let their guard down and agree to be silly for the activity to work...I am sorry, I just do not think there is a way to look "cool" playing leapfrog. The cast ranges from freshman through seniors and the pure fact that they do not all know each other very well outside of rehearsal has been one of the struggles in connecting as a cast, however leapfrog really helped to break down those barriers. Playing leapfrog really helped us remember what it was like when we were children playing with our friends in the yard carefree.
The aspect that I liked most of all about leapfrog though is the imagination that the students had to use. I was asking high school students, to act like adults 10-40 years older than them, while participating in an activity that they themselves had not participated in for about 10 years. This dynamic was very interesting to watch and see how they pulled it off. All in all leapfrog was a success.

Don't Weep, Just LEAP...

2008-11-03T12:02:00.009-06:00

Its Halloween night and my roommates and I are getting ready to go out in our monkey costumes. Just before we’re about to leave it hits me. “Let’s play a game of leapfrog.” Monkeys playing leapfrog, ironic I know. Anyways, I understand this was not the most traditional activity to partake in on a Friday night. To say the least my roommates were very confused. Like most people they associated leapfrog as a silly childhood game. That being said, without much convincing we started to play, and were actually enjoying ourselves. They didn’t fully understand what the point of playing was but that was irrelevant. As I reflect on the moment it made me come to a realization; I have a tendency to get caught up in the emotions of everyday life in a negative manner. Rather than letting life unfold I, like many others I assume, try too hard to make things happen. Because of this we are not able to completely enjoy life and our surroundings. The best kind of created community should not be forced, just based on instincts and fate. A little monkey business never hurt anyone so take a deep breath, relax, and play some leapfrog.

As a child I can remember participating in games on the playground such as leapfrog, yet never realizing the true impact it had on me. Playing with my friends was all that mattered. Sometimes in life it takes a simple game like leapfrog to remind us what’s really important and that happiness through community can be very powerful. As we grow older it is easier to appreciate the “finer things in life.” Sure we have tests to study for, papers to write, work, laundry, etc. But the moments that we share with others while having fun balances everything out.

This Halloween night was special and it was all started by a game of leapfrog. I had a good time with some of my closest friends at Illinois State that we will be able to look back on forever. Sharing a special moment within a community is a very rewarding experience. Whether it’s changing the world, or playing a game of leapfrog always remember to enjoy yourself.

Frogs Across America!

2008-11-03T07:33:00.003-06:00

At five o’clock in the morning, I sit in the darkness of my room as the pale blue light from my computer screen mocks my inability to write. You see, I have been faced with making a decision between two very difficult, very unique options. Never in my ideas of a formal writing workshop did I ever imagine that I would be writing about things like leapfrog. More importantly, I never imagined that such a topic would be so difficult. My difficult decision is in choosing between two pictures to post—one of myself and group of friends leapfrogging in business suits at the University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire or a group of my friends from Arizona State University leapfrogging outside of their apartment in Phoenix. In realizing the class goal of building community, each picture offers two very different and unique perspectives.

However, both pictures are related in a way. In college, I participate in an activity called forensics (not the science). It’s basically an intercollegiate competition similar to debate, which involves performing different speeches, or interpretation of play scripts, short stories, poems, etc. Both of these pictures are of friends that I have made through the activity. Both pictures are a testament to relationships that I have built through forensics in the past year.

Recently, ISU went to a tournament at UW Eau Claire. On our lunch break, I asked a few of the people in the cafeteria from different teams if they would like to help me out with a class project. A few of them didn’t even ask what it was that they would be doing before they happily agreed to participate. As we started leapfrogging, a few of the other people from the tournament joined in. When I had chosen the picture that I had wanted, I noticed that a few of the people in the picture, I had only talked to once or twice but seemed overjoyed to help me complete a class project, and likewise, I would be willing to do the same for any of them.

The Arizona picture, however, was a little different, and seemed significantly warmer. Andy is one of my best friends through forensics, though because of the distance, I rarely get to see him through the year, so I use any excuse I can to call him. Most recently, I used leapfrogging. Andy’s two roommates also do forensics, so I asked if the three of them could leapfrog and take a picture of it (preferably in front of a palm tree or some warm looking thing). Surprisingly they agreed without very much of an explanation. In reflecting on this picture, as I had to do for my class, I realized that I had only really known Andy for about a year. However, with only the short amount of time that I have known him, after one phone call, he was still happy, even excited to help me when he and his roommates receive no direct advantage from doing so. As I said earlier, this picture is a testament to the relationships that I have built through forensics, and it makes me extremely happy to have friends from across the country that are willing to help me with a simple phone call.

Victoria Station Plays Leap Frog

2008-11-02T23:59:00.003-06:00

The nice thing about living with nine girls is that I didn't have to go far to find people to play leap frog with me. We live in an old house, so it actually has a name, Victoria Station, hence the title of the blog. I decided to ask everyone to play on a Sunday, when the weekend was over and everyone was starting to dread the week ahead. I thought it would be a nice way for everyone to take their mind off the fact that Monday was fast approaching. We were also about to have a meeting about some serious issues that we needed to work out in the house, so I hoped that this would lighten the mood and keep spirits high during the meeting.

Unfortunately, some people were a little too burned out from the weekend, and they decided to be spectators instead of participants. Still, I managed to convince four other girls to play with me, but my roommate Jen dropped out at the last minute. It was funny because the last time my friends had all played leap frog was as children many years ago. For some reason, they thought they would just be able to remember the rules, but it didn't turn out to be quite so simple. Luckily the rules are fairly simple so people picked up on it quickly. I'm not sure if we did it quite right, because we were really close together and we didn't squat down low enough, which made it difficult to leap. Still, it turned out to be fun, and it accomplished what I had hoped. Everyone was in a better mood, and our meeting turned out to be really relaxed.

I would definitely say that my experience with leap frog brought people together. Even those who were just watching were entertained, and it was a fun activity we’ve never done together before. Aside from feeling closer to my housemates, we also were connected on a deeper level, because my classmates were also doing the activity. I turned my game of leap frog into a way to ease tension in my house. My classmates may have chosen to play just for fun. Maybe they played with many more people, or less people, and I know they played in a different setting. By participating in this activity, it connects us as a class, and through the experience, everyone that we played leap frog with is also connected, even though they may never have met. We create a community by the simple act of playing a game that we loved as children.

-Sam Paoletti

Take the Leap

2008-11-02T23:33:00.003-06:00

Dating for most sane people is a difficult task. It is an activity requiring much anxiety, preparation, etiquette, and of course the exuberant amount of bull shitting. However, for a couple that has been together for five years it is a whole new game. There is not the requirement of nice clothes and the occasional fluke bowel movement is no longer a deal breaker. But this does not mean that dating gets any easier. If anything, it gets harder. There are only so many ideas a man can come up with before seeming repetitive and boring. The newbees have it easy. They can bank on the cliché dinner and a movie scenario, where as I have to rely heavily on my creative intuitions to keep the relationship fresh.

This assignment in many ways was a gift from the heavens. Saturday, being parents weekend at Illinois State University, was in fact a busy day. I took my parents on a tour of the campus, trying to prove to them that their hard earned money is going towards a good cause. Between the walks, tailgating, and dinner, I did not have time to touch base with my girlfriend Sarah about her day. Normally, this would not be a tragedy of any sort, however as the saying goes, “shit happens.”

Unfortunately, Sarah was in a quarrel with a group of her close friends. Although common in most friendships, in the midst of a fight emotions are on edge. So on Saturday night she drove down to ISU to attend my Halloween party. Now, this is my note to the ladies out there; when your boyfriend is dressed in an obnoxious costume, e.g. baby Jesus, it is most definitely not the time to discuss plans involving marriage, kids, or anything to do with the above said categories. Sorry to say, but Sarah did venture into this dangerous territory and was greeted not by me, but Joe College. As my throat closed up, and beads of sweat trickled down my face, Sarah felt as if her two support systems had just collapsed and her standing in life was wiped out from under her feet. It is not that my future plans do not include her; they are in fact committed to her. But, my most immediate commitment at the time was making sure that the girl dressed up as Tinkerbell would stop puking in my washer machine.

Needless to say, I was in desperate need for a date to cheer Sarah up. The next day I found a stroll through Miller Park Zoo to be a great attempt. As we were checking out the neon colored frogs I remembered this assignment and thought that it would be a perfect time to play some good old leap frog. Sarah was all for the notion and we found the perfect spot to document our game. Now as you check out our pictures, you can’t help but notice the huge tank in the background. There can be a bunch of cheesy metaphors made about the object. Maybe that the future ahead of us will be a battle, but having each other is all the armor we’ll need. Do you think it was possible that Tinkerbell was just puking from hearing a cheesy line like that? Nah, but I think I could puke from hearing it.

Anyways, what I do want to point out is that in the craziness of relationships, when the future stresses you out and daily occurrences are too much to handle, return to the fundamentals with your significant other. Just play. It’s the perfect date. Life once again seems simple, manageable, and fun. So I encourage you to go out, and take the leap.
-Ray Mc

Leapfrog loses its innocence.

2008-11-02T21:32:00.004-06:00

I chose to have my brother and his best friend, who are both eleven years old, play leapfrog on our front lawn in my hometown of Berwyn, IL. I wanted my brother to ask more of the kids who live on our block to play, but he apparently was embarrassed and barely agreed to play at all, so I took what I could get. I got them to go outside and right before I had them start playing, a tall man who looked to be about 50 years old was just walking down the block and passed our house. He kind of just stared at us and then kept walking. I thought it was weird, but there are quite a few "weird" people who live in B-town so I just ignored him. I got them to start playing leap frog, and the man had walked farther down the block by then, but he turned around again and just stood there and stared at us some more. So I stared him down, but that did not seem to phase him. This happened about 3 or 4 more times and I have concluded that something was wrong with him or that he was more than likely one of the many perverts who roam the streets of Berwyn on a daily basis.

So I would say that my leapfrog experience was a little bit more negative than most of my other classmates. However, even though it was a little annoying and disgusting that we were clearly being watched in a very creepy way, we all found it to be a little bit funny as well. And I know that my brother and his friend did have fun for the one minute that they were playing. It also made me wonder if I would have felt like I was too old to do something like that when I was only eleven years old. It kind of made me feel a little disappointed actually that my brother thought he was too old to be doing something like playing leapfrog with his friend because now I can see that he is starting to grow up into the dreaded pre-teen. I could tell that they had fun in the moment, so there was still a little sliver of childish fun left, but I can see that it will soon be gone and to replace my cute little brother will be a mopey, awkward, teenager who hates his life and locks himself in his room or basically lives at his friends' houses like I did in those days. And while all of this is happening, I am going to be away at school for weeks at a time and he will probably be different every time I come back home. I guess my leapfrog experiment made me slightly emotional! But I'm glad I got to do it, because it got me to spend a little time with my brother while I was home, and from the conclusion I have reached, he probably won't want to spend that much time with me as he continues to grow up.

Jump Around

2008-11-02T21:17:00.003-06:00

I was always playing leapfrog when I was a child and still do find it fun to jump things. This assignment was a blast for me and I was really excited to participate in it. Upon telling some of my friends about this assignment they volunteered to help me out. Instead of just playing a typical game of leapfrog, my buddies thought it would be a great idea to try to jump over each other while standing straight up. After a few wipeouts it was obvious who could and could not accomplish such a feat and I chose to use the video of the guys that could "extreme leapfrog".

I have seen many global moments such as this on the internet, but I have never participated in one, nor have I ever been apart of a blog. It was really cool to see people get excited to help me out and participate in this assignment. It was fun to see how everyone remembered the game and decided to put a spin on it by standing straight up. I have also really enjoyed participating in a blog and hope to see how other people have participated in this global moment.

A Colony of Frogs

2008-11-02T21:04:00.001-06:00

At the ripe age of twenty-two, I still like to think of myself as young spirited. I have come to terms with the fact that after age twenty-one, there really is no longer any birthday to look forward to. I can already see myself slowly starting to turn into my parents. I find politics much more interesting, I am falling behind and losing touch with mainstream music, and think sixteen year olds should definitely not be driving. I have never had text messaging on my cell phone or have ever stepped foot in an Abercrombie and Fitch clothing store. However, as much as I love my parents, I cannot imagine myself being exactly like them when I am their age. They are afraid of big cities, are devout Republicans, and think nine o’clock is late. I am always trying to convince them to take a vacation or expand their horizons past a dinner and a movie being a perfect night out. I know that young spirit is still in them somewhere. Leap Frog was the perfect activity to let it out.

Granted Leap Frog is not exactly a typical game or activity most twenty-two years even play, it allows you to revert to your younger days and act silly for a little bit. When we were given the project to play Leap Frog, I knew exactly who I wanted to play with. As childish as the game is, I also thought it would be a perfect way to bond and spend time with my parents before I had to go back to school. I only see them on random weekends, so I try and spend as much time with them as I can when I am home.

When I first mentioned the idea to my parents they were a little apprehensive to participate.

“Oh, I don’t know Jon. We probably cannot even bend down that low anymore…let alone jump over someone else. Why don’t you just go to the park and find some kids to play with? They will be better at it than us.”

My mother continued to tell me that there would be no time to play because their friends were coming over and they had dinner reservations. At that moment I thought about the other students in the class and whether they were having any trouble getting people to participate as well. Who were they Leap Frogging with? Where were they leaping? How did they sway their victims to actually participate? After a little more convincing, my parents agreed to play some Leap Frog. Even better, when their friends arrived, they too agreed to play. We went into the backyard and my girlfriend volunteered to be the camerawoman. After a little directorial planning, we assumed our frog positions and began to leap. The next few minutes that followed were probably some of the funniest and most entertaining minutes I have ever experienced with my parents. See below for yourself.

As we all gathered around the camera to watch what we looked like while playing Leap Frog, it was great to see everyone laughing and having so much fun. We laughed at each other’s ability or lack thereof to leap over one another. We laughed at my mom. We simply laughed at the fact we were playing a children’s game. It was silly, but it felt good to see my parents and their friends having a great time not being adults for five minutes. According to the internet, a group of frogs is called a colony or an army. That is perfect because the goal of this project was to build a sense of community, a colony of Leap Froggers. I guess you could say that we were a giggly little colony of Leap Froggers and will most likely remember this for a long time.

I was also lucky enough to have a couple of my friends send me a picture of them playing Leap Frog as well. The first picture is in front of USC Trojan Stadium in California and the second picture is next to a sculpture of Herky the Hawkeye at the University of Iowa.

Leap Frog with Imaginary Friends

2008-11-02T19:17:00.002-06:00

Phase I-You Want Me To Do What Now?

Leap frog is the staple of childhood games, but, alas, I cannot think of a time when I have played it. Surely, there must have been a moment when I did, seeing that it is such an innocuous part of childhood. If I had played it though, who would I have played it with? I did not have many friends, and the playmates I did have were more likely to pretend to be frogs (or even catch real ones) than play leap frog.

But now that I think on it, I did, however, have a large number of imaginary friends. This is not that unusual in childhood, though perhaps my talking for them was. Furthermore, most of them were adults from various books, television shows and movies. I remember having long conversations with people such as Alan Grant and Ian Malcolm of Jurassic Park, James Kirk of Star Trek, Cordell Walker and James Trivet of Walker, Texas Ranger. Perhaps the best way to get back into childhood would be to play a game of leap frog with these fictitious people.

How hard could this possibly be?

Phase II-Logistics, Logistics, Logistics

Rule 1- Have imaginary friends who are friendly, helpful and willing to do anything for you, even years after you’ve “grown-up”

No. Scratch that. That’s Rule 2. Rule 1 is have imaginary friends who are not pragmatic.

“You do realize we’re imaginary right?

“And the ability for you to actually touch us is nil?”

“I came back from Tahiti with that nice kid for this?”

“The ability for a real person to physically leap over a non-existent entity is impossible.”

“Yeah, and how old are you? Because I’m forty. And I haven’t done this in like thirty ye— I’m not doing this!”

“This sounds like fun!!!”

While it can be a relief to have that one enthusiastic soul, it is better to have the one enthusiastic soul whom no one wants to injure. Alas, this was not to be.

After much wheedling and cajoling my only ally was released. All right, I told them that since they were acting childish it was not to big a leap (pardon the pun) for them to play a childish game. And anyway the sooner it was done, the sooner they could go.

This brings us to Rule 3: Make sure the camera is charged. No further explanation is needed.

Phase III-~~Survival of the Fittest~~ What I Learned

Childhood is a wonderful time, filled with many happy memories, and friendly imaginary friends—who at that particular moment like you. Who don’t like being interrupted when they’re in Tahiti. To be fair, some did not mind getting away from the “sugar-faced walking contagions,” and only one was actually interested in the task, but still nothing brings back the happy memories of childhood quite like a game of leap frog.

Also, hopping around with a camera is highly awkward and a bit like being in a parody of a spy movie. Just when you think it’s safe to do the secretive filming, someone else jogs by. Or a photography-oriented person wanders around snapping pictures. Or people exit their car near you.

However, it all did bring back the memories of childhood, especially those middle school years where part of you grasps to the more youthful pursuits with people no one else can see, while another part of you aspires to be those lucky people out for a walk.

The Green Beaner's Go Froggin'

2008-11-02T19:01:00.003-06:00

There have been many things that have occurred at the residence known as the Green Bean. Sunday November 2nd there was a first. The guys who live in the house decided to go leap frogging. Well, they didn't decide as much as they were forced to do it by me. It took a little bit of time but I finally talked the guys into helping me with my project. Even though they won't admit it I'm pretty sure they had a little bit of fun in the process.

For those of you that don't know about the Green Bean, there are a few things people need to know. First of all, there is always something going on when you visit the Green Bean. Second, the Green Bean is not a place where you would find your typical leap frogger. We just have never come up with the idea that we should be playing leap frog.

Aaron Waldeck, Kyle Aherin, Quin Hammann, and Andrew Benning (my roommates) decided they would chime in and help. At first they were a little slow about getting the chain going but after a few moments they started to get into it. Of course, we can't just do something in a traditional manner so we had to change it up a bit. After a few people went there were some changes. People started deciding it would be more fun to fall on each other than actually jump over each other. This helped turn our leap frog experiment into an all out brawl. We ended up all wrestling and leap frog went down the drain, but the important part is that we did play leap frog for a little bit.

Overall, I thought leap frog went really well for us. I had my eyes on bigger ideas but none of them seemed to pan out. My first plan was to get Al Bowman to help out, but unfortunately that plan wasn't coming together soon enough. Second, I decided I wanted to go to Hooter's and have the waitresses help me play leap frog. I was all ready to go until I realized I had to work all weekend and I wouldn't be able to make it to Hooter's. You could imagine how much fun that would have been for me though. All in all though the project turned out to be a lot of fun. It was something I didn't ever assume we would be doing. But now that we did I am glad we were assigned the project.

Atkin 3 Learns to Leap

2008-11-02T17:29:00.003-06:00

I chose to do my part of the leap frog phenomenon on October 22, 2008. Let me point out that I was not having the most glorious of days. In fact, it was down right horrible. Things were not going my way, and just when I was about ready to call it a day, I came up with an ingenious plan. I decided to ask some of my floor mates on Atkin 3 to do the leap frog in our hallway.

So, I did not receive quite the reception I had been hoping for. Apparently, leap frog is not the cool thing to do when you are in college. Eventually, I had about four of my floor mates and some random guy, whose name I discovered is Alex, volunteer to experience the amazing game of leap frog.

I asked my roommate to tape the event so I could participate. I thought she had not recorded us doing the leap frog correctly, so we ended up doing it three times. Each leap was a little different, but I think the third was the best. During the first two times, I proclaimed that the random guy, aka Alex, was"big." I did not mean big as in fat, but big as in broad, however he took it as meaning fat. I felt really bad about making him feel that way, so I made it a point to apologize and clarify exactly what I had meant by saying he was big. I told him being broad is a very good thing in my opinion. I definitely appreciate guys with wide shoulders. As a side note, I also gave him a mini-Snickers bar to make up for everything.

All in all, I think my attempt at leap frog was pretty successful, and I had fun. It even made me forget about my bad day for an hour or so. I hope you enjoy Atkin 3 doing the leap frog!

Emily

Leapfrog?! I Think Not!

2008-11-02T17:10:00.002-06:00

My experience with leapfrog was not only disappointing, embarrassing, and sad, it was downright non-existent. I had told my roommates and my friend whose 21st birthday was on Halloween that I wanted them to play leapfrog with me on Saturday night for this assignment. "No problem" they say, "Sounds like fun" they say. So we head to Pub II around 9:30 all decked out as the employees from Smart Tech (from 40 Year Old Virgin) and all is going well. We ordered a few drinks, shared some laughs, and around 11:00 I remembered, "Oh! We have to play leapfrog."

Well...my roommates who were down as a clown before we left the apartment decided that it was too crowded and they would be too embarrassed to play a game of leap frog. "Well..." I say, "What if you just get down and pretend like we're playing leapfrog instead?" Apparently, this would also be too embarrassing for them, so I cursed them and tried to figure out a plan. After one of my roommates saw I was disappointed with him, he suggested that I just ask random people to play with me. This was where things got very embarrassing.

I am very much, in general, a shy person. I very rarely talk to anybody I do not know without being spoken to first. I am certainly not the type of person (even if I am very much under the influence of alcohol) to just start talking to random people in bars. Seeing though how this was something that needed to be done, I mustered up all my courage and pretty much shouted at the top of my lungs "HEY DOES ANYBODY WANT TO PLAY LEAPFROG??!!!" Wow, the reaction I got was the exact opposite of what I had hoped for. Instead of three or four people saying yeah sure, I got stared at by everybody for about ten seconds. It seemed like the music stopped and I was the entertainment for the evening with my red face and trembling hands. I promptly told my friend and roommates to chug their beers, we were going elsewhere.

Since I didn't get to play leapfrog there and was out of town with no camera Sunday, I was scrambling to find somewhere or someone of significance with whom I could get this assignment done. After worrying about it for a few hours, I realized that instead of finding some insignificant place or person to play leapfrog with, I would rather tell my story of embarrassment and anguish at NOT getting to play leapfrog. I guess lesson learned: If your friends think it would be too embarrassing...too damn bad, you're doing it anyways.

Fragmented Frogs: Distance Speaks Louder Than Actions

2008-11-02T16:50:00.003-06:00

Leap frog as a way to build community. It began as an assignment, but I became excited. For me, this was an opportunity to fight back at distance—to bridge the miles between me and the people I love. When I went away to college, many of my friends, whom I had known for over ten years, stayed at home on the south side of Chicago. My girlfriend of five years (at the time) went to the University of Pittsburgh. Since then, I have devoted much of my time to alleviate the negative aspects of distance by talking to people as often as possible. Still, only so much comfort can be attained without actually seeing a person often.

My main goal was to transcend the average boundaries of communication with my friends and girlfriend by all playing leap frog on the same night in our separate locations. This would be my way to feel close to everyone despite the hours of travel dividing us. That was the original plan, and I was quite enamored by it. Apparently, though, no one else was.

When I first told my girlfriend about the plan, she seemed excited and willing to play leap frog with her friends. I decided the best night would be Halloween, since everyone would assuredly be out with each other. In the days leading up to that night, I continuously reminded my girlfriend about it, hoping she would understand that it was important to me for more reasons than it being a class assignment. I did not give such warnings to my other friends, expecting it to be an easy enough thing for them to do. I called them early in the evening.

“This is gonna sound really weird, but I need you guys to do me a favor tonight. I need you to play leap frog with everyone.”

“Uhhh,” he seemed disturbed, as if I had just asked him to kiss all the boys in the room, and then, “No.”

“Why not? Come on, it’s seriously not hard. Everyone’s out with you aren’t they?”

“Yeah, but why do you need us to do this? Have Kelly do it.” I explained to him my reasons behind the whole thing and told him that Kelly was doing it as well.

“Uh, I’ll see what I can do. I’ll keep you updated.” He spoke uncomfortably to me like I was an employee asking him for an absurd raise. Not five minutes after this exchange, he texted me (avoiding real contact) that I should call two of my other friends, whom I am not nearly as close to, because they were at a costume party and would “for sure do it.” Realizing the plan would lose its philosophical glimmer if my friends felt forced to do it rather than wanting to, I gave up on garnering their support. I complained to Kelly about their apathy, and she seemed sympathetic. I would be happy sharing the experience with just her anyway, so I shrugged off the snub from my friends.

But she spurned me too. I was at a Halloween party with about fifteen people when I decided to organize the event. Despite only knowing a handful of the people there, the game was incredibly fun. We began in the narrow hallway of the apartment and found ourselves out the door, heading down the stairs by the end. There was laughter, screaming and frantic leaping, of course. Even though the party had been enjoyable before we played, it felt much more intimate afterward. People who had been sitting alone or with only a couple people for most of the night erupted in conversation with one another. I was glad that on my end, the leap frog was a smashing success.

Not so for two-thirds of my plan. Kelly later told me she had not wanted to watch a movie with her usual group of friends, electing to haunt a couple parties instead. She did not forget about the game, she most likely felt uncomfortable, just as my friends from home had. Distance never stops teaching you some things.

M. Carmody

Family Frogs!

2008-11-02T16:35:00.000-06:00

After long deliberation of how and who will I initiate in the leap frog class project, I came to a successful conclusion. I concluded that my family was perfect specimen for this project. It has been a long time since I was home and I thought it to be perfect if I could get my mom, dad, brother, and sis into this amusing yet awkward activity. My family tends to part their separate ways as they are always preoccupied with their lives so I was hoping I could create a sense of community/unity amongst us. I knew this would not be an easy task to accomplish as my parents are pretty “stiff” and would be resistant to participate in this kind of activity.

It was November 1^st, the day after Halloween, so I and rest of the family were still functioning on sugar. I mentioned nothing of this project to my family. I was joking around with them all day and helping out with whatever was necessary just to be as nice as possible and create a pleasant mood and atmosphere so they would be more compliant with my leap frog project. While getting groceries for dinner I also picked up a bottle of red wine. After dinner and few glasses of wine my parents were chipper. I popped the question. I got some weird looks from my family; they had no idea what I was talking about. I stressed the importance of this class project as I pushed them to our back yard. After a very long explanation period first attempts were made. I have to admit this is by far one of the funniest things I ever seen my family do. In the end all was well, and my family was glad they could make fun of each other for their lack of dexterity and overall physical activity. This was a unique bonding experience for us all.

I believe this activity created a stronger sense of unity amongst my family because of the unique nature of it. It was great to see that even though the activity may have seemed a bit childish or awkward to participate in those feelings were overcome and thus creating a greater sense of unity in my family. It also created community amongst us by means of helping someone out. It showed community in terms of support. But, most importantly, it created community in terms of enjoying each others company and being able to laugh at one another in a friendly way.

The Classroom as Community: Teaching them to Leap

2008-11-02T16:02:00.005-06:00

The first time I watched the Vimeo clip of Matt Harding dancing around the world, I cried. I know, I know, it is silly. But I always get emotional when I take part in experiences which celebrate the community of the human experience. Staying up late reading the seventh Harry Potter book--and knowing millions of others were doing the same thing--it doesn't get any better than that. So as I prepared to teach this course, I knew that I wanted my students to think about community and how shared experiences create connections. I designed this assignment not knowing what would happen next: Would my students participate? Would they think it was cheesy? Did it matter if they did?

Fast forward a few months later, and there I was preparing to play Leap Frog at the Maxwell Dog Park. I had mulled over a few ideas on the where and when, but I decided on the dog park for a few important reasons: 1) Of all the places in town, I probably spend the bulk of my time at the dog park, 2) I was participating in this blog not as a teacher--I wanted to choose a spot that was devoid of "teacher" qualities, 3) I wanted an excuse to put a picture of my dog, Lexi, on the blog.

The day I arrived at the dog park, it was cold. And I was alone. The dog park was empty.

"Good--I won't look like an idiot in front of everyone," I thought.

I sent my dog off to run and sniff, and then I proceeded to play leap frog (or, at the very least, a solo-version of the game). But, of course, I wasn't alone. I knew that my students were playing leap frog, too. Maybe it would be a different day for them (and let's be honest--I knew most would procrastinate the activity until the day before it was due), and certainly it would be a different place, but I wouldn't be alone in my leap froging.

While this particular project was designed to create community, I realize now that it was simply a physical manifestation of something that always exists in a classroom. As bell hooks would say, classrooms are communities, whether we acknowledge it or not. The students and the teachers share their experiences and their stories with each other, and if we are lucky, we forge a community that helps everyone involved develop and grow. Sometimes it doesn't work out in a positive way, but every once in a while everything falls into place, and for a moment I know: The experience we just had in class will stay with all of us for a very long time.

Only time will tell whether this particular assignment is one of those moments for them, but I think it will be for me.

Phi Sigma Pi Leapers!

2008-10-30T21:15:00.006-05:00

When you want to play leap frog, “who you gonna call?” Well, I would not call Ghostbusters, but I would call my Brothers! I chose to play leap frog with my “Brothers,” my fellow members of the honors fraternity—Phi Sigma Pi. With this assignment, we were aiming to create community by bringing a group of people together. In Phi Sigma Pi, we are always striving to create community in our Brotherhood. So, I decided to combine the two. At the beginning of our Chapter, we play icebreakers. I asked the Vice President, and she thought it was a great idea to have leap frog for one of our ice breakers.

So, on October 20, the Brothers gathered in the hallway of Schroeder, where I told them about my assignment and asked for their help. Always willing to help a Brother in need, they graciously consented to play leap frog while being videotaped. It took a while to get ourselves together and to figure out exactly how we wanted to play, but finally we decided to make one long line and to just leap until we leaped over everyone. It was hilarious and so much fun! I leaped second and had a blast. Random acts of foolishness occurred, such as one of the Brothers kept trying to give wedgies to unsuspecting frogs while going on her leaping way. Others teased each other and made jokes. It was fun seeing the different ways people attempted to leap, some more successful than others. However, even if they were not too happy about the idea of leap frog, everyone ended up having fun. It brought us together. Even afterwards, the Brothers continued to tease each other about their leaping.

We are all very different people, yet we were all doing the same thing—leaping, just in our way. It will be interesting to watch everyone else’s version of leap frog. However, others may try to leap frog our way, but it would never be the exact same. The jokes, the laughter, the smiles, the randomness, none of it can be copied or replaced. It is forever in our memories as a good time with our fellow Brothers.

So, join me in watching the Phi Sigma Pi version of leap frog!

What We Learned

2007-11-05T17:51:00.000-06:00

Our experiences playing leap frog were all very different. Some people played with friends or family, some by themselves, some with pets, and some with strangers. Everyone had a different purpose, whether it be trying to resolve an argument or trying to get into a bar. Some people found through this activity that the people in their lives could be very helpful, and others realized that their relationships were not as strong as they had thought. Regardless, we all had to do the activity and were therefore connected as a class. We even did leap frog together, and that helped build community in our class.
Although each person’s experience was very different, we still knew that we all were doing the same activity. Even though we were in different places, we were still connected through the game. Some of us were embarrassed, and some of us took it in stride, but we all put our reservations aside and took the leap, because we knew we were counting on each other. It gave us a way to revert back to our childhood days of innocence, and allowed us to spread that to others around us. We hope you enjoyed our experience as much as we did, and if you would like to keep the community alive, feel free to email pictures to Corey at leapfrog246@yahoo.com. Keep the leap going!