August 3, 2025: The Mud Man

Easy games sometimes become legends.

When my kids were little, I invented a game that could be played anywhere. And they begged for it constantly.

The entire setup required nothing more than a blanket and imagination. The best part? Zero prep or cleanup.

I called it Mud Man.

Here’s how it worked.

1. The kids sat shoulder to shoulder on the couch.

2. I held up a blanket and announced it was mud. Not just any mud, but this goo contained whatever disgusting things I could dream up. Dirty toenails, moldy cheese, horse poop, mystery slime — all with the goal of making them scream, “Ewwww!”

3. The kids were told to sit completely still.

4. I tossed the blanket high into the air, letting the wind choose the target, and whoever it landed on got “slimed.”

Somehow, the game never grew old. The sillier the storytelling, the more they laughed.

This week, I read about a mom who entertains her kids at the airport using AI. While waiting for a flight, she asks it to create a scavenger hunt of items around the specific departure gate. And off they go, snapping pictures of each clue.

That’s clever. But not every game needs the internet or technology. Some of the greatest ones are purely analog.

All you need is a blanket and the willingness to imagine worms in it.