By: Blonde Two
I was never really steady-handed enough to enjoy the childhood game of ‘Pick-Up-Sticks’. You know the one, get a load of pretty coloured sticks, chuck them all on the table (how untidy!) and then try to lift one out without moving another one.
My New Zealand game of ‘Pick-Up-Sticks’ however, is much more fun and, eventually, a lot tidier. To play you need a paddock full of sawn off oak branches (these should be approximately the size of a small tree), grass that has grown around the branches enough to tangle some and hide others, some good quality choppers (not teeth) and a trailer to put them all into.
You are thinking that this game is easy aren’t you? Well you are so wrong! It is nearly impossible (even for a pink-clad-Blonde) to lift a grass entangled nearly-tree directly into a trailer. Planning is everything. If you lift the stick (let’s call it a stick for continuity) slightly off the ground, you can see where it needs chopping. Chopping is fun and results in a nearly-tree/stick that is much easier to put into the trailer.
Be warned though. Unlike in childhood, the game is not over when you have picked up all of the sticks. You have to drive them somewhere and put them all down again. This, unless you have previously done adequate chopping, can be as near impossible as picking them all up in the first place.
Like all games, ‘Pick-Up-Sticks’ is more fun if played in company. I had a little friend to help me (pictured below). He was so still that at first I thought that I had run over him; I was very relieved when he hopped off to play his own game of ‘Pick-Up-Carrots’.
I’ll lend you K9. He is an expert stick mover. He has moved nearly half a forest to a position about 3 inches from my front porch wall. Once there, he has no further interest in them.
Probably best not to have a bonfire so close to your door!