By Rollo Skinner

 

Don’t wait. Get out there.

 

I was waiting for the perfect passion project to land at my feet.

 

Just after the end of term I had a drunken evening in with friends. Drunken evenings in with my friends often end up with a traditional game of Abstractify – a game I came up with a few years ago.

 

Abstractify is for those who find Charades a little dull. Which, after playing it every family Christmas, I certainly do. Although Charades with your deaf grandmother never gets old – she just keeps going and going, long after the right answer’s been called.

 

So here’s a little Christmas gift, instead of Charades to entertain yourself this Christmas, here are the rules of Abstractify:

 

(N.B. Do not confuse Abstractify with Objectify, it’ll get you into trouble.)

 

One player whispers to another:

1. a) an object/animal

AND

1. b) a verb/situation.

 

Some examples are :

A jellyfish in a gay bar.

The last diplodocus on earth.

A washing machine on it’s birthday.  

A sexually frustrated dodo.

 

The player then leaves the room and must return as the animal/object in the situation. Everyone else calls out the answers until someone gets it and then it’s their turn. It’s bizarre how quickly people get to the right answer.

 

Halfway through the game I had a eureka moment, why not develop Abstractify into a card game for my passion project? I started dreaming up improvements of the game and designs of the cards and packaging.

 

But then I realised it’s too niche – simply a game for actors and show offs. Not really passion project material.

 

I’d been hoping the perfect passion project would just appear. But I realised instead of waiting for the answer to come to me, I had to go in search. And what better way to get answers than with Dave Pearl’s Street Wisdom.

 

But what if there is no street? Can you get the answers from nature? Can Woodland Wisdom work? I put it to the test.

 

Admittedly some of the answers were heavily influenced by the woods.

A clothing range inspired by rubbings from tree bark, for instance.

And couture outfits made from foliage.

 

But I finally came to an answer which I’m eager to begin. It might not be perfect, but by pursuing it, it will undoubtedly lead me to something even better. All I have to do is DO it.

 

So, don’t just wait for the perfect idea to come to you. As long as you tune up and give yourself time, you’ll find the answers wherever you are.

 

You just need to look.