I couldn’t help but share this excerpt from Handbook of Recreational Games by Neva L. Boyd, published by Dover. I love the quirky Dover books you see in craft stores all the time, and got onto their weekly free samples list. That’s how I came across this text which must have been written like 40+ years ago.

Slap Tag is just funny. Dodgeball, a staple of both my grade school Gym classes and afternoon recess, has now been banned at schools across the nation. Can you imagine a modern day Physical Education Instructor explaining the rules? Think of that one kid who used to tell on everybody, the kid you all picked on whenever the teacher snuck out for a smoke. Consider his modern day equivalent in his Golden Fleece polo. Think about just how red his palms would be after third period Gym.

Apologies if you were that kid.

I included Have You Seen My Sheep? because it actually reminds me of a game Jake has created called I Wish I Had a Doggie. Jake’s game (only one of many, many such games he has invented including Wampa Ice Creature from The Empire Strikes Back, Roar, and Mountain Dew the Mountain Dew Soda Machine Transformer.) I Wish I Had a Doggie is not, however, a version of tag. See, Jake is the doggie and I am the kid who wishes I had a doggie. My roll in the game is to fail to notice the puppy right before my eyes as I repeatedly lament, “I’m so lonely. I wish I had a nice Doggie to be my friend.” Jake pads around on all fours whimpering and reminding me when I get distracted by whatever’s on Noggin that I have to keep saying “I wish I had a doggie.”

Eventually I discover this doggie and we embrace. Sometimes I get licked. Then I have to guess his name. His name, of course, is Jake. Unless Noah is also participating, in which case his name is Keek – Noah-speak for Jake.