Phantom Phones-Trick Or Treats-Out Of Your Gourd

Phantom Phones

Today is Halloween one of America's most celebrated holidays. Many people will attend parties, dress in costume, and play games. Many children will go trick or treating collecting copious amounts of candy from neighbors, friends, and vendors. In an attempt to once again find some enthusiasm for Halloween I have decided to be a virtual phone, a phantom phone. It is exciting to think that I can call people all over the world virtually without the need to own a phone.

Besides trying to regain the enthusiasm of my youth, what prompted this decision? Clearly it is a desperate attempt to be one with a phone. I am attempting to understand one of the most obsessive objects of our world today. By thinking, feeling and experiencing being a virtual phone, a phantom phone, I may come to realize the necessity to own one.

To do this I need Constantin Stanislavsky and the method actor's search for 'inner truth.' Since I do not like phones, in order to understand them (since I need to get one) I will be one. This makes perfect sense. It is time for some good vibrations. Not necessarily phantom vibrations, but I have to go with what I have and that is Halloween a holiday where I can find my inner child in an attempt to find 'inner' truth. Whatever...

After reading and hearing about the phantom phone, virtual phone, I was intrigued by it's virtual phone vibrations. To quote an abc News article titled:" Phantom' Cell Phone Sensations: Mind Over Matter"

''Like the phantom limb phenomenon, mysterious cell phone vibrations can also be explained by changing nerve connections in the brain.

'Cell phones enter into the neuromatrix of the body -- they become appendages,' says Barr.

So when you leave your cell phone at home, the brain interprets it as it would a phantom limb -- it's not present, but you feel as though it is.

'It's an interesting technological statement about society that our machines are becoming part of us," says Barr.'"

This is my argument for not having a phone. I do not want a phone to be another appendage wiring my brain using Pavlovian conditioning. I continue to think 'I do not need a phone'. I have fought the good fight and I am loosing. So like the old adage, 'if you can't beat them join them, my Halloween epigram (an adage with a twist), is 'if you can't beat them, be them'.

Trick or Treats
By contrast remembering the days of my youth, my enthusiasm for Halloween was at it's peak. The idea of a virtual phone did not even exist. I was in the respected company of costumed Gypsies,Tramps and Thieves. At 10 years old Halloween's Trick or Treats was taken seriously at least by me and my sister Jill who was 4 years my junior. We would hurry right home after school. Then assemble full make-up, costume, flashlights and pillow cases to stash the loot (treats). No paper bags for us, we would not risk a breaking bag. Our Gypsy costumes were (truly authentic (in our opinions) complete with scarves, bangles, beads, and full length gypsy skirts. We were on a mission-To fill the bag.

Planning our route we agreed: to go until our pillow cases were full, to walk around crowds of people in our way, to keep moving and not waste time, and the number one thing not to do, eat any treats until we were back home. We had to have an accurate count for later distribution. Time was of the essence. After about 3 hours of intensive treating, no tricks here that was a time waster, Jill would be the messenger to go home to tell Mom the mission was almost accomplished with only a few more houses to go. Only after no one was in sight and a full (pillow) case of candy, it was time to go home. Mission accomplished, now it was time, to sort, to count, and to distribute the treats. The 'Gypsies' Mission was finished.

Recently, Jill was recognized as one of Chicago's top ten Realtors. Asked to fill out her profile her lack of educational degrees was embarrassing for her. Becoming successful without a degree was hard to explain. After she told me her circumstance I advised her to put down her entrepreneurial Gypsy experience in her formative years soliciting free food, transporting it, warehousing it, and the giving it away. I was sure that would look good in her profile. She had some doubts.

Out Of Your Gourd
It would not be right to end Halloween without a game. To add intrigue to enthusiasm I have created the perfect game, 'You Are Out Of Your Gourd'. For marketing purposes I have already dropped the 'You Are' and went with the a later version of 'Out Of Your Gourd'.

I combined the game concepts of Twister, Guess Who, and Musical Chairs. You could say it is a Social Networking Game. The principle is to build up the group by remembering names and engaging in conversation by moving from chair to chair and loosing your own identity 'gourd'. The winner is recognized by the other players by a shout out, "You are 'Out Of Your Gourd''. I am hoping to win an award or at least be recognized for the Pavlovian conditioning response by the winner for seeking an otherwise negative identity. However, I know generation Y will recognize its value and that may be the best reward yet.

What you need:

1. players
2. gourds
3. chairs
4. music
   

Note:a reel of pre-recorded short parts of songs is recommended, otherwise one person must start and stop the music (now you have the vulnerable human factor).

How to play:

1. choose a gourd-your identity-put a mark on it (no sixes please)
   
2. choose a seat
3. start the music
4. engage in conversation with the person to your left (only in the beginning)
   
5. the conversation must be the same with each person for later purposes
6. exchange gourds
7. continue to start and stop the music
8. exchange seats
   
9. continue this until all players have been engaged by all players with an identifying conversation
10. When a player thinks they have engaged every other player, can identify them with the identifying conversation, does not have their own gourd they will shout out 'I Am Out Of My Gourd'
11. At that crucial time they must identify each person, each identifiable conversation and hold up someone else's gourd with their right hand in the air like a trophy.
12. When all of these requirements have been met, 'friends you will be looking at a winner.'
13. The music must stop, all must stand and with a shout of admiration in unison the victory shout is ''You are 'Out Of Your Gourd'".
14. The winner gets all the gourds but their own and the one who has the winner's gourd gets to keep it as a keepsake to be cherished forever.

There you have it Halloween Prime Time. I am sending you good vibrations. I hope this Halloween you reflect on these important principles: fill the bag, keep moving, eat later, engage in identifiable conversations, leave your phone at home (I will call you), you will always have enough to give away and laugh out loud when you hear someone say, "You Are 'Out Of Your Gourd'' you have just crossed paths with a winner :-D