Gish-wha? Team Lagniappe and G.I.S.H.W.H.E.S 2015

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When I was at #Dad2Summit last February, my friend Amy mentioned this thing she had done the previous summer, a crazy scavenger hunt called G.I.S.H.W.H.E.S, or the Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen. Interest piqued, and my declaration of 2015 as my “Year of DO” I ran off to the GISHWHES website to sign up to be reminded when registration opened later in the spring.

And so I signed up, as a member of Amy's “Team Lagniappe,” and spent a week creating, laughing my ass off, brainstorming the craziest ideas, and generally having a great time with friends local and virtual, old and new.

I know you remember scavenger hunts when you were a kid, right? I seem to recall them being a moderately popular birthday party theme. Go around to neighbor's houses, asking them to give you stuff. A penny from 1973, a safety pin, maybe a can of chicken soup. You know.

GISHWHES isn't like that; the challenges are more… specific. And focused on creation, of both art and joy. The list, which is over 200 items long, isn't meant to be completed, it's meant to inspire and motivate and maybe, for one lucky team, win them a trip to Costa Rica.

I wanted to share just a little of the craziness that our team made during the first week of August, which is, and always will be, GISHWHES.

#34: How do you do it? Everyone on your team has such beautiful mustaches? Do you have some sort of hair growth cream you slather on or pills you all take? Let's see a grid photo of everyone on your team that features your mustaches prominently.
#55: Dressed in something celebratory, hug someone you love, motionless, in a very crowded location. You must hug them for 20 minutes without moving and time lapse it. Add your favorite score to the video. (Shout out to my friends 5 Cent Coffee for letting me use one of their songs for the video!)

#199: Translate your favorite slogan into legalese. (Credit: Andy of How to Be a Dad)
#133: This is a real Welsh word: “Llanfaurpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch.” Find a Welsh person and have them say in Welsh “I am Welsh and I hate that I have to do this,” and then they must say the lengthy word 3 times, without stuttering and without reading it.

#154: Let's see the Leaning Tower of Gishwhes. (Credit: Amy)

#47: Stop hiding your true talent. The world deserves to see it. Without using special effects or trick editing, make a person disappear.

#42: You've just received an invitation to the annual Color Me Pretty Construction Paper Gala. Design and wear an elegant gown consisting of only construction paper. You must be posed with a antique or hotrod car/motorcycle (that will take you to the Gala, of course) or in front of the Gala itself which takes place in the most stunning public building of your city. (We call this one: Car Trouble on the Way to the Ball)

 #155: Let's see a portrait of Taylor Swift or Nicki Minaj made from glue, rice and dried legumes. (Amy went ahead and did BOTH of them!)

#35: Design a device that would allow a five ounce swallow to carry a one pound coconut. (Andy from HTBAD again, of course)
#40: They say, “A dog is a man's best friend,” but they are sexist. Dogs can be women's best friends too. To prove it, make one entirely out of feminine hygiene products. The dog must be at least 40 centimeters tall. (We realize he's tiny. But Guinevere did an amazing job, making the cutest tampon dog ever! And now I super hope someone searches “tampon dog” and lands on my blog. Hi, welcome!)

#50: Your friend loves cake, so being a good friend, you offer to take them out for cake at a nice restaurant. Alas, you discover when you arrive at the restaurant, that your friend has recently undergone medical treatments that prevents them from moving their arms, so you will have to feed them. Unfortunately, light is harmful to your eyes so you must be blindfolded. While blindfolded, stand behind your seated friend in a fancy restaurant and put your arms under their armpits and feed them cake with your hands. Trust us. This is going to work out beautifully. (Nice work from Kendall and Jenny)

#17: The 2015 gishwhes mascot Dinomite asks you to pick a number between 1 and 1000, asks you 10 questions with yes/no answers, and then guesses the number. What were the 10 questions? (Credit: Mr. Doug French)

So those are just a few of my most favorite of our GISHWHES contributions for 2015… are you going to play next year?

If you're a Gisher who is stopping by to check out what the competition did, please drop a link to your fave of your own, down in the comments!

Gish on, gishers!