The Challenge: Figure out a way to bring some fun into a dreaded task today.
Kim:
My dreaded task…two words- cold calls. How in the world do I make cold calls more fun? Well, the first thing I did was I taped an artificial flower (my favorite — the daisy) to the end of my pen. This added some fun to the notes I wrote throughout my calls. I also made up a little game in which I kept track of what type of calls I had. I took a long strip of paper and drew a line down the middle. It was a race. For every good call I drew a heart in the happy row. For every bad call, I drew a heart in the sad row. I used hearts because of Valentines Day. It was fun, but I have to say that it wasn’t SUPER fun. If anyone has any other ideas on how to make cold calls more fun, please let me know.
Jason:
I am my own boss, so if I had too many “dreaded tasks” littering my schedule, I’d request a one-on-one, closed door meeting with myself. To be honest, I’m not a big fan of the financial side of things; keeping track of all the bills and taxes that need to be paid. But that task was yesterday. Today’s agenda consisted of writing and drawing comic strips…not a bad way to spend a day.
There is one part of my day that I don’t particularly look forward to: working out. Maybe it’s because I do it first thing in the morning when I still long for sleep; maybe it’s because I’m not (yet) as ripped as Toby Maguire in Spiderman (hey don’t laugh), but I generally dread this little morning routine. I figured I could put on some music, but that seemed pretty tame. I decided to pop in my Star Wars Episode III DVD and watch one of the special feature documentaries. Now that’s the way to go. I watched “The Chosen One,” which covers the whole sordid tale of Darth Vader, including the cool makeup used to transform Hayden Christensen into a charred and crispy Anakin Skywalker.
In a related story, after my workout I fried myself an egg.
Dark Room Confessionals:
Bonus Video: Kim | Jason
So, who was most creative with today’s challenge? Who went beyond the comfort zone and put the biggest hammer on Adultitis? Who did a better job of capturing the spirit of childhood, Kim or Jason? Cast Your Vote!
Tomorrow’s Challenge: Audio Sneak Peek
I asked him to explain for me about his style of martial arts. He called it “extreme martial arts.” He said that in the 80’s with the Karate Kid movies martial arts became more popular. His style combines some of his acting and stunt experience involving entertainment and it also combines some acrobatics with martial arts. I asked him about the choreography of the Power Rangers. Is it all choreographed perfectly and how long does it take to learn it? Jason shared that for the TV show they would get on set that morning very early, choreograph the scenes for the day and then shoot the scenes the same day. For the live performance shows he would do for Power Rangers, the moves were choreographed farther ahead of time. They would try to “mix it up” here and there to keep adding harder moves and to add variety to their performances. Jason also shared that the talent in Hollywood pales in comparison to the talent in the Karate schools across the country. The teachers in his classes are some of the best talent there is out there.
On 
My “find” totaled $0.99. As you can see it is a glow-in-the-dark eyeball bouncy ball. There is something magical about bouncy balls when you’re a kid. Maybe it’s their unruly and unpredictable nature. Maybe it’s because it’s one of the only cool prizes in the gumball machines that you can afford as a kid. I’m not sure but I think it definitely serves as a product that captures the spirit of childhood. Jason and I actually went into the dark bathroom to see how it glows. Boy, did that bring back memories.
Two words: silly string.
Today as Jason and I walked to the car together I put my arm around his shoulder and invited him to walk “like The Monkees” with me. Then on the way home from church I stopped at the grocery store so that Jason and I could each pick out a doughnut. I always loved stopping for treats when I was a kids- whether it was ice cream from Dairy Queen, gingerbread cookies from the bakery, or a Frosty from Wendy’s. Little treats were always such a big deal as a child. Who am I kidding? They still are.
Normally, when I think of a routine, I normally don’t think of weekends, which is when this challenge fell for me. But it didn’t take long for me to realize that I have some morning routines that happen each and every day, whether I’m working or not. I decided today would be “opposite” day.
My word was “dowdy.” It has two definitions: shabby/ not neat and old-fashioned. I managed to squeeze in a few “Not too dowdy” phrases, as if to say “Not too shabby.” I have to admit I didn’t do a very good job in remembering. I usually tried to incorporate the word into my language shortly after Jason used his word. (I’m trying to be honest here.) However at dinner I used it very appropriately when referring to something being old-fashioned. So, I was able to use both definitions. I know that I am not one to use new words, so this was very different for me today and quite honestly I had a hard time remembering to even do it.
My word today was entrechat. What??? Exactly.
I am happy to report that we have had some very sunny days here in Madison recently. So, I had that in my favor today as I filled 8 glasses (2 wine glasses) with colorful water. I lined them up along my window seal by my desk. I had a very colorful desk, with the sun shining through the many colors. I really enjoyed looking at the light and different reflections throughout the day as the light and colors moved to different parts of my desk. Dropping the food coloring into the glasses brought back some great memories of dyeing Easter eggs, making play-do and most recently teaching our “Color” unit in Kindergarten (the kids would ‘experiment’ with color mixing using eye droppers and colored water.) I really don’t want to put the glasses away.
Jason:
I immediately thought of this shoe slide that is a part of the playground near Madison’s Vilas Zoo. I would’ve loved this as a child! It reminds me of something similar that I experienced when I was little. The McDonald’s that was in my hometown had a big Ronald McDonald car in the seating area, which actually had two built-in booths. I always hoped to sit in “the car” when we went there. I can only assume that kids would love to go to this park because of the “Old Lady’s Shoe.”
I would say that 
We took our nieces there last weekend for ice cream and I was waiting for the youngest’s head to explode due to sensory overload. (Speaking of ice cream, they also have a $38 sundae called the Sparkled Kazoo that boast 32 scoops of ice cream and sparklers for decorations.) I particularly enjoy the tables, many of which have detailed shadow box type displays — some with movable parts — which add a taste of nostalgia to the menu. Within the tables pictured here are old soda bottles and candy. 
I made a real effort to tackle this one with the mindset of a child. Maybe it’s the retired superhero in me, but it seems to me that if you ask a kid to do something to make the world a better place, his first thought would be to think big. As in “whole world” big. This made me feel pretty insignificant; after all, what could I do to make the “whole world” better? Not even Oprah has THAT much reach. But I know someone who does, which is why I turned to prayer. I think God’s got the most pull of anyone I know.