“Pick a disaster, any disaster…”
I recently played a fun table game about disasters. Oh, don’t stop reading! Really, it WAS fun. Yeah, OK, maybe not THAT fun for everyone,
but maybe that is the secret to getting people prepared for disasters, in a fun
way. Like the words in that song: “Just
a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down!” [sing with me now] “the
medicine go do-own, the medicine go down…”
Those of you who are Big Bang Theory fans (which should be
everyone), Sheldon Cooper is my idol on many fronts, especially when it comes
to practicing for disasters. Can you
imagine your roommate waking you in the middle of the night to play a game? Try
not to think of that as creepy, which is suddenly seems, and think of what that
should be-- exactly what emergencies are – those buggers sneak up on you when
you least expect it, then SHA-BAM! There it is!
But if you regularly played a really cool game that
interacted with others, had some good food and drink, and learned something all
at the same time – that seems so easy! Note, that evidently my age shows when
“playing a game” involves a game board, dice, having other people there who
make eye contact and maybe add a wheel to spin and tokens to move, but just go
with me here…
A professor in the Geology Department recently hosted a
trial of a game about disasters. It was
a bit like “The Settlers of Catan,” but with disasters. Pretty cool, I thought.
So maybe we could start changing a few other games to have “disaster” themes. In “Life” throw in an earthquake or flooding
event. In “Yahtzee” make all double 4s a pandemic that makes you miss a
turn. Or “Chutes and Ladders” that makes
you get nearly to the end then land on the wrong spot and have to slide back
down to the very beginning again every time you play it and… Oh, wait – that is
the REAL Chutes and Ladders. I always hated that game…
We all know that disasters are, well, disasters and not
fun. However, we CAN make thinking about
them and preparing for them a little more enjoyable by integrating those
concepts into already fun stuff. Please
give it a go and let me know.
In the meantime, enjoy Sheldon as he makes sure his friend Leonard
is always prepared:
