Did you read Highlights as a kid? That magazine is fantastic.

There’s always all kinds of stuff to do in that mag. If you’re a lazy kid out there, Highlights probably has a “How to Make a… “ segment that you could follow. Yeah, you know what I’m talking about.

Of course, during my time growing up, there weren’t any smart phones that we could get our hands all over, and the closest thing to texting was well…writing a letter and putting it in the recipient’s pocket. The lack of tech and the scarcity of internet access left entertainment to the whim of imagination.

If you miss it, or miss making things in general, this post is for you.

A call for "Brain Food."

AIGA’s recent call for Brain Food reminded me of those Highlights days. Check it out.

Brain Food will be a collection of ideas and concepts that will form an “activity deck.” This objective of the deck is to offer “imaginative challenges that will engage school-age children in developing creative and critical thinking skills.” Sounds like a great plan to me.

Contributions involve some kind of creative exploration, easy-to-find materials, and an actionable plan that relates to a school subject.

If you love our wonderful community and have a spare 30 minutes, I encourage you to submit an activity. Channel your inner Highlights. I thought it was pretty fun.

Something to do, in a time of too much to do.

I’m a diehard Oregonian and jump at any chance to give back to the community that tried to raise me right.

That being said, here are excerpts from my submission to help get your gears going, if interested:

"We spend so much of our days standing or sitting to do all kinds of tasks during the day. If you’re in school, you’re walking to class, sitting to pay attention to class, then maybe sitting some more to study or do your homework. When we finally get a chance to lie down, it’s probably to watch a movie, or to eventually go to sleep to get ready for another day of standing, sitting, and doing. What if we took a moment to lie down for a different reason? What would we think about? What would we see? Skywatching is finding a nice spot at your favorite Portland park and lying on your back, watching the sky above you. You can just look, or you can even close your eyes. As you stare into the sky, try to relax. What do you think about? How do you feel? What do you hear or see? Can it be expressed in words? Can it be expressed in art?"

I hope that AIGA can get the submissions they need to get this project going. I would really love to see what this activity deck ends up looking like, and how they plan on delivering the content out to the school district.

Once again, if you have a moment and love giving back– submit an idea!