12.19.2006

that voice, where have I heard that voice before?

long ago in a universe far, far away, my mom, sister, and i used to play the best driving-to-school-and-back game: punch buggy. whoever saw the old beaten up vw beetle first would yell at the top of her lungs, "punch buggy, no returns" and lightly punch the arm closest to her. the best buggy was in victoria park: we'd turn the corner and it was almost always parked in the driveway, just waiting for my arm to get crushed with my sister's effervescent taps. but in the last 10 years or so, old beetle bugs have become rarer, and the game's relevance has gone astray.

last month, when my mom was visiting, her boyfriend made a comment about how many priuses were on the road here. apparently, hybrid cars are still foreign in florida. i made a comment, saying here in san francisco, we had more priuses than people. which, if you didn't count the homeless and few children under the age of 10, might be true. a week ago, todd and i started taking notice of all the priuses, not only in our neighborhood, but all over the city. and so we resurrected the punch buggy game, only this time, it wasn't the vw bug that caused the punching; it's the prius. so far, neither of us are black and blue. but we did need to update the game rules for today's more astute and technologically savvy society.

Punch Prius Rules
1. When hanging out with friends, family, or enemies, whoever sees a Prius and says "Prius!" with an upward "ting" on the "pri" may then lightly tap (i.e. gently punch) the upper arm of one person in said party.
2. this means you may not punch the head, boobs, or other private areas of the punchee.
3. the punchee may not be a total stranger. or an animal.
4. the sighted prius must be seen in-person. a commercial, billboard, or magazine advertisement doesn't count.
5. toyota and car dealerships (as are fox rent-a-car and ev rentals) in general are off-limits.
6. if you own a prius, your car if off-limits, too. as are if you are riding in one.
7. there is a penalty punch for calling "Prius!" on a non-prius vehicle. only the punch is really a penalty tickle. with a feather.
8. you can not call "Prius!" on the same car in the same parking spot more than once per day. if you want to get smart about it though, keep a calendar and track street cleaning days. or just put tracking devices on all priuses you see.
9. older models of priuses count, so study up on the early models.
10. if you are riding the bus, and your buddy is not within arms length, you cannot call him/her to yell "Prius!" nor can you "save" punches to serve later on. taking a photo with your phone is also a no-no.
11. once someone has called "Prius!," no one else may punch on that "Prius!" for that day. this is known to those "in the know" as the "no-returns" rule.
12. it is not fair to yell "Prius!" and then attack one's arm if that punchee is carrying grocery bags. unless you want broken eggs and soymilk flying everywhere. here, a gentle tap of the finger is more appropriate and less costly.
13. do not plan a prius parade with the intent to knock out your buddies. if you do so, the authorities will be notified and you will be banished to Idaho. and good luck finding a prius there.

that lovely quote at the top is from rocky & bullwinkle. rocky the squirrel is much cuter than rocky the fighter (and puncher).

1 comment:

James said...

Another reason to love San Francisco! Driving all of those low-emissions vehicles.