The ...AND!... Event

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This past weekend, I attended the ...AND!... event hosted by Tree Knocker and Paper Trail. The weather was perfect, which was a pleasant surprise for a November event, and it was so peaceful walking around listening to the leaves falling. I walked with PiggyJaunt, and it was great to catch up and chat.

The stamps all had one thing in common, the letters A, N, and D were in the word consecutively. The stamps were carved at such a high-quality level, and everything was clear and clever. I think my favorite stamps of the event were "Propaganda" "Yankee Doodle Dandy" or "Candy Shop." The Propaganda stamps featured one of Doctor Suess's Propaganda posters with Hitler on it. The wording was carved so perfectly! The Yankee Doodle Candy was an original image (I believe) of a patriot holding a flag. The Candy Shop was an incredibly detailed image of a candy store. I was highly impressed with the detail of how they carved the candy so small yet clearly. I'd post pictures of these stamps, but out of respect to the carvers, I'll keep the images in my logbook only. 

The clues were also very clever. As you walked, you had to fill in the blank the stamp name, and specific letters formed a phrase in the end that got you a bonus set of clues. The quote that was revealed in the end was "Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt." -John Muir. My favorite clue required you to solve a puzzle for the clues to be revealed. Paper Trail filled jars with candy, and you had to match the candy jars in the same order as a puzzle box that had candy jars lined up on a shelf.

The event was held at Potomac Overlook Regional Park, where Tree Knocker works. There's a great trail system and a nature center where you can see some really cool animals. My favorite animal was probably the owl they have upstairs, but the animal of the Week, which was in the letterboxing area, was Shelly the turtle! She was very active on Saturday, clearly wanting to join the fun.

The event was a massive success! I am always impressed with the events I attend, and this one did not disappoint. When I left the event, Dylan and I hopped into the car and headed to my mom's house to celebrate my brother's 18th birthday!

The next event is my event, The Line Event. I still need to finish up the last few stamps, make the pouches, paint the containers, and write the clues. I've headed to the park a few times and know which trails I'm going to use, but I need to figure out where I'll hide the actual boxes. 




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