Rukshuk: A Game You Play With Rocks!

I seem to have a fascination with 'natural' things these days -- like logs, fire (as in outdoor fire pits), sticks & twigs, and rocks.

Yes rocks.

There are plenty of fun things you can do with rocks:

Strategically place them in your garden

Use them as stepping stones for a walkway

Place larger ones in key areas and use as outdoor seating (patio, fire pit)

Place one on either side the path or steps leading up to your front door

Make fun centerpieces using stones and pebbles

Arrange them at the bottom of glass vases

Create outdoor water features

One of my most recent 'rocky' finds was the Inukshuk -- a unique arrangement of large rocks that signifies one's home turf or territory. (It's an old Inuit tradition that's still alive and well in Canada... on Rush's Test For Echo album... and in the Vancouver 2010 Olympics.)

Well, now there's a fun new board game that is along the lines of the Inukshuk. It's called Rukshuk.

Rukshuk is for ages 8 and up and can be played alone or with a group. The goal is to balance uniquely shaped rocks of various colors and sizes into a stack -- without the stack collapsing. (Think Jenga.)

They say it's addictive and challenging. I want one!

But then again, I like games like pixie sticks, jenga... and tiddly winks too.