Wednesday
Sep012010
Punch Buggy!
September 1, 2010 
Did you ever play when you were kids? When a VW Beetle would pass by you could punch your seatmate in the arm or the leg and shout “Punch Buggy no Punch Backs!” The no punch backs part was important because without those protective words you could get a punch back for the same car!
The rules and names of the game are variable, I’ve read that other people call the game “Slug Bug”, colour and year of the car are factored in as is the unique double punch some people claim for a convertible.
Barry and I started playing Punch Buggy recently, it is not something that he grew up with and he was surprised the day I punched him in the arm and yelled in his ear, filled with glee because I saw it first! So now, we play, we have our own unique set of rules which include not being able to use a neighbourhood bug parked near our house which never moves and is no longer fair game. We shout the colour of the car, “Orange Punch Buggy No Punch Backs”. No punching on new beetles, only vintage cars. Iphone photos sent in an email are acceptable, however, the satisfaction of the punch doesn’t happen so it is best to take the photo, save it and spring it on your unsuspecting partner by inviting them to “see this great picture I took today!”
This morning on our drive to work in our Volkswagen Golf, I discovered that my husband has been looking at vintage VW Beetles on Ebay. Our game playing has led to a new fascination and the fantasy that maybe it would be fun to own one.
We are remembering VW’s that existed in our youth, his memory is of one that the windows had to stay down a crack in the winter or you had to scrape the ice off the inside of the windshield. I was remembering the distinctive smell of the White Knight, my brother-in-law’s VW the one with the door that had to be held closed with a bungee cord. There was a movie too, wasn’t there? The Love Bug? I think I may have seen that at a drive-in theatre.
Volkswagen Bugs, Drive-in Theatres, games played on long car drives - as the days of summer grow shorter, these distinctive memories make me treasure these times so much more.
It’s back to school time, a time for finding the rhythm of a new season, it’s also a time to remember to play a bit, go back in time and find the pleasure of things remembered.
XO
Kath
(photo credit to my sister, Margie - thx!)
Reader Comments (16)
We had another name for 'Punch Buggy'..one that I can now no longer remember. But - yes - we played it on road trips when we were kids..and we played it with our kids when they were young.
Thing is - is that our kids don't know the 'real' thing..the love bug that we grew up with..that was just what everyone dreamed of driving. Happy memories!!!!
Love the vintage image. Great find!!!
Margie did a great job on the photo, and you on sharing the story with it Kath, love this contribution. I also love the pink color of the Beetle, a real girls car...
We used to do "Punch Buggy" all the time, my sister and I. We only called it "Inke Pinke Pinke" which has nothing to do with the colour pink, by the way!
I would so love driving a beetle, just as a citroen 'ugly duck', shich I DID own at some stage. Brilliant cars!
Lovely image, hate the colour though :D TOo girly for me!!
Don't we love these memories, Kath! But I was like Barry, not hearing about this at all till my grandson (now 10) was born. We had so much fun teaching it to him. We never said the "no punch backs" but DID have to say the color and DID get more "points" for a convertible. :) I wonder who and when that started. Even as adults we can sound like total nincompoops when playing such games. I love it. Mom and Dad had a blue Punch Buggy back in the 60s and allowed me to use it all summer one year when I was studying at the University of Oklahoma. It was a blast. Nothing like it.
I just Googled it and found the game started in the 60s: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punch_buggy. :)
I love playing 'slug bug' though I've had to quit the slug part (irritates the hubby, go figure). Lately I've started a new thing by taking a quick picture of the car as I pass by. No looking through the viewfinder - just point & shoot.
Just yesterday I saw one with 'eyelashes' just like this one, they are rare. My first car was a 13-year old beetle, no 'eyelashes' unfortunately. It was rusty, didn't go fast and very difficult with strong wind, but still: sweet memories
my thought immediately went to the white knight. remember how much dad hated that car!! unsafe pieces of crap he used to say.
@ margie - I wonder if Dad really felt that way about the cars themselves or was it the boys driving them? Probably a combination of both :-)
I also remember the back seat girls arguing who saw it first. Great memories and best picture Margie.Mom
My grandchildren still play punch buggy along with PT Bruiser (cruiser). Another one we play is "Padiddle" when you see a car with only one headlight accompanied by punching the ceiling of the car you are in (no doubt a variation manufactured by a mom whose kids were killing each other in the back seat)
what do you think of the new shape beetle? i'm not sure if captures the same spirit at all. we have a few very old beetles still rattling around arusha...rattling being the thing you most notice about them!!!
what acute car..would he get pink kath? I have a jetta
Fun post! From high school days, I remember my best friend's VW. Two or three of us would chip in a quarter -- YES, a quarter -- and Martha could drive us around all week-end long. We had more fun.
And, yes, we played Slug Bug too.
I didn't play "slug bug" when I was a kid - didn't even know there was a game to be played until I had my own kids. Growing up, we had a couple of our very own slug bugs - both a light shade of blue. Those things could cash air! Well, at least I thought they could. :)
Oh yes, we played this game always, although my brother liked to punch just a little too hard...
We also played jinx! all the time, which was a good way to silence a sibling who was bugging you, and an alphabet game in the car, I don't know if it had a name, maybe an I Spy kind of thing, no cheating until you found the next letter. We often got stuck on Q for miles and miles...
Ah, the good old days...
What a fun post! I didn't realize there were rules! I'm sure your husband is just digging your cuteness.