Back to Contents

Conkers: Centuries Old and Still Going Strong  

It sounds like conkers players run the risk of splitting open their heads. Fortunately, it’s only the chestnuts used in the school-children’s game that get cracked. Eastern Europeans first brought the game to England in the late 16^th century. Originally played with hazel nuts or snail shells, the horse chestnuts, which ripen in autumn, were adopted in the 18^th century.

To play conkers, two people choose uncracked, firm, symmetrical chestnuts. A hole is drilled through the middle through which a 25 cm long string is threaded. A knot is tied on one end of the string to hold it in place. Players then take turns hitting each other’s conker.

Both players hold the string wrapped around their hand. Your opponent (or the striker) chooses the height at which you must hold your conker perfectly still. The striker wraps the string of his conker around one hand, then takes the conker in his other hand. He draws the conker back for the strike. As he releases the conker he swings in down by the string held in the other hand.

If he misses, he’s allowed up to two more goes. You get an extra shot if you are the first to yell “strings” when the strings tangle. Things really get ruthless when a player drops his conker or it’s knocked out of his hand. When this happens, the other player can shout “stamps” and jump on the conker. The owner must call out “no stamps” before the conker is trampled. The winner is the player left when one of the conkers is destroyed.

A good conker sinks to the bottom when placed in water. Damage inside the nut makes it float. To increase the life of your conker soak it in vinegar, bake it in the oven or use a conker from last year.

While certainly more popular in England, conkers players may be found all over the world, including Canada, Puerto Rico and the United States. The World Conkers Championships are held annually on the second Sunday of October on the Village Green at Ashton in Northamptonshire. The organisers provide the conkers. During the five-minute rounds, each player has three sets of three hits. If neither conker breaks, there’s a shootout. The person with the most clean hits is named as winner.

British Women Preoccupied With Cleaning

According to a story on the Times Online, British women are spending more than 16 hours a week on average cleaning in their homes. The women say all the cleaning makes them feel in control of their lives, according to The National Housework Survey of Great Britain 2006. Two thousand women were questioned. Here are some of the survey’s findings:

•  The average British woman cleans for two hours and 23 minutes each day.

•  The average British woman spends only 52 minutes a day on her personal appearance.

•  Six out of 10 respondents said cleaning made them feel in control of their lives.

•  Six out of 10 respondents felt their cleaning had therapeutic value.

•  Three-quarters of the respondents who maintained this cleaning regimen also worked full- or part-time.

•  Only 22 percent said they enjoyed cleaning, but 64 percent said they enjoyed the results of their cleaning.
 
•  Nearly half of the respondents said they felt they were addicted to cleaning. The same number wished they could cut back on their cleaning.

•  Four in 10 reported that they are no longer in control of their cleaning habits.

•  A third of the respondents said they found more satisfaction in cleaning than in sex.

•  Seeing pictures of spotless interiors in the magazines were to blame for their cleaning habits, said 76 percent of the respondents.

•  Eighty percent confessed comparing the cleanliness of their homes to others.

•  Six out of 10 said they feared they would be viewed as bad mothers if their houses were messy.