: Extras :
learn to whistle an acorn cap
Picture 1
Picture 2
“You know how to whistle don't you?
You just put your lips together… and blow”
Well, we bet Ms. Bacall didn't know how to whistle an acorn cap, but we learned, and so can you!
Although fairly simple, whistling an acorn cap does have a slight learning curve. Remember: patience is a virtue.
¡CAUTION! You might want to learn this particular art outdoors, the whistle can be rather shrill— especially from the smaller caps—it may even be the kind of thing you will want to teach your nieces and nephews, but not your own kids!
: step 1 : grab an acorn cap
The bigger the cap, the easier to learn. Look at the underside of the acorn cap: think of the the cap as divided into 3 pie-wedge shaped sections (picture 1 at left). You'll see only the top section when holding the cap properly.
: step 2 : holding the acorn cap
First, place you thumbs together so that they make a "Y" shape. Hold the cap between your thumbs and index fingers (picture 2 at left) so that the underside is facing you and only a very small portion of the top wedge shape shows.
: step 3 : blow!
Here’s the best part! Bring your hands to your lips with your knuckles resting on your lips. Now, purse your lips as if you’ve tasted something sour and pretend you are trying blowing out one of those trick birthday candles—you know the type that never actually goes out (in other words: blow hard)! Hint: try blowing down into the cap slightly.
Did your acorn whistle? If not, don’t give up! Try moving your wrists to various angles to bring just the right amount of air over and around the acorn cap. Or, move your thumb and finger placement so that less or more of the acorn is visible.
Whistle away!
“Thank you, PostScript for your instructions on acorn cap whistling!—
“I've really only seen acorn whistling done when I was in the 8th and 9th grades in school. A lot of kids would take these acorn caps and whistle with them. The thing is, I couldn't do it. Just for the heck of it, I googled “acorn whistling” just to see what would come up...[I saw] the Acorn Cap Whistle link on your web page. I printed off your instructions… found some acorn caps, and began to practice. When you say there is a slight learning curve to this, you weren't kidding! I had to practice at it a little bit. I finally got the hang of it though. I'm still not the world's greatest acorn cap whistler...I'm still a work in progress but I'm getting better...I've finally learned how to make these things whistle!”
—Ed, 54 years old, Massillon, Ohio
