Too old for Oobi

I feel like I've been distant from the blog for a while. I guess there just hasn't been much Oobi goodness to report!

Well, the other day, I got a message from Moollee that gives me a good excuse to blog here again. She wrote:

Whenever I'm feeling down I like to watch Oobi clips on Youtube. I think it's so simple, calm and happy. It puts me in a good mood and reminds me of my childhood. But my friends say its weird to still like it. I tried explaining how nostalgic I am for my old favorite kid shows but they didn't get it.

This is something I didn't realize I'm so passionate about: having "juvenile" interests. In my opinion, it's really only possible to be too young to watch something. I don't think you can ever be too old to watch something. If it makes you happy, that's all that really matters. You are the only person who gets to decide what you like, and if a good-old-fashioned kids' show picks you up when you're sad, people need to respect that without judging it! It's great to find new things that you love, but that never means that you needs to stop loving the old things that you loved when you were a kid!!

I've seen people -- usually online -- make fun of others for liking "juvenile" things. Respect who they are! The end. I've never once felt judged for incessantly posting my love missives to Mister Rogers and Sesame Street on Facebook. No one has ever suggested that I should have moved on from the shows I fell in love with when I was three. Why should people's reactions to Oobi, or Blue's Clues, or the Backyardigans be any different?

I love Oobi just as much as my son does. It's a show about friendship, and kindness, and family, and problem solving, and creativity, and curiosity. Which of those things should people outgrow??

Oobi: fun from ages 1 to 100

How to draw Grampu!

The website DragoArt has a tutorial on how to draw Grampu! I figured I had to feature it here, this being Grampu's Blog and all...

Step 1. Make a circle for the hand guide and then sketch in the facial guideline.

Step 2. Use the guide to make the left side of Grampu's hand. Once that's done, you can draw his fingers which are in a curled pose. This gives him a "toothy grandpa" look. Then add the creases on his knuckles and the nails.

Step 3. For this step, draw in the rest of his curled fingers and then his thumb. Next, add a couple of lines for his wrinkles.

Step 4. You can now draw some of Grampu's arm and draw his round bobble eyes. Color in his pupils and then you can start erasing the guides and mistakes.

Step 5. Here is the line art when you are all done. Now you can go ahead and color Grampu in! Don't forget his arm hair too!

Oobi on Bandcamp

There's a playlist of Oobi songs on Bandcamp! I tried my best to link it here, let's hope it works.

Oobi Eyes giveaway!

I finally got in touch with OobiDad, the site owner for OobiEyes.com! But it wasn't good news. He says that he ran out of supplies and wasn't able to continue with the site or his eBay store. I guess that explains why the site was up for a few months without any ability to buy from it.

I still get emails from readers looking for Oobi Eyes every once in a while, and I think it's a shame that the show-accurate eyes aren't being sold anymore. They inspire so much creativity in kids and are a great puppetry prop for all ages. So what am I deciding to do? Hold a giveaway!

I still have 3 extra sets of the whole gang: Oobi, Uma, Grampu, and Kako eyes. Includes Kako's hat and Uma's flowers. The rings are adjustable to fit on any hand! If you (or your kids) would like them, please email me at: grampusblog @ aol.com

6th anniversary!

Next week it will be 6 YEARS since I started Grampu's Blog!!

Dasdasi clips on Facebook

There's a Facebook page for Dasdasi with some clips from the episodes. They're in Persian, so I can't understand what they're saying, but it looks pretty funny! Check them out if you want to see the spin-off for yourself!

Oobi is back! A new spin-off called "Dasdasi"

I'm back with some very unexpected news! There is a brand-new Oobi SPIN-OFF!! It's called "Dasdasi" and is a localized remake of the original show. It was filmed last year in Iran and is currently airing in a couple of other Middle Eastern and Asian countries as well.

Like the Oobi we all know and love, Dasdasi is about two sibling hand puppets who live with their grandpa. But there's a big difference: their parents live with them too, and they're major characters.

The cast! Dad and Mom are on the left.

What I like: I'm really glad that other countries are getting to experience a new version of Oobi. It's also nice to see the show stemming off into a franchise of its own. More than a decade after the old show started, there is still new Oobi stuff being made. Pretty impressive for a kids' show.

The puppeteers on Dasdasi are all professional comedians, and they each have quite a few film credits under their belts. I can't tell what they're saying in the clips, but it sounds hilarious.

What I don't: I'm not sure how I feel about the parents. I've always liked the original show's dynamic, with Grampu as the kids' only guardian. Like I've said before, I think it offers some great representation of a non-traditional family unit that you don't see very often in kids' TV. I guess I'll have to wait for an English dub for my final verdict!!

Behind the scenes