I had a few really good ideas for Halloween costumes this year.

I like large costumes that are widely recognizable, perhaps with some electronic element and hopefully something that will have an emotional impact on people.

I decided to dress up like Jenga, the toppling block game. Like many people my age, Jenga is more than a game, it is a scientific instrument, used in group experiments to test the effects of alcohol on balance, response-time and motor skills.

The first step was to figure out how big the costume should be. I used photoshop to superimpose myself behind a stack of super sized Jenga-proportioned blocks. I am six-feet tall, so I used this image to estimate the proper height and block size.

Chris gave me the idea to have loose blocks around the top that were able to slide out a bit, tottering above people's heads.

I planned to use discarded cardboard for the blocks, and my early calculations indicated I'd need a lot of it.

My room filled with lots and lots of cardboard, much of it from behind City Bicycle Works.

I spent a lot of time very carefully cutting out 39" x 9" strips of cardboard and folding them into.... I guess you could call them block façades. I was a little gun-shy because of my recent mishap with the razor knife, leaving me with a red scar on my thumb.

This was about 4 days before I got my rip-stop gloves in the mail from Rebecca Pavia. Thanks Rebecca!

Eventually, I got my hands on actual Jenga blocks, measured their proportions and snapped a photo for the Jenga logo.

After many, many hours of cardboard crafting, The base was coming together, measuring about 2 feet on each side.

Shortly after I took this photo, I realized I'd never be able to fit this thing in my car, so I went to the car dealership and bought the incredible new Hummer H2.

Just kidding.

Please continue reading part 2 of the jenga costume.