Jamaican Children's Game: "Dandy Shandy" - Part II (Online Comments)

Edited by Azizi Powell

Latest revision- Nov. 27, 2023

This is Part Ii of a three part pancocojams series on the Jamaican children's game "Dandy Shandy".

This post presents a compilation of selected online comments about the Jamaican children's game "Dandy Shandy".

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2023/11/jamaican-childrens-game-dandy-shandy.html for Part I of this pancocojams series. That post showcases a video of this game. Part I also presents information about "Dandy Shandy" from selected online articles.

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2023/11/jamaican-childrens-game-dandy-shandy_60.html for Part III of that pancocojams series. That post presents what I believe are the probable reasons why the game "Dandy Shandy" got its name.

The content of this post is presented for cultural and recreational purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
-snip-
This is part of an ongoing pancocojams series on Jamaican children's play. Click the "Jamaican children's play" tag below for other pancocojams posts in this series.

****
SELECTED COMMENTS ABOUT THE JAMAICAN CHILDREN'S GAME "DANDY SHANDY" 
The sources for these comments are given in no particular order and are numbered for referencing purposes only.

SOURCE #1
From https://www.facebook.com/IamaJamaican/posts/when-last-u-see-people-a-play-dandy-shandy-chiney-skip-hop-scotch-stuck-and-pull/10150412364437887/

1. I am a Jamaican, December 6, 2011
"When last u see people a play Dandy shandy, Chiney skip, Hop Scotch, Stuck and Pull, ring games, and all these Folk games? I wonder if people still remember them. Sigh.. more than likely a lot of ppl from tha generation yah nuh kno bout dem thing deh, dem have technology, so dem nuh have time fi guh outside an cock up foot. Our heritage needs to be preserved. Again, thanks for being apart of the I am a Jamaican & I Love Being Jamaican movement. Jamaica is getting way tooooo Americanized, Don't you agree?"

**

Reply
2. Natoyah Melissa Whitter, 2012
"wow..those days were gud days ...children now a days they dnt play anymore..all they tlk about is boyfren &girlfren on phone ,computer ect......"

**
Reply
3. Cleora Clarke, 2012
"My 18 year old cuz just ask me what Dandy shandy is, and she live here in Ja all her life. Sigh"

**
Reply
4. Li Solaire , 2012
"Wha name stuck and pull? Mi ongle know stuckie.

Im sure my grandparents would say things different since their days too. Change is inevitable but we need to pass on the culture by talking and showing cultural activities.

For eg. Dinky minnie.....I know its a cultural dance but have no idea how to do it and prob wont ever mention it much caz of that."

**
Reply
5. Christal Pulp Lewis, 2012 
"Mi play dandy shandy last year when I went home fi Christmas nice u see"

**
Reply
6. Kassie Veronica, 2012
"I agree! Dandy Shandy ah mi game doe. Just play di otha day."

**
Reply
7. Annette Facy, 2012
"o my god yes they want to be amercian so bad i think they siin start wear winter jacket and boots in dec"

**
Reply
8. Sheryla Cwhatimean, 2012
"So true!! It seem like everything ' Merica put dung, JA tek it up!!!

We used to be so unique & we still are to a certain extent but not like back in the day..... *sigh*"

**
Reply
9. Maria McDermott, 2012
"I remember..and yes I agree"

**
Reply
10. Tasha Stephens, 2012
"Ha! Ha!ha!! I have a scar on my forehead cause from playin dandy shandy,buss a cock up and ben dun and mi head lick pan the ground and mi forehead buss open,deep suh till it white inside,I would never forget that,dandy shandy was my game;-) but ur so right about jamaica gettin americanized,we don't know how ppl love wi island and culture.. Big upp da page ya.....😉"

**
Reply
11. Claudia Kellier-Reid, 2012
"Yep, agreed boss! I remember those were my favourites times when I was a child. Couldn't wait for recess bell to ring so we could dash outside to play, sometimes forgetting bout eating lunch! Ah bwoy, good times, good times!"

**
Reply
12. Surita Serene Wellington-Whyte, 2012
"I miss those days, playing with my sisters and cousins dandy shandy we called it sight in de middle, we have bull inna pen, chiney skip, jump rope ( playing how many children u going to have and who we go married and where we go live) and lastly I am inna well... those days are lost with globalization and urbanization."

**
Reply
13. Dazzlen Sabby Kong, 2012
"It sure is I love dandy shandy....theses ppl don't really know good games"

**
Reply
14. Shirley Bradshaw, 2012
"who remember playing london bridge is falling down.. or bully ina pen cant come out i love those games we use to have more fun than these kids are having now"

**
Reply
15. Nathanee Brown, 2012
"LONG TIME! YOUR POST JUST BROUGHT THE KID BACK IN ME TO WANT TO PLAY SOME.... THEN AGAIN, THE KID IN ME NEVER LEFT, SINCE I'm A BIG KID @ HEART.... WHO WANT TO PLAY SOME DANDY SHANDY /SITEINS WITH ME?"

**
Reply
16. Paul Reid, 2012
"Very rare you do but when u see grown up doing it, it brings back so much happy memories."

**
Reply
17. Angela Thorpe,2012
"Those were d gud ole days,cumputer games tek ova now,dem nuh ave fi dem deh games,wish I could go back young again"

**
Reply
18. Ras Keng, 2012
"Fi real.. Not even c dem a play dolly house again.. Smh.. Thingz n timez really change.."

**
Reply
19. Teisa Salmon, 2012
"Absolutely, no wonder them lose them sense of socializing and hospitality. So much rage and fury due 2 the lack of interaction and abundance of technology. Though a good thing 2 b knowledgeable about n apply it, it's worse 2 b crippled by it. Technology is not only 2 b blamed, we've lost so much due 2 greed n the blending of many different cultures (British n American 2 name a few)"

**
Reply
20. Marah Frazer, 2012
"I beg to differ. I don't think it's that Jamaica has become Americanized why kids don't play most of these games anymore I think it's just that this new generation have become very tech savvy so yes they play electronic games instead of what we played when we were young. Btw the N. American kids from our era did play some of the same games we did dandy shandy aka "tag" stucky aka "tag" etc. Is just the changing of the times.

That said we can do our part. I for one take my kids in the backyard every summer & we play our fair share of dandy shandy, baseball jump rope and so forth.. And when the winter rolls around we play snow fight etc.."

**
Reply
21. Marah Frazer, 2012
"Correction dandy shandy aka dodge ball"

**
Reply
22. Ortis Henry, 2012
"Ortis @ I am a Jamaican...Yes i do agree with that Jamaica is getting way too Americanized; however, people have to move with the time or they will be left behind."

**
Reply
23. Samantha C Smith, 2012
"Miss those days"

**
Reply
24. Pauline Henry, 2012
"We all were acrobat playing dandy sandy,you had to be fast and skillful,yea mon"

**
Reply
25. Rose Marie Samuels, 2012
"I loved dandy shandy, used to skull evening lessons just to play dandy shandy"

**
Reply
26. Top fan

Mitzie Brown-Bird, 2012
"Yes I do think they r too Americanized! We need our culture back! Love mi culture bad!!!"

**
Reply
27. Venice Turner, 2012 
"Me have a Chinese skip right now in my room and I play dandy shandy and hopscotch whenever I get the chance. I miss playing games like that but everybody's grown and busy rite now but I still remember. Jamaica getting too Americanized for real"

**
Reply
28. Renee C. Messam, 2012
"A waah tell yuh sehh mi a plan a dandy shandy day again come april wen brooklyn get warm again... Need fi relive certain tings all ova... Not all of us got americanized but this damn country nug gi yuh no time fi enjoy yuhself. Jus work or skool or both..."

**
Reply
29. Simone Escoffery, 2012
"Use 2 love them all"

**
Reply
30. Kerry-Ann Stewart, 2012
"i remembera ll dem games...but dis generation hve DSi..DS..Xbox...Wii..n all dem games n stuff not to mention all da latest phns"

****
SOURCE #2
From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPBxcz4YFP4&t=909s OLD SCHOOL JAMAICAN GAMES | Growing Up Jamaican Pt 1. | Mara Ophelia, published by Naturally Told By Mara, October 4, 2020

 1. @krisannemorant,2020
"My favorite game growing up was Chinese skip and dandy shandy but we called dandy shandy “site in the middle”

**
Reply
2. @NaturallyToldbyMara, 2020
"First I hearing that name for it, we called it sightings too. Yea I remember other games too might do them in part 2"

**
3.@sammiekins2332, 2020
"I miss playing chinese skip! We called dandy shandy 'Sightings'. Dem ball dh lick real hot tho 😩😩"

**
Reply
4. @NaturallyToldbyMara, 2020
"Yesssss we called it sightings too"

**
5. @Christinaavlog, 2020
"You forget fi knock out the the four box corners... lol if that soak you yuh fenneehh....🤸‍♀️🤸‍♀️"

**
Reply
6. @NaturallyToldbyMara, 2020
"Oh yes! Never remember that part lol"

**
Reply
7. @tracey-annbeckford948, 2021
"😂 Yuh seeit!"

**
8. @rahtidolejamaican876, 2020
"Yow I use to play a whole heap of dandy shandy."

**
Reply
9. @NaturallyToldbyMara,2020
"Those were the good ole days"

**
10. @tracey-annbeckford948, 2021
"When the ball hit we said it soak..."

**
11. @tracey-annbeckford948,2021
"I think my first comment went missing...sorta like these games.😓

I went to a strick Catholic primary school. We were not allowed to play without supervision, but those of waiting for parents used to hide and play and we would always have a watchman. 😅

Dandy Shandy, Chinese Skip, Guh dung a Manuel Road, money football& basketball - mostly the boys played that in high school, Mother May I? Stuck an pull, Ben down stucky😁 Oh gosh there were so many. What ever happened? Bring them back yaw. Happy to see you and your family having wholesome fun. Good exercise for everyone too."

**
Reply
12. NaturallyToldbyMara, 2021
"Yea it did. I saw it come in but was unable to locate it to respond.

Yesssss I remember most a those. Think I only don’t know money basketball."

**
Reply
13. @tracey-annbeckford948,2021
"@NaturallyToldbyMara  😃 For money basketball they used to rest the fingers of either hand on the desk then pick up the game coin with their thumbs and try to score it into the basket - the opponent's clasped hands from the 2 point or 4 point mark. Memories.

Yep got to keep the games alive 😊"

**
14. @daomgirl4621, 2022
"I remember all these games. dandy shandy was the same as stucky?"

**
Reply
15. @NaturallyToldbyMara,2022
"Hey thanks for watching. No dandy Shandy is the one in the video.

Stucky you have base and safe spots. Two teams, one on base and one off and you have to catch all person of one team outside of the base  in order to win a chance in base."

**
Reply
16. @NaturallyToldbyMara, 2022
"Some call it stuck and release"

****
SOURCE #3
From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDF-Pncf4yo 20 Jamaican Childhood Games, published by The Lawes 876, Dec 9, 2020

1. @OfficiallyGlynnDevon, 2021
"Ye country people call it site 🤣🤣 👀👀 but yes ik that game now okay I'm guilty of playing that cause it reminded me of dodgeball lol use to play with my little sister and once at school..."

**
Reply
2. @TonyandTianaLawes876, 2021
"Site 👀👀👀"

****
SOURCE #4
From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hr7JBYai7BA "Back to Basic: Dandy Shandy, published by Kimmy DB, Feb. 27, 2020

1. @TerryAnnWallace, 2020
"If yuh quick inna dandy shandy yuh wi get lick... Love, love, love this game. Cock up is a ten tips is a out! Box fi well stuff fi soak dem, lol...".

**
2. @SASSIELILMAMA, 2020
"Cock up is a ten tips is a out run out is a out.  Lol.   Omg I so remember this game as a child."

**
3. @dwightbrown5148, 2022
"Back in my time in the 80s in trench town we use to play dandy shandy boys against girls di boy dem always mash up di girl dem, we had great fun"

**
4.@ruelnicholas8317, 2023
"a wah kind of tourist dandy shandy ..dat..mi girl Donna woulda paste dah girl deh Inna di pink..too much lobbing of di box milk.."

****
This concludes Part II of this three part pancocojams series on "Dandy Shandy".

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.