By Ken Young
Version 3
Copyright Ken Young, 1997-2015. All rights reserved.
This is similar to an IQ test, but
measures how exciting your life has
been. Low scores is best (like golf) because adventures are
usually unpleasant.
Mark 1 adventure point against
yourself for each item you have
experienced. To find your adventure quotient, divide your total
by 30, your age, or the age you got married, whichever is less.
Most items give you one point if you
experienced it (not 1 per
experience). Some items want one point per occurance, but they are so
marked. Do not take more than 3 points on any single line item.
Nature
Hurricane - note that this is a flat 1 point if you were in any
hurricane
Tornado
Earthquake
Volcano
Tsunami (tidal wave)
1 point per escape from fire, flood, or other life threatening
disaster
1 point per extended survival situation not scored elsewhere,
such as a plane wreck, being lost in the woods for a week, etc.
Men
Military
Police
Criminals
IRS
FBI
CIA
KGB
Psycotic/dangerously insane individual. Drug induced
insanity counts.
You were in a war zone
1 point if you were in more than one war zone
1 point for a year or more in a war zone
Joined military, police, or other dangerous organization
1 point per divorce (3 points max)
1 point per child custody dispute (3 points max)
1 point per lawsuit or other penalty fraught courtroom escapade
not otherwise scored (3 points max)
You committed a felony (2 points if more than 10 felonies)
You went to jail
You are a parent
Industrial or other espionage not scored elsewhere
1 point per individual or organization who meant to kill you not
scored elsewhere (3 points max)
Unpleasant encounter with an organization that had the power to
make your life miserable (if not otherwise scored). 2 points for 3 or
more such organizations, 3 points for 10+.
Sport (just doing it once doesn't count
in this section)
Deep scuba diving
Cave diving
Skydiving
Free climbing above 30+ ft drop
Full contact fighting sport
1 point per other very dangerous sport (3 points max)
Finances
Owned business
Homeless
Bankruptcy (unless scored elsewhere)
Foreclosure (unless scored elsewhere)
You owed the IRS money for 10 years or more (unless scored
elsewhere)
Unsecured debt greater than $100,000 (a loan with collateral,
such as a mortgage, is a secured debt)
Travel
Went to a foreign country
7 or more foreign countries visited
20 or more foreign countries visited
Immigrated
Deported
Had to cope with living in a completely different culture
Unusual phenomena
Miracles
Demons
Experienced dangerous or disturbing supernatural occurrences not
otherwise scored
Unusual dangerous or disturbing natural phenomena not otherwise
scored, such as ball lightning
Experienced many unusual phenomena
Health
An immediate family member died or narrowly escaped death
1 point per escape from death not otherwise scored (no max)
1 point per serious illness, maiming, disfigurement, etc. not
otherwise scored (3 points max)
Wrap-up
1 point per hair-raising escape, whether scored elsewhere or not
(3 points max)
You have done some amazingly stupid things and somehow survived,
if not scored elsewhere. Do not score if you only had one major
indescretion. Do not score any indescretions with a high
probability of survival.
You should also score things not listed here, such as dangerous
voyages of exploration, fearing for your life from an unlisted danger,
etc.
Scoring
Scoring 0.1 or less is enviable Scoring near 0.25 is normal Scoring more than 0.5 is bad Scoring more than 0.75 is terrible Scoring more than 1.0 is unhealthy