When your dictionary just isn't big enough
Wednesday, 26. October 2005, 19:57:10
My mum loves doing codeword puzzles(1). She goes through quite a few of these codeword books & often comes across new words she doesn't know & enjoys looking up their meaning. she often complained that kept coming across words that weren't listed in her current dictionary so I bought her one of those dictionaries that you could seat a family of 4 at for dinner.
A recent conversation went like this:
Mum: One of my puzzles today had a word that wasn't in my big dictionary.
Me: Really? What word was that?
Mum hands me the book & points out the offending word. I was all set to scour the internet for this rare & beautiful word's meaning when...
Me: W-H-E-N..WHENOMENA!? Mum, do you not think that should be a 'P'?
Mum: ...Oh, I suppose it is.
A friend of mine remarked that it could refer to the time that something extraordinary happens...
(1) Not many examples of these online but here's a simple puzzle for those of you that don't know what they are: available as a point 'n' clickable java applet or in printable format for those of you without java (they're both the same puzzle).
The instructions on that page tell you that each letter of the alphabet is represented by a number 1-26, & from that I'm sure you can work out that once you've found a letter that goes in a box labelled 9, you fill every box labelled with a 9 with that letter.
It doesn't tell you how to use the applet though. Click on a box to select it (it will turn yellow) then click on one of the letters in the alphabet below the puzzle - this autofills every corresponding box with that letter. Make sure you get it right though because there is no way to undo a mistake other than by clearing the whole puzzle with the 'revert' button.
A recent conversation went like this:
Mum: One of my puzzles today had a word that wasn't in my big dictionary.
Me: Really? What word was that?
Mum hands me the book & points out the offending word. I was all set to scour the internet for this rare & beautiful word's meaning when...
Me: W-H-E-N..WHENOMENA!? Mum, do you not think that should be a 'P'?
Mum: ...Oh, I suppose it is.
A friend of mine remarked that it could refer to the time that something extraordinary happens...
(1) Not many examples of these online but here's a simple puzzle for those of you that don't know what they are: available as a point 'n' clickable java applet or in printable format for those of you without java (they're both the same puzzle).
The instructions on that page tell you that each letter of the alphabet is represented by a number 1-26, & from that I'm sure you can work out that once you've found a letter that goes in a box labelled 9, you fill every box labelled with a 9 with that letter.
It doesn't tell you how to use the applet though. Click on a box to select it (it will turn yellow) then click on one of the letters in the alphabet below the puzzle - this autofills every corresponding box with that letter. Make sure you get it right though because there is no way to undo a mistake other than by clearing the whole puzzle with the 'revert' button.
WIDGETIZE
KayFour # 29. October 2005, 14:27
I have been very negligent in commenting, so I dedicated this morning to commenting in all those blogs I read regularly.
My Mum does crossword puzzles. When I visit her, she is deep in the puzzle and often will say, "What is a five letter word for Czech Gun Boat?" instead of saying hello!
Ah well, we all have our addictions.
K4StillReading
lokutus_prime # 6. November 2005, 11:28
Now, about that crossword. I have just taken a look at it. Can I lapse into Londonese for a moment as I say "Gor blimey mate, it don't 'arf look 'ard! Wocha fink then? Am I brainy enuf t' werk it aht. or wot?" ( don't answer the last bit, I am such a sensitive soul
When I was in my early twenties and not as good looking, etc
So how did I know about this Personnel Officer and her obsession with crossword puzzles? It was the talk of the staff canteen!, that's how. Everyone knew about her strange hobby, or knew someone who knew someone who'd heard that she spent all her time on this lark. It was all very puzzling
So, you will gather that even with my mighty intelligence (I said stop sniggering!) I am not a practitioner of that paper art. The best I can hope to do, is to tell my friends that I know you and that your mum does crosswords. Is this "Reflected Glory" or what?
lokuPuzzled