Ouch...that smarts!!!

Monday. Monday. I hope all of your weekends went splendidly. Mine, well, let's just say not so great. Most of the weekend I spent grading papers and entering mid-term grades. Thank goodness that is finished.

But the weekend kicked off with a thud as I was a participant in the Knowledge Bowl. To get an idea of how it went, stick your index finger as far down your throat as you can. You'll know you are there when your plumbing starts going in reverse.

Yes, the Knowledge Bowl was that good. Let me just tell you, I suck. There are lots of excuses I could give (and I will), but the fact of the matter is that I was just no help. Out of a possible 90 questions asked in the three rounds our team was in, our team answered 21 correctly. Out of the 90, I would say only about 70 were answered correctly. 21 was not enough for us to advance to the finals. Of said 21 questions we got right, I correctly answered, hold on, let me count, oh yes, ZERO of them. Zip. Nada. Zilch. Goose Egg. Oh I looked good sure, with my Willie Nelson braids hanging down and my bandana around my head, but unfortunately I also was wearing his thinking cap. Hell, Willie probably would have gotten at least one question.

Now before you start thinking that the game was fixed, or that they only asked math questions, let me just say, it was fixed!!! They only asked Math questions!! No. not really. But, one of the problems is that evidently there is a study guide available on line (who knew) and many of the questions that were asked were directly from the study guide. Some of these people memorized the dang guide!! So they would ask a question "What French" BUZZ.. Answer: Costeau. That is correct. Next question. How can you compete with that. I wouldn't memorize the thing even if I knew it existed and had the time! So, many of the questions I might have known were answered before I knew the question!

Also, the answers bothered me. They would ask a poetry question and I would answer it correctly and they would tell me it wasn't the answer they were looking for. For instance, if they were to ask something like, "name one part of a book" and you said, "the cover", they would say, "I'm sorry, that's not the correct answer. The correct answer was "page". How frustrating is that!?!?!

Anyway, I better stop before my blood pressure goes through the roof. I'll just keep chanting my Lao Tzu mantra: Those who say do not know; those who know do not say...Those who say do not know; those who know do not say...Those who say do not know; those who know do not say...Those who say do not know; those who know do not say...

Much better.