This could have gone in the Limericks thread but I suspect that that topic may be wearing just a bit thin. Still:

A Challenge!

Louis said "Nothing's new 'neath the sun."
So I offered the following fun:
I said, "Twelve plus one, Lou,
"Equals eleven plus two
"In decidedly more ways than one!"

The challenge is, of course, what the heck am I talking about here?


While the limerick is my own (applause, applause, and thank you very much) what it's based on is not. If you can meet the challenge because you've seen it in a different form elsewhere (and I'm intentionally trying to speak indirectly here so as not to give it away) private topic me with the answer. If you can figure it out using just your own grey matter, you're a better man than I am, Gunga Din.

Does it have anything to do with Apollo 13?

quote:

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Originally posted by TrossL:
Does it have anything to do with Apollo 13?

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Heh, Heh!
Heh, Heh, Heh!

No hints!

quote:

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Originally posted by C J Strolin:
The challenge is, of course, what the heck am I talking about here?

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So what else is new?

Okay... What have I learned so far? Well, in Latin it's: "Nihil sub sole novum."- There's nothing new under the sun.

John Lennon is quoted as saying this phrase.

So is Sherlock Holmes.

When you put that phrase into google with the word "quotes" you get 3774 hits.

Let me give it a try:

--numerically 11 + 2 = 12 + 1

--literally e-l-e-v-e-n and t-w-o is three letters e and one each of letters l, n, o, t, v, and w

--and so is t-w-e-l-v-e and o-n-e

and you can count on that!

[This message was edited by haberdasher on Tue May 6th, 2003 at 11:40.]

Very good, although Morgan beat you by about half a day, replying via private topic as requested.

Final standings:
Morgan - 27 (for the first correct solution)
Me - 6 (for proposing the challenge)
TrossL - 4 (10 for effort but 6 points off for googling)
haberdasher - minus 2 (for not private topicking)
everyone else - 3 (because I'm in a generous mood)

So as not to spoil things for others who perhaps haven't gotten an answer yet, perhaps it would be useful to start a new thread for future puzzle answers that is discrete from the questions. That way even those who come upon the challenges later on could still enjoy them.

Wonderful idea, oh wise hat man . We did that a while back but that thread is closed now. So, maybe you could start it again CJ?

Sounds like a good idea for next time but we'd be a bit late were we to do it for this particular challenge. It would be like locking the barn door after the horse has correctly solved the puzzle.

OK. It's Wednesday. Due to circumstances semi-beyond my control, my once-a-week-only-positing-on-Mondays regimen is out the window. Yesterday's posts can be chalked up to EMS (Extended Monday Syndrome) but I'm here today to apologize to haberdasher for being far snottier than the situation regarding standings etc called for.

Sorry, sorry, sorry. My forehead scrapes the floor. I misread your post and somehow inferred that you had seen the "11 + 2 = 12 + 1" anagram before. Frankly, I had thought that we were going to easily chalk up a half dozen incorrect answers before the truth was finally revealled. My fault, mea damn culpa to the max, and I promise not to let this happen again until the next time.

Final, Final Standings:
Morgan - 27 (for being the first with the correct answer)
haberdasher - 25 (15 points for second place plus 10 for not throwing a major [not to mention justifiable] conniption fit)
Everybody else - 3
Kalleh - 4 (1 bonus point for living in the Chicago area)
Shufitz - 2 (1 point off for living in the Chicago area)
TrossL - 2 (2 more points off for mentioning Apollo 13, thereby jinxing this thread)
Me - 1 (5 points off for screwing up)
Arnie - 0 (3 points off for not winning this competition, leaving him with an overall record of something like 8-1)

The decisions of the judges are final. No whining, please.

I do like your point system! Somehow I missed this one.