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KISS ME!   I'M IRISH!
Well... half Irish, by descent... that is probably worth an "air" kiss then...


A friend of mine, Jean, gave me a game called Mind Trap for my twenty-fifth birthday. It consists of brain teaser questions and puzzles. Corresponding with my friends via e-mail some time ago, I posed selected questions and awarded points for giving the correct answer/s. The game grew from a few friends to several particicants within a few months. Occasional "spats" would ensue over the answers given by the game itself, with me as Solomon trying to sort out various "injustices," particularly the awarding of points, but overall it was a fun interactive game.

I did my best to post the better questions of this game to the "Mind Trap Gamers," since some of the questions in this game seemed awfully difficult to logically work out -- or even guess. I sent out the following question, along with its answer, to demonstrate this point. I stated:

"I hope you now understand the lengths that I go to to spare The Mind Trap Gamers from these type of questions."


You are in a concrete room. There is a steel pipe twenty-five centimeters in length cemented into the centre of the concrete floor. The pipe protrudes about fifteen centimeters. A ping-pong ball is dropped down the pipe. There is a fraction of a centimeter clearance around the ping-pong ball and the pipe. Your task is to get the ping-pong ball out of the steel pipe undamaged. The only items that are available are a wooden ruler, a ball of string, a pocket mirror, a paper clip, and a small magnet. Since nothing else is allowed into the room, how could you get the plastic ping-pong ball out of the steel pipe?

 

 

 

 

There is only one solution that we could find. You would have to pee into the pipe, causing the ping-pong ball to float out.

 

In response, Jeff wrote:

Subject:  Re:  For amusement only

Amusing little situation... and I did read the urinaTION solution.
Interesting... I have developed a few little solutions...

Solution #1:
Since I would be in a concrete room I would just wait for the air to run out in the room and asphxiate.
I don't think I would be worried about some ping pong ball.

Solution #2:
Slap the dumb ass that dropped the ping pong ball in the pipe and make him get it out.

Solution #3:
Dig out a booger from your nose that God Himself would be impressed with. Stick it on the end of the ruler. Stick the ruler into the pipe. Pull ball out. This could easily be done by securing the string to the paper clip and placing the aforementioned booger on the paper clip.

Solution #4:
With the paper clip, scratch off a small amount of concrete. And as we all know the "Stickyness Factor" of concrete (Ask Patty, she knows), place the small amount of concrete at the tip of the ruler.
(see solution #3)

Solution #5:
I myself would use this solution... flatulate into the pipe and cover the opening with the small mirror. Keep doing this for a good while. Now, rip out all of your body hair. Take the magnet and stick it to the side of the pipe. Now, take the string and wrap the hair around around the end of the ruler. Now, for the smokers in the group who NEVER go anywhere without their cig's and lighter... light the ball of string and hair. Remove mirror and place the torch over the pipe. This will ignite the gas in the pipe and the ball will shoot out.

Solution #6:
Drop the end of the string into the pipe. Take a massive crap in the pipe. Wait for the feces to harden. Pull out string.

Solution #7:
Shit in pipe. Ask person that dropped ball into pipe, "Do you still want the ball?" Respond, "I didn't think so." Leave.


Mark wrote -- in a wonderful tone of conceit... we love you Mark:

Read in AWE you feeble minded "Pied Piper" following mice. Just sounded good. Tie a 30 cm piece of string to each end of the paper clip. Lower the paper-clip by putting tension on only one end until the paper clip gets below the ping-pong ball. At that point, one would pull both strings at the same rate, causing the paper clip to raise in the horizontal position; thus raising the ping-pong ball out of the pipe.

BOW!!!! LOWER!!!!!

Still another way would be to wad the string up. Rub the wad of string against the ruler. The ruler is then ionized with a negative charge strong enough to lower the ruler with a piece of the string and pick up the ball.
explain:  the ball is held to the ruler by static electricity. 2 Points.


NOTE:  This question was not worth any points, yet Mark felt his "answers" meritted two points -- nice try though.

 

Kevin wrote:

Subject:  Re:  For amusement only

E,

I appreciate your efforts.

Well, I have to go. I mean I really have to go!


Finally, Jeff wrote again:

Subject:  Problem Solving

I just wanted to let you all know...

If you got a problem... we got the solution.

Ghul L0rd productions has a full time staff on duty constantly exploring new and improved ways to solve life's everyday problems (such as one found in Mr E's email "for amusement only"). Our crack (smoking) technicians brain storm night and day to solve your problems so you don't have to.

Problems we have solved already:

  1. how to swim accross the Pacific Ocean with a stick of gum
  2. how to build a fully functioning space station with a bowl of feces and a pop tart
  3. inter-galactic travel with a gallon of Kool-Aid, a bag of rice, and a 9 volt battery
  4. how to get that perfect make-over with a hatchet (Elizabeth Arden look out!)
  5. how to communicate with common household pets with a microwave oven, a No. 2 pencil, some toothpaste, 5 gallons of gasoline (preferably 90 octane), and a bucket of mud.

thank you for your support

 

Two years have passed since we played Mind Trap online. Thank you to all the participants for making it so much fun!