Find the two palindromes described below. (A palindrome is a word or phrase that’s spelled the same backwards as forwards, such as Was it a bat I saw?) Question asked by a person afraid of rodents:
A key. It has a jagged cut in order to fit the lock. A locked door keeps people out and the keyhole is dark. Key rings are a common way to hold a set of keys, and when you’re using a key that one is quiet, but the rest jingle and jangle.
Phil asks his friend Stan when his birthday is. Stan replies that he was 32 the day before yesterday and next year he’ll be 35. When is his birthday and how is this possible?
Today is Jan 1st and his birthday is on December 31st. He was 32, then turned 33 on Dec 31st, and this year on Dec 31st he’ll turn 34, so next year he’ll be 35.
This is a most unusual paragraph. How quickly can you find out what is so unusual about it? It looks so ordinary you’d think nothing was wrong with it – and in fact, nothing is wrong with it. It is unusual though. Why? Study it, think about it, and you may find out. Try to do it without coaching. If you work at it for a bit it will dawn on you. So jump to it and try your skill at figuring it out. Good luck! Don’t blow your cool!