Palm-Mensa

Palm Beach County Mensa Newsletter
July, 2003

Contents

To Ponder...

Easy challenge for deep summer-what is the only word in the English language that retains its original pronunciation even when the last four letters are dropped? (email elissa12@bellsouth.net with your answer.)

Last Month's Challenge: Keres, Beothuk, Nahall, Burushaski, and Elamite-what are/were they? Which still exist and where? There were no guesses this past month. The general answer is that these are "language isolates," languages that have no known structural or historical relationship to any other language. Keres is still spoken by Pueblo Indians in the New Mexico area; Beothuk, once spoken by an Indian tribe on Newfoundland, is now extinct; Nahall is spoken by fewer than 1,000 people in a small area of India; Burushaski has no written form and is spoken by 20,000 people in Kashmir; and Elamite, now extinct, was spoken in the ancient country of Elam, southwest Iran.

Notes From The Underground
By: Barry Karas

EVENT. Sometimes you would like to have a discussion or an event but you don't want a crowd of people at your house. We now have a location that we can use – but we should have several weeks advance notice. Now there's one less excuse for not planning a discussion or an event. Contact me with your questions and/or requests for assistance.

BENEFITS. There are benefits to being a Mensa member. I took a look at this Web page recently "Member Resources" and was impressed by the benefits that I did not know about.

Since were nearing the vacation season, and since many of these benefits are trip oriented, now is a good time to check out these benefits. Of course, many of the benefits, including most of the trip oriented ones can be used in all seasons. If you do not have web access, call the National Office.

PREVIEWS. We have two new presenters: our editor, Kathy Hickok and our webmaster/computer guru, Dan Tobias. Many thanks to our previous editor Muffett Brinkman, and to our previous webmaster/computer guru and Glen Moulder. Glen was also editor some years ago and will remain on the Executive Board as a Member at Large. Dan's first Web publication will be this one, July, 2003. Kathy's first publication will be the next one for August, 2003. During this month, Elissa Rudolph, the editor before Muffett, is the interim editor. Thank you, Elissa.

WEB SITE. As I mentioned, Dan Tobias is our new webmaster. (Dan is "new" only to the webmaster position; he's been around computers for years, and has several of his own Web sites (see <http://www.dan.info/mysites.html> for instance.) <http://www.palmbeach.us.mensa.org/> is Palm Beach County Mensa's new Web address, although the old one will work for a while.

RENEW. Some FORMER members did not renew for the 4/1/2003 through 3/31/2004 plan year. For the convenience of these former members, it is easy to re-join or renew through Mensa's Web site. See above for URL.

THE TENTH STORY - July
(RVC Column for Region 10)
By Elissa Rudolph

Did you watch Test the Nation last month? Was it what you expected? I would be interested in knowing which groups had "watch parties" for June 9. Email me and let me know!

Tampa Bay Mensa held a successful RG over Memorial Day weekend in a causeway venue between Tampa proper and the Clearwater area. Besides great people, karaoke, and well-stocked hospitality, what I enjoyed immensely was the hot breakfast served each morning on the veranda overlooking the water. Great touch, but only for us early birds. The Salvador Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg and Tarpon Springs were compelling spots for daytrippers. No matter how many RGs or AGs I attend, every event has a specialness about it. Never boring, always surprising in some way, and I come away with a renewed appreciation for our Mensa organization. Where else can you get engaged multiple times over the weekend (you should see the rings I have!), dino-nap your own orange 2-headed pterodactyl, and sing ABBA's "Dancing Queen" with your best friend?

Serious note: National Testing Day is October 18. If your group has not arranged testing sessions as yet, I encourage you to make it happen. National publicity puts Mensa's name out there on radio, TV, and in newspapers. Let's take advantage of that and snap up those people whose interest in Mensa is piqued. They could be your next volunteers!

See you at the AG??

Coming Soon…
October 24-26, The MagicOwl RG, hosted by Broward Mensa, Plantation Holiday Inn, near world famous Sawgrass Mills (954-472-5600); $75 til 7/30 inc. 4 meals; Registrar: Barbara Moore (954-752-8483).

Elissa Rudolph
RVC10@us.mensa.org
5054 Lakefront Blvd., Apt. D
Delray Beach, FL 33484
561-496-0124

Dusty Reviews
by Miss Dustinea Jacquette,
retired, spinsterish librarian

Here's a novel, "Single Wife" by Nina Solomon, that asks the reader to believe that a modern wife would go to such lengths to hide the fact that her husband has left her, no note, no explanation. In the past, Laz (short for Lazarus, certainly some reference to his apparent absence, as if dead) Brookman left Grace for days at a time, but this time he's been gone many weeks. Grace keeps up appearances by rumpling the sheets on his side of the bed-for the maid's sake. And she makes excuses for his absence to their friends and family, all believable. Why she doesn't just tell the truth is perhaps too painful, but eventually must be done.

The story contains various literary allusions to other works-"The Odyssey" (Penelope weaving while her husband is away-Grace learns to crochet) and the 1944 thriller "Gaslight" (Charles Boyer tries to make Ingrid Bergman think she's losing her mind by dimming the lights). The dining room lights inexplicably dim and burn out- they were supposed last a lifetime.

It's a real stretch to understand why Grace goes through such manipulations to hide Laz's disappearance-but it is a compelling story nonetheless. A surprise character jumps into the story toward the end. Interesting denouement.

Next month, if I finish it, Life of Pi, story of a boy and a tiger lost at sea in a small boat. Til then, visit your library and flirt with the older librarians; the younger ones get enough attention.

Broward Mensa wants YOU to register for FLoRanGe '03!!

The MagicOwl RG will be here just in time for Hallowe'en! Get chills down your spine as we share ghost stories by candle light, chortle with glee at our Joke-off and Pundemonium (hosted by "Dirty Rotten" Joe Vitale), let your creativity flow into a costume for our costume contest, listen to a plethora of hand- picked speakers including world-renowned archeologist Gypsy Graves and local Egyptologist and knight-errant Rick Friedman, meet a practicing Wiccan, play clever and challenging games night and day with friends old and new (you can play until the bats come home!) and shop 'til you drop at FLoRanGe's scholarship auction. Perhaps a treasure hunt or a pumpkin-decorating contest would tickle your fancy?

But wait- there's more! Your registration includes all meals except Saturday night, when you get to choose from one of many local eating establishments.

More, you say? Take a shuttle to Sawgrass Mills Outlet Mall, gather some friends and head for the beach or to the Everglades for an airboat ride. Too much to choose from? Hang out in our 24 hour hospitality suite and solve the world's problems (or just shoot the breeze) with other Mensans - friends are what an RG is all about, don't you think? That, along with the games, the speakers, the meals, the jokes, the contests and tournaments...

There will be special events this year for young Mensans and children of Mensans with special rates.

Event Reviews

North County: Just a quick note from the North County area - we had a lovely dinner at Red Lobster in Jensen Beach in June. In attendance were Donna Bognar and son David, Bobbie and Julius Kadlecz, Alan Posner, Janice Johnson, and John Moritz.

Mid-County: The Summer Solstice event was rained on, but not rained out. Instead of cooking out, we took over the Clubhouse and had a great party with about 35 attendees. Among those attending were: Phyllis and Stanley Godofsky, Don Van Dusen, John and Jeannie Dassau, Richard Manno, Evvy Rabin, Maggie Rubin, Barry M., Phil Hales, Barbara Moore, Lya Korda, Darcy Schiller and Jerome, Fred and Cheryl Bohle, Joan Zieff, Ann Carter and A.J. (the only swimmer!), Murray Sabloff, and others. With the array of food, a few games going, and the interplay between Ms and my (Elissa's) co-workers, the party had an unusual level of energy. We will do this again but during a season when rain is less of a threat. Glad you all could attend!

Notes & Newsworthy Items

As of the end of May Palm Beach County Mensa had 312 members -- 9 entered the group as new, renewing members and 2 members moved away. Welcome or welcome back to Elaine Bregman, Boca Raton; Mary Briskman, Lake Worth; Paul Herman, Boca Raton; Molly Leban, Lake Worth; Steven McCollough, North Palm Beach; Joel McTague, Boca Raton; Dr. Steven Solomon, Boynton Beach; Richard Starita, Stuart; and Mohan Thampi, Naples.

Note: The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors and DO NOT reflect opinions of Palm Beach County Mensa, its officers, or of American Mensa, Ltd., which holds NO opinions.

© 2000-2007 Palm Beach County Mensa. The Mensa logo is a registered trademark of Mensa International Limited and American Mensa Limited, all rights reserved. Mensa does not hold any opinion or have, or express, any political or religious views.