Various Topics

Riddle: The following passage is taken from the book Gatsby, written by Ernest Vincent Wright in the late 1930s.  "Gatsby was walking back from a visit down in Branton Hill's manufacturing district on a Saturday night. A busy day's traffic had its noisy run; and with not many folks in sight, His Honor got along without having to stop to grasp a hand, or talk; for a mayor out of City Hall is a shining mark for any politician. And so, coming to Broadway, a booming bass drum and sounds of singing, told of a small Salvation Army unit carrying on amidst Broadway's night shopping crowds. Gatsby , walking towards that group, saw a youg girl, back toward him, just finishing a long, soulful oration ... "

What is extremely unusual about that passage?

My friend Tanya, who had complications after knee surgery, was released from the hospital November 27 and taken to a nursing home for therapy.  But she was brought back on the 29th in very severe pain.  The blood thinners she was taking for a pulmonary embolism caused her wound to bleed into the knee joint.  She underwent a second surgery on the 30th and seems to be doing much better.

If you're already a senior, this will make you feel even older: Mick Jagger is about to become a great-grandfather. 

Looking out the window into the early-morning, I saw a trace of snow on the ground and the air full of fog. It's romantic, but makes me feel all cozy and glad I am looking at the scene through double-paned windows.

There’s been a complication in the legal maneuvering around the re-burial of the bones of King Richard III, which were discovered earlier this year under a parking lot in Leicester, England.  A contract had been signed between the Richard III Society and the University of Leicester saying the remains had to be entombed no later than the end of August 2014, but a court case has begun over exactly where this burial is to take place. (The choices seem to be Westminster, Leicester, and York.)  The City of Leicester has asked to join the case as a defendant, which means a delay in the process.  I have been saving money in a special account to pay for a trip to England to witness the ceremony (or at least to stand outside the cathedral lucky enough to gain possession during the service).  Tanya is saving to come with me – and now her sister-in-law Becky wants to come, too, and has opened her own account.  It seems we will have more time to build a war chest, as it is likely this case won’t conclude in time. One good thing about it: we have begun adding other places in the UK to visit so long as we are going there.

Answer:  There is no letter e in the passage – and e is the most commonly used letter of the alphabet in the English language.