Wednesday, June 29, 2005

The Rules Game

A simple challenge for young and old …
I am going to Grandma’s house and I am taking a melon.
Basically, you need to tell me (in the comments, constructing a statement akin to ‘I am going to Grandma’s house and I am taking x’) what you are going to bring to Grandma’s house. If what you propose to bring accord with the rule I have conjured, I will allow you to come, if it does not I will tell you so …

36 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm taking a lemon.

MH said...

Yes, Rosie, you may come to grandma's house; but Peter you may not come with that list ...

MH said...

Just a point of etiquette; could participants refrain from posting their suppositions on what the actual rule is. If you think that you know, guess what you can bring, but keep the rule to yourself. This is because, in this case, you are probably wrong.

Anonymous said...

i'd take a elnom

Samuel Douglas said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Samuel Douglas said...

I'd take an apple.

Pete, that's messed up, you need to get out more.

Anonymous said...

Am I also taking a moderately attractive papillion? Or possibly lemonade if you're pedantic. Or just the initial lemon...

MH said...

Anonymous and Samuel - Sorry, but you cannot come with those items. Rose you will need to be slightly more specific; I could not work out exactly what you were going to bring.

But, feel free to try again.

Samuel Douglas said...

How about a penguin?

Samuel Douglas said...

Oh really people, put some effort in!

Could I bring a Pokémon?

Anonymous said...

A lonely monkey? Or if not, lemonade, of if not, just lemon as already established. Any clearer?

MH said...

Samuel - no to the penguin and the pokemon; Peter - no to the chopsticks (the Dwarf don't count); Rose - will allow one monkey (avoid adjectives in future), though don't waste your time with the lemonade.

And ... I am going to Grandma's house and I am taking a nectarine.

[As a quick note: while you can still make guesses, I won't be back to check this until Monday. And a further rule of the game, while I remember it, once an item has been suggested it cannot be suggested again ...]

Anonymous said...

I'm attempting to smuggle in an orange?

Anonymous said...

ok melon,lemon,monkey,nectarine, citrus(if micheal is right)

well quite obiously i'd take a tamorillo

then if i'm correct i'd train the monkey to make marmalade to take to grandmas house

kathyrn

MH said...

So, I'm going to be blunt. Not one of you is comming. But, I am going to Grandma's house and I am taking napalm.

Anonymous said...

Was it the 'lonely monkey' or just the monkey that was alowwedt to come?

MH said...

Appologies Ladies and Gentlemen. You will have to discard my previous post - I became confused - and thus the posts by Rose and Michael are irrelevant. At the moment a melon, a lemon, a monkey, and a nectarine have been permitted (Thank you Peter, for mixing up the order in your post). It was early in the morning, and I am rather drained at present.

Michael you may bring citrus, and Kathryn you may bring a tamorillo.

And I am going to bring mustard.

Which means the list of items should read: melon, lemon, monkey, nectarine, citrus, tamorillo, and mustard.

(If I haven't given the rule away yet, then it is harder to predict than I thought ...)

So, again, sorry one and all.

Samuel Douglas said...

I hate this game so much.

Anonymous said...

I'm bringing Superman, that way I can fly to Grandma's house. : )

MH said...

Rosie - You may take superman.

Anonymous said...

i'm staying on the fruit tangent and taking a peach
kathryn

MH said...

Kathryn - You may take a peach.

Samuel Douglas said...

Arg, If she can take a peachm, why can't I take an apple? Clearly it is not just fruit!
Having said that, can I take a tangerine?

MH said...

Samuel, you may not take a tangerine. Peter, you wanted to take a dog (I considered that it was described as having solved crimes irrelevant [though I do get your point, and had it been considered ... then you may have been allowed to come]), and it may be next week before I get to my point at the present rate. But the game will continue until then.

And I am going to grandma's house and I am taking a crayon.

(So the list of objects is: melon, lemon, monkey, nectarine, citrus, tamorillo, mustard, superman, peach, and crayon ...).

Anonymous said...

Are you sure you are taking a crayon??? I'm a little confused? Are you not taking an apple this time instead, or have I got another rule which works perfectly (except for crayon) but isn't it?

MH said...

Rose - Am certain that I am taking the crayon, given that the last item was a peach, so I think that you may have demonstrated that the rule is nowhere near as self-evident as you thought.

Nice attempt at community correction though.

Samuel Douglas said...

I am going to take yogurt.
(This had better be right!)

Anonymous said...

Cooly, being as cool as he is is taking a luxury yacht (understanding that the luxury is irrelevant, it just sounds cooler).

MH said...

Sorry Samuel and Mr McCool, but neither of your suggestions accord with the rule.

So, it is my turn again: I am going to Grandma's house and I am taking a Remembrancer (according to the dictionary it is 'an officer collecting debts due to the sovereign'). This makes the list of objects: melon, lemon, monkey, nectarine, citrus, tamorillo, mustard, superman, peach, crayon, and Remembrancer.

I think that I might end your suffering and reveal the rule on Wednesday, so there is still a couple of days for you to make some final guesses. If you review the last couple of moves in the game, I think that the rule should become obvious. The key are the errors of Rose, Sam, and Cooly.

Anonymous said...

I would like to take 'magic' to Grandma's house.

Craig.

Anonymous said...

If this rule is to change every time there is a rule figured out I'll be very upset Martin.

I might take marijuana. I think Craig and myself have either figured out a rule or we are just hedging our bets. But there are 3 e's so I'll take an elephant.

MH said...

Craig - you may take magic. Coolie - you would have been able to take marijuana if Craig hadn't gotten in first with magic (and elephant isn't even close).

So, now, the list is melon, lemon, monkey, nectarine, citrus, tamorillo, mustard, superman, peach, crayon, remembrancer, and magic.

Samuel Douglas said...

I'm taking a gun.

(Surely this time......)

MH said...

Yes, Samuel, you may take a gun.

Samuel Douglas said...

Ah well there goes 12 days of my life I'll never get back.

MH said...

So it is Wednesday and the list is melon, lemon, monkey, nectarine, citrus, tamorillo, mustard, superman, peach, crayon, remembrancer, magic, and gun.

The question, which you have been trying to crack, is what made one object acceptable and not another - well the rule is that the noun had to start with the second consonant of the previous correct answer. In explaination, the second consonant of melon is 'l', which is why lemon was acceptable, and why it could never be an apple.

I dare say that some of you are going to be disappointed ... my appologies. I will try to get my thoughts on how this relates to Wittgenstein finished shortly.