the williamsburg spelling bee

September 21, 2004

Last night I competed in the Williamsburg Spelling Bee at Pete’s Candy Store. I had seen a flyer for it in the Girdle Factory building near Verb.

I was contestant number twelve. My best friend Jenn came to watch.

Round one I spelled “tonsillitis.” Everyone commented that I was very fast and confident. Contestant number one, a librarian, commented that he always thought there was just one “l.”

Round two I spelled “panickiness.”

We (the contestants) start to notice that the words aren’t all that hard. Also, the guy reading them is having a terrible time pronouncing the words, so much so that the audience members often shout out corrections. The organizers were clearly unprepared for the crowd of (mostly sober) geeks that showed up.



Round three, we’re down to maybe six people, so now instead of each contestant spelling one word and sitting down, each contestant stays up until they miss a word, or get fifteen right, in which case we’d have a runoff.

Contestant number one gets fifteen right. A lot of other people miss words.

I go up and get fifteen words right, finally getting out on the word “bagasse,” which the announcer pronounced something like “be-gas” and which means “to beat sugar out of sugarcane.” (I’m not protesting at all — that’s a good spelling bee word!)

So then we have a runoff between me and contestant number one. We alternate back and forth spelling words until somebody misses one (however, if the first person misses their word and then the second person misses theirs as well, then you’d both go again so as not to be biased against whoever goes first).

I get a word that sounds like “ax-il-LOT-al.” I ask for a definition. It has to do with larvae. A biology word. Hmmn. So I guess. I think I probably guessed “axillotal.”

Turns out the word is “axolotl”!

Jesus, what the hell kind of word is that? (Mexican, it turns out). But, again, a good spelling bee word! Fair enough. So I wait for the other guy to get his word. Since mine was so hard, there’s a good chance he’ll get his wrong, and then we’ll go again.

His word is:

“Bereavement”.

No shit. The audience actually booed and demanded that he get a new word. The announcer held firm. Contestant number twelve, of course, spelled “bereavement” with no trouble and won. The organizers explained that they hadn’t realized that people who could actually spell would turn out for the spelling bee — they thought it would just be drunk people who were already in the bar. They apologized.

Then we all hung out for a bit. Contestant number one, it turns out, is a librarian. I explained that I’m an SAT teacher. The guy reading the words was flabbergasted. One of the other contestants (Meghan, in third place) and I suggested having former winners (who won’t be competing again until the finals in six months) come back and read the words. So I will be doing this during the next round, on October 4.

And then in six months, I’ll be in the finals. I’m so into this, you’d think it was the seventh grade. I always wanted to be in a spelling bee. I mean, I’m the kind of person who turns out when you put posters all over town advertising a spelling bee for adults.

I’d like to be a good sport about “axolotl” versus “bereavement,” but, unfortunately, I’m just a fundamentally flawed human being. I’m not even blaming original sin. It’s just me.

Anyway, if you would like to compete next time, or just come see me read vocabulary words with the greatest of ease:

Williamsburg Spelling Bee

October 4

7:30-9:00pm (signup at 6:30)

Pete’s Candy Store

709 Lorimer St, Williamsburg

Incidentally, according to pet-care websites, “A pair of Axolotls will do well in a tank measuring 60 x 30x 30 cm. The best substrate is a 5 cm-deep layer of medium-grade aquarium gravel. Since Axolotls are messy underwater feeders, it is best to have a power filter installed to keep the water clean. Axolotls will eat earthworms and the occasional maggot, mealworm cricket, small fish, or strip of lean raw meat.”

Posted by jen | Filed Under Jen says 

Comments

One Response to “the williamsburg spelling bee”

  1. Lisa Chau on September 23rd, 2004 7:51 pm

    That is one scary looking Axolotl!

    – Lisa

    Did you vote for me, yet?
    http://www.howdoyou.com/howdoyou/index.tbapp?affiliate%5Fid=
    Search for me under Woman & nickname, Alva — I’m the one in the pink frame that matches my shoes.

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