"There’s a snake in my boot!
Wait – Cleo’s a newbie?
Oh, why didn’t you say so?
Quick, let’s beat up the newbie!!
Peace.
I haven’t seen the dreaded -gry question pop up TOO many times here, but manny posters used to be on the AOL board as well, and the -gry question showed up there at least three times a day. That is why some of us get annoyed when we see it. Others complain about it in a joking way, as evidenced by this thread.
Thank you, Shayna
I also did not know the answer and now I get it.
Much thanks
rb
Reminds me of a riddle my father was fond of pestering us kids with, to wit –
“Train on the track without any cars.
Can you spell that without any R’s?”
At age 7, I belabored myself with “Um, t - a - i - n - o…” By age 8, my relationship with my father had reached a new and – on my part – more suspicious level.
Remind me to tell ya about the “other dollar” riddle. It’s a killer!
I don’t know why fortune smiles on some and lets the rest go free…
T
Oh, Oh, Oh (Horshack style), I know that one, TBone!
How’s this? C-h-o-o-c-h-o-o a-t t-h-e s-t-a-t-i-o-n; n-o e-n-g-i-n-e, n-o c-a-b-o-o-s-e a-n-d n-o-t-h-i-n-g i-n-b-e-t-w-e-e-n.
Ha ha ha - ok, so I know the real answer’s supposed to be T-H-A-T, but it was actually kindof fun trying to come up with a workable alternative 
RBrown9454 posted
You’re welcome, RBrown. My pleasure.
“The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you’re still a rat.” – Lily Tomlin
Shayna! It don’t rhyme! You’re s’posed to make it rhyme! Dad always did!
Actually, Dad didn’t make much rhyme at all, and every time I’d start my spelling thing, “t-a-i-n-o-…,” he’d say “No, no, no!” and we’d go on to other things. I think he was a little frosted when I learned the correct answer from some kid at school, who I’m sure also had a dad who was a certified pain.
Dad’s “missing dollar” riddle was better, but only because it took us so much longer to figure it out. I’m not sure he ever did…
I don’t know why fortune smiles on some and lets the rest go free…
T
It’s because you can’t really say they each paid nine dollars. The room cost twenty-five, three were given back to the lodgers and two were kept by the bellhop. 25+3+2=30. There is no missing dollar.
The link above that purports to show the “trick wording” is weak.
I doubt that even the Supreme Court on its most imaginative day could divine that when you list “a” and “b,” then ask for the third item in the set, that you actually meant the third word that you said when you started the riddle.
::nervously looking from side to side::
{whispering}
I have found it! The third word! It’s been right under our noses all this time, but it’s been buried under the secrecy of a vast right wing conspiracy! I must be careful now; the third word is:
fnord…
::gasp! choke!::
We’re sorr…heh, heh!..“We’re?”, what was I thinking! Excuse me. I’M sorry, there is no third word after all.
We apologize for the misunderstanding.
Such sweet people! Maybe they’ll define “felch” for me.
Doc,
You’re close, and your arithmetic is correct, but actually, each man DID pay nine dollars, after each received the one-dollar rebate. From that perspective, the equation is 3 x 9 + 3 [the rebate] = 30.
The beauty of the riddle is not in the math, but in the telling! I passed it on to my own kids, and stumped them every time! In victory, I’d say, “Yeah, stick THAT in your diaper and smoke it!”
BTW, do you know my dad? Are we maybe related or something?
I don’t know why fortune smiles on some and lets the rest go free…
T
Too funny, TBone. I was going to ask if you knew my dad, as he also told me that $30 hotel room riddle, as well as many others. (Love ya for that, Dad!) Here’s another one he gave me…
Two men are walking down the street. One man asks the other if he has any kids. “Yes,” he says, “I have 3.”
1st man: “That’s nice. How old are they?”
2nd man: “Well, the multiple of their ages is 36.”
1st man: “That certainly narrows it down, but really isn’t enough information.”
2nd man: “Ok then, the sum of their ages equals that house address over there.”
1st man: “Certainly helpful, but still not quite enough.”
2nd man: “The oldest is visiting her grandmother.”
1st man: “Ahhh, ok. Now I know how old they are.”
How old are the children?
BTW, the only time I’ve ever seen my father’s chin hit the floor was when I gave him the correct answer after all of about 2 seconds of thinking about it. When he asked how I’d figured it out so quickly, I shrugged my shoulders and reminded him what a smart daughter he raised {smirk, smirk}. The truth is, it was a lucky guess
“The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you’re still a rat.” – Lily Tomlin
Shayna,
There just HAS to be a piece missing. Are you SURE your dad’s riddle is all there? There are just too many mathematical solutions for what you described…
I don’t know why fortune smiles on some and lets the rest go free…
T
TBone2,
Sounds like a good riddle to me, with only 2 eminently reasonable assumptions:
Their ages multiply to 36 - several combinations (like 36,1,1; 18,2,1 wtc.)
Their ages add to a number - but there must be at least two ways of doing this, otherwise you’d know the answer already (just 9,2,2 and 6,6,1 both sum to 13)
The oldest is …
OK, they’re 9, 2 and 2.
I thank you!
Why can’t they be 3, 3, and 4?
-PIGEONMAN-
Hero For A New Millennium!
The Legend Of PigeonMan - updates every Wed & Sat. If I can be bothered.
Is there another set of 3 numbers that add up to 10 (3+3+4) that have a product of 36? If not, it can’t be the answer, because it would make the last clue unnecessary.
Your Official Cat Goddess since 10/20/99.
“I get along well with everybody.” --I.M.F.
I was in the Ohio chat room of Yahoo last week and this chatter pose that gry riddle and i answered her, actually the only person to answer her. She did not believe me so i told her to check out the Straight Dope site and i know there is plenty of archived info of the riddle, but it did no good. the chatter would not go look but preferred to argue i was wrong. anyone know of a better place to chat? i heard there was a chat in SD but haven’t seen it.