Mountain Views News          Saturday, May 7, 2011

17

More News and Such

 Mountain Views News Saturday, May 7, 2011 


YOU A GENIUS OR AN IDIOT II: 
THE ANSWERS 

ONE MAN’S JOKE IS 

ANOTHER MAN’S HUG

Rev. James L. Snyder


RICH Johnson


Well, you’ve had all week to 
ponder the test printed in last 
week’s paper. I figured I better 
not forget to run the answers 
or I might be hunted down. 
I am not going to mention 
by name my favorite retired 
Caltech Professor. Apparently CS has scored a 
perfect paper. I couldn’t even do that and I have 
the answers. 

Here you are:

26 = Letters of the Alphabet

7 = Wonders of the World

1001 = Arabian Nights

12 = Signs of the Zodiac

52 = Cards in a Deck

9 = Planets in the Solar System 

(Ok, I know Pluto has been downgraded)

88 = Piano Keys

13 = Stripes of the American Flag

18 = Holes on a Golf Course

32 = Degrees Farenheit, at which Water Freezes

8 = Sides on a Stop Sign

200 = Dollars for Passing Go in Monopoly

3 = Blind Mice (See How They Run)

90 = Degrees in a Right Angle

4 = Quarts in a Gallon or Quarters in a (

football) Game

24 = Hours in a Day

1 = Wheel on a Unicycle

5 = Digits in a Zip Code

57 = Heinz Varieties

11 = Players Fielded on a Football Team

1000 = Words that a Picture is Worth

29 = Days in February in a Leap Year

64 = Squares on a chess/checkerboard

40 = Days and Nights of the Great Flood

80 = Days to Go Around the World

2 = # it Takes to Tango

101 = Dalmatians

 It’s been an eventful week. My congrats to 
President Obama for stepping up to the plate. It 
is the true test of leadership. I’m glad he did what 
he did, though I feel no joy at the death of anyone. 
(Though I don’t judge those who do, particularly 
New Yorkers). Hopefully the death of Bin Laden 
will bring about the collapse of Al Qaida. My congrats 
also to President Bush for his efforts as president. 
There are very few presidents whose entire 
administration and legacy is viewed through the 
prism of cataclysmic events. FDR and Lincoln are 
the only two I can think of. FDR and Lincoln were 
luckier than Bush and Obama. They didn’t have 
the eyes of everybody always looking over their 
shoulders and second guessing their every move. 
Thank you for being presidential.

To anybody that knows me, (and can anybody 
really know anybody else?), they would readily 
affirm that I am not addicted to hugging. Let me 
point out very quickly I am not allergic to it either. 
I just believe a good hearty handshake says 
everything I want to say to anybody I meet.

 This is biblical. The Bible talks about extending 
to one another the right hand of fellowship, 
and nothing says it better than a firm, hearty 
handshake. Anyway, that’s my story and I’m 
sticking with it.

 I usually reserve my hugs for the little people 
in my life, like my grandchildren and their 
friends. The smaller they are the more they need 
a hug. But that is my limit. Although, I have been 
waylaid on occasion, none of it was my doing. 
I stick firm to a good handshake and leave the 
hugging to other people.

 I do not criticize people who like to hug. I just 
am not one of them. I like what my grandfather 
used to say, “To each his own.”

 Recently, certain events brought me to 
the point of challenging my whole theory of 
hugology.

 It all began at the end of a rather busy Sunday. 
My Sundays at the church begin at eight o’clock in 
the morning and concludes somewhere around 
eight o’clock in the evening. Of course, I go home 
for lunch and a quick nap in the afternoon, but 
my whole day is devoted to the church. And I like 
it that way. If it were up to me, there would be 
seven Sundays in a week.

 I was driving home from church late last Sunday 
evening and my self said, “I sure am thirsty 
and could go for a nice cold diet Pepsi.” Usually, I 
am beside my self, but this was one of those rare 
occasions when I was perfectly in harmony with 
my self.

 So I said, “Self, for once I agree with you. Let’s 
go get a soda.” And on that note, I set my sights 
on satiating both of our thirsts.

 Not far from my house is a grocery store that 
is open late Sunday night. I parked in the parking 
lot and moseyed on in to purchase a cold diet 
Pepsi. I thought of buying two, one for me and 
one for my self, but then how would I explain 
that to the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage. 
I immediately found the soda and walked up 
to the cashier to pay for my purchase and then 
saunter on home and enjoy the diet Pepsi.

 Standing in line I overheard the gentleman in 
front of me talking to the cashier and being the 
astute person I am, gathered that they were married… 
to each other.

 After paying for 
his purchase the cashier 
stepped from 
a behind the cashier 
area and they hugged 
and kissed right 
there in front of God and everybody. Being two 
brain cells short of an idiot, I said loud enough 
so everybody could hear me, “I guess I got in the 
right line tonight.”

 Everybody looked at me and we all shared 
a wonderful and hearty laugh. I love it when a 
joke comes together. I cannot tell you how many 
times I have been on the backend of a joke that 
backfired. I hate it when a joke backfires, but 
when it is well timed and wondrously articulated, 
it is a joy forever.

 I turned and talked to the person behind me 
who thoroughly enjoyed the humor of the moment. 
I have found that humor brings more 
people together than anything else. And there is 
nothing like a good laugh to cheer a spirit that 
may be sagging for a moment. It seems everybody 
has problems these days, and a smile goes 
a long way.

 And in this, I am in complete harmony with 
the Bible. “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: 
but a broken spirit drieth the bones” (Proverbs 
17:22 KJV). And from some of the people I 
have encountered recently, there is a great need 
for this kind of medicine.

 Finally, it was my turn with the cashier. She 
greeted me warmly and then processed my purchase. 
We exchanged some pleasantries and then 
I was about to leave the store with my diet Pepsi.

 It was then that I was caught by surprise. The 
cashier stepped from behind her cashier’s post 
and said to me, “Sir, here’s your hug for tonight.” 
And before my two brain cells could get their act 
together, I was in the middle of a hug.

 When the aforementioned brain cells recovered, 
I finally thought, “I hope she’s not going to 
kiss me.”

 Thankfully, she didn’t. But the rest of the customers 
clapped rather heartily. Too heartily if 
you ask me.

 We often judge people according to our own 
personal preference. If we like something, we 
assume everybody else likes the same thing. If, 
on the other hand, we think something is wrong 
we believe everybody should have that same 
conviction.

Sometimes we need to be careful what we say 
and what we do.

Local Students Graduate from Azusa Pacific

AZUSA, CA -- The following students will graduate from Azusa Pacific University on Sat., May 7. 
They will join more than 1,300 graduates at the spring commencement ceremonies.

Altadena, Calif. resident Saundra Dennis with a Bachelor of Science in Management 

 Information Systems

Altadena, Calif. resident Marvin C. Hinds with a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Leadership

Altadena, Calif. resident Ngozi I. Uwagboi with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing

Altadena, Calif. resident Tamar Alice Aroyan with a Master of Arts in Education: Teaching

Altadena, Calif. resident Cleonie L. Harrison with a Master of Arts in Education: Teaching

Altadena, Calif. resident Danyelle Louise Rucker with a Master of Arts in Education: Teaching

Arcadia, Calif. resident Corinne Catherine Giangrande with a Bachelor of Arts in Music

Tuenmun, Hong Kong resident Ho Wah Leung with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology

Arcadia, Calif. resident Karla Aguilar-Solis with a Master of Arts in Education: 

 Educational Counseling

Arcadia, Calif. resident Tiffany Nicole Hartline with a Master of Arts in Education: Teaching

Arcadia, Calif. resident Yihui Li with a Master of Science in Nursing

Monrovia, Calif. resident Christopher Zachary Bright with a Bachelor of Arts in Theater Arts

Monrovia, Calif. resident Lynsey Rynida Ruangchan with a Bachelor of Arts in Music

Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. resident Cynthia Marie Ramirez with a Bachelor of Arts in 

 Human Development

Monrovia, Calif. resident Amber Lisa Burdick with a Master of Music in Performance: Instrumental

Monrovia, Calif. resident Matthew Daniel Clegg with a Master of Arts in Education: 

 Educational Counseling

Monrovia, Calif. resident David A. Hull with a Master of Arts in Education: Educational Counseling

El Cajon, Calif. resident Marisa D. Katzman with a Master of Social Work

Monrovia, Calif. resident Adriana M. Reaver with a Master of Social Work

Monrovia, Calif. resident Marcelo Jesus Leonardi with a Doctor of Education in Educational 

 Leadership: Teaching and Learning

Sierra Madre, Calif. resident Ryan David Chin with a Bachelor of Arts in Biblical Studies

Sierra Madre, Calif. resident Rachel Johnson with a Bachelor of Arts in Art

Sierra Madre, Calif. resident Sarah Raphel Robison with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing

Sierra Madre, Calif. resident Taylor Anne Nestlerode with a Bachelor of Arts in Human Development

Sierra Madre, Calif. resident Brittany E. Lindsey with a Master of Arts in Education: 

 Educational Counseling

Arcadia, Calif. resident Salli N. Throop with a Master of Arts in Leadership and 

 Organizational Studies

Pasadena, Calif. resident Heather Leanne Bodell Anastasia with a Master of Arts in Education: 
Educational Psychology

Pasadena, Calif. resident Paul G. Camargo with a Master of Arts in Education: Digital Teaching

 and Learning

Pasadena, Calif. resident Thomas Adam Lister with a Master of Arts in Education: Digital Teaching

 and Learning

Pasadena, Calif. resident Nicole Celeste Wood with a Master of Social Work

Azusa Pacific University is an evangelical, Christian university committed to God First and excellence 
in higher education. With 53 undergraduate majors, 37 master’s degrees, 21 credentials, 7 doctoral 
programs, and 5 certificates, the university offers its more than 9,200 students a quality education on 
campus, online, and at seven regional centers throughout Southern California.