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Animal-Vegetable-Mineral-Abstract: The Pants Memorial Game
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The chairperson selects an object/idea/whatever and announces whether it's animal, vegetable, mineral, and/or abstract. The others have to ask questions to figure out what it is. Whomever guesses the object correctly is given the chair for the next round; repeat ad nauseam.
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is it in liquid form?
Is it from the element table?
Brendan - No. That would sort of be stone, I think.
snorgle - No. At least, it would be misleading to say otherwise.
Inkspot - No.
Is it gaseous?
(which would be "mineral" by the eccentric definition thereof that AMV uses) [Bm] Thought you might say that, but I wanted to check. [Chalky] I'm curious why you thought we'd narrowed Iris Murdoch down to a "single being" so early on ...
Brendan - No.
Is it a man-made material?
Is it a geographical feature?
[Brendan] Groups of people [or even whole races] qualify as 'Animal' [we've had them in the past] so the gender question has always been tricky to reply to without giving the game away. In Iris's case, the questions were asked in such a way that I had to respond in the singular.
(per Inkspot) Does it have a known chemical composition?
The empty plinth in Trafalgar Square?
Is it fictional?
[Chalky] Ooooooooooh. I thought you meant that the answers to our questions uniquely identified her as being her, if you see what I mean ...
Inkspot - No.
Chalky - No.
Kim - Yes, pretty much.
Raak - Ooh, where do you get these ideas? No.
Brendan - No.
On reflection
My answer to Chalky's last might be a bit controversial or debatable. I will stand by it, though.
Is it made largely of solid water?
Is it located in one particular part of the world?
Raak - A breakthrough! Yes.
Inkspot - It is not fixed to one spot, if that is what you mean.
Obviously ice is involved?
[Brendan] I see what you mean, yes :-)
Chalky - Very involved indeed.
Jakobshavn Glacier?
Inkspot - No.
Going for simplicity, an iceberg?
My bloody Mrs?
Software - Yes. But be more specific...
Bigsmith - Ha, probably not.
The North Polar ice cap?
The iceberg that sank the Titanic?
And put all the crew in a panic?
Oh, sorry, wrong game.
What a waste! Such a shame!
Does it live in the northern Atlan[t]ic?
I foresee a new twist to the rules
Does it like sex games that are tantric?
Sorry for brief absence
[Raak] Yes! It is indeed The iceberg that sank the Titanic, for lack of charms talismanic. Well done all round.
The next is both MINERAL and VEGETABLE.
Is it edible?
Splendid - a different category mix :-)
Is it man-made?
Is it found in the home?
Is the vegetable, wood?
Does the vegetable grow on the mineral?
[Toby] Nice idea. Let's keep the limerick lines within the "apropos" postings.
The answer to Chalky is yes.
Bm also makes a good guess.
Dazed5 is quite right
Inkspot's not -- what a fright!
And Kim's wrong, I have to confess.
Is't a recipe that I could make?
Breadmaster a black mark must take.
Would one eat it by choice?
Is it a sauce?
With something warm and moist
Like a recipe for devilled snake?
The audience slightly amused
Toby's wrong, but the laughter's a clue
Inkspot's further away
In ev-e-ry way
Kim's a country mile out of our view.
Is it medicinal?
More laughter from the audience.
It can be.
Is it made to be eaten?
[Inkspot] No.
Does it contain alcohol?
Is it a drink?
...and there was me ready to suggest a slice of burnt toast
[Kim] Yes.
[Inkspot] Yes.
Bushmills Whiskey?
Well, it covers most bases including medicinal;)
Is the vegetable constituent grapes?
[Kim] No. [Inkspot] Well, I had any type of whisk(e)y in mind, but I reckon you're close enough. Inkspot wins!
...and a small nip for everyone, seeing as it's a bit parkey out there today.

Let's kick this one off then, ANIMAL

Is this human?
Well done Inky. Cheers for the wee nip. I understand that we are about to be subjected to extreme parkyness this week. *wondering how that word originated*
Is it alive?
Maybe parky is from parka jackets? Googling for it, I haven't had any luck with the etymology other than the fact it seems to have been around since before WWII.
Chalky] Yes
snorgle]Yes
Some in the office are claiming that its probably too cold to snow. In this part of Wiltshire I've only been able to build two snowmen in the last 14 years, so my wife is looking forward to a couple of inches.
Is it Michael "Parky" Parkinson?
Too cold to snow?! Never could understand that one. It's bloody cold at the South Pole but it still snows there!
Is it male?
Bigsmith]Definitely too cold to snow, No
Breadmaster]Yes
If this keeps up we may have snowdrifts by tea time.
Is he a sporty type person?
Snowdrifts, really. I was amused watching the weather the other day to see big red patches on the map as the weather person talked urgently of the chances of each part of the country having snow. All this for what would be perhaps a centimetre of the stuff. If this were America no-one would get worked up over anything less than six feet. When I grow up I shall move to Canada, just you wait.
Is he well known in the UK?
re:couple of inches - fnarr fnarr!

I lived in Canada and it snowed however damn cold it was! Besides, it's not that cold, you wimps.

Breadmaster]Yes
snorgle]Yes
But was it proper snow? I suppose your going to say in Canada you you had several inches every night! Not like the stuff that we get roundabout here that turns to slush by lunchtime!
Has he been involved in any scandals?
Still too warm for snow here; should get some tomorrow, though (they say). Better not affect my getting to other half's graduation.
Is he a footballer?
With any luck, tomorrow or Wednesday, I shall have the perfect excuse to stay away from work - the wrong type of snow.
Is he still playing whatever sport he's famous for professionally?
I only wish I had several inches every night. *Ho-hum* Snow finds it difficult to go slushy in Ottawa, at least, until about, oooh, end of March?
I'll probably be on strike on Thursday and Friday. And definitely not on any picket lines. Far too cold for that! (all the standing around, see..)
Does his sport involve ball play?
[Inks] Are you in North Wilts? The forecast says we're unlikely to get any here in mid south
Is he famous primarily for playing sport (as opposed to managing, punditing, etc)?
Brendan]No
Kim] No
snorgle]No
Chalky] Yes
Breadmaster]Yes, like many has been pundit briefly and even was a team captain on a well known sprots quiz between, 1979 - 1982. But he will be best remembered as a player.
A two day strike, a perfect way to catch up on Trisha.
Yes' I'm in North Wilts, and don't mention Swindon, folks here are very touchy about that metropolis.
Is he a cricketer?
I don't know why I'm asking, the only sports people I have ever heard of are those I am forced to subtitle at work, so I won't know any retired ones. Especially cricketers.
Bill Beaumont?
Hurricane Higgins?
Emlyn Hughes?
Gareth Edwards?
Breadmaster]No
Chalky]No
Raak]No
Kim]1 No
Kim]2 YES
The crowd at the Arms Park stand and cheer and burst into song.

Who?
Raak] Very, very thin ice ;P
[Raak] You may well ask. Rugby player, I think. Which just goes to show that it's not always a question of who you know.....
[All] Righty-ho, then, eyes down for a full house. This next one's........ABSTRACT/VEGETABLE.
The grapes of wrath?
A tree falling in an emptyt forest?
Is the vegetable bit wood?
Is it the title of a book?
This one's going to be over quickly, methinks.
[Raak] No.
[ZK] 1. No. 2. Yes.
[Inkspot] Yes.
A tree grows in Brooklyn?
The Grapes of Wrath?
The Camomile Lawn?
Wind in the Willows?
The Tree Musketeers?
Under Milk Wood?
Twiggy's autobiography?
The Wood Beyond the World?
[Raak] I've never heard of Gareth Edwards either. See? I was right!
The Ringing, Singing Tree?
Eats Shoots & Leaves?
Pinocchio
Plankenstein
[snorgle] No.
[Bigsmith] No x 6.
[Breadmaster] No.
[Raak] No.
[Chalky] Lol, no. Have you read it? I put it down after the first chapter. She is clearly just trying to take all of the fun for folk like us out of pointing out the grammatical and syntactical errors of others. Publish, crap and make lots of money.
[Inkspot] Nice, but no. I think that would have to have been Abstract/Animal/Vegetable.
[Bigsmith] No.
Like I said at the start, its not just a question of who you know....
Is the author still alive?
The Faraway Tree?
The Name of the Rose?
The Man Who Wood Be Queen: The Science of Gender-Bending and Transsexualism?
The Readers' Digest Book of Carpentry?
Would the wood part be the book itself or is does the wood part form part of the title?
well... someone had to ask.
[Kim] Eats Shoots and Laughs All The Way To The Bank ... noooo - have not and shall not read it [see Advice Game MCiOS about 2 weeks ago]
[Inkspot] Apparently, yes.
[Breadmaster] No.
[Raak] No.
[Inkspot] No.
[Bigsmith] I used it to put up the shelf on which it now sits, but No.
[Chalky] Yes.
[All] When I thought of this, I was not aware of the existence of a book of the same name. Like I said, it's not just a question of who you know.
Is it a list book of people?
bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzt!
[Kim] Sorry to be picky, but you have answered yes to an "either /or" question from Chalky, at what I feel may be a crucial turn of the game! So for clarification I'll re-ask the first part of the question and deduce accordingly: would the wood part be the book itself?
Errrr......
[Inkspot] No.
[Bigsmith] I always thought that one of the key rules of this game was that you have to ask questions that have a yes or no answer. It has already been established that the answer is the title of a book. Would the wood be part of the book itself? If you mean "is the book made of wood?", the answer is I expect so, as most books are. If you mean "is it a book about wood" then the answer is I don't know, as I have never read it.
Is it more commonly a phrase or saying, that just happens to be the title of a book?
Is it a work of fiction?
Is it a book of spot facts?
....or even sport facts?
[Toby] Yes. Pursue this line.
[Chalky] The book that happens to bear the phrase as its title is not a work of fiction. According to my research, it is a series of lectures by the co-authors.
[Inksport] No, no.
Was the book first published before 1980?
Would the authors be well-known celebrities?
This is wide open - well-known phrases/sayings are invariably used for book titles, particularly non-fiction and biographies.
[Inkspot] I don't think so, but I can't tell from Amazon when the book was first published. I think it was in the early 1990's.
[Chalky] They may be well known in their field, but are not celebrities in the general sense.
Are they scientists?
[Raak] Yes, I think so.
Was the subject of the book the worlds environment?
Was the subject matter to do with the joy, or otherwise, of sex?
The green, green grass of home?
[Inkspot] No.
[Chalky] No.
[Raak] No.
Is it an anthropomorphisation?
It doesn't sound like it's a book we'll ever have heard of, certainly not all of us.
Is it about DIY in space?
If its not who you know, but what you know, all I know so far is its a factual book about lectures by people that may be scientists, and the title is a commonly used phrase. Perhaps Raak is holding back 'cause I haven't the foggiest; time to bow out.
Is the book by Jack Cohen and Ian Stewart?
I haven't the foggiest either.
Newton's Apple?
[Toby] No.
[Inkspot] No. Please persist.
[Raak] No and no.
[All] I've been trying to think of a clue that won't give the game away, but it's hard. Inkspot is closest so far. Think of something that is abstract and vegetable and has something to do with what you know.
is it one of those interminably dull books about parenting?
The tree of knowledge in the garden of Eden?
Actually, there are 3 books at Amazon, first listed is The Tree of Knowledge: Biological Roots of Human Understanding, which seems to match the one so far described - essays by scientists that no one's ever heard of. (I'll leave it to you if that's the book, the scientists, or both.)
Would this book (apart from the phrase/saying which constitutes its title) be known to the man-in-the-street? That is, as opposed to those interested in the particular field involved.
The Observer Book of Trees?
Do I remember Kim saying something about this one going quickly?
Whew!
[Chalky] No. What's that got to do with Abstract and Vegeta....oh, I see.
[Toby] YES! The answer I was looking for was the Tree of Knowledge. Congratulations (and the Chair) to Toby after a rather tortuous struggle.
[Dujon] Probably not. It's certainly of no interest to me.
[Bigsmith] I did, didn't I? That's called "tempting fate".
back patting
That was a good 'un, Kim, and well deduced, Tobes. We [in UK] will wait until you wake - time difference GMT -8 on the Pacific coast??
Thanks Chalky, and also Kim. Oddly enough, it looks like something I'll be interested in reading. And yes, that's the time difference, so you've got my attention from more or less 4pm through 2 in the morning. Let's try ANIMAL .
Is it human?
This game's equivalent of e4.
[Kim] Yup.
Alive now?
1. ... e4.
Male (oblig.)?
[Raak] No. [Dazed5] No.
A monarch?
[Raak] No.
English?
[plump] No.
Actress?
Brevity round, then?
Did it die after 1960?
[Brendan] No.
[Inkspot] No.
Is she American?
[Inkspot] Also not.
Was she born in Europe?
G'evening Toby, just a couple more before cocoa and bed.
[Inkspot] Yes,she was.
Was she born after 1800?
Drink is ready, last one then, see you roundabout tea time tommorrow
[Inkspot] Nope. Sleep well.
Does this mean I have to pay attention to my work now?
Famous for discovering something?
[Toby} No.
[Tuj] Nope. phew.
Hypatia of Alexandria?
French?
[Raak]No.
[Chalky] Also no.
Was she around prior to AD years?
[Dujon] No.
Was this lady known for her literary endeavours?
[Duj] Possibly somewhat during her lifetime. Not particularly so today.
Would this person perhaps be the wife of a monarch?
Well, it appears that there are no others with questions at this time.
[Duj] Ooo, tricky. There is a sense in which the answer is yes, but for most intents and purposes, no. Good question.
Did she live between 500AD and 1500AD?
Was she a religious figure?
Would her maiden name have been Tascher?
Should I be right I shall leave it for the coup de grâs to be delivered by someone else. If I am wrong I shall retire anyway.
Not tonight......
[Dujon] Guess we'll have to wait until later to get the answer to that one...
Was she a Kings mistress?
Come now Dujon you can't slip away from the chair that easily.
[Bm] Yes.
[Raak] Yes!
[Dujon] No.
[Inkspot] No.
Hot potato!
Was she an Emperor's wife?
Hildegard of Bingen?
[Raak] Indeed, yes! Woo-hoo. We have a winner!
As for the "married to a monarch" - nuns are, I believe, considered to be married to God, who is considered to be the King of Heaven...

Is the time difference a huge problem? I've had the fun of chairing now, and am happy to yield in future if it works better that way. (But I'm still going to guess.)
understands all in a blinding flash of inspiration, but then has a migraine and has to lie down.....
The next object is MINERAL
Is it man made?
Re: previous. In retrospect that was somewhat presumptious of me - I was feeling confident. :-( ... *chuckles at self* ... Hildegard and Josephine, as people, couldn't be much further apart!
Is it stone?
Is it metal?
Ah yes, Hildegard of Bingen - interesting fact: she wrote the first known description of the female orgasm. Only thing I know about her, except that she suffered from migraines and invented an imaginary language.
[Dujon] No.
[Toby] No.
[Breadmaster] Um...no.
Is it solid?
[Brendan] No.
Is it a liquid?
[Inkspot] No, at least, not as customarily understood.
Is it a plasma?
[Brendan] Yes.
Would it still be in a plasma state when its temperature is 20deg C?
What I mean is blood plasma would still be but volcanic plasma would have changed state to solid at 20degC.
[Inkspot] No. But I do not think that word means what you think it means.
lightning?
Out of depth stab in the dark.
ball lightning?
The Aurora Borealis?
Is it more than 20% Helium?
(erm, by mass)
[plump] No.
[snorgle] No.
[Toby] No.
[Brendan] Yes!
I expect to see the answer by tomorrow morning...
Just after the Big Bang?
Raak]yes you are right, an electrically neutral, highly ionized gas composed of ions, electrons, and neutral particles was not the first thing sprung to mind. If only the word plasma had only one definition. Next time it will be a translucent to opaque chalcedony and I'll still off in the long grass and in the wrong garden...again ;)
the Sun?
Or a new thin-panel television screen...
[Inkspot] No.
[Toby] YES!
Gosh, that would make it me again.

Stumbling in from a night of debauchery where I never actually *spoke* to John Adams.... I kept wanting to say to the people who wouldn't leave me alone in the loo, "Yes, I'm going to a party with the conductor/composer..." And so I did. And there was lots of lovely red wine... Right. But of consequence: ABSTRACT
Can it be perceived by one or more of the senses?
[Kim] Yes.
Is it an event on the calender?
[Inkspot] no.
Can it be percieved by the sense of smell?
Is it a wave of some kind?
Is it an action?
Can it be seen?
[Inkspot] No.
[Brendan] Technically I suppose it is, but I'm not sure that's very helpful.
[Breadmaster] No.
[Raak] The thing itself, no. The creation of the thing, yes.
Software?
Is it a sound?
[Software] No. [Brendan] Sure.
Can it be felt?
not touch, but you can feel the sun and wind.
[Inkspot] Again, I'm not sure how helpful this is, but yes, some parts more than others may generate a kinaesthetic response.
Music?
[Dujon] Yes!
Is it a drum beat?
[Inkspot]Some of it.
Is this a particular piece of music?
[Dujon] Yes!
The 1812 Overture?
Wild guess and retiring.
[Dujon] It is not.
Was it written before 1950?
The national Anthem
That'll be "Hen Wlad fy Nhadau"
Is it pop music?
The Hen who laid Ralph Nader? (my welsh isn't that good) ;-)
Ravel's Bolero?
Was it written by (an) American(s)?
Would it generally be considered "classical" as opposed to "pop" or "folk"?
Interesting fact: there is no official British national anthem. "God save the Queen" has never been made such, either by royal proclamation or parliamentary vote.
[Brendan] Yes.
[Inkspot] No.
[snorgle] No.
[Raak] No.
[Kim] No.
[Breadmaster] Yes.
Was the composer Italian?
[Inkspot] Nope.
German?
Russian?
Was it written before 1850?
Was it written for full orchestra?
[Chalky] Yes!
[Kim] So no.
[Kim] Yes.
[Inkspot] Yes.
Something by Beethoven?
[Chalky] Yes!
1812 Overture?
Scratch that, it's by Tschaikovsky.
Wellington's Victory
His fifth symphony?
The fourth movement of his ninth symphony?
(aka Ode to Joy) (aaka the EU anthem [where's JLE when you want to raise his blood pressure? ;) ])
[Raak] Scratched.
[Inkspot] No.
[Breadmaster] No.
[Brendan] Well, I'm tempted to say "No" and make you all discover that I intended the whole thing; but I think that's close enough. Chair to you, sir!
Ooh, wow, my first time! Thank you for being so flexible, Toby. Let's have an ANIMAL/ABSTRACT.
Mythical?
Is it a person?
An expression?
An anthropomorphism?
[Raak] No, not "mythical" exactly ...
[Inkspot] Yes.
[Software] No.
[Kim] No.
Are they fictional?
Is it a charater from a play?
If not "mythical", then "legendary"?
[Breadmaster] Certainly not! I'm shocked you could even suggest such a thing.
[Inkspot] No.
[Kim] Again, no, by a strict definition of "legendary" as coming from a legend. But possibly "legendary" in a looser sense amongst people here.
Are they someone like Robin Hood, legend loosely based on 'fact'?
[Inkspot] No, I would have said "Yes" if it was Robin Hood.
Is there a connection with ISIHaC?
Man?
[Chalky] Yes.
[Kim] Yes.
Mrs Trellis?
Pretty legendary, I'd say. And certainly NOT fictional!
Mr Trellis
(just noticed the sex)
[snorgle] Nope!
An occasional panel member like Jeremy Hardy?
[Inkspot] No. (Don't forget the abstract/quasi-legendary side of things; snorgle's on the right lines, but not quite there.)
Sven!
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