The Bathtub: Emily's Trivia Quiz: Well She Lit up the Sky on that Fourth of July

I love obscure holidays just as much as the next girl. In fact, when I was a counselor at camp we had a "Holiday Parade" (each cabin had to dress up like a holiday), I told my cabin they could choose between either Arbor Day or Groundhog Day. This resulted in eight 15-year-old-girls dressed up as trees. Still, it was a hit because we made a sign that said "Have You Hugged a Tree Today?" and my girls got hugs from alllll the hott boyz. Still, my favorite holiday is not so obscure: Independence Day. At camp every year I let my girls decorate my car with paint and streamers and they'd sit in the trunk and out the windows and it was always fun (mostly because it was the only chance we had to feel air conditioning). Then we would sit in the soccer field and watch beautiful fireworks. I love fireworks and America (and camp) so this week's quiz will be on fireworks. And America. And camp too.

First, fireworks:

1. When did cherry bombs become illegal in the United States?
a. 2006
b. 1996
c. 1966
d. 1906

c. 1966

2. If you want to make a blue firework, what elements do you use?
a. Calcium carbonate
b. Aluminum sulfate
c. Iron sulfate
d. Copper carbonate

d. Copper carbonate. You know how people always video tape fireworks shows? Those have got to be the most boring videos ever.

3. On July 4, 1986, there was a huge fireworks display in New York City's harbor with 40,000 shells. What were we celebrating?
a. America's Independence, duh.
b. NYC's anniversary of not being named New Amsterdam anymore
c. The Statue of Liberty's 100th Anniversary
d. The Brooklyn Bridge's 100th Anniversary

c. The Statue of Liberty's 100th Anniversary

Now, America:

4. Betsy Ross sewed the flag, but no one really knows who designed it. Francis Hokinson, a Congressman from New Jersey, billed the U.S. for designing it, but was never paid. How did he want to be paid?
a. In wine
b. In British pounds
c. In Canadian dollars
d. In chicken

a. "In a letter to the Board of Admiralty in 1780 Hopkinson asserted that he had designed "the flag of the United States of America" as well as several ornaments, devices, and checks appearing on bills of exchange, ship papers, the seals of the boards of Admiralty and Treasury, and the Great Seal of the United States. Hopkinson had received nothing for this work, and now he submitted a bill and asked 'whether a Quarter Cask of the public wine' would not be a reasonable and proper reward for his labors." (http://www.usflag.org/history/francishopkinson.html)

5. What words were added to the Pledge of Allegiance in 1954?
a. "Under God"
b. "And Justice"
c. "The Flag"
d. "For Which it Stands"

a. "Under God" was not in the Pledge of Allegiance until June 14, 1954. (The pledge was first published September 8, 1892). Yeah.

6. Why is the American flag folded into a triangle?
a. It's the same shape as the tricorn hats the Revolutionary War Soldiers wore
b. It's easy to fold that way
c. It's the same as the pyramid on the dollar bill
d. No one knows

a. Tricorn hats!

And CAMP! Note: I taught a class called "Team Sports" every day for at least four summers. I also spent every summer, from 1987-2003 at camp. I am still going through withdrawal. I also wrote my college essay on dodgeball. I'm a little serious about this.

7. What game, akin to dodgeball requires taking four steps and then throwing a ball?
a. C.A.M.P.
b. Pin Doctor Dodge
c. S.P.U.D.
d. Steal the Bacon

I might be in that picture.

c. S.P.U.D., which is a fantastic game. Here are the rules. Let's play!

8. When playing Capture the Flag, how can you get out of jail?
a. Someone on your team tags you while you're in jail
b. You make a chain of everyone in jail and attempt to stretch to the other side
c. You escape (just run for it)
d. You get the flag

a. and b. are both acceptable. Do NOT do c. I will tackle you down because that is cheating. Also, when you get out of jail, you have free walk-backs to your side. You cannot try for the flag without going back to your side first. That is also cheating. And I do not tolerate cheating.

Explaining the picture: On July 4th, when I was studying abroad in Prague, I organized patriotic events for the whole day: first we went to the American Embassy and said the Pledge (that photo). Then we went to McDonald's. Then we played Capture the Flag for HOURS. (Don't worry, there were more than three of us.) It was an amazing day.

9. Which of the following is a legitimate type of dodgeball?
a. Pin Doctor Dodge
b. Army Dodge
c. Scatter Dodge
d. Greek Dodge

ALL OF THE ABOVE

If you wish, I will explain how to play all of these dodgeballs in extreme detail. I will then play with you, because I haven't played dodgeball in a really long time and I miss it.

Finally, no matter how you feel about the war, we have American soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan (not to mention lots of other places around the world) and they need our support. As a book lover, I can't imagine being homesick in a foreign country with nothing to read. That's why this organization, Books for Soldiers, rocks.

Emily's Trivia Quiz runs Fridays at 9:00 a.m. Emily loves fireworks, America, and camp, but not necessarily in that order. This is why she is defined as a summer girl and is not so thrilled with the winter. Even though America is great all year round.

4 Comments

Wow--when you get patriotic, you get really patriotic.

Posted by: Lauren | November 30, 2007 at 11:12 AM

My favorite move in CTF was to walk slowly towards the jail with my hands on my head, pretending to have already been tagged... You can do it if you commit. Walk slow, don't make eye contact with the enemy, and have a defeated look on your face that screams "Oh damn, I just got tagged." Then you free everybody and grab the flag and use the "free walk backs" as human shields, and then everybody yells at you and tries to say you were tagged, but you tell them you were just pretending to be tagged, and then they yell more and eventually quit.

I love that game.

Posted by: D.C. | November 30, 2007 at 11:30 AM