Chairman of the Bored

Here's this week's NPR Sunday Puzzle:

Take the phrase "I am a monarch." Re-arrange the 11 letters to name a world leader who was not a monarch but who ruled with similar authority. Who is it?

The intended answer is CHAIRMAN MAO.

We didn't mean to hint anything with the cat pictures on Sunday--Ross is just such a great cat dad (and we have no children) that it seemed appropriate for Father's Day. But we did think about how little pictures of cats could help someone who hadn't solved it, no matter how close "meow" and "Mao" are in sound. There should be a word for "reverse hints" -- clues that only work if you already know the answer.

I bet there are cats named Chairman Meow (or Miaow in French):













Time for

Here are this week's picks:

Zero and fewer     1 - 50  51 - 100 101 - 150 151 - 200 201 - 250 251 - 300 301 - 350 351 - 400 401 - 450 451 - 500 501 - 550 551 - 600 601 - 650 -- Ross 651 - 700 -- Maggie Strasser 701 - 750 751 - 800 801 - 850 851 - 900 901 - 950 -- Joe Kupe 951 - 1,000

1,001 - 1,050 -- jan 1,051 - 1,100 -- Henry B.W. 1,101 - 1,150 -- Legolambda 1,151 - 1,200 1,201 - 1,250 -- David 1,251 - 1,300 1,301 - 1,350 1,351 - 1,400 -- Curtis 1,401 - 1,450 -- Magdalen 1,451 - 1,500 -- Jay 1,501 - 1,550 1,551 - 1,600 1,601 - 1,650 1,651 - 1,700 1,701 - 1,750 1,751 - 1,800 1,801 - 1,850 1,851 - 1,900 1,901 - 1,950 1,951 - 2,000

2,001 - 2,050 -- B Haven 2,051 - 2,100 2,101 - 2,150 2,151 - 2,200 2,201 - 2,250 2,251 - 2,300 2,301 - 2,350 -- Margaret G. 2,351 - 2,400 2,401 - 2,450 2,451 - 2,500 2,501 - 2,750 -- Word Woman 2,751 - 3,000 3,001 - 3,250 3,251 - 3,500 3,501 - 4,000 4,001 - 4,500 4,501 - 5,000  > 5,000  > 5,000 + new record

Our tie-break rule:   In the event that a single round number is announced with a qualifier such as "about" or "around" (e.g., "We received around 1,200 entries."), AND two separate people picked the ranges of numbers just before and just after that round number, the prize will be awarded to whichever entrant had not already won a prize, or in the event that both entrants had won a prize already or neither had, then to the earlier of the two entries on the famous judicial principle of "First Come First Serve," (or in technical legal jargon, "You Snooze, You Lose").  As of July 2012, this rule is officially no longer obsolete (and also I still just like having fine print).