Last month, 156 Fake Adders correctly identified the Fake Ad on p. 34 of the June issue, and of those 156, several, but not all that many, got the name of the business absolutely right. If that sounds confusing, just wait until we get to the part about the winner–er–winners.
First, the Fake Ad. It was for a restaurant called “:-9”. It’s an emoticon usually translated as “licking one’s chops” or “yummy” or, simply, “yum,” but several entrants offered more creative interpretations:
“Is this emoticon a smirk?” asked Dan Jarrell. “If it is, then it’s the perfect companion for the Fake Ad.”
“Crooked smile?” asked Marty Pernick.
“The symbolism escapes me,” wrote Tom Jameson. “I was trying to get colonoscopy out of it but that didn’t seem to work.”
Now, while you, gentle reader, struggle to get the juxtaposition of “licking one’s chops” and “colonoscopy” out of your head, we’ll explain about the two winners. Our first winner, Joy Schroeder, was chosen when we started going through the entries, which is when we always choose the winner. Our second winner, Ypsilanti’s Diane Hollosy, was chosen when we finished going through the entries, which is also when we always choose the winner. Schroeder is taking her prize to the University Musical Society. Hollosy is taking hers to the Common Grill.
Call it an editorial error–or maybe the Observer’s stimulus package.
To enter this month’s contest, find the Fake Ad in the July Ann Arbor Observer and enter by noon on July 11 (instructions are on the Back Page).
