Introduction

A long, long time ago... At an aue boink that's now forgotten... A rambling, loosely-threaded conversation about how a former wife of Mick Jagger had the same name as a character in The Taming of the Shrew provided a very obscure link between an insectivorous mammal and a tunnel on the M25 (i.e., Dartford). And from this discussion, the Totally Official aue Summer Doldrums was born. It was originally conceived as a one-off event, but somehow it limped on into the next millennium. From these humble origins, this competition now boasts a tradition spanning over one-fiftieth of century! We know there's other competitions on the Usenet, and we know there's news groups that solve puzzles. We are the only one that's Totally Official. The competition aims to be "Englishy Languagy" in nature, it should be enjoyed by, and readily accessible by, the aue readership. Its questions and puzzles should reflect a highly condensed microcosm of aue content: words, grammar, etymology, trivia, food, drink, recipes, and sheep. The competition aims to be Omnipondial. This involves a proportional representation for Left, Right, and Underpondia. We are delighted with questions that require the collaboration of two or more ponds! And we love thread drift. And finally, the competition is meant to be fun. It takes place during a periodic lull in our news group traffic. The kids are off to camp, the academe is at rest, in fact, interregna abound everywhere... It's the Summer Doldrums! Thanks to everyone in aue who participated, and thanks to everyone else for their patience and tolerance during this event!

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