My Bee often freezes at 1 word or a few words; rarely, I can stack up a long string before the freeze. VT Tech Support cannot replicate the freeze (warm cubicles, I guess); therefore, all of their suggestions (tweaking) have failed. The freeze is a nuisance, but I still enjoy the Bee, even though a true Spelling Bee would not have such a pesky limitation. Can you imagine: "You have to start over, speller, because of technical difficulties." :)

I was blessed, as a young child, to have two witty, well-read parents who delighted in fashioning plays on words in their long-running competition to create memorable "funnies." Recalling these clever gems at family gatherings was a favorite pastime for many years.

I realize now that my mother, an avid cruciverbalist, must have concealed many rather obscure words she knew during our spirited Scrabble games. Otherwise, no one would have wanted to play with her! Those were precious moments long ago that I miss today more than words can say.