June 23 - Riddles

Question: What goes up a chimney but can’t come down a chimney up? 

Answer: An umbrella.

 

I have a hard time explaining this riddle to our granddaughter. For starters, I don’t use an umbrella, and secondly, neither of our houses have those big wide fireplaces and chimneys that would accommodate an umbrella whether it was either up or down.

 

I think that my riddle and answer might be this.

Question? How many hands does a blind person need to hold an umbrella?

My answer? Two hands just aren’t enough.

 

Of course, this last question isn’t really a riddle, but it is a bit of a conundrum on a rainy day. When I am holding my white cane in my right hand, I find it difficult to hold anything else in my left. Walking and holding an umbrella up in one hand and a cane down in the other is just plain awkward. For that matter, I don’t bother with a purse or handbag either. I much prefer a small backpack. So, on rainy days, you will see me in my all purpose raincoat with its hood and no umbrella in sight.

 

Here is another riddle.

Question? What is black and white and red all over?

Answer: Well, in my day the answer would be a newspaper.

 

Again, this answer is beyond what my granddaughter would think. They don’t use newspapers in their house. Instead, the news comes on a screen – TV, ipad, cell phone, laptop, etc.

So, Lexi came up with her own answer.

“Nana, is it a red panda?” (Lexi had been to the zoo the day before and seen the pandas so I guess they were still on her mind.)

When I shook my head, she beamed a huge smile and said,

“Oh, I know, of course, it’s a sunburned zebra!”

 

So much for riddles and the modern generation!