National Spelling Bee

Well, Rowena was in the national spelling bee yesterday, but unfortunately she did not get a place. I have to say that listening to kids spell words was a whole lot less interesting once R was eliminated - lost the edge somehow. (It'll never be a great spectator sport!)

The girl who did win had flown in from Christchurch, and was over 1/2 an hour late for the competition. Apparently there was fog at the airport in Christchurch which delayed the flight. I thought she must be in a terrible flap, wondering whether she would make it at all, but she made a superb recovery. Among her prizes (a trip to Washington!) was a 5 or 6 inch think dictionary - the official dictionary of the American contest. That's one consolation of not winning - you'd feel almost obligated to study the thing before the final!

I think I read in the paper that she has not been out of the country before, so that is some kind of justice anyway. (This was R's prime motivation for the nationals. Fair enough too.)

By the way, it turns out that the woman who has organised the whole effort for the past several years (since its NZ inception) is a friend of mine from another local playcentre. I didn't catch up with her on the day, but I must find out what gave her such an interest in spelling bees.