Hardin County, Kentucky:

I'm not sure if I've discussed 'University Challenge' or not on here, but as it is a Monday night tradition, I shall take the time to go over it for the first time or once more. 'Univeristy Challenge' is a quiz show in which teams from various British universities compete against each other answering very difficult questions. I guess it's a thinking/learned man's game show or something like that. Anyway, there are four contestants on each team (two teams) and the host, one Jeremy Paxman, is probably the most cruel and pretentious man to have ever walked the face of the earth (or at least the world of game shows). He has an obvious bias towards Oxbridge colleges over other universities and has no patience for a team that does not know the answer to a question he finds easy. His demeanor and tone are so frightening that I believe some forget themselves in his presence. I've seen contestants sink from a level of high confidence to nothingness, as evidenced by a shrinking in posture and a reduction in the volume of their voice. That being said, as a home viewer (believe me, I would never subject myself to that torture in person) it is very rewarding when you know the answer to a question. So much so that my mates and I find ourselves screaming at the television in hopes that we can be heard; mostly, I might add, for the benefit of the failing contestants. It is a rare occurrence indeed when I know the answer to one of these questions (Jeopardy it is not). They are specific and read at a rate of rapidity which prohibits me from hearing the entire question sometimes (or at least befuddles my brain into a loss of confidence about what I think I heard). But last night, for a brief moment, I felt the empowerment that comes from knowing the answer to a 'University Challenge' question. Two, in fact. For Mr. Paxman asked what battle raged in Hardin County, TN in April 1862, and I wavered, but decided on the Battle of Shiloh. I was not confident, but I was correct. And when Paxman asked what American president was born in Hardin County, KY, I did not even wait for him to add in the date of birth when I found myself screaming 'Abraham Lincoln' at the telly, hoping one of the ignorant members of the Worcester College, Oxford team would hear my determined call. They did not, for either question actually, and Paxman scoffed his usual scoff, and the contestants from both colleges shrunk further in their chairs. I, however, sat taller; confident that for once, I knew an answer to a question on 'University Challenge'.

Love,
Elizabeth