The Whiz Kids are it Again in Washington

A record 288 young bucks or brains rather are at it again in Washington, D.C., competing in one of our most cherished American traditions: the Scripps National Spelling Bee. (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080529/ap_on_re_us/spelling_bee_5)

Looking at the likes of words such as “ambuscade”, “Manhattanese”, “pinyin”, “eidetic” makes me wonder if I still have it in me. I'd like to think the answer is yes, but, man, do these kids today blow my socks off…

For those of us nerds - yes, I am lumping myself in that camp - an all expenses paid trip to Washington, D.C., including air travel and 5 days at a luxury hotel with a parent or guardian was the ultimate reward and satisfaction for enduring other kids’ wise cracks, teachers making a spectacle of you in and out of class, endless nights of falling asleep to tapes of yourself spelling out words, and evening after evening at the kitchen table with the monster of all monsters: Webster's Third New International.

It is hard to believe now in my early 30s, but competing in the National Spelling Bee was a monumental event – a turning point – at the age of 11. For the first time in my life, I realized that if I worked really, really hard, I achieved pretty darn good results and could actually go places. No offense to Binghamton or Chenango Forks Middle School, but the Scripps National Spelling Bee truly opened a door to the wider world not just of unchartered cities and geography, but of opportunity. I was simply so excited to experience life beyond the Southern Tier of New York.

So, what did donning my lucky pair of golden shoes (yes, I actually wore a pair of gold-tinged loafers through every competition) and living and breathing and SPELLING “radzimir”, “filiopietistic”, “ichthyology”, and “zymurology” to name just a few get me… my first ever airplane ride, a special dinner with Mom at Trader Vic’s, champagne brunch (also with Mom), fried bananas, bbq and a Fife and Drum Corp welcoming at George Mason’s estate, Italian with the WHOLE family at Filomena’s in Georgetown, Stephanie making pasta with the Italian ladies in Filomena's window … and the list could go on and on. Of course, eventually, there came “galvanneal” and “debabelization” and ultimately the fatal bell that led me to the "consolation room" where I was greeted by the warm and welcoming embrace of my grandfather and the rest of my Fetzko and Wyszkowski family.

What a ride it was and it is…

Thanks, God.