How to Make Decisions
Issue 61

We welcome your letters, questions and desperate pleas for help in this uncaring world. As always, e-mail WBXylo at Gmail.com. Don’t fret about e-mailing me with puzzle problems; I won’t yell at you.

Around and Inside the Pulse

Popcorn Junkies teaches how to be a Badass. Pay more attention to John Shaft than Jack Sparrow, and you should be okay.

Eric teaches us how to buy condoms. If you shop at seedier grocery stores, condom 3 packs are sold as impulse items next to The Enquirer.

How to Visit Chicago Attractions for Free (or close to it)

If you’re not careful, a fun family outing in Chicago can cost you a fortune. With attractions added a single ticket can cost around $30 per person, plus parking, plus food, plus souvenirs, and before you know it you’ve dropped 200 dollars on quality time.

But you can visit most anywhere without spending more than $1.

If you are a Chicago resident, the easiest way to do this thing is to check out a library pass. Chicago Public Libraries have various passes to various Chicago institutions. You merely have to ask for one at the front desk. Libraries usually have only one pass per attraction, but the pass is good for an entire family’s admission, and you can keep it for 7 days.

For non residents and those ducking Public Libraries for late fees: Most museums in Chicago have free days. One can look at their respective websites to see when their free days are.

For instance, the website for the Museum of Science and Industry is here. See anything about free days? These dates can usually be found under the pricing section. In this instance we can see that this museum will be free from June third through the eighth.

The special attractions are still extra money. If you’re not careful, it will still cost you $12 dollars to park. Generally speaking, if you arrive close to opening hours, street parking can be found on Lake Park. This will save you around $11.50, if you find only metered spots.

A similar parking situation exists on the shared museum campus of The Field Museum, the Adler Planet-arium, and the Shedd Aquarium. At 9 a.m. on a weekday, there are dozens of meter spots which are actually closer that the 15 dollar parking lot.

If no pass is available, and no interesting free days are approaching, there is still an alternative for you tightwads out there. The Lincoln Park Zoo is always free. It has a $14 parking lot on one side, but a long stretch of unmetered parking spaces on the other. Few of these spots will be empty, but the road is big enough that eventually a space should become available.

Finally, don’t visit the museum over a meal time, or you will be treated to McDonald’s with super-sized prices. Pack some fruit snacks for the kiddies, and call it a day.

Word of the Week

Dringle: a person who likes to waste time.
(Source- There’s a Word for it by Charles Harrington Elster)

This Week’s Puzzle (Difficulty: Easy as A, B, C?)

A square with an area of 3 inches shares one of it’s sides with an equilateral triangle. What is their combined area?

Last Week’s Puzzle (Difficulty: Easy as A, B, C?)
Esmeralda is standing in a nearly empty field. A tree is directly West of her, 108 paces away. She walks North, 45 paces.

Now how far is Esmeralda from the tree?

Jim U. is my new hero; he made a diagram.

E1=Esmeralda’s starting position

E2= Esmeralda’s final position
Tree=Tree’s position
Since this is a right triangle, a2+b2=c2 . Where a = initial distance between Esmeralda and the tree, b = distance Esmeralda walked and c = final distance between Esmeralda and the tree.
a2+b2=c2
1082+452=c2
11664+2025=c2
13689=c2
c=117
Esmeralda is 117 paces away.

Last 5 posts by ML Kennedy

• How to Make Decisions (72) - June 19th, 2007
• How to Make Decisions (71) - June 12th, 2007
• How To Make Decisions (70) - June 5th, 2007
• How to Make Decisions (69) - May 29th, 2007
• How to Make Decisions (68) - May 21st, 2007