3rd Annual Horowitz Friedman Family Quiz (2011 edition)

Once again, it’s time to have a few chuckles and test your knowledge of our family’s escapades this year.

 

(1)   In May, Alana [our daughter, born in 1987] quit her job as a dramatic rights agent to take a job as

(a)    an animal trainer

(b)   a personal trainer

(c)    a software trainer

(d)   a train conductor

 

(2)   Our new cat’s name is

(a)    Rufus

(b)   Rubeus

(c)    Rupert

(d)   Rudolph

 

(3)   Which three places beginning with the letter “I” were visited by one or more members of the Horowitz-Friedman family this year?

(a)    Italy, Ireland, Ithaca

(b)   Ireland, Istanbul, Iceland

(c)    India, Indiana, Indonesia

(d)   Ixtapa, Iowa, Idaho

 

(4)   Which instrument is Rafael [son, born 1992] currently studying at New England Conservatory?

(a)    Violin

(b)   Oboe

(c)    Conga Drums

(d)   Tuba

 

(5)   On which popular NPR show will Rafael appear in early 2012?

(a)    Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me

(b)   Prairie Home Companion

(c)    Car Talk

(d)   From the Top

 

(6)   Which of these shows does Raf dislike the most?

(a)Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me

(b)Prairie Home Companion

(c)Car Talk

(d)From the Top

 

 

(7)   Which of the following weather events did not happen to us?

(a)    Hurricane Irene wiped out our garden, and nearly took our road along with it.

(b)   A freak October snowstorm cancelled Halloween and knocked out our power for 55 hours.

(c)    A tornado whipped through many of our neighboring communities just a few miles south of us.

(d)   An avalanche on Mt. Holyoke closed three of our favorite hiking trails.

 

 

(8)   Which technological innovation did we recently adapt to bring us part way to the 21st century?

(a)    Bought a microwave

(b)   Got a car with automatic transmission

(c)    Hooked the cable into the TV

(d)   Acquired a smart phone

 

(9)   Which of the following did not happen to Shel?

(a) Was asked to speak in a foreign country about customer service to call center operators

(b) Won two significant environmental awards

(c) Got a contract to do a book on grassroots activism and presidential elections

(d) Was interviewed by the BBC

 

(10) Match each of us (Dina, Shel, Alana, Rafael) to our personal “four food groups” (or vices)

(a) Dark chocolate, hot pepper, gourmet cheese, nuts

(b) Olive oil, salt, cookies, pasta

(c) Spelt flour, almond milk, whiskey, lentils

(d) Bread, butter, greens, tea

(11) Members of the Horowitz Friedman family went kayaking in all of the following places except:

(a) The Hudson River

(b) The Adriatic Sea

(c) The Connecticut River

(d) Cape Cod Bay

 

(12) Which of the following upsetting actions did Alana commit?

(a) She moved to New Jersey

(b) She joined the Republican Party

(c) She started a strict raw food diet

(d) She adopted seven cats

 

(13) Dina’s writing projects for 2011 included all of the following except?

(a) Collaborating with Yoshi, her father-in-law, on a translation of a suspense thriller from Japanese to English

(b) Writing a script for murder mystery dinner theatre as a fundraiser for arts in the schools

(c) Compiling a third collection of 30 Poems in 30 Days

(d) Completing a YA mystery novel about witchcraft in New England

 

(14) What was Shel’s birthday request this year?

(a) A hot air balloon ride

(b) A tour of a state of the art wind power plant

(c) To be blindfolded and taken to a restaurant he’d never been to before

(d) A puppy

 

(15) Our new cat (whose name is not Ronald) has the following endearing habit

(a) He yawns operatically

(b)He leaps to catch small pieces of wrapping paper

(c)He plays a mean game of chess

(d)He likes to bury his wet nose in your face and purr as you carry him around

 

(16) At the beginning of 2011, Shel resolved to double his

(a) alcohol intake

(b) exercise

(c)testosterone level

(d) all of the above

 

(17) Which of the following family songs (which we still sing) was not written by Alana?

(a)Western California

(b) Say Yes to Tortellini, Say No to Columbus

(c)Alligators in the Swamp—Chomp, Chomp

(d) The Merry, Merry Month of March

 

(18) Who wrote the song that Alana didn’t write?

(a) Dina

(b) Shel

(c)Raf

(d) Lefty

 

(19) In learning more about our family geneaologies, we have discovered that we are related to all of the following people except:

(a) Vladimir Horowitz

(b) Ponce DeLeon

(c)The “Shlah,” a rabbinical scholar close to Maimonides

(d) The Chief Rabbi of Timisoara, Romania

 

(20) For 2012, our wish for us and for all of you is for

(a) peace

(b) flowers

(c) freedom

(d) happiness

 

ANSWERS: 1-c; 2-a; 3-b; 4-b; 5-d; 6-d; 7-d; 8-c; 9-c; 10 a(Shel) b(Raf) c(Alana) d(Dina); 11-d; 12-a; 13-b; 14-c; 15-d; 16-b 17-c; 18-a; 19-a; 20-a, b, c, &d

 

NOTE: 2011 was a sad year for us. Shel’s mom, Gloria Yoshida, passed away on August 21 and we continue to miss her effusive and constant presence in our lives. Earlier in the year, we also lost two of our long time animal companions. Lefty our canine best friend died on March 21, and Mopsy, our longest living feline friend and ruler of the house, died two weeks later on April 4.

Here is our family picture for 2011. Blessings and peace to all of you in the new year!

Shel, Dina, Alana and Rafael

From left: Shel, Rafael, Alana, Dina (Central Park,11/11)
From left: Shel, Rafael, Alana, Dina (Central Park,11/11)