When I was working as a mentor at a kid's creative writing camp last month, we each had to prepare a mentor workshop every day. The cooler mentors did stuff like Snaps and "Harry Potter" Fan Club while I thought it would be neat to do a workshop on riddles. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that my idea was pretty lame. I only had ten riddles and they weren't terribly difficult (even though I don't think I got more than one right). So, I saved these semi-lame-but-still-fun riddles for you! Woo-hoo! I personally enjoy riddles, especially the complicated ones that drive you mad, like the pelican sandwich story. If you share my admiration for brain teasers, or even if you think they're dumb, keep reading and see how many you can get right!

1. I travel all over the world, but I am always in my corner. What am I?

2. What kind of coat is always wet when you put it on?

3. What word begins and ends with the letter E but only has one letter?

4. What five letter word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?

5. I have a head but not body, a heart but no blood, just leaves, and no branches, and I grow without wood. What am I?

6. What only gets wetter the more it dries?

7. What can run but never walk; has a mouth but never talks; has a head but never weeps; has a bed but never sleeps?

8. Four men were fishing in a boat on the lake. The boat turned over and all four men sank to the bottom of the lake. And yet, not one single man got wet. How can this be?

9. Paul's height is six feet; he's an assistant at a butcher shop and wears size nine shoes. What does Paul weigh?

10. A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose between three rooms. The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in three years. Which room should he choose?

Answers:

1. A stamp. (I thought I should start with a classic)

2. A coat of paint.

3. Envelope.

4. Short.

5. Lettuce.

6. A towel.

7. A river.

8. All the men were married. (This one felt a little cheap to me, but I appreciated the detail)

9. Meat.

10. The third room. It the lions hadn't eaten in three years, they'd be dead.

Thanks for humoring me. I hope you had some fun!