Stumped? Remember that words have many facets. They have shapes, sounds, grammar, meanings, histories, contexts, and ingredients. Here are fifteen hints of where to probe for a breakthrough:

1. Look for words or expressions with more than one meaning.
2. Count letters, syllables, and so on.
3. Consider pronunciation and sounds.
4. Check alphabetical order.
5. Play with letters: reverse them, add new ones, delete some.
6. Look for words within words.
7. Spot common or unusual letter combinations.
8. Consider key words and phrases.
9. Review parts of speech.
10. Notice uncommon sentence structure and grammar.
11. Beware of simplicity disguised as complexity.
12. Don't forget common names, brand names, abbreviations, and colloquilisms.
13. Review your knowledge of popular culture, sports, and hobbies.
14. Consider your practical, academic, and artistic knowledge.
15. Finally, remember that puzzle-makers enjoy sharing imaginative uses of words and phrases.

- A lot of times a fresh perspective sees right through the tangled web you've woven for yourself.
- There are many places to talk to people on the net about puzzles. I was surprised to learn after I designed this quest that it really was a thing. Using the lingo of the net they are called Treasure Hunts. I've posted the site for discussion at the following sites:

The American Treasure Hunt Society forum page

The Inner Circle: Pesky Puzzles

- ask Arlet Ottens

I got at least two puzzles for the quest directly from the net (with their answers of course). Try searching key phrases from a riddle in a Google search below.

Search WWW Search ca.oocities.com

- You have an advantage.
- The book of lists must be entered as the next in the sequence in the order on the page. Remember: always small case, 10 not ten, no decimal point (instead of 3.16 enter 316)
- The answer to the codes is always the last name of the quoted.
- the answer to the 'how we got here' and 'lies' riddle page is two words to be entered as one piece of the key in the order given
- EVERYTHING means something. This wasn't just thrown together by old Rzeznik, no... he's hidden clues everywhere, pay ATTENTION.

These weren't supposed to be easy. They are comprised of just about every way of listing things I could think of ordering. Think about the letters: how they're shaped, how they sound, what they could stand for, different ways of representing them, patterns between the letters, patterns of the letters, etc. Print them out and carry them around. Something soemone says, in the newspaper, etc. may jar your memory.

When given a choice of satisfying your curiosity with a possibly devasting consequence, to choose is a bad choice. And, at any rate, just a joke and nothing to be concerned about.