I knew it. I just knew it. Or at least I thought I did. Mrs. Coolick wrote the word on the blackboard — back in the ’50s the boards really were black, you know — and all my second-grade classmates were stumped. It was just a single syllable, but it was a strange one: “choir.”
I frantically waved my hand, but time after time Mrs. Coolick chose others. Who could blame her? When it came to spelling, I confess that I was something of a show-off.

Finally, when everyone else failed to solve the riddle of the oddly spelled word, Mrs. Coolick called on me. Triumphantly, I shouted: “chore!” Years later, when I learned to spell “crestfallen,” I already understood its definition.

My colleagues sympathize when I tell the story. All of them are spelling nerds, too. Every writer is. So it is no wonder that it was like having a visit from a rock star — no, better than that — when Anamika Veeramani, 2010 National Spelling Bee champion, recently dropped by our offices at Ohio Magazine.

Work stopped and everyone wanted to meet her. The 14-year-old North Royalton resident had beaten all comers by correctly spelling “stromuhr.” What does “stromuhr” mean? Look it up. Or see page 7 for intern Kim Brown’s Digest item, “The Best She Can Bee.” (Yes, we’re pun nerds in this business, too.)

Kim, a graduate of Kent State University this year, also interviewed Anamika for our website, OhioMagazine.com. You can find the interview in the “Web Extras” section.

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Associate Editor Jessica Esemplare claims the girls beat the boys at an undeclared fishing contest this past month. A boat with Gov. Ted Strickland and another with First Lady Frances Strickland were among 15 vessels that left Port Clinton as part of the Governor’s Fish Ohio Day 2010 on July 12.

Jessica, who never had fished before, managed to catch four of the 21 walleye caught from the First Lady's boat. (Don’t ask her about the two that got away. Don’t ask, because she will indeed tell you.) You can read about Jessica’s Lake Erie fishing exploits in her “Wish You Were Here” blog on OhioMagazine.com.

The event called attention to the importance of protecting Lake Erie which, noted Ohio Department of Natural Resources Director Sean Logan, produces more fish than all the other Great Lakes combined.