The Wombat File Is Yours to Keep

Although the Wombat has absolutely nothing bad to say about the sacred festival of Sunreturn (indeed, as regular readers know, this site has long been a chronicle of our culture's liberal War on Sunreturn), we must admit that the holiday, and its attendant consequences of Family Activity, Gift-Purchasing Activity, and Preparing to Take Time Off Frenetic Work Activity, take a toll on the best-laid plans of quizmasters everywhere, your humble host included.

Given that we are heading into December 24 here on the North American fundament, and that as Gavin remarks in the comments to the previous post, some of us (shockingly) spend this time of year with limited access to the All-Distractor, it seems that my initial, in retrospect rather goofy, plan to forge ahead with a normal third-round deadline this week is less than wise.

And given that the third-round questions have taken a bit of an overhaul, on account of my realizing that one was way too easy and another just plan too confusing (even for me), some revision to the calendar is in order.

So: third-round questions will be posted by the end of the day on December 25; possibly sooner. Pre-clue answers will be due by 12:01 A.M. Tuesday, January 2 -- that is, essentially the end of the day on New Year's Day. I'll post clues on Tuesday, and final answers for Round Three will be due 12:01 AM Friday, January 5.

We'll carry on with the fourth round into the next week. Not that I'm trying to drag this out, but with many of us flung a bit far over this coming week, I imagine it'll make for a more robust competition in the second half.

In the meanwhile, consider your health drunk heartily in this fine season of bonfire, begging, blowout sales, bell-bashing, bowdlerized old pagan rituals, and big-ass displays of conspicuous consumption. So this is Christmas, and what have you done? Something pleasant, hopes the Wombat. He's happy to know you.