A Puzzle by Icarus
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My friend, Pidol is obsessed at getting rich - and getting rich quick. That explains his penchant with sweepstakes, lotto, jueteng, even raffles or anything that offers big prizes for a minimal bet. Chances and probabilities doesn’t mean anything to him thus, he just shrugs off his shoulders everytime I tell him that he has more chances at catching a fish in the Sahara than getting the lotto number right.
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“It’s fate and luck. If the gods will it, it would happen. Someday the gods will show me a sign.” he maintains.
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And so, day by day, he waited and betted; and all the time looking for his long-awaited sign from heaven. He has numerical interpretations for everything, every incident, every move. The problem is, he is only able to decipher the clues and make the numbers fit his observations after the winning numbers are out. “Kam-mali manen diay kalag kon. Kusto kuma no datay pangkis nga nakalabos iti tinayaak. Datay to met anunsiyo iti asilok nga baket ti natayaak.”, he would lament.
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But one Saturday morning, he was at my door very early. He seems very excited and out of breath like he ran the half a kilometer distance between his house and mine. “You seem upbeat today, Pidol. Did you come to give me my balato?” I jestingly asked. “No, not yet bossing.” said Pidol in between his pantings. “But if you will help me, I will surely win the jackpot at noon today.” I laughed and invited him in for coffee.
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“How could I help you? If I knew how to win it, we would probably be sipping brewed Starbucks now instead of this instant Blend-45.” I told him. “But I’m telling you, Bossing, this one is segurado. If I have to borrow money, I will, just to grab this opportunity!”
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Sensing I am about to be a scam victim, I told him matter-of-factly: “Not now, Pidol. I am drained. And your inaanak and my older daughter need big amounts for their midterm school fees.”
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“You and your dirty mind”, he said. “I don’t need another loan from you. You could help me with my las night's dream. You see, before I went to sleep last night, I prayed for a dream to give me the winning number combination for today’s jueteng. And yes, it was granted - only that the numbers were encrypted.”
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“Encrypted? How was that?” I asked, suppressing laughter and incredulity.
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Pidol continued: “You see I dreamt of aliens who looked like humans except that they have knees that bend backwards like those of chickens and they have four fingers instead of five in each hand. In my dream they were quite friendly and they lend me some kind of a headwear so that I could speak and listen in their own language and read their alphabet, as well.”
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“How wonderful and exciting...”, I yawned.
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“The interesting part is I was able to ask them the winning numbers for today!” Pidol continued.
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“And they gave you …?”. I was almost mad.
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“Yes, but only if I could figure it out. And that’s why, I come running to you.”
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I stood up, preparing to show him the door.
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“Wait, bossing. wait! He pleaded. “Can you at least give it a try? The aliens told me that If I could at least do a little arithmetic, I would have the winning numbers. They say the winning numbers are: The sum of 16 and 3; and the difference between 72 and 54.”
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“And you need a calculator for that?” I raised my voice.
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“But bossing, in their strange world,
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“It’s fate and luck. If the gods will it, it would happen. Someday the gods will show me a sign.” he maintains.
.
And so, day by day, he waited and betted; and all the time looking for his long-awaited sign from heaven. He has numerical interpretations for everything, every incident, every move. The problem is, he is only able to decipher the clues and make the numbers fit his observations after the winning numbers are out. “Kam-mali manen diay kalag kon. Kusto kuma no datay pangkis nga nakalabos iti tinayaak. Datay to met anunsiyo iti asilok nga baket ti natayaak.”, he would lament.
.
But one Saturday morning, he was at my door very early. He seems very excited and out of breath like he ran the half a kilometer distance between his house and mine. “You seem upbeat today, Pidol. Did you come to give me my balato?” I jestingly asked. “No, not yet bossing.” said Pidol in between his pantings. “But if you will help me, I will surely win the jackpot at noon today.” I laughed and invited him in for coffee.
.
“How could I help you? If I knew how to win it, we would probably be sipping brewed Starbucks now instead of this instant Blend-45.” I told him. “But I’m telling you, Bossing, this one is segurado. If I have to borrow money, I will, just to grab this opportunity!”
.
Sensing I am about to be a scam victim, I told him matter-of-factly: “Not now, Pidol. I am drained. And your inaanak and my older daughter need big amounts for their midterm school fees.”
.
“You and your dirty mind”, he said. “I don’t need another loan from you. You could help me with my las night's dream. You see, before I went to sleep last night, I prayed for a dream to give me the winning number combination for today’s jueteng. And yes, it was granted - only that the numbers were encrypted.”
.
“Encrypted? How was that?” I asked, suppressing laughter and incredulity.
.
Pidol continued: “You see I dreamt of aliens who looked like humans except that they have knees that bend backwards like those of chickens and they have four fingers instead of five in each hand. In my dream they were quite friendly and they lend me some kind of a headwear so that I could speak and listen in their own language and read their alphabet, as well.”
.
“How wonderful and exciting...”, I yawned.
.
“The interesting part is I was able to ask them the winning numbers for today!” Pidol continued.
.
“And they gave you …?”. I was almost mad.
.
“Yes, but only if I could figure it out. And that’s why, I come running to you.”
.
I stood up, preparing to show him the door.
.
“Wait, bossing. wait! He pleaded. “Can you at least give it a try? The aliens told me that If I could at least do a little arithmetic, I would have the winning numbers. They say the winning numbers are: The sum of 16 and 3; and the difference between 72 and 54.”
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“And you need a calculator for that?” I raised my voice.
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“But bossing, in their strange world,
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765 + 45 = 1,032;
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and
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2 x 63 = 146 !”
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I was completely thrown off.
Can you help my friend come up with his winning combination?
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and
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2 x 63 = 146 !”
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I was completely thrown off.
Can you help my friend come up with his winning combination?
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Send in your solution together with the explanations. I promised to publish the first one that gives the correct answer and logical deducement. And 10% of the winnings my friend is gonna get, right Pidol? Good Luck, Louisians.
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-ise
anya anunsiyo iti 16-21? hehe
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