Name a word beginning with ‘W’ and ending with ‘M.’ You can’t use proper nouns, and the word must be at least five letters long.
Stumped? Most people were, too, at Get Lit!, a word-themed game night hosted by Keep St. Pete Lit. The organization chose the Amsterdam bar in St. Petersburg’s Edge District as the locale for the first such event, although board members said Keep St. Pete Lit intends to rotate through drinking establishments across St. Petersburg. Games included Bananagrams, Mad Libs and Taboo.
Maureen McDole, president of Keep St. Pete Lit, says the board decided to play on a common misinterpretation of the group’s name.
“We have gotten so many amusing comments about our name that we decided to use the multiple interpretations of ‘lit’ to our advantage,” she said. “We invited people to come and play word games and enjoy craft beer, so they can get lit, while getting lit, if they so choose.”
The Amsterdam, a dog-friendly, non-smoking bar at 10th Street and Central Avenue, donated door prizes. Keep St. Pete Lit did not charge for the event but did accept donations.
Keep St. Pete Lit’s goal is to make literary culture more approachable with events espousing a “literary twist,” McDole says. In the same vein, Keep St. Pete Lit has a book club, called “The First Rule About Book Club” that will alternate reading classics, pulp fiction, and nontraditional book club fodder. To learn more about the organization, go to KeepStPeteLit.org.
Oh, and the word? Wampum.
