[Julie Steiner]

Frank, that's wonderful! You might want to consider that "give me a ride" has somewhat different connotations in the U.K., though.

[John Whitworth]

To make me ride would solve that problem.

[Roger Slater]

A violin maker named Strad-
ivari said "Wow, I just had
     an idea that's not bad,
     unless I am mad,
that will make violinists feel glad."

He scribbled it down on his pad,
then boasted, "If I may just add,
    each adult and lad,
    each mother and dad,
will learn that my Strads are no fad."

[Allen Tice]

All of these are fun, especially the one in Strynish by Frank, but for individual word excellence, I pop for "resonating box", which was slyly set up with "vibrant".

- Chad

[R. S. Gwynn]

Neat, Rajah.

[Gail White]

John, I've never quite understood how we can enter under assumed names when we have to give our real name anyway. What's the proper form for doing this?

[Marion Shore]

Antonio's Secret

When Tony kept mum how he had
cooked up his mysterious Strad,
though his colleagues went mad,
crying, "Out with it lad!"
he told no one, not even his Dad.

[John Whitworth]

Gail, what you do is sign it with your assumed name, say Martin Fagg, and under that put your real name and address. They don't care what you call yourself and lots of the names are obviously noms de plume, like Martin Fagg, which is going back a bit. Others I liked.

Maud Gracechurch (the name of a canal barge)
Ginger Jelineck
Will Bellenger
Claude Spettigue
Fergus Pickering

You might have thought that Fiona Pitt-Kethley was a nom-de-plume, but no, she is a real person and once gave me marsala and seed-cake.