A few years ago, I took the plunge. You know the one: I tried out for a game show. Not just any game show, either, but Jeopardy!. It's the one we all love to watch because it makes us feel so smart when we get the answers right. Now there's a new game show on TV: "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?", and suddenly none of us feels so smart anymore, does we?

I had to go to the Westin Hotel in downtown Seattle for the tryouts. I was so nervous the night before that I didn't get to sleep until 4 in the morning. Here's a clue for you: When trying out for a game show, calm down and go to sleep.

My husband was working out of our home at the time, so I roped him into driving me there. Bright and early, we all piled in the van and headed to I-5. My husband and kids were well-rested and chipper; I was glassy-eyed and experiencing mini seizures from the pot of coffee I downed to get myself going. Okay, so I didn't drink that much coffee, but I sure wanted to.

We arrived, they dropped me off, then left to run some errands. I know the kids would have loved to come in and run around this fancy hotel, but it would have been a long morning for them (and me). I went inside and waited in the lobby for my designated time to go upstairs for my test. In one of the couch areas in the lobby, I got into a conversation with a very nice gentleman, who, it turned out, was an FBI agent. My first impulse was to say, "How did you find me and why are you following me?", but I didn't. It would've been a hoot to see his reaction!  Or not.

Finally, I was able to head upstairs. At the sign-in table, I grabbed my form, a Jeopardy! pen, and sat on the floor against a wall to fill it out. You know how Alex does his small-talk routine with each contestant? I could think of NOTHING interesting to say about myself. I finally wrote that I homeschooled my children, but scratched it out because I had a sudden and mortifying fear of making it on the show, but ending with a negative balance and disgracing homeschoolers everywhere.

In the conference room -- actually, it just occurred to me it was more the size of a ballroom -- we all sat in rows of chairs while the more-energetic-than-me producer explained the show to us. We then had to answer the answers by writing the questions on our papers (go ahead -- you can read that sentence a second time if you want to). Those with the highest number of right answers would get to stay behind and play in a mock game. Everyone else would have to leave.

I was in the latter group. The producer told us, after the totals had been tallied, that only 4 people (out of a room of 70 or so) would be going on to the next round. I actually laughed; I thought it was funny. But I was the only one who laughed. Some people take their once-in-a-lifetime chances at game shows pretty seriously, I guess.

We all picked up our coats, purses, and whatever else we'd brought into the room with us and headed toward the back of the room to leave our papers and pens. As we were heading out of the room, one of the Jeopardy! people said, "You can keep your pens," and we all scrambled back to the table to retrieve our special Jeopardy! pens. Sad, I know....

The only other thing I remember from that day is forgetting the capital of Jamaica: Kingston. I still kick myself over it. I'll never forget it again.

Was trying out for Jeopardy! worth it, even though I didn't make it past the preliminaries? Yes, definitely. It was a fun experience. Will I ever do it again? If possible. I won't tell anyone, though. I told my sister that I'd tried out for Jeopardy! and had to listen to 30 seconds of complete silence on their other end of the line. Think she knows something I don't? 

Last night, my daughter tried out for the Jeopardy! kids' edition. This time, the contestants-to-be got to take an online test. From there, those with the most correct answers will be able to test again in a city near them. She's hoping she'll be one of the chosen few. If we don't hear back from them, we'll assume not and she can try again down the road. If we do get "the email," you can bet I'll be posting about it!