Which is correct?
We appreciate you contacting the office.
We appreciate your contacting the office.
Both are correct, but they have slightly different meanings. If you appreciate that someone contacted the office (the act of contacting), use "your." It's roughly equivalent to "We appreciate that you contacted the office." If you appreciate the person who contacted the office, use "you."
Typically, you want the possessive pronoun:
We appreciate your contacting the office.
http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/should-it-be-you-or-your-with-gerunds.aspx

A gerund is a verbal that ends in -ing and functions as a noun. The term verbal indicates that a gerund, like the other two kinds of verbals, is based on a verb and therefore expresses action or a state of being. Find examples and search Purdue's University's Online Writing Lab (OWL) at: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/627/01/

A participle is a verb form used as an adjective to modify nouns and pronouns. The following sentence contains both a present and a past participle: The children, crying and exhausted, were guided out of the collapsed mine.
Crying is a present participle, formed by adding -ing to the present form of the verb (cry). Exhausted is a past participle, formed by adding -ed to the present form of the verb (exhaust). Both participles modify the subject, children. All present participles end in -ing. The past participles of all regular verbs end in -ed. However, irregular verbs have various past participle endings (for instance, thrown. ridden, built, and gone). http://grammar.about.com/od/basicsentencegrammar/a/verbalswhat.htm

The Liberty Head nickel, sometimes referred to as the V nickel due to its reverse (or tails) design, was an American five-cent piece. It was struck for circulation from 1883 until 1912, with at least five pieces being surreptitiously struck dated 1913. The original copper–nickel five-cent piece, the Shield nickel, had longstanding production problems, and in the early 1880s, the United States Mint was looking to replace it. Mint Chief Engraver Charles Barber was instructed to prepare designs for proposed one-, three-, and five-cent pieces, which were to bear similar designs. Only the new five-cent piece was approved, and went into production in 1883. For almost thirty years large quantities of coin of this design were produced to meet commercial demand, especially as coin-operated machines became increasingly popular. Beginning in 1911, the Mint began work to replace the Liberty head design, and a new design, which became known as the Buffalo nickel, went into production in February 1913. Although no 1913 Liberty head nickels were officially struck, five are known to exist. While it is uncertain how these pieces originated, they have come to be among the most expensive coins in the world, with one selling in 2010 for $3,737,500.
See more plus images at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_Head_nickel

Sourdough starter really is a living creature. The wild yeast that are in there feed on the water and flour in the starter, also sometimes referred to as the "sponge". It gets the name "sponge" after it has been fed enough times to make it a large mass for your baking needs and a little extra to store as "starter" for your next round of baking. How old can sourdough starter be? Boudine's starter in San Francisco is documented at over 100 years old. Urban legend in Paris is that the Poulin bakery starter dates to the French Revolution. Not unlikely as well cared for starter used continuously has a chance of going forever with little care. Read more, including about hooch here:
http://frazgofeasting.blogspot.com/2009/03/hooch-and-keeping-your-sourdough.html

Q: What is U.S. paper currency made of?
A: It is 75 percent cotton, 25 percent linen. -- U.S. Treasury Department.
Q: Where is boxing great Joe Louis buried?
A: Arlington National Cemetery, Va. He was an Army veteran of World War II.
Q: What countries are the most charitable?
A: In order: The United States, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain. -- Charities Aid Foundation. http://www.thecourier.com/Opinion/columns/2012/Jan/JU/ar_JU_013012.asp?d=013012,2012,Jan,30&c=c_13

gascon (GAS-kuhn) noun: A braggart. adjective: Boastful.
After Gascon, a native of the Gascony region in France, from the stereotype of Gascons as boasters. Earliest documented use: before 1771.
wellerism (WEL-uh-ri-zuhm) noun
An expression involving a familiar proverb or quotation and its facetious sequel. I t usually comprises three parts: statement, speaker, situation.
Examples: "We'll have to rehearse that," said the undertaker as the coffin fell out of the car. "Prevention is better than cure," said the pig when it ran away from the butcher. After Sam Weller and his father, characters known for such utterances in Charles Dickens's novel Pickwick Papers. Earliest documented use: 1839.
gamp (gamp) noun A large umbrella.
After Sarah Gamp, a nurse in Charles Dickens's novel Martin Chuzzlewit. She carries a large umbrella. Earliest documented use: 1864.
gradgrind (GRAD-grynd) noun Someone who is solely interested in cold, hard facts.
After Thomas Gradgrind, the utilitarian mill-owner in Charles Dickens's novel Hard Times. Gradgrind runs a school with the idea that hard facts and rules are more important than love, emotions, and feelings. Earliest documented use: 1855.
A. Word.A.Day with Anu Garg

The Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award, or Super Bowl MVP, is presented annually to the most valuable player of the Super Bowl, the National Football League's (NFL) championship game. The winner is chosen by a fan vote during the game and by a panel of 16 American football writers and broadcasters who vote after the game. The media panel's ballots count for 80 percent of the vote tally, while the viewers' ballots make up the other 20 percent. The game's viewing audience can vote on the Internet or by using cellular phones. Super Bowl XXXV, held in 2001, was the first Super Bowl where fan voting was allowed. Since the first Super Bowl was held in 1967, the MVP award has been given to 41 players. From 1967 to 1989, the Super Bowl MVP was presented by SPORT magazine. Bart Starr was the MVP of the first two Super Bowls. Since 1990, the award has been presented by the NFL. At Super Bowl XXV, the league first awarded the Pete Rozelle Trophy, named after the former NFL commissioner, to the Super Bowl MVP. Ottis Anderson was the first to win the trophy. The most recent Super Bowl MVP was Eli Manning, the quarterback for the New York Giants, who was named the most valuable player of Super Bowl XLVI, held on February 5, 2012.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_Most_Valuable_Player_Award