And his answer trickled through my head like water through a sieve meaning 1. the speaker's head was empty 2. the man's ideas flowed rapidly
3. the answer amused the speaker
4. the answer was quickly forgotten ​

poe’s time at the academy was financed by his foster father, john, meaning that poe needed his foster father’s permission in order to drop out if he wanted to. unfortunately, poe’s relationship with his foster father was soon on the rocks again after john married his second wife, louisa patterson.

i was just learning about this in language arts a week ago. edgar poe makes lots of wonderful books, too.