die by the sword. In my Jeopardy experience that would be the absurdly large Final Jeopardy wager. After an absurdly competitive Double Jeopardy shootout, Everyone got stumped by the flag of Prince Edward Island. I'd wagered damn near everything, breaking every wagering rule. I just can't operate under the assumption that I might be wrong. It's absurd, but that's just what I'm like.
Here's my quick hits on the match:
Sandy is absurdly fast on the buzzer. I was very frustrated by her beating me to the punch time and time again.
LaDanian Thomlinson! He carried my fantasy football team this year. Gentlemen of the ZFL, consider this your moment in the spotlight. All hail Zod.
Wow, I know a lot more about the Old Testament than I thought. Lamentations? C'mon!
Watching at home, I didn't know the Sartre question. On TV, I did.
British Royalty? Another nightmare category for me.
Congrats to Laura. Well played wager. Sandy, I apologize for tailgating. You would have been a great champion.
Everyone loses at Jeopardy eventually. It's the nature of the game. I have no regrets about my adventure. It's cool to win. But it's been much cooler to share this with all of my friends and family over email, text message and phone over these past two days.
4.20.2007
Clearing out my brain on Thursday's Jeopardy
Dvorak? C'mon. You know who I meant! I got a text from my brother that said, "Nice job, doorvac." I smell a new fantasy team name for next year. This was my nightmare category sprung to life. I was happy to get something and try to jump out of the category all together. Alas, not to be.
Thank God I recognized Jimmy Carter in the picture from Reagan's inauguration. That's the only clue that's it's 1981 and not 1985.
I was telling Alex my panic in sticking in "A. Johnson" They gave Andrea credit for "Johnson" despite there being two President Johnsons. Alex told us this was because there was only one Johnson in the 19th Century. So now you know what we talk about over the credits.
In the last shot of the show, you can see my head on the GIANT VIDEO WALL. Disconcerting to say the least.
Why 1916? It's the only date I know in Irish history. I remember W.B. Yeats's poem Easter 1916. Damn you William Butler Yeats! Last item on the board and I could have ridden it to first place. Not that I knew that at the time. Apparently, I didn't know much of anything at the time.
A category about the wives of the M.F. Yankees? No need to fear. Know thy enemy. It pays off.
There were clues that made me think about specific people that I know. Jane Addams was for Ms. Wren Violet who once worked at Hull House. Luzon is for my mother and her family who are from the Philippines. The entire fortune cookie category is for my Uncle John and Auntie Rubi who used to own a fortune cookie factory. I think my wife, Jen, was the only person in the whole studio that knew that quote from Black Beauty.
Thank God I recognized Jimmy Carter in the picture from Reagan's inauguration. That's the only clue that's it's 1981 and not 1985.
I was telling Alex my panic in sticking in "A. Johnson" They gave Andrea credit for "Johnson" despite there being two President Johnsons. Alex told us this was because there was only one Johnson in the 19th Century. So now you know what we talk about over the credits.
In the last shot of the show, you can see my head on the GIANT VIDEO WALL. Disconcerting to say the least.
Why 1916? It's the only date I know in Irish history. I remember W.B. Yeats's poem Easter 1916. Damn you William Butler Yeats! Last item on the board and I could have ridden it to first place. Not that I knew that at the time. Apparently, I didn't know much of anything at the time.
A category about the wives of the M.F. Yankees? No need to fear. Know thy enemy. It pays off.
There were clues that made me think about specific people that I know. Jane Addams was for Ms. Wren Violet who once worked at Hull House. Luzon is for my mother and her family who are from the Philippines. The entire fortune cookie category is for my Uncle John and Auntie Rubi who used to own a fortune cookie factory. I think my wife, Jen, was the only person in the whole studio that knew that quote from Black Beauty.
Bet it all!
If you noticed from my earlier post, my #1 dream category is American Presidents. My brother knows this and sent me this email immediately after the show:
So yeah, I won on Jeopardy tonight. I had been in third place by about $4000, and well, the category broke my way. The other contestants' bets broke my way.
I watched the show at home with a bunch of friends and family. It's the closest thing to an out of body experience I've ever had. I usually watch the show for the questions and the answers. I'd seen all of those for this episode, so I just watched people's reactions.
I don't think Andrea realized that she hadn't bet enough to beat me until Alex said as much. According to all of the betting strategies, I SHOULD NOT have bet everything. And she bet accordingly. As soon as I saw the category, I KNEW to bet everything. How did I know? I was a geek as a kid. I was the 1984, 1986 and 1988 national champion in an academic game called... Mr. President. I knew the correct response for FJ when I was 11 years old. (I have no idea how it stayed rattling around up there for the past 23 years though.)
Of course, I almost managed to screw it up anyhow. As soon as they give you the FJ category, they tell to you write down your wager and write down "Who is" This way, you won't forget to phrase it as a question. I however just bet everything and wrote "Who" If you watch the tape, you'll see that I write down "Johnson" immediately. Then I look again and see that I've written "Who Johnson?" That's not even English, William! So I put in an upcarat and put in "was" Now I remember there are TWO President Johnsons. I jam an "A." in the middle there and now have a horrible mess of an answer that I pray that Alex can decipher. Thank God it makes sense to the Big A. You can see all of this panic in my face as while the music plays.
Geez, I show everything on my face. I'm like some sort of stylized kabuki dancer up there.
Thanks to the entire Jeopardy staff for giving me a chance to play. Thanks to Tricia and Andrea, you were great players and I was very lucky to win. Thanks to everyone out there who rooted for me. Thanks to all of you: my family, my friends, my co-workers, the people who sort of know me from this blog, the people who know Jen from her boards and had to explain to their significant others exactly how they kinda sorta know me. Watch again tomorrow.
Alex: The Final Jeopardy category is...
J-Dawg's Crazy Uncle: Bet it all! Bet it all!
Alex: Presidential Vetoes
J-Dawg's Crazy Uncle: BET IT ALL!
So yeah, I won on Jeopardy tonight. I had been in third place by about $4000, and well, the category broke my way. The other contestants' bets broke my way.
I watched the show at home with a bunch of friends and family. It's the closest thing to an out of body experience I've ever had. I usually watch the show for the questions and the answers. I'd seen all of those for this episode, so I just watched people's reactions.
I don't think Andrea realized that she hadn't bet enough to beat me until Alex said as much. According to all of the betting strategies, I SHOULD NOT have bet everything. And she bet accordingly. As soon as I saw the category, I KNEW to bet everything. How did I know? I was a geek as a kid. I was the 1984, 1986 and 1988 national champion in an academic game called... Mr. President. I knew the correct response for FJ when I was 11 years old. (I have no idea how it stayed rattling around up there for the past 23 years though.)
Of course, I almost managed to screw it up anyhow. As soon as they give you the FJ category, they tell to you write down your wager and write down "Who is" This way, you won't forget to phrase it as a question. I however just bet everything and wrote "Who" If you watch the tape, you'll see that I write down "Johnson" immediately. Then I look again and see that I've written "Who Johnson?" That's not even English, William! So I put in an upcarat and put in "was" Now I remember there are TWO President Johnsons. I jam an "A." in the middle there and now have a horrible mess of an answer that I pray that Alex can decipher. Thank God it makes sense to the Big A. You can see all of this panic in my face as while the music plays.
Geez, I show everything on my face. I'm like some sort of stylized kabuki dancer up there.
Thanks to the entire Jeopardy staff for giving me a chance to play. Thanks to Tricia and Andrea, you were great players and I was very lucky to win. Thanks to everyone out there who rooted for me. Thanks to all of you: my family, my friends, my co-workers, the people who sort of know me from this blog, the people who know Jen from her boards and had to explain to their significant others exactly how they kinda sorta know me. Watch again tomorrow.
4.19.2007
Gameday!
I woke up at 4:30 this morning and could not get back to sleep. I am more nervous today, than I was the day that I taped the episode of Jeopardy that airs tonight. How silly is that? I know how it ends. Pete at work, says that I must be nervous that people I know are going to see the show. It's one thing when it's front of strangers. Maybe it is. Honestly, I don't even remember being aware of the audience during the show. It was all about the questions and the buzzer.
My neighbor, Ian reminded me of Douglas Coupland's dream Jeopardy categories. I can tell you that I do have nightmare categories, and yes, some of them did appear. Anyhow, here's my dream board:
American Presidents
Baseball
Poets of the 20th Century
90's Indie Rock
Elvis
What are your dream categories?
My neighbor, Ian reminded me of Douglas Coupland's dream Jeopardy categories. I can tell you that I do have nightmare categories, and yes, some of them did appear. Anyhow, here's my dream board:
American Presidents
Baseball
Poets of the 20th Century
90's Indie Rock
Elvis
What are your dream categories?
4.16.2007
Reminder to everyone...
I will be appearing on Jeopardy this Thursday night. Check your local listings for station and time. At the very least, you'll get a kick out of turning on your TV and shouting, "I know that guy!"
That actually happened to me a few weeks ago. If you follow Jeopardy, you know that recently, for the very first time there was a three way tie for first. The guy in the middle position was Jamey Kirby. I KNOW THAT GUY! Way back in 1991, we were on a quiz bowl team that represented the state of Florida in a national competition. He was much faster on the trigger than I was. He was one of the alpha dogs on the team and I was the benchwarmer. A few years later we ended up living on the same floor at East Hall at the University of Florida.
If you think it's weird to hear your own voice on tape, imagine how weird it is to see yourself in HDTV. Man, am I glad I got my eyebrow waxed.
If you watched the clip, you'll notice that I don't claim Boston as my hometown. There were plenty of other people with Boston connections that week and I didn't feel the need to add to the Boston pile. Plus, it's not likely that there have been a lot of contestants from Vero Beach.
That actually happened to me a few weeks ago. If you follow Jeopardy, you know that recently, for the very first time there was a three way tie for first. The guy in the middle position was Jamey Kirby. I KNOW THAT GUY! Way back in 1991, we were on a quiz bowl team that represented the state of Florida in a national competition. He was much faster on the trigger than I was. He was one of the alpha dogs on the team and I was the benchwarmer. A few years later we ended up living on the same floor at East Hall at the University of Florida.
If you think it's weird to hear your own voice on tape, imagine how weird it is to see yourself in HDTV. Man, am I glad I got my eyebrow waxed.
If you watched the clip, you'll notice that I don't claim Boston as my hometown. There were plenty of other people with Boston connections that week and I didn't feel the need to add to the Boston pile. Plus, it's not likely that there have been a lot of contestants from Vero Beach.
4.10.2007
Summer Babe (Winter Version)
Once, I was a music junkie. If I was walking by Schoolkids Records in Gainesville, I was going in. And I almost never left empty handed. I read all of the hip British music magazines.Usually, I'd have some new CD in mind. Only once did I end up leaving with something I'd never even heard of.
It was Pavement's Slanted and Enchanted. I was flipping through discs when all of a sudden, Summer Babe came blasting over the speakers. It sounded like Lou Reed fronting a very loose and loud band. It was the only time I walked up to the counter and said, "What is this? I have to have it." Love at first sight, sort of.
"Everytime I turn around, I find I'm shot!"
It was Pavement's Slanted and Enchanted. I was flipping through discs when all of a sudden, Summer Babe came blasting over the speakers. It sounded like Lou Reed fronting a very loose and loud band. It was the only time I walked up to the counter and said, "What is this? I have to have it." Love at first sight, sort of.
"Everytime I turn around, I find I'm shot!"
4.06.2007
Karma Police
OK Computer is the soundtrack to the part of my life where I lived in airports, hotels and temporary server rooms. I did web consulting from the time I was 22-26. I bought the record at a Tower Records in a strip mall in suburban Washington DC, walking distance from my hotel. On top of working in strange cities and eating bad room service every night, I was too young to rent a car in Virginia at the time. Disaffection, thy name is Radiohead.
I was working on the most difficult project I'd ever been on at the time. I had no backup, no safety net. I was me and the project manager (Merz!) vs. the data and the deadline. I remember working a 23 hour day right at the end. I slept an hour on a conference room table. At some point around 3 AM, this song came on over the tinny computer speakers. Merz was working on something else in the corner, not paying attention to the music. The song's ending sounds like the world disintegrating. That caught his attention. He thought it was the sound of the hard drive dying in agony.
My favorite line in the song? "Phew. For a minute there, I lost myself." Sort of sums up that whole work experience for me.
4.04.2007
Strawberry Fields Forever
Sunday mornings, while the rest of the house was asleep, I'd put on these old bulky headphones that my father had purchased at a flea market somewhere. The classic rock station out of West Palm was airing the Lost Lennon Tapes, right after the "new age sounds" show, which weird whale songs and such. I'd always have a fresh cassette in the stereo and kept one finger on the pause key, so I could skip the boring narration and the commercials.
The Lost Lennon Tapes were from John Lennon's private collection. (Brought to you by English Leather!) There were unreleased songs, interviews and best of all, alternate versions of well-known tracks. My favorite episode was the about the development of "Strawberry Fields Forever". Over the course of the hour, they must have aired 10 different versions: one with just the drums, then just drums and mellotron, until finally the version we all imagine singing along to in the shower.
I remember the 20th anniversary of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. It was 1987. That was 20 years ago. At the time, 20 years seemed like the entire paleolithic era could have passed. Now, it feels like the Joshua Tree (released in 1987) came out just last month.
When I was learning to play guitar, I asked my friend Eric how I should go about doing it. He said he had a simple plan, just learn to play Beatles tunes.
"Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see."
The Lost Lennon Tapes were from John Lennon's private collection. (Brought to you by English Leather!) There were unreleased songs, interviews and best of all, alternate versions of well-known tracks. My favorite episode was the about the development of "Strawberry Fields Forever". Over the course of the hour, they must have aired 10 different versions: one with just the drums, then just drums and mellotron, until finally the version we all imagine singing along to in the shower.
I remember the 20th anniversary of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. It was 1987. That was 20 years ago. At the time, 20 years seemed like the entire paleolithic era could have passed. Now, it feels like the Joshua Tree (released in 1987) came out just last month.
When I was learning to play guitar, I asked my friend Eric how I should go about doing it. He said he had a simple plan, just learn to play Beatles tunes.
"Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see."
4.03.2007
Blister In the Sun
I was 10 years old when this song came out. My friend Matt Z. was a proto music geek already. I remember he had a cassette Walkman with two headphone jacks that he'd bring with him on bus trips. We were pulling away from the school when "Blister In the Sun" came blasting into our brains. It'd probably be another two years before we'd realize what the song is actually about.
This song has only grown in renown in the 25 years since it was written. Every day after school from 1983 to 1993, there was someone bringing people over to their parked car, introducing the Violent Femmes via car stereo to their little world.
I was watching tv a few weeks ago when I heard this song as the soundtrack to a Wendy's commercial. Seems like a strange way to sell hamburgers if you ask me. I guess the Femmes need the money.
I saw the Femmes playing live in 1998 or so. They were playing a live outdoor show on a July 4th. It was an odd sight seeing three guys in their forties, singing the greatest teen angsthem of the 80s.
Last I heard, Matt Z. had joined the Peace Corps in Russia after college. The grapevine said that he came home with a beautiful Russian bride. I wonder if she's at the end, and she's starting to cry.
This song has only grown in renown in the 25 years since it was written. Every day after school from 1983 to 1993, there was someone bringing people over to their parked car, introducing the Violent Femmes via car stereo to their little world.
I was watching tv a few weeks ago when I heard this song as the soundtrack to a Wendy's commercial. Seems like a strange way to sell hamburgers if you ask me. I guess the Femmes need the money.
I saw the Femmes playing live in 1998 or so. They were playing a live outdoor show on a July 4th. It was an odd sight seeing three guys in their forties, singing the greatest teen angsthem of the 80s.
Last I heard, Matt Z. had joined the Peace Corps in Russia after college. The grapevine said that he came home with a beautiful Russian bride. I wonder if she's at the end, and she's starting to cry.
The iPod Project
I find that I write best when I have a project in mind. Inspired by this blog, I'm going to write about the songs that have been part of my life. I don't know if I'll really review the songs, so much as reveal something about myself. I'll probably just iTunes random feature choose for me most days. Let's see how long I can keep this one up...
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