Let's see, anything new to update? Oh yeah, a bunch of stuff!
Trivia was this past weekend, which was fun as always. It was a little strange, but fun. First of all, it's always tough playing from a distance, what with having to figure out how to listen to the contest (thank you, Skype) and how to communicate with teammates in HQ (thanks, unfiltered backdoor into blocked website that connects to the blocked MSN messaging network). Second of all, the weekend...hell, the entire preceding week...was marred by recent tragic events.
I'm not going to tell the story here, but there was a death in the village last week. A student. So the funeral was on Friday, at the school, and started about an hour before the contest was set to start. So I got to my desk when I could, but the funeral went on for quite a while. Not making any judgments, but just an observation - Russian Orthodox services make Catholicism look like a quick stop, fast food, in-and-out deal! Seriously, you've gotta have some endurance to make it through, it seems.
Speaking of endurance, Trivia. I actually got out and away from my desk more this year than last, and really, I was probably away from "questions" as for about the same length of time I would be if I was in WI and leaving to hunt down Trivia Stones, etc. But I was in and out to let out, feed, and play with dogs (Loki, as well as some co-workers dogs I was taking care of while they were into Anchorage for a mini-vacation). That, along with two naps of three hours a piece on Saturday and Sunday mid-morning (mid day, Trivia-Time...assuring that the basement at HQ would be at full capacity and not missing whatever help I might have been), made for a smoother and less insanity-inducing contest than some have been.
Unfortunately, in what in hindsight will be the big happening of Trivia 39, death reared his ugly head again during the contest, when it was announced that Tom Daniels, the "Voice" of Trivia, had passed away in his sleep. Everyone was completely stunned and taken aback. But to the Oz's credit, and to the credit I think of all the 90fm staff and even Trivia players, we took some time to pause, let it sink in a bit, and then got right back to the contest, really, as if nothing had happened. Leave the grief for Monday, whenever you wake up (or in may case, at work...), play Trivia and have fun. I can't claim that I knew Mr. Daniels, only to have met him once or twice...and I can't claim to know what he would have wanted. But for a guy as dedicated to Trivia, Stevens Point, and 90fm as he obviously was...yeah...he would have wanted exactly what happened. Rack 'em up, Fast Eddie. The show must go on.
So, we kept on truckin' (oops, wrong year), and fought our way to our first top-5 finish. And really, it was an amazing year, considering. Now, I can't claim to have helped much. Between the slow speed of my internet connection, using what seems to be a good chunk of my available bandwidth to just *hear* the contest, and then having a filter block many of the key websites that are useful to a Trivia player, my primary usefulness to the team was effectively neutralized. But I had a good time, communication issues were better than last year, and after getting a little frustrated in the first dozen or so hours of the contest, I came to a realization about my role, and really came to grips with what I needed to do and how I needed to do it. So all in all, Trivia was Trivia, even from 4000 miles away.
Let's see, what else? Oh yeah! Baby!
Sara seems to be doing really well in Anchorage while she's there waiting, getting around to appointments and meetings and stores and swimming, etc. etc. etc. on the bus. She's keeping busier than I thought she'd be able to there by herself, which I'm really happy about.
Now if I can just get this calendar to move a little faster so we can get to next Friday, the 25th...I can get into Anchorage and we can hopefully get this show on the road! I think we're both pretty much good and ready to meet this kid!!
Trivia was this past weekend, which was fun as always. It was a little strange, but fun. First of all, it's always tough playing from a distance, what with having to figure out how to listen to the contest (thank you, Skype) and how to communicate with teammates in HQ (thanks, unfiltered backdoor into blocked website that connects to the blocked MSN messaging network). Second of all, the weekend...hell, the entire preceding week...was marred by recent tragic events.
I'm not going to tell the story here, but there was a death in the village last week. A student. So the funeral was on Friday, at the school, and started about an hour before the contest was set to start. So I got to my desk when I could, but the funeral went on for quite a while. Not making any judgments, but just an observation - Russian Orthodox services make Catholicism look like a quick stop, fast food, in-and-out deal! Seriously, you've gotta have some endurance to make it through, it seems.
Speaking of endurance, Trivia. I actually got out and away from my desk more this year than last, and really, I was probably away from "questions" as for about the same length of time I would be if I was in WI and leaving to hunt down Trivia Stones, etc. But I was in and out to let out, feed, and play with dogs (Loki, as well as some co-workers dogs I was taking care of while they were into Anchorage for a mini-vacation). That, along with two naps of three hours a piece on Saturday and Sunday mid-morning (mid day, Trivia-Time...assuring that the basement at HQ would be at full capacity and not missing whatever help I might have been), made for a smoother and less insanity-inducing contest than some have been.
Unfortunately, in what in hindsight will be the big happening of Trivia 39, death reared his ugly head again during the contest, when it was announced that Tom Daniels, the "Voice" of Trivia, had passed away in his sleep. Everyone was completely stunned and taken aback. But to the Oz's credit, and to the credit I think of all the 90fm staff and even Trivia players, we took some time to pause, let it sink in a bit, and then got right back to the contest, really, as if nothing had happened. Leave the grief for Monday, whenever you wake up (or in may case, at work...), play Trivia and have fun. I can't claim that I knew Mr. Daniels, only to have met him once or twice...and I can't claim to know what he would have wanted. But for a guy as dedicated to Trivia, Stevens Point, and 90fm as he obviously was...yeah...he would have wanted exactly what happened. Rack 'em up, Fast Eddie. The show must go on.
So, we kept on truckin' (oops, wrong year), and fought our way to our first top-5 finish. And really, it was an amazing year, considering. Now, I can't claim to have helped much. Between the slow speed of my internet connection, using what seems to be a good chunk of my available bandwidth to just *hear* the contest, and then having a filter block many of the key websites that are useful to a Trivia player, my primary usefulness to the team was effectively neutralized. But I had a good time, communication issues were better than last year, and after getting a little frustrated in the first dozen or so hours of the contest, I came to a realization about my role, and really came to grips with what I needed to do and how I needed to do it. So all in all, Trivia was Trivia, even from 4000 miles away.
Let's see, what else? Oh yeah! Baby!
Sara seems to be doing really well in Anchorage while she's there waiting, getting around to appointments and meetings and stores and swimming, etc. etc. etc. on the bus. She's keeping busier than I thought she'd be able to there by herself, which I'm really happy about.
Now if I can just get this calendar to move a little faster so we can get to next Friday, the 25th...I can get into Anchorage and we can hopefully get this show on the road! I think we're both pretty much good and ready to meet this kid!!
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1 comment:
Great post, Shaun. :)
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