We had a full roster of ‘Pods for Wednesday’s Sporcle Live game at the “Corner Brewery.” Six players! I can’t remember the last time we had all six of our “regulars” at a game! The MVP of the night was Joel, who seldom gets to come out to games – he proved very helpful on a geography mystery round (he works as a professional pilot), and even more helpful on the visual mystery round asking “what note am I” and showing an alto/tenor clef, which is not one of the more common clefs you are likely to see in music – even if you are a musician! Quotable quote: “Aren’t you glad you have a bassoonist playing with you tonight?” Another quotable quote pertaining to another question (which I’ll get to in just a bit) was, “Every now and then Heather has to go all Stalin on us and overrule us on an answer.” Have I mentioned before that the politics of our team more closely resembles a semi-benevolent dictatorship (with several little warring factions) than a democracy? 
We wound up with two second place/$10 prizes and finished first for the night. We look forward to a very competitive trivia season at this “old, yet new” trivia spot!
And here we go with the questions…
Game One
1. Toughness – According to one of its slogans, what brand is the “toughest four-letter word on wheels?” I came up with what I felt was the correct answer right away, but another car company’s similar slogan started being bandied about. And it almost wound up getting handed in, so I did something very…non-democratic, took the slip before they handed it in, crossed out what they wrote and put in the answer I felt was correct (but only for two points). Thankfully it was right and the other players didn’t stage a coup! I said later that I was the ranking expert on our team when it came to cars (though I would certainly be a rank amateur compared to other trivia teams’ car experts). All’s well that ended well!
2. Guitarists – Richie Sambora was the lead guitarist of what band from 1983 until his departure in 2013? 10
3. Family Members – As seen in cartoons, TV and film, what is the first name of Morticia and Gomez’ son – who has a sister named Wednesday? 9
4. Bodies of Water – What body of water is known as “La Manche” in French? We should have tossed our “d2” here (aka nickel), since we were torn between two answers, miss for 1.
5. Virus – What does MERS stand for in terms of the virus that was identified in Saudi Arabia in 2012? Host Tim said we had to get every one of the words correct (thankfully he was slightly lenient on the second word, as many teams put variations on this answer), got this for 5.
6. Front Office- What pro football hall of famer became the general manager of the Denver Broncos in 2011? I LOVE it when the “sportsball” guys say, “Gimme the biggest point slip.” 8
7. Rom Coms- What 1989 rom-com has title characters whose last names are Burns and Albright? I did a “prayer” before this question was asked – praying it would be about an ’80s movie (I saw lots of rom coms during that time), so this prayer was answered! Nerd bonus for naming director of that film, got both for 7 plus the bonus.
8. Gems – Tanzanite is a blue and violet gemstone that is found only on which continent? Sounds pretty! 6
9. Food – Stargazy pie is a Cornish dish consisting of baked pilchards, eggs and potatoes, covered with a pastry crust. What are pilchards? Mike had right guess here…he should played the “Stalin” card and overruled our guess…miss for 3. I’m going to guess that not too many teams got this one correct…
10. World War History – What German battleship was sunk by British forces in May, 1941 in retaliation for the loss of the HMS Hood at the Battle of Denmark Strait?
Mystery – Given the following U.S. cities, list the state you would be entering if you traveled due north.
1. New Orleans, LA
2. Las Vegas, NV
3. St. Louis, MO
4. Omaha, NE
Got all of these. Just about everyone contributed on this round!
Scores: Twenty teams, scores ??? to 63 with us in first. Don’t worry…the next final question will (SPOILER) spank us good! And…(ANOTHER SPOILER) – all of the other teams, too!
Final Category – Number One Hits
Maroon 5 has had three singles reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and each of them have three-word titles. Name two of those three singles.
I came up with one correct one right away, which interestingly enough, I only knew because a couple of other teammates got this answer right a few years ago (go figure). Dave really, really tried coming up with the other song, and even tried humming a few bars! No avail…
Final Standings: Jesus Chris Superstar, 43; ‘Pods, 46; and Sabretoothed Crotch Crickets, 58 (wise zero bet).
Game Two
1. Authors – What author, who died in Dec. 2017, was memorialized by her daughter in a post that concluded, “The Alphabet now ends at Y.” We knew who they wanted, just couldn’t come up with her name, miss for 1.
2. Fighters – In 2015, what woman MMA fighter said, “What makes me so confident that I can win is that I am the greatest fighter in the world.” FB clue, 10.
3. CEOs – Thomas J. Watson served as CEO of what company from 1914 to 1956 after which his son Thomas Jr. also held the position? John and Joel collaborated here with success for 4.
4. Weekend Movies- What movie released in June, 1982 was #1 for a record 16 weeks in the U.S.? Joel was all over this right away…10
5. Title Characters – “Lois and Clark – The New Adventures of Superman” aired 1993 to 1997 on ABC. Name either performer who played a title character on the show – both for a “nerd” bonus point. Dave thought of the right guy…after we handed it in! D’oh! Miss for 2.
6. Presidential Powers – When a bill fails to become law because the president does not sign it and cannot return it to Congress within a 10-day period because Congress is not in session, it is known as what type of veto? 8
7. Canada – What is both the least populous and smallest Canadian province? 7
8. ’80s Hits – Audio clue of 1983 song played backwards, 6 (this was a very ’80s-era heavy question set…I totally, like, approve – to the max – though that maroon 5 question made me want to gag myself with a spoon, lol). Does anyone speak “valley girl” anymore?  6
9. Animals – Masai, Nubian, reticulated and Thornicroft’s are all subspecies of what large mammal native to Africa? Brad for the points here.
10. Latin – What is the three-letter Latin adverb used after a printed word or passage to indicate that the passage may include an error? Finished regular round with 52 points. Will the mystery round kill us?

Got all of these, thanks to our team having two musicians! What are the odds?
Scores: Nineteen teams, 28 points to 62, with Your Resume Sucks- Last Season’s Venue Champs (this was part of their name) in first. We were in second with 60 points.
Final Category – Mythology
In Norse mythology, at the final battle known as Ragnarok, which of the gods gets killed by the giant wolf Fenrir?
Mike was torn between two Norse dudes, thankfully picked the right one…imagine if he got a Norse mythology question wrong! He’d STILL be whining about it now, lol! Kind of like me and that Christian Dior question we had a couple of weeks ago at Wurst (oh the humanity…)!
Final Standings: Don’t Forget to Strip Your Bartender, 79 ‘Pods, 80; YRS, 81.
Until next time, which may be a “guest gig” at Sticks tonight (joining another team). If not that, then Saturday at Oscars (weather permitting). As always, Go Pods, and stay classy, Fenrir the wolf!