Back in the long, long ago, Wednesday nights used to be our main trivia night. And when trivia became super popular at the spot we started playing regularly back in 2012 (Arbor Brewing Company Microbrewery aka “Corner Brewery” to locals), we used to have to arrive at least an hour before the game started to secure a table for the team.

We did this for years – eventually we started playing at different spots on Wednesdays or other nights and only occasionally played at this spot, which usually had 20-plus teams playing. TBH, the hour-long pre-game ritual was dull, dull, DULL! Granted, the two of us doing the waiting are both Gen X folks whom grew up waiting for parents to get home from work (not exactly counting the minutes, LOL) and sometimes waiting in the car with grandma whom would take the opportunity for a smoke break – while mom did her grocery shopping.

As for my mom – she wasn’t exactly a fast grocery shopper! She’d have to look through every coupon she brought with her to see if she could use any on the groceries she was buying – she usually even had coupons for her mama’s cigarettes – plus she would look at the sales flyer, and read every ingredient list. OK, OK…maybe I’m exaggerating a bit on that last point! But she did write checks for the groceries, which would probably be a justifiable homicide instigator in these times!

Speaking of point – my point is, we did some insanely boring stuff for the sake of our trivial pursuits back in “the day.” Long drives to trivia tournaments was another thing – you couldn’t always count on a fatal highway accident to help lessen the boredom (sadly we did drive by a fatal highway accident on the way to a tournament a few years ago – I’d never seen so many wreckers in one place). I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like being able to log in to a Zoom game mere minutes before the game starts – as opposed to sitting around waiting for players who may – or may not show up. In Wednesday’s virtual game, we didn’t have any other players who could join us on this particular night – so it was just the two of us, just like usual. But we “almost” had the correct half of an all sports before and after question, so that was kind of exciting!

We missed three regular round questions and one mystery round question – all teams got the dogs final question correct. And just who is “Rider Strong,” anyway? Is that a stage name – and why isn’t he working in adult films?

Here are the questions:

1. Technology – What series of autonomous vacuum cleaners was first introduced in 2002 by the advanced technology company iRobot?

2. Light – Which of the following colors of light in the visible spectrum has the shortest wavelength—yellow, red, green, or blue?

3. Disasters – In 2015, what oil and gas company agreed to pay more than $18 billion in fines as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill five years earlier?

NERD POINT: The spill took place closest to which U.S. state?

4. Movies – In a 2010 film, Dwayne Johnson plays a hockey player who temporarily becomes what character of fantasy? Despite Mike’s man crush on “The Rock,” this one was completely off our radar…miss.

5. NASCAR – What American automobile division has won 39 NASCAR Manufacturers’ Championships, more than any other, although none since 2015? We incorrectly guessed Dodge.

6. U.S. History – McClellan, Burnside, Hooker, and Meade were the last names of the major generals who led what Union army, which operated in the Eastern theater of the Civil War? I jokingly called them that “lineup of clowns who f—ed things up before Lincoln decided to hire that drunk from the Western theater to take out the trash.” Yes, we are history lovers on our team!

7. Poetry – In 1950, Gwendolyn Brooks became the first African American to win the Pulitzer Prize, for Annie Allen, a book of poetry chronicling the life of a girl growing up in the Bronzeville neighborhood of what city? Made correct guess here.

8. TV Actors – What actor is known for his role as Shawn Hunter on the TV series Boy Meets World, which he later reprised on the sequel series Girl Meets World? No fucking clue.

9. Mountains – What Egyptian mountain, with a name in Arabic meaning “Mount Moses,” is home to a mosque and a Greek Orthodox chapel on its summit? Thank goodness Mike thought of this, the closest mountain I could come up with was that one that Noah’s Ark supposedly crashed into.

10. Companies – What company introduced its Mach3 razor in the late 1990s, with its three-blade design intended to help reduce skin irritation?

Mystery:

Before and After Combine the two clues to form a single answer.

Answers may share a word, part of a word, or a syllable.

(For example, if I said “Capital of Utah AND 1991 Western comedy film starring Billy Crystal,” you would answer “Salt Lake City Slickers”)

M1. Heavy metal band that has included members Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler AND American retailer founded in 1990 that specializes in shower gels, lotions, and fragrances

M2. 1986 film about a teen slacker who skips school AND 1999 film about an adult slacker who skips work

M3. Six-time NBA MVP who played for the Bucks and Lakers AND MVP of the first two Super Bowl games

M4. TV sitcom that features a widowed father named Danny Tanner AND TV drama that features a widow named Claire Underwood who becomes U.S. president

Number three fail…though I did at least name a Super Bowl MVP from a later Super Bowl and named the correct NBA guy (I just couldn’t think of how his name would meld with the correct Super Bowl MVP). No fair that this question was ALL sportsball (whine)!

We were in fourth going into the final with 55 points, Sparty On were top dogs with 61 (more about dogs in a bit):

Final Category – Pets

According to the American Kennel Club, as of 2021, among the 100 most popular names for female dogs, seven are four-letter “L” names.

Name four of those seven names.

And we started rattling off names of dogs that three people we know have given their pooches – and one other name that we figured would be a good dog name. All teams got this correct.

Well, I hope you all are super excited to be able to read a trivia recap on a day that isn’t a Saturday (LOL)! There is talk of playing a blockbuster movies themed virtual game on Sunday, but that hasn’t been officially decided yet. As always, Go Pods, Sparty On, and stay classy, Rider Strong (seriously why aren’t you working in porn)?