Monthly Archives: October 2015

Podcasts

29 Thursday Oct 2015

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When I get a chance to take a long walk or bike ride by myself, I like to bring my iPod (no, I do NOT own an iPhone, I refuse to purchase one until you can buy one without a data plan or buy a new one that uses prepaid cards) and list to podcasts. Podcasts are, I suppose, a kind of radio program that you download and listen to when you get around to it; alternatively, not listen to just like with a tivo or DVR. Many of the podcasts on my iPod are, fact, radio programs. The podcast I listen to most often is called the Thrilling Adventure Hour. It describes itself as as new time podcasts in the style of old time radio. I suppose that is accurate except for the fact that the stories on the Thrilling Adventure Hour have a campy sense of humor I am sure that was not found in old time radio shows like the Lone Ranger.

Stuff I’ve Been Watching September 2015

29 Thursday Oct 2015

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  • Inside Man (HBO Now)
  • American Graffiti (Showtime/Hulu)
  • Ray Donovan (Showtime/Hulu)
  • Doctor Who (Amazon Instant)
  • The War Room (Hulu/Criterion)
  • The Muppets (Hulu)
  • E.O. Wilson (PBS)
  • The Martian (big screen)

If you have never seen it, I recommend The War Room. It is a documentary about the Clinton campaign of 1992 from the perspective of the campaign headquarters. So, if you are expecting to see a lot of Bill and Hillary, you will only catch glimpses of them. But you will get a sense of how modern political campaigns work. Plus you also get to see a lot of a young George Stephanopolous. And his hair.

Watching the Muppets again, thirty some years after the original show I used to watch with my family is fun. The basic idea is that Miss Piggy is the host of a late night talk and variety show and Kermit is the executive producer; and Kermit and Miss Piggy have broken up and there are lots of issues on the show about that. It seems Miss Piggy will never forget Kermit. One ubiquitous theme in the show is that Miss Piggy never gets along with the guest starr and Kermit spends most of the episode trying to get Miss Piggy to act more human toward the guest star. But I think the thing I enjoy the most about the show is that the jokes are topical and funny. Plus, it seems to be one of the few shows that Monika, Marta, and, occasionally, Michal all enjoy watching.

Games Played September 2015

29 Thursday Oct 2015

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Games Purchased 

  • Cosmic Encounter (gift for Michal)

Games Played

  • Uno
  • Camel Up
  • The Manhattan Project

It took some time to get to it, some time to understand the rules, and some effort to fund a place where we could spread out all the parts, but Michal and I finally played The Manhattan Project this month. It is one of those worker placement games in which you put workers on the board to do one action, that action results in another action, and based on that new action you get something to help you win the game. In other words, it is a bit long and complicated; but the game is deep and enjoyable if you like heavier strategy games.

The basic idea is that you and your opponents are in a race to build and drop atomic bombs. But to build the bombs you need workers, and you need uranium, and the uranium needs to be enriched, and you need planes, and your workers need scientists and engineers to help them. Oh, and there can be spies, and your enemy can attack you before you get too far. And so on…

Manhattan Project is a good game, provided you can find the time and space. There are a lot of small parts; I bought a box at the hardware store to keep track of all the little pieces. I suppose the box was originally meant for organizing screws, nails, and similar bits.