Category: People

Until last week, I had never heard of Harrison Butker

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Parents, People, Politics, Social Media

I’m a sports fan, but even I find it difficult to follow every sport. I mean, it’s impossible. Well, maybe not for Chuck Norris, but for mere mortals like us, it is. Because of this obvious fact, I’m not an expert on North American sports, so a lot of NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL information can easily slip by me.

It could be that some team has a new manager, another team has won 13 games in a row, another team has a new stadium, or a player has a new $200 million contract, and I wouldn’t know. My interests in these sports annually peak around the Superbowl, the World Series, the Stanley Cup playoffs, and the NBA finals, then they die down.

I do know enough, however, to understand that the New York Mets and New York Jets are terrible. At least, according to late-night hosts.

As a New Zealander, I’m just pleased I can roughly match the name of an American team to its sport. If it’s not rugby union, rugby league, cricket or football, I shamefully filter things out. However, despite all of this, I had never heard of Harrison Butker, until last week.

Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

I was on my lunch break, resting my weary feet and enjoying my Vegemite sandwiches when I read an article about Harrison Butker. This led me to discover that I didn’t know who he was, but I knew about the Kansas City Chiefs because they won Super Bowl LVIII. That news even reached New Zealand.

I’m getting off-topic as usual, but after reading the short article regarding Butker’s commencement speech at Benedictine College; which I thought was a prank, I discovered videos about him from various news sources.

It was about that time when I realised that this news story was about a real event, it wasn’t a prank. After discovering the real existence of this speech, I made the decision not to mention it to my wife. The reason was I knew it would piss her off, so I wanted to avoid mentioning it to her. The joke was on me, though.

When I got home from work, my wife asked if I had heard about some guy in America who gave a speech. With a deep and regretful sigh, I said I had. I’m not going to repeat what my wife said, but she used a lot of adjectives about Butker’s speech.

In his speech, Butker seemed to throw a lot of shade at various things, including, men, women, Joe Biden, COVID lockdowns, IVF, abortion, LGBTQ+ and others, which have brought praise and criticism across the United States, but also around the world.

Am I going to add my opinion on this topic?

No, I’m not.

Why not? Everybody has an opinion, what’s yours?

My answer is in two parts. Firstly, any person who reads, follows, and subscribes to my daily/weekly posts, will already realise my views and opinions on these topics. If not, please read three years’ worth of nonsense.

Secondly, why would I want to add my voice to the thousands of comments about the speech, when other people have already done so, with far more articulated and wittier results? 

So, sit back, relax and enjoy social media and its amazing responses to Butker’s speech. I’ve removed people’s names on the posts because I hope that’s the correct thing to do.

From X

From Mastodon

From Facebook

Free speech is a double-edged sword; no one can physically stop you from speaking your mind and giving your opinion. However, it doesn’t mean you are free from consequences or repercussions, because of your words.

I’m a not smart man, but I’m wondering how long those consequences and repercussions will catch up to Harrison Butker. Maybe it won’t, I mean, we do live in reality and things don’t always go the way we want or need them to go. 

Anyway, thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. 

Please don’t forget to walk your dog, read a banned book, go and divide by zero, and I’ll see you next week.

What is it like being married for 10 years?

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Parents, People

I hope everybody enjoyed Star Wars Day and Free Comic Book Day over the weekend! We did and we also enjoyed something else too. The main person to blame about anything concerning New Zealand’s 5th least favourite website just celebrated his 10th wedding anniversary. And for those of you not keeping up, that’s me, by the way.

I’ll be honest with you about something. Celebrating 10 years of married life wasn’t something I ever thought I was capable of doing, let alone getting married in the first place! Seriously.

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

So what is it like being married for 10 years? Is it good, bad or somewhere in between? Before I begin, I’m talking about this from a male’s perspective, but some of these observations can easily be transferred to females as well.

  • You listen to the same stories your spouse tells new people and pretend you’ve never heard them before. And vice versa.
  • You can’t remember what you gave to your spouse for their birthday and anniversary, for the last four years. 
  • Your spouse has an instant recall of a conversation you had with them five years ago, but you can’t remember what you had for dinner last night.
  • You can trust your spouse to order takeaways on your behalf and get the order 95% correct. 
  • Your house is littered with half-finished projects that you or your spouse have started and then abandoned for different reasons.
  • Your spouse knows your sleeping habits better than you. 
  • Because you’re a one-income family, you save money by having your spouse give you and your children the same haircut. 
  • You and your spouse have an unofficial rule of swapping the “good parent, bad parent” routine around when dealing with your children. 
  • When you or your spouse mention an ex’s name that has not been discussed before, the mood in the room changes.
  • Any form of competition between you and your spouse must be handled with respect and fairly. No Monopoly!
  • Your spouse seems to know where everything is in the house, except their belongings.
  • You and your spouse have different chores that you do around your home, so when your spouse does one of yours, your brain wants to shut down because it can’t compute what’s just happened. 
  • When you’ve made your signature dinner meal, and your spouse politely mentions that it’s the 18th time that month, that you have made that exact meal.
  • The amazing music you played at your wedding, is now mall/supermarket background music. 
  • You both have different ways to fold the washing; which you argue over, but you never want to fold the washing alone. 
  • If someone other than your spouse flirts with you, you don’t even register it.
  • Gaslighting your spouse is either extremely funny, brave or dangerous. 
  • Looking back at photos of your wedding, makes you rage because you and your spouse look so refreshed and young. 
  • You still make rookie mistakes with your children, after your spouse has pointed it out. 
  • You and your spouse can be each other’s translators in new social situations. 
  • If you or your spouse have taken the wedding ring off for whatever reason, you’re reminded in a semi-friendly way to put it back on. 

Occasionally my wife reads these posts, so I need to tread carefully. So in case she does read this, I think being married for 10 years is wonderful!

Have you been married for 10 years or more? Have I missed any observations? As always, please let me know.

That’s another post for another week. Thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Don’t forget to walk your dog, read a banned book, go Phoenix FC, and I’ll see you next week because the Tour of the Solar System is crawling back again!

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1950

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn History, Music, People, Politics

Welcome to the latest instalment of my breakdown of Billy Joel’s We Didn’t Start the Fire. The two previous entries in this strange franchise are We Didn’t Start the Fire: The Beginning and We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1948-1949.

This is where I’m attempting to talk about the historical references in the song and try to relate them to our contemporary society. I know this sounds like a terrible idea, but apparently, the group known as Beetroot Awareness Aotearoa sort of agrees. After publishing my blog post concerning 1948-1949, this New Zealand-based group released their own harsh review:

“Does this idiot know that the song came out in 1989, and since then, numerous people have already talked about the historical references? Can he not think of anything original or does he just steal other people’s ideas? What a buffoon!”

And with that positive and uplifting feedback, let’s check out the We Didn’t Start the Fire’s historic references for 1950.

Image from the We Didn’t Start the Fire music video

1950

Joseph McCarthy:

We briefly discussed Joseph McCarthy last time with 1949’s Walter Winchell, but we’ll expand it like a dog taking over your bed. McCarthy was a US senator for Wisconsin, who had a few issues that he liked to talk about. Early on in the Cold War, and during his Lincoln Day speech, McCarthy launched an anti-communist crusade.

He promoted the concept that Soviet Union and communist spies and sympathizers had infiltrated American society, through the federal and local governments, as well as in academic and entertainment circles. This led to the persecution and political repression of many people, based on being un-American and their opinions. It was during this period that the terms “The Second Red Scare” and “McCarthyism” were born.

For a modern equivalent to McCarthy, just think of everybody’s favourite twice impeached, four times criminally indicted, ex-US President, Donald Trump.

Credit: Biography.com

Richard Nixon:

Richard Nixon makes the list because in 1950, the future President of the United States of America was first elected to represent California, in the US Senate. If you’re a student of history, you’ll realise this will not be the last time Nixon makes the list. He will return.

For a modern version, I’m a bit stumped over this. I can’t compare Richard Nixon of 1950 to Richard Nixon of 1972, because they are two people with different life experiences. However, when comparing Nixon of 1950 to modern times, it would be any young politician moving up the ladder, to become a long-term politician. I’m sure every country has some. I’m looking at you Winston Peters, I’m looking at you.

Nixon in Yorba Linda, California, c. April 1950. Credit: Orange County Archives.

Studebaker:

Studebaker was an automobile manufacturer, which was based in the United States. For about 50 years, Studebaker was one of the leaders in the car industry and had built up a great reputation for their vehicles.

That changed around 1950 when Studebaker started having some major financial problems. In 1954, they merged with Packard, another automobile company to ease their financial difficulties. It didn’t work the way they thought it would, so in 1967, Studebaker ceased production and the company shut down.

Some modern equivalents would be Oldsmobile and Pontiac, or even some non-automobile companies like Kenner and Toys “R” Us.

Studebaker’s “Lazy S” logo, designed by Raymond Loewy, was used from the 1950s until 1966/1950 Studebaker Champion. Credit: Андрей Перцев/Classic Auto Mall.

Television:

Is there a greater icon for the 20th century other than television? I think not. Television or TV had been developed, improved and marketed for years before 1950, but it was slowly becoming an important household product. In the context of US history, TV was becoming an attractive way to transmit information to the public.

Data on sales of TV sets in the United States for 1950 varies. An estimated 9%-20% of households in the United States had at least one television set, but by the end of the decade, that figure had grown to nearly 90%. The age of television was upon us, and it changed the way people from around the world, consumed news and entertainment forever.

In the 21st century, the easiest and best example of a different communication network would be the Internet. You can watch your favourite team play live while riding on the train, watch your favourite TV show on your lunch break, or stream the latest news via your phone or laptop. Outrageous.

Credit: © Frank Martin/ Getty Images

North Korea, South Korea:

This is the first time that I need to discuss two references together, because in 1950, North and South Korea dominated the news around the planet. At the time, North and South Korea were two separate countries, having been divided at the 38th parallel north, by the Soviet Union and the United States, after the end of the Second World War.

On 25th June 1950, the North Korean army crossed the 38th parallel and invaded South Korea. Given that the Cold War was the political climate at the time, this conflict slowly became a proxy war for democracy vs communism.

On one side, there was the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), and the People’s Republic of China (China), along with the unofficial support of the Soviet Union; against the Republic of Korea (South Korea), along with the United Nation Forces, which consisted of the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Netherlands, Canada, France, New Zealand, Philippines, Turkey, Thailand, South Africa, Greece, Belgium, Luxembourg, Ethiopia and Colombia; with many more countries supplying support through different means.

This conflict became known as the Korean War and was fought for three years, with the war ending in a stalemate in 1953, with the Korean Armistice Agreement. The war claimed an estimated 2.8 million military and civilian deaths. Much like the Chinese Civil War, the geo-political repercussions of the Korean War are still being felt in 2024.

Sadly, the Korean War will make another entry in the song.

Credit: Map Porn

Marilyn Monroe:

Born Norma Jeane Mortenson, Marilyn Monroe was a model and actress who became an international sex symbol, during the late 1940s-early 1960s. In 1950, Monroe landed some breakthrough roles in films and actually starred in five different films in that year. (A Ticket to Tomahawk, The Asphalt Jungle, All About Eve, The Fireball, and Right Cross). From there, Monroe’s career took off and she soon became a household name.

It’s hard to determine which contemporary model/actress would be like Marilyn Monroe of 1950, so I’ll let you decide on that one. Sorry.

Marilyn Monroe in All About Eve (1950). Credit: 20th Century-Fox

So for 1950, we have covered two US Senators, a failed automobile company, the explosion of television sales, the Korean War, and a model/actress. Like I said last time, this project is going to take some time, so I’ll try and cover 1951-1952 next time. Cool.

That’s it for another week. Thanks once again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Don’t forget to walk your dog, read a banned book, call for a ceasefire in Palestine, and I’ll see you next week because I’m going to be discussing a milestone. It could be interesting.

My wife likes to quit TV shows

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn People, Television

I noticed that I haven’t written about my wife recently. Since she’s the main person I try to impress, I thought I’d better rectify that small oversight. Some of my previous posts involving her are her favourite books, our age gap, Les Misérables, King Charles III, and the entertainment differences between us.

For those of you who have read about our entertainment differences, you know how brave my wife would have to be to try out a new TV show; especially if she knows next to nothing about it. Having said that, my wife is like any other person because she has books, music, and movies that she enjoys, along with some TV shows.

The opposite is also true because just like other people, there are books, music and movies that she dislikes, as well as TV shows. And this darling little cupcake of displeasure is what we will be discussing today.

My wife will watch a new TV show for several reasons. It could be because the show has been recommended to her by myself, friends, or the internet community. Another is that it’s connected or linked to something that she is familiar with; like an adaption of something she already likes, or similar to an already existing TV show.

The reasons for her to start watching a TV show are small, and yet, they can actually be measured against the TV shows she doesn’t like. This is because she has quit them, and once that’s done, they don’t get to come back. Ever.

Image by Tomasz Mikołajczyk from Pixabay

To be fair to her, she never sets out to dislike a TV show. She always has the intention of liking and following the show, through season after season. But yet, and just like relationships, not all of them can last.

When I start watching a new TV show, there would need to be some major problems with it, for me to quit watching. Whether this is a positive or negative trait, I’m not smart enough or cool enough to answer that foreboding question.

With my wife on the other hand, the reason to stop watching a TV show doesn’t have to be complicated, because she has a lot of reasons to quit watching a TV show. Some are very fair, honest and reasonable, while others make me ask, “You can’t be serious?!”

Having discussed this blog post with her, I’ve created a list of 12 TV shows that my wife started watching, but quit for multiple reasons; though some are quite similar. A TV show doesn’t have to do much to lose my wife’s interest, so I had better take close and personal attention to this.

Anyway, let’s see what these poor TV shows did, for my wife to leave them. I’ve also added the episode that made her quit. Enjoy!

The Tick (Remake): Episode 3

When Arthur was being interrogated by the police, it gave her the “ick”, which to her is second-hand embarrassment. She hates watching people embarrass themselves.

The Tudors: Episode 1

She just thought it was really boring, and she said, “Life is too short for this.”

Ghosts (American remake): Episode 4

She saw clips of the British show on YouTube, and she thought it seemed funny. She couldn’t find it on any streaming service, so she tried the American version instead. She said, “It just wasn’t funny and I was super disappointed.”

Supergirl: Episode 4

She really wanted to like Supergirl, but I’ll let my wife explain this one: “Calista Flockhart was too distracting for me. I can only see her as Ally McBeal.“

I Hate Suzie: Episode 1

She loves Billie Piper, but she couldn’t stand the second-hand embarrassment. Please see the Tick.

The Office (American remake): Episode 2

She thought the show wasn’t funny and kind of boring. Similar to The Tudors, she mentioned that, “Life is too short to wait around for it to get good.”

The Tourist: Episode 3

This is a weird one, even for her. Since we live in New Zealand, we receive a lot of Australian TV shows. However, she believed that actors having Australian accents in a drama situation like The Tourist was just wrong; very, very wrong.

Supernatural: Episode 2

She really wanted to like it, because she thought the memes were funny. After watching two episodes, she just wasn’t interested anymore.

Invincible: Episode 3

I’m a fan of Invincible, having read and collected the comics, so I thought she might have liked it. She didn’t, because whenever J. K. Simmons was talking as Nolan Grayson, aka Omni-Man, she could only hear J. K. Simmons’ Tenzin from The Legend of Korra.

Battlestar Galactica (Remake): First episode of the Mini-series

I had seen the remake before, and I had loved it. I missed the final season, so I talked my wife into watching the entire series with me. She lasted until Number Six killed a baby, by snapping their neck in the first episode. Once that was done, she was out of the show. She said that she wasn’t prepared to watch a TV show, that murdered babies.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Episode 2

My wife watched it with me because we are both fans of Middle-earth. Like many other people, she thought the dialogue sounded like a school play, so she just couldn’t get into it.

House of the Dragon: Episode 3

Even though she was a fan of Game of Thrones, and we watched that show together, she wasn’t too interested in House of the Dragon. This was because she knew what was going to happen to the main characters. She used the “Life is too short” quote again for this show.

Do you agree with any of my wife’s TV-watching decisions? As always, please let me know.

This list will be updated, but in the meantime, I’ll have to make a list of movies that my wife has quit; and I promise you there are many.

That’s it for another week. Thanks once again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Don’t forget to walk your dog, read a banned book, call for a ceasefire in Palestine, and I’ll see you next week, for the return of the Tour of the Solar System!

We Didn’t Start the Fire: 1948-1949

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn History, Music, People, Politics

There have been numerous terrible ideas throughout the history of our planet, and unfortunately, many of them have originated from this account. Despite this, we will carry on the tradition and introduce the latest addition to the family of bad ideas, which is Some Geek Told Me.

Last month, I ranted on about my love for We Didn’t Start the Fire, by Billy Joel. In that hot mess of literary foolishness, I explained that I was going to cover all of the historical references in the song; or at least try to, but also relate them to contemporary time. I’ll do this by producing one blog per month. Maybe.

The aim is to cover the 119 references from 1948-1989, so how long will this take me? You tell me and we’ll both know. The lyrics will be in bold and italics because we’re really fancy on this account!

Right, I’m not here to shag spiders, so without too much fanfare, let’s crack on and do this!

Credit: CBS

1948

Harry Truman:

Harry S. Truman was the Vice-President of the United States of America from January-April 1945, then became President after the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Truman is a divisive figure in US and world history, much like Elon Musk or George W. Bush.

On one hand, he helped steer the United States through to the end of the Second World War; authorised the Berlin Airlift; recognised the State of Israel; won re-election in 1948; and promoted civil rights. On the other hand, Truman deployed troops into the Korean War and authorised the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In saying that, George W. Bush would be the modern version of Truman.

Portrait of Harry S. Truman.
Image by WikiImages from Pixabay

Doris Day:

Born Doris Mary Kappelhoff, Doris Day was a major entertainment star in the United States. She was already a successful singer before she turned to acting. Over the years, she became a huge attraction to the television and movie industry.

Billy Joel mentioned her in the song, became her first feature film, Romance on the High Seas, was released in 1948. If you’re still unsure about her impact on pop culture, just think of Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga, or Rihanna.

Doris Day in Romance on the High Seas (1948). Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

1949

Red China:

In 1949, the Chinese Civil War came to a close after causing the deaths of millions of people. Mao Zedong, the leader of the Chinese Communist Party, succeeded in defeating the government led by Chiang Kai-shek and the Kuomintang. As a result, the People’s Republic of China was established.

The Kuomintang, also known as Nationalists, fled mainland China to Taiwan, where they settled and took control. The geo-politics of 2024 concerning China and Taiwan, have their origins in the end of the Chinese Civil War.

The Chinese Civil War, 1949.
(Source: diverse-travel.com)

Johnnie Ray:

Johnnie Ray, a singer, songwriter, and pianist, was born in Oregon, USA. He was widely recognised as the Father of Rock and Roll due to his significant contributions to the genre. During the late 1940s and 1950s, he was one of the most famous singers in the world.

His music and dance moves reinvented the method singers could perform, and paved the way for others to follow him; notably Elvis Presley. When Ray signed to Okeh Records, music was going to be changed forever. For contemporary equivalents, the best people I can think of would be Michael Jackson and Madonna.

Credit: Johnnieray.com

South Pacific:

Not only is it the name of my location, but South Pacific was a Broadway musical, that opened in 1949. The musical was based on the World War Two book, Tales of the South Pacific, and the musical also inspired the 1958 film.

South Pacific is famous; at least to me, for mainly two reasons. The Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein production became one of the best musicals of all time since it was extremely financially and critically successful.

The other reason was that the musical was progressive for its time, as it tackled racism and prejudice. This was important because the United States was still in its segregation phase. If South Pacific opened in 2024, and not in 1949, you can bet your Black Lives Matter flag, that the musical would be labelled as woke. Very, very woke.

Original poster of South Pacific. Credit: Majestic Theatre

Walter Winchell:

We’re going back to another US icon in the form of Walter Winchell. Winchell was primarily a radio news commentator and newspaper columnist, through the 1930’s-1950’s. His notoriety is that he had outspoken views on a variety of subjects, which included attacking the Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan; as well as denouncing communism.

This led Winchell to join the “McCarthyism” movement, in spreading misinformation about the Second Red Scare, supporting the idea that communists had infiltrated the US Government; in addition to destroying people’s careers and reputations.

If you’re having trouble understanding what I’m talking about with Winchell, just picture Alex Jones from InfoWars and you’re there.

Credit: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc

Joe DiMaggio:

Born Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio, Joe DiMaggio was a famous US baseball player. He held multiple batting records and mainly played for the New York Yankees, during the 1940s-1950s. In the world of team sports, DiMaggio would have been Michael Jordan or Lionel Messi. DiMaggio was a star and hero to millions of people.

In 1949, DiMaggio signed a contract with the Yankees worth $100,000. This was a record-breaking contract for a professional sportsman at the time and helped to usher in a new wave of extremely well-paid players.

Credit: Associated Press archives

And with that, we have covered 1948-1949, in the form of a US President, a singer/actor, a civil war, another singer, a musical, a gossip columnist, and a baseball player.

My We Didn’t Start the Fire project is going to take some time, but we’ll get there. Eventually.

Thanks once again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Don’t forget to walk your dog, read a banned book, eat a raw lemon, and I’ll see you next week, because we’re going to check in with my wife and her television shows. It’s going to be riveting.

Where would we be without Akira Toriyama?

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Comics, People, Television

I had a completely different blog lined up for this week, but after the media announcement on Friday, I changed my mind and wrote this instead. Akira Toriyama, the legendary manga creator, died on 1st March from an acute subdural hematoma, aged 68 years old.

Toriyama had created and worked on many different projects and video games over the years, like Dr. Slump, the Dragon Quest series, Chrono Trigger, and Blue Dragon. However, his most famous creation was Dragon Ball, which showcased his talents to Japan and the world.

 So what’s the point of this blog?

I’m crying about the death of a man I had never met.

Akira Toriyama. Credit: Dragon Ball Wiki

It won’t come as a shock, but I’m a fan of Dragon Ball because I’m a fan of Toriyama’s work. His art was outrageous, explosive, and detailed, whether it was manga or anime. It was unreal. I mentioned this before, but I loved the way he drew ears, for some strange reason. You could see a character and judging by their ears, you could tell whether they belonged to Toriyama or not.

As for his vehicles, they were so well designed, that you could see yourself driving one of them, whether they travelled by air, land, or sea. They were so good!

The plots were just as fantastic. People will talk about his art, but Toriyama was an amazing storyteller. His characters went on huge quests, and fought powerful foes, but also went through massive personal growth, so his characters were always evolving.

I’m sad about his passing for many reasons. Even not personally, Toriyama introduced me to manga, anime, and other parts of Japanese culture. For a geek living in New Zealand, his characters and art were extraordinary. My love of manga and anime can be traced back to him.

It’s been astonishing to see the outpouring of tributes to Toriyama from fans around the world. He was beloved by so many people. It made me think of all of the hundreds of artists, writers, singers, actors, directors, scientists, athletes, and anybody else, whose work has indirectly shaped our lives. They’re in the background of our subconscious.

It’s not until one of them dies, that you reflect and realise how influential they were to you and your life. That’s how I feel about Toriyama. His influence on pop culture has changed the world; the word Saiyan, is now part of the world’s lexicon, regardless of language or culture.

I read how many different manga and anime creators have come out and cited Toriyama as their source of inspiration. I find this amazing because even Toriyama was inspired to pursue a career in illustration. I find the creation and history of entertainment, similar to the history of science, where all creators are standing on the shoulders of giants. And make no mistake, Toriyama was a giant.

Imagine if Toriyama was never inspired to draw and create? It’s in the realms of possibility that maybe someone down the road would have drawn characters with energy beams, have awesome names for attack styles, teleportation, explosive fights, cities being destroyed, and badass vehicles.

But where would we be without Toriyama and powering/levelling-up sequences? Think about it. We would be lost in the abyss. For me, the powering/levelling-up sequences in Dragon Ball represented the brilliance and glorious scope of Toriyama’s skills.

I don’t know what Toriyama’s legacy will be for the world, but I feel it will be eternal. As for me, the biggest praise I can give Toriyama is that when UMC1 and UMC2 are ready, I’ll be showing them Dragon Ball. I can’t wait to sit down with them both, and let them experience the crazy and beautiful nature of Toriyama’s work; along with practising their own Kamehameha waves.

Like I said before, I can never thank Toriyama enough for his work, so all I can do is let the next generation live it and breathe it. Right, I need to control my crying, so that’s it for this week. What’s your favourite art drawn by Akira Toriyama? Please let me know. 

Thanks once again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Don’t forget to walk your dog; watch a banned movie; go read some manga, and I’ll see you next week because we’re going to check in on the Coalition of Chaos.

We Didn’t Start the Fire: The Beginning

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn History, Music, People

I love history, so please remember that I’m a geek. I remember my family owned an extremely outdated encyclopedia set that I would read through; mainly for the history sections, though I’ve never read Grays Sports Almanac: Complete Sports Statistics 1950-2000.

I love trying to understand why certain historical events have happened, when they happened, who was involved, what actually happened, how they are connected to the present, and of course, whether the Doctor was involved or not.

I’ve just stopped and read what I’ve written, and I couldn’t have sounded more of a geek, than if I had actually tried. Anyway, this is why I have developed a useless ability to remember the dates of historical events. This ability doesn’t help me socially or professionally, but it does keep me at home and prevents me from trading comic books in dark alleys.

The point of this ramble is that my love of history led me to love We Didn’t Start the Fire by Billy Joel. If I ever produce a soundtrack to my life, We Didn’t Start the Fire will be on it.

If you have no idea about the song or have never heard it, then sit down, relax, and prepare yourself.

Image by 41330 from Pixabay

We Didn’t Start the Fire was released in the much more innocent time of 1989, when Bill Cosby was the king of sitcoms, Donald Trump was still married to Ivana, Harvey Weinstein had started as an executive producer, Vladimir Putin was still in the KGB, and Kim Jong Un was five years old.

The song reached number one on the United States Billboard Hot 100 in 1989 and has become part of pop culture with various themes. Over the years, critics of the song have trashed it, along with Billy Joel himself, coming out and stating his dislike for it.

So what is the song about? Well, I’m not intelligent enough to break the song down into its musical components, but what I am going to do is gush over the lyrics.

To me, it’s like rap, because the words are rapid-fire, and they are about events and people from the 20th century, circa 1948-1989. The historical references have influenced the United States, but also the world, both positively and negatively, which makes them extremely important; well, at least to me.

As for the chorus, several people could give you different explanations for the meaning behind the lyrics, but for what it’s worth, I’m probably wrong. However, I’ll let you know what it means to me.

We didn’t start the fire
It was always burning, since the world’s been turning
We didn’t start the fire
No, we didn’t light it, but we tried to fight it

The fire could represent multiple things like violence, hatred, war, bigotry, racism, sexism, and capitalism. It could be all of them or none of them; though the point is that the fire has existed and been burning since we descended from the trees and spread out across Eastern and Southern Africa.

The world of 2024 didn’t start the fire, nor did the world of 1989. Events and people have compounded and added to national and international problems over the centuries; and in the case of the song, decades. This means the next generation has to fight and solve the issues created by previous generations; even though they have been trying to stop the spread of the fire. At least to me, it does.

We didn’t start the fire
It was always burning, since the world’s been turning
We didn’t start the fire
But when we are gone
It will still burn on, and on, and on, and on, and on, and on, and on, and on

After every single person who is alive at this moment in time has died, the world will still continue to turn, and the fire will still be burning, awaiting the next generation of people to meet it. In 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, or 250 years, the fire will continue to burn, just as it always has.

Some of the best messages; again, at least to me, in the song are these:

  • If we don’t understand the past, we are doomed to repeat the same mistakes.
  • You are not personally guilty, along with your generation, for the condition of the world, whether its politically, socially, physically, etc.
  • What you can be guilty of, is what you are going to do about the condition of the world.

And the coolest message in the song is this:

People have the capacity for tremendous evil, just as they have the capacity for amazing good. As a species, we will never stop the fire from burning, we just can’t. But what we can do is fight the spread of the fire, through our own actions, along with our children and grandchildren, by teaching them to care. If we can restrict and limit the spread of the fire, the damage will be least destructive for us, and for future generations. I feel we can do this through information, knowledge and education; you know, that old chestnut.

In a small way, and in the greatest example of my hubris, the vanity project that is Some Geek Told Me, is an ode to We Didn’t Start the Fire. One of the factors for Some Geek Told Me’s creation, was feeling I wasn’t doing enough to fight the spread of the fire.

We Didn’t Start the Fire is one of my favourite songs, so I decided to try and back up my big mouth and actually do something. I know it’s hubris, I really do, and I know Billy Joel would deem this quite sad, but I’m ok with that.

Having said all of this, I’m starting a new project within Some Geek Told Me. I realise many other people have already done this, but I’m going to take a crack at it. Just like the Tour of the Solar System, I’m going to have a monthly blog post about We Didn’t Start the Fire, looking at the historical references.

I’m going to talk about them in groups, like 1955-1957, or 1958-1961, rather than in decades or simply as years. There are 118 historical references in the song, so this poorly constructed idea will take some time. You have been warned. The music video is quite outstanding as well. Again, to my geeky arse, it is.

Well, that’s it for another week. Thank you once again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Please don’t forget to walk your dog, read a banned book, paint a rainbow, and I’ll see you next week.

Food and Prejudice: Volume 1

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Food, People

If you’re a long-time reader of this wildly inconsistent blog, then you must have known that this post was coming. At some point, this blog was going to appear; and just like Thanos, it was inevitable.

I try to write about entertaining things on New Zealand’s 5th least favourite website, but also things that interest me, as well as world events; whether they’re positive or negative. Since you would have already used your amazing powers of observational deduction; that would have impressed the residents of 221B Baker Street, that this post will not exactly be positive.

I enjoy eating food, mainly because it helps me to live, but also because of the fantastic tastes and flavours. However, as you can imagine, I don’t love everything. There are some foods that I dislike so much, that I’m prejudiced against them.

I know, I’m not a perfect person, because I’m not Chuck Norris. This was because I was participating in a very dangerous activity the other day; I was having an independent thought. This strange event caused me to decide to talk about some of my food grievances. There are only three foods that have made the list for this volume, but I promise you, there will be more volumes.

Without dragging this out like a villain’s monologue, let’s dive into Food and Prejudice: Volume 1!

© Getty Images

Sour Cream and Chives

I have been waffling on about this for some time now, but for anybody new, I’ll explain: I hate Sour Cream and Chives. I hate it. This covers chips, crisps, sauces, crackers, dips, rice cakes, and anything else that this abomination of humanity has spread to. It’s disgusting and I’m positive that the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, wear it as cologne.

I just don’t understand the point of this flavour existing, when someone could have Salt and Vinegar, Barbeque, or Chicken instead. It’s like some company had a focus group, and they discovered that the public disliked certain flavours. Then the overpaid executives started talking:

“Hey, instead of never using chives or sour cream with any of our products, let’s add them together!”

“That would be amazing!”

“I have a good feeling that some guy in New Zealand would love it.”

“Instead of calling it, “Demon’s Arse Breath”, let’s call it “Sour Cream and Chives!”

After reading this, I’m pretty confident that’s how it actually happened. In my experience, smelling Sour Cream and Chives, makes my face look like I had witnessed the All Blacks losing to Japan, 75-0. Tasting Sour Cream and Chives is like if I was one of the All Blacks that had lost 75-0 to Japan.

People adding awful things like Sour Cream and Chives together is like adding climate change data to tax forms. They both suck independently, but now, you have just made things worse. That flavour really is awful.1

I hate Sour Cream and Chives.

Source: The Food Journal

Corn

Because we’ve been together for some time now, I’ll make a confession. As you know, I hate Sour Cream and Chives. I loathe it. However, whatever I feel about Sour Cream and Chives, falls at the altar of despair over what I feel about Corn.

It’s like I’m the hero, and Sour Cream and Chives is Lex Luthor, The Joker, Doctor Doom, or the Green Goblin; aka your greatest enemy or arch nemesis. You deal with your arch nemesis quite often; even daily sometimes. They are your enemy like you are theirs. You are doomed to dance together forever, and even in death, you will never be free of them.

But not all villains or enemies can be your greatest. Some villains don’t just desire your demise, they want to destroy everything. This is because they are your most dangerous enemy. Think of Doomsday, Ra’s al Ghul, Galactus, or Carnage; basically if one of these villains turns up, you need to stop what you’re doing, because shit just got real.

As for me, my most dangerous enemy is Corn. If Corn turns up, things have escalated extremely quickly. Corn wrecks everything it touches, apart from corn chips.

I’m serious about Corn so much, that I spell it with an uppercase letter. It’s not corn, but Corn!! If I’m eating a pie and Corn reveals itself, I will stop eating and ask one simple question, “Why in the nine levels of Dante’s Hell, is there Corn in my pie?!”

If I’m eating a particular soup and Corn ambushes me, my response is clear. “Who is the smooth-brained mouth breather, that put Corn in this?!”

I’m not ashamed to admit this, I can’t handle Corn. I just can’t do it. Corn chips are easy, and I love them; but Corn…

I can’t even handle the smell of it, let alone the taste. As soon as I smell that yellow putrid odour, I start gagging. As for the taste; if Sour Cream and Chives taste like Demon’s Arse Breath, then Corn tastes like regurgitated Zombie Dung Beetle vomit.

Even as a boy, I knew the dangers of Corn. Growing up, my family had fallen under its repulsive influence, but not me. I’m a survivor. I spent my life checking foods and beverages for Corn, but also visiting other countries and discovering that Corn can hide itself in things you had never heard or thought of.

Whether it’s tragic irony or poetic justice, my wife loves Corn. I knew this about her before we married, but I married her anyway. Nobody is perfect, although I do have a rule with her though; the lips that have immediately touched Corn, will not touch mine.

I hate Corn.

Image by Abdulhakeem Samae from Pixabay

Beetroot

I don’t want to give people the impression that I don’t eat vegetables, because that’s not true. I just don’t eat all vegetables. Case in point, may I present beetroot. It’s a stupid name for a stupid vegetable.

I’m not prejudiced against beetroot to the same extent as Sour Cream and Chives or Corn, but I still hate it. Yes, I know beetroot have many health benefits, as well as being part of a staple diet in many countries, but like I said before, I still hate it.

For me, I find beetroot’s taste and texture to be quite slimy, so I’m not sure whether anybody agrees with me on this. If I find beetroot in or on my food, I treat it with a mild level of disdain and remove it as quickly as possible, without drawing too much attention to it.

This of course is a mote point, if the beetroot has stained the surrounding food with that reddish/purplish colour. It’s like the beetroot has bled everywhere on purpose, just to make you go hungry, knowing you won’t eat that food now. In my humble opinion, that’s quite petty and vindictive.

Beetroot is not dangerous, it’s just gross, sad, and annoying.

I hate beetroot.

Image by Anna Sulencka from Pixabay

Do you agree with any of my food prejudices? What are yours? As always, please let me know.

It’s been a busy week. Qatar won the Asian Cup for the second time, Ivory Coast won the African Cup of Nations for the third time, and the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl for the fourth time. Nice.

That’s it for another blog and another week. Thank you once again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. I’m also on X and Mastodon if you want to complain about me. Please don’t forget to walk your dog, read a banned book, watch out for dodgy cats, and I’ll see you next week.

1.) My wife walked in and read this, so she asked me to include the fact that she, the dog, UMC1 and UMC2 all love Sour Cream and Chives. Apparently, I’m the only sensible one in the family.

What can you buy with US$88.3 million?

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn People

For this week’s rant, I would like to talk about money; in particular, US$88.3 million. You may be asking yourself, “Scott, that’s a precise amount of money you’re mentioning, what’s going on?”

That’s very perceptive of you to notice, ka pai! If you haven’t already heard, you may need to sit down for this. Donald J. Trump, everybody’s favourite ex-president, was involved in a second defamation lawsuit brought against him by E. Jean Carroll.

Trump had previously been found guilty, of defaming and sexually abusing Carroll, in May 2023. This resulted in Trump having to pay $5 million to Carroll in damages.

Fast forward to the second defamation lawsuit, where on 26th January 2024, a jury of his peers assessed the trial and handed him two fines, $18.3 million in compensatory damages and $65 million in punitive damages, to be paid to Carroll. There are a lot of other factors in these two cases, but the crux of it is this: the court had awarded Carroll $88.3 million in damages, and Trump is legally required to pay it.

I’m aware that Trump is appealling the decision, but I really want to talk that figure: $88.3 million. To me, that number is an astronomical amount for a single person to pay. It’s more money than a huge percentage of the world’s population would ever see or earn.

Which brings us to the question; what can you buy with $88.3 million?

Image by S K from Pixabay

I realise that the US currency is not the only currency that exists in the world, I mean New Zealand uses polymer Monopoly-type bank notes. That being the case, the fines were in US currency, so that’s the currency I’ll be using.

Before I start, I need to add three points:

1.) Any conversion of foreign currency will be accurate at the time of writing this blog.

2.) The price of any shares will be accurate at the time of writing this blog.

3.) Some suggestions will have a price tag, others will be donating to charities or organisations.

Awesome, let’s put on our imagination hats and on behalf of E. Jean Carroll, let’s spend $88.3 million on things that Trump would love.

Price Tag:

Diamond Life Membership to the NAACP: $2,500

Membership to the AAPIP: $300 per year

100,000 Pfizer shares at $26.93: $2,693,000

World Vision: To fund 1,000 community mini-savings banks at $591: $591,000

Oxfam: 10,000 Hygiene kits at $36.38: $363,800

Annual Washington Post Premium Digital subscription: $39 first year, then $100

Curator membership to American Museum of Natural History: $10,000 per year

Tractors for Africa: 50 x 75 HP tractors in Ghana at $35,000: $1,750,000

Frontline Membership to the Anti-Defamation League: $1,000 per year

Global Giving: Literacy Classes & Books for Afghan Women & Girls: Two reference books for a school or public library for $24: 2,500 books for $60,000.

Babbel: Learning Spanish-Lifetime membership: $299.50 (current sale)

Unicef USA: To fully vaccinate 500,000 children at $58: $29,000,000

Annual New York Times digital subscription: $20 first year, then $90

Becoming a Clinton Foundation Ambassador: starting at $1,500 per year

Lifetime member of Pride at Work: $1,000

Michelle Obama: The Light We Carry at Amazon: $20.99 paperback

100,000 NextEra Energy (solar and wind energy) shares at $58.15: $5,815,000

Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour Poster: $30.00

Donations:

The Water Project

Sandy Hook Promise

Welcome Corps

Open Society Foundations

World Health Organization (WHO)

Galck+(Formerly known as The Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Kenya)

Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network

United Way

Planned Parenthood

United Hands for Relief and Development (UHR)

Obama Foundation

Amnesty International

Everytown for Gun Safety

I’m sure Trump would approve of every single one of these wonderful selections, for Carroll to spend his money on.

This is all fun and games, but if we are allowed to be serious, there are thousands of worthwhile charities, NGOs, and groups in the world; which cover every possible theme or cause. $88.3 million could go a long way in helping a vast amount of people, in a short amount of time.

$88.3 million. That figure still staggers me, all because a 77-year-old man, could not stop insulting an 80-year-old woman. I wonder what a third defamation lawsuit would look like? Damages over $100 million? $125 million? Higher?

If the court awarded you $88.3 million of Trump’s money, what would you do? As always, please let me know.

That’s it for another blog and another week. Thank you so much for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me. Please don’t forget to walk your dog, read a banned book, watch the African Cup of Nations and Asian Cup Finals, and I’ll see you next week.

Merry Christmas 2023

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Blogs, People

I reached down in my pocket and pulled out some hope and a short blog. On behalf of UMC1, UMC2, my wife, and the staff at Some Geek Told Me1, we hope everybody has a Merry Christmas! Being in New Zealand, my Christmas Day will have rain and a high of 23°C, which is 73.4°F for our Fahrenheit cousins.

This is our local town Christmas Tree, from the front and back. It may come as a complete surprise, but I’m not a professional photographer, so sorry about the crap photos.

Christmas is also the time of the year when I spend some extra time with UMC1 and UMC2, so this week’s blog is smaller; along with next week’s. If you’re a parent, I hope you understand. I’ll still be posting daily dribble on Twitter and Mastodon, so don’t panic.

Thank you for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me through 2023, it means a lot to me. Thanks for supporting this vanity project, and I’ll see you on 1st January 2024.

1.) The entire staff of Some Geek Told Me still consists of only one guy, that eats too much pizza, who needs even more sleep, and cries when he recognises his favourite bands as background mall music.