The Two Vague Podcast

After a refreshing holiday respite, Ben is back with his amazing autistic friend Andrew to talk about his latest creative endeavor.  Andrew shares the deets on the contents of and inspiration behind his latest zine, “An Actually Autistic Window on Economics.”  After the definition formalities have concluded, the masters of “stream of consciousness” type conversation, Ben and Andrew, talk about EVs, the perils of Twitter, the building blocks of accounting, child labor, instant coffee, TicketMaster, Lucas Pope’s game “Papers Please,” and and the John Hughes classic “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.”  They close the show by discussing weather or not the video games industry is recession-proof.
00:00:21 - Chairs, Stools, and the Poang twins start the show!00:03:03 - Pandemic globalization stories and which word is scarier, economy or economics?00:06:40 - The definition of this week’s word, and marketing brushless power master cars00:10:00 - Etymology, ecology, economics, exactly the same amount of cool, and autism 00:12:52 - The economics of social media, billionaires making trouble, and Weird Al00:16:15 - Reddit for people with short attention spans, and Andrew’s inspiration for the zine00:19:09 - The discipline of accounting, recognizing your own value, and Scrooge McDuck 
FUN FACT: Allen F. Morgenstern coined the phrase “work smarter not harder” in the 1930s.
00:23:11 - Newsies, holding stuff, intangible assets, good will, and humanity00:28:04 - How things move and flow, emotional racketeering, girl scouts, and mayonnaise.00:31:04 - Andrew thinks Folgers bought Seattle’s Best, and Ben’s question about the zine00:34:41 - According to the accounting equation you can have positive equity or Kanye West00:39:02 - Twitter celebrity stories, the good part of social media, and prayers to the algorithm 00:42:25 - Taylor Swift tickets, owning the “mechanicals,” leverage, and Bob Dylan00:45:26 - Southwest Airlines, efficiency, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off - CME scene @39:2300:47:24 - The Chicago Mercantile Exchange, and timing the path of the movie00:50:14 - A judgement on Daffy Duck’s personality and back to “the Merc”00:53:26 - Pork-bellies, soy, Andrew’s new sticker idea, and Ferris Bueller’s wisdom
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off - Ferris’ Beatles monologue @05:2100:55:47 - Favorite -isms, Andrew’s communism example, and missing supplies00:59:51 - Large scale corruption, the trouble with consolidated dictatorships, and FIFA01:03:49 - Ben explains the game Papers, Please (created by Lucas Pope) to Andrew
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off - Ben Stein’s second scene  @10:4401:06:35 - Ben Stein’s (not Jimmy Kimmel’s) money and accrual basis accounting01:10:01 - Andrew has a message for the listeners, and remembering John Hughes movies01:12:49 - Prepare yourself for Ben’s dramatic reading, too much live, and the deadest pan
01:14:57 - Andrew’s suggestion, and Ben asks, “are video games recession-proof?”01:18:29 - Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon versus Jon Bauman, and closing the show
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To keep up with Andrew’s creative pursuits, check out his website!https://partlyrobot.com/
To buy all of the amazing goodies available at the Partly Robot Industries store, use one of these... https://partlyrobotindustries.bigcartel.com/
bit.ly/economyrobot 
 

Carl, the coordinator for the Games and Online Harassment Hotline and all-around good guy, joins Ben this week to discuss a word introduced in print by psychologist Edward Tichener in 1909!  They talk about their personal stories of processing their emotions, what harassment looks like in the digital age, toxic masculinity, the power video games, and what the hotline is doing to make the online landscape more hospitable for everyone.  They close out the show talking about what games Carl has been playing recently.
00:00:50 - Hotline Coordinator Carl (he/him/his) introduces himself and what he does00:02:40 - Feminist Frequency, shoutout to WGG and Jae, 2 men talking, and definitions00:04:45 - Nearly 3 centuries between sympathy and empathy, and Ben’s story about his father00:07:36 - Feelings, empathy can take work and imagination, and connecting with people00:10:19 - Carl’s story about his first experience, and the pros and cons of using labels 00:13:43 - Ben’s empathy, sympathy, and compassion Venn diagram00:16:00 - The internet has turned the bullying volume up to 15, and dispelling notions00:17:47 - Using games as an outlet for processing feelings, and Carl’s behavior in cars00:20:15 - “Game type” statistics, and dispelling false assumptions about online harassment00:23:36 - Continuous training for agents relating gaming news and impactful events00:26:17 - Understanding oppression dynamics, and accountability conversations in support00:28:31 - A tricky navigation, fostering a positive online community, and creating resources 00:31:14 - The targets of hate raids helped to create a resource for marginalized streamers 00:34:53 - Hate raid mitigation, Carl and Ben don’t Twitch, and supporting content creators00:37:54 - What Carl is playing these days…Apex Legends, Grounded, and Overwatch 200:40:30 - Gamers feeling entitled can lead to harassment of players and developers00:43:55 - Acknowledging the potential for empathy, and redefining gender norms00:46:10 - Feelings and expectations about making connections in the gaming industry00:48:00 - The future of gameshotline.org , donate, spread the word, and/or volunteer  
 
About the Games and Online Harassment Hotline (taken from their webpage):“The Games and Online Harassment Hotline is a free, text message-based, confidential emotional support hotline.  We created the Hotline specifically for the gaming community. Whether you’re a player, a developer, a streamer, a competitor — any part of this community —we’re here for you, whether that means offering emotional support or finding the referrals and resources that you need.”
Keep up to date with what’s going on at the Games and Online Harassment Hotline by visiting:https://gameshotline.org
PS  PLEASE… somebody play Grounded with Carl; you might just make a friend for life!

Cheyenne joins Ben in the studio this week to discuss intelligence… human, biological, artificial, or otherwise.  To get the conversational juices flowing (eew!), they talk about the games they are currently playing: Project Zomboid and Cult of the Lamb.  Upon becoming adequately lubricated (again… eew!), they talk about the definition of the word intelligence and the “types” of intelligences.  Along with the excessive use of the word dry, other topics of conversation this week include: IQ tests, Mensa meetings, college culture, robot baristas, AI artists, goldfish driving cars, grown brain cells playing Pong, and the game Spore by Maxis.  
 
00:00:21 - “We are your hosts for the Two Vague Podcast this week,” and Cheyenne’s absence
00:01:45 - Project Zomboid by The Indie Stone, a post-apocalyptic SIMS 2, and your COD
00:05:50 - Cult of the Lamb by Massive Monster, and 9 out of 10 doctors recommend… 
00:11:28 - A nebulous topic, the definition, a gum condition, and a little dip in the 1900s
00:13:58 - The 9 types of intelligence, our fathers, drinking bleach, and walking into walls 
00:17:40 - Intelligence Quotient, Mensa meetings, memory, and knowledge retention
00:22:48 - Changing the (college) academic culture, staying in school, and new experiences
00:25:50 - Splitting hairs, Cheyenne crystalizes, Ben’s attorney, and college degrees
00:28:18 - Artificial intelligence, building robots, computers with feelings, and sentience 
00:31:25 - The hypothetical barista, sex robots, and AI communication methods 
00:35:20 - Training robot baristas, the moisture content of cappuccinos, and probing questions
00:40:02 - 77 Snickers bars, an AI designing its own body, and fears about automation
00:42:59 - An AI winning an art contest, Ben’s fair pun, and programs being “creative”
00:46:21 - Rules for casual art contests, abstract concepts, and DALL-E’s diversity problems
00:49:05 - Cheyenne’s “Non-binary person in cornfield” as “imagined” by WOMBO’s dream AI 
00:51:22 - Teaching goldfish how to drive, and Ben’s imagined future of taxicabs 
00:53:50 - Teaching grown mouse and human brain cells how to play Pong (badly)
00:57:26 - Biological computers, augmenting the human brain, and remembering stuff
01:02:25 - Rotting brains, developing skills, dopamine, and games that teach 
01:06:21 - Cheyenne explains the game Spore developed by Maxis and released in 2008 
01:10:15 - Ben and Cheyenne have different opinions about messing around with asteroids
01:12:59 - Closing thoughts on the word intelligence
 
Note: The “Non-binary person in cornfield” image from the episode artwork was created (by Cheyenne) using WOMBO’s dream AI.  For more information on this AI artist, go to https://www.wombo.art/

Journalism major Amaya joins Ben this week to discuss our habits… good, bad, and otherwise.   While enduring an impromptu cat cuddling session, Amaya shares her struggles with ADHD, her recently discovered haircare regimen, how she expresses herself with social media, her knowledge of astrology, and an interesting tattoo idea.  Ben has a few “dad humor” moments, but he also talks about how he approaches changing his own habits, his walking apples, what he learned about the word habit, and his early 20s one time experience with a “gateway drug.”  Video Games discussed include: It Takes Two, Moving Out, Overcooked, Knights and Bikes, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Bugsnax, and The Sims.
00:00:25 - Amaya is covered in cats and talking about journalism 00:04:00 - Self-expression in the age of social media, delivery via snail, and newspapers00:09:03 - Amaya gets accustomed to being called a zoomer in under a minute, and news00:12:02 - ADHD, depression, anxiety, psychiatry, therapy, and medication00:18:02 - The dictionary definition of the word habit, religious garments, and clothing00:22:12 - Haircare, journaling, tetrahydrocannabinol, pens, and Ben’s one experience00:27:07 - Transitioning habits from bad to good, Ben’s “hot girl walking,” and apples 00:29:37 - The importance of releasing emotions, communication, and self-expression00:33:02 - Connecting with partners and developing relationships through playing games 00:35:48 - Fun Co-op games: It Takes Two, Overcooked, Moving Out, and Knight and Bikes00:41:22 - Collecting bells in Animal Crossing, and Tom Nook represents “nice capitalism”00:44:49 - A digression in to astrology, Ben learns the word stellium, and deep dish pizza 00:49:31 - Ben’s “cat dad” joke, being reincarnated as a cat, and the octopus 00:51:46 - Game habits, cleanup before stopping, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild00:54:23 - Ben gives “What’s Good Games” a shoutout, Pokemon, and again with the Bugsnax00:57:05 - A brief summary of Amaya’s video game past, and doing horrible things to Sims01:00:11 - Creating your partner in the Sims, lock up the cats, and closing thoughts

Norah joins Ben this week to talk about ancient art of food assembly.  We do it for fun.  We do it to impress.  We do it when we are hungry… sometimes.  The hosts share their fond memories of family cooking for Christmas gatherings, the cooking shows they watch, the memorable dishes they have prepared, and an assortment of cooking techniques.   For the games portion of the show, Norah talks about her experiences with her very first idle game, Hidea and Neowiz’s “Cats & Soup.”  Ben talks about a handful of cooking games he has been playing recently: Battle Chef Brigade, “Cook, Serve, Delicious” (2 and 3), Overcooked 2, and Cooking Mama: Cuisine!
00:03:55 - From sitcoms with the most spinoffs to spun foods… Ben’s ill-advised segue00:06:20 - The unsung hero of the kitchen, and Gordon Ramsey’s demeanor with children 00:08:53 - Ben’s remembers Norah’s Christmas Eve dinners, and working in restaurants00:10:52 - Norah cooks hasenpfeffer, and remembering “Spinach Stuff” and “Cheap Meat”00:16:15 - Describing dinner, a single person’s best friend, and number of steps00:21:03 - Ben learns the cooking terms chiffonade and macerate 00:25:00 - The meal kit trend, and learning about cooking techniques 00:27:37 - Norah talks about playing Cats & Soup, and Ben explains what an idle game is00:30:20 - “Less than zen,” in game advertisements, cold soups, and Ben’s favorite soup00:33:26 - The “Food Wars!” manga and anime, and Ben explains Shonen Jump anime00:36:12 - “Foodgasms,” being naked-ish, not a food prude, and the show premise 00:41:10 - Iron Chef, cook on cook sabotaging, drama, and Ready… Set… Cook!00:45:22 - Ben talks about his time with the game Battle Chef Brigade 00:50:39 - Ben said manure, but meant to say fertilizer00:51:17 - Are cooks, served… delicious too?  Are time management games fun?00:56:30 - Overcooked and Overcooked 2… testing the stability of friendships since 201601:01:25 - The Cooking Mama franchise and the failed Gardening Mama games01:07:00 - Closing words of wisdom on the word cook. 

Brittney (Mom / barista / photographer) joins Ben this week to talk about a word that brings her much joy.  The two hosts discuss photography past, present, and future.  Subjects include: the art of photography, personal connections to photos, baby books, camera technology, Purikura (photo booths), and how we will “record” our memories in the future.  Then it’s on to video games.  Brittney talks about the ailment that caused her to lose her horses in Minecraft.  Ben talks about the games Pokemon Snap, Beyond Good and Evil, Dead Rising, The Bradwell Conspiracy, and NUTS.  If you live in Tucson and need a photographer, take a peek at a sampling of Brittney’s (@bjunephotography) portfolio on Instagram!
00:00:51 - An I or a Y?00:04:10 - Use of the word photograph in print, and Brittney’s preliminary thoughts on photos00:06:45 - Storytelling with images, the band Def Leppard, and cassette tapes00:11:40 - The ease of taking pictures today, and the tactile nature of photographs00:15:20 - Using “baby books” for extortion, and being creative with photos00:18:25 - The advantages of using cameras instead of phones, and Ban has lots of nickels 00:22:10 - Has Brittney ever wanted to be a photojournalist? 00:25:01 - Photographs in black and white, post production editing, and disposable cameras00:28:19 - Ben remembers the Fotomat and waiting weeks for developed photos 00:31:45 - Mall photo franchises, photo booths, and Brittney thinks Ben is speaking in tongues00:36:05 - The Purikura phenomenon in Japan, 3D printed images, and Mentos 00:41:48 - Pictures and videos in augmented reality, and walking “into” photos 00:46:00 - Brittney’s video game experiences past and present, and the silent killer… of horses00:51:16 - Pokemon Snap, the “rail shooter,” Beyond Good & Evil, and zombies in a mall00:54:46 - Photojournalist Frank West and the Dead Rising franchise00:59:07 - Pronouncing “Willamette,” Resident Evil, and zombie speed preferences01:02:27 - Ben talks about his experiences with “a sucky version of Control”01:06:16 - Catching and photographing squirrels on a closed circuit monitor IS the game NUTS01:10:53 - Brittney’s thoughts on photography in video games, and developing photographs01:13:45 - Closing thoughts on the word photo, check out Brittney’s work on Insta! 
 

This week Ben and Norah are discussing the food we consume to tide us over to our next full meal.  Yummy SNACKS!  Sprinkled throughout the episode are salty stories and discussions about electric boats, happy hours, ice cream bar diets, snakes, potato salad, and “sleepy chicken.”  After Norah reveals her cookie addiction, Ben reveals his Bacon number!  Finally, the proverbial cherry(s) on top for a touch of sweetness are conversations about Norah playing Ben Esposito’s Donut County and Ben playing Young Horses’ Bugsnax. 
00:00:35 - Norah’s boat trip on the Chicago River, and knocking out the arthritis 00:03:37 - River-faring to snack food segue, word of the day calendar, and eating casually00:06:27 - No “walking apples” for Ben in Japan, and sexually attractive people00:09:23 - “Go to” snacks, baby carrots… aren’t, and Norah almost spews00:12:46 - Vegetable trays, Ben’s ice cream bar diet story, and being an ectomorph 00:15:45 - Trigger warning: skinny guy complains about the monetary cost of being skinny00:16:49 - Norah’s post-boating experience at the “Adult Snack Machine”00:19:50 - Ben asks what the food items in afternoon tea or high tea are called00:22:25 - Drinks as snacks, in my freezer, served in a paper cup, and portion control00:25:05 - Salty-sweet snacks, and Paula Poundstone’s eating a box of Pop-Tarts bit00:29:24 - Ben’s “Weird-ass Cheese (and Spinach) Quesadilla,” and Telly Savalas00:32:04 - Norah and Ben talk about playing Donut County 00:35:55 - Annapurna Interactive, Ben is too excited about his Bacon number, and snakes00:39:24 - Independent game studio Young Horses, and taking photos 00:42:10 - Talkin’ bout’ Bugsnax, and opinions on what makes a “kids games”00:45:12 - Eating insects, and Ben explains some Bugsnax game mechanics to Norah00:48:00 - The truth about Bambi… which was based on a book by an Austrian author00:51:59 - Capturing the cheese puff butterfly, and a brief history on game FAQs and guides00:55:55 - Zach "Danger" Brown’s fifty-five thousand dollar potato salad00:57:33 - Memes vs. political cartoons, and the “sleepy chicken” TikTok trend01:00:40.- FDA warnings, the nature of social media communications, and locked goods01:04:20 - Norah and Ben’s parting snack wisdom 

We’ve hit another 30-ish episode milestone, so it’s time for another “cutting room floor” show!  This never before heard material is a potpourri of trivia, news discussions, personal stories, and it all starts with a joke from my Aunt!  We hope you enjoy the smorgasbord of clips from episodes 33, 35, 43, 48, 50, 53, 54, and 55.   
00:00:21 - Starting the clip show with what Ben has been noodling with lately00:03:09 - WHY DO I KEEP CALLING IT DONUT COUNTRY… IT’s DONUT COUNTY!
CLIP #1 - Norah’s joke00:04:10 - Intro00:05:25 - Green tea lemonade and lemon loaf after a “stick in the nose test”00:08:01 - Norah asks Ben if he’s figured out disco yet, and then she tells her joke00:10:20 - Prepare yourself for Ben’s brand of humor, and who should tell specific jokes
CLIP #2 - Bash interrupts 00:11:47 - Intro00:14:06 - Various states of undress 
CLIPS #3 and #4 - Action hero, character quotes, romantic comedies, and American Psycho00:14:45 - Intro00:17:32 - Is Die Hard a Christmas movie? Is James Bond a hero?00:20:59 - Daniel Craig is now Ben’s favorite James Bond00:23:53 - An actual speed round!00:25:56 - Cheyenne and Ben get sidetracked by their favorite romantic comedies.00:29:29 - Back to quotes, Ben’s Phillip Seymour Hoffman callback, and American Psycho00:32:50 - Differences between the book and the movie, and Bono as Satan 
CLIP #5 - Basketball coach phrases00:35:18 - Intro00:35:50 - Norah’s brain, and the grade school Bobby Knight equivalent 
CLIP #6 - Acting stories and meeting famous people 00:38:36 - Intro00:39:59 - Norah is alive and well in them’s mean streets of Chicago00:44:01 - Plays vs films, Ryan knows how to duck, and “hey kids… don’t smoke!”00:47:05 - Exploring the human condition, and Ryan’s tip on memorizing lines00:50:45 - Hanging out on the set of Glee, and working at THE coffee shop00:52:39 - Patti LeBelle is not Darla, and Ben gets confused about the reference
CLIPS #7, 8, and 9 - Chatbots, velcro, plasters, and research00:54:11 - Intro00:55:33 - Chatbots, artificial friends, and becoming human01:00:03 - What if it was a joke?  Was it a coverup?  Was it a subconscious effort?01:02:10 - The program was Just Shoot Me, and the episode was “The Assistant” 01:04:20 - The hook and loop fastener, and the stuff of Paris 01:06:20 - Look it up, and do your homework 
CLIP #10 - More Warframe, more Valorant, and the importance of story in games.01:08:43 - Intro01:11:00 - Customization of weapons in Warframe, and the Outer Worlds01:13:53 - How different generation’s approach consecutive play01:16:30 - The Warframe in-game economy, and making platinum instead of buying it01:19:45 - John’s PC discipline at college, and is anyone excited about “Skyrim in space?”
CLIP #11 - A case of mistaken identity01:21:55 - Final clip intro and closing the show01:24:09 - That one time Ben attended one of Tracy’s Halloween parties

Norah’s been watching Cuphead on Netflix and Ben has been playing a number of toon-centric games, so it seems to be fitting that the word is flyswatter.  Not really… it’s cartoon!  The hosts reminisce about the theater and television cartoons of their youth before moving on to video games.  Cartoon oriented video games mentioned include: the Kingdom Hearths franchise, Mane 6’s “Them’s Fightin’ Herds,” and Cuphead.
00:01:00 - This week’s word is one vowel drop away from being a carton 00:02:44 - Bell and Howell was a motion picture machinery company based in Wheeling, IL00:04:30 - Norah runs off again, Ben misquotes Porky Pig, and Cuphead00:07:55 - Gin tries to poop, complaining about movie trailers, and possible trailer alternatives00:12:20 - Movie ratings, the funny papers, Walt Kelly’s Pogo Possum, and Mad TV00:16:56 - Terry Gilliams’s shorts, the placement of screens, and political cartoons00:20:07 - The definition segment is delayed by Ben’s National Lampoon’s Vacation reference 00:24:53 - The Family Circus was never funny, and the “make Peanuts funny” game00:26:06 - The first animated cartoons from the 1900s00:30:10 - Remembering the flying toaster screensaver, Hardware Wars, and Fantasia00:34:21 - Disney makes back it’s budget and other facts about the 1969 release of Fantasia 00:39:01 - Ben summarizes the concept behind the Kingdom Hearts franchise for Norah00:41:51 - Library, Blockbuster, or GameStop? 00:44:07 - Norah starts the great “all games have cartoons in them” debate 00:47:01 - The ungulates fighting game inspired by My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic 00:51:30 - A “band of bronies” receives Hasbro’s cease and desist notification00:54:23 - MLP FIM creator Lauren Faust helps Mane6 with character designs and story00:59:34 - The arcade feel of Cuphead, the Moldenhauer brothers, and the Netflix series 01:06:01 - What’s next for Studio MDHR, Sophomore jinxes, and the boss battle world record01:08:20 - Norah’s crowd funded potato salad story 01:10:22 - Ben talks about donating to charities with Humble Bundle01:13:00 - “Don’t eat all of your money and cartoons!” 

Norah and Ben recommend that you prepare yourself mentally and physically for this week’s topic… adventure!  Ben has lots of questions for Norah about her adventures overseas.  They discuss a possible forthcoming adventure for each of them… running a bookstore in Scotland!  They briefly touch on the meaning of adventure in visual media before moving on to video games.  Norah talks about enjoying her time with Broken Age, and Ben explains the origin of the adventure game and how the term Easter egg was coined in video games.
00:00:40 - Caught in Ann’s FOMO undertow, and Netflix’s “The Way of the Househusband”00:05:04 - Cuphead is on Norah’s to watch list, bungie jumping Jesus, and acrophobia 00:08:27 - Normal rollercoasters, zip-lining, adventurous eating trends, and snails00:11:57 - Ben thinks if you throw enough butter and garlic on something, it’s delicious00:14:01 - Casu martzu (maggot cheese), and Norah’s falconry experience in Wales 00:17:02 - Norah’s Scottland bus tour, NOT kayaking in Wales, and hanging out in Italy00:21:58 - Lasting impressions, and Ben want’s to run a bookstore in Wigtown 00:26:08 - Taking the podcast to Scotland, understanding accents, and the human brain 00:29:23 - Traveling alone vs traveling with a group, would Norah go on a safari?00:32:52 - Australian animals want to kill you, and going camping  00:35:01 - Vacations as adventures, and definitions of adventure00:40:28 - A discussion about “adventure” movies, and adventures without action   00:45:06 - Alex Vo’s list of essential adventure movies on Rotten Tomatoes 00:47:46 - Norah’s first experience with the point and click adventure game Broken Age00:50:37 - Ben’s video game plan for Norah, and confusion about Whispering Rock camp00:53:14 - Duck dragons, and a brief history of the Atari 2600 game Adventure00:55:32 - Atari game programmers, the origins of Activision, and the term Easter egg 01:00:17 - Don’t accidentally shoot the invisible swordsman, and other adventures 

ASAP, AFK and sonar walk in to a bar.  The bartender says, “As Soon As Possible… Away From Keyboard… who’s your friend?”  If you don’t understand this “joke,” don’t worry; you will before the end of the show.  This week Ben and Norah discuss the difference between acronyms, anacronyms, and initialisms.  Other topics include: a recent TikTok trend, commonly used acronyms, a comedy bit by Gary Gulman, a chat room party game, and commonly used video game abbreviations.  
00:00:21 - Norah and Ben open the show by talking about the weather00:02:50 - Ben drops a “Pop Song 89” reference, and Norah picks it up00:03:53 - Distracted by Truth or Consequences and Elephant Butte New Mexico 00:06:54 - Discussing the TikTok trend of “Quiet Quitting,” and working from home 00:12:27 - Teen employment through the generations… more research required 00:14:14 - Cozy mysteries on BritBox, and “How to Build a Sex Room” on Netflix00:16:00 - Norah explains a little bit about acronyms and initialisms 00:19:40 - Anacronyms, an acronym, and usage statistics in the Google Ngram Viewer00:24:30 - Types of abbreviations, and having fun at work with backronyms00:26:29 - Be careful when choosing your acronyms, and watchdogs vs. proofreaders  00:29:06 - Norah puts on her anti-embarrassment scarf for Ben’s explanation00:32:15 - FUBAR actually means f-ed up beyond all repair, and OJCBRBPA00:34:53 - “FOMO is too much like MOFO,” HDM1 cables, and when the world ends00:38:03 - “Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart”00:40:23 - A plan for zone improvement, and saving the ship00:42:30 - The “state abbreviation documentary” bit, and a scene from the movie Kiss of Death00:45:45 - Ben reminisces about playing “Acrophobia: Fear of Acronyms” in the late 90s00:48:47 - Norah learns video game related acronyms starting with: RPG, MMO, and WoW00:50:08 - MOBA, FPS, RTS, PVP, PVE, and SIM00:52:07 - Ben tries to lead Norah to DLC in the style of “The $100,000 Pyramid” gameshow00:54:42 - NPC, HUD, XP, QWERTY, and Ben forgets to talk about WASD controls 00:58:07 - MK, NFS, FF, SF, ESRB ratings, AOE, DOT, and “AFK, BIO”01:01:03 - LFG, LFP, OMW, “M as in Mancy,” TLDR,  AP, and HP01:04:06 - “Point and click adventure” games, “best briends forever,” and shmups01:06:32 - Ben closes the show with the Konami code and that is TMI for Norah 

Norah leads the conversation about the word generation while Ben sits comfortably in the cohost chair.  Norah shares her research on the meaning of the word, provides a breakdown of the social generations, and explains the personality tendencies of Boomers, X-ers, Millennials, and  Zoomers.  Ben contributes a summary of console generations, some marketing statistics about gamers from the social generations, and his sparkling wit as rare as hen’s teeth.
00:00:20 - TWO different segments, and Ben’s “watch along with Norah” idea00:02:30 - Norah recalls what generation meant in the “old days,” and describes “to beget”00:04:30 - From Ben’s energy and excitement, to Norah’s list of social generations00:07:12 - The Lost, Greatest, and Silent Generations aka “Traditionalists”00:10:07 - “Baby Boomers” and “Baby Busters,” and their experiences with computers00:19:16 - “Millennials,” “Zoomers,” and Generation Alpha 00:26:37 - Other names for generations, and opinions about social classifications00:33:50 - “Horoscopes based on truth,” and confusion about immigrants  00:40:05 - Kelly Ripa’s new gameshow, “My Generation” by The Who, and stuttering 00:45:44 - Norah loves PONG, Ben explains console generation overlap, and 8-bit chips.00:50:59 - Ben talks about some of the systems he owned in the 3rd and 4th generations00:54:59 - The filing cabinet, the first major console that had connectivity, and BORT!00:57:10 - Ben explains the exit of Sega from the hardware biz and Nintendo’s big failure  01:00:14 - Ben picks a lane, the 9th generation console are PCs, and the rise of digital media01:03:46 - A discussion about video game demographics and trends in the social generations01:06:05 - My stepmother doesn’t know it yet, but she IS a gamer now01:09:04 - To close the show… the harsh sting of reality  

Tracy joins Ben this week to converse about the word role!  From jobs, to theatre, to games, the word role plays important… um… role in our day to day lives.  However, these two love games, so this conversation revolves mostly around tabletop games and RPGs.  Discussion topics include: acting, the now defunct Pathfinder Adventure Card Game (by Paizo), Betrayal at House on the Hill (2004 Avalon Hill / 2010 Hasbro), Among Us, going to conventions, the new game Stray, and Disco Elysium.
00:02:20 - The word is role (not roll), NQ, and “what’s the deal with all the hats?”00:06:22 - Tracy’s acting experiences, and Ben’s missed extra opportunity 00:10:31 - We know no French, the origin of role, and manual vs computer assisted games00:13:07 - Tracy’s experiences playing the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game remotely00:18:29 - How much actual playing a role is involved in Pathfinder?00:21:15 - The battle axe, the inclusive nature of some games, and rescuing Kevin00:25:59 - What is the “replay value” of the Pathfinder ACG?00:29:22 - “Closing the Wound of the World,” and how much strategy is involved00:33:02 - The board game Betrayal at House on the Hill and its similarities to Among Us 00:37:41 - Finding new board games on Boing Boing, and Ben’s memories of Games magazine00:39:44 - The Penny Arcade Expo, conventions, and gaming in a “post-pandemic” world00:45:50 - Ben’s playing the role of a cat helping a robot, and Tracy says, “SIGN ME UP!”00:49:29 - Tracy talks enthusiastically about her Disco Elysium play through00:55:16 - Why is Ben having trouble immersing himself in the world of Disco Elysium?00:57:32 - Tracy has an excellent suggestion… focus on the “redemption arc”01:02:29 - Tracy’s final thoughts on the word role, and Ben has one last question for her01:05:21 - Tracy’s answer reminds Ben of some interesting Disco Elysium history01:09:18 - Mapping the old fashioned way, and closing with Ben’s old D&D pickup line

This week John joins Ben to talk about the importance of the word cooperation in two of his hobbies.  John talks about his college experience so far, playing lacrosse, and precision first-person shooters.  For once Ben tries to keep up, asking John questions about a sport (lacrosse) and a game (Riot Games’ Valorant) he’s not very familiar with.
00:00:40 - Thoughts on cooperation, and learning “the power of friendship”00:03:20 - Group projects, John’s humble brag, and Ben’s college experience00:08:35 - Going to High School and College during a pandemic 00:11:04 - Ben’s work environment email pro tip… READ RECEIPTS!00:13:25 - “Many hands make light work,” and John explains the intricacies of lacrosse 00:18:44 - John’s relation to Casey Powell ( caseypowell.com )00:20:50 - Ben has more questions for John about cooperation in team sports00:24:17 - Differences between Club and NCAA Division teams in college00:28:35 - John’s previous and current PC game obsessions, CSGO and Valorant00:33:21 - Player rankings in CSGO, the Elo rating system in Valorant, and blunders00:39:10 - How Elo ratings in Valorant promote teamwork, and SOCCER CARS!00:42:32 - Exploring why John prefers team based FPSs to “Battle Royale” games00:44:50 - How Riot Games maintains a healthy gameplay environment… bans!00:47:05 - PVE vs PVP games, Competitive mode, and Valorant agent roles00:54:18 - Discussing effective Valorant agent power combinations00:56:10 - Duelist Raze’s floating knives, and buying guns each round01:02:15 - Spray patterns and how they behave in CSGO vs Valorant01:07:07 - John clears up Ben’s misconception about gaming rigs01:09:25 - Wise parting words about cooperation

Norah joins Ben this week to talk about the bodily fluid responsible for oxygen transport to and from the heart.  They each have research to present on the components that make up blood, blood pressure, blood sugar, and blood types.  After those “lectures,” Ben talks about blood type bias in Japan and why blood types appear in old arcade game character bios.  He then moves on to describing the game Code Vein which turns in to a very bold statement about why Elden Ring should not win GOTY 2022.
00:00:53 - “Not much to do in Tucson…” and “blood, let’s get into it!”00:03:00 - Some common phrases involving the word blood00:04:01 - “Blood from a stone” vs. “Blood from a turnip”00:05:40 - Ben’s tepid take on puns, and other “bad humor”00:07:21 - Caviar, another pun, and Norah and Ben haven’t heard of “blood and thunder” 00:09:49 - “Blood brother” rituals aren’t sanitary, and facts about fainting at the sight of blood00:12:39 - Donating blood to the American Red Cross (listed as Vampires in Ben’s phone)00:15:00 - Bone marrow; Norah explains blood pressure (measured in millimeters of mercury)00:20:26 - Salt vs. sugar, and the components of blood 
00:21:31 - Plasma is a heterogeneous mixture; a colloid is a homogeneous noncrystalline substance consisting of large molecules of one substance dispersed through another.
00:23:20 - The negative logarithm of the molar concentration of Hydrogen ions in a solution00:24:32 - Erythrocytes, leukocytes, and thrombocytes… “oh my!”00:27:29 - Norah announces her lipid panel, and then moves on to explaining blood sugar 00:31:33 - An aside about frozen deserts 
00:34:15 - A simple sugar may be a mono- or disaccharide.  Monosaccharides are the simplest carbs; the body cannot break them down further.  Disaccharides consist of two sugar molecules (two monosaccharides) bonded together.  The body must break the bond apart (in to  two monosaccharides) before they can be absorbed.
00:42:32 - Ben explains the ABO and the Rh blood group systems00:46:25 - Ben talks a little about Type O Negative and the origin of their band name00:49:05 - Why is blood type included in the character bios of old arcade games?00:52:58 - Using the website Tofugu for learning Japanese language and culture. 00:55:49 - What are Norah and Ben’s personalities based solely on their blood type? 00:59:07 - The blood type “descriptive words” are too vague for Two Vague01:01:21 - Kitty White’s blood type, and Hello Kitty blood type identification straps01:03:48 - Vampires, and Ben explains the story of the game Code Vein01:07:30 - Ben tries to explain From Software’s “souls-like” games to Norah01:10:54 - Code Vein has been described as “souls-like,” but Ben doesn’t find it too difficult01:13:45 - Ben’s Elden Ring 2022 GOTY hot take01:16:21 - Ben thinks Eric won’t sick him, and Norah thinks it was a “bloody good” show