My 2025 ESC ballot and how the songs ended up with the voting public. #ESC250

...aaaaaand now I no longer care. Ah well. #ESC250

OK, the narrative is clear now: can the upstart newbie upset the two-song monolith? PLEASE GOD YES #ESC250

Well, it's clear what the top six will be, just a question of ordering. Could this FINALLY be the year that the fever breaks and Tattoo begins its rightful descent? #ESC250

A little surprising that Voyage bombed with the televote but still hits the top 30 here. #ESC250

#35 for JJ? Ooh, he's been done dirty. #ESC250

The two artists from my list that haven't yet appeared (and conceivably could) nest neatly together: (K)(A)ari(J)a. #ESC250

Looks like only 5 of the songs I voted for will make the list this year (6 if "Dansevise" does super-well somehow). I'm fine with that, but I do wish voters would someday get on board with how damn good a song Nina's "Caroban" is. #ESC250

Again, still catching up here ... do we have any idea what's going on with Sweden this year? Do the Swedish Mafia have kompromat on the ESC250 organizers or something? #ESC250

Just woke up, coming in at #64 and looking over what's happened so far, and I am fucking DELIGHTED that Tommy Cash debuted way the hell down at #90. #ESC250

My second "one common letter" quiz, this time on US cities: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

A quickie Broadway-musicals quiz: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

The start of a new Sporcle playlist -- how quickly can you spot the common letter in two-word phrases? www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

I guess I’ll be changing my innocent ways, putting on a leather jacket, and literally flying away in a hot rod. I can live with that.

Only one KPop song on the shortlist for an Oscar nom? Very surprising to me. With lots of big-name options (Wicked, Sinners, etc) will this FINALLY be the year without a “forgettable Diane Warren song from a total unseen movie” nomination? (Answer: probably not.)

I used to hate Instagram filling my feed with things I hadn't asked for, until its algorithm decided I needed that all to be "Heated Rivalry" stuff, and now I am 1000% fine with it.

Summaries of songs you're hearing a lot these days: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

Returning to my "Song Summaries" quizzes, this time focusing on Jimmy Buffett. www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

Just finished season 2 of "A Man on the Inside". Totally charming; glad it didn't have a sophomore slump. I'd love to see both Mary Steenburgen and David Strathairn get Emmy nominations.

A yummy anagram quiz: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

I know it's easy to dunk on AI, but this (from a general Google search) made me laugh: "Apt to change" can mean "likely to change," as in the phrase "He is apt to forget his keys."

A quick word search on Pixar short films: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

The worst season of Taskmaster ends appropriately.

My ESC250 ballot (top three are in fact my three favorites ever; next three are recent songs I want to give a boost to; last four are older songs I like that probably won't make the list).

I was all prepared, when People announced whoever their Sexiest Man Alive pick was, to post something like "Does People not KNOW of the EXISTENCE of Jonathan Bailey?" Well, well played, People.

Can you pick the Sirius XM station from three of its most-played songs? www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

I just saw a sign saying that a store was “Coming Winter 2026” and I honestly don’t know whether that means the beginning or end of 2026.

One of those rare "this really hasn't been made into a quiz yet?" moments: can you click the states whose first two letters form their postal abbreviation, without making a mistake? www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

You know, as much as I loved Mel and Sue and Sandi … I think Alison is the best GBBO host ever. Absolutely adore her and feel like she truly understands the assignment.

Last night I decided to see my first likely Oscar nominee, "One Battle After Another". My takeaway: it's like Tarantino minus the pacing and panache.

I *howled* when Iain said what his showstopper would be on the latest GBBO. Good lord, what a brilliant idea.

Sometimes quizzes have to released well in advance of when you'd like them to be published. www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

A word search where you need to find the second word of a musical title, given the first word: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

A new mini-crossword featuring a classic anagram: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

A crossword with an X-shaped grid crammed full of Xs: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

A quick word search about the short-named states ... with no word list: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

A word search where you actually have to know your countries: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

Mini-crossword with a slight gimmick: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

Here's a mini-crossword with a (hopefully) fun little twist: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

The newest edition of my Movies by Three Unnamed Characters quizzes: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

A quick quiz about the three 5-letter states: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

Tonight I decided to finally watch “All About Steve”, the Razzie-winning movie with Sandra Bullock as a weirdo puzzlemaker. It lived down to my expectations.

Just cancelled Hulu, with a note saying I don't buy from companies that prefer making a buck to standing up to fascism. More time for me to spend on Britbox, I guess!

Book title from last night’s dreams: “Shoe Tree of the Barrage”.

A Sporcle quiz whose concept came to me while I was at a big Scrabble tournament this past week: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

It me.

With 3 games left tomorrow, my results in this Scrabble tournament each day: 5-2, 2-5, 5-2, 2-5. Most annoying way to get to .500 ever.

Alphabetical-by-missing-word on popular food chains: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

Another slightly gimmicky word search: www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...

Hey, a non-pop-culture edition of the "alphabetical by missing word" concept! www.sporcle.com/games/Qaqaq/...