Wednesday, April 26, 2023

I Misread That Song Title Once Before

    Last year, I posted a puzzle based on the name of various television shows, except one letter was changed in the title.  Find it here. I had so much fun, I came up with a second puzzle the following week based on a slightly different theme, either adding or deleting a letter.  Well, I have come back to do an update, but based on song titles this time.  I debated whether or not I should do this, as I usually create other puzzles based on song titles.  However, I came up with such good ideas, I finally came around to make this one up.  Below, you will find synopses of various songs that were popular last year.  However, one letter was changed in the title, creating an entirely different song.  Think of it a the start for one of "Weird Al" Yankovic's song parodies.  For example, if a clue read "A small municipality celebrates the bicentennial of the statue of their amphibian mascot," followed by the artists Lil' Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus, your answer would be "Old Town Toad," which is based on the song "Old Town Road" with a 't' replacing the 'r' in the last word.  Each of the clues can be solved in the same way.  Scroll down to find the answers.  Good luck.


  1. Men have a rap battle about how supremely attractive their spouses are.  Glass Animals
  2. A public service announcement about one way to curb the pet population.  Kid Leroi and Justin Bieber
  3. A woman gets a tattoo in such a place that she can point out where the sun rises, and where a certain part of her anatomy is found.  Adele
  4. Notice to all woodworkers about the dangers of getting small pieces of wood caught under your skin.  Ed Sheeran
  5. A man realizes the mistake of ordering shellfish for dinner on a blind date with a woman he just met, and now he has digestive problems.  Jack Harlow
  6. An instructive tune about how peat is a renewable fuel source.  Latto
  7. Scientists debate about how a man now has soda pumping through his veins instead of blood.  Elton John and Dua Lipa
  8. Local meteorologist informs the public that it is almost rainy season, and one should start their moisture defense protocols.  Lizzo
  9. Nuns have a fashion show to debut their new apparel line featuring bright colors and bold designs. Ed Sheeran
  10. Are you in need of a colon cleanse?  Then try our newly improved product designed to remove even more waste!  Imagine Dragons
  11. A man confesses about how he wants to cook his girlfriend, marinade her in the cooking juices, and then eat her.  Morgan Wallen 
  12. I wrote a companion piece to this puzzle about the vertical struggle of having to come up with jokes and wordplay to make this puzzle funnier.  Kate Bush
  13. A man with insomnia can't stop pacing, even though it is well past midnight and he needs to get to sleep. Harry Styles
  14. Ozzy Osbourne confesses about his secret addiction to eating flying mammals after accidentally biting one on stage during a performance. Steve Lacy
  15. Researchers debate on the intelligence of small insects.  Turns out, most aren't.  Em Beihold
  16. A farmer worries about how he will till his fields, since they are all hard and packed.  Beyonce
  17. Another farmer is scared that a fearsome creature is prowling on his property, for a second time. Zach Bryan
  18. Vladimir Putin creates a propaganda song about how he is the epitome of Russian masculinity. Bad Bunny
  19. A woman complains to her boyfriend about how ill-fitting her new jeans are. Doja Cat and The Weeknd
  20. A tribute to Wilbur from Charlotte's Web. Megan Thee Stallion and Dua Lipa
  21. Advice from Paul Hollywood about bread-making on a cooking show. Chris Stapleton
  22. A famous musician leaves the business to a life of mediocrity.  Parmalee
  23. A woman tries to shake off a "Karen" who is trying to take an item she say she wants.  Sam Smith and Kim Petras
  24. Eureka! Someone just discovered gold in Biloxi. Kane Brown
  25. A little kid just ruined a dress for the Met Gala by drawing happy faces in crayon all over it. Maren Morris





ANSWERS

  1. "Heat Wives" - "Heat Waves"
  2. "Spay" - "Stay"
  3. "East on Me" - "Easy on Me"
  4. "Slivers" - "Shivers
  5. "First Clams" - "First Class"
  6. "Bog Energy" - "Big Energy"
  7. "Cola Heart" - "Cold Heart"
  8. "About Damp Time" - "About Damn Time"
  9. "Rad Habits" - "Bad Habits"
  10. "Enema" - "Enemy"
  11. "Basted on You" - "Wasted on You"
  12. "Punning up That Hill" - "Running up That Hill"
  13. "Late Night Walking" - "Late Night Talking"
  14. "Bat Habit" - "Bad Habit"
  15. "Dumb Little Bug" - "Numb Little Bug"
  16. "Break My Soil" - "Break My Soul"
  17. "Something in the Grange" - "Something in the Orange"
  18. "Moscow Male" - "Moscow Mule"
  19. "You Tight" - "You Right"
  20. "Sweetest Pig" - "Sweetest Pie"
  21. "You Should Probably Loave" - "You Should Probably Leave"
  22. "Take My Fame" - "Take My Name"
  23. "Unhold" - "Unholy"
  24. "Ore Mississippi" - "One Mississippi"
  25. "Circles around This Gown" - "Circles around This Town"

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Watch My Feed for It Won't Watch Itself

    I was late getting into the online video craze, such as it is.  In fact, I have only starting watching certain channels on a regular basis this year.  It all started on Facebook a few years ago when I accidentally his the "Watch" icon instead of one of the other ones.  They way the order can change, randomly and then back, can be confounding.  Anyway, since I was there, I decided to see what was available.  At first, there was a seemingly random mix of almost anything.  Then, I discovered this comedian who was doing sketches instead of touring due to the 2020 lockdowns.  I began to look for his new episodes whenever they came up.  Sometimes, older videos popped up instead of new ones.  I ultimately began to follow him, because I sort of liked his material. He uploads one new episode per week, on average, although he has taken breaks, or put up a bonus episode.  Mostly, the sketches are topical takes with him personifying the various states in the USA or the Federal government.  At other times, he goes on deeper dive into a state to bring up such things as the names of various cities or their unusual laws.  Over time, my feed began to pick up more comedy bits, mixed in with the household hacks, video game replays, and bunny videos. BUHHNIES!!!!  Sometimes, I would get TED talks on mathematical challenges or logic puzzles. Astrological discussions would pop up regularly.  Lately, though, comedy dominates, with the gaming videos second, particularly one where various armed figures would battle it out while jerkily trying not to get knocked out.  One of the comedy bits involved a bunch of people being forced to try foods that might not be technically good.  I first thought that they were based outside of the US, like some of the English lessons, but I was proven wrong.  They were a comedy troupe from LA, some of whom were former child stars.  Soon, other videos of theirs began to show up.  Improv challenges, written sketches, or other games that weren't food related.  Hidden among those videos was one were these two men would discuss various topics.  After a few videos, between the comic book comparison lists and historical lessons (and the occasional health chats on topics outside the listing for this blog), I noticed that these two men showed up a few times with the comedy troupe.  Slowly, their other videos began to pop up.  They would do taste tests on various food products, play games based on where foods originated, redo recipes based on entirely different ingredients, and even have a few non-food based things.  Well, this past January, I finally caught their YouTube channel.  And I was obsessed.  I started watching the original clips on the day they came out, instead of the abbreviated versions I had been watching.  For example, this Monday's episode featured the men trying to figure out which price-point of certain foods, a recurring segment this time featuring their producer's favorites.  Whenever either one chose the highest price version, they would have to dance with a person in a cow costume.  For the last few times this segment aired, assassination attempts were made on the cow.  This time, the attempt was successful, as sticks of dynamite were attached to the cow's back and 'blew' up.  Bits of cow costume were everywhere, including part of an utter in the food they were tasting.  While most of the bits were later cleared out, some were still seen in the background.  For the version shown on Facebook the next day, which was only a quarter of so long, the cow's demise wasn't shown, but the costume bits were still seen in the background.  The original was funnier.  Through research, I found out the these guys' production company bought out the comedy troupe's a few years ago when the comedy channel was in danger of folding.  Now, they are part of the same family, and I kind of feel that I missed out for so many years.  Instead of watching clips of anime in the original Japanese or people laughing at other's mistakes/jump-scares, I could have been seeing more of this.  These two channels are now dominating my feed, and I can't help to wonder about how well their algorithms know me.  I already make sure I don't go to some websites before logging into Facebook or other sites.  The cookies start loading things that I sometimes don't think match with me.  Now, I just need to get some ideas on how to improve my own online media.  I'm beginning to think I have found a true calling here.

Wednesday, April 12, 2023

And I Never Wanna Moose You Again

    As I have mentioned multiple times on this blogcast, I have some unusual interests. For instance, I can sometimes get obsessed over rabbits.  It was just Easter after all, so this can be understandable.  Rabbits are my primary spirit animal; the only one of many that I mention in public.  Well, my mother has a more unusual animal obsession--moose.  I don't know where it came from, but she really likes moose.  I try to alert her when any new moose-related video hits the news.  Supposedly, she had a least one "ugly" Christmas sweater that had a moose on it.  I don't remember ever seeing it, but it was destroyed in that weather instance from twenty years ago that I still don't like talking about.  She has been trying to get a new sweater ever since, but she hasn't had any luck.  Every Christmas, she scans the stores for one, but each one appears to be out.  She doesn't like shopping online, but she has tried to find one there as well.  However, she either waits too long and the sweaters are sold out, or she doesn't want to spend the time and money at the time.  The weirdest thing though is that 'technically' what she looking for wasn't always a Christmas sweater.  See, the sweater has on it the saying "The moose is loose."  When I went searching online for her once, I found out that this was originally the slogan for a regional beer company, somewhere around Minnesota or southern Canada.  Even after I showed her where her sweater saying originated, she still wants one.  She has seen other moose-inspired Christmas sweaters, but she would like one similar to what she once had.  Eh.  Furthermore, she would really like to see a moose up close, or at least as close as safely as possible.  Now, she has seen entire herds of elk, some within touching distance from the car. [As an aside, this will probably never happen again since a certain unnamed dollar store decided it needed a fourth location within a ten mile radius, if not more, right where a local herd loved to graze.  I've seen a few elk on the uncleared portion of the field, as nearby as well, but it is just not the same.] Moose are noticeably larger than elk, so the safe viewing distance is much larger.  Now, moose are not native to anywhere near eastern Kentucky, meaning she would have to travel a few hundred miles to see one in person.  Unlike me, she hates going long distances, particularly ones where she couldn't get back home within a day.  Also unlike me, she doesn't mind going anywhere without me, without regards of how it would affect, while she has gotten into a panic if I am just a few minutes late getting back from the grocery store.  Sure, I am normally prompt or early, but sometimes there's an unforeseen problem and it causes me to get off schedule.  Whatever.  All this adds up to is that she will probably not get to see a moose in person.  At least she might get a new moose sweater this year.  That will go well with the new moose emoji that just debuted. 
    The title for this week's post was punned from a lyric from "Miss You," a remixed version of "Jerk," originally performed by Oliver Tree.  The particular remix in question is by Robin Schulz, although there was another similar remix out.  There is some controversy over the remixes, so I don't want to comment much more about them.  For some reason, Tree's music videos popped up on my Facebook feed, and this is one of the ones that stood out as a favorite.  Strange, I know, but look again at the first line on this post.

Wednesday, April 5, 2023

The Great Game Migration

    Later on today, hopefully no later than tonight, I will be transferring the account of one of my games from Facebook to my phone.  I didn't want to do it, but the game, Golf Clash, is being discontinued on the platform within the next twenty-four hours.  The notification was announced about a week after the game was temporarily taken off the site for almost two weeks. Fortunately, I was compensated for the lost time.  However, I will now have to perform a risky procedure just to keep all of my progress.  I first started this game when a friend of mine invited me to try Golf Clash out on Facebook.  At the time, I didn't realize that he would get an in-game bonus for doing so, but I digress.  For a few years, I would only play occasionally, as I didn't have a computer of my own.  At most, I would play for an hour or two total a week. After I did get my own computer, I still didn't play too much, as I just wasn't that good or competitive at it.  Things changed when the game developed leagues.  I followed my friend into a clan he found, by accident.  I was only checking things out, and I wound up joining it.  I tried to get another friend to join, but he got kicked out after a few weeks, probably for not playing as often as the clan president of the time liked.  That guy ultimately left, and my friend became the new president by default.  After that, I felt safer in staying, and a funny thing happened.  I started to get good.  Not super great, but good enough. I was able to improve my game equipment.  I was winning more, even in tournament situations.  Sure, there were hiccups along the way, but nothing too bad.  Until the last few months.  I was starting to get technical situations every few days.  The was costing me wins and resources.  I ultimately switched the browser I was playing online with to ease many of the problems, but a few non-threatening one still pop up.  Then, the lockout came.  My game was locked out of Facebook for those two weeks due to some ill-defined reasons.  After the game came back, the news of the leaving broke.  Now, if this had came out a year ago, I would have been lost.  However, things have changed since then.  I now have a phone to go with my computer.  Technically, I now have access to three iPhones.  While a year ago, I would have had to reluctantly use someone else's phone, resulting in a much reduced playing rate.  Now, I can transfer my account to my phone.  However, during the lockout, I started a second account on my phone, one which I had join my clan.  This second account could be switched back and forth on my phone, but it will be very difficult if I tried it.  Instead, I will be moving it to a second phone, after I finish moving my main account.  This phone doesn't have a SIM card, so I can only use wifi with it, but that should be enough for my purposes.  If it doesn't work, I will have to use another phone to use as a secondary source.  Once this happens, I will be playing on two accounts at a time, on totally different skill levels.  Confusing to say the least.  I will miss the wider screen that my computer provided, even though Facebook just started reducing the available area when they redesigned their gaming site.  I'll miss the mouse as well, as I am still getting used to just moving my fingers along my phone's screen.  There is a way to hook up a mouse with my phones, but I haven't had a chance to see if it works with my mouse, as it has been acting up these last few weeks.  At least I have the knowledge that both of my accounts placed third in a recent tournament.  Even if this switchover doesn't work, at least I will have accomplished something great.