Sorry to see both Chrissy Hofbeck and Benjamin “Coach” Wade get voted off on the last episode of Survivor. Crazy that Chrissy again got voted off due to a new twist in the game, where the contestants voted for a team of 2 players to both be voted off. (Not as bad as when they blindsided Chrissy and the remaining 4 contestants by adding a firemaking twist that allowed Ben Driebergen to avoid elimination and eventually win the season.) In this case, the contestants were told to form groups of 2, and she teamed up with Coach. While Chrissy and Coach were allies (and were part of a majority alliance), teaming up together made them an easy target since other teams could vote for a group with two people they wanted to get out. Other teams comprised of people who were not aligned were in a better position, since if you had a team with somebody you wanted to keep, and somebody you wanted out, you would have had to make a hard decision

I think that is why both Chrissy and Coach were OK with how things played out. The twist still allowed for good gameplay without it being unfair.

As we pass the halfway point (11 of 24 contestants still remain), it will be interesting to see how the game shifts. Starting with 24 players, the early strategy seemed to be just not to do something to put a big target on your back and just survive day to day. Now you can start to look at numbers and form alliances that give you a true advantage

Here are some updated thoughts on the players who are still left

Was able to make it to the 84th Philly Non-Sports Card Show and dinner this past weekend. Enjoyed walking around and seeing all the different cards and sets available. Also, while it’s not really my thing, I was glad to see a lot of Pokémon dealers, along with a lot of younger kids. Anything to keep the card-collecting hobby alive.

Was able to pick up a bunch of promo cards to add to my collection. There were free promo packs given out each day with admission, special promo cards handed out at the Saturday night dinner, as well as cards from manufacturers (Rittenhouse Archives, Cryptozoic, RRParks). I also found a few rarer promos I needed and was able to pick them up for a reasonable price.

Was also glad to see that Todd Jordan’s Promo Card Encyclopedia webpage is now up and running. A long time in the making, it lists thousands of promo cards (with pictures). Going to spend some time using it as a reference against my collection.

Promo Card Encyclopedia

Here are a few of the cards I was able to pick up at the show

Will post some more after I get them all in binders and update my records

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The NY Mets have lost 11 games in a row for the first time since 2002, and look like an uninspired and confused team. Not sure what they need to do to get things back on track. I go back and forth on firing the manager, thinking something needs to change, but then I think, will changing things automatically make things better? I’m leaning towards replacing the manager, just because a lot of issues seem to be mental mistakes, as well as uninspired at-bats. As I have said in the past regarding CEO’s of companies, attitudes and processes start at the top and move down the chain. A CEO may take over a company and state that things will stay the same, but they never do. In this case, the owner, Steve Cohen, is not going anywhere, and he has put all his faith in the General Manager. The next in line would be the manager, so replacing him would be a start in changing the attitude of the team. It will also show if the General Manager’s plan is something that can work in a big market city like New York.


Remember Clippy

Clippy (officially “Clippit”) was a famously divisive animated Office Assistant introduced in Microsoft Office 97 and phased out by 2007. Designed by Kevan Atteberry based on research into social computing, it was meant to make software more accessible. Instead, its intrusive, unsolicited tips often frustrated users, leading to its reputation as one of tech’s worst inventions.

While it is remembered as a disaster, Microsoft did realize this and phased it out. They then moved on to better things. Sometimes you need to admit things are not working, and make changes, rather than sitting back and hoping things will change by themselves

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Finally, one of my favorite authors and speakers, Jia Jiang is coming out with a new book this summer. Titled “Easy Discipline” It is available for pre-order wherever you buy your books. He is trying to get 10,000 pre-orders in the 100 days before the book is released, so if you want to help out, head on over to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Audible, and pick up a copy. All pre-orders will also get your name enshrined on his wall of fame.

That’s all for today, Folks

AverageAndy Out

#NeverTooOldForSurvivor
#GiveMeAChance
#PEACE

Marillion: A Better Way of Life

U28

#You Can Do It – Tony Little