Lore

I was having a look at the website of the official James Bond store today, and was a little bit surprised to find quite a lot of items for sale related to the upcoming First Light video game.  Can we really consider a video game part of James Bond lore/canon?  I'm not sure I agree with that.  To me, James Bond lore comes solely from the films.  And even then, not all the films.  Never Say Never Again is not part of the official James Bond lore.  Nor is the Woody Allen-starring Casino Royale.  I consider the books to be a totally separate entity.  To me, the video game lies in a similar grey area to these films.  So yes, when I see that Corgi are releasing a new James Bond model car, I approve.  But when I realize that the car comes from the video game and I have to check whether it is actually real (it is), then I lose interest.    

Indecision

In certain situations, I often suffer from crippling indecisiveness.  I am currently experiencing it when it comes to upgrading my living room.  I want to get a new sofa set, a new TV, a new soundbar.  But in what order?  What size TV?  How much do I want to spend on a soundbar?  What kind of sofa?  When do I get all these things?  I find myself constantly and aimlessly searching the internet - scrolling through reviews, looking up recommendations, and making absolutely no decisions on what I actually want.  I find myself weighing up whether to get the same size TV as I currently have, or the next size up.  Whether to get a new soundbar now, or wait until I've got the new TV.  Whether I should prioritize getting a new sofa set before even thinking about getting a new TV.  And then I get sidetracked by everything else that accompanies these upgrades.  I'll need to book a junk removal company to take away my current sofa set.  What do I do with my current TV, for example can I donate it?  If I get a bigger TV, will I need help setting it up?  I really shouldn't be overthinking this.

Happy Mother's Day

My laptop battery is about to run out, so let me take this opportunity to with my mum a Happy Mother's Day!  At least it will be by the time you read this tomorrow.  And you don't need me to tell you how stupid it is that Mother's Day here is on a different day to the UK.  Apparently UK "Mothering Sunday" is a religious holiday, whereas the American date comes from some woman from the very early 20th century who wanted to honor her mother.  Whatever the origins, Mum - I hope you have a good day and I'll video chat with you later!

Traffic

Met up with a friend for lunch today.  And the freeway traffic getting there was absolutely horrendous.  If there are any positives to working from home, then not having to deal with traffic is definitely up there.  I think it has gotten considerably worse over the last year or so.  It's not helped by the vast amount of roadworks going on around the Seattle area.  It seems like every weekend there are several major closures.  Indeed, when I look it up then there are 7 major traffic disruptions planned this weekend.  Yikes. 

In-N-Out

The good news - In-N-Out have opened a second location in Washington state.  The bad news - it is located in the far south of the state, just like it's first location.  So unless I fancy making a 300+ mile detour, or making a pit stop on the way to Oregon, I won't be going there anytime soon.  Which is a shame, because if you've ever been to In-N-Out before then you know how good its burgers are.  There is a reason it is consistently rated as one of the best fast food restaurants in the country.

NASL

Especially with the World Cup in the US coming up, I'm surprised that there hasn't been a reputable sports documentary - I'm specifically thinking of 30 for 30 - about the rise and fall of the North American Soccer League.  I think it would be fascinating - from stuff like trying to popularize and Americanize "soccer", to bringing in all these big names (Pele, Beckenbauer, etc.), to its eventual financial collapse.  It feels like the perfect story for a sports documentary.  And I think it gives a great insight to the American sports fan's psyche - like how they don't do draws, and how fickle they are.  Americans suffer from delusions of grandeur (which is not just confined to sports), to the extent that they think they're actually going to win the World Cup this year.  Which they 100% won't, and which I will 100% enjoy when they don't. 

Celebrity Traitors

Even though I'm not going to be back in the UK when Celebrity Traitors Season 2 airs, thanks to AI and my internet history I'm sure that I'm going to be unable to avoid news about it.  I know that it is going to be available to stream over here, but I don't know how soon those episodes will be available after they've aired in the UK.  I'm sure there's going to be a lag, just like there was for Season 1, so I'll know who has won before I'm able to watch here - which kind of defeats the point of watching.  Perhaps I need to use a VPN and watch it on BBC iPlayer.  I have seen the Celebrity Traitors lineup - and just like Season 1 it is stacked with lots of big names.  Of the 21 contestants, there are about 6 who I don't know.  Which is about on par with Season 1, and a pretty good ratio (especially compared to the US version, which is full of some real z-list "celebrities" - think obscure influencers and reality stars - none of whom I recognize).  In the season 2 lineup there does seem to be an awful lot of comedians, along with a lack of sports people.  Although that is not necessarily a bad thing - perhaps they are trying to replicate the chemistry in Last One Laughing - the problem is that all these comedians appear on the same shows and so they must know each other quite well, so I suspect they'll know when one or more of them is a traitor.