E2LA on Japan, Cleveland (Ohio) and Jeopardy!
equestriatola
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Joined: 13 Aug 2012
Gender: Male
Posts: 155,215
Location: Wherever my mind wants it to be
Hi, wrongplanet. Yeah, it's been a hot minute, hasn't it? I'm kind of here, but here is something that has bothered me lately (this will be a long post, so stay with me here):
So, I wanted to visit Cleveland, Ohio to see the Browns (for the uninitiated, they are a perpetually cursed franchise in the NFL - they've taken their share of lumps) - why? Well, if you have noticed, in any given season, the odds of them winning the Super Bowl is, get this - the same as my odds of getting on Jeopardy!)
Let's do the math. In any given season, J! has 100,000 Anytime Test takers (yes, you can audition for J! whenever you want now) -> 3,000 will get a Zoom call to play a test game with the show's production staff -> 400 will get "the call" to appear on the show. That's an 0.3-0.4% chance (and doing well in any phase of this won't guarantee you will get on the show). Just like the Browns Super Bowl odds.
But my friends and family think I am wasting my money by going to Cleveland - now, bear in mind, I'm not saying that if I see the Browns, I am going to get on J! - rather, I am using them to manifest that dream, because of those long odds - some things are worth pursuing, and I will say this: I am NOT mocking the Browns fan in the slighest. I'm standing full measure with them, saying "Hey, dreams can and do come true - if I can get on J!, than you can win the SB" - it's motivational fuel.
My family says there are other ways to manifest me getting on J! without going all the way to Ohio to see the Brownies - I can study actively, try and take part in bar trivia nights, join a local trivia league, visit libraries, imagine myself on J!, journaling, et al.
Also, the Browns fans, being pretty self-deprecating given their fortunes, are like "Why tho?" "Stay home, you don't want this suffering" "Go to Vegas instead" - yeah.
So, what do you think? You think I should visit Cleveland and try and manifest this, even though they are unrelated (but are united in the same odds) - and if I go, what should I do while in Cleveland?
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Part II of this: For me, I've had an ultimatum on this since I announced I would try and visit Cleveland earlier this year: If you go to Cleveland, you will forfeit going to Japan forever, unless you get on Jeopardy!
And now, confession time: In 2005, I applied to go on a school trip to Japan (my senior year of HS), but I didn't make the cut. Distraught, I went to a Jeopardy! audition - and I didn't get "the call" from them then either. 20+ years later, neither has happened.
What do you think? Do you think I am also crazy in tying the Browns and Jeopardy! together?
Thanks for reading. Hope to hear from you on your thoughts on this.
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EDIT: To be absolutely clear about what I said, I NEVER said that seeing the Browns will improve my odds of getting on Jeopardy! - that is NOT the point. The real point is that the Browns Super Bowl odds and the odds of getting "the call" to appear on Jeopardy! are in the same ballpark, as stated. It's meant to be a "handshake" between two long-shot journeys - the Browns and their fans keep showing up and believing, and I keep studying, testing, and hoping. It's meant to convey that those two things say "I see you." *handshake*
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CockneyRebel
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