437: That’s Quarantainment!

Grumpy Old Geeks. A weekly talk show hosted by Brian Schulmeister and Jason DeFilippo discussing the finer points of what went wrong on the internet and who's to blame.

Welcome to Grumpy Old Geeks. I'm Jason DeFilippo. And I'm Brian Schulmeister. I broke the law this weekend. What did you do, Brian? You outlaw. I didn't break the law because it's not a law, but it certainly feels like it at this point. I broke stay-at-home and I went to somebody else's home. Oh, you bad boy.

I know. As planned, I went to go see my mom down in Orange County. She has been observing strict stay-at-home, as have we. And two months is long enough. We needed haircuts. We got haircuts because my mom used to be an esthetician or whatever the fancy word for that is.

And we went and stared at four other walls for a while, which was a nice change of pace. All right. So, yeah, we're going to keep on doing that, I guess, on weekends or something like that. We're just going to pack up and go down there. She's got a lawn. She's got a room. She's got a big house.

We can all get away from each other for a few minutes. So it was kind of nice and it was good to see my mom. It's a long time without family when you're used to seeing them all the time. So as long as everybody feels well and nobody inadvertently breaks the stay-at-home and hangs out with anybody else, we're going to keep that up.

There's some encouraging news about that. Science is starting to actually finally roll in on COVID-19 a bit. There's a big study that came out in the Lancet and I was going through some of the Twitter threads on it. But the TLDR on it is it seems to be exposure basically, you know, exposure seems to require sustained contact.

So it's mostly being spread in obviously family units where somebody has gone out and broke and stayed home for whatever reason, work, etc. And then they come back home and the particles just hang in the air for long periods of time and that's how you get exposed. It does seem that we don't need to worry too much about minimal quick contact, i.e. delivery guys dropping boxes off and things of that nature.

So it's nice that the science is starting to roll in. Maybe we'll get a handle on this, you know, by 2023. Could be. Could be. Amen. Any news is good news. That's right. But still, people need to go buy their masks. Go to gog.show slash shop. We've got a lot of people trying them out.

We've got three different masks in there right now and add some more as time permits. But yeah. You got some stats on that? Is Team Jason or Team Brian winning? We're tied right now. We are completely tied with Team Jason and Team Brian.

That's the best possible outcome, is it not? It kind of is. Yep. Yes, it is. Unless, of course, that's tied at zero, in which case. No, we do have some purchases for both of our separate masks. All right. Well, excellent.

Fantastic. Anything else in the news? Run into any murder hornets? No. No. No. God. If it's not bad enough, come on. I saw so many good updates about like, okay, the screenwriter is just going over the top now. This is a subplot that we do not need.

We have enough with the main plot. I know. I know. It's like, come on, man. I know we're getting near the end of the second act, but you don't need to throw in. Oh, Jesus. In the news.

So we do have a bit of news. Some contact tracing apps are starting to roll out across the world with a variety of different programs and different privacy levels and different systems being used. But thus far, so far, in most countries, these are voluntary.

And it kind of is in India, but not really. And I have a feeling this is kind of the way it's going to go in most places. It's become effectively mandatory. If you want to go out in the phased rollout, if you want to go work in public or private sectors, India is saying, well, you can, but you've got to start using our contact tracing app, which I kind of understand.

Yeah. I mean, it's one of those things where we're going to have to do it. I mean, it's just we got to until this until there's a vaccine or a little bit more a little bit better handle on it, because, you know, like you just mentioned before, people are going to be at work and it's going to be lingering in the air. And we need to know these kind of things.

Exactly. And we have a Senate bill now that's going through the rounds that will set privacy requirements for a COVID-19 tracking app that would be used here in the US. So we shall see what happens with that. Senators Marsha Blackburn, Jerry Moran, John Thune and Roger Wicker plan to introduce a bill, the COVID-19 Consumer Data Protection Act, that would set requirements for data collection and transparency.

So they will start by requiring affirmative express consent for transferring health location and proximity data, along with an opt out for those who aren't comfortable, thus defeating the purpose. Yes. So, but I do like the idea that there will be clear definitions of aggregated and de-identified data, even though we kind of know that anything de-identified can probably be put back together again, especially if the tracing app is tracing your locations.

And there are two locations you should be going to, home and work, and that's it. Or the grocery store, though. You still got to go to the grocery store sometimes. Okay, a third point of information. Transparency measures will include disclosures for how data will be handled, where it's going, and how long it will be kept.

I like that as well. So this will theoretically prevent Apple, Google, and government agencies from collecting more data than they should or funneling it into the hands of marketers and others who might abuse it. So we shall see. But, of course, people on the privacy side of the fence are saying it's not doing enough, and it may even be worse for us.

But we're kind of also running out of time here. So we're going to have to pick the devil or the deep blue sea at this point. Yeah, I mean, at this point, they should just have a bill that requires advertisers to hand over their information to the government since they have better information than anybody else right now.

That's true. They've got it all in reverse. Yeah. Come on, guys. Let's flip this on its head. Well, it's kind of what I've always been saying, right? Before, when we worried about more esoteric, less worrisome things, we would always talk about what, say, China was doing versus what the U.S. was doing.

And I always argued that in China, it's government-run. Here in the U.S., it's just private businesses that do the exact same thing. So maybe the government should just say, hey, advertisers, let's see that data. Yeah, fork it over, guys. Come on. And now over in France. Oh, France.

They are going to build their own, you know, contact tracing app. They're not going to let the Apple and Google solution get into their little country. Jason, the temptation to do one of those faux French accents is so strong right now. I know.

Not going to do it. Not going to do it. And their minister for digital affairs, Cedric O. This is France. Do they mean this is France? So do they mean the minister for digital affairs? Is this the person that oversees Tinder? Yeah, must be.

Must be. I think it's called baguette in France. So he says, the French health and technological sovereignty is the freedom for our country to be able to have the choice and not be constrained by the choices of a large company. However, innovative and efficient it may be.

So we will take the crappy, inefficient program that we will come up on our own because we're not experts. Yep. And we're going to use that. Okay. So, yeah, it's basically down to them in the UK right now who are going to roll their own. Even Germany said that they're going to use the Apple and Google solution.

So come on, guys. Then Apple and Google know what they're doing and Apple's involvement. And it gives me a modicum of hope for some privacy. So I and it's ubiquitous. It's going to roll out on every single phone known to man, basically. So I don't see any reason not to at this point.

Well, I don't know about every single phone that Android update ecosystem might take a while. But that is true. Yeah, they're you know, they've got code in the wild right now. Beta beta releases out for the at least the Apple side. So should hope to see that pretty soon.

Yeah. And over the weekend, a rumor about Uber rolled out. And as of Monday, it was absolutely confirmed. So this is going to happen. I just didn't update my story. So I'm still using the the we heard this was happening story. The company has has confirmed to CNN business that it's requiring face masks or similar coverings for both drivers and passengers in countries like the U.S.

And the rumor was they were developing technology to detect whether or not drivers are abiding by those rules. I can only assume by the technology they are developing. They mean a camera. Yes, I think they've already got it in place where they like every now and again, the driver will have to take a selfie.

Yes, they have the real time ID check feature that periodically asks drivers to take selfies to ensure that the person driving is the person who said they were. So now you just train the algorithm to go, I don't recognize that face anymore because it has a mask on it. Yeah, exactly. Okay.

Now, I want to know what genius said that. Okay. We need to have proof that the person driving is the person that we think it is. So let's have them while driving take a selfie because I believe you're supposed to be stopped. Okay. But yeah, nothing says safety like, you know, picking up your phone and taking a picture while you're it have passengers in the car with you.

Yes. And the Mayday strike from Amazon, Instacart and Target apparently happened. Did you notice? No, neither did I because I had the delivery from Instacart that day, actually. So thank you very much. Yeah, it did occur. They were protesting for better safety protections, working conditions and pay during the coronavirus pandemic.

It did attract considerable media attention and political support. So in that sense, it apparently worked. It's pushing companies to respond to basic demands that workers have been asking for since the beginning of this nightmare that we all find ourselves in. Now, nothing really happened in terms of shutting down warehouses or people not getting stuff or anything like that.

So it could be seen as underwhelming. But my argument would be this was the most effective protest that they could do. Didn't piss any of us off. We all got the stuff we needed and the media attention was massive. So that's good. It's very good. Yeah, I wanted my stuff.

I got my stuff. And we support the workers. And I think public for in general, public support is with those workers right now, not with the company. So, you know, they may not have gotten the physical things that they wanted out of this, but they've certainly got the hearts and minds.

So we shall see what happens. Speaking of hearts. One thing, which you're about to tell us about. Yes. Yes. Yes. Amazon VP Tim Bray. He's full of dismay and said, no way am I going to stay. He has left Amazon in a huff. A huff and a puff.

Yeah. And Tim Bray. I mean, that's way up there. He's a big dude. Yeah. Been around forever. And he left a he left a very scathing blog post. And I'll read just a little bit of it for you. Amazon is exceptionally well managed and has demonstrated great skill at spotting opportunities and building repeatable processes for exploiting them.

It has a corresponding lack of vision about the human costs of the relentless growth and accumulation of wealth and power. If we don't like certain things Amazon is doing, we need to put legal guardrails in place to stop those things. We don't need to regulate any. Huh? Those regulations things.

Yep. There you go. Okay. We don't need to invent anything new. A combination of antitrust and living wage and worker empowerment legislation, rigorously enforced, offers a clear path forward. Hmm. Hmm. Interesting. Yes.

And he says, firing whistleblowers isn't just a side effect of macroeconomic forces, nor is it intrinsic to the function of free markets. It's evidence of a vein of toxicity running through the company culture. I choose neither to serve nor drink that poison. Here, here, sir.

Here, here. Well done. That is a man with morals taking a stand. Well done. Yes. And another one that I found is, leave it on a little high note here, Apple CEO Tim Cook delivers Ohio State commencement address. It's only like seven and a half minutes, and I highly recommend you go watch it.

It was very well said. Was it done on Zoom? No, no. It was done. Did he FaceTime everybody? Yeah, it was FaceTime. That's it. He dropped into everybody's FaceTime like the U2 album dropped into everybody's phones. Exactly. Hit the God button, Tim.

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Media Candy. Well, we had a welcome, sort of, brief return from David Tennant and Michael Sheen playing their characters from Good Omens. They released a lockdown video, which is more audio than video, but, you know, it is what it is, and I'll take what I can get.

And I thoroughly enjoyed it, and it made me want to go watch Good Omens again. Yeah, it was really well done. It was really well done. It was a nice, nice treat. It was a nice treat. Westworld finished. Yes, it did. Should we, I guess we should do a little bit of a spoiler alert for Media Candy.

Yeah, yeah, so probably for the next 10 minutes, you might want to, if you haven't seen the end of Westworld or Devs, you might want to skip ahead 10 minutes. Okay, well, I'm not going to do too much of a spoiler on Westworld. I thoroughly enjoyed it. We had heard and hoped, perhaps, that this was going to be the end, because the showrunners were leaving.

They made it exceedingly clear, this is not the end, and I'm a little bummed about that, because I think they could have wrapped it up perfectly and left it be. Well, you know, it can be the end. You just don't have to watch the next season. That's really it. They did leave on some cliffhangers.

Yeah, I can do without the cliffhangers. I thought it was okay. It was an okay wrap-up. The editing wasn't very tight, which really bugged me, but it was okay. I thought it was okay. You know, got the job done. So, we'll see what happens. They could continue the story and flog it until it's dead.

Maybe it'll be really good. Who knows who the writers are going to be and the showrunners are going to be when they come back. So, we'll see what happens. But I would have been perfectly happy with them fading out and leaving it as is. I thought it was a good run and a good show arc with just the seasons that we've had so far.

Yeah, they could have literally ended it on the bridge. Yep, exactly. Like a Fight Club ending. Yeah, totally perfect Fight Club ending. But here's the other thing. It's going to be at least three years before anybody sees another Westworld minimum because there ain't going to be no TV for a while.

Yep. And because you had watched it and at your recommendation and because running out of things to watch, I gave devs a chance over on Hulu and I binged it and finished it. And what were your thoughts, sir? I enjoyed it. I thought it was really good.

I have two main complaints. Well, first, let me say that the music supervisor did an amazing job. All the music supervision, the songs dropped in by artists, spot on and perfect. The composer, on the other hand, drove me fucking nuts.

The original score is horrible. It is somebody pushing the Trent Reznor button so hard on their fucking keyboard and going so over the top. It actually bumped me and drew me out of the story numerous times. So I hated the soundtrack. I found it distracting.

And also could not stand the main actress. Don't think she can act. She was surrounded by beautiful performances, incredible acting, and she was so flat and affectless. And she totally bumped me and drew me out of it, too.

She had no emotion, no range, no nothing. She might as well have been a robot. And she was the pivotal focal point. Like, she was supposed to be going crazy and losing her mind and full of emotion. And I felt nothing from her. Yeah, she was definitely a low point.

Yeah. Well, and she's the main character. So you don't want your main character to be the fucking low point. That's true. That's true. So I found that really difficult and the score really difficult, which made me wish that they had done it with a different actress and a different composer.

And I probably really would have enjoyed it. And it ends the way that all shows of this nature ends somewhat ambiguous. You know, is time a loop? Have they been stuck inside this computer reality multiple times? Or is this the first time that they broke through the whole thing? Overall, I really did enjoy it.

It was a good exploration of free will. Yeah, that's what I really enjoyed about it, too. And, yeah, you don't know where they're at in the timeline. You don't know when it started, how it started, and if it's just going to keep looping in on itself, reiterating on itself.

And I just like some of the ideas with the, you know, the quantum theory of multiple universes in there because it's like, oh, you know, he really wanted his one universe. And then they're like, well, it's like, does it really matter when you're getting down to like, you know, okay, a hair in one universe across somewhere across the continent is a little off compared to where it was?

It's like, does it really actually make that much of a difference in the grand scheme of things? And it turns out not really. Yeah. So I thought that was kind of fun. Yeah. Yeah. It was a lot of great ideas. Very, very high level of production for a Hulu series, I thought. It looked stunning visually.

So. Yeah. Yeah. They just kind of blew it with the main actress. Yeah. I mean, the acting from the rest of the cast was just really, really good. Really, really good. Yeah. Agreed. Yeah. Yeah. Fire that casting director. And I also watched a new stand up over on Netflix.

I watched Marc Maron, End Times Fun. Now, this was written and performed well before coronavirus, but you wouldn't be able to tell. Well, it's Marc Maron, man. He's not really what you call an uplifting comic. No, no. But there was definitely some specific thoughts that he had about where people are going and all that, which we've seen at this point.

It was fun. I've never watched a stand up of his before. So this was an interesting thing to do. I thought he was really good and I enjoyed it. You know, it was kind of more like you're laughing, but kind of crying. But I like that. So that's that's his M.O.

That is his M.O. Enjoyed it. Enjoyed it a lot. Recommend. Do you listen to his podcast? I did way back in the day. But I stopped a long time ago. Yeah. The first 15 minutes of every episode is basically him pitching and kvetching, which is why I always fast forward it. But yeah, if you if you want more Marc Maron, that's exactly the same as the stand up.

Go ahead and just listen to the first 15 minutes of his podcast. Anytime you need a fix. OK. Now, I started watching Upload on Amazon, their new show. Oh, it is not what I thought it was going to be. It's OK. I'm like three episodes in and I am thoroughly enjoying it.

Thoroughly enjoying it. It's like half comedy, half mystery, just like half an exploration of technology, like future near tech, but with a very funny bent to it. I'll let you know when I'm done with it. There's, I think, 12 episodes, but I wanted to keep watching it all night, but I had to go to bed.

But the first episode is like 45 minutes and the rest are 23 minute, you know, shorties. So it goes by pretty quick. But yeah, I'll let you know when I'm done. But so far, I'm thoroughly enjoying it. It's pretty fun. Bookmarking it for sure. Oh, yeah, well, you can't avoid it.

Open up Amazon. That's all you see. And I started watching. Oh, actually, we've got two more episodes left for Hollywood on Netflix, which is kind of an it's an alternate history take on early Hollywood after World War Two. And it is phenomenal.

It is absolutely phenomenal. We're just we're trying to dole them out because they're only seven episodes, but it is incredibly well done. And they use a lot of the real locations like the there's a fictitious studio called a studio, but they're using the Paramount lot basically, you know, looking right out where my old office used to be by the Marathon Gate.

And it's really cool. They use a lot of the like, you know, Musso and Franks and the Bel Air Hotel and all sorts of like old locations and, you know, old them up. But it's really fun. If you know Hollywood geography, it's pretty cool in history. But the the acting and the storyline is incredible.

It's about basically what would happen if back in the day there were people that tried to break through stereotypes and segregation and gender politics and things like that. It's so good. I mean, it is so good. All righty. And I'm doing it, Brian.

I'm going to I'm going to finish the last season of Homeland. It's a home stretch. I read the synopsis of the last episode just because, you know, I had done four, three, four seasons of it and just kind of wanted to see how they ended it. I'm not there yet. So no spoilers. I'm not going to give you any spoiler other than I'm glad I'm not watching.

OK. I'm three episodes in so far. And it's OK so far. I'm sure the ending is going to be a letdown, as it always is. And Billions is back. Oh, my God. I'm so glad Billions is back. This show.

And what's the other one on HBO that you just finished watching? Succession. Yes. Yeah. My two favorite shows on TV in Billions. Billions is a head and shoulders above Succession. But, man, they're killing it out of the gate.

So I think this is season five. And if you watch the other seasons of Billions, man, make sure you get on this one because it is so good. All righty. Are you a Billions fan? Nope. Not my cup of tea. OK. OK. What about Killing Eve? It is on the to watch list.

That's something that my wife and I agree on that we want to see. So it's queued up for whenever we actually feel like spending the last hour of every evening around each other, as opposed to going our separate ways and reading books. Got it. Got it. Have you seen the first two seasons? No. No. I am a Killing Eve virgin.

OK. You're going to love it. You're going to love it. Because this guy, it's made by the woman who did the- Phoebe Waller-Bridges. Yeah. Yeah. So, but, man, it is so good. It is so good. And I'm a huge Sandra Oh fan, so. Well, yeah. I mean, everybody is from this one, for sure. I mean, even if you weren't before, you are now.

That's for sure. And I threw this one in here because, you know, you're a Star Wars fan. And yesterday was May the 4th. Taika Waititi is going to direct a new Star Wars movie. And I will go, I'll be in the front line with my popcorn ready if there's still a movie theater.

I will be interested to see what his take is on this. However, when Disney issues statements that X and Y are directing and co-writing a new Star Wars movie for theatrical release, I wait to confirm that because generally three to six months later, we are told that that's not happening.

Yeah. That has happened multiple times at this point. So we'll see if this actually occurs. But I'd be up for it. I think he's a brilliant director. I think he's really funny. And I would like some humor brought to the Star Wars universe, which I think he would probably do. Oh, yeah. I mean, Thor Ragnarok was hilarious.

And, you know, he's at least in the Star Wars universe because he did the last episode of The Mandalorian. Right. So fingers crossed, man. Well, I mean, I guess we should mention this as it was May the 4th the other day. The other thing that really came, well, obviously, the Rise of Skywalker came out.

I watched 15 minutes of it and went, yeah, I don't need to do this. But the last thing that happened for Star Wars that was special is the final episode, the finale of The Clone Wars dropped. Now, I watched the first two seasons of The Clone Wars way back in the day. And I really liked it.

I don't remember what got in the way of me stopping it. Life does that. You know, they started on, what was it, the Cartoon Network or something like that. And then they got dropped and then picked up by Netflix. And then Netflix dropped it. And then finally, it got picked up by Disney Plus to end the cycle.

And by all accounts, the final series and the entire run of the show is a million times better than the first prequel movies. And it ended on a particularly emotional and meaningful note. So that's good to hear. So at some point, I'm going to pick that back up and go watch all the Clone Wars stuff.

All right. There you go. And finally, something to do music related that's been going on. Now, this has started well before our COVID lockdown times. But now more than ever, he's doing a lot more of them. It's called, it's mostly on Twitter.

It's hashtag Tim's Twitter listening party. But he started up a website so you can see the upcoming schedule of bands that are doing it. And you can replay all the old ones. Basically, what he does, this is Tim Burgess. He was the lead singer of the Charlatans UK, a big 90s band back in the day.

And so obviously, he focuses a lot on 90s music. But he will get somebody from the bands. Not always the person you want, but whatever. It's somebody from a band. And at a certain period of time, you press play on the album that they pick.

And in real time, the people in the band and Tim and everybody, you know, you can send in questions and comments. And they basically, it's a listening party where you hear from, hear all these anecdotes and different things from the people that made the records. So if it's a band that you like, it's probably kind of fun for you to listen to along with and follow along.

And I have to say, I missed a lot of these because the timing isn't great because he's based in the UK. But the replay version on his website, which we have a link in the show notes, is phenomenal because you can just start playing the record. And in real time, it just brings up all the tweets as they came in. So it's a very cool concept, very well done.

And I like a lot of the bands that they're focusing on. And so for me, this has been a good way to basically go back and listen to some albums when I get the chance and hear about the people that made them. How cool is that? It's very cool.

I'm not sure how the name Mark Bittman came across my brain or anything like that. I think he was quoted on some Twitter thread that blew up and then there was some article about it. But he's a scientist and he looks a lot into food science. And he wrote a book along with David Katz, who is a medical doctor, and it's called How to Eat, All Your Food and Diet Questions Answered.

So I downloaded it and I read it. And it's basically just beating you over the head with all these faux diets and fad diets that you hear. They're all bullshit. The basics are very simple. Eat grains, eat nuts, eat, you know, avocados.

Try to avoid meat as much as possible. You will lose weight if you follow this diet. End of story. And it's good for you. And the why, whys of why it's good for you. And I thought the only reason I'm really mentioning it, well, A, it's the only book I've fucking read. And we need something throughout the library. But, B, it answers our question about eggs, Jason.

Oh, dear. Are eggs good or are eggs bad? It's all about context and what you're replacing it with. If you'd be eating oats and fruits and grains instead, then eggs are bad. If you're eating bacon and an egg McMuffin, then eggs by themselves are good.

End of story. It's not really a good or bad. It's a what would you eat instead of it. Okay, got it. And, yeah, it's, you know, the grain thing, that's always a double-edged sword because grain's good, grain's bad. Well, they say they're good.

They're good, but obviously not processed. It's basically what we all kind of know, real foods. Eat real foods. End of story. Yeah, that's kind of it. You know, I've got this book. I've read part of it before. And I've also, I also recommend Daria Rose's book, The Foodist.

It's along the same lines, kind of the same thing. She gives you some more practical tips as well. But, yeah, it all comes back to eat real food. So, but I do have this book. I just never got through it because it's hard for me to read through a food book all the way.

It's one of those things like I kind of lost the plot, you know, after a while. Well, for me, you know, it's, it's, it's, I basically get 30 minutes every night. So, it was one of those ones that I would just pick up, read for 30 minutes, next night, get back to it. But I just thought it was funny because it really did get into the eggs thing pretty hardcore.

It's just like, eggs aren't good or bad. It depends on what you're replacing it with. And the dose. You know, you don't want to eat a dozen eggs a day. Well, actually, I would love to eat a dozen eggs a day, but that might be, that might be my leaving Las Vegas diet. You know, when it's time to check out. Deviled eggs all the way down.

Exactly. So, I got some time. I basically have been trying to block off a lot more time. That's why Media Candy was so long. And at the library, I've got a bunch too. I finally finished Blowing the Bloody Doors Off and Other Lessons in Life by Michael Caine. It was, it was great.

Like, all these are audio books because that's all I can do. Michael Caine reading this book was amazing. It's, it's a great set of stories that are both like, you know, biographical, not biographical, biographical, and also actionable tips that he, he's found over, over his career.

So, he was 85 when he read this back in 2018. And the only problem I have with it is like, when he ends the book, he's like, find what you love and do it. That is the worst piece of advice you can ever give anybody ever. Yeah, it is the single worst piece of advice.

You can, and now, find out what you're good at and do it is much better advice. Whether you love it or not, become skillful, become, you know, completely skillful at that. But finding what you love and doing it, that is a, that is a recipe for sadness. Yes, it is. Because either you're not going to make any money because chances are what you absolutely love doing is not very profitable.

Or B, you will come to hate the thing that you loved. Well, and also, studies have been done on this and it's, you know, I was, I loved photography, but as soon as I started to get paid for it, I resented it. Yep. You know, it took the thing that I loved and turned it into something I didn't. And that's why, you know, finding what you love and doing it is a terrible idea, Michael.

You just got lucky. Yeah. That's all. And I read this book, Awareness, Conversations with, I'm sorry, listen to, Awareness, Conversations with Masters by Anthony DeMello. Can you hear my eyes rolling? Of course you can. You, of course I can. It's, I mean, it's hippity-dippity bullshit in the description.

It's, it's a terrible description, but he reads it himself. And this is basically from kind of one of his seminars and Tim Ferriss has been, you know, raving about this book forever. I'm like, okay, I'll just grab it and throw it on. And this isn't the exact book that he recommends. This is a different one, but it's based on the same topics.

And what I found is it's, there are a lot of really good lessons in this book, but it is perfect to go to sleep to. I found that his voice is amazing to go to sleep to. It's a bit of a slap and a kiss. Well, it's the same thing. I mean, I, well, Stephen Fry also, I love listening to Stephen Fry, but you know, perfect to go to sleep to because he just lulls you to sleep.

But there are some good things in here that I found. I've actually gotten some good, useful tips out of here. But this is, you know, it's one of those things, like I said, it's hippity-dippity bullshit and it's going to be different for everybody. I think the only time you got useful tips off this is when you were a little bit too hopped up on your CBD oils.

You know what? That very well could be. Very well could be because I slam, I slam my feels before I go to bed at night. GOG.com slash feels for a discount. And I am in a much more relaxed and open state of mind. So very well could be. But I tell you what, I don't wake up feeling crappy and like the world is going to fall down around me.

Like if I listen to sci-fi when I go to bed. Or, you know, news. Or news. Yeah. Well, that's out of the window now. So this last book I've got is called Skunk Works, a personal memoir of my years of Lockheed by Ben R. Rich and Leo Janos. I just, I feel like you've read every book about Skunk Works that there is.

And you may be repeating them at this point. I haven't read this one. This is a new one. I've got, I've done books on different pieces of Skunk Works. You know, I've talked about the book on the SR-71 Blackbird that I bought my dad for Father's Day a long time ago. That were the memoirs of the pilots of the SR-71 Blackbird.

This is how they built it. Right. And some other, actually, this isn't how they built the Blackbird. This is about how they built the Stealth Fighter, which is pretty fascinating. And it's how this guy came into Skunk Works and basically just took the project over and ran with it. And it's really fascinating if you're into that kind of thing, which I definitely am.

Yes. It's pretty cool. I'm sorry. I love this stuff. Hey, we all have our own thing. You know, I've read every single book about Merlin ever. So, and the King Arthur thing. So, and Dune, you're a big Dune man. Yes. But I think this is, it's a fantastic book.

It's not new. So, if you're going to try and find a hard copy, it's a little bit more expensive. But the Audible version is really well done. Multiple voice actors. It's pretty cool. I enjoyed it thoroughly. So, if you're into that kind of aviation stuff, highly recommend it. Excellent.

Moron of the Week. Hat tip of this one goes to Dr. David Teeter, friend of the show. Oh, my God. Brian, you had to be tickled pink over this one. I'm not tickled pink over anyone's tragedies, Jason. Yes. So, this has been blowing up, as they say on the Twitters.

Amanda Palmer and Neil Gaiman have broken up. Neil has buggered off back to the UK. And Amanda, you know, decided to tell the world on Patreon before she even told Neil. Now, you know, to give her a pass, it was a free post on Patreon.

You didn't have to pay to find out. That's true. She's just a bitch. I have never liked her. Really? From day one of the show. Amanda fucking Palmer. I can't stand her. Man, what a bitch move. Mm-hmm. Anyways.

If a dude would have done this, he would have been crucified online. Somehow, Amanda Palmer is, like, getting support. I don't fucking get it. I tell you what, man. The Twitter replies to all of this have just been amazing. People are just like, Neil, we told you she was a bitch.

We told you not to do it. My favorite one, though, here is from Siberian Pine. Neil Gaiman got so sick of Amanda Palmer's shit that he flew from a country where the pandemic is completely under control back to rainy fascist island, presumably having had the thought, oh, my God, I could literally die, and still going ahead with it.

Yeah. Well, you know, she cray-cray. Yeah. Yep. Yeah. Well, yeah. Yeah. I've said enough bad things about her. I don't need to anymore. I feel bad. I feel bad for the kid. That sucks. That's it. Yeah. That's pretty much the only one I really feel bad for in this.

I feel really bad for the kid because the kid's stuck with her and not him. I know. Well, that's what happens. Yeah. So we've had a lot of stuff going on with face mask requirements, you know, kind of understandably. A lot of people, if we're going to try to reopen stuff up, then at least people have to wear, employees have to wear masks, and customers have to wear masks to try to stop the spread.

Unfortunately, a city in Oklahoma has had to end that after store employees were threatened by customers with violence because they refused to cover their noses and mouths. So, awesome. In the short time beginning on May 1st, 2020, that face coverings have been required for entry into stores and restaurants, store employees have been threatened with physical violence and showered with verbal abuse, according to the Stillwater City manager, Norman McNichol.

One threat involved using a firearm, despite clear evidence that face coverings helped contain the spread of COVID-19. Yeah, awesome. So many of these with objections cite the mistaken belief that the requirement is unconstitutional and under their theory, one cannot be forced to wear a mask.

No law or court supports this view, McNichol said in a statement. It is further distressing that these people, while exercising their believed rights, put others at risk. So the mayor, Will Joyce, has announced the change less than 24 hours after the rule had come into effect, after lots of reports and threats and violence against those who were trying to enforce it.

And he made his frustration clear, as one does these days, in a series of tweets, noting that while he expected some pushback to the rule, he never thought it would lead to threats of violence. To the people who resort to threats and intimidation when asked to take a simple step to protect your community, shame on you.

Our freedom as Americans comes with responsibilities, too. Damn right. Yeah, I mean, it's simple. No shirt, no shoes, no mask, no service. That's right. Businesses can do what they want to do with that. Yeah, yeah, and please, somebody call the police and have these people arrested. Well, that's what they're going to do.

So the police chief, Jeff Watts, said if you refuse to do so, you could be cited and or arrested for trespassing if the business calls the police and requests to make a citizen's arrest. Good. All right. Good. And now, my last moron of the week is YouTube. Now, normally, we'd have, this would be a reversal because PewDiePie has been our moron of the week a couple times because he's kind of an asshole.

Yes. Well, PewDiePie has signed an exclusive YouTube deal for live streaming. Hmm. So what really matters to YouTube? Is it the fact that he is an asshole and he did horrible things on their platform or is it the money? I believe it's the money because, yeah, two years ago, he was kicked off over his anti-Semitic jokes and Nazi imagery.

I guess we found out what the statute of limitations is for, you know, for being a Nazi on YouTube. You kicked off for two years and then you're back on. Yeah. Well, there you go. Yeah. Yeah. So I'm guessing, uh, I'm guessing, uh, YouTube needs the money.

Is that it? What? Are they, are they, did we not know this? Is YouTube running on fumes? What happened, YouTube? Well, he's, he's, he's, he's got a huge fan base. And, and last year he was the most viewed YouTube creator with over 4 billion video views.

So I don't know. I don't get it anymore. I don't either. Feedback loop. Over on Patreon, we've got some new subscribers. Paul Stewart, Asim, Michael, Mark. Oh God. Chuck Wuma.

Chuck Wuma. Melissa Torin and Scrody Ballsack. Wasn't Scrody Ballsack around already? I believe he's one of the ones that returned after a hiatus. Oh, welcome back. Scrody Ballsack. Always nice to have Ballsack back. Exactly. And over at PayPal, we've got Kevin, David, Elizabeth, Judge, Doug, Ann, John, Michael, Simon, Rachel.

And Rachel says, use it for toilet paper or books, I guess. And we also have ThinkSpring Interactive, who says, just a small donation to say thanks for what you guys do. Navigating tech headlines in this current climate is not always easy or a pleasant task. Nope. As I'm sure you're both well aware of. Oh, yes, we are.

Just remember, there are a bunch of folks out there who do appreciate it and look forward to your shows. Well, thank you, ThinkSpring Interactive. I'll read some of these since we have so many. Stephen, who says, grumpy from Scotland, keeping us entertained in lockdown as only GOG can do. All the best. Bogdan writes in, keep up the good work, guys.

Thanks for providing us with entertainment during these times. I'm sad I missed the Zoom call, but here's a little something to help pay for that Zoom subscription. Andy, who says, hey, grumps, congrats. You're my first ever podcast donatee. Your segments with fellow DMVer Bittner are getting profoundly rich. Thanks for keeping your podcast going during these hard times.

I hope this small amount helps. And finally, Sean. Gentlemen, I have been a longtime listener of the show and felt it time to contribute to the enjoyment of myself and many other listeners. Please accept this donation of support that is long overdue. I have one question that if you have any advice, a point in the right direction would be appreciated.

How do I delete slash remove persistent cookies either manually or with an application from a PC system? If you're busy, I understand. But here is a thank you anyway. Take care and thanks for keeping me pleasantly occupied. We're both Mac, but there are programs that will remove all cookies.

And it's kind of browser-based, so Google, browser, remove cookies. Yep. It's usually under privacy settings. And you can just go in there and you can clear out all that stuff with a single click. And it's pretty easy. There are also extensions you can get for Chrome-based browsers that will let you modify cookies per site, which is always handy.

And you can also go in and edit cookies per site. I forget which one I had on my old one. I don't really use it anymore, but when I was a dev, you can check out the cookie extensions for that. But, yeah, basically it's under settings and generally under privacy. And you can clear cookies on a site-by-site basis or nuke everything and start from scratch.

But that means you will have to log in on every site that you go to again. But if you have one password, that helps. Yeah. Yeah. If you're using one password, it's much easier. Over at GOG.show, Paula writes in, Thought you might enjoy this. I'm a voice actor, so I used an Alexa impression to fuck with this loser scammer.

And this is an edit or an edit. A video. This is a link to Reddit. And it is hilarious. She's good, too. Yeah, she is good. Sounds pretty spot on. Eric Brown writes in and says, Pretty nuts and sends us a link from LA.Eater.com. LA County releases first list of restaurants with multiple coronavirus cases.

And shockingly, there are quite a few because that's frontline work. Yeah. And it's not just restaurants. It's kind of big businesses. Yeah. Yeah. Anything that has over five. Blah, blah, blah. But, you know, of course, the big news was the Rock and Roll Ralphs on Sunset basically had the most.

I haven't been to that in years. Yeah. I mean, I was there before the remodeling. Oh, man. That was scary. You'd see Lemmy in there at night going down, like, messed up going down the frozen food aisle. That was always interesting. And we got this one. This is very funny. Venice City Councilman writes in, Seeing as how my secret swimming scandal has come to light where I tell everyone they can't use the beach so I can have it to myself, I am not as confident in my re-election chances.

Jason in the past has mentioned that cybersecurity has a 100% employment rate. I like those odds. How would you suggest I get started if I want a job in the field? Well, I've been down this road a million times with cybersecurity. It is harder to compile a list of how to get started in cybersecurity than one would think.

And I've come to a conclusion, Brian. I think that they put this barrier in front of everybody because you have to figure it out on your own before you can get in the door. You've got to unlock the key. Yeah. Honestly, I think it's a test. I think it is a test because everybody I talk to has a different answer and they're all vague.

And they're like, well, you kind of just got to figure it out. And I'm like, damn it. I want a list to give people. The Idiots Guide to Getting Started in Cybersecurity. Yeah, that's really it. I think I really think it's a litmus test on if you can figure out how to get in the door, then, you know, that's the secret key.

Yeah, I agree. Barbara writes in looking for diversions while stuck at home. I was watching Flo and Joan Alive on stage, which is a stand up on Amazon Prime. They did a song about AI and sex robots that made me think of you actually made me laugh out loud. Check it out. It's just after the 45 minute mark in their special.

Enjoy and keep grumping, but smile. And there's a link to the Amazon in our show notes. Did you listen to the song? I did not. It's really funny. Good. I actually laughed out loud this morning when I was listening to it. But yeah, definitely check it out. They're an interesting surprise. You haven't heard of them.

They're like a British comedian song duo. Very cool. I'll have to check it out. Yeah, it's pretty funny. And Martin writes in, you've recommended several sound sources as background filler while working movies. As you've seen many times, ambient music like Moby's, et cetera. In case it wasn't mentioned before, I frequently use video game music like Command and Conquer, Subnautica, Call of Duty, et cetera.

It's mostly without vocals and makes your work feel badass. Keep up the great shows. And I asked for some links to stuff that he recommended. And he gave us a bunch of different video games to check out. And I want to check out StarCraft 2 because I used to play that all the time.

I would miss that game. I'd probably make me want to go install it and start playing instead of getting my work done, though. All right. And Sperry writes in, hey, Grumps, as I know, at least one of you has an Instant Pot. I thought you might be interested in this little item from the Instant website. The article does not include any how-to, but there are links at the bottom of it leading to the research and other articles.

Thanks for the show. And as always, stay grumpy. And this is from Instant Pot's website. Who knew that the Instant Pot can provide scientific-grade sterilization? Actually, we did. So, yeah, somebody, a student, a senior at Dakota State University made the same connection.

And this was kind of going semi-viral. She proved that an Instant Pot can actually basically serve as a pricey autoclave and get rid of all the nasties on things. And basically, they knew that a long time ago over at Instant Pot. And they had a thing on their website from a long time ago that indicated it would be the most appropriate choice for a cheap laboratory pressure cooker.

Right. And don't put your phone in it. Yeah, don't do that. It will not make it. Well, it will sterilize your phone. It just will sterilize your phone. In every sense, yes. Yep. And Lizzie writes, and regarding Spotify, please keep the podcast on it.

I like that the podcast is synced between playing it on my iPhone, stopping it, and then starting it at the right place on my desktop Mac to listen later. And I love the black background on Spotify, especially at night. And P.S. I've heard you two complain about Spotify's iOS 13 app. Actually, it's been every app that Spotify has ever made.

There's a hidden feature that makes it quite useful. Once the podcast is downloaded, go to your library, select podcasts, select downloads, click the desired episode, then carefully swipe up holding the episode's tiny text details, and you'll get a full screen with more controls. Two quick thoughts here.

First off, if you start playing it, if you use just Apple's crappy podcast program, you can still do the syncing between phone and your Mac. So that's a wash there. And secondly, the problems that we have with the Spotify iOS 13 app is the fact that anything useful is hidden.

Mm-hmm. Yep. Yep. So there you go. That's why I like Overcast, because it's all right there. You don't have to go dig 17 menus deep. It's all right there. Yes. David writes in to add with the Maryland pantsless guy, now my town is a destination for nude gardeners. And this is a link that says Bakersfield ranks as second best city to practice nude gardening in 2020.

According to Lawnstarter.com, a hotbed of a site, I'm sure, Bakersfield fell from the top spot in 2019 to the second best ranked place to celebrate the holiday in 2020, switching places in the standings with Ogden, Utah. Honestly, this has to be the only category Bakersfield has ever made a best city list for.

Oh, my God. And Dan writes in, cell phone tracking is everywhere. And this is up in Canada, New Brunswick, COVID-19 roundup. Return to New Normal is not a race, Top Doctor says. And yeah, this is a link about, what is a link about, Brian?

COVID-19 tracking is literally everywhere, including New Brunswick, which is not that popular, populous of a place. So there you go. All right. That's it, really. James writes in, guys, love the show, but please, Jason, for the love of God, saying that the show has a twist at the end is a massive spoiler.

The best twists are the ones you don't see coming, so to expect a twist ruins the moment and you end up trying to second guess everything as being a potential twist. Love the show. Fuck Trump. Stay grumpy. The man has a point, Jason. He does have a point. He does have a point. We're really shit about how we do spoiler alerts on this podcast.

We should work. We need a sound effect. Yeah, we need to work on our spoiler game for sure. But, you know, I think of The Sixth Sense. Everybody told me that had a twist ending. I went and watched it, and then I still didn't know what the twist ending was, and it turned out to be a great movie. His only good movie, as a matter of fact. Yes. All right.

Jason writes in, listening to episode 435. Glad Jason seems to be feeling better. Can't wait for the masks. Goonies is on my Mount Rushmore of 80s movies, and I'm proud to say I'm passing it to the newest generation. A couple of years ago, we drove the Tour de Marica. Philly to Yellowstone and back. I asked for car movie suggestions.

My youngest daughter chose Spaceballs, Sandlot, and Goonies. I've never been prouder. Stay grumpy. And John writes in, none of this is unexpected or even really all that new. Cutesy, too, by the way. I thought Jason might like the SofRep site in general if he doesn't already use it.

And this is obviously a link to SofRep.com. Amazon's Alexa's eavesdropping is worse than you thought. No, none of this is new. This is all stuff we've discussed. Ad infinitum on this show here. You make the deal when you bring these devices into your house. Sure, you can delete things if you want, obviously, because, you know, we're allowed to delete stuff now.

And until it's proven to me that they are actually recording without at least thinking it heard the wake word, I don't care. If that happens, then I'll throw them in the trash. Also, people, you can turn them off when making important business deals or discussing sensitive topics.

It's a speaker with microphones that is listening for voice commands. How lazy have we gotten? Turn it off if you're concerned about what it's hearing. There's a big button on the top. Big button right there. Yep. Big old button. And it even turns red when you press it.

Mm-hmm. Ramsey writes in, guys, you may have not seen this amazingly awesome, irreverent, cynical, and fabulous new cooking series from That's What I Reckon. It will make you smile and is very addictive. This is a good starter where he rails against pasta jar sauce. But there are a lot more behind this.

Make sure you look at the whole catalog. And there's also a good backgrounder about him that was just written, and that's over at The Guardian. I guarantee you'll love this. Yeah, I watched a little bit of the pasta jar sauce one. It was pretty funny. Cool. I'll check them out. James writes in, yo, Team Grump.

I had a chuckle in your last episode when you felt as though you had alienated every one of your Republican supporters. How about we alienate another part of your fan base, CCP Sympathizers? You should start a new segment, much like your security segment with Dave, and call it This Week in CCP Propaganda. I listened to an interview with Dr. J. Michael Waller on the China Unscripted podcast, and he mentioned a blog which accounts for every piece of information the CCP has manipulated in the press surrounding COVID-19.

I'm suggesting he be your first guest. Keep grumping. Yeah, I think if we added that segment, I would stop listening to my podcast. I just don't care enough. And it's funny, when you said CCP, I'm thinking, concealed carry permit? Of course you think that. Yeah, of course.

And Mark says, I'm sure you will have seen this regarding Airbnb hosts. And it's an article over at the Wall Street Journal called A Bargain with the Devil. Bill comes due for overextended Airbnb hosts. Yes, and the TLDR on this, entrepreneurs built many empires of short-term rental properties, borrowing against revenue that's now vanishing under the coronavirus lockdowns.

Of course this is happening, and this was never what the original point of Airbnb was supposed to be for, but money, money, money, greed, greed, greed. You were supposed to rent out your property when you're going to take a vacation, not start your own fucking low-rent chain of hotels. Yep. That's about it. It's not Slumlord as a service, people.

Well, that's what it became, because money, money, money, greed, greed, greed. That's about it. And over at iTunes, we got nothing. Come on, people. Yeah, this is the first time in a while we haven't had at least one review. Yeah. Fuck Trump. Now maybe we'll get a one-star. What else you got to do?

Come on, guys. If you want your question or comment read on the show, head over to gog.show slash contact and send us your feedback or questions that we can read on the air. And if you're so inclined, please head over to gog.show slash iTunes and toss us a five-star and snarky review. And keep clicking those stars on the overcast, player.

Pretty please. Sugar on top. Closing shout-outs. Shout-out to the keyboardist Dave Greenfield from a band I dearly loved from the 80s, The Stranglers. Unfortunately, he has passed away from COVID-19. Oh, that sucks. Yep.

Until next time, I'm Jason DeFilippo. And I'm Brian Schulmeister. Thanks for listening to Grumpy Old Geeks. To support the show and keep us on the air, go to gog.show slash donate. Toss us a few bucks and we'll love you forever. Your support really keeps us going and we really appreciate it. Show notes for this episode are gog.show slash 437.

From there, you can get links to old episodes, leave feedback, ask questions, donate to the show, and get links to stuff we like. Stay grumpy. Stay home if you can. Wear a mask if you can't. And don't abuse people because you don't want to wear one.

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