Dear Friends of the Pub Quiz,
As we approach the end of 2023, I am considering all the kindnesses that have been shared with me, my family, or others in my experience. Grandparents often specialize in kindness for, having worked hard for an entire lifetime, they have learned, just at the end, what is most important, and then they can share that unreservedly with the grandchildren. When I am in that situation, I will remember something I once read by Emerson: “You cannot do a kindness too soon because you never know how soon it will be too late.”
The poet, artist, publisher, and UC Davis Design professor DR Wagner got to share many kindnesses with his grandchildren and with the rest of us. Whenever my wife Kate would post a family picture on Facebook, DR would respond as if we were his own family. He took a special interest in the writing and acting projects of my son Truman, born around the time that DR retired from teaching at UC Davis.
When I introduced DR at a poetry reading on the roof of the Natsoulas Gallery this past October, he had many friends and supporters in the audience, and many more friends by the end of the evening, people who loved his imagistic, fanciful, vigorous, often transcendent poetry. DR has rightfully been called the Gandalf of American poetry, the godfather of Sacramento poetry, the stylized emperor of Locke, California, the slim and magisterial David Bowie of the local arts scene.
DR has read at my poetry series and appeared on my radio show a half-dozen times each, he has recruited poets and other experimental artists to come to Davis and to UC Davis, he has uplifted friends and colleagues with his exuberance, he has written dozens of books, and published hundreds of poets. He is a friend to many – he and I have over 200 mutual friends on Facebook – and an icon to many more, even though he himself was an iconoclast. He had over 2,000 followers on Facebook.
I remember one of the last things he said to me: “Andy, can you believe I am about to turn 80?” DR Wagner did make it to 80, but he didn’t make it to Christmas, passing away on the Winter solstice, making the day darker for all who knew and loved him.
Few poets were more widely published or more better known, nor have most artists seen their work so widely displayed in galleries and museums (from The Smithsonian to The Louvre). But in my family, and I suspect in the poetry community, we will remember DR best for what Wordsworth called the “best portion of a good man’s life, / His little, nameless, unremembered, acts / Of kindness and of love.”
DR, I will remember your many personal and Facebook-mediated acts of kindness. The rest of us can revisit your art and your poetry. I thank you for all the ways you made our lives richer.
I recently received this email from a Davis VIP:
“We have a slew of family interested in Weds Night Trivia. We haven’t been to Trivia since the grand opening.
We are wondering if reservations are needed inside, especially for dinner? I assume you aren’t using the outside until the spring…
Looking forward to seeing you again!”
It is wise to assume that I wouldn’t hold the pub quiz outside during the winter, but I am not always wise. Certain teams have bundled up to join me outside during the Sudwerk Pub Quiz this fall, while many wiser teams, such as last week’s champions, “Summer Brains, Summer Not,” play indoors, even if playing masked after finishing their meals.
Today will possibly be the first Wednesday when rain will be falling during the actual quiz, and that may force all of us inside. Luckily, Sudwerk has a strong sound system and room for many teams, including yours, so I hope you will plan always to join us Wednesday nights at 7 with your team.
In addition to topics raised above, tonight’s pub quiz will feature questions on bold food choices, striking colors, source codes, boa constrictors and other animals, well-heated verandas, famous songs, labor statistics, devoted daughters, past champions, quenched fires, continental choices, hopeful acts, the methods of success, membranes, numbers that are divisible by six, hit songs, long movies, books that have sold more than ten million copies, tiny objects, riddles about time, anticipated precipitous drops, video games, the year in review, former leaders, cinematic gods, current events, books and authors, and Shakespeare.
Thanks to The Original Vincibles, Summer Brains, The Outside Agitators, Quizimodo, Gena Harper, and others who support the Pub Quiz on Patreon. I would love to add your name or that of your team to the list of supporters. I appreciate your backing this pub quiz project of mine!
Happy New Year! Be safe Sunday night!
Dr. Andy
P.S. Here are three questions from last week’s Pub Quiz, where 21 points could have won you the top prize. As some of you will see, the version of the quiz published on Patreon is a bit easier.
- Mottos and Slogans. Founded in 2002, the company that uses the slogan “Be a Hero” frequently partners with athletes such as with Kelly Slater, Jimmy Chin and Jonas Deichmann. What are the five letters in the name of this company? Hint: The fifth letter is capitalized.
- Internet Culture. The Silent Talk project is a DARPA government initiative to make telepathy possible. What does the D in DARPA stand for?
- Newspaper Headlines. On the 2024 Presidential Election Interactive Map of the website 270towin.com, the experts have the Democrats with 266 electoral votes and the Republicans with 235. Name one of the three essentially tied battleground states found on this map.
P.P.S. Next week we celebrate my son Jukie’s birthday and launch my yearly fundraiser for the Jukie Jones Duren Endowment for the Smith-Lemli-Opitz Foundation. One regular reader of this newsletter already donated a tax-deductible $2,000, so, even before launching, we are already 20% towards achieving our goal of $10,000. Think now if you would like to participate, and I will provide the details next week. Thanks!