Tag: reviews

Summer Playlists on the Torg Stories Podcast

Summer Music Playlists Discussion on this episode of the Torg Stories Podcast!

Last week we did our favorite things to do on a nice day in Los Angeles and Boone, NC and this week we’ll go over the music we’d listen to on these beautiful days. We talk about how we got to these lists of songs, and we listen to an excerpt from each of our ten songs.

BOONE, NC (Bill): It’s a beautiful day in Boone, what songs am I listening to? 

  1. “Motorcycle Drive By” by Zach Bryan
  • 2022 release. Born in Japan. Parents in Navy. Moved to Oklahoma. In the Navy for 8 years. 
  • Lyrics “I will be in Richmond by tonight” and “I think it’s about time we headed home”
  • It has a motorcycle that propels you and they are going somewhere like me in my car on the beautiful day. 
  1. “In a Big Country” by Big Country
  • 1983 release. Scottish rock band. Participated in “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” song. This song came out in 1983.
  • Lyrics: they say “Ha!” or is it “Shock!” to open and “Shout!” in one sentence lines. 
  • Think it’s guitars to sound like bagpipes 
  1. “Motion Sickness” by Phoebe Bridges
  • 2017 release. From Pasadena, CA. About her relationship with Ryan Adams.
  • Lyrics: Somebody roll the windows down. There are no words in the English language I could scream to drown you out. 
  1. “Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man” by Bob Seeger
  • 1969 release. 80 years old. From Detroit. This song was on his debut album in 1969. 
  • Lyrics: ‘Cause I was born lonely down by the riverside. Learned to spin fortune wheels, and throw dice. I was just thirteen when I had to leave home. Knew I couldn’t stick around, I had to roam
  1. “Just Drive” by Erin Kinsey
  • 2022 release. From Texas. 24 years old. 
  • Lyrics pretty much what we are doing here: You and me, this white Toyota. Paramore on the radio Going 90, down 40
  1. “Castle on the Hill” by Ed Sheeran
  • 2017 release. A love letter to Suffolk. NE of London. It’s the Framlingham Castle mentioned in the song. He wanted to make a song like Bruce Springsteen’s “The River.” 
  • Lyrics: I’m on my way. Driving at 90 down those country lanes Singing to “Tiny Dancer”
  • More lyrics: He writes, “but I can’t wait to go home.” Does this exist for us? 
  1. “See You In the Afterlife” by Foster The People
  • 2024 release. Formed in LA in 2009. They sang “Pumped up Kicks.” Singer Mark Foster is married to Ozark actress Julia Garner. 
  • Most interesting song lyrically on my list? Today I woke up crying, so I went into a church to pray. They said, “Excuse me, but you’ll have to leave or we’re calling security”
  1. “And We Danced” by The Hooters
  • 1985 Release. Philly origins. Wrote it in the Poconos.
  • They took their name from a nickname for the melodica, a type of keyboard harmonica.
  • Lyrics: I met my be-bop baby at the Union Hall. She could dance all night and shake the paint off the wall
  1. “Space Age Love Song” by A Flock of Seagulls
  • 1982 Release. Liverpool origins. A singer from The Stranglers yelled at them, “A Flock of Seagulls.” They decided that would be their new name. 
  • Not a lyrically interesting song other than maybe a minimalist approach. 
  1. “Takin’ It to the Streets” by The Doobie Brothers
  • 1976 Release. First to feature Michael McDonald on lead vocals. 

LOS ANGELES (Anne): It’s a beautiful day in LA, what songs is Anne listening to?  

  1. “Close To You”by Dayglow
    • 1/20/21, Day glow is Sloan Christian Struble, Texan.
    • Lyrics, “I’m only overthinking when I’m close to you”
  2. “What a Fool Believes” by Self
    • Remake of Doobie Brothers song, played entirely with toy instruments. Did an entire album being played with toy instruments.
    • Original song written by Michael McDonald and Kenny Loggins released in 1978.
  3. “Fever”, by Inner Wave
    • 2021. Inner Wave is from LA.
    • Lead singer says song has “driving up the coast vibes” 
  4. “All My Happiness is Gone”, by Purple Mountains
    • 2019. David Berman, a poet and musician.
    • Sadly committed suicide a month after release. He was 52 and in rehearsals for tour. First album after 10 years. Known for lyrics.
    • All the lyrics in this song are great, “Mounting mileage on the dash, Double darkness falling fast, I keep stressing pressing on”
    • By A song that sounds uplifting but lyrics hit hard. I listened to another song about his mom from this album, made me get teary eyed at work.
  5. “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi”, by Radiohead
    • 2007
    • A song that ends in a great climax, great guitar ending.
    • Lyrics “Everybody leaves, if they get the chance, and this is my chance” “I hit the bottom, hit the bottom and escape”
    • Great backing vocal, eerie vocals.
  6. “Escapism”, by RAYE, 070 Shake
    • 2022. 
    • Its about partying to forget your pain, in a bad place. Lyrics: “Just a heart broke b****, high heels, six inch, in the back of a nightclub, sippin’ champagne
  7. “Wait a Minute”, by Willow, 2019 became a hit from TikTok trend
    • 2015, she was 15 years old
    • Willow is daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinket.
    • First heard this on a youtube of Coachella performance
    • Lyrics: “Wait a minute. I left my consciousness in the sixth dimension”
    • Pronounces things as tings in song to good effect
  8. “Fire”, by Waxahatchee. Jump in
    • 2020.
    • Katie Crutchfield, named after a creek in Alabama. 
    • She is a twin
    • I saw her open for someone at Hollywood Bowl, maybe Haim, this song stuck with me.
  9. “Never Too Much”, by Luther Vandross
    • 1981. Debut song written/composed/produced by him alone
    • I of course know Luther Vandross, but only recently have listened to this song a lot because I heard on TikTok
    • Great vibe song, a happy song

10. “Where She Goes”, by Bad Bunny

  • 2023. Coachella really brought me to Bad Bunny and he released this shortly after that with a great desert video filmed near there.
  • I don’t know Spanish, but the opening lyric is easy “Baby, dime la verdad” (Baby, tell me the truth) I also like singing “Quisiera volverte a ver” (I would like to see you again). Also in English he says “I go where she goes”

We’d love to hear what’s on your summer playlist!

Thanks for listening to this episode of the Torg Stories Podcast!

The Greatest Teams, Blind Dates, and Relationships with Dads

The Greatest Teams, Blind Dates, the Man City Ted Lasso episode, and Relationships with Dads on this episode of the Torg Stories Podcast. Recorded Sunday, January 19, 2025.

Summary and discussion questions for Season 2, Episode 8 of Ted Lasso. The episode was titled “Man City.”

  • We open with Dr. Sharon on a video conference with her therapist. She says Coach Ted Lasso is driving her crazy. It’s clever writing that allows us to hear her evaluation of Ted and herself. Her therapist says Ted isn’t going to make himself vulnerable unless she meets him halfway.
  • Dr. Sharon has a bike wreck.
  • We go to the Coaches office. Ted hasn’t shown up for work. They’ve got maybe the biggest match in the history of the club coming up at Wembley, the FA Cup. Roy leaves too. Beard agrees to let Nate plan training.
  • We start to see more of Jamie’s dad with some weight room texts. We also get the contrast of Sam’s Dad. There’s quite a bit about relationships with Dad. What would you say about your relationship with our dad? How did it work? How did it not work?
  • Rebecca and Sam, who still don’t know they are texting each other in a dating app, make plans to meet. (I haven’t really seen this trope in shows. Have you?)
  • Ted goes to check on Dr. Sharon in the hospital. The doctor thinks they are married. Ted says, “Let me help you out with that sweetheart.” I found this to be one of the funniest (like this example) most emotionally moving (the Roy hug Jamie) episodes of the season.
  • I wish I was keeping track of funniest scenes, best lines, best episode, most emotionally moving moments.
  • Roy needed to go to school for Phoebe. LOL: Phoebe calls classmate an apathetic shart effer. The teacher has a great line: You know the influence you on her. Use it.
  • Ted and Sharon walk home. She left him a bunch of voice notes.
  • Issaac gives a special haircut. Maybe I should call practice training. What if you only have “textual chemistry”?
  • Jamie’s dad planning on coming to Wembley. Higgins in an office. “I try to love my dad for who he is and forgive him for who he isn’t.”
  • Roy in car with Phoebe. Here’s her house. Because of you, I stand up to bullies. Roy goes in for one game of Princess and Dragon.
  • Ted at Sharon’s house. Kind of inspect’s it. “It’s temporary, she says.” What isn’t? Ted responds. Kyrie joke. Get to see Sharon closed up.
  • Rebecca waiting outside the restaurant and not going in. Rebecca and Keeley really good friends. We get the Sam and Rebecca blind date.
Sam and Rebecca go on a blind date
  • Ted calls to check on Sharon. She tells him she was scared about not being able to ride her bike.
  • The team goes to Wembley and Ted tries to recreate the speech from Hoosiers. This is like what they did with the Iverson practice speech. It’s remixed in a really funny way. I did the same last year when we played at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. I even yelled Watauga into the stands like Jamie yelled Richmond.
  • Jamie’s dad wears Man city stuff. Ted breathing exercise. Me too! Ted makes himself vulnerable by telling the staff about his panic attack. Everyone confesses stuff. Do you remember any of the confessions?
  • The announcing before the kickoff is fantastic. Those are real announcers. They refer to Manchester City as one of the great teams of all time. I asked you to name the greatest teams you remember watching. Mine appear below.
  • Nate the great calls the official Mike Dean a name and gets a yellow card. This is a big no no for assistants. The official is a real official and has now moved into working in the replay center. Love how un emotionally he gives the yellow card. Richmond is really routed. This happens. It’s a hard thing to endure and requires some special mental work.
  • Jamie’s dad comes into the locker room and Jamie ends up punching him. It’s a completely humiliating experience and a tough one to apply Higgins’s advice to. Roy hugs Jamie. Beard throws Jamie’s dad out. We’re starting to see that Coach Beard might be a tough guy.
  • Ted is inspired by what he sees Roy do that he goes outside, calls Dr. Sharon and tells her that his dad killed himself when he was 16.
  • Coach Beard essentially tells Ted that he needs to go out and blow off some steam. This sets up the next episode, “Beard After Hours.” This is the episode in addition to the Christmas Special that the writers came up with when Apple ordered two extra episodes. It’s also based somewhat on the actor Brendan Hunt, who plays Beard, his time in Amsterdam.
  • Ted calls out to Beard, “Hey Coach, bird by bird.” This is an allusion to Anne Lamott’s book on writing, Bird by Bird. That line shows me all that is probably there that I don’t see and that they would bring in that book I love is probably a sign that my tastes have great connections to the writers’ tastes.
  • Love what Sam says in his press conference about the loss at Wembley. He’s talking about football and he’s talking to Rebecca. We tried. Did you try? If you try, you can end up losing a lot. Sam gives her his address.

Greatest Teams Ever I Remember:

  1. 1986 Bears Super Bowl Champs: Walter Payton. Mike Singletary. Mike Ditka. Didn’t get Peyton a touchdown in the Super Bowl.
  2. 1986 Boston Celtics: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Danny Ainge, Dennis Johnson, and Bill Walton.
  3. 1995-96 Chicago Bulls. 72-10. Jordan, Harper, Longley, Pippen, Rodman, Kerr, Kukoc
  4. 2017 and the 2018 Golden State Warriors who repeated as champions: Curry, Thompson, Green, Durant. KD was the 2017 and 2018 Finals MVP. Off ball movement and screening. The shotmaking.
  5. 2007 New England Patriots. 16-0 and lost in the Super Bowl to the Giants. Brady, Moss, Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel, Wes Welker
  6. Honorable mention for me: 1987 Indiana Hoosiers with Knight coaching, Alford, Keith Smart hits the shot, Daryl Thomas, Dean Garrett, Joe Hillman, Ricky Calloway

LA Fires with Anne, Our Cell Phones and Us, and Clingy Relationships on Ted Lasso

LA Fires, Our Cell Phones and Us, and Ted Lasso Clingy Relationships on the Torg Stories Podcast.

I read an opinion article in the New York Times titled, “As a Climate Scientist, I knew It was Time to Leave Los Angeles.” Peter Kalmus, a climate scientist now living in Chapel Hill, NC moved out of the Altadena community two years ago. His old home burned in the fire. Here’s a paragraph from that article that has a lot of connections to the Torgersons:

  • “No place is truly safe anymore. A few months ago, Hurricane Helene pummeled the western part of my new state and the city of Asheville, which many once considered a climate haven. The Pacific Northwest seemed safe until the 2021 heat dome. Hawaii seemed safe until the deadly fires on Maui in 2023.”

Anne, I was landed in Maui as Lahaina was on fire, I was with mom coming home from our dad’s funeral as hurricane Helena destroyed region where I live in the mountains of North Carolina, and as my wife Megan said, we’re sitting out the LA fires but we’ve got you there representing the Torgerson family. What do you have to say about the fires?

  • Where are you in proximity to the fires?
  • Is the lack of water and dryness ever too much for you? Are you LA to the end?
  • Also from the NYT: The area burned by the various fires has grown to more than 36,000 acres — larger than the footprint of San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Boston or Miami. About 100,000 people are under evacuation orders, and more than 330,000 electricity customers are without power.

Summary and Discussion Questions from Ted Lasso Season 2, Episode 7 titled “Headspace.”

  • The episode opens with football star Roy Kent either being really sweet and devoted or very clingy depending on your perspective.
  • Assistant Coach Nate the Great goes to visit his parents house and has an exchange with his father about Nate being called the Wonder Kid in the newspapers.
  • Quote from Nate’s Dad: Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking about yourself less.
  • Last episode Coach Ted Lasso had a panic attack and left the pitch during an important match. Now Ted makes his first attempt at meeting with with Dr. Sharon for a therapy session. Ted does a whole fidgeting around stalling tactic and then leaves when he is asked about what happened the other night.
  • As Ted stalls, he uses the word accoutrement meaning items of dress or equipment. Ted means the things that decorate Dr. Sharon’s office. Click here for web pronunciation and definition.
  • Anne, I love Dr. Sharon’s office that looks out on the pitch. I am in two of my favorite home and work offices right now. St. John’s was very good. I had a bathroom at North Miami. My old App State and the basement in Stratford, CT were bad. Work spaces matter a lot.
  • The next scene is on the practice field. Beard says the only face they should have on is their, “Game face baby!” Reminds me of Knight’s game faces press conference. Our dad loved that. The players tease Coach Nate because he is in the news. Nate takes offense at Colin (who you always have trouble remembering) teasing him. Colin repeats his mantra to himself, “I am a strong and capable man.”
  • Sam the football player for Richmond continues to message with Rebekah the owner of the team on a dating app and they don’t know who each other is. Sam’s favorite movie is Ratatouille. I have seen it and ridden the Disney ride at EPCOT! Higgins gives an astute diagnosis of Rebekah’s mental state. There is so much mental health in Ted Lasso at the moment.
  • As Higgins and Rebekah talk about relationships in the boss’s office, it comes up naturally that Keeley is feeling that she is with Roy an awful lot. Roy walks in on the conversation and Higgins jazz scats with Rebekah to stop the conversation. Roy doesn’t care that people are talking about him. “Big whoop.” Two things (1) talking about relationships with friends and (2) the fun workplace shown and that I think exists among the cast.
  • Here’s another clingy montage. Roy is reading Dan Brown’s The Da Vincci Code.
  • Coach Ted and Dr. Sharon give it a 2nd try. What do you make of the drinking bird on Dr. Sharon’s desk? Ted tells Dr. Sharon off about her profession.
  • Rebekah and Sam are messaging each other on their phones and bump into each other. There’s a quote about devices separating us. What would you say are the top impacts of you owning a cell phone?

Pro cell phone for me:

  1. Connection to family. Where is everyone?
  2. Meet ups: mall, amusement park, park, college
  3. navigation
  4. podcast listening, streaming music

Cell phone negatives for me:

  1. Immediately accessible at almost anytime to do stuff for basketball. The common complaint that we’re always available for work.
  2. The posting of stats and game day stuff. I think it matters less than it did pre-Elon’s X but it’s still an expectation. (Anne likes the stats; that helps me a little!)
  3. I wouldn’t mind putting aside the smaller moments (2-8 minutes) where I pick up my cell phone while I wait.

Summary and Discussion Continued:

  • Nate is mean to the equipment manager and to Colin who checks in about what happened on the field previously. Beard hears it. Beard is starting to seem to have an appear / disappear power that is fun for me. Kind of a mystical “Beard is everywhere” feeling.
  • What’s your diagnosis of Nate?
  • Everyone gathers in the boot room! Rebecca says to Keeley, “Stop auditioning your complaints.”
  • Keeley and Roy have a blow up at home. Do they live in Keeley’s house? Does Roy have a house?
  • You have been waiting for this. Beard confronts Nate on his behavior. Do better.
  • Roy and Keeley are fighting. They arrive separately to work and don’t talk.
  • Sharon and Ted give the session the third try of the episode. Ted stills the drinking bird. Sharon says, “I can’t be your mentor without occasionally being your tormenter.”
  • Back to practice. Nate apologizes. I think Nate is taking for granted what it is to be on this team. Because he hasn’t been on teams, he doesn’t know how special this one is. Ambition is eating him up. Football becomes a metaphor for life. Jamie says he needed to give his teammate space and Roy realizes he just needs to give Keeley space.
  • The team gives Nate a Wonder Kid gift.
  • Ted runs into Trent Crimm the reporter at Mae’s pub. Ted lies to Trent about what happened.
  • Roy does 1 more pretty clingy needy thing as a kind of giving her space but it works out great.
  • The episode ends and Nate berates the kit man for the Wonder Kid jersey.

Thanks for checking out this episode of the Torg Stories Podcast!

HBO’s The Penguin Episodes Five and Six

It’s election night as we record but Anne and I are going to try and distract ourselves until we get a little later into the evening. Yes we’re talking about the HBO television show The Penguin but we hope to do it in a way that even if you’re not watching it, you might enjoy the hang. Anne, can we do it?

“Homecoming” Episode 5 Summary of The Penguin:

  • The episode opens with Oz–aka the Penguin–and his bashed Maserati burning in the background. (I kind of liked that purple car). TikTok makes the show with the Maroni son talking trash about how his family is going to take over the city. Oz goes to the tattoo parlor and abducts the Maroni son so he can trade him for his stolen mushrooms that he needs to make the drug Bliss. Cut to…the police–including another incredibly raspy voice guy–who are visiting Sofia after she killed her whole family by gas for sending her away to a mental hospital for a murder (her mother) she didn’t commit. Sofia has her father’s second hand man–Johnny Vitti–chained up in the family catacombs. Is that where they are? Oz sends Victor to get his mom and take care of her so Sofia and the Maronis can’t find her. Sofia dumps a bucket of ice water on Vitti, who I should have said was almost naked, and while he freezes Sofia lies on a table and smokes. She wants to know where her dad’s money is. Vitti gives a great speech about loving Sofia’s mother that gets him loose to be the underboss for Sofia. Oz visits Papa Maroni in prison with Maroni’s wife to discuss trading the drug mushrooms for their son. Oz has Maroni shanked later that night. Sofia gives another incredible speech, this time to the Maroni mob workers, where she proclaims herself by her mother’s name Gigante, says she happily gassed her family, and then puts a big bag of money on the table. Oz goes to trade the Maroni son and the deal goes bad. Oz sets the mom and son on fire and loses almost all of his mushrooms he needs to make his drug. Vitti undercuts some of what Sofia is saying in her meeting with the mob workers and she shoots him in the head. Vic takes Oz’s mom to Crown Point, which is where he used to live, is a destroyed part of the city, and being ignored by city services. Oz goes to get his girl–Eve seems to be a madam–but she breaks up with him. Sofia goes to see boss Maroni, makes peace, and they decide to team up and kill Oz and take over the city. Squid, an old nemesis of Victor’s, sees Victor with Oz’s mom, and he’s got eyes to get in on the action. Oz too is from the Crown Point area, and he takes Victor down to the underground trolley’s where he believes they can have their home base. Oz remarks that their drug mushrooms will do great in the tunnels. The generator blows, the power goes out, and the episode ends.

Episode 5 Discussion Questions:

  1. What’s the best in this show? Bliss is a pretty cool invention for drugs. Weaving the storylines, instead of sticking to one character, works really well for me in this. Names like Squid.
  2. What jumps to mind for you about Sofia?
  3. What does Oz want? respected, to take care of people,
  4. The doctor has an interesting mustache. Anne, where are you at with mustaches?
  5. So there is the main Maroni guy, Sofia, Carmine who is dead, and Oz–who you want to work for among that group if you gotta work for someone?
  6. What do you make of the Oz’s mom dementia part of the storyline?
  7. What do you think Oz’s girl sees in him?
  8. What’s the “Homecoming” title of episode 5? Victor, Oz, and Oz’s mom.

Gold Summit Episode 6 Summary:

  • We get a voice over opening from Oz in which he ponders who has the power. This turns out to be a speech he is giving to his men about the opportunities they have. Power is a problem in Crown Point because its being diverted to wealthier neighborhoods. Somewhere in here we see Sofia after she has had sex with her old doctor from the Arkham Mental Hospital. Man she’s got a lot of scars. Oz makes a nice “Mork and Mindy” allusion about Sofia and Papa Maroni. So this is a world where that TV show existed. Victor’s acquaintance Squid continues to pressure him to be cut into the action. Sofia and Salvatore Maroni kill some people selling the drug bliss to scare others from selling Oz’s product. Oz hatches a plan to give the drug away. Sofia tracks down Oz’s girl Eve. The end up becoming closer. Eve describes Oz as a liar narcissist. Eve gives up Oz’s location and tells Sofia she has her chance to earn her men’s respect. Victor shoots Squid and this bothers him more than when he ran over at least one guy with Oz’s Maserati. Somewhere in here Oz goes to the city and takes a councilman by the nose with a pair of pliers and tells the guy to do his job and get the power back on. Oz gives a great speech to the rival gangs from the various boroughs. He is up on his gang history while the rich of the city government don’t even know the gang members’ names. Oz says “I hustle; I do what it takes.” Oz and the gangs unify and crack beers to celebrate. Things are grim back at Crown Point where Oz’s mom is getting worse and Victor sits in the dark trying to rub the blood off his shoes as if he is MacBeth. The power comes on and Victor rises to dance with Oz’s mom. Amidst the celebration, the episode ends with the sight of someone lurking in the apartment.

Episode 6 questions:

  1. How interested are you in driving a Maserati?
  2. Why does Oz give bliss away?
  3. Does Oz have a code? If so, what is it?
  4. Oz’s mom asks him to kill her when she loses it enough to not know who he is. What do you think of that? Parkinson’s and Lewy bodies come up. Talk about dad.
  5. What’s the Gold Summit?

Closing questions:

  1. Does Oz do any good? Sofia?
  2. Have you felt tension in the show? Where did it come from?
  3. Can you remember a surprising moment in the show?
  4. Let me name five actors and see if that sparks anything from you? Click here for cast.
  5. A fatal flaw is a character trait that causes a character to bring about their own downfall. Let’s go through the big dawgs. Do you see a fatal flaw?
  6. What would you like to see? Is this a show where you can hope for stuff?
  7. What seems to be coming?

Episode 7 has already dropped for the Penguin. I think there are eight episodes of this first season. Anne, what do you say we come back and wrap it up after this last one next Sunday?

Do you think we’ll have decided on a president by the next time we talk?

Anne, good to see you.

Thanks for listening everyone!