The Geoguessr World Cup is on…

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…and while Geoguessr might not be your cup of tea, it really is like watching that niche sport at the Olympics, in that you really should give it a go, even if it’s just for a few minutes.

It’s all livestreamed on the Geoguessr Youtube Channel. Completely free of charge, with full expert commentary on the A-stream.

Some beautiful locations on show alongside some absolutely insane knowledge. Different matchups and game modes, including the dreaded NMPZ: No Moving, Panning or Zooming. This is basically just a static image from a random Google Maps location anywhere in the entire world and you can watch in amazement as they pinpoint it to within a few hundred metres.

Once you get invested… wow, it can get quite intense.

GO AND WATCH SOME OF IT!

But the best bit for me is that you can have a go yourself – not competing directly with the best of the best – but using your skill to see how close you would get to the eventual answer. And then playing the same sport and wishing that you knew which sort of telegraph pole that they use in the midlands of Sumatra*.

* I’m appalled to note that I do actually know this one.

I have questions: “that guy carrying on around Broomhill” edition

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Spotted on Reddit, this:

There’s a lot going on here for a three-line post.

First off, let’s put the serious baby to bed: mental illness is no joke, and there are too many people wandering around our societies that could do with help. The guy shouting and fighting invisible assailants in his underwear at the bottom of Alphen Hill is one.

Wait. Let me rephrase that.

The guy in his underwear shouting and fighting invisible assailants at the bottom of Alphen Hill is one.

Same words. Different order. Different meaning. More accurate. Better.

But that aside – because I can’t do anything about the need for more social care here or in Sheffield – lots to dig into.

First off, then: Broomhill or Broomhall? This is a local point of interest, but I’ve always considered that the Botanical Gardens were sandwiched between Endcliffe and Broomhall. Unless you mean the electoral ward of Broomhill and Sharrow Vale, in which case absolutely, fair enough.

But who talks about electoral wards outside of local elections?

And you’re saying that this guy is “weird” and “very strange”.

Next up. That’s a lot of information to have picked up in just a quick jog past. And that suggests that the poster here had his interest piqued enough that either a) he stopped and listened for a while, or b) he jogged past several times in order to pick up more details.

Either way, that doesn’t seem fair, given that we are warned in the title of his post to “stay away”. What is he really concerned about: our safety in the presence of a (quite literally) raving (quite literally) mad (quite literally) man, or that we might actually find out where Atlantis is?

I know we’ve all been wondering.

And he says it was weird (yes) and incoherent, but he’s clearly gained a lot of detail there about the gold guilder and the wizard. Sadly, judging by the post, which suggests that the subject of the tale was entirely visible, the guilder – golden, nogal – was wasted because the wizard was a fake.

Never trust a wizard. Or rather anyone anyone saying that they are a wizard.

I think we’ve all been duped at some time or another.

“He made some good points”

Wut?

Did he? What were they, then? Because checking the post above, you don’t mention anything that – for me, at least – might fall into the relatively broad category of “good points”.

Once again, we’re left with more questions than answers. Not least the location of Atlantis.

Very frustrating.

UPDATE: This comment in response to the post:

Oh, I have seen him in the cemetery off Ecclesall Rd, saying pretty similar things whilst also dancing to some fabulous 90s techno

Wow. I’ve got new found respect for the guy now I’ve read that. Clearly he is trying to get the message across, through the medium of dance. Keep it up, fella!

Boing!

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It does finally feel like Spring is beginning to… well… spring. The sun is out, the flowers are budding, the birds are singing. And – if ever there was a sign that the better weather is on its way – I have chosen today to varnish all the garden furniture, ready for the outdoor season ahead.

Well, all the wooden stuff, anyway.

This is the garden furniture equivalent of turning your central heating off in the UK or ordering braai wood instead of firewood down here in Cape Town.

It should be a day for optimism, happiness and positivity. Sadly though, it’s all up against a soundtrack provided by Edwin Knobhead and his Power Drill Orchestra, because the inept builder next door is now running over a month and a half over his already rather lax schedule.
We’re heading towards 6 months now. What joy.

I’m not saying that it’s loud out there, but even my fancy ANC headphones – that’s Active Noise Cancelling, not the dodgy political party – were being overwhelmed. And they are literally meant to actively cancel out noise.

Which is what there is outside.

And so, job done, and tables and chairs actually looking pretty good, I have legged it back inside. Not that the walls of our house are enough to find peace, but it’s more bearable when you try to overcome it with some loud Nemone on 6 Music while banging out a blog post.

In fact, buoyed by the stuff I have achieved in the garden over the past 24 hours, despite facing such aural adversity, I might even bang out tomorrow’s post while I’m at it.

You can read that tomorrow.

The International Break

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I’m not a huge fan of international football. I think I documented this here.

But needs must when there’s no other football on, and so I have dabbled a little over the past few nights (when I haven’t been at actual live sport). And because I am still English at heart (and at other bits of my body), I was delighted to watch Cristiano Ronaldo score in the 88th minute yesterday and win the game for Portugal against Scotland.

It’s the second late defeat that the Scots have managed to attain this week.

And in recognition of that fact, this:

Brilliant.

There’s no better way of taking the piss than getting Ted and Dougal to do it for you.

A rather decent afternoon out

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We were lucky enough to get box tickets to see the Boks play the All Blacks. And we had a really great afternoon out. And what a view the box had. This was during the warmups.

The atmosphere, the gees, the actual match second half of the actual match, the winning try scored right underneath us. The excellent service and free-flowing drinks. A very cool day, all in all.

And with that winning try, South Africa won the Freedom Cup, and all but sealed the The Rugby Championship 2024.

And a lovely touch as we left the well-planned, well-executed event at the Stadium – nice work, City of Cape Town – the biggest national flag I’ve ever seen. (It’s generally not something that I keep a record of, but I can’t think of a time I’ve seen a bigger one.)

It’s certainly reignited my appetite for live sport, and for going along to the stadium again. I was there for the first and second ever events they held there, and several – or more – since, but it’s been a while.

Not so long again.