The Queue: Potpourri

Ah, my least favorite Jeopardy category. It’s always a smattering of off-topic nonsense. If one question teaches you a new little factoid you’re not going to retain it, because the next question is definitely not about that, so you won’t remember anything.

This is The Queue where we just answer whatever smattering of questions y’all ask us.

In past PTR cycles, we’ve seen work-in-progress pets pop up in the journal, and they’ve turned out to be both for player use or as NPC encounters. Frequently these PTR pets would use a placeholder model and a nondescript but specific name. I’d imagine accidentally naming a battle pet in the journal Cat and having an actual Cat already called Cat creates issues, so just calling it Gary or something while you’re working on it — before renaming it Gar’ikoz the Destroyer when it’s ready to make players cry — would alleviate a lot of headaches when you go to actually use that stub pet.

So, even though Tru’bul’s model is unique-ish — it’s an updated version of Winna’s Kitten — I’d guess they’re a placeholder pet of this variety that accidentally made it into the live build.

But, taking it on its face with no other context, an orange and green cat named Tru’bul is definitely troll-themed. We’re going to Tel’Abim, y’all!

Ah, I wish. More than anything. More than the moon.

Is there an expansion thus far that wouldn’t be improved by a trio of Fates? Every one could feature a sweeping ballad expressing the pathos of being hurt, but knowing it’s better than fighting alone, or one repeating the same old patterns over again, thinking that maybe this time it’ll work out by the end of the expansion? World of Warcraft is full of lost loves, and backwards-looking references to those lost loves, especially in the Shadowlands where everyone is dead. Heck, you can even do a little light retconning in song — a histo-remix, if you will.

And villain songs? Well, some people just want to watch the world burn. Or a tree, whatever.

The thing is, let me let you in on a little secret: Every WoW expansion is a musical if you just blast soundtracks while you’re playing.

Not to be insufferable or anything, but there’s a Berliner Weisse produced by a small local-ish brewery called the Athena which is my Thanksgiving go-to. It’s tart and light, almost like a cider, but it has a crisp finish that isn’t sweet, which can weigh down your palate. It doesn’t have the harsh bitter notes of an IPA, or the hoppiness of a pilsner which can conflict with the herbal notes of a classic Thanksgiving.

It’s really tasty, and I’d recommend it, if you can find it. Creature Comforts’ other offerings — the Bibo in particular — are incredibly tasty, too, but there’s just something about their Athena that goes super well with Thanksgiving (and that something is the alcohol). (I mean, obviously).

When it comes to home improvement projects, I literally have to schedule them in my day planner or they don’t get done. I’ll also schedule them in steps, so they’re not half-finished. Like one day will be to take measurements before I buy something like a shelf, then I’ll schedule a day to get it or make it, then I’ll schedule another day to do it. I also use a Trello board for upcoming projects, sorted into categories by the time scale. Something like refinishing a door (not expensive, somewhat time consuming) goes in one column, while something like replacing the windows (expensive, have to call for estimates, definitely not doing the work myself) is in another, and because it’s Trello I can rearrange each column by order of importance or urgency.

I do almost all my chores that aren’t a daily thing like this, laundry especially. I also give myself a sticker when I finish, like a literal kindergartener. Ah, anything for a tiny crumb of serotonin.