QUIZ RECAP

Tuesday, February 26, 2019: Killarney's. It was a cool, balmy night with
a hint of rain in the air as I hustled my PA and kit into the cavernous,
faux Irish pub. A big place, it was half full of people when I came in.
Smiling, expectant faces looked up in recognition as I made my way towards
the stage. They knew I was here for their entertainment and the hopes of
winning a prize. I nodded confident acknowledgement as I passed. My name's
Lou. I'm a Quiz Master.
It was going to be a busy night. The Not Safe For Work gang had shown
up. Their team was so large they could dominate with sheer numbers. They
sat like Zapata's army, whooping it up as they swilled their brews. It was
then that I noticed it. No music. Niko had wisely turned it off. I sighed
in relief. I wouldn't have to pull double duty, racing to the Musak volume
controls between sets. No one seemed to notice. Good old Niko. A friendly
giant of a man with a soft spoken demeanor. He and Rick worked the bar to
perfection. Rick was new, but an experienced hand, gregarious and handsome
with a great, bushy beard, in which he kept a pen. I wondered what else lived
in there, but didn't care. Rick was all right.
The usual suspects were there along with a couple of newbies, all wanting
a chance at the spoils that Quiz Master Lou could give them. It was a
great responsibility. I often wonder how I got here. Oh, yeah. I drove.
It was quite a quiz. I knew things were going to be weird when the entire
crowed corrected me that I had the wrong FB question in the General Knowledge
Round. I cursed my quiz overlords in California and myself for not having
caught the blunder, but the good natured Jean-Marie came to my rescue with
the KTPQ Newsletter on his cell phone. There were some other "incidents"
that evening. Such as the team who guessed Tom & Jerry's instead of Ben &
Jerry's. Or the wag who tried to get Taming of the Screw to fit into the
Find-the-Connection round's motif. Nevertheless, it all turned out okay.
The Allen Fairview Chamber Friends came out of nowhere to catch first place
with two consecutive double-or-nothing's in the final two rounds. The NSFW
gang got themselves organized and won second. Tequila Mockingbird, cool,
calm and quiet, like professional hitmen, took third.
It's all in a night's work for me. The life of a Quiz Master is a lonely
one, but it has its rewards. Until next time...