Some "Scattergories" questions; please help settle this.

[Lord Ash]

Okay all, the wifey and I are in disagreement about the popular game "Taboo."

For the letter "L"

For a sandwich; is a lamb gyro acceptable?

For television star; is Laura Linney (from John Adams) acceptable?

Thanks!

[OZZIE4DUKE]

Okay all, the wifey and I are in disagreement about the popular game "Taboo."


I'm not familiar with the game. Please explain.

I once did see a movie named Taboo (and Taboo II too!). The movies had nothing to do with witch doctors ;)

[DevilAlumna]

Okay all, the wifey and I are in disagreement about the popular game "Taboo."

For the letter "L"

For a sandwich; is a lamb gyro acceptable?

For television star; is Laura Linney (from John Adams) acceptable?

Thanks!

What does your wife say? She's right. :D :D :D

[brevity]

Okay all, the wifey and I are in disagreement about the popular game "Taboo."

For the letter "L"

For a sandwich; is a lamb gyro acceptable?

For television star; is Laura Linney (from John Adams) acceptable?

Thanks!

Don't you mean Scattergories?

Taboo (http://www.boardgames.com/taboo.html) is the game where you get a person to guess a word without using any element of that word or five of the more helpful clues. Scattergories (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scattergories) is the game where you have a list of categories and must come up with examples that start with a provided letter.

When I play Scattergories, I use the following example:

If the category is "Item in the Refrigerator" and the letter is C, then...

"Cheese" is one point.
"Cottage cheese" is two points. It's a distinctly different answer.
"Curdled cottage cheese" is still two points. "Curdled" is merely an adjective; despite how it may taste now, it does not change the entity of cottage cheese.

Game names aside, it seems like "lamb gyro" and "Laura Linney" are gray areas. Proponents can argue that the meat must be described, and the lady won an Emmy (and guested on Frasier). Opponents will say that gyros assume the use of lamb, and that she's primarily a movie actress who happened to do an HBO miniseries.

The game invites argument, often heated. Tread carefully. I recommend a neutral party, or at least a third team that can offset the head-to-head action.

[Lord Ash]

Sorry, I did mean Scattergories!

Basically you need to name something that begins with a letter (in this case "L") for each catagory:)

Sorry, too much champagne.

Alumn, you sound like a married person. ;)

Also; the most you can get is 2 points; you cannot get more, so curdled cottage cheese is still two:)

Brev, what do YOU think for "lamb gyro" and "Laura Linney?" For gyro the question was whether or not a gyro is a sandwich; the lamb part did not get questioned because you could say "ham sandwich" or "pastrami sandwich" and those are okay. The Laura Linney thing was whether or not she was really a television star, which personally I thought winning an Emmy for acting in a television series (and the thing on Frasier) would prove wrong. Since you have obviously played, what would your thoughts be?

[brevity]

Brev, what do YOU think for "lamb gyro" and "Laura Linney?"

One factor I look at is the availability of alternative answers.

Lamb gyro: I say yes. What else is there? All I can think of is "lettuce wrap." Wikipedia's sample list (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandwich) has none.

Laura Linney: I say no. Better to go with any number of solid answers (Letterman, Leno, Laurie, Lucci) and get the one point. Slightly better 2-point answers are Lorenzo Lamas and Laura Leighton, both known for TV, but even then you'd have to argue the "star" part. Linda Lavin might work -- if anyone can come up with that in time.

As a final note, I find that the overall intensity of the game decreases if you're willing to compromise. Throw in a "Sounds reasonable" every now and then.

[Lord Ash]

Two things;

Would a moderator mind changing the "taboo" in the thread title to "scattergories?" Thanks!

Second... no other Dukie is in the mood to debate the semantics of those answers? Or is everyone still asleep?:)

[bjornolf]

Here's what my wife said, and I'd never argue with her! ;)

1. Yes, a gyro is a sandwich, no doubt. What else would one categorize it as? (her words, NOT mine.)

2. But if someone wanted to argue that, she said to go with a liverwurst sandwich (yes, she has eaten one at a restaurant!) or the generic classic a "lunchmeat sandwich".

[camion]

So, would a LLT be different from an MLT? You know, a mutton, lettuce and tomato sandwich, where the mutton is nice and lean and the tomato is ripe. They're so perky, I love that.

[Lord Ash]

Okay, thank your wife for her input. Now, what about Laura Linney as a television star?

[OZZIE4DUKE]

I once did see a movie named Taboo (and Taboo II too!). The movies had nothing to do with witch doctors ;)

Has nobody else seen these movies? I find that hard to believe in this diverse audience.:rolleyes: EarlJam?

[brevity]

Ah, the "what is a sandwich?" angle. Think of how a restaurant menu separates sandwiches from entrees, soups, and salads. It includes burgers, wraps, and anything else you hold in your hands to eat, without the primary use of utensils. I suppose burritos and tacos would count, but not enchiladas.

I realize that pizza presents a problem here.


Has nobody else seen these movies? I find that hard to believe in this diverse audience.

Chose to ignore it the first time. Remember: you're the paradigm of optimism, not onanism.

[UrinalCake]

I play by the same rules that brevity described... adjectives that describe an object are not permitted, otherwise the game would be too easy. So lamb gyro is not allowed. Lamb chop would be, because the two words are commonly used together to describe a single thing. A gray area, I know.

On the other hand, "lamb" by itself would could as a food. So I might be convinced to accept "lamb gyro" since it's a form of lamb, at least in a food sense...

[Lord Ash]

See, the lamb one was not really questioned because it was lamb; after all, "ham sandwich" or "turkey sandwich" would be acceptable for their respective letters for "sandwich," I believe. My wife was mostly contesting was that a gyro was a sandwich. I said it was; even though it is a sandwich from a culture that might not do meat between two pieces of bread, it is basically still a sandwich and does usually show up in the "sandwich" section of menus.

As an aside; the wiki entry for sandwich says a sandwich must consist of two types of bread (and even calls the "open faced sandwich" the wiki equivalent of a lying sack of dung) but then lists the gyro under regional sandwich types! I *knew* wikipedia was sketchy, but this is ridiculous!!

The Laura Linney one was particularly frustrating to me. How a woman can win an Emmy for her work on a TV show and appear on another and not be considered a "television star" is beyond me. I feel like that reduces "television star" to a "The Hills" type of vapidity and shallowness.

[snowdenscold]

I don't know much about Scattegories, but I did play Taboo on New Year's Eve and set a record for the night as a clue-giver. Some of my favorites:
Spice: "They sang 'Wanna Be' "
Backup: "Veronica Mars' dog"

[cf-62]

Has nobody else seen these movies? I find that hard to believe in this diverse audience.:rolleyes: EarlJam?

For a while, you couldn't rent Taboo or Taboo II from Durham video stores -- only video stores in Chapel Hill. I guess too many of us refused to make the trip.

Although I remember a fun co-ed party Junior year which ended with a Taboo II viewing at about 3 AM.

[UrinalCake]

I ordered a lot of food from La Fontaine on points, and on their menu they always listed gyros under "Sandwiches." So that settles it. BTW is La Fontaine still around? I probably had their delivery twice a week for three years.

[Jfrosh]

No question a Gyro is a sandwich. Like others, I would question the lamb part, but if you wife doesn't so be it.
As for Laura Linney, if she won an Emmy for acting in a television show, she by definition would qualify.
All that being said, I agree with DA, your wife is right.

[Duke4Ever32]

Has nobody else seen these movies? I find that hard to believe in this diverse audience.:rolleyes: EarlJam?

I know exactly what you're talking about. In fact, the original "Taboo" was my first experience in adult movies. I found it in my dad's dresser while looking for something else, put it in to see what it was, and was never the same again! :D

[bjornolf]

Sorry, haven't seen that one. However, I did catch the reference to one of my favorite movies of all time, and I would respond with:

"Have fun stormin' the castle!"
"Think it'll work?"
"It'd take a miracle."

As for the sandwich question... I don't get the thing about needing "two types of bread". So, if my sandwich doesn't have, say, a slice of wheat and a slice of pumpernickel, it's not a sandwich? As for the argument about adjectives, I don't see why lamb gyro wouldn't work. I mean, if you couldn't do that, it would get pretty hard. A lot of topics would get hard.

[Lord Ash]

Sorry, meant two SLICES of bread, not two types! My bad!

As for the types of sandwich, I agree; otherwise, when asked "sandwich" you couldn't say "peanut butter and jelly sandwich" or "ham sandwich," since those are adjectives.

And thanks to the moderator who changed the title!

[EarlJam]

What does your wife say? She's right. :D :D :D

Awesome. :D

Though I would say "Yes" to the sandwich and "No" to the TV star. I mean, she's not really a "star" yet is she?

Still, to DevilAlumna's point, safe bet is "yes" to both.

-EJ

[Bostondevil]

If I'm not mistaken, the rules of Scattergories state you can be creative in your interpretations of what counts in a category, so, yes to both from me, although given the number of other choices in the L category for TV star, that's pushing it, but I would reluctantly give you credit, she did get nominated for an Emmy.

[JasonEvans]

I play a lot of Scatergories. Great party game.

It is basically impossible to play with only 2 players/teams. You must have at least 3 and probably 4 to make it work properly. The way I play, if someone disputes an answer then everyone except the team that gave that answer votes on whether the answer counts. If a majority agrees that the answer is no good then it does not count. If the vote is a tie then the answer does count. We generally do not allow a lot of discussion an debate. There is usually a little bit of conversation about said answer and then we vote and move on-- end of story. It is an honorable game in my household and rarely does anyone feel wronged if their answer is voted down.

As for your two scenarios--

1) I cannot even fathom anyone challenging Lamb Gyro as not being a legit answer. It is not even a close call. Of course that answer counts.

2) Laura Linney is harder. I would argue that she is not a "star" and certainly is not best-known as a TV star-- despite winning an Emmy. Heck, Phil Collins has an Oscar (Best Song) but that does not make him a movie star. I would vote against her as an answer in that category.

I find people who go for the double-letter answers often end up being nixed for bad answers. My strategy is to get as many answers on my paper as I can, making sure I have something for every category and then go back and see where I can add something new. As soon as I know the letter, I starting thinking of words that start with that letter and then quickly scan to see if I can drop that word into any of the answers.

--Jason "again, Scat is a great game!" Evans

[bjornolf]

The TV star one is particularly irksome, in my mind, because the very definition of a "star" in that capacity is rather subjective. First of all, it's rather fleeting. I think everyone would agree that the cast of Friends were TV stars in the late 90's/early 200's. But do they still qualify, as their show ended several years ago, and none of them have done much TV since then, yet you still see them 24/7 in syndication? Is there a time limit, or can you use TV stars of the past? Or only of shows that are currently running, which is hard to get a hold of with the way they cancel shows and start new ones left and right?

How big do you have to be to be considered a star? Which members of the cast of Lost, for example, qualify as "stars"? Do Kevin James and Lea Remini qualify, or was King of Queens not popular enough? Is Jay Mohr a TV star for his work on Gary Unmarried, or is he just playing off his previous movie fame? Does a show have to be scripted fiction, or do people like Larry King or Alex Trebek count? What is our measure for "stardom"? Money made? Popularity of a show? Critical acclaim of a show? I think it's a rather over-used term, and that its definition is HIGHLY debatable in any context. Do you have to be real to be a star? Is Homer Simpson a television star? Is it limited to actors, or can behind the camera people qualify if they're big enough, like Chuck Lorre with his vanity cards that are almost characters of their own? It's not a straightforward thing at all. Categories with a little wiggle room, like sandwich, are great. But TV star is a little to amorphous for me to get a hold of easily. It can be VERY open, or VERY tight and narrow, depending on the person's perception of the term or knowledge of the industry. It' just too slippery for me. More ground rules and definitions are needed, in my mind.

[ArkieDukie]

One factor I look at is the availability of alternative answers.

Lamb gyro: I say yes. What else is there? All I can think of is "lettuce wrap." Wikipedia's sample list (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandwich) has none.

Laura Linney: I say no. Better to go with any number of solid answers (Letterman, Leno, Laurie, Lucci) and get the one point. Slightly better 2-point answers are Lorenzo Lamas and Laura Leighton, both known for TV, but even then you'd have to argue the "star" part. Linda Lavin might work -- if anyone can come up with that in time.

As a final note, I find that the overall intensity of the game decreases if you're willing to compromise. Throw in a "Sounds reasonable" every now and then.

I like the Laura Linney answer for a couple of reasons: 1. it's a 2-pt answer, 2. it's not likely that anyone else will come up with it. Remember that scoring in Scattergories depends on coming up with answers that no one else has. Granted, it is a bit tricky based on the fact that you're citing her role in a cable movie, but I bet she's been in other stuff.

[JasonEvans]

Bjorn--

Your comments are exactly why you need multiple teams. You just let the teams vote on whether an answer counts or not and then you move on.

I think historical TV stars would be fine. For the letter L, Lucile Ball would be a natural answer to TV Star. All the Friends would certainly count too.

It is my experience that sometimes you need to shape your answers to your audience. For example, I would certainly count Kevin James but would not count his TV wife as I have never heard of her-- though if other players agreed that she was a co-star of that show I would vote "yes."

I am a fan of Lost, so all the members of the cast would count in my mind -- even Malcolm David Kelly (Walt) and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Eko).

-Jason "love me some Scat!" Evans

[ArkieDukie]

Bjorn--

Your comments are exactly why you need multiple teams. You just let the teams vote on whether an answer counts or not and then you move on.

I think historical TV stars would be fine. For the letter L, Lucile Ball would be a natural answer to TV Star. All the Friends would certainly count too.

It is my experience that sometimes you need to shape your answers to your audience. For example, I would certainly count Kevin James but would not count his TV wife as I have never heard of her-- though if other players agreed that she was a co-star of that show I would vote "yes."

I am a fan of Lost, so all the members of the cast would count in my mind -- even Malcolm David Kelly (Walt) and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Eko).

-Jason "love me some Scat!" Evans

I'm a huge fan as well, but I haven't played in ages. We should try a game on the thread. That would be a great way to pad the number of posts and get us to our target for the weekend. Thoughts?

[Lord Ash]

Hey all,

I appreciate the continued interest and debate; I was hoping Evans would chime in!:)

We did have six players for the game, and I did win the "lamb gyro" and the "Laura Linney" debates, but the wife accused me of cheating. She did later apologize and admitted she was just annoyed because I won, but still, the accusation of cheating hurt... I don't have to cheat at the Scattergories!:D

[UrinalCake]

I would say that anyone playing a major or supporting role in a syndicated show that aired on a major network should count as a TV star. The thing is, if it's a more obscure actor/actress, like say one of the kids from Home Improvement, then I think you gain extra credit just for knowing the person's name. So I'd be inclined to count that too.

When I've played we've always been really lenient in what we accept. Creativity is what makes the game fun. Under the category of "things that are spotted," with the letter 'I', a friend of mine once said "Indian woman" because they have a red spot on their forehead. We were all cracking up so much that we had to accept it.

[Lord Ash]

I myself am a bit more forgiving about what I generally accept; we recently had "states" that started with "D"..so I went with "denial." It was accepted:) We generally go with an imaginative answer getting credit with being imaginative... my wife was just irritated at losing in this one:)

[OZZIE4DUKE]

I myself am a bit more forgiving about what I generally accept; we recently had "states" that started with "D"..so I went with "denial." It was accepted:) We generally go with an imaginative answer getting credit with being imaginative... my wife was just irritated at losing in this one:)

In 8th grade Earth Science class, we had a test with this question:

Water is in which state?
A) Gaseous
B) Liquid
C) Solid
D) New York (the school was in Great Neck, NY, but this was NOT an acceptable answer, even though technically correct)

Mr. Cerini was such a cut up.

[dukemomLA]

We play a LOT of games. And, yes, they are games.

There's a lot of leeway here. Why create friction over a GAME?? Games are meant to be fun and enjoyable -- especially with a few drinks.

For me, unless an answer is ludicious, let it go. Just play on.

I've played Bridge, Poker, Scene It, Scattories, Taboo, CatchPhrase, etc. etc. with people who take it WAAAAY too seriously. Decided that wasn't my style. My motto, let's all have fun. Otherwise, why bother. I'd rather read a good book -- or work on a jigsaw puzzle.

[snowdenscold]

I myself am a bit more forgiving about what I generally accept; we recently had "states" that started with "D"..so I went with "denial."

That joke was funnier when Calvin and Hobbes did it ;)

[Indoor66]

I myself am a bit more forgiving about what I generally accept; we recently had "states" that started with "D"..so I went with "denial." It was accepted:) We generally go with an imaginative answer getting credit with being imaginative... my wife was just irritated at losing in this one:)

Except that denial is in Egypt.

[2535Miles]

Brev, what do YOU think for "lamb gyro" and "Laura Linney?" For gyro the question was whether or not a gyro is a sandwich; the lamb part did not get questioned because you could say "ham sandwich" or "pastrami sandwich" and those are okay.
I see that you've already reached a resolution but I'll still throw in my two cents. A gyro can definitely be a sandwich, so you can't argue there. I would argue that Lamb Gyro is in acceptable. 1) I've never, ever heard anyone refer to it a "lamb gyro". 2) Gyros are usually made of lamb, so calling a gyro a Lamb Gyro is a bit redundant.


1) I cannot even fathom anyone challenging Lamb Gyro as not being a legit answer. It is not even a close call. Of course that answer counts.
If the letter were "P", would you accept "Pig BLT" as an answer?

Now I want a döner kebab.

[Lord Ash]

Actually, gyros are frequently made with chicken as well, and that is actually the type the wifey would eat:) I think the reason the "pig" example wouldn't work is that it is an extremely uncommon type of sandwich with a name like that, as well as the idea that a BLT is, in and of itself, a type of sandwich which actually already includes pig (the bacon.) It does not take an additional meat modifier; it is a BLT. If you add pig, which I think would be called either pork or ham sandwich.

Okay, let me ask this; would say a "ham sandwich" would be acceptable for "sandwich" with the letter "h?" Is the difference just the idea that gyros are made with the same main meat type, whereas sandwiches can be made with many different?

I think my favorite part of scattergories is discussing what is and is not acceptable:)

I didn't remember that as being a Calvin and Hobbes joke, but I am not surprised:)

EDIT: Chris Collins! Now I can't post again today:)

[JasonEvans]

If the letter were "P", would you accept "Pig BLT" as an answer?


I would not accept Pig BLT because no one refers to the meat of a pig as pig meat. Pig meat is called bacon or ham. Similarly, if the letter had been C, I would not have accepted "cow" as an answer.

Personally, I think Lamb Gyro was too much of an answer as simply answering "lamb" would be more than adequate. If I had sliced lamb in the fridge and chose to eat it between 2 pieces of bread, I would be eating a lamb sandwich. Why even bother with the gyro part?

-Jason "mmmmm, lamb" Evans

[sue71]

Pig meat is called bacon or ham.

Mmmm bacon. Need to go make some now.

[rasputin]

I would not accept Pig BLT because no one refers to the meat of a pig as pig meat. Pig meat is called bacon or ham.

-Jason "mmmmm, lamb" Evans

Homer: Wait a minute wait a minute wait a minute. Lisa honey, are you
saying you're *never* going to eat any animal again? What about
bacon?
Lisa: No.
Homer: Ham?
Lisa: No.
Homer: Pork chops?
Lisa: Dad! Those all come from the same animal!
Homer: [Chuckles] Yeah, right Lisa. A wonderful, magical animal.

[Lord Ash]

Best line EVER.

[bjornolf]

Darn rasputin, you beat to it.