Who won the Superbowl in 1972?

Dear Gabby,

My partner and I  belong to a trivia team that has done pretty well, and while we understand it’s just a game, we also love it and take some pride in our success. The team was put together by someone else who sees herself as the kingpin of the team.

The problem is, she’s not very good at trivia and despite not contributing much, she always manages to pocket the gift card that we win in the tournament. To be fair, she brings it the next time to buy drinks for everyone, so it’s not like she’s using it to support Vladimir Putin, but it’s kinda galling.

Say something or let it go?

Too trivial?

Dear Trivial,

In the big scheme of things, and by “things,” I mean death, destruction, global instability, planet destruction and another Biden v. Trump face-off, I would say maybe let the gift-card thing go.

Sometimes you have to pan out a little to get some perspective. Which is not to say that this person’s micro power grab is unimportant, it just isn’t always worth the energy it takes to deal with it. Sometimes you just have to say to yourself, “that’s who she is, she’s probably not gonna change, and whatever it is that motivates her behavior, that’s her issue, not mine.”

And that will free up your brain space to figure out the name of Marco Polo’s children, who won the Superbowl in 1972 and who Wolfgang Pauli was. Go team!

Dear Gabby,

This may sound weird, but I have noticed that in every advertisement for watches, whether on a billboard or in a magazine, the watch displayed is set to 10:10. Every one! What is so great about 10:10? Is this some kind of magical time that I don’t know about? I’m stumped.

Time out

Dear Time,

Now that you mention it, I see your point! After working my fingers to the bone by clicking once or twice on my computer, I found (unbelievably), a few reasons: symmetry, ability to see the logo, a “pleasing and balanced display,” but my favorite is this, and I did steal it directly from ABC10’s Why Guy, Walt Grey: 

“A massive study released by ‘Frontiers in Psychology’ (2017) surveyed watch-buying stimuli of almost 100 subjects. Was the time set a motivation to buy a watch, or not? The study found participants consistently perceive a high resemblance between watches set at 10:10 and a smiling face.”

“Watches set for 10:10 induced in women significantly stronger ratings of pleasure than in men, this is in line with previous studies showing that women are superior to men at recognizing facial expressions of emotion and empathizing with them,” according to the study.

Watches set for 10:10 provide a subliminal positive message for women and men. The product smiles back at you, it’s your friend, it says, “Buy me”. A watch set for 8:20 is frowning at you. It’s not your friend. Nobody vibes with a pouting watch.

Dear Gabby,

My spouse and I often have nothing to say to each other at dinner. I mean, we’ve been married for decades. Is it realistic to expect scintillating conversation for literally 10,000 dinners? I mean, come on!

Talked out

Dear Talked,

I have the perfect solution for you. Buffers! Invite friends, family, acquaintances, or strangers on the street to dinner. You’ll be shocked what a shot in the arm it can be, and what fascinating things you may learn about your spouse. As the conversation goes on and new stimuli begets new, energetic conversation, you may find yourself saying, “What? I didn’t know you won a Pulitzer!”

You’re welcome.

Dear Gabby appears in the RoundTable every Monday. Yes, Gabby is an advice columnist – but not just any advice columnist. Because that would be boring! Gabby combines wisdom with wit. And a pinch of snark. She is not a trained therapist by any means, but has seen and loved many in her day. Her aim is to make you think while she makes you laugh. Gabby welcomes all questions and queries and is only too happy to hear your opinion, no matter how much it may diverge from hers. Write to Gabby at news@evanstonroundtable.com.