Along with my daily appointment-level viewing of Jeopardy in the last year-plus with MJ, I've snuck off and indulged in a different show on my own called the Chase, a British-based show that was spun off to different countries like Australia, Germany, and.....the U.S. The premise is that ordinary people answer trivia questions to try to win the prize money, but a trivia expert (think James Holzhauer and Ken Jennings-level experts) try to chase the contestants down by answering more questions. It's a fun concept and apparently gets pretty good ratings (nationally syndicated) and the prize money is substantial....if the contestants are good enough to outrun the chaser. I like the US version because it brings back old favorites of the Jeopardy world like James, Ken, and Brad Rutter (as well as a bunch of contestsants who were multiple-day champions on Jeopardy), but the British and Australian versions introduces me to a new world of facts from other countries (namely cricket) but a whole host of other interesting characters with names like "Tiger Mum," "Governess," "Supernerd," and "Goliath." It squeezes less questions into a longer time frame than Jeopardy, but it still gives enough information to be exciting and worthy of the title "The Chase."
Beyond the trivia, though, I think The Chase capitalizes on a fundamental concept that applies to competitive human beings like me: the thrill of the chase. I have always been motivated by goals and the pot at the end of the rainbow, and that elusive dream is what spurs me on, gives me a purpose every morning to wake up and chase that good. It's been that way for me ever since high school: try to be a chess state champion (didn't quite make it), try to get into an Ivy League school (applied to Stanford, Harvard, etc... didn't get in), try to get the best LSAT score I could and go to the best law school I could, find a job, then after graduation, learning Japanese, becoming a dodgeball champion (didn't really happen), and finally, this latest long-term goal of being the best trivia champion I can be. It's like a quote from the Wire (set in Baltimore, one of the best TV shows ever): Life is what happens when you're waiting for days that never come. Often it's the case that we don't achieve our ultimate dream or the pot full of gold, but it's the journey that is valuable and that I can look back to after my long journey and realize, wow that was a pretty thrilling journey, and it was worth it to chase after my goal. I imagine that if and when I do finally achieve my goal (for example, mastering Korean and Japanese) I will be satisfied but oddly not as excited as when I still had that goal I was shooting for, and probably a little sad that I've lost that desire and drive. I'd have to get another goal and engage in another, different Chase.
Oh yea, and the same concept applies to a parallel goal: making as much money as I can. There's really no limit to how much money one can make, is there? I guess there's an objective standard for most people of "FIRE" (Financial independence, retire early), but becoming rich is really different for everybody, and greedy people like myself will always be on the go to make more money, to get more stuff, so the journey never ends, and the thrill of the chase is always there. It is exciting, though, to get to different levels of financial goals, like 1.) paying off student debt, 2.) having enough to invest in stocks, 3.) owning my own car free and clear, 4.) putting down enough money for a down payment on a house. Oh, and being able to afford vacation every year and nice amenities for myself once in awhile.
Fantasie on,
Robert Yan
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