Riff 106 - Plumbing, Hornets, and Superpowers for the Mundane

We start with the sort of household problems that prove nature and plumbing are both actively plotting against us: hornets, yellow jackets, water leaks, and the various methods we use to figure out where the problem is coming from before it becomes a much larger problem. Along the way, we compare pest control, leak detection, and other everyday challenges where the official solution and the solution we actually attempt differ somewhat. We apply the logic of Dungeons & Dragons to ordinary working life, imagining a role-playing game where instead of becoming mighty warriors and wizards, we get ordinary jobs. This naturally leads us to superheroes, because if somebody has extraordinary powers, sooner or later somebody is going to wonder whether those powers could be used for welding or roofing. We consider superheroes whose abilities are spectacularly useful without being particularly heroic. We also get into subliminal messaging, advertising, media influence, superstition, and the myths that can shape what people believe.