I’m a big fan of the Jeopardy show.

I don’t watch it every night, but when I have time I’ll turn it on.

I started watching Jeopardy as a kid with my mom.

We’d watch Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune back to back.

I liked Wheel of Fortune more than Jeopardy then. I think it was because Wheel of Fortune is flashier and has more enthusiastic people.

Now I like Jeopardy better, partially because I feel I can participate more in a Jeopardy episode than a Wheel of Fortune episode.

In Wheel of Fortune my only means of participation is to guess what the whole phrase is, I can’t guess individual letters.

But I can guess individual Jeopardy questions!

I’ve actually worked out a system where I can keep my own score along with the Jeopardy contestants on the show.

I watch with a calculator in my hand and keep track of my points as the game goes on.

I get points for answering a question before any of the contestants do. I lose points if my answer was wrong.

If I correctly answered the question before the Daily Double, then I get to participate along with the contestant who found it. I decide how many of my points to bet on a Daily Double in which I participate.

Final Jeopardy works the same as for me as it does for the other contestants. I see the category, bet my money, and guess after the commercial break.

The system isn’t perfect. I and another contestant can both get money from a question.

Also the betting on Daily Doubles and Final Jeopardy isn’t ideal. The contestants can bet based on what the other two contestants have, but not what I have. I get to bet based on what all of them have.

I get first or second place most of the time. I feel like once I can reliably get first I’ll be ready to be on the show.

The show has tryouts online every year, but I haven’t made it through yet.

I just hope I can get on the show before Alex Trebek leaves.

-Mister Ed