Wednesday, March 17, 2004
Have You Ever Noticed . . . ?
. . . that St. Patrick's Day is more like St. Patrick's Week now? Some of my neighbors have decorated their homes and yards with shamrocks and leprechauns, and various local bars and restaurants have been running St. Pat's specials for several days already. Just as Halloween turned from one day into a whole season starting in the early 1990s, St. Patrick's Day seems like the candidate to be next.
. . . that even skilled politicians' voices, gestures, and mannerisms betray them when they're caught lying?
. . . that the NCAA men's basketball tournament, known far and wide as March Madness (a registered trademark of the NCAA, despite its use to describe every state high school tournament in the country), captures the attention of people who don't care about basketball, or even about sports? I confess, I entered a tournament pool today, even though I've made my general dislike for basketball clear in the past. I've suggested that one way to make basketball more interesting is to give both teams 100 points and let them play for five minutes, because dramatic endings are the only thing that's entertaining about the sport. The NCAA tournament is all about dramatic endings--it's what CBS promotes, and the network has the good sense to show them to you whenever they happen. (My Final Four picks: Duke, Stanford, Gonzaga--and Wisconsin. Sounds wishful, I know, but the Badgers fit the profile of a dangerous tournament team--or so I hear from people who claim to know these things.)
. . . that the bumper sticker "Don't Let the Car Fool You--My Treasure Is in Heaven" is more likely to be stuck on an oil-burning '86 Corolla held together with rust and Bondo than it is on a car that would actually be considered a treasure? I saw the sticker the other day in tandem with the one that says "In case of rapture, this car will be unmanned." (I love the one that says, "In case of rapture, can I have your car?") Another great bumper sticker I've spotted on my travels lately says: "Martin Sheen is My President." Mine, too.
. . . that St. Patrick's Day is more like St. Patrick's Week now? Some of my neighbors have decorated their homes and yards with shamrocks and leprechauns, and various local bars and restaurants have been running St. Pat's specials for several days already. Just as Halloween turned from one day into a whole season starting in the early 1990s, St. Patrick's Day seems like the candidate to be next.
. . . that even skilled politicians' voices, gestures, and mannerisms betray them when they're caught lying?
. . . that the NCAA men's basketball tournament, known far and wide as March Madness (a registered trademark of the NCAA, despite its use to describe every state high school tournament in the country), captures the attention of people who don't care about basketball, or even about sports? I confess, I entered a tournament pool today, even though I've made my general dislike for basketball clear in the past. I've suggested that one way to make basketball more interesting is to give both teams 100 points and let them play for five minutes, because dramatic endings are the only thing that's entertaining about the sport. The NCAA tournament is all about dramatic endings--it's what CBS promotes, and the network has the good sense to show them to you whenever they happen. (My Final Four picks: Duke, Stanford, Gonzaga--and Wisconsin. Sounds wishful, I know, but the Badgers fit the profile of a dangerous tournament team--or so I hear from people who claim to know these things.)
. . . that the bumper sticker "Don't Let the Car Fool You--My Treasure Is in Heaven" is more likely to be stuck on an oil-burning '86 Corolla held together with rust and Bondo than it is on a car that would actually be considered a treasure? I saw the sticker the other day in tandem with the one that says "In case of rapture, this car will be unmanned." (I love the one that says, "In case of rapture, can I have your car?") Another great bumper sticker I've spotted on my travels lately says: "Martin Sheen is My President." Mine, too.
