Have a couple of topics to close out the week as well as a few pictures as well. One of the doorway to Westminster and one of the Victoria Memorial crowded with people for a reason I was never quite able to fathom. Somewhere in my files I have pictures of this same memorial covered with flowers after Princess Di’s funeral. It’s amazing some of the things that I have seen in my life.
(And thanks to those who read my piece from yesterday. I try to keep this blog light and humorous but sometimes I just have to write what is on my mind. Yesterday wasn’t a time for frivolity, no matter how much I wish it was. A few minutes I thought about how to sum up all that was going on in my head and I think I got it. Some of you may recognize the name Warren Zevon given that he recorded the song Werewolves of London. He died of cancer a few years back and on his last appearance on The Late Show David Letterman asked him what he had learned from life and his experience in battling terminal cancer. His answer? “Enjoy every sandwich.” And I am really questioning whether I am doing that at this point in my life.)
On to the topics and a return to the normal trivia…
Topic # 1: Speaking of trivia, I have to state that Sharon was able to stump me on a pro-wrestling question tonight. I have to say, it was one of the toughest ones that I have heard in ages. It was who faced Adorable Adrian Adonis at Wrestlemania 2? I was stumped. I knew who he fought at Wrestlemania 3 (Roddy Piper), I knew who was his partner when he was a tag champ (Dick Murdoch), and I knew how he died (car accident in Canada) but I couldn’t for the life of me remember his opponent. I think I could name every other match on the card. It was Uncle Elmer, of all people. As usual, I am impressed and embarrassed by my knowledge and/or lack of it.
Topic # 2: As I mentioned before, I landed in London the same day as the London marathon. I didn’t plan that and I certainly didn’t plan to have the marathon end almost directly outside my hotel. There were a couple interesting aspects of this marathon. First, it is massive with something like 50,000 runners. A couple of celebrities in the British sense of the term (Gordon Ramsey, the cast of Eastenders, etc.) Many of the runners raise money for charity, often by running in costume. I can understand racing as Superman (though since it was in the 80’s that would have sucked) but it is the guys dressed in full mascot costumes that amaze me. I actually saw the last guy finish as it took him 22 hours given that he was dressed as Indiana Jones and was dragging a 200 pound boulder behind him. I’m not making this up. The same guy once did the marathon in an old school diving rig and it took him six days to finish the race, which is the world record for slowest marathon.
But what hit me when I walked pack the finishers is that while you saw a lot of people who were definitely hurting you would occasionally pass an old guy who looked like he hadn’t even broken a sweat yet. And by old I mean in his sixties. Half the time the guys had a beer in their hand already. It was incredibly impressive and I have to say, made me think about wanting to run a marathon at some point in the future. Of course, my orthopedist and cardiologist both just screamed at the concept but I don’t know, it just sounds like an ultimate challenge. Maybe I’ll just run a 5K instead, given that I want to see how fast I can run. Writing two books in one year is enough of an ultimate challenge for the time being.
Topic # 3: While leaving work this week I found myself behind a car that had a bumper sticker that read “I Love My Wife.” I really think that those should come with a secondary bumper sticker that read “No really, I do.” Does it strike anyone else that if you need to proclaim the fact that you love your wife on a bumper sticker odds are you really don’t care for her very much? Wouldn’t you hope that loving your wife is a given in life? I know that I’ve shied away from commitment in life but when I do say I do it will be forever. And I don’t think I need to plaster that on my car for the world to see.
Topic # 4: For those of you who get my monthly report, you’ll notice that I didn’t include an “Album you don’t own but should” section. That’s because while I had bought the latest Cowboy Junkies disc I hadn’t actually listened to it yet. Seriously, you need to hear “The End of Paths Taken” now. Especially the song “Follower 2”, which is just sitting on repeat for me right now. I’ve been following this band for years and this is their best disc in a decade (Lay It Down being their last great one). My only reaction to it is “Wow.”
(And thanks to those who read my piece from yesterday. I try to keep this blog light and humorous but sometimes I just have to write what is on my mind. Yesterday wasn’t a time for frivolity, no matter how much I wish it was. A few minutes I thought about how to sum up all that was going on in my head and I think I got it. Some of you may recognize the name Warren Zevon given that he recorded the song Werewolves of London. He died of cancer a few years back and on his last appearance on The Late Show David Letterman asked him what he had learned from life and his experience in battling terminal cancer. His answer? “Enjoy every sandwich.” And I am really questioning whether I am doing that at this point in my life.)
On to the topics and a return to the normal trivia…
Topic # 1: Speaking of trivia, I have to state that Sharon was able to stump me on a pro-wrestling question tonight. I have to say, it was one of the toughest ones that I have heard in ages. It was who faced Adorable Adrian Adonis at Wrestlemania 2? I was stumped. I knew who he fought at Wrestlemania 3 (Roddy Piper), I knew who was his partner when he was a tag champ (Dick Murdoch), and I knew how he died (car accident in Canada) but I couldn’t for the life of me remember his opponent. I think I could name every other match on the card. It was Uncle Elmer, of all people. As usual, I am impressed and embarrassed by my knowledge and/or lack of it.
Topic # 2: As I mentioned before, I landed in London the same day as the London marathon. I didn’t plan that and I certainly didn’t plan to have the marathon end almost directly outside my hotel. There were a couple interesting aspects of this marathon. First, it is massive with something like 50,000 runners. A couple of celebrities in the British sense of the term (Gordon Ramsey, the cast of Eastenders, etc.) Many of the runners raise money for charity, often by running in costume. I can understand racing as Superman (though since it was in the 80’s that would have sucked) but it is the guys dressed in full mascot costumes that amaze me. I actually saw the last guy finish as it took him 22 hours given that he was dressed as Indiana Jones and was dragging a 200 pound boulder behind him. I’m not making this up. The same guy once did the marathon in an old school diving rig and it took him six days to finish the race, which is the world record for slowest marathon.
But what hit me when I walked pack the finishers is that while you saw a lot of people who were definitely hurting you would occasionally pass an old guy who looked like he hadn’t even broken a sweat yet. And by old I mean in his sixties. Half the time the guys had a beer in their hand already. It was incredibly impressive and I have to say, made me think about wanting to run a marathon at some point in the future. Of course, my orthopedist and cardiologist both just screamed at the concept but I don’t know, it just sounds like an ultimate challenge. Maybe I’ll just run a 5K instead, given that I want to see how fast I can run. Writing two books in one year is enough of an ultimate challenge for the time being.
Topic # 3: While leaving work this week I found myself behind a car that had a bumper sticker that read “I Love My Wife.” I really think that those should come with a secondary bumper sticker that read “No really, I do.” Does it strike anyone else that if you need to proclaim the fact that you love your wife on a bumper sticker odds are you really don’t care for her very much? Wouldn’t you hope that loving your wife is a given in life? I know that I’ve shied away from commitment in life but when I do say I do it will be forever. And I don’t think I need to plaster that on my car for the world to see.
Topic # 4: For those of you who get my monthly report, you’ll notice that I didn’t include an “Album you don’t own but should” section. That’s because while I had bought the latest Cowboy Junkies disc I hadn’t actually listened to it yet. Seriously, you need to hear “The End of Paths Taken” now. Especially the song “Follower 2”, which is just sitting on repeat for me right now. I’ve been following this band for years and this is their best disc in a decade (Lay It Down being their last great one). My only reaction to it is “Wow.”
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