That kid is back on the escalator!

So on Sunday morning Allison and I volunteered to help with registration for Race For the Cure (our official title was "Welcome Liason"). Our job was to check people in when they showed up, and hand them numbers for either the 5K run, 5K walk, or 1K walk. Some of the runners were on teams, and due to the magic of Microsoft Excel, some of said team names were cut short, with hilarious consequences (keep in mind that at 5:30 AM lots of things are funnier than they normally would be). My personal favorites were "Healthy Ho", "Valley Hos" and on the opposite end of the spectrum "Team Prude".

Also, Sunday morning provided me with one of the finest moments of physical comedy I've ever been witness to. This kid, probably between 5 and 7, decides it would be a good idea to run up the down escalator to get to the floor above him. After watching him struggle for a bit, then finally get the hang of it, I turn to Allison and remark about how he thinks hes got it down, but that the dismount at the top is always the most difficult part. Immediately after I finish my statement the kid totally biffs it right at the top of the escalator (he wasn't hurt). Hilarious! He went down hard too, but managed to crawl his way off of the escalator and onto the floor. As soon as he stands up, he begins to look around like something is missing; it's at this time that I notice an adidas sandal sticking up out of the escalator heading downward. The kid lost his shoe and had absolutely no idea where it was, never even occured to him that it may have gone down the escalator. So what does he do? He just takes off without it. So basically in order to save myself from eternal damnation from laughing at this kids misfortune, I decide to be the "hero" and return him his sandal. Very funny stuff though, definitely the highlight of my day.

Thought I'd switch it up this time so I'll leave you with a Family Guy quote:

"It's OK to lie to women, they're not people like us."

These Go to Eleven

So in the computer lab today, we were looking at upcoming shows in the Twin Cities area and it turns out Southern Culture on the Skids is playing here next week. I didn't know they still existed, but I was reminded of their wonderful contribution to the canon of rock and roll, the ever-impressive "Camel Walk". You know, the song that begins with the classic line: "Baby will you eat that there snack cracker in your special outfit for me, please?" The amazing thing is that I actually own one of their albums, although it's a pretty safe bet you won't be seeing me at their show. However, the sheer wizardry of "Camel Walk" begs the question...what are the most underappreciated songs of all time? Believe me, I could write for days on this subject. In fact the question is so open-ended that it may require more clarification. Perhaps the best way would be to define different catergories of "underappreciatedness":

Category 1: One-hit wonder
This is not your ordinary one hit wonder; its a song so good, you wonder why they never had another hit.

Examples: Come On Eileen - Dexy's Midnight Runners
Take on Me - A-ha
New Age Girl - Deadeye Dick
The Freshmen - The Verve Pipe

Category 2: Overshadowed
This is the type of song that perhaps was overshadowed by a bigger hit from the same band, or perhaps is on an album so good that it gets lost in the shuffle

Examples: Lump - Presidents of the United States of America
Motorcycle Drive By - Third Eye Blind
Pretty When I'm Drunk - Bloodhound Gang
Muzzle - Smashing Pumpkins

Category 3: Songs most people have never heard
This is my favorite, given that my poor taste in music has led me to some awfully obscure songs/bands in my 22 years on this planet. These are songs that I would strongly bet you have never heard unless I have played them for you

Examples: the afforementioned Camel Walk - Southern Culture on the Skids
The Neden Game - Insane Clown Posse
Meat Sandwich - GWAR
I Walked - Wanderlust
Anger - Downset
I could go on and on....

So I've decided I'm going undertake a huge project: Determining the top twenty underappreciated songs of all time...in my opinion. At the rate I'm posting, I'll probably have it done sometime by Christmas

And to honor the great Tiffany Funari, I leave you with another Simpsons reference:
Superintendent Chalmers:"I thought we were having steamed clams."
Principal Skinner: "Oh, no I said steamed hams. That's what I call hamburgers."
Chalmers: " You call hambugers steamed hams..."
Skinner: "Yes, it's a regional dialect."
Chalmers: "Uh huh...what region?"
Skinner: "Uh...upstate New York?"
Chalmers: "Really...Well i'm from Utica and I've never heard anyone use the phrase 'steamed hams'"
Skinner: "Oh no not in Utica. It's an Albany expression"


Who's up for some steamed hams tomorrow?