Worthless Observations On Trying to Be Funny, and 1987 Trivia

I really try to be current here. I do try. Obviously, I have failed miserably since the Stanley Cup Finals. Why? Because I lead an incredibly boring life, and don't falter under the impression that it will be interesting to you. But I really do want to write. I went through all the trouble to pick out a pseudonym and fake names that rhyme with the real names of most of my friends.

I could stop trying to be funny and talk about what is in the news, but frankly I don't understand most of it. We're fighting a war, or I suppose dealing with an occupation at this point. I'm not sure how its going - but people don't like it - that's probably a good thing. If we ever fought a war that too many people really liked that might be scary. Israel has a ceasefire in a war that I don't really understand but I think they're fighting it in Lebanon, but they aren't fighting with Lebanon per se. People don't like the President much, but I think that's been covered. I hear the price of gas is high.... I hear that every ten minutes or so, so I don't think there is any point in me covering it here.

So I need something funny to talk about and since I can't think of anything current, I'll settle for something that happened in 1987. But we'll do that in a minute.

I also want to address how to get people here and how to get some feedback on exactly how bad my attempts are. I had a few thoughts:

• Do something controversial. Pick some group of people who annoy me, and verbally assault them. If people notice it might generate some traffic. So I did that with a group of people that I find truly annoying, those who imitate characters in Austin Powers movies. By and large the one person who read it didn't seem to get it. Perhaps I should have picked something more tangible, like a political group, or an orange (see, now you wonder what I'm talking about - you want to click that link - go ahead).
• Recurring features. It works for bad morning radio. So I was wondering how many people would tune in on a given day of a week to see something in a recurring theme. I had ideas for a couple of possible themes:
1. Quotes by Rudolph Diesel Wednesday
2. Reality TV wrapup Wednesday
3. Something on a day other than Wednesday
4. Random links to thing I already wrote Tuesday
5. I am not aware of any other quotes by Rudolph Diesel, hate reality television, and
   it really seems like I ought to start on Wednesday because its right in the middle of the week.
• If you use bullets instead of numbers, and say something vague like "I had a few thoughts", you don't have to keep changing the numbers around when you get a new idea (or forget one).

So please, if you think its worth reading, tell a friend. And if you don't, tell me. You only have to tell me once, it won't take much time.

In 1987 a song by Cutting Crew - (I Just) Died In Your Arms Tonight - was on the charts at roughly the same time as a song by a band called U2 - With or Without You. The two events are linked in my mind. I specifically remember sitting and talking to a friend who was a police officer at the guard shake of the Air Force base that I lived on while both of these songs played on the radio. That one thing linked the two songs in my mind.

(I Just) Died In Your Arms Tonight was one of the top hits of 1987. Cutting Crew were nominated for the Best New Artist Grammy, and sank into relative obscurity. Its not that there subsequent records were not good, but those are the rules: You get the Best New Artist Grammy, you've had your hit. Just ask these guys. Here in 2006, nearly twenty years later, a version of Cutting Crew with as many as one original band member have released a new album. I hope it does well.

As for that other band - I'm not sure whatever happened to them. I hope they saved some money.