Believing in Yourself Almost as Much as You Doubt

Congratulations to both Ms. Stacey Villescas and my Dad for correctly naming "Back in the U.S.S.R." by The Beatles as the Monday Song of the Day.

What's that you say? You wonder why I mention my Dad when Stacey, a.k.a. ALV, was the only person who left a comment identifying "Back in the U.S.S.R."? Well, my Dad chose to give his answer via the telephone, which until this point was within the accepted method of communicating answers, along with carrier pigeons, smoke signals, and tin cans on a string.

But, upon further consideration, I've decided that in order to avoid any Bush v. Gore-type knockdown, dragout fights, I'm proposing the following rule, and since this is my blog, I rule by fiat and my word is law.

Henceforth, all answers, in order to be considered for the Song of the Day contest, must be submitted via the comment section of "Running Down a Dream."I will not accept answers in any other form, even if they are submitted by the people that brought me into this world. This is a blog of laws, not men or women.

Govern yourself accordingly.

Leavin' on a Southern Train, Only Yesterday You Lied

In the annual lunacy that surrounds the 17th of December, I somehow used multiple song lyrics yesterday and created chaos that made Attica look tame by comparison.

The first Monday Song of the Day award goes to Mrs. Sarah Yee for correctly naming "Tribute" by Tenacious D, and the second Monday Song of the Day award goes to Mr. Tim Henderson for correctly naming "Badlands" by Bruce Springsteen. In the future I will make my best efforts to restrain the madness for the greater societal good.

I would write more tonight but I'm currently hiding in my room from the killing machine that is Anton Chigurh.

I finally saw No Country for Old Men tonight, and if I ever see a pale, poorly coiffed man walking my way holding an oxygen tank, I'm running the other way faster than millions of Americans could jump off of the Roger Clemens Hall-of-Fame bandwagon.

Hey Mister, Can You Tell Me Where a Man Might Find a Bed?

Congratulations to Dan Carlson for correctly naming "Werewolves of London" by Warron Zevon as the Tuesday Song of the Day. Because of Searcey's comment inquiring about the Song of the Day Contest, I thought I would take some time to explain how things work to some of my newer readers.

Everyday, I use song lyrics as the titles for my posts. As you read in the previous paragraph, the lyrics for yesterday's title were drawn from "Werewolves of London" by Warren Zevon. The first reader to leave a comment with the correct song title and artist/band gets a little (hey, it's not like it's the NY Times you're reading here) name recognition on the next day's post. I've altered the rules as of late to allow people who see me in passing to mention their answer verbally, although I do accept smoke signals. Either way, it's a little treat for those who read my often convoluted musings. (The recognition not the smoke signals).
In response to Tuegel's comment about Mark DeRosa signing with the Cubs, I will say this: I think the Rangers are going to miss DeRosa more than they know. He is one of those "glue guys" that you can plug in at multiple positions and expect him to perform at a very high level each and every day. I'm not sure who the Rangers are going to find to replace DeRosa, but players like that are vital to a team's potential success.

As the business of pro sports has caused salaries to shoot into the stratosphere, I rarely flinch anymore when I hear about the off-season payday parades for free agents, but I almost spit my Cheerios at the TV this morning when I saw that the Red Sox won the rights to negotiate with Daisuke Matsuzaka by bidding $51.1 million.

$51.1 million! That's just for the right to negotiate and is not even his contract!

Oh, by the way, his agent is Scott Boras. Theo Epstein is probably looking forward to these negotiations like members of the Jonestown Massacre looked forward to another glass of Kool-Aid. (Yes, I know that they all dead. Spare yourself the potential carpal tunnel syndrome.)

Random Question of the Day (Feel Free to Vote)

Which band's reputation is hurt the most by their song being used in a corporate commercial? (Also, I know that they agreed to give the company the rights. Again, save yourself the trouble).

• The Band: "The Weight" in Cingular commercials
• Led Zeppelin: "Rock and Roll" in Cadillac commercials.
• Oasis: "All Around the World" in AT&T commercials.