Ruminations (Selected from the Ruminations mailing list at http://www.topfive.com) Without nipples, breasts would be pointless. -- Jody Nathan Don't you hate when you travel, and you'll be standing in the middle of your hotel room naked, and the housekeeper comes walking in...finally? -- Tom Shaltry A few years back, I saw a young child stuck in a tree. Nowadays, when I find myself in a troubling situation, I look back and wonder if that kid saw me take that chocolate bar from his backpack on the ground. -- Tom Wigington If a tree falls in a forest, and there's nobody around, can I have it? -- Bill Muse I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. But I looked around and thought, "Hey, this isn't even my bed!" And that made me happy, 'cause it's been a while. -- Elka Olsen Every so often, I'll fill my pants with sand, then add a colony of ants, so that I can see what it would be like to live in an ant farm. So far it just tickles a little bit. -- Brian Gibbemeyer One of my favorite things to do at Thanksgiving is go door-to-door and collecting canned goods for the needy. Then I go home and make myself one huge casserole. -- Brad Milyo Chiseling through a wall of stone isn't my idea of fun. But chiseling through a wall of cheese -- now there's a party. -- Brian Auten If I had a hammer... I'd sell it and get some power tools. 'Cause, really, what can you do with a hammer? -- Mariano Arguedas I sit here, by my computer, all lonely. It's time like this that I wish my joystick would live up to its name. -- Smiling Sam Sometimes I think I couldn't run for political office because I'm too honest and straightforward. Then I remember that I have a gift for self-delusion that could take me right to the top. -- Brandon Eldridge My friends accused me of being a hypochondriac, which made me think: What if I am a hypochondriac, in addition to all these other ailments I have? -- Jenny Wong As a young magician, I always dreamed of sawing a woman in thirds, but I never wanted to carry the remainder. -- Jim Lockwood Give a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life. -- John A. Hrastar One day, in the not too distant future, maybe soap and germs will be friends. -- Derek Littlefield Whenever I reflect upon the events of the summer of 1776, I feel thankful that I wasn't one of the Founding Fathers. Because I'd be dead now. -- David Gunter The reason I'm so indecisive is... Okay, well, there are a couple of reasons. -- Beth Flanders I watched the entire 15 minutes of the weather last night and I wondered: Does anyone really gives a rat's ass about the barometric pressure? -- David Cox Tis better to have loved and lost than to live with that bitch/bastard for the rest of your life. -- D.C. Moore If the idle mind is the devil's workshop, then I must be the devil's Home Depot right about now. -- Scott E. Frank I hate the saying "nice guys finish last." Every nice guy I've dated finished first and didn't last. -- Kate Hoffman Whoever said "my kingdom for a nail" probably had a pretty crappy kingdom anyway. -- Marshall Gatten Good thing I wasn't born in Germany, because I don't speak a word of German. -- Ben Casey I like to think about all my failures and stare into the black abyss that is my future and laugh, because I wasn't really trying that hard to begin with. -- Matt Duncan My girlfriend and I watched the latest Doomsday movie this weekend. She cried like there was no tomorrow. -- Paul Hughes He who lives by the sword, should go out and get himself a really nice sword. -- Lev L. Spiro My Uncle Larry has a saying, "Never play proctologist with an unwilling goose." Okay, so Uncle Larry drinks a bit. -- Yobaval I think in the song "The 12 Days of Christmas", instead of "5 Golden Rings" it should be "5 Onion Rings", and not just because I'm hungry. -- David Greenfield Despite all those e-mail messages, I don't know a single person who dressed up like a monkey for John Glenn. -- Ken Prentice What peeves me is that those characters from the "Love Is..." comic strip can run around naked, but when I try it, I get sent home early from work. -- Doug Rendall Despite what the laws of physics dictate, you can go faster than the car in front of you. The problem is that you can only do it once. -- Debbie Ryan Today at the dentist's, I heard a tremendous high-pitched whine and thought he'd hauled out the drill from hell, but it was just Celine Dion on the radio. -- Christopher Arko I've looked at love from both sides now -- but I still like it on top best. -- Jim Rosenberg Where there's smoke there's fire, but where there's a vague fishy odor, it could be any number of things. -- J.P. Styskal I think if I could turn my mind into some kind of amusement park ride, it would be really successful. It scares ME half the time and I know what's in it. -- R.M. Weiner I don't know about you, but I can't think of even one way to skin a cat. -- Tom Sims Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, but teach hundreds of men to steal fish and give you a percentage... WHOA! You could pretty much retire! -- Claire Voltaire Take it from me, just because Albertson's says, "It's your store," doesn't mean you can go in and collect "your" money without being arrested. -- Scott E. Frank Too bad they didn't have aluminum siding around the time those 3 little pigs were building their houses. They could have beaten the wolf over the head with it. -- Paul Paternoster Hey, if you're gonna go, go all out -- have Hugh Hefner pick your interns. -- Mariano Arguedas And I wonder... still I wonder... who'll stop Lorraine? -- Patrice I was just thinking about the carefree summer days of my youth I used to spend running through the fields and meadows, dancing with butterflies and singing with the birds. Man, those days sucked. -- Chris Malysiak I think the reason American cars aren't as good as Japanese cars is due to the difference in dinosaurs. Any clunker with a motor can outrun Barney, but it takes a real speedster to escape Godzilla. -- Davejames As I watched the beautiful sunset, the meaning of life suddenly dawned on me. Of course, I promptly forgot because the circumstances were so ironic. -- Jim Morse School must have been really tough in the days of ancient Rome; back then, a score of 100 on a test was only worth a C. -- Guy Velgos If instead of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, we had the Chief Joints of Staff, I bet there'd be a lot less concern about wars and stuff. -- Andreme If someone breaks your heart, just punch them in the head. Oh sure, it seems obvious now, but you'd be amazed at how many people don't think of it when it's relevant. Just punch them in the head. And then go get some ice cream. -- R.M. Weiner It's really NOT a small world. Actually, it's a pretty big world, so don't let that song fool you. -- Andrew Friedman I hope in the afterlife I can find some sensible shoes, 'cause really, who wants to spend eternity with aching feet? -- Bill Hewins Sometimes as I lie in the grassy fields next to my house and look at the starry nighttime sky, I can't help but think, "I sure am glad giant ants ain't eating my head." -- Chris Kolakowski I thank my parents all the time for naming me Al, but even more so when me and the boys have a "Pee your name in the snow" contest. -- Jennifer Piatak Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask, "What can I do for my country that wouldn't, y'know, involve doing anything really yucky like sleeping in a barracks or living under mosquito netting in some, like, Third World place?" -- Lev L. Spiro I told my wife to do her MBA case study on "Old MacDonald" because that guy needed to narrow his focus. He had entirely too much shit for one farm. -- Jim Rosenberg If you ever get your tongue stuck to a flagpole, the best way to handle the situation is to take off all your clothes. Then people will say, "Hey, look at the naked guy!" instead of, "Hey, look at the idiot with his tongue stuck to a pole!" -- Craig Stacey X-mas ... X-files ... Coincidence or brilliant marketing ploy? -- Zachary Good Sometimes, as I'm walking between lanes on the freeway, I think, "You know, life just seems like a lot of yelling and honking, doesn't it?" -- Morgan McNulty Sarah didn't believe that I loved her, so I shot the President just like that Hinkley fellow did. Now we have to buy a new TV. -- Brad Johnson Seeing the wonder of the universe is as simple as looking through the eyes of a child. But catching a child and removing their eyes -- now that's the hard part. -- Charles Gulledge Sometimes I think if I had a 100 lb. cube of SPAM that I'd get laid more often, then I think, "No, that's why I got the Pinto." -- Chris McGee I stayed home alone on Thanksgiving and made a turkey sandwich. I thought the irony would be delicious, but it was just so-so. -- Adam Altman Between the time saved always using the car pool lane and the hassle saved never cleaning bird crap off of your car, it's a wonder more people don't drive with scarecrows in the passenger seat. -- Davejames While filling up at Exxon yesterday, I sang "Eye of the Tiger" simultaneously, y'know, to see if I could get some free gas. -- Jeff Grant Well, I think I'll call it a day -- because after all, that's what it is. -- Tom Sims Sometimes when I witness a horrible car-pedestrian accident, I think that maybe I should take time from my busy day to stop and help the innocent victim. Usually, though, I panic and speed away to the nearest carwash to clean the blood from my bumper. -- Tom Caldwell If humans had cheek pouches like hamsters, I bet restaurants would have to change the policies on their "all you can eat" buffets. -- Gail Celio The other day, I noticed that my bar of soap was dirty. I thought, "Great. What the hell am I gonna use to clean this?" -- Dan Machleid I've seen the commercials telling me how to save money when I call collect, and I always pick the most expensive one. After all, I'm not the one paying. -- Phyllis Persun You know, if you really want to make your mark on the world, you don't need fancy clothes or a cool car. All you really need is a big fat Magic Marker. And if you get a permanent one, nobody can wash it off later. -- Mariano Arguedas Aunt Ethel once showed me the barn where Uncle Fred poured gasoline all over himself and threatened to light himself up if she didn't marry him. She says he's still just as romantic now as he was back then. -- Anna Chin-Williams Is it just me, or does Wilma Flinstone have the nicest little cartoon butt on her? -- Scott Ru$$ell If schools used to be so wonderful, how come every where you look, you see really stupid old people? -- Joe Sharkey Power corrupts, and Absolut vodka messes me up absolutely. -- Mike Hayward Sometimes, it's better to lie to children. For example, when a child asks if they were adopted, say "yes" and lovingly explain that you have to be extra special to be adopted. Under no circumstances use the word, "kidnapped." -- Dave James I think fences just separate us as humans. When you put up a fence, you are saying, "Hey, I don't need anyone else. I'm independent." So when someone drives through your fence, you shouldn't lose your head. Also, it was my brother-in-law's car anyway. -- Nick DeCamp The people on the bus smelled just like a hamburger with extra onion. That's when I started to get a little hungry. -- Derek Littlefield If auto-eroticism is legal, then why is statuatory rape a crime? What makes sex with a car more morally acceptable than sex with a statue? -- Chris Akre If ignorance is bliss then I must be the happiest thingamajigee in the whatchamacallit! -- R.M. Weiner When I see the word "manslaughter", I like to think: "man's laughter", and then I don't feel so bad. Unfortunately, Grandpa was charged with aggravated homicide. -- Bob Van Voris If the "Star Wars" movies are so great, why couldn't they get them right the first time? -- Meghan Skinner Some people think that John Tesh sucks. Well, these are the same idiots who don't appreciate the genius of Yanni. -- Tom Sims It would have been so much cooler if, instead of saying "I cannot tell a lie," George Washington had said, "I like big butts and I cannot lie." -- Andrew Friedman Christmas is the time of year to love your fellow man or woman. Just make sure you have permission, 'cause some people are just not into the holiday like that. -- J. Bronstad When I'm an all-star athlete, I hope my nick name isn't "The Chicken" because chickens are just wimpy. -- Andrew Friedman If I plagiarize, it's only because I like someone else's idea better than mine and I want credit for it. -- Anna Chin-Williams