Five things you did while MySpace was down

October 11th, 2006
  1. repeatedly checked progress of floppy emo forelock
  2. wrote lengthy longhand list of “friends”; “de-friended” each by means of vigorous horizontal pen strokes
  3. idly doodled “Dr. and Mrs. Good Charlotte” in margins of your Consumer Math book
  4. cutting — again with the cutting
  5. imagined own funeral (and how sad and sorry everyone will be)

Five groups, apart from “women and children,” who should get to leave a sinking ship first

October 11th, 2006
  1. people who always use turn signals
  2. persons who have never purchased a greeting card
  3. Broken Social Scene
  4. everyone who can and does continue to publicly breakdance
  5. un-ironic wearers of suspenders

Five persons who will eventually appear in every rock documentary

October 11th, 2006
  1. Thurston Moore
  2. Joe Perry
  3. Henry Rollins
  4. Flea
  5. Chuck Klosterman

Five excellent Iron Maiden songs (and what each is ostensibly about)

October 11th, 2006
  1. “Flight of Icarus” - Greek myth of Daedalus, Icarus, and the wax wings they made
  2. “Aces High” - Battle of Britain (1940)
  3. “Run to the Hills” - US destroying Native American life and culture (1800s)
  4. “The Trooper” - Battle of Balaclava (1854)
  5. “The Number of the Beast” - Damien: Omen II (1978)

Five things I’ll bet can be hard for pirates

August 14th, 2006
  1. getting decent disability insurance
  2. rum allergies
  3. sexual harassment from that fancy new bosun
  4. irritable bowel syndrome
  5. finding one-legged pants that won’t make your hips look too broad

Five people who are much more enjoyable if you imagine them as pro wrestlers

August 14th, 2006
  1. Ann Coulter
  2. John C. Dvorak
  3. Donald Trump
  4. John Stossel
  5. Tony Robbins

Five markings I think I’d enjoy having on my grave

August 14th, 2006
  1. Often Punctual
  2. Half-Assing’s King
  3. So Hated Meetings
  4. Largely Tolerated by Friends
  5. Eventually Less Annoying Than in High School

Five TV shows I’ll bet you don’t remember

August 14th, 2006
  1. Q.E.D.
  2. Sword of Justice
  3. Mr. T and Tina
  4. The San Pedro Beach Bums
  5. Pop! Goes the Country

Five injustices you bravely suffer

July 14th, 2006
  1. de-friended by the singer from that band you never really liked anyway
  2. flagging sales of your recent eBook on the sidewalk cafes of Southern Indiana
  3. raw volume of co-workers who never even acknowledge your funny t-shirts
  4. fucking Eggers never responded to your email
  5. you totally had an eyebrow ring months before that goon from IT got one

Five kitchen tools that sound kind of dirty

July 14th, 2006
  1. chocolate fountain
  2. melon baller
  3. meat baster
  4. boning knife
  5. corn holders

Five possible meanings of that Kanji tattoo you can’t read

July 14th, 2006
  1. “See Rock City”
  2. “L.A. Law / Thursdays at 10″
  3. “due diligence”
  4. “Kajagoogoo4Evs”
  5. “I fellate goats while sporting a tattoo that I was told says ‘Harley Davidson’”

Five terrible fake scripts from a notional fourth season of Gilligan’s Island

June 15th, 2006
  1. Ginger gets badly hooked on coconut-based diet pills
  2. Gilligan quietly begins surreptitious relationship with Mary Ann’s cut-offs
  3. Mr. Howell acquires Skipper in stock-only buy-out
  4. Intact Coast Guard ship lands in lagoon; Professor disassembles parts to construct ersatz wooden “rescue telephone”
  5. Cousin Oliver arrives, reviving the tired franchise with his inspired island mayhem

Five amazing high-hat parts

June 15th, 2006
  1. “Dial-Up” - Ted Leo & the Pharmacists (Chris Wilson)
  2. “Every Little Thing She Does is Magic” - The Police (Stewart Copeland)
  3. “Peg” - Steely Dan (Rick Marotta)
  4. “Ceremony” - New Order (Stephen Morris)
  5. “Harborcoat” - R.E.M. (Bill Berry)

Five things, besides lying, that Shakira’s hips don’t do

June 15th, 2006
  1. poach eggs
  2. long division
  3. tap your phone
  4. moblog
  5. take no mess

Five terrible fake Spears family parenting lapses

May 19th, 2006
  1. Kevin repeatedly leaves baby in ashtray at check cashing store
  2. Britney scores pyrrhic victory in tequila-soaked belly flop contest
  3. new sitter hastily hired in parking lot of Jack in the Box™
  4. baby’s favorite beer bong often loaded with unpalatably lukewarm Coors
  5. Kevin promises “that next li’l critter” as escrow toward new ATV

Five songs I wish would become popular drunken singalongs at sporting events

May 15th, 2006
  1. “How Soon is Now?” / The Smiths
  2. “Blasphemous Rumors” / Depeche Mode
  3. “Uncertain Smile” / The The
  4. “If Only You Were Lonely” / The Replacements
  5. “The Killing Moon” / Echo & the Bunnymen

Five terrible fake David Blaine endurance stunts

May 1st, 2006
  1. perches atop a Shoney’s salad bar (throughout busy Mother’s Day holiday)
  2. wedges deep in Ted Kennedy’s jowl (duration of lengthy filibuster)
  3. stands dutifully in line at the DMV (16 weeks)
  4. sealed in oversized Ziploc® bag; simply forgotten in back of fridge (2½ years)
  5. attends taping of Dr. Phil (60 minutes)

Five phrases I wish I had occasion to use more often

May 1st, 2006
  1. foxy boxing
  2. bitch slap
  3. jack-knifed big rig
  4. junk in the trunk
  5. hot stone massage

Five things you probably don’t need to be carrying all the time

May 1st, 2006
  1. the carabiner
  2. the big-ass ring of keys
  3. the skateboard you never actually ride
  4. the shurikens
  5. the two-year-old condom

Five things I wish I could get more into

May 1st, 2006
  1. Diet Coke
  2. vim
  3. situps
  4. kale
  5. cats