Random Thoughts on Friday

As you surely know, the UK men's basketball team won a big championship recently. It reminded me of something that happened to me around 1996.

I spent January in Nebraska. The entire month. I spent a college short term there. That is a cool, mellow state. I had a great time.

So, I listened to the radio a lot there. Local stations.

Anyway, the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team had just won the national championship. The state seemed pretty happy about that, and you saw and heard about it all the time.

As to be expected, everyone was selling t-shirt, posters, and every other item you can image "commemorating" the champions. Merchandise was everywhere.

Frankly, I have no real problem with this. I have various shirts and posters myself of my favorite teams.

One of the items being sold in Nebraska was some sort of a medallion relating to the Cornhuskers and their championship season. I think the silver version was $19.95 plus shipping or you could get a gold one for $29.95.

They played the commercial on EVERY radio station in the state- at least twice during every commercial break. The commercial was so annoying. An announcer came on the radio sounding almost in a panic he was so excited. He must have shot caffeine directly into his veins seconds before the commercial was recorded.

"THE NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS HAVE DONE IT AGAIN!" he shouted. And then he gave his sales pitch about the season, and how you could buy the coin for your collection. I would be reminded of this radio announcer the first time I ever saw Billy Mays.

I had a good time in Nebraska, but I have to admit that I was so glad to be getting away from the repetition of that commercial.

So I get back to Kentucky. I forgot about that commercial for a month or so.

Then it happened. UK won the national championship in basketball. The floodgate or merchandise was opened. Then the commercials started.

The day after the championship game I heard it on the radio, "THE UK WILDCATS HAVE DONE IT AGAIN!"

Piped through radios all over Kentucky was the EXACT SAME commercial I was tormented by in Nebraska with the small change of the Kentucky team's name and the the word "basketball" replacing the Nebraska team's name and the word "football". Otherwise, it was word for word the same commercial.

Being more of a radio fan than a TV fan, I must have listened to this commercial thousands of times in 1996. I never got around to ordering one.