COLUMNS--FEATURE SPOT, Opinion, Scot Beard
 By  Scot Beard Published 
9:00 am Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Radio reveals another of my odd quirks

I had a revelation Tuesday while listening to my car radio as the morning show hosts read a list of the Top 10 Stupidest Holiday Gifts. The revelation is I am a sucker for lists like this.

Coming to this conclusion was easy considering I sat in the car for 15 minutes to listen to the list, it was 5:30 in the morning and the only reason I was in the car was to back out of the drive way so my wife could go to work.

At first I passed it off as being interested in the No. 10 item on the list – kosher pet toys. I wondered why pets need kosher toys since, as far as I know, pets don’t have religious beliefs.

The hosts also took interest in the subject and the ensuing conversation was quite humorous. One host said all dogs go to heaven, the other asked if that included Cujo and I laughed too hard for 5:30 in the morning.

They moved to the next item before heading to a commercial break. They talked more about the kosher toys and I sat in my car patiently waiting for the list to resume.

In the end I was a little disappointed in the list, which included a toilet-shaped coffee cup, poo-shaped, strawberry scented soap and a Hot Guys with Baby Animals Calendar.

When my list-loving revelation hit me, I realized how much time I have spent paying attention to things I normally wouldn’t care about simply because the subject matter was ranked.

I watched all five hours of VH1’s “Greatest Hard Rock Songs of All-Time” even though I am not that big of a fan of hard rock. I watched VH1’s “40 Greatest Reality Show Moments” – parts one and two – knowing that I can’t stand reality television.

The C-SPAN could air a special about the 100 Most Boring Readings of Spending Bills in Congressional History and I would probably watch to find out which reading was most boring.

I know what you are asking – Couldn’t you just wait until the end of the show before turning it on to find out that answer? Nope, that feels like cheating. If you want to enjoy the reward, you have to work for it.

In this case to appreciate the No. 1 entry on the list you have to sit through the other 99 entrants.

This is another one of my odd quirks that drives my wife nuts. I don’t think she knows about my addiction to countdowns, but if I brought it to her attention she would say, “You’re so weird.’

She is right I do have my strange habits and eccentric ways of thinking that get on her nerves. I know there are many such items – I wonder which 10 she finds most annoying.

Oh great, there I go again.

Also on Franklin County Times
Roberts pleads not guilty to 106 counts
Main, News, Russellville
By Brady Petree For the FCT 
July 8, 2026
RUSSELLVILLE — A Georgia woman facing 106 counts ranging from possession of child pornography to first-degree sodomy has pleaded not guilty to the cha...
Ex-mayor Oliver, 82, dies
Franklin County, Main, News, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
July 8, 2026
Former Russellville mayor and retired U.S. Army National Guard Major General Troy Oliver, 82, a 1961 graduate of Belgreen High School, died Saturday. ...
Patriotic banner donated to Tharptown VFD
Main, News, Russellville, ...
María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
July 8, 2026
R U S S E L L V I L L E — Lottie Coan, who has served as secretary- treasurer for the Tharptown Volunteer Fire Department since 2015, was sitting in h...
Miller Family Dairy opens processing facility
Features, Main, News, ...
By Addi Broadfoot For the FCT 
July 8, 2026
CROOKED OAK — Miller Family Dairy unveiled its new milk processing facility June 30, bringing the business one step closer to bottling its own milk, p...
Great Pretenders take stage July 16
Columnists, News, Opinion
HERE AND NOW
July 8, 2026
Each summer, the W.C. Handy Music Festival brings outstanding music and entertainment to communities across the Shoals. For more than four decades, th...
DAR chapter unearths patriot’s story
Franklin County, News
Chelsea Retherford For the FCT 
July 8, 2026
In a forgotten patch of woods on a farm near Cloverdale, history had lain hidden for generations. It took a determined group of local historians, gene...
Hartley shares her ancestor’s legacy
News
By Chelsea Retherford Staff Writer 
July 8, 2026
Patricia Hartley has always felt a strong sense of patriotism and duty to community and family. It was only recently that she discovered those were fa...

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *