Whatever Gets You Up. (Or, A Discussion About Bedside Clocks.)

I was sitting at the rugby bar recently, having a pleasant conversation with longtime friend Tom Lucas, when the topic of conversation turned to alarm clocks. Tom asked me how I managed to get up every morning, despite my late nights. I told him that I have the most obnoxious sounding alarm clock known to man.....

It has served me well for many years. I even have an extra one, in case this one breaks (originally purchased as a Christmas present for someone I once knew, but never gifted.)

I also have a backup clock radio.

Hey, when your livelihood depends on waking up on time, you can't be too careful. I can't call the boss and say I'm running late, after all.....

Tom shared HIS clock radio story....he had one that he got as a youngster. (In fact, he noted that his dad had taken it in once to be repaired....probably sometime in the 70s, based on the sticker on the bottom. Imagine....REPAIRING a small appliance, instead of chucking it and getting a new one. But I digress.)

After many years of loyal service, he noticed one day that the hands on the clock no longer moved. He moved it out to the garage to use. Recently he noticed that the clock appears to be working again. He's considering returning it to active duty again.

It's funny how inanimate objects that serve us faithfully earn a soft spot in our hearts. If anything happened to my clock radio, I'd have a hard time replacing it with one I liked as much. That kind of loyalty--even to a small home appliance--is kind of endearing to me.

All this talk about alarm clocks has reminded me of an old joke about a good way (OK, at least ONE way) to tell time.....

Late one night a guy is showing some friends around his brand new apartment. The last stop is the bedroom, where a big brass gong sits next to the bed.
"What's that gong for?" the friend asks him.
"It's not a gong," the guy replies. "It's a talking clock."
"How does it work?"
The guy picks up a hammer, gives the gong an ear-shattering pound, and steps back.

Suddenly, someone on the otherside of the wall screams, "For God's sake, you as*hole...it's 3:30 in the god damn morning!"