It's Monday. Find a tall building and get ready.

Sunday was a big football day here in America. It's all designed to keep us glued to the TV for hours at a time so the networks can promote their upcoming shows. Of course, there are always the actual paid commercials to keep us entertained. One, for Bristol Myers-Squibb proclaimed, "Together we can prevail." That's supposed to make us feel like the drug companies are looking out for us. Us and them. We're together, as in Bristol Myers and Squibb. You, however, are an afterthought, and not included unless you want to be used as a pin cushion for the drug industry. Then, you're together. And, prevail against what, exactly? Made up diseases and bothersome minor ailments that you could live with, but with the aid of drugs, you won't be bothered with pesky trips to the rest room, dull aches in your fingers or the remote possibility that an erection could last longer than four hours.

During the Chargers/Vikings game, we actually watched a clock run for 39 seconds until the two-minute warning, which brought about another commercial. Thirty-nine seconds of nothing but a clock counting down, substituting as network TV time, and I'm staring at it. Doofus. Bristol Myers-Squibb would have paid a quarter of a million dollars for that, and NBC had us watching a ticking clock. Suckers.

Speaking of suckers, it's another week of sports-related sorrow around here, as the Eagles lost a heartbreaker to the Cowboys on Sunday night, 38 to 17. It wasn't as close as the score would indicate. It will be another week of teeth gnashing and name-calling around here for Eagles fans. They appear to be running out of energy, however, and I figure that by Thanksgiving they will have lost interest altogether. I'll know that it has reached a low ebb if (and when) I am offered free tickets to a game. That's the true gauge of reaching bottom.

I continue to be fascinated by the importance that people place on these sporting events. I guess spending 200 dollars to take in the game and its associated food and beverages will make give it a higher priority than it deserves, but who is at fault for spending that money?

On the bright side...

Winner of the 2007 World Backside Championships Kristina Dimitrova of Bulgaria, shows off her backside in Munich. A Bulgarian woman and a Romanian man have the world's best-looking bottoms, according to the jury of a backside beauty contest sponsored by a lingerie firm, a company spokeswoman said Thursday.(AFP/DDP/Joerg Koch)

So, happy Monday. I'm not showing the men's backside. Do your own web search.