Our puny human minds perceive time as a linear thing that travels from then to now. We even impose cycles on time and begin and end them on arbitrary dates. Humans have always done this, it’s probably something in our DNA that compels us to impose order on the cosmos. It also compels us to look back at the year past and try to make sense of it. Or to at least remember some of the more notable events.

James Mathus and his Knockdown Society “Diggin’ My Potatoes” (Traditional)
Did you know that 2008 was the International Year Of The Potato? Did you pay appropriate homage to the humble yet mighty spud? It was also the International Year Of Sanitation but there aren’t many good cover songs about sewerage.

Hurra Torpedo “Total Eclipse Of The Heart” (Bonnie Tyler)
There was a total lunar eclipse visible in the Americas and Europe in February. It was kinda creepy and I can understand why it would freak out people without a good understanding of astronomy. The experience was very cool, much cooler than a total eclipse of the heart.

Pavement “No More Kings” (From Schoolhouse Rock)
In April the island of Sark finally dismantled its feudal system to comply with the European Convention On Human Rights. I respect a good feudal system as much as the next guy but it was probably getting to the point where it was bad for tourism. The Lords of Sark will just have to find more creative and subtle ways to oppress and exploit their serfs.

If you’re wondering what life was like under Sark’s feudal system, it probably looked a lot like this:

Big Low “Dark As A Dungeon” (Merle Travis)
Gary Gygax, the geek who invented Dungeons and Dragons, died in April. When I was in college there was a gorgeous Indian exchange student who lived in the dorm next to mine who was heavily into D&D. She was stunning and exotic and I wanted to work through the entire Kama Sutra with her. I seriously considered joining her D&D group. Just one more example of a guy willing to do something stupid, boring and pointless in the vague hope that it might get him laid. Then I found out that she was not only very smart and very beautiful and every inch a woman, she was also jailbait. Apparently she had skipped a couple of grades in the course of her academic career. So I decided not to join her dungeon and to just exchange pleasantries when we ran into each other.

Kite “Breakfast In America” (Supertramp)
In September the Constitutional Court of Thailand ordered the Prime Minister to resign after he accepted money to appear on a cooking show. That’s a country that holds its elected officials to a high standard. The U.S. could learn a thing or two from Thailand.