our own hall of fame

With the NFL and MLB Hall of Fame votes coming up in a couple weeks, I got to thinking.

We need a "Stuff That Matters Only To Me and My Circle of Friends" Hall of Fame.

With that established, here are the 12 nominees for the Inaugural Class.

1. "Dingy". Anytime you need a laugh, anytime you need a chuckle, anytime you need a reason to take your mind off of a stressful or difficult situation, do one thing. Just say the word "dingy" out loud, and tell me you won't at least smile. Its the funniest word in the English language. "Dingy". Just say it. "Dingy".

2. "Dustyland". Refers to a state of herbally induced bliss that some of us have been known to visit from time to time. Also refers to its namesake's utter inability to type coherent thoughts when in said state of herbally induced bliss.

3. "Double Header Day". That magical day in July 1999, when the Royals hosted the Reds on a Saturday afternoon / evening, and played two. We started drinking early ... and kept drinking ... and kept drinking ... and by the end of the first game, we had over 40 beer cups between myself, Gregg and Jason. By the 2nd inning of game two, we were just bringing the cups back up to the beer vendor for a refill. We wound up taking 81 glasses home with us ... and keep in mind, we were getting refills. Easily the drunkest any of us have ever been. I have no idea how we got home ... but we had to stop a few times on the side of the freeway to puke and pee. Good times!

4. "I wasn't born and raised in Johnson County to ..." Just throw that line in front of whatever it is you don't want to do. For example, "I wasn't born and raised in Johnson County to sleep on the ground", as I once infamously noted before we stayed overnight at a dude ranch near San Antonio.

5. "They've all swallowed". The best line Brent has ever uttered. At Matt's wedding, up on the stage before the food was served, he noted at another table were three of his ex's, plus his (at the time) girlfriend. After pointing out the ridiculousness of them all sitting at the same table, he famously noted, "they've all swallowed". Must be nice, champ.

6. "The Coin". A relative new-comer to the inductee list, but its initial run has been so impressive it deserves consideration. This New Year's Eve, ready to place some wagers online, but unsure how to bet, Brent grabbed a quarter and using the "heads / tails" system, placed two bets. Both won. The next day, we tried again. And kept winning. As of now, "The Coin" has more than doubled the account balance, and has only lost twice (Vikings +3, OU +4.5). It has nailed some absurd bets that seemed to have no shot of paying off. "The Coin" is rapidly approaching gambling god status.

7. "Why?" A simple one word email sent to a good buddy by his sister the day after he hooked up with one of her friends ... while said sister was sleeping on the couch in the other room. Probably should be co-nominated along with another classic line dropped that night, "she had two choices!". Sadly for me, she did not choose to go left, she went straight ahead. Still, good times!

8. "The Poem". First started in 1999, its a sometimes satirical, sometimes hysterical preview of that morning's Chiefs game that is read while walking to the player's entrance. Is known for two classic lines. "But then I stop / Because I spot a car / That might contain / My special little star!", in reference to Chiefs linebacker Donnie Edwards. And the piece de resistance, "Then I open the program / To see who our referee will be / And I shout out in glee / Sweet Jesus! Ed Hochuli!".

9. "She's Better Than That Whore You Took!" A classic "Steve opens mouth, inserts foot" moment from high school. My date dumped me, after hooking up with a fellow classmate while they were on a "missions trip" to the Dominican Republic. (Note: any "missions trip" that involves you having more sex than actually doing the Lord's work ... wait, what am I saying, that is a GREAT missions trip! Why didn't I go? What the hell was I thinking? Wait, where was I? Oh yeah ...) Anyways, I got dumped. And go figure, Gregg and Jason start piling on my plight, so in a moment of rage and frustration I scream back at Jason "Yeah? Well she's better than that whore you took!". The only problem was, said "whore" was (and is) anything but a whore, she was one of my best friends ... and she's standing right there as I said it. Its really a wonder I only got my ass kicked once in high school, I certainly said enough ridiculous stuff to warrant at least a weekly beatdown ...

10. "Vote for the Best Looking Candidate". A definite classic Steve moment. I'm running for student council treasurer. I allow a couple buddies to "run my campaign", and they come up with the inspired idea to super-impose my head onto an underwear model's body, with the slogan "Vote for the Best Looking Candidate". I thought it was brilliant. Everyone thought it was brilliant. (I lost in a landslide).

11. "Life's Great at Super 8!" Refers to the time in Phoenix for a Chiefs road game, when a buddy and his girlfriend couldn't fight the urge at 2:30 in the morning, so they went in the bathroom to enjoy each other ... and somehow thought that turning on the faucet would drown out their sounds of pleasure from us in the other room. (dan dierdorf voice) nice try!

12. "Going for a Steak at the Outback". This might be Gregg's most inspired idea, coming up with the idea of calling the Outhouse the "Outback". So of course, then the adult entertainers at this fine establishment became "waitresses", and their private dances became "steaks". Brilliant!

I have no idea how the field is going to get narrowed down, they're all classic moments in time, or laugh-inducing phrases and memories. But feel free to vote in the comments section. The inaugural class will be revealed in the next couple weeks ...