Cutting Up with The Ramones

When I was a kid I had to cut the grass every weekend; my particular area of expertise was the front yard, a relatively easy laid-out rectangle to walk up & down on. Of course this was before headphones and Walkmen were ubiquitous - and I wouldn't have been able to hear anything over the 990 year-old lawnmower engine my father insisted we hold onto anyway - so to keep my morale up as the Sun pounded away at me I started playing The Ramones' first four records in my head, as each was almost exactly the same length as the time it took for me to cut the lawn. I'd think, "when I get to Swallow My Pride I know I'm halfway done", or "oh great it's I Can't Give You Anything, that means we're in the home stretch." I'm not saying it made me look forward to cutting the grass, but it certainly made it more enjoyable.

Thank you, The Ramones!