Friday, June 20, 2008

Snake Eyes To King's Knight Six. Check.

Fussball ist wie Schach, nur ohne Würfel.

Source: This quote is attributed to German footballer Lukas Podolski.

Explanation: Translated, Mr. Podolski said, "Football is like chess, but without the dice." Words of wisdom. I heard this on last week's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me when they referenced an article on famous German football quotations. Other gems include:

Mailand oder Madrid - Hauptsache Italien. (Milan or Madrid -- the most important thing is it's Italy.) - former midfielder Andi Möller

Es steht im Augenblick 1:1. Aber es hätte auch umgekehrt lauten können. (The score is currently 1:1. But it could also have been the other way around.) - German sports journalist Heribert Fassbender

Jetzt stehen die Chancen 50:50 oder gar sogar 60:60. (The chances are currently 50:50 or even 60:60.) - Former Bayer Leverkusen manager Reiner Calmund (whose IQ was once measured at 140 on a German television show)

Special Blog Bonus: Also on the show was this joke, told by Roy Blount, Jr:

Two men grew up in eastern Kentucky. One went off to make his fortune up North, while the other stayed home to run the farm and take care of the old folks. The one who went north prospered, was transferred to California, and rode the corporate ladder all the way to his company's presidency. Work kept him so busy, he never came back home to visit.

One day the one back home sent a wire, "Papa died. Funeral on Friday." The one in California wired back "Can't come. Must go to Japan for merger talks. Give Papa very best funeral, and send bill to me. Least I can do."

So, they buried Papa, and the company president got a bill for $8000. He paid it, and a month later he got a bill for $145. He paid it. The third month, he got another bill for $145. So, he called his brother and asked "What's with these $145 bills?"

His brother said, "Well, you said you wanted Papa buried in style, so I rented him a tuxedo."

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