IT'S TWO O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE.

So Indiana's is switching to Daylight Savings Time this weekend and my fellow Hoosiers are acting like we are the first people in the history of time (ha! get it?) to have to set their clocks back.

How do I reset my VCR? Is my computer going to get all messed up? And what of the bank clocks downtown? What if they aren't reset until Monday?! WHAT THEN?!!

But it was all fun and games until I saw this story in Thursday's Indianapolis Star. The story said that, since "spring forward" takes place at exactly 2 a.m., Indianapolis bars were going to have to close at 2 a.m. rather than 3 a.m. on Saturday to be in step with the law. Pleas from bar owners to the state government fell on deaf ears and a quarter of a million dollars in Final Four drinkin' revenue was in jeopardy of being lost.

However, in an amazing coincidence, the same day that the Star pointed out this bureaucratic insanity the Governor got on the horn to Indiana Excise Police and issued a reprieve.

It's days like this that I'm proud to work for a newspaper. At 2:01 a.m. this weekend, let's all hoist a glass to the Indy Star.

A LITTLE LATE: Best holiday beer? Harpoon Winter Warmer. It's dark and spicy with hints of nutmeg and cinnamon. It's so choice. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.

WHAT I DON'T RECOMMEND PICKING UP: Coca-Cola BlaK, which, from what I can tell, is carbonated coffee. "Find your muse. Find higher ground. Find your BlaK."

Yikes. Find me a new marketing department.

IT'S MARCH 31: And, according to Jay Mariotti, the Cubs season is already over.

FOR A GOOD TIME VISIT: Bad Design Kills and Advertising/Design Goodness

FINAL-UM-SAL: In case you missed it, Sal posted an Ode to Mission Ale House on his Merc blog.

BEN FOLDS, RUPERT AND A BURNING SENSATION

So I went to the big Ben Folds show on Friday. This was the third time Ben has played in Indy since I took my job here and he still packed the house. Who knew there was such a groundswell of Ben Folds fans in the heartland? Moreso, who knew there were so many high-school aged Ben Folds fans? I've come to realize his band-geek fan base is much larger than anyone could imagine. And his biggest fan? The Peter Griffin-looking teen behind me who, I swear to God, was playing air piano.

Then last night I went to the big Kevin Mohl and the Burning Sensation show at Birdy's. I was there for a good 20 minutes before I realized that, seated in front of me, was TV's most popular Survivor, Rupert Bonham! (Sorta pictured above!) So, for those at home keeping score:

Jared-the-Subway-Guy: CHECK!
Rupert-from-Survivor: CHECK!

And remember what Rupert always says: "When it comes to surviving life in the fast lane, I’ll be going to Caribbean Cove Indoor Water Park. You should too!"

Sage advice from a wise man.

DOWNERS, UPPERS

So I'm going to the big Ben Folds concert downtown tonight and today one of his songs (iTunes link) popped up on my iPod. It kinda caught me off guard considering all the stuff that has gone down this week:

FRED JONES PART 2
Fred sits alone at his desk in the dark
There's an awkward young shadow that waits in the hall
He's cleared all his things and he's put them in boxes
Things that remind him that life has been good
Twenty-five years
He's worked at the paper
The man's here to take him downstairs
And I'm sorry, Mr. Jones
It's time
There was no party, there were no songs
'Cause today's just a day like the day that he started
No one is left here that knows his first name
And life barrels on like a runaway train
Where the passengers change
They don't change anything
You get off; someone else can get on
And I'm sorry, Mr. Jones
It's time

Well ... that's kinda a downer. So let's cut to GMSV, which notes that a group of former Apple execs have started their own company:

Acquicor, a “blank check” company formed by former Apple CEO Gil Amelio, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, and former Apple CTO Ellen Hancock, arrived at market Tuesday with no product, no customers, and no full-time employees (the company's sole employees are its founders and they all have other jobs), and today its shares are trading at $6.72. ... Which means Amelio, Hancock and Wozniak have already made themselves about $30 million dollars. Perhaps they'll use some of the money to buy naming rights to Gillette Stadium. Or maybe they could finish Mac OS 8.

Oh! Snap!


AND: McSweeney's brings the funny with The Slow and Painful Collapse of a Relationship Over The Course of a Weeklong Vacation as Expressed by the Names Each Partner Gave Their Digital Photos Taken During Said Vacation.

BREAKING: KNIGHT RIDDER SOLD

The New York Times is reporting that Knight Ridder has been sold to McClatchy for $4.5 billion. Best wishes to all my many KR friends...