"You Owe Me a Coke, Motherf**ker"

Ah yes. This could very well go down in Searching for Zentra history as one of the greatest lines, uttered by our fair Mumbles. First, we should all pause and recognize the fact that not only did Mumbles utter this line, but it was understood by all in carpool. Second, it is significant because it is the first time that Mumbles has ever jinxed anyone in the 'pool.

Jinx is an important concept in our 'pool. I, for one, had never heard of it, pre-meeting our dear Fidget (as an aside, it's hard to imagine a time in my life where I didn't know Fidget. Life was just not nearly as interesting as it is now...). One day, a few weeks after joining the 'pool, Fidget and I happened to say the exact same word at the exact time. Next thing I knew, Fidget was demonstrating that he knew how to count from 1 to 10, and then shrieked that I owed him a coke. Hence, my introduction to the Jinx. Should you and another say the same word or phrase at the same time, the first person to say, "Jinx, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, you owe me a coke" is the "winner." The loser is not permitted to speak, not even to protest the jinx (more on that later) until someone else utters said loser's name three times.

Dumb? Absolutely. Hours of entertainment? Of course. And it just so happens that, when you spend as much time as we do, trapped in a very small space, jinx happens a lot. Many battles have ensued, and a whole new set of rules have followed.

For instance, if something isn't a word, it can't be used towards a jinx. Recently, after losing a jinx and attempting to protest the result, Fidget pronounced that "Oh" isn't a word. After I pointed out, as winner of the jinx, that it is totally a word because it's in the dictionary, Fidget stated that "There's a lot of shit in the dictionary that aren't words." Huh? In his view, "Oh" is an exclamation, not a word. I know, sad isn't it? When he says things like that, we just look at one another knowingly, and gently pat his head.

Another rule is that you have to actually count each number...Sparky has a habit of just jumping in at whatever number his opponent is at, in an attempt to beat them. Can't do it...you have to start at 1, count each number through 10.

Anyway, Mumbles doesn't jinx. I suspect that's largely due to the fact that we can't understand what he says, therefore no jinx. But as we were driving home the other day, he and Fidget were talking about something that led to something else that led to a line being quoted from Beverly Hills Cop. He and Fidget uttered the line at the exact same time. Mumbles response?

Mumbles: Jinx, 4, 5, 6

Other Carpool members: Looking at each other in shocked silence, concerned Mumbles doesn't know how to count....

Mumbles: Jinx, 1, 2, 3, 4....

Other carpool members: Silently urging him past four, hoping he'll remember that 5-10 follow...

Mumbles: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. You owe me a coke, motherfucker!!

Almost peed my pants I was laughing so hard. So hard to capture in a blog, but it was possibly the most brilliant line ever uttered in carpool.

So the jinx count is as follows:

Sparky owes Madd Dogg like 15 cokes, which he can work off by kicking her ass in tennis.
Fidget and Madd Dogg are most likely even.
Sparky owes Fidget a half rack.
Fidget owes Mumbles a coke, motherfucker.