Debating with Inanimates

Remember Sports Night? I rented all the DVDs a while back and love that show. The writing is sharp, the dialog snappy and witty, the actors excellent. One of my favorite lines was delivered deadpan by Joshua Malina in the following exchange:

Isaac: Let me add, Dana, that things I say in my office stay in my office.
Dana: Natalie's my, my second in command. She's the only one I told.
Natalie: Jeremy's my boyfriend. He's the only one I told.
Jeremy: I told many, many people.

Anyway, this is totally beside my point today. My point today is the reason I like this kind of fast-paced dialog is because I find it funny. The same kind of dialog takes place in The West Wing, which, coincidentally, is also created by Aaron Sorkin (and has declined in quality since he left).

The other morning, I felt like I was having one of those conversations. Someone was talking about something or another -- I think it was politics of some sort -- and I was answering back with a question of some sort. The person I was talking to, however, either didn't hear me or simply ignored me, and continued with her talking points. As she finished her second talking point, I again asked her a question, and again she ignored me and moved on to a third talking point. I started getting annoyed, until I realized....

It was all a dream, I wasn't really talking to anyone, and the woman with whom I was having my little discussion was actually a manifestation of the NPR voice coming from my clock radio. I was dreaming about arguing with someone's interview.

It was then I decided I should probably wake up.