If you asked me to do a free association with the number 99 - my first thought might be of the song 99 Red Balloons by Nena which became in the US an anti-war, anti-Reagan anthem but with a pretty upbeat beat. I've always thought the people who held the song in high esteem as an anthem were just plain silly. As if it wasn't the East Germans and the Russians who were suppressing freedom in the most barbaric ways imaginable who were the problem. No the person who was the real threat to world peace was Ronald Reagan. Hey let's make a giant paper mache head of him to protest and then lets talk about giving Marxism another shot!
Another song associated with the number 99 is Bruce Springsteen's Johnny 99. This song was a turning point for me in regard to being a fan of Springsteen. My first reaction to hearing the song was WTF? I was genuinely puzzled and had to listen to the song and lyrics a couple of times. Why was Bruce making this guy out to be a hero? He's a murderer. What about the family of the convenience store clerk who was killed? What the hell is wrong with Springsteen? What the hell is wrong with me for being a fan of a guy glorifying thugs? Don't get me wrong - I still love the old stuff but once I figured out that the darkness wasn't on the edge of town - it was between Springsteen's ears - it was tough to become emotionally invested in his music. I loved Born in the USA and some later works but it just was never the same.
Of course if you told me to free associate the number 99 in regards to sports - I would immediately think of Wayne Gretzky. But with the Bruins losing last night I'd almost prefer not to think about hockey.
One thing I did find when looking at the number 99 was the Jaguar B99 concept car. I really would like to own one (but I wouldn't kill a convenience store clerk to get it).
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