Sunday, August 25, 2019
Hit Parade
We've discovered something wonderful on YouTube. True, I start a surprising number of paragraphs with that sentence, but this time I think it just might be true. There's a channel called "Younger Days," which is not in fact round-the-clock coverage of the Sutton Foster vehicle, but rather a collection of videos compiling hit singles by year. It is amazing for a variety of reasons, not least of which is that it appears to have been compiled by a European, so occasionally there are "hits" that I have literally never heard in my entire life. Lots of Westlife and S Club 7, for example. But it's also fun just to take a trip down memory lane and remember the collective insanity that led the Macarena to be the top song in the land for weeks on end or Dido to kind of be a thing. And it's always worthwhile to be reminded of how my friend used a singalong to "I Want It That Way" to create a diversion so I wouldn't see my other friend making out with a super sketchy dude in a Champaign dive bar, or how "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" followed me and my sister all the way through our first trip to Europe. Also, it's shocking how long some songs were number one and how quickly other songs stopped being number one. "My Heart Will Go On" was only number one for two weeks? My shock will go on. The Black Eyed Peas held number one for like 26 weeks straight in the mid zeros? More like a black eye to American culture. But regardless, now I have the tools to KNOW which crappy songs were hits at what time, and that's an intensely powerful thing.
We've discovered something wonderful on YouTube. True, I start a surprising number of paragraphs with that sentence, but this time I think it just might be true. There's a channel called "Younger Days," which is not in fact round-the-clock coverage of the Sutton Foster vehicle, but rather a collection of videos compiling hit singles by year. It is amazing for a variety of reasons, not least of which is that it appears to have been compiled by a European, so occasionally there are "hits" that I have literally never heard in my entire life. Lots of Westlife and S Club 7, for example. But it's also fun just to take a trip down memory lane and remember the collective insanity that led the Macarena to be the top song in the land for weeks on end or Dido to kind of be a thing. And it's always worthwhile to be reminded of how my friend used a singalong to "I Want It That Way" to create a diversion so I wouldn't see my other friend making out with a super sketchy dude in a Champaign dive bar, or how "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" followed me and my sister all the way through our first trip to Europe. Also, it's shocking how long some songs were number one and how quickly other songs stopped being number one. "My Heart Will Go On" was only number one for two weeks? My shock will go on. The Black Eyed Peas held number one for like 26 weeks straight in the mid zeros? More like a black eye to American culture. But regardless, now I have the tools to KNOW which crappy songs were hits at what time, and that's an intensely powerful thing.
Sunday, August 18, 2019
An Education
This week, my nephew asked us to "play school." He was the teacher. The role seemed to primarily involve barking commands like a drill sergeant in a WWII movie. He gave us all toys and ordered us to play with them in certain ways. I was severely reprimanding for holding a lego creation in what was apparently the wrong way. Then it was nap time, which meant that he shouted at us to alternately open and close our eyes. He kept yelling "I don't want to see any eyeballs" during the sleeping parts. I'll admit it: this exercise has caused me a certain bit of concern about what is going on at that preschool.
He also wanted to play a card game, by which I mean he wanted to take cards out of pile at random and declare people the winner. I was doing pretty well despite not having any idea of what the rules were, if any, when things took a turn and he said "I forgot to go to the bathroom." That was quickly remedied, but upon his return he wanted me to be able to recreate the exact sequence of cards that had been played before his departure. When this proved impossible, there were tears, and no amount of PJ Masks seemed able to remedy them.
Fortunately, my sister and her husband are experienced professionals by this point, and understood the important point that iPads cure everything. Within a few minutes, some soothing had been accomplished, and I was able to slink off to my car. I was even loaned a Rocket Raccoon toy that I had absolutely no desire to carry publicly for my troubles in this matter.
Sunday, August 11, 2019
Pure Michigan
Ian and I went to Michigan with some friends last weekend. Near Traverse City, sort of, but actually kind of near nothing, since it was a house in the woods with no internet or air conditioning. We had a nice time, though.
We didn't get off to the best start when the freeway was literally closed somehow, resulting in massive traffic and a couple hours of delay. We ended up driving for seven hours, not including our stop at a small town Applebee's where we were forced to eat at the bar and make small talk with the bartender. But the weather was great and the house had lots of wonderful handmade signs in it with messages like "Hakuna Ma Vodka" and "I Did a Push-Up Today; Now I Need Chocolate." And I was able to find SVU on the cable almost immediately, so we felt very much at home.
Michigan is very pretty! We went to the Bear's Ears Dunes, which turned out to be so much more than just a lot of sand, and spent some time on the beach. At one point, the dunes were so steep that they had signs warning people that they would be responsible for $3000 in rescue fees if they climbed down and couldn't get back up. Of course, there were still probably three dozen people making the attempt. Unfortunately, couldn't stick around long enough to check out the rescues.
Ian and I went to Michigan with some friends last weekend. Near Traverse City, sort of, but actually kind of near nothing, since it was a house in the woods with no internet or air conditioning. We had a nice time, though.
We didn't get off to the best start when the freeway was literally closed somehow, resulting in massive traffic and a couple hours of delay. We ended up driving for seven hours, not including our stop at a small town Applebee's where we were forced to eat at the bar and make small talk with the bartender. But the weather was great and the house had lots of wonderful handmade signs in it with messages like "Hakuna Ma Vodka" and "I Did a Push-Up Today; Now I Need Chocolate." And I was able to find SVU on the cable almost immediately, so we felt very much at home.
Michigan is very pretty! We went to the Bear's Ears Dunes, which turned out to be so much more than just a lot of sand, and spent some time on the beach. At one point, the dunes were so steep that they had signs warning people that they would be responsible for $3000 in rescue fees if they climbed down and couldn't get back up. Of course, there were still probably three dozen people making the attempt. Unfortunately, couldn't stick around long enough to check out the rescues.
