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Sunday, May 19, 2013

Our Lips Are Sealed


Yesterday, in the one-shot edition of the Saturday Timeline, we took a trip back in time to the year 1981. And, on this edition of the Sunday Jukebox, we're going to be going back in time to the year 1981 as well.

(Hey, it's this blogger's birthday weekend! I think I can celebrate it for however long I want!)

Of course, here's a bit of a quandary for myself. I had a hard time picking a song for this week.

Don't get me wrong. I love 1980s music. I think that whole decade between 1980 and 1989 was one of the most creative periods in the music industry, and I would say that the vast majority of my music collection is from that decade.

This being said, of all the ten years that make up the 1980s, ironically enough the year 1981 is my least favourite.

I'm not entirely sure as to why this was the case, but looking through my collection of 1980s music, 1981 is the year that is least represented.

I can only speculate why this is the case based on what was happening at the time. You see, 1981 was kind of one of those transitional years. Disco was long dead, and New Wave was on its way to becoming the standard for pop music. But that period in between that transition was a real mosaic of different genres. I guess it could be best described in the words of Donny and Marie Osmond, as in that the charts were “a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll”.

And, maybe a little bit of new wave, a little bit of dance music, a little bit of rock, and yes, even a dash of disco.

That's how muddled the Billboard Charts of 1981 were. When else in history can you see Rick Springfield, Alabama, Blondie, Joan Jett, Olivia Newton-John, Kim Carnes, Air Supply, and Sheena Easton charting in the same year? Not often, I bet.

Still though...there were some classic gems coming out of the music scene the same year that I was born. Duran Duran released their debut album that year, as did the Stray Cats and Kim Wilde. One of John Lennon's final singles, “Woman” was released just weeks after his death, and it remains one of my all-time favourite songs of '81. Phil Collins was also coming into his own as a solo artist after years of performing with Genesis with “In The Air Tonight” and “I Missed Again”. And, I'll readily admit to being a “not-so-closet” Hall & Oates fan, as 1981 was one of the duo's biggest success years to date.

And, then there's the Top 20 hit by an all-girl group from Los Angeles, California in which two of the band members launched solo careers, and as of 2013 are still performing gigs today.



ARTIST: The Go-Go's
SONG: Our Lips Are Sealed
ALBUM: Beauty and the Beat
DATE RELEASED: June 12, 1981
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS: #20

Now, there's a couple of reasons why I chose this song in particular. One, it fits with the “Made in '81” theme, and two, it's probably the one song that helped establish this group in the pop music scene.



The Go-Go's were formed in Los Angeles circa 1978, and the original line-up consisted of four members. They were Belinda Carlisle (vocals), Jane Wiedlin (guitar/vocals), Elissa Bello (drums), and Margot Olivarria (bass). But, they didn't exactly adopt the classic pop image and retro 1950's stage look right off the bat. Believe it or not, they started off as a punk rock group, and in the late 1970s, the group were regular fixtures at Whiskey A Go Go and The Masque. During this time, there was a brief turnover in band members. A fifth member, Charlotte Caffey, was hired as the band's new keyboardist, while Gina Schock replaced Elissa Bello in early 1979.



The band began to get noticed right around the time they cut their first demo record. In late 1979, the band recorded their five track cassette in Los Angeles, and spent most of the first half of 1980 on tour in England, supporting ska revival band Madness. The band gained a following in the UK, and even released a rough copy of their single “We Got The Beat”, a single that was a big success in early 1982 in North America.

But in 1980, another band member would have to be replaced. Margot Olavarria contracted Hepatitis A, and was forced to leave the band to seek treatment. She was replaced by Kathy Valentine. But there was a lot more to Olavarria's departure from the band than what was let on. Belinda Carlisle later revealed that Olavarria was shown the door for skipping out on rehearsals, with Olavarria not meshing with the pop sound the Go-Go's were experimenting with at that time. A lawsuit was launched by Olavarria against the rest of the band soon after, and was settled in 1984.



In April 1981, the Go-Go's landed a record deal with I.R.S. Records, and just three months later, the band released their debut album “Beauty and the Beat”, which included “We Got The Beat” and today's featured song, “Our Lips Are Sealed”.

Our Lips Are Sealed” was a collaboration between Jane Wiedlin, The Specials, and Terry Hall of Fun Boy Three, and the song is semi-autobiographical. According to Wiedlin, she and Hall had embarked on an affair. The problem was that Hall already had a girlfriend in his native UK. So, the song title was basically a response to that affair...that neither one would say a word about it. Their lips were sealed.

(Well, apparently not anymore.)

The music video was filmed entirely in Los Angeles, California, and according to Wiedlin, the band was less than enthused about filming a music video in the first place. When I.R.S. Records President Miles Copeland informed them that they had to film a promotional video for the single, they were not enthusiastic about the project at all. Then again, when you consider that the video's budget was whatever was left over from the video budget of The Police (of which Miles' brother Stewart was a member), I guess you can't really blame them.

Here's the thing though. Sure the video appeared to be on the low-budget side, even for 1981 standards...but you'd never really know that the Go-Go's weren't gung-ho for video making. The convertible that Belinda drove was a 1960 Buick, and the girls really seemed to have a ball riding around in it. The Go-Go's even came up with the idea to have the video ending be centered around the girls splashing around in the Electric Fountain that was situated on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Santa Monica Boulevard.



Now, the band stayed together for four more years after that video was released. Over those four years, they released hit after hit with songs such as “Vacation”, “Head Over Heels”, and “Turn To You”. But by the end of 1984, Jane Wiedlin had decided to part ways with the rest of the Go-Go's. She was out by October, and was replaced with Paula Jean Brown in January 1985. The band tried the new line-up for a few months before splitting up in May 1985, with Carlisle and Caffey believing that they had gone as far as they could go.



This didn't mean that certain members of the band didn't go on to greatness as solo artists. Belinda Carlisle's solo career kicked off in 1986 with the single “Mad About You”, and throughout the late 1980s/early 1990s had several chart toppers in both the United States and United Kingdom. And, this was in spite of the fact that she had struggled with drug addictions for the better part of three decades. She has been on the road to recovery since 2005.

Jane Wiedlin also had minor success with a solo career in the 1980s, and I would say that this single from 1988 was her most successful single.



In the case of the Go-Go's, they have reunited many times since their original 1985 break-up, and have been regularly touring since 1999. As of May 19, 2013, the current line-up is comprised of Carlisle, Wiedlin, Caffey, and Schock, and I'm sure that as long as their fans still have love for the band, they will continue to provide great music to everyone.

And, that's my blog entry on The Go-Go's. And, in this case, my lips AREN'T sealed.

Saturday, May 18, 2013

May 18, 1981


I hope that nobody minds too much, but for today's edition of the blog, I thought that I would flip the script a smidgen.

Firstly, I'm doing this blog entry entirely in purple. Not because it happens to be my favourite colour and the predominant colour of this site, but because it's somewhat symbolic. May 18 happens to be National Armed Forces Day in the United States, and the first symbol I think of when I think of the military is the Purple Heart Award, an honour given to all war veterans who were wounded while in combat. So, I thought that I would open today's entry by thanking all of the soldiers all over the world for their contributions to our nations for keeping us safe. Your sacrifices are not in vain.

And, perhaps what may be seen as the biggest shock of today is the fact that you will be witnessing the very first (and only) edition of the SATURDAY TIMELINE.

Yes, I know that Tuesdays are typically known as the Timeline entry...but for some reason, I decided to do a Saturday Timeline for today...just because I was curious to know what sort of events took place on a specific date in history. I'm sure that most of you know what today's timeline date was before you saw it listed in the title. But, for those of you who aren't aware, things will be made clearer in no time.

So, today is May 18, 2013, and like I would normally do for the Tuesday Timelines, I will be focusing on other events that happened throughout history on this date, as well as some famous people who are turning one year older today.

So, what happened on May 18? Lots, actually.

1565 – The Siege of Malta begins

1631 – John Winthrop becomes the first Governor of Massachusetts, 145 years before the United States of America becomes an independent nation

1652 – Rhode Island passes the first law making slavery illegal

1763 – A large portion of Montreal, Quebec burns to the ground

1804 – Napoleon Bonaparte is proclaimed Emperor of the French by the French Senate

1910 – The Earth passes through the tail of Halley's Comet

1911 – English ballerina Dame Margot Fonteyn is born in Reigate, Surrey, England

1917 – The Selective Service Act of 1917 is passed, granting the President of the United States of America the power of conscription

1920 – Pope John Paul II is born in Wadowice, Republic of Poland

1927 – At least 45 are killed in the Bath School Disaster, after a disgruntled member of the Michigan school board plants and detonates bombs at the school.

1953 – Jackie Cochran becomes the first woman to break the sound barrier

1969 – Apollo 10 is launched

1980 – Mount St. Helens eruption causes $3 billion in damage and kills 57 people

1988 – Legendary voice artist, Daws Butler (Yogi Bear) dies at the age of 71

1990 – A new rail world speed record of 515 km/h is set by a modified TGV train in France

1995 – Actress Elizabeth Montgomery dies of cancer at the age of 62

2003 – Anti-smoking activist Barb Tarbox succumbed to brain and lung cancer at the age of 42

2012 – Facebook goes public, offering sales of stock to the masses and public trading on NASDAQ

And, for celebrity birthdays, I personally want to wish the following celebrities a happy birthday...especially today. So, to Bill Macy, Priscilla Pointer, Robert Morse, Reggie Jackson, Gail Strickland, Rick Wakeman, Mark Mothersbaugh, George Strait, Chow Yun-fat, Toyah Willcox, Rob Base, Martika, Tina Fey, Chantal Kreviazuk, Jack Johnson, Matt Long, Ryan Cooley, Luke Kleintank, Spencer Breslin, and Jessica Watson, I wish you all a happy day!

So, which date will we be flashing back to in this special edition of the Saturday Timeline?



May 18, 1981.

And, rather than focus on just one defining event in regards to May 18, 1981, I thought that instead, I would talk about several events that took place on this date. They might all seem like insignificant little details to most of you, but I thought it would be fun just to see what was going on in the world of pop culture.



So, for starters, let's talk about current events. And, the big news story of Monday, May 18, 1981 was not particularly happy news. That was the day that the first article on the newly discovered disease that would be known as AIDS appeared on page seven of the New York Native, which was an LGBT newspaper that was published between 1980 and 1997. The report noted that there was an increase in reported cases of pneumocystis pneumonia amongst gay men, and the publication was the first one to break the news. It would be just two weeks later that the acronym AIDS would soon become public knowledge.



In other news, let's see what was happening in Sydney, Australia on May 18, 1981. Well, okay, depending on when the broadcast happened, in North America, it would have still been May 17, 1981...but I digress. Anyway, here it is.



I don't have too many celebrity birthdays for May 18, 1981. The only two that I could find were Mahamadou Diarra, a football (soccer) player from Mali, and a porn star from Hungary named Alexa Weix.

(Just for clarifications sake, I have no idea who Alexa Weix is, as I don't make it a habit to check out her work. Just thought I'd throw that in there.)



Sadly, we also had to say goodbye to a couple of famous people on May 18, 1981. Firstly, there was actor Arthur O'Connell (b. March 29, 1908), whose first appearance was a tiny role in the epic 1941 film “Citizen Kane”, and appeared in such films as “Picnic”, “The Guy in the Gray Flannel Suit”, “Bus Stop”, “Gidget”, and “The Poseidon Adventure”. He continued to work until his death on May 18, 1981 from Alzheimer's Disease at the age of 73, with one of his final roles being in a series of commercials advertising Crest toothpaste. Here's one of these commercials below.



We also said goodbye to William Saroyan (b. August 31, 1908), who wrote several plays and stories over his career. Among some of his biggest success stories were “The Time of Your Life”, “My Name Is Aram”, and “The Human Comedy”. His works earned him a Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1940, and the Academy Award for Best Story three years later. He died in Fresno, California (the same city as his birth) on May 18, 1981 at the age of 72

(TRIVIA: Did you know that William Saroyan is the cousin of Chipmunks creator, Ross Bagdasarian? It's true!)

Hmmm...okay, let's see what was happening in the world of daytime television on May 18, 1981...ah, wow...look at this. If you CLICK HERE, you can see a classic episode of “Family Feud” back when it was hosted by the late Richard Dawson. The families feuding are the Johnsons and the Smiths. No really wacky answers were given, but it's really interesting to see how much the show has changed between Dawson's 1981 episodes and Steve Harvey's 2013 episodes.



Also happening in the world of daytime television in May 1981, Robert attempts to get Laura to tell him where Luke is hiding in the ABC television soap opera, “General Hospital”. It is only six months later that the most watched soap weddng takes place between Luke and Laura. And, as of May 18, 2013, Luke and Laura are both still on the program, although both characters have appeared on and off in the thirty-two years that have spanned between now and then.

In music news, on May 18, 1981, the progressive rock band Rush performed a set at Madison Square Garden, and you can listen to a portion of it by clicking below.



And, the #1 song of that day belongs to Kim Carnes.




And, just for comparison's sake, here's what was #1 in the UK up above.

And, that almost wraps up our look back on May 18, 1981. Well, except for one thing.



May 18, 1981 is a very special day for me, as it was on this date thirty-two years ago at 7:35 am that I was born!

And, do you want to know something? That was actually nearly three weeks past the date that I was supposed to be born!

According to my parents, I was actually supposed to be born in April! Mind you, the due date was April 30, but still...it was April. I was two and a half weeks overdue. My poor mother.

But even though I took my time to be born, I have to say that the first 32 years of my life have been an experience in itself. There are years that I can say were some of the best years of my life (I'm singling out 2009 in particular for being a banner year). Some years where I struggled (2011 healthwise, 2003 financially), and there are some years that I just want to forget (basically the whole period between 1995 and 2000). But I wouldn't trade it all for a second.

There are some things that I wish I could have accomplished by now. I'd love to get married, start a family of my own, and live in a nice house...but in time those things will come. I have to believe that it will happen. Even if I am the only one who does. But one of the things that I have to keep telling myself is that life doesn't have a timetable, and that when things feel ready, I'll know it.

And, I suppose that's good enough right now.

That concludes our look back on May 18, 1981, as well as the only Saturday Timeline entry to ever appear in this blog. Things will go back to normal next week. In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed this piece, and may all your birthdays be happy ones, whenever they are.



And, may the next 32 years of my life be filled with excitement, adventure, and fulfillment. At the very least, if I still keep this blog going, I can title the Candle Confessional “When I'm 64”.

But, that won't be until May 18, 2045.

Friday, May 17, 2013

One Day at a Time


Even though Mother's Day was just a few days ago, I'm still continuing with the idea to have every Friday in May focus on a fictional sitcom mom. After all, every sitcom mother may have a different way of raising their children, and what might work for one mother might not necessarily work for another.

But one thing that I think that most of us can agree on is that the sitcom mothers did love their sitcom children with all of their hearts, and the sitcom kids all grew up to be well-adjusted young adults (even if the actors who portrayed them didn't necessarily follow suit).

Today's featured spotlight deals with the struggles of a single mother with two teenage daughters, trying to prove to herself and everyone else around her that she didn't necessarily need a man to live her life and be a good mother.

Sadly, on March 1, 2013, the actress who played this mother lost her life after a brief battle with pancreatic cancer. At the time of her death, she had just wrapped up a role on the soap opera, “The Young and the Restless”. She was just 68 years old.



But a soap opera was far from the only thing that late actress Bonnie Franklin starred in. In what was perhaps her most famous role, she played single mother Ann Romano for nine seasons. During those nine years, she had to deal with the fact that her two daughters, Barbara and Julie, were growing up into womanhood, and sometimes the two did not make it easy on her. It would be tough enough to deal with in itself, but imagine being a single mom on top of that?

Not only did Ann Romano succeed, but she thrived in her role. And, you want to know how she did it?

One Day At A Time.



And, what a coincidence...that also happens to be the name of the television show that featured Bonnie Franklin as Ann Romano! The series ran on CBS between December 16, 1975 and May 28, 1984, and in addition to Franklin, the series also made household names of Valerie Bertinelli and Mackenzie Phillips (who played Barbara and Julie Cooper respectively).

The show was created by Whitney Blake and Alan Manings, and the show was loosely based on Whitney's own experience as a single mother raising three children. The show was produced by Norman Lear, who was also responsible for the shows “All in the Family”, “Maude”, and “The Jeffersons”.



Now, “One Day at a Time” differed from many popular sitcoms at the time. On one hand, the show was as funny as funny could be, as most Lear produced sitcoms of the day were. But there were also elements of drama mixed in as well, and it wasn't uncommon for the show to present topics that were considered taboo for the time period.

Now, I'm guessing that you want some examples of this in action. Well, unfortunately, I don't have many video clips to provide, but I do have an episode guide posted on Wikipedia that I can take my information from.

For instance, did you know that “One Day at a Time” was one of the first sitcoms to tackle the issue of suicide? Normally, you wouldn't expect to even hear the word uttered in a sitcom, but the way the show presented it really hit home for a lot of people. In the episode, a new girl at school tries desperately to become friends with anyone, clinging to Barbara every chance she got. But when Barbara gets annoyed and tells her so, the girl attempts to kill herself via drug overdose. The girl survived, but the audience soon learned that the girl's problems were more than just being accepted by a friend. I've watched the episode, and it's really well done.

Another topic that was touched on was the issue of premarital sex, and Julie's struggle to determine whether she should go all the way with her boyfriend Chuck. She decided against it after weighing the pros and cons.

And, since we're on the topic of Julie and Chuck, they were also at the center of a plotline which ran for an unprecedented four episodes at the beginning of the second season. Julie was fed up with living under her mother's roof, and she and Ann got into a huge argument over Julie's desire to become more independent. Julie and Chuck ran away from home, attempting to show Ann that they could make it on their own without any help from anyone. But when the two end up in dire straits, they're forced to come to the conclusion that maybe they aren't ready for adulthood after all.

I think one of the reasons why “One Day at a Time” succeeded was the fact that the show did present issues and topics realistically. The comedy was always there, but each script was penned so brilliantly. There truly was no show quite like it, and I doubt that there will ever be again. And, that's part of the charm of Bonnie Franklin's portrayal of Ann Romano.



Yes, Ann Romano was a single mom, and yes, she had undergone some hard times in her life. After all, when the show first began she was written as someone who had lost her identity. She had always been someone's wife, mother, or daughter, and she wanted more than anything to break out of that. She divorced her husband and moved with her daughters to Indianapolis for a fresh start.

(NOTE: Contrary to what was reported, Ann Romano was NOT the first divorcee to be presented in a television sitcom. Vivian Vance's character on “The Lucy Show” was actually the first. But perhaps Ann was the most famous divorcee.)

Even though Ann dates men throughout the whole series (and eventually ended up getting remarried towards the end of the serial), she is still fiercely protective of her independent streak, insisting that she could raise her children on her own.

Hmmm...maybe that's where Julie and Barbara got their personality from...



Of course, when Ann moved her daughters into their new apartment, she did have to get some assistance from a few people. After all, building superintendent Schneider (Pat Harrington) was always at the Romano family apartment fixing things and offering advice. Mind you, in the early seasons, Schneider was only there to hit on Ann (which she rebuffed every time). Over time, he popped over so much that he became an unofficial member of the Romano family.



The show also went through an unusual amount of cast changes over the years. Of all of the characters that were on the series, only Franklin, Harrington, and Bertinelli lasted the entire run of the show. Mackenzie Phillips was fired from the program at least twice for excessive drug use (which reportedly was so frequent that Phillips actually collapsed on set). Though, given the allegations that she was sexually abused by her own father, I suppose her personal traumas involving her drug use make sense. At any rate, I haven't heard of any more relapses since she appeared on Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, so here's hoping that she stays on the right track.



Another cast member who was booted off the show in a rather abrupt way was actress Mary Louise Wilson, who played the role of neighbour Ginny Wrobliki. She was on the show for one season, and seemed to garner positive reaction from the audience. Unfortunately, if the rumours are to be believed, it appeared as though Franklin felt that Wilson was a little bit too popular, and she lobbied to have Wilson fired from the program! I can't say whether this is fact or fiction, as I have no evidence to confirm nor deny it...but it does make one wonder why a popular character left after one season.

And, of course, as Barbara and Julie grew into young women, and married and had families of their own, the original premise of a single mom raising two girls was lost after a few years. So the decision was made to have Ann get romantically involved with a man named Nick Handris (Ron Rifkin). Tragically, Nick was killed off after a drunk driver smashed into his car, leaving Ann to raise his now orphaned teenage son, Alex (Glenn Scarpelli).



TRIVIA: Glenn Scarpelli is the son of late Archie Comics artist Henry Scarpelli. If you pick up some old issues of Laugh Comics right around the same year that “One Day at a Time” was still airing in syndication, you can read the comic book adaptation of Glenn's life as a Hollywood heartthrob!

Of course, all good things do come to an end. And, with Bonnie Franklin and Valerie Bertinelli both deciding not to renew their contracts at the end of the ninth season (in addition to Mackenzie Phillips no longer appearing as a cast member), the decision was made to cancel the show in 1984. Fortunately, almost everybody ended up with a happy conclusion. Ann remarried and moved to London after taking the job opportunity of a lifetime, Barbara settled in to life with her new husband, and Schneider ventured off to Florida to take care of his orphaned niece and nephew (which was meant to be a backdoor pilot for a new series that didn't get greenlit). As for Julie...well, she just disappeared without a trace. I suppose the production staff were still a little bit frosty towards her at the time of the show's conclusion.



However, one thing that I want to note is that despite the personal problems that each cast member went through, they made it a point to reunite whenever possible. The four main cast members got together in 2005 to talk about their time on the show in a reunion special on CBS, which attracted some nice ratings. And most of the cast reunited in April 2012 to accept the TV Land Innovation Award.

Sadly, that would be one of the last times the whole cast would get together, as less than a year later, Franklin would succumb to pancreatic cancer. Still, the memories and laughter that she, Bertinelli, Phillips, and Harrington brought to families for nine years will never truly be forgotten.

Oh...and keep an eye out on this space one week from today.  I mentioned that creator Whitney Blake was a single mother of three and she used her experiences to create "One Day at a Time".  What if I told you that one of her children grew up to become an iconic television mom herself?  That's next week in The Pop Culture Addict's Guide To Life".

Thursday, May 16, 2013

32 Flavours and Then Some


I am going to open up this Thursday Diary entry with this song by Alana Davis.



ARTIST: Alana Davis
SONG: 32 Flavors
ALBUM: Blame It on Me
DATE RELEASED: January 31, 1998
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS: #37



The song is called “32 Flavors” (or Flavours in Canada speak), and it perfectly describes the tone of this piece. Well, at least the NUMBER does, anyway.

May 16, 2013

Today's blog entry is called “32 Candles and Then Some”. And, the reason why I have called it this is because this is the latest installment of the annual edition of the “Candle Chronicles”.



In less than 48 hours from now, I will be turning another year older. Saturday, May 18 marks this blogger's 32nd year of life. And, believe me, there are some days in which I feel every single one of those thirty-two years! Especially since I switched departments a month ago!

And yet, for some reason that I'm not ready to explain yet (mainly because I don't exactly know what it is just yet), I'm actually looking forward to year thirty-two.

Here's the funny part about all of this though. I never was one who used to be optimistic about birthdays. There were some years in which I absolutely dreaded them. And, it had nothing to do with getting older. That part doesn't make me depressed. Much.

Nor was it the fact that on nearly every single one of my birthdays, it has poured rain (in one case, flood advisories were blaring on the radio all night long). Though, I'll admit that having a big black cloud raining over my birthday parade every other year gets real old, really fast.

Well...kind of like me.

Okay, here's the real reason why for the longest time, I was not exactly receptive to birthdays.

It's because as I grew one year older, I kept thinking back to all of the dreams and goals that I had made...dreams and goals that were left unfulfilled.

And, I'm not just talking about requesting a chocolate cake with a vanilla stripe in the middle of it and not getting it, or wanting the latest Nintendo game for my birthday and not receiving it as a gift. Those were petty problems that I stressed out about when I was a wee tyke of ten years old.

I'm talking about the previous entries in the Candle Chronicles over the years. I had come up with a laundry list of things that I really wanted to accomplish over the course of the year, and by the time the next birthday came around, I came to the stark realization that none of them had come true.

It really wasn't until recently that I came to understanding the reason why that was. It was because I had too many goals, and I tried to change my whole life around in the space of a year. My goals were quite unrealistic for the time frame that I tried to cram them all in. There's absolutely no way that I could find a decent place to live, go back to school, get married, and live happily ever after in the space of just a few months. As much as sometimes I wish it were so, my life is not a hundred minute feature film in which every ending is happy and neatly wrapped in a big red bow. Would be nice if it were, but it isn't.

So, for this edition of the Candle Chronicles...I just only have one goal in mind. And, it's a goal that I've kind of been edging into over the course of the last few months, but one that I feel strongly about.

My goal for this, the 32nd year of my life, is to show people that I am more than just the bland, vanilla personality that some feel I possess.

I suppose that's part of the main reason why I opened up this diary entry with that Alana Davis song from 1998 (which apparently is a cover version of an Ani DiFranco single, but I happen to like Alana's version better, but I'm going to stop right now because I have now gone off on a tangent.)

Anyway, what was I talking about? Oh yes, the song “32 Flavors”.

I'm going to be completely honest. Until recently, my personality could have been considered quite monotonous. If we could go back in time a few years, and randomly assign ice cream flavours to every single person in the world, it wouldn't have surprised me if I was given the bland flavour of vanilla as a label.



Not that there's anything wrong with vanilla ice cream. It's the base for almost every yummy ice cream creation, after all.

At the same time though, I knew inside myself that I was more than just plain ordinary vanilla. I knew that there were other flavours just waiting to be discovered inside myself. Flavours that I knew would make people take notice of who I am.

I just couldn't figure out how to bring them out in an endless supply of vanilla.

Let's face it. I've talked about how isolated I have felt in my life over the last few years. Heck, there were some instances in which I had borderline panic attacks over the possibility of even interacting with the public. I literally would spend days hiding away indoors because I lost touch with how to talk to them, or even say hello. It's a time in my life that I'm not particularly proud of, and I'm slightly regretful that I missed out on opportunities that could have made all the difference.



Flash forward to 2013, and I've done a lot of progress.

I wouldn't be immersing myself so much in charity drives if I didn't add some flavour to my vanilla personality of the past, now would I? We recently had a team meeting at an eatery in town, and I went there without any nervousness or hesitation whatsoever. I couldn't always say that though. The idea of going out to a restaurant to sit down with friends and chat scared me to death not long ago. And, now I find myself wanting to do it more often!



I also wouldn't be volunteering my time to help out with charity drives if I didn't mix a little bit of chocolate with the vanilla that made up my former self. After all, this photo taken by KnowBrockville.com is proof of that, right? (psst...I'm the one in the baseball cap).  I mean, let's face it. When I had essentially hit rock bottom, there was no way that I was in the right frame of mind to help other people. I couldn't even help MYSELF! But, I've done a lot of soul-searching over the years, and done a lot of thinking about where it all went wrong, and it dawned on me that the reason why I hit rock bottom was because I was lead to believe that nobody gave a damn about me. So, naturally, I didn't care about myself...which as all of you know is a recipe for disaster.

But, I guess after some time feeling sorry for myself, I woke up and realized that things weren't going to get any better unless I did something about it. And, my workplace has been a great champion in allowing me the freedom to be myself.

(Actually, maybe they deserve a medal, as I tread the line between taking advantange of my freedom to be myself and completely abusing that privilege.)



But in all honesty, as much as I often say that I wish I was doing more with my life than being a stocker at a store (and honestly, that particular wish is still very much up there in future goals), I can honestly say that some of the best people I've ever known on this planet have been the ones that I have worked with. I wouldn't have signed up for the Relay for Life had it not been for a really good friend who supported me and cared for me...a friend who did not win his battle with cancer almost one year ago. I wanted to sign up to honour his memory, and hopefully find the courage to meet new friends in that journey.

And, I most certainly would not have gotten up to speak at a seminar promoting the cause of anti-bullying if my “vanilla center” had anything to say about it. It was a big deal earlier in the week to speak to a small group about my experiences. The last time I gave a speech about bullying was in the seventh grade, and I completely choked when I delivered that speech. After that incident, I swore to myself that I would never speak in public again, and well, here we are now. If anything, I kind of wished that there were more people who came down to hear me speak! But, the fact that the ones who were there were absolutely engaged in my speech, and who listened to my every word, and congratulated me after it was over. Well, I'll be the first one to admit that it was worth it! I actually hope that the opportunity does come for me to be able to share my story again, because I really got a high from it.

Not bad for a former vanilla personality, huh?

I guess in closing, I'll say this. A lot of the reason why I took on the bland, vanilla personality was because it was safe. It was one that people couldn't criticize or make fun of...but it also didn't make me very interesting. Like, a dish of plain vanilla is satisfying enough, but still, you feel as though it needs something else to perk you up. At the same time, you don't want to overload it with toppings, garnishes, and ooey gooey fudge, because then you lose the flavour of the vanilla.



Wow...you know, that's a really cool analogy. You don't want to be bland enough so that people bypass you or write you off completely, but you don't want to completely change who you are, or else you lose sight of where you came from. It's a delicate balance that all of us go through, and I can safely say that I'm on my way to maintaining that balance. It has its days where it can be tricky, but that's life.

And, I think that's why I wanted to have 32 Flavors as this blog's background music. For one, I am turning 32 in a couple of days, but for another...with the exception of the “poster girl with no poster” lyric, the song best describes where I am at in my life. And, isn't that a great way to kick off another year of life?

I AM THIRTY-TWO FLAVOURS AND THEN SOME!

(No, seriously. Here's a list I made up of the 32 flavours that best fit my complex personality. And, yes, not forgetting where I came from, vanilla heads the list!)





NOTE: Thrills gum is that lavendar coloured gum that tastes like soap. Hey, you have to have at least one unique, wacky touch to a human personality, right? 

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Vending Machines and Gumball Machines


Before I go on with this blog entry, I just wanted to take a little bit of time out to offer my public condolences to the family of Tim Bosma.

As some of you living in Canada may know by now, Tim Bosma was a 32-year-old married father of one who disappeared after taking a couple of men out on a test drive of the truck that he had advertised for sale on the online classified service, Kijiji. He never made it home. Yesterday his remains were found, and a suspect has been charged in his murder with another two reportedly still at large.

I can't even imagine what his wife must be going through, nor do I want to imagine his final moments on this planet. And, I am also hoping that when they find all parties responsible for his death that they are dealt swift justice. Nobody deserved the fate that Tim Bosma endured.

So, I'd like to have a moment of silence in honour of Tim Bosma, a man whose life was tragically cut short beyond his time.

Now, that being said, I'm going to find it very difficult to talk about today's subject as it sort of contrasts with the sad introduction. Nevertheless, I had already chosen this topic prior to hearing the news, so as they say in Hollywood, the show must go on.

And today for the Wednesday edition of the blog, we're going to be talking something that was a huge fixture in my childhood.

Actually, you know what? At nearly 32 years of age, I STILL indulge in one of these things every now and again.

These objects are a fixture at every shopping mall, department store, hospital lobby, college campus, and even at my father's workplace, if you can believe it. In most cases, these things provided you with delicious goodies, quenching drinks, chewy gum, and salty snacks. But sometimes you could even get a shiny new ring, a super bouncy ball, or my personal favourite, a small container of green slime!



This is the entry on vending machines and gumball machines. And, how I reckon that through my entire childhood I spent hundreds of dollars in quarters on these types of machines.



(No, wait. Correction. My PARENTS spent hundreds of dollars in quarters on these types of machines.)

But I couldn't help it. As a child, the vending machines were filled with all sorts of yummy treats that if I ate too many of them would spoil my entire dinner. For what it's worth, my parents made sure that if I did get a treat out of the vending machine, that I ate dinner first!

Of course, there were times in which I would sneak candy inside the house without my parents knowing. When I was in elementary school, we didn't have such a thing as vending machines that sold sugary sweets or carbonated beverages (I guess one way of looking at it is that my elementary school was ahead of its time). But the lobby of the hospital that I used to pass by on my way home from school was filled with them.

I know, ironic that a place that is supposed to promote good health and make people better has vending machines that are filled with the most unhealthiest food choices that ever existed.

But what did I know? I was a kid.



About once I week, I would get an allowance of five dollars (which was a lot of money back in the late 1980s). And, after I bought that week's comic book at the hospital gift shop, I would always have enough change for me to purchase something from the vending machine just across the hall. Among some of my favourite treats were Hickory Sticks, C-Plus Orange Soda, Five Flavour Life Savers, and Mirage Chocolate Bars.



Or, if they didn't have Mirage available, I would select either Reese Peanut Butter Cups or Caramilk. I was very fussy when it came to chocolate bars.

Now, I know what you're saying. You're probably wondering why I didn't just buy treats inside the hospital gift shop. In all likelihood, I could understand your confusion because in many cases, the food items inside the gift shop were quite a bit cheaper than the ones inside the vending machine. But, you also have to understand that I was a kid who got entertained by the most basic of concepts.

What can I say? I got a rush feeding nickels, dimes, quarters (and as I grew older, loonies) into the vending machines. For one, it was a great way to teach basic addition. After all, you had to have the right amount of coinage in order to get the sweet treat you were craving. But there was also something satisfying about hearing the clinking of coins as you inserted them inside the machine.

Of course, vending machines did have their problems as well. There is nothing more annoying than paying your money, pushing the buttons necessary for a bag of chips, and then having the chips get stuck inside the machine. That was the most frustrating thing ever. It wasn't as though you could shake the machine in order to get it dislodged. As a kid, I wasn't strong enough to even budge the machine. And besides the security staff would have tossed me out if they caught me trying. So I either didn't get my chips, or I would have to buy another bag in order to get the original bag that I had already paid for.

I was also a huge fan of those gumball machines that you would frequently see at department stores and shopping malls. We have a selection of candy and gumball machines located at the back of the store I look at, and I gotta tell you...even though I'm in my thirties, I would still get tempted by the various goodies inside of them!



Clearly, the most common type of gumball machine are the ones that contain...well...gumballs.

It wasn't the fact that I absolutely loved gumballs and had to have one every day of my life. Truth be told, there were some colours of gumballs that I absolutely despised.



NOTE TO ALL: Do not give me yellow gumballs. I have never liked artificial banana flavoured anything. Blue, purple, orange, and green are perfectly fine. I'm indifferent to red, pink, and white.

But for me, it wasn't about the gumball. It was once again about the fun that I had sticking the quarters in the machine.

As I said before, I got entertained by the dumbest things as a kid.

Sometimes I would insert quarters inside the gumball machine at many as four times before I got the flavour of gumball I wanted. I can't begin to tell you how many times I stuck a quarter inside the machine, and my first gumball was the disgusting yellow.

I think the machines that I loved more than the gumball machines were the machines that gave out toys inside. Mind you, those machines charged at least a quarter more than the typical gumball machine, but it was worth it.

And, the best part was that every six months or so, the gumball machines would be emptied out and replaced with brand new toys and games, so you were always wondering what would come next.

Now, the toys inside weren't much. I would imagine that the vast majority could be found inside of a box of Cracker Jacks. But again, I state that I was entertained very easily as a kid.

Among some of my favourite non-gumball gumball machines were the following.


  • Temporary tattoos. I think I was introduced to the temporary tattoo via a gumball machine inside of Zellers, I think it was? I can't really remember. But I must not have been the only one who popped quarters inside that machine, as almost every kid at my school were covered with tattoos that summer.
  • Green Slime. I'm almost certain that my love of green slime was enhanced by the popular television show “You Can't Do That On Television”. So, when I saw a machine that promised kids an entire container filled with slime, I had to have it. And, for what it was worth, I didn't get upset if I didn't get green slime. I was just as happy with red, black, white, and pink slime too.
  • Stickers. There was a bit of a childhood phase that I went through where I was obsessed with stickers, and I had to get stickers from all sources. And, yes, this included gumball machines.

And, that's really all that I have to say about my experiences with vending and gumball machines. What are some of yours?