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Friday, October 10, 2014

Turkey Gobble-degook

Before I get into today's edition of the blog, I have some extremely good news to share.  Although she still has to take it easy for the next few days, I'm happy to report that my mother is now out of the hospital and back home.  This is awesome news indeed, and I once again want to sincerely thank those of you who were there for me and my family during this time.  You guys have no idea how much you mean to me.  Seriously.

Anyway, since I kind of skipped out on the FOODIE FRIDAY post last week, I thought that I would do one this week - even though this week's entry only really surrounds one type of food.



Turkey.

Yeah, Canadian Thanksgiving is fast approaching, and although my own holiday plans are kind of still up in the air at the moment (I think we're postponing our own dinner because of everything that has happened over the last few days, which is a decision that we all agreed on), I'm sure most of you out there from the shores of British Columbia to the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador are busy making last minute preparations for their Thanksgiving tables.

And the clear cut winning main course of most people's Thanksgiving dinners is the turkey.  Some may choose ham.  Some might choose chicken.  A couple of people I know skip meat altogether and instead choose six different types of pasta.  But I would say that turkey ultimately takes the top prize for the star of the Thanksgiving feast.



And, why not?  There's just something about turkey that makes it the perfect holiday food.  I don't know whether it's the flavour of the stuffing that seeps into the bird to give it that wonderful taste, or whether it's the way the spices blend together in perfect harmony, or whether it's the fact that as soon as you eat it, you fall asleep two hours later.  I honestly couldn't imagine my Thanksgiving without a turkey being present - however, if no turkey was available, I'd gladly take one of those spiral hams with a honey glaze. 

Heck, I would gladly take any sort of food that is available for Thanksgiving.  After all, Thanksgiving is all about being thankful for the fact that we do have a lot of food to keep our stomachs full.  And, sadly, some people seem to have forgotten what the real meaning of Thanksgiving really is.

I mean, I am so grateful that my mom is out of the hospital for Thanksgiving and is able to spend the holiday with us.  She still has a lot of recovery time left in her, but she is back home at least which is all that any of us really wanted.  This year, having a turkey for Thanksgiving seems less important than ever.



I sort of am reminded of the very first holiday show that the television sitcom "Full House" ever did.  Interestingly enough, it was a Thanksgiving episode.  Actually, if I remember correctly, it was the only Thanksgiving episode that "Full House" ever aired.  And what a disaster of a Thanksgiving it was too!  D.J. forgot to defrost the turkey and it came out frozen.  Then when Joey tried to reheat the turkey, he accidentally set it on fire and blackened it.  And to cap it all off, Stephanie accidentally dropped her "Mom's Picture-Perfect Pumpkin Pie" all over the kitchen floor.  This was one Thanksgiving in which nothing went right.

But while the episode's shenanigans were fun to laugh at, there was a rather serious tone to the episode.  After all, it was the first Thanksgiving without the matriarch of the family.  Danny's wife Pam had been involved in a car accident with a drunk driver and died a few months before the first episode aired and Danny asked his best friend, Joey and Pam's brother, Jesse to move in with him and his three daughters.  And while the family all mourned the loss of Pam at separate points in the show, they were all thankful that they were together and celebrating Thanksgiving together as the brand new family that was formed - even if the turkey looked more like a gigantic charcoal briquette.

The point I'm trying to make is that Thanksgiving should be about the time you spend with your loved ones, and while having a turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and pumpkin pie are nice things to have, they should not be the things that make a perfect Thanksgiving.

Honestly, I think too many people put too much emphasis on the things that don't matter instead of the things that do matter.  And, unfortunately, I've seen the ugliness that can come out of a person when they don't get their way.



I've worked in the retail business for nearly a decade.  Seven of those ten years were spent on the grocery side of the operation.  I know first hand how testy some people can be when it comes to not being able to get all of the things that they need for their holiday dinners.  I think in those seven years that I worked in grocery, I've ruined sixty-six Thanksgivings, forty-one Easter Sundays, and nearly three hundred Christmases simply because we ran out of some key ingredients for holiday feasts.

But, whatever.  That was the past.  Now I sell televisions, XBOX consoles, and Blu-Ray players, and I no longer ruin people's Thanksgiving celebrations.  The amount of Christmases I've wrecked has now doubled though.

But I know how incredibly frustrating it was to work on holiday weekends, and I know how much abuse that I took from people because we ran out of turkeys.  I've been yelled at, screamed at, had shopping carts tossed at me, and that was on a good day!  It just absolutely boggled my mind that grown adults would act in such a boorish fashion just to get their hands on discounted poultry.  I mean, sure, I would find it frustrating not to get a turkey for Thanksgiving, but you improvise.  You buy a ham instead.  You buy a chicken instead.  You buy turkey lunchables and serve those instead, while saving the mini Kit Kat bars for Halloween to hand out to the trick-or-treaters.

(Well, okay, maybe I wouldn't recommend that last suggestion.  That is tacky even by anyone's standards.)

The point is that I don't think not being able to get a turkey is a make it or break it moment.

I especially don't think that it is right for anyone to do the following in their quest to grab the perfect turkey for Thanksgiving.

- push someone out of the way
- push someone on the floor
- trample over someone who has fallen
- yelling at the sales staff because there are no turkeys
- making rude phone calls to sales staff because there are no turkeys
- trying to barge into the meat department doors to get their hands on a turkey
- calling a sales floor associate a few choice words because they don't like the answers that they are given.



I mean, SERIOUSLY JUST STOP IT!!!

Have people seriously lost their marbles?  Is this what Thanksgiving has come to?  Trying to hurt and destroy other people around you just so you can prove to everyone that you're the most self-centered person in the world?  How dare they?!?

I'm sort of glad that I don't work on the food side anymore.  Truth is that had I stayed, I would have been fired by now because I would find it really hard to stare at an angry person who is demanding to see a turkey in their hands, and me grabbing a mirror, showing it to them, and tell them that their turkey is right in front of them.

Gobble, gobble, fool.

I think it's time that people took a step back and realized that it's not cool to be selfish on Thanksgiving.  If I found out that any of my family members belittled and hurt someone else's feelings because of a turkey, I would feel so incredibly disappointed and embarrassed because there is no need for that. 

I guess this year more than ever, I know what the meaning of Thanksgiving is all about.  It's not about hate.  It's not about hurt.  It's not even about turkey.

It's about sharing.  Giving.  Kindness.  Togetherness.

I just wish others saw Thanksgiving the same way that I do.

Thursday, October 09, 2014

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

Do you want to know the one thing that always surprises me whenever I write out my blog entry for the day?  Whenever people drop me messages about a previous blog entry.  I love getting messages from people!  That tells me that I actually have readers who check into the blog, be it by accident, or whether they have been reading it from the very beginning.  I appreciate each and every page view that I get and I could not be more thankful.

So, in the spirit of being thankful, I thought I'd share a portion of a recent message that I received from a reader who happened to stumble across a piece I wrote a few months ago while he was searching for Peanuts specials released on DVD.  He stumbled across my blog that I had written on the semi-forgotten Peanuts special "Why, Charlie Brown, Why?", which originally aired in 1990.  That special was about Linus and the rest of the Peanuts gang coping with the fact that one of their classmates had cancer.  If you haven't watched this special, do give it a whirl.  When I wrote that piece, it was still available on YouTube, though I fear that with copyright laws the way they are, it may have been removed.  Still, do try to seek this special out.  It's a good one.

Anyway, the following comes to us from a man named Matthew M. from Massachusetts, and as it turns out, his message came at a rather appropriate time as I had planned on doing a blog on the Peanuts gang anyway.  And since he gave me permission to reprint his message, here's a sample of what he had to write about.

Hey Matt....I was actually searching for old Peanuts DVDs online, and I came across an old blog you did about "Why Charlie Brown Why?" Being a die-hard Peanuts fan I tried to answer your blog but I think it's archived. So I'll give you my thought:

*In my opinion, one of the best specials in the series. In my top five..
1. Charlie Brown Christmas

2. Great Pumpkin

3. A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

4.Why Charlie Brown Why?

5. It Was a Short Summer Charlie Brown

As for "WCBW?" I loved how they played in a few traditional comic strip gags into the story as comic relief. (Woodstock and Snoopy bickering over building a nest and Snoopy giving the bird one of his traditional Bleeeah tongues in frustration. Or the hospital cafe scene where Snoopy comes out with a tray piled up with junk food while wearing his " world famous doctor" scrubs. A bit of Schulz sarcasm towards doctors who should practice what they preach).

I also liked how Linus was given lead character in this one and his true good nature and compassion was well presented. They left out his blanket as they wanted him to be shown as s mature pre-teen rather than a kid. And there's Janice....a Peanuts character who has fans writing in to campaign that she appears in future specials. Little trivia...her last name is Emmons, as was Lila's in "Snoopy Come Home". They look remarkably alike, and fans understand them to be cousins! Incidentally, Lila also was hospitalized in SCH. Good linking of characters by the writers.

As for Lucy....I wouldn't lynch her, and I don't hate her....without her you would not have some of the funniest moments in the series' history. Her pining for Schroeder, her battles with Snoopy...and he always trying to steal a kiss. Everybody, even Charlie Brown knows how to handle her, and usually her sarcasm and crabbiness blows up in her face. The comedy is the look on her face when she knows or has to
think about how the other character just turned around and made her look like a fool. Snoopy is the best at it ( watch the arm wrestling match in " Short Summer"). Trust me, Lucy usually ends up being the butt of jokes rather than the villian, and that is what makes the series so funny. Her comments towards Janice is just her being an ignorant kid just because she has no idea what cancer really does and she reacted the same way many others would. Linus easily puts her in her place.

The bully's name is Joe Agate and appears a few specials later in "He's a Bully Charlie Brown". Charlie Brown, with a little help from Snoopy...puts him in his place. As for the scene on the playground with Janice, I'm pretty sure in real life Linus would have used much saltier language. I'm thinking the words " a**hole" or "douchebag" rather than "cementhead" was what most likely was shouted. Cement is much harder than block so you know that cursing was implied.
Acceptable for the situation.

First things first, thank you Matthew for the thought-provoking comments.  Your view on the special and the Peanuts gang overall was well thought out and intelligent, and because you took the time to write in your thoughts, I thought I'd dedicate this edition of the blog to you!

And you're in luck!  Today's topic is your number three most loved Peanuts special!

Now, I know what the readers of the U.S.A. must be thinking.  It's way too soon to be thinking about Thanksgiving.  And, yes, I can see how you would think this, as your Thanksgiving isn't scheduled until the twenty-seventh of November this year. 

But for my fellow Canadian readers, our Thanksgiving is quickly approaching.  October 13, to be exact.  I certainly hope that you bought your turkey already because time is certainly running out! 



So, that's why I decided to host "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" in this edition of Tube Talk Thursday, which originally aired on November 20, 1973.  But don't worry, America, I'll have another Thanksgiving themed holiday special planned for November 27.  Just keep your eyes on the blog for more information on that one.

Now, here's the problem with "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving".  It's one of those specials that I've probably only seen twice in my entire life.  And the reason why is because of the holiday confusion.  Because the American Thanksgiving is in November, I always seemed to never know when it was on because what Canadian wanted to watch a Thanksgiving special in November?  But because our Thanksgiving in Canada is in October, I could never seem to find it on television anywhere - though during the month of October, I managed to watch "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" at least three times a month!



So, needless to say, I had to really sit down and watch this special once more so that I could refresh my memory, and basically this is the show which opens up with Lucy once again setting Charlie Brown up for failure using a football as her weapon of choice.  Geez, Lucy, come on.  It's a holiday!  Let Charlie Brown kick the football already.  Don't make me send Peter Griffin after you!



Okay, so now that we have that out of the way, we all know what Thanksgiving is all about.  It's all about families gathering together to celebrate the holiday over a table filled with holiday dishes such as turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie.  And naturally, Charlie Brown and Sally are two members of the Peanuts gang who plan on spending the holiday at their grandmother's condo.  But what happens when Peppermint Patty calls Charlie Brown at home and invites herself to the meal?  Well, it sets off a complete chain reaction.  Once Peppermint Patty invites herself, it prompts Marcie to send herself an invitation, which gives Franklin the motivation to invite himself, and so on and so forth.

Before Charlie Brown is aware of it, and before Charlie Brown can say no, he comes to the realization that he has somehow allowed half of the Peanuts gang to come to dinner with him.  Geez, maybe Peppermint Patty is more assertive than Lucy!

Leave it to level-headed Linus to come up with a perfect solution.  Host two different Thanksgiving dinner celebrations.  One for Peppermint Patty and the rest of the Peanuts, and one for Charlie Brown's immediate family.  Sounds simple enough, right?

Well, not really.  Turns out Charlie Brown - in addition to being a lousy football kicker - is also a lousy chef.  His claim to fame in the kitchen involves making cold cereal and toast.  Not exactly what one would consider to be typical Thanksgiving fare.  Still, Linus insists that the feast continue and recruits Charlie Brown and Woodstock to assist in the table set-up.



Here's an interesting note of trivia for you - did you know that the song "Little Birdie" is written and SANG by longtime Peanuts music provider Vince Guaraldi!  Yeah, that's right!  This is one of the only moments in which you actually hear him sing, so take advantage of this.  I posted the video of that song above.  It's quite good!

Now, I don't think it would be cool to reveal how this special ends, just because I think most of you already know anyway...but let's just say this.  It causes Peppermint Patty to rethink her strategies when including herself in other people's plans.  It makes us realize that Linus may have found his calling as a man who writes great speeches.  And it taught all of us that pretzels, jelly beans, and buttered toast can be somewhat acceptable substitutions for Thanksgiving feasts.

Oh, and it also taught us that if you want things done right to just let the dog do it.


To my Canadian friends, I hope you have a fantastic Thanksgiving this upcoming Monday.  And for my American friends, stay tuned.  I'll have more Thanksgiving fun in November!

Wednesday, October 08, 2014

Knowing Who Your Friends Are - Online and Off

Before I begin this edition of WHO AM I WEDNESDAY, I have a couple of things that I have to talk about.  The first piece of news is very good.  And the second piece of news is not so good.

First, the good news.  Mom is slowly, but surely getting better, and she's improving each day.  As far as when she'll be released out of the hospital, I have no idea when that will be.  The hospital wants to make sure that all of the infection is gone before they discharge her, which makes complete sense.  After all, the last thing anybody in my family wants is for her to get worse.  But all of us have been doing everything possible to keep her positive which seems to be helping.  I'm hopeful that she'll continue to improve, and I absolutely want to thank all of you for supporting us during this time.  Thank you everyone.

And now comes the bad news.  As my mom continues to improve, one of my friends has sadly passed away. 

My friend Tom from New Jersey is someone who I "met" online approximately a dozen years ago on a website forum, which I've talked about on this blog at least a couple of times.  He was someone that I felt instantly connected to, probably because he was a huge fan of Disney cartoons, as I was - his most favourite of the cartoons being "TaleSpin", which served as the inspiration behind his screenname.  You see, "TaleSpin" was inspired by the 1967 classic "The Jungle Book", and Baloo, King Louie, and Shere Khan all made appearances in "TaleSpin".  But of course, the creators of "TaleSpin" had to create some new characters to mingle with the classic Jungle Book characters, and one of those characters was a young teenage bear cub named Kit Cloudkicker who looked up to Baloo as a father figure.



So, my pal Tom decided to go by the name of Tom Cloudkicker.

Over the last dozen years, he and I interacted with each other in many ways.  I still remember him being quite happy when I finally did a blog entry on "TaleSpin", and linked the post to his Facebook page so he would be able to read it.  I think he approved.

Oh, but Disney cartoons were not the only thing he was passionate about.  He also had a keen interest in numerology - particularly his favourite number, which was "7".  You couldn't log onto his social media site without seeing at least one seven posted nearby.

He was also very keen on rescuing and saving domestic animals.  He would often post links from animal shelters encouraging people who lived in his home state of New Jersey to adopt animals.  His love for animals was that strong, and I always respected him for that.

Sadly, Tom had been having health problems over the last two or three months...and just a couple of days ago, he passed away at the age of 50.  And, let me tell you, he died way too soon.

I will always miss Tom's kindness, his warm heart, his creativity, and the passion that he brought to each day, and I only hope that he is finally at peace.

And this leads to today's
WHO AM I WEDNESDAY...

October 8, 2014

Did I ever tell you that I have always struggled with making and keeping friendships?  It's the absolute truth - or at least it was. 

These days, I'm really coming to the conclusion that I probably have more people in my corner than I have ever had when I was younger.  I guess in some ways, I was (or rather, I can be) too stubborn to see it.  I suppose that we all have days in which we all feel as though we're being excluded or left out, and believe me, there are days in which I feel that way.  But you know, it's taken the last few days for me to really get an idea of just who my friends are.

For instance, when my mother was admitted into the hospital almost a week ago, I had no idea that she had touched so many lives until I saw just how many people came up to visit her in her room.  And by extension, I really had no idea just how many people who were connected to my immediate family cared about all of us until this happened.

When you have a crisis happen, it can be one of the most frightening things in the world.  At the same time, it can also bring forth a moment of clarity.  For it is when times are tough that you realize just who your friends are.  Knowing that so many people are wishing us well certainly helps us out a lot, and I hope that they know that their love and support is very much appreciated.

And, I'm not only talking about relationships and friendships with face-to-face people.  I'm also referring to online friendships as well.  And I'm extremely grateful to have quite a few of those as well - some of those friendships dating back 12-13 years!

A couple of days ago, one of my best online friends, Tom, passed away, and it got me thinking about some of the other people who touched my life without me actually meeting them face to face.

Like my friend Pierette, who lost her battle with cancer in December 2011.  Pierette and I were very, very close.  She was almost sort of like an online mom of sorts.  She was nearly a quarter of a century older than I was, but there was something about her that made me gravitate towards her.  She was wise, thoughtful, and kind - but she also had a razor sharp wit and didn't take any sort of...well...you know...from anybody.  If I remember correctly, she spearheaded the Christmas card exchange on one of the fallout boards that opened following the demise of Yesterdayland in 2003.  I still have some of those cards that Pierette sent me in the mail, and I will always treasure them forever.

I also have a fridge magnet of a calendar that I received way back in 2007 from another online friend named Rosemary.  She went by the screenname of TexasRose because she was named Rose, and she was from the state of Texas (I believe she lived near the Houston area).  And believe it or not, she was born in the year 1936!  I mean, here was a woman who was in her late sixties using the Internet a lot better than some kids in their teens!  She was the very definition of "cool grandmother".

(Of course, you never dared call her Grandma...she would have sassed you over that remark.)

Sadly, that 2007 calendar would be the last thing that Rose ever sent us.  She died just three months later at the age of seventy, and I still miss her nearly eight years after her passing.  She was one remarkable woman and I feel like I became a better person just by knowing her.  Just as I feel like I became a better person for having known Pierette.  Just as I feel like I am a better person for having known Tom.

It's very interesting just how much of an impact online friendships have.  Some people dismiss online friendships because they claim that it's not the same as hanging out with someone at a coffee shop, but I don't see it that way at all.  As far as I'm concerned, my online friends matter just as much as my real-life friends, and I think anyone who has a healthy balance of both is quite the lucky person indeed.

So, I remember Tom, and Pierette, and TexasRose - as well as our other YL friends 55dodger, enjaydee, The Professor, and KB9KNO today.

Tuesday, October 07, 2014

October 7, 1951

Welcome to the very first TUESDAY TIMELINE for October 2014!  And in this edition of the blog, I hope you're well prepared to do some rocking and rolling, because this blog will feature a lot of classic music.  But before we find out who this mystery person is, we should take a look at the other events that took place on October 7 throughout history.

3761 BC - The epoch reference date origin of the modern day Hebrew calendar

1542 - Santa Catalina Island is discovered by explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo

1582 - Due to the implementation of the Gregorian calendar, this date does not exist in Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Spain

1777 - The Americans defeat the British in the Second Battle of Saratoga during the American Revolutionary War

1868 - Cornell University holds its inauguration, in which 412 students initially enrol

1870 - Leon Gambetta flees Paris in a hot-air balloon during the Siege of Paris

1916 - In what is one of the most lopsided scores ever recorded in college football, Georgia Tech clobbers Cumberland University with a score of 222-0

1917 - Actress June Allyson (d. 2006) is born in The Bronx, New York

1919 - Dutch airline KLM is founded

1933 - Following the merger of five French airlines, Air France is founded

1940 - The McCollum memo proposes bringing the United States into combat during World War II by provoking an attack on America by the Japanese

1949 - The German Democratic Republic (East Germany) is formed

1955 - Poet Allen Ginsberg performs "Howl" for the first time at San Francisco's Six Gallery

1959 - American tenor and actor Mario Lanza dies at the age of just 38

1963 - President Kennedy signs the ratification of the Partial Test Ban Treaty

1988 - The "Free The Whales" campaign is launched following the discovery of three gray whales trapped underneath the ice near Barrow, Alaska

1993 - After nearly 103 days, the Great Flood of 1993 officially ends

1996 - The FOX News Channel begins broadcasting

1998 - Matthew Shepard is discovered tied to a fence after being beaten by two men in Laramie, Wyoming because of his sexuality - he would die of his injuries five days later

2003 - Arnold Schwarzenegger is elected Governor of California

And here are our famous birthdays for today;  Graeme Ferguson, Clive James, Joy Behar, Oliver North, Kevin Godley, Catharine MacKinnon, Diane Ackerman, Mary Badham, Vladimir Putin, Tico Torres, Yo-Yo Ma, Dylan Baker, Simon Cowell, Matt Roloff, Ann Curless, Dan Savage, Toni Braxton, Thom Yorke, Maria Whittaker, Nicole Parker Kodjoe, Daniel Boucher, Allison Munn, Alexander Polinsky, Jamie Hector, Taylor Hicks, and Ayla Kell.

All right.  Let's not waste any more time.  Let's just get right on with today's date.



October 7, 1951 - exactly sixty-three years ago today.

And let me tell you...coming to the conclusion that this man is sixty-three years old makes me feel old myself even though I am a good three decades younger than he is.  I suppose it could be because of the fact that I was always surrounded by his music as my whole family became fans of him.  After all, we were small town folk, just as he was.  I mean, just watching him moving around on concert stages and music videos, he seemed to be the very definition of a man who rocked in the U.S.A., crumbled down walls, and fought authority every step of the way - even though authority always won.

And let me tell you...this Indiana born man has had quite a life.  He became a father at the age of nineteen, and became a grandfather at the ripe old age of thirty-seven!  He overcame spina bifida as a child to become a rock star.  He dabbled in artwork and created several paintings in addition to recording several albums as a singer/songwriter.  There were even times in which he couldn't even decide what name he would perform as, and he ended up changing his stage name three times in total.



So, whether you knew him best as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar Mellencamp, or simply John Mellencamp, it really doesn't matter in the end.  All three are the same person! 

And today happens to be his sixty-third birthday!

So, in celebration of 63 years of John Mellencamp, I thought that I would do something special.  And when I say something special, I thought I would focus solely on the one thing that made him a superstar. 

His music.

But, I can't really do anything like post 63 of his best singles.  I honestly don't even think he had 63 singles charting on the Billboard charts.  However, I suppose I could do a Top 6.3 list. 

Yeah...that's exactly what I think I'm going to do!  I'll post my six favourite John Mellencamp songs, give some trivia about them, some chart positions, and other miscellaneous facts added in for flavour.  Oh, and that .3?  Well, I'll add in a bonus song that really wasn't written by Mellencamp but was still a fantastic song nonetheless.  I'll call it the "Bubbling Under" song.



BUBBLING UNDER - Wild Night (f. Me'shell Ndegeocello)
Album:  Dance Naked
Released:  June 1994
Peak Position on the Charts:  #3

Okay, so the reason why I didn't include this in my Top 6 list is because this is actually a cover version of a Van Morrison single from 1971.  The reason why I chose this single was because it was one of my favourite songs from the summer of 1994.  I don't know what it was, but the duo of Mellencamp and Ndegeocello worked like magic.  It certainly was a fantastic distraction from the depressing grunge fest that 1994 seemed to be.



6.  JACK AND DIANE
Album:  American Fool
Released:  July 1982
Peak Position on the Charts:  #1

Here's a little ditty about Jack and Diane.  Two American kids growing up in the Heartland.  And it also happens to be John's only #1 hit.

Interestingly enough, John has said that this record was one of the most frustrating songs that he has ever recorded.  Many people see the claps within the single making the song, but initially Mellencamp didn't want the clapping to appear at all.  It was only added in to keep the tempo of the song going, as Mellencamp found that his band was having trouble following along to the song's beat.  But when he edited out the clapping when pressing the record, he found that it just didn't sound right without it.  The things you learn!

Anyway, the reason why I have this particular song ranked so low on my Top 6 list is simple.  While I like this song, it is way overplayed...and frankly there are other singles of his that I feel have more power to them.



5.  R.O.C.K. IN THE U.S.A.
Album:  Scarecrow
Released:  February 1986
Peak Position on the Charts:  #2

Sadly, Falco's "Rock Me Amadeus" kept this single from topping the charts - which was too bad, as I instantly find myself grooving along whenever I hear this single.  Designed as a song that celebrated rock and roll from the 1960s, "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." was one song that made spelling very cool!

This song was also co-produced by John Mellencamp under the alias "Little Bastard".

Shockingly, this song was almost left off the "Scarecrow" album, as much of the material on that album was dark - a sharp contrast with the happy-go-lucky feel of the single.  But the more he thought about it, the more he decided to add the single on the album anyway.  And, well...this song helped cement Mellencamp as a legend of '80s rock and roll!



4.  SMALL TOWN
Album: Scarecrow
Date Released:  November 1985
Peak Position on the Charts:  #6

You'll quickly find out from this list that "Scarecrow" is my favourite John Mellencamp album, as this is the second of three songs from this album that I absolutely enjoy.  But surprisingly enough, none of the songs from "Scarecrow" make the top of my list.  I'll let you ponder that for a second.

In the meantime, one of the reasons why I like "Small Town" so much is because of the fact that while John Mellencamp wrote this song about growing up in small town Indiana, the lyrics could explain how I feel about having grown up in small town Ontario.  There's certainly a lot of things about the lyrics of "Small Town" that ring true about my own life.  Just sit back and really listen.



3.  HURTS SO GOOD
Album:  American Fool
Date Released:  April 1982
Peak Position on the Charts:  #2

They say that you get inspiration in the most peculiar places.  Well, in my third favourite John Mellencamp song, John came up with the idea for this song while he was in the shower one day, and he jotted the opening lines of the chorus shortly thereafter.

Now, there's been some debate over what the lyrics of the song really mean.  I'll leave that interpretation up to you.  But it remains a staple at bars, wedding receptions, and house parties for well over thirty years.  I can't help but not include it as a John Mellencamp staple.



2.  LONELY OL' NIGHT
Album:  Scarecrow
Date Released:  August 1985
Peak Position on the Charts:  #6

This song is just a near-perfect Mellencamp classic.  I always find myself playing and replaying this single over and over again whenever I get the chance.  It's just that good!  It's also the third single from "Scarecrow" to make my Top 6.3 list.  I told you "Scarecrow" was my favourite album.

The single's title was inspired by the 1963 film "Hud" which starred Paul Newman, and the film's plot about a youth's strained relationship with his father mirrored that of Mellencamp's own relationship with his dad.  That angst and frustration certainly made its way onto many of the songs on the "Scarecrow" album.

I'd say that this single was a strong choice to be the lead single for "Scarecrow", and it became another Top 10 single for Mellencamp.



1.  CHERRY BOMB
Album:  The Lonesome Jubilee
Date Released:  October 1987
Peak Position on the Charts:  #8

I know what you're saying.  "Cherry Bomb" is your favourite John Mellencamp song?  You bet your butt it is!  This song, the way it flows, the way the lyrics are sung, the general happy feeling that I get whenever I hear this song...it's just the perfect John Mellencamp song to me.  It is such a great song, and a great reminder of nostalgia.  The song is all about the fun and carefree attitude that a then-teenage Mellencamp had with his friends in various bars and clubs in Indiana.  It could also be a song that anyone who ever had memories of a teenage hangout or place from their childhood could listen to and feel those same warm memories that they shared so long ago.  Takes you back to a time in which life was a lot easier.  I just love this song.  I just wish it had performed better on the charts because it deserved to get more recognition.

Okay, so that's my list of favourite John Mellencamp songs.  What are some of yours?

Happy 63rd, John!

Monday, October 06, 2014

Down Goes The Bride, Deep-Six The Groom...

Today on FUNNY MONDAY, a different kind of funny.

In fact, this will probably be the first Funny Monday post that I do that will include both pictures and videos.

Now, the inspiration behind this post comes from an activity that I recently attended.  You see, a couple of days ago, I went to the wedding ceremony of a couple of friends of mine (with Mom's blessing as she wanted me to take some photos of the wedding for her to look at).  The people who were involved in the wedding planning really worked their tails off, and it was definitely one of the most fantastic wedding ceremonies that I have ever attended.  If ever I get married, I might just have to borrow a couple of the ideas that they came up with for their ceremony for my own.

Well, again, the key word here is if I get married.  If not, well, I can incorporate those ideas for my 40th birthday in seven years.  That'd be fun.

Anyway, I'm really glad that everything went well for them and that the day went by without as much as anything going wrong.  And, well...if anything did go wrong, none of us guests were aware of it because we were too busy having fun.

But of course, there are going to be some instances in which something can happen that throws an entire wedding out of focus.  And usually, these moments are quite hysterical when you watch them or relive them years from now, but when they happen in the moment they can be a bride or groom's worst nightmare.

So, let's take a look at some of the funny things that might seem mortifying at first, but ends up being rather funny to outsiders looking in.  I must warn you that some of the videos in the post might seem like they are staged.  They very well could be.  But even so, they do represent a potential wedding day disaster that might happen. 

Oh, and credit goes to Buzzfeed, ABC News, Bridal Expo Chicago, Wedding Cake Toppers, socialsafe.net, cakecentral.com and YouTube for the pictures and clips that you're about to see in this piece.



1.  When sending out your wedding invitations, it's cool to be creative...but at the same time, don't make your wedding invitation look like one of those ads you find on the back of a comic book.



2.  It might also be a fantastic idea to write your own wedding invitations.  You certainly wouldn't want the wrong person to promote your very special day - especially your future mother-in-law who happens to bring a special gift of bitterness to the invite.



3.  Many brides choose to double-barrel their name because they are reluctant to give up their old name.  But in the cases of these wedding announcements, sometimes it just doesn't work out.



4.  It might be a good idea to do a tour of the wedding venue before you take photographs.  Those pesky water fountains can be a major hazard.



5.  It also might not be a good idea to get married on a slippery platform in the middle of a pool.



6.  It's also probably not a good idea to light fireworks INSIDE OF A WEDDING VENUE WHILE THE COUPLE ARE SAYING THEIR I DO'S!



7.  It might also be a good idea to make sure that your groomsmen's suits are properly altered so that they fit like a glove.  Otherwise, you may have one of them providing a "wardrobe malfunction" on the way out of the chapel.



8.  Now, the wedding reception is a great place to relax, chill, and drink merrily as you get down on the dance floor jiving along to Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, or One Direction songs.  But if the dance floor happens to be outdoors, you probably shouldn't do a striptease on one of those flimsy tent poles.



9.  Everyone is always looking for ways to make their wedding photos memorable.  The couple on the left probably isn't the best example of this.

10.  And finally, when it comes to ordering a wedding cake...don't use these.



(Oi...that last one is enough to cause grounds for divorce!!!)

Sunday, October 05, 2014

Happy To Be Stuck With You

Welcome back to "A POP CULTURE ADDICT'S GUIDE TO LIFE" as it is meant to be presented!

Yeah, I won't lie to you.  These past couple of days have been a bit of a whirlwind, but I am happy to report that things seem to be calming down now.  My mom seems to be responding well to treatment, and I'm cautiously optimistic that things will turn out all right.  After all, she's a determined and tough woman who has a lot of fight left in her.  So very proud of her.

So, as a result of this good news, I'm going to try and get this blog back on track.  After all, it's been a while since I wrote anything pop culture related in here.  I just hope that this was worth the wait.

Anyway, in today's edition of the blog, we're going to go back to the year 1986.  And I have to say that when it comes to the Sunday Jukebox entry, 1986 is probably one of my favourite years for music.  I just think there was something about 1986 that defined the classic pop song.  Artists such as Madonna, Whitney Houston, Pet Shop Boys, Prince, and Bon Jovi all had classic hits coming out that year, as does today's featured band.

In fact, they had the #1 song twenty-eight years ago this week.  And this band is more than just a San Francisco treat.  These guys started their career over thirty years ago, and are STILL touring and playing today.

This was a band that had a lot of heart and soul.  They were a band that believed in love and told the world that it was hip to be square.  This was a band that climbed "Jacob's Ladder" to the top ten several times.  And yes, we're going back in time to take a look at one of their biggest hits ever.

Are you ready?



ARTIST:  Huey Lewis and the News
SONG:  Stuck With You
ALBUM:  Fore!
DATE RELEASED:  August 31, 1986
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS:  #1 for 3 weeks

Ah, yes.  Huey Lewis and the News.  A band made up of (at that time) Huey Lewis, Sean Hopper, Bill Gibson, Johnny Colla, Mario Cipollina, and Chris Hayes.  I don't know what it was about these six guys that made their songs so infectious, but I have to admit that their songs always made me get up on my feet and dance!  In fact, I'd say that "Stuck With You" always stuck with me as being one of my favourites, mainly because it was one of the first songs I remember hearing a lot of when I was a child.  You see, the song came out right around the time I was beginning kindergarten, and I'd hear this song a lot on the radio no matter where I was.  



From that song, I grew to like the album "Fore!", the first single off the album.  From there, I was introduced to their 1983 album "Sports", which many consider to be the band's breakthrough album, and well...basically this song helped make me a Huey Lewis and the News fan for life.



Anyway, let's talk a little about the song itself.  The song was a collaborative effort between Huey Lewis and Chris Hayes, and essentially it's a song that could be used to describe a couple who have been together for a substantial amount of time.

I like to consider it as the ultimate wedding anniversary song.

Just have a listen to the lyrics of the single.  Obviously this person has had moments in his relationship in which he questions whether or not they should be together.  And I'm sure that any married couple (or an unmarried couple who have been together a long time) would tell you that they certainly have asked themselves those questions in their relationships.  In the case of this single, they openly have thought about breaking up, or thinking about other people, or throwing all those years away.  However, they come to the conclusion that they would miss each other too much and that they're perfectly happy being stuck with each other.

Now, some people might choose to see this as a negative thing, but I really don't see it that way at all.  When you're in love with somebody that deeply and that strongly, that's all that matters.

The video for this song is also fantastic as well, with the whole video being shot in the Bahamas.  The director of the video was Edd Griles, also responsible for directing music videos by Cyndi Lauper, Sheena Easton, and Eddie Murphy.  And when it came down to filming techniques, he left nothing out of bounds.  He filmed the band on the beach, on a boat, up in the air, and even underwater!  I remember as a kid watching that video and wondering how the cameraman managed to film a video underwater, believing that the camera would get completely destroyed in the process.  I mean, sure, with modern technology, taking photos and videos underwater has never been made easier, but back in the eighties, I was really impressed.

Of course, in the eighties, I was a child...and everything impressed me back then.

Oh, and the woman that features prominently in the video?  That would be news personality Keely Shaye Smith - also known as Mrs. Pierce Brosnan.  This video was filmed right around the time that Smith was starting her career.  She was, after all, only twenty-three years old when this video hit the top of the charts.

(In comparison, Huey was thirty-six.)

Now, filming this video in the Bahamas was surely a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the band, and I would think that it was an incredible shoot.  However, the shoot wasn't without its problems.  Because the video focused mainly on Huey Lewis and Keely Shaye Smith, the rest of the band, the crew filming the video, and the extras that were used in the barbecue scene had to stay on a barge that was moored several hundred feet away from the island where the land scenes were shot so that they wouldn't be seen. 

All in all, though, the video helped catapult the single to #1 less than a month after it was released.  Not a bad day's work, huh?