I hope as we head toward the holiday season, people are more caring and happier like Jack and his friends!
However, with the 2020 election ahead, that may have to wait until 2021. š¦
Thank you for taking the time to check out my “Random Friday Thoughts”. It’s okay if we disagree, just do it diplomatically!
“RBG”
Much of America is still reeling from the loss of 87-year-old Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died last Friday.
She was appointed by President Bill Clinton and confirmed in 1993.
Documentaries are usually not known for being big money makers in theaters. But, in 2018, “Wonāt You Be My Neighbor?” (about Mister Rogers) ($22.6 million) and “RBG” ($14.4 million) changed that!
This is a superb 97-minute feature directed by Betsy West and Julie Cohen.
It documents Ginsburg’s trailblazing career — from just being a woman and a mother who decides to become a lawyer in an unwelcoming field for females and to use her voice to make the world a better place for us all!
GRADE: A
“The Notorious RBG” was an amazing woman and will be sorely missed!
ONE MORE THING…
My original scenario didn’t involve Ginsburg dying, but I hope the outcome is correct!
Back on October 18, 2019, I wrote, “In early 2021 when the Democratic 46th president takes office, I think Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will step down from the bench and Hillary [Clinton] will become the new Supreme Court Justice!”
ON A HAPPIER NOTE!
My idol, former President Jimmy Carter will celebrate his 96th birthday next Thursday, October 1st!
Meanwhile, back in August, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter turned 93, and this past summer, the couple celebrated their 74th wedding anniversary!
This makes them the longest married presidential couple!
For the record, President Carter is not only the oldest living president, he’s also the nation’s longest-lived president, and he’s had the longest post-presidency life — closing in on almost 40 years!
President Carter and Mrs. Carter, here’s to the holidays, more anniversaries, and more birthdays!
Four years ago this month, I visited the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, Georgia, and here’s the message I left for the Carters.
Happy Birthday and I love you both!
AND, SPEAKING OF THESE TWO AMAZING PEOPLE
BEFORE YOU KNOW IT….
Many people are devouring pumpkin spice this and pumpkin spice that. Some are in denial and trying to hang on to summer.
Well, it’s my duty to inform you that Christmas will be here before you know it! It’s only three months from today! š
“A HOLLY DOLLY CHRISTMAS”
This year on November 1st when I put up my trees and decorations, I’ll have a new musical entry to help me decorate alongside last year’s stellar Deluxe Anniversary Edition of “Mariah Carey Merry Christmas”!
Dolly Parton is releasing her first new Christmas album in 30 years, “A Holly Dolly Christmas”, on October 2nd.
And, she’s doing a remake of “All I Want For Christmas Is You”, Mariah Carey’s iconic Christmas standard!
The album also features one of my crushes, Michael Buble — also known as “Mr. Christmas” — on the single, “Cuddle Up, Cozy Down Christmas”!
Final note, Willie Nelson’s “Pretty Paper” is still one of my all-time favorite holiday songs and now he’s doing it with Dolly!
“OBAMA’S WARS”
Bob Woodward, along with Carl Bernstein, are household names for basically single-handedly bringing down Richard Nixon’s presidency.
Woodward is back in the news with his latest new book, “Rage”, about #45 and his presidency. This is a follow-up to his 2018 book, “Fear: Trump in the White House”.
However, I’m writing about his 2010 book, “Obama’s Wars” today.
It’s a great book that covers how President Barack Obama planned to exit from the two wars he acquired from President George W. Bush — Iraq and Afghanistan.
The downside to the book is that it came out in 2010 and while thorough, it would have been better to show how the exit from those wars and countries progressed.
There’s a quote from President Obama that I hope comes true in 2021 about his 2008 Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.
Obama told his senior political aide and closest advisor David Axelrod, “Hillary and I were friends before this started. We had this very vituperative campaign, but, you know, she is smart and we ought to be able to do something with her.”
Before he offered her the position of “Secretary of State”, he stated she did her homework, fought hard, was relentless, and “she’d make a great Supreme Court justice”, according to Woodward.
By the way, I had not read the Woodward book when I made the comment last year about Hillary becoming a Supreme Court justice in 2021!
Personally, I’m ready for the next Hillary chapter!
“SPELL MY NAME”
I’ve been a huge fan of Toni Braxton since her 1993 self-titled debut. Her tenth studio album, “Spell My Name”, is perfect Toni Braxton!
The lead off single, “Do It”, is featured twice on the album and both version have charted this summer.
Both versions are amazing — the slower, original version topped the Adult R&B chart and the remix version with Missy Elliot made it to #11 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart.
However, the first song I heard from the album got my feet moving. “Dance” is racing up the Adult R&B chart now and is in the Top 25.
While I absolutely love the upbeat “Dance”, my favorite song on the album is “Happy Without Me”!
Other standout tracks are “Saturday Night” and “Nothin'”.
GRADE: B+
THATāS IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
This is my last post of the summer! Fall officially begins next week!
Thank you for taking the time to check out my “Random Friday Thoughts”!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TAMMY!
Next week, my baby sister will be celebrating her birthday and her first in Central Illinois.
I’m so happy we’re in the same city again and that we get to spend more time together. Here’s to the holiday celebrations!
Happy Birthday Tammy! I wish great things for you in the upcoming years!
“I AM WOMAN”
Iconic singer and women’s rights advocate Helen Reddy is finally being honored with a motion picture, “I Am Woman” — the title of her 1970s #1 anthem!
It’s now showing in select theaters and is available through video on demand.
Also, the movie arrives on DVD on November 3, 2020 and you can pre-order it on amazon.com!
The movie stars Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Danielle MacDonald (“Patti Cake$”), and Evan Peters (“American Horror Story”).
Helen’s fans were asked to submit a short video telling what the song and Helen Reddy meant to them. Those selected would be used in a promotional campaign for the movie.
I’m honored to say that a portion of my video was chosen!!! š
And, finally a month ahead of my birthday, I shared the 13 biggest events and my 101 favorite songs of my first 35 years (1964-1999).
Of course, Helen Reddy was high on the list — at #16 with “I Am Woman”!
If you want to see the rest of my countdown, here’s the blog with stories of my ups, my downs, my secrets, and my successes! So far, it’s been well received. (Click on this link and it’ll open in a different window!)
By the way, back to Danielle MacDonald, if you haven’t seen “Patti Cake$”, add it to your list of movies to see!
“Patti Cake$” was one of the best and most overlooked movies of 2017. It was my #10 favorite movie that year!
As you start to watch, be patient!
When I reviewed the movie late that year, I said, “As I started watching the first 10-15 minutes of the movie, I was unsure what I was going to think about it. However, it clicked and I loved it.”
GRADE: A-
YES, PLEASE!
Here’s another reason for this dreadful year to end — look what’s coming in January 2021!
Nabisco is treating us to Chocolate Hazelnut-flavored Oreo cookies!
That same month, the company is releasing Java Chip Oreos — coffee-flavored crĆØme with chocolate chips sandwiched between two classic Oreo cookies!
I still want to try the Caramel Coconut Oreos! Please share so I don’t have to buy a whole bag! š
ALL READY FOR FALL!
Yes, I rushed summer out and decorated for fall on Labor Day weekend!
Why so quickly?
My Christmas decorations go up November 1st until the end of January! š
“RUMOR HAS IT” TURNS 30!
While Reba McEntire became a powerhouse superstar in the mid-1980s, I was all about dance and pop music in my 20s during her rise to super stardom.
However, I discovered her at Sidetrack in Chicago on country night in 1990. That voice singing “Rumor Has It” blew me away and Iāve been a huge fan ever since.
It’s hard to believe that the album turned 30 years old this month! And, it was re-issued and released on limited orange vinyl!
“Rumor Has It” was my first Reba album (I own them all now) and it’s still my favorite.
While “Fancy” was not the biggest hit from the album, it’s become one of Reba’s signature songs.
I love “Fancy”, but it’s not one of my 20 favorite Reba hits!
But, a new dance remix from hit master Dave Aude may change that. Check out this incredible version that I hope clubs across America start playing!
By the way, if this becomes a dance club hit, it won’t be Reba’s first.
In 1996, the dance remix of “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” reached #2 on the Billboard Dance Club Play chart.
And, this isn’t the first time that Dave Aude has taken one of the biggest stars of country music on the ride up the dance charts.
He hit #1 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart in 2015 with “You Have To Believe” with Olivia Newton-John and her daughter, Chloe Lattanzi.
It ended up being my #16 song of the year with my favorite U.S. city, Las Vegas, as the backdrop!
“THE ALIENIST: ANGEL OF DARKNESS”
In the first season of this TNT series, the “Alienists” were on the hunt for a “boy-whore” serial killer in late-1890s New York City.
Years later, in the second season, “Angel of Darkness”, we’re chasing down a a psychotic, sexual deviant baby kidnapper/killer!
The stellar cast of Daniel Bruhl, Luke Evans, and Dakota Fanning return.
However, the standout in the second season is Rosy McEwen, who plays Libby Hatch.
In a very dramatic, Emmy nomination-worthy scene, McEwen’s character exclaims, “Stop looking at me, you stupid thing! <Nervous laugh> “Stupid, stupid, you stupid thing!”
Just reading that line, it may sound “stupid”, but seeing the chilling scene of a deranged character saying it to a nemesis bully that was just murdered was powerful!
TED LEVINE
When I watched the first season of “On Becoming a God in Central Florida”, I thought, “it’s nice seeing Ted Levine” again.
He’s now in seasons one and two of “The Alienist”.
However, I was shocked to learn that’s he’s worked constantly (before and) since his breakout role in the Oscar winning movie, “The Silence of the Lambs” as Jame “Buffalo Bill” Gumb!
“MY LIFE AMONG THE SERIAL KILLERS”
While reading serial killer profiler Helen Morrison’s 2004 book, “My Life Among The Serial Killers”, all I could think about was Sigourney Weaver in the 1995 movie, “Copycat”!
Although the real life Morrison profiled many serial killers, I didn’t buy a lot of her conclusions. And, neither did others in that profession. The book was panned!
And, Weaver, Holly Hunter, and Harry Connick Jr. were incredible in “Copycat”. Watch that instead of reading the book!
THATāS IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
While it’s not a milestone birthday, like my first, another one is approaching.
My life’s longevity has surpassed both of my parents (my mother died at 47 and my father at 55) and I’m grateful for that.
Maybe it’s just me, but I feel that as we get older, we pontificate about life more.
We think about the past — good and bad — and wonder what the future holds. And, Good Lord, with 2020 and Covid-19, I hope it’s an improvement!
With that in mind, I started thinking about the events and the songs that have influenced me most in life.
So, today, I’m sharing the 13 most memorable events of my first 35 years (1964-1999). Why 13? It’s my favorite number and I was born on the 13th!
EVENTS THATSHAPED MY FIRST 35 YEARS
#13 KENT STATE MASSACRE (MAY 4, 1970)
While I was only five years old when this happened and I didn’t understand the Vietnam War or the protests, I vividly remember the news that evening and this iconic photograph.
As you may recall, the Ohio National Guard opened fire on unarmed students killing four and wounding nine others.
On the 30th anniversary of the deadly shootings, I covered the story for a television station in Mansfield, Ohio.
#12 MADONNA MARRYING SEAN PENN (AUGUST 1985)
It’s no secret that I love Madonna. I’ve seen her in concert four times and I remember buying her first album at Terrapin Station in Murray, Kentucky, in 1983, before she was a household name.
But, I’m almost embarrassed to admit that I shed tears the day she married Sean Penn in 1985!
Not because I was happy. I just knew it wouldn’t last and it was my “Madonna”! š
#11 JEFFREY DAHMER & MY MILWAUKEE SUMMER(1990)
Back in 1990, I moved from Kentucky to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. While I was only there for the summer into the early fall, I enjoyed my job as a bartender at “Partners”, one of the oldest LGBTQ bars in the city.
OMG, I was so young — in stone-washed jeans and a New Kids on the Block t-shirt! š
On a slow Sunday night, a couple came in and ordered drinks. Jerry was a good-looking man and his lady friend, who was older than him, was Dānell.
While Jerry flirted with me, it was my bond with Dānell that would stand the test of time. She became my “Mom” and I called her that until her death in early 2009.
One night I went out drinking with my friends and co-workers in the seedier part of the gay district at Cāest La Vie and Club 219.
Needless to say, I had way too much to drink and the scary alley, while unsavory, was a great place to puke before we moved on elsewhere!!!
I didn’t think too much about it at the time, but when serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer was arrested, I got chills. Club 219 was one of his favorite haunts and he picked up many of his victims there!
I used to keep journals and my night at Club 219 coincided with the stalking and murdering timeline. He very well could have been lurking in the corner that night I was totally wasted!
#10 VANESSA WILLIAMS TURNING OVER HER MISS AMERICA CROWN (JULY 1984)
It was a beautiful night in 1983 when Vanessa Williams became the first Black Miss America.
It was a very sad day in the summer of 1984, when the 21-year-old turned over her crown after artistic (and unauthorized) nude pictures surfaced in Penthouse. (Even as a gay boy, I bought the magazine to see what the fuss was all about!)
Another admission: I was saddened and cried watching this press conference! I was hoping that she’d fight to keep her crown and tell the Miss America pageant to “f*ck off”, but that didn’t happen!
But, Vanessa has gone on to a very successful singing and acting career with numerous Grammy, Emmy, and Tony Award nominations!
As a bonus, my favorite Vanessa Williams song!
Here’s my blog from earlier in 2020 dedicated just to Vanessa! (It’ll open in a new window.)
Along with the events that impacted my first 35 years, I’m sharing my 35 favorites songs from those 35 years!*
Casey Kasem is my inspiration. I still recall all the weekends I spent listening to Casey count down the 40 biggest songs in America!
As I compiled my comprehensive list, it started out with 236 of my favorites!!!
As a teenager, I remember telling my grandmother Helen that a certain song was my “favorite” and she replied, “they’re all your favorites”!
But, when I was a youngster, there could only be one winner!
So here goes… enjoy the countdown and the videos!
#35 “GLORIA” (LAURA BRANIGAN) (1982)
#34 “SUGAR SUGAR” (THE ARCHIES) (1969)
#33 “LIZZIE AND THE RAINMAN” (TANYA TUCKER) (1975)
#32 “YOU ARE” (LIONEL RICHIE) (1983)
#31 “NEVER SURRENDER” (COREY HART) (1985)
MORE EVENTS THATSHAPED MY FIRST 35 YEARS
#9“JOHN WAYNE GACY’S CHICAGO MURDER SPREE (1970s)
Just before Christmas 1978, John Wayne Gacy was arrested in Des Plaines, Illinois (near Chicago), for the murder of 15-year-old Robert Piest.
During his confession, police would learn there were many other bodies.
Gacy is known to have killed, at least 33 young men and boys. Of those, 26 were buried in the crawl space of his home!
When the news of this serial killer broke, I was a 14-year-old gay boy living in western Kentucky, just six hours away.
This had a very chilling effect on me since I was the same age as some of his victims. I couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that people could kill others just for the thrill of it!
#8 KAREN CARPENTER’S DEATH (1983)
Karen and Richard Carpenter were on “top of the world” in the 1970s topping the chart with their amazing melodies and her incredible voice.
After years of battling anorexia nervosa, the music world was shocked on February 4, 1983, when Karen died of a heart attack. The years of starvation had destroyed her body.
Karen’s battle with an eating disorder brought that subject to the forefront for America. I know the awareness has saved many lives.
#7 AIDS EPIDEMIC (FROM THE SUMMER OF 1981 TO NOW)
For almost 30 years from the 1980s through the early-2010s, I strongly despised, even hated, President Ronald Reagan.
In the summer of 1981, a new “gay cancer” (it would be called AIDS later) was attacking and quickly killing homosexuals in alarming numbers.
However, President Reagan didn’t mention the deadly disease publicly until a press conference in 1985. And, it’d be six years into the AIDS pandemic (1987) before he gave his first speech on AIDS — after more than 20,000 Americans had already died!
What a terrifying time for a 16-year-old boy that wasn’t even sexually active yet.
Four decades later, by the grace of God, I’m still HIV-negative, but I have friends that are positive and I’ve know people that have died of AIDS.
Thankfully, we now have drugs, when taken properly, make it impossible to spread the virus!
National Institute of Health: “U=U means that people living with HIV who achieve and maintain an undetectable viral loadāthe amount of HIV in the bloodāby taking and adhering to antiretroviral therapy (ART) as prescribed cannot sexually transmit the virus to others.”
#6 “HALLOWEEN IN HOUSTON” & ELECTING BILL & HILLARY CLINTON (1992)
My first time on a plane was in October 1992 when I flew to Houston to celebrate Halloween with my friends Steve and Dennis.
There were so many amazing costumes in the big city including 1992 presidential candidate Ross Perot!!!
That pretty much summarizes the PG version of our nights on Montrose in the gay district.
There are many more scandalous pictures of that trip elsewhere in my blog’s history, including ones of yours truly!
Remember I was in my carefree 20s and it was before Facebook!!! š
Clearly, there was boob admiration going on here between the two of us — he won!
Since my outfit was rather risque, I didnāt drink much that night and maybe that was a good thing! š
However, after an intoxicating Sunday night with vodka cranberries, we flew back to Kentucky Monday and on Tuesday, I cast my first vote for the Clintons, which sent them to the White House for what would turn out to be eight years! š
Now, back to the countdown!
#30 “MERRY CHRISTMAS DARLING” (THE CARPENTERS) (1970)
#29 “SOS” (ABBA) (1975)
#28 “DREAMS” (GABRIELLE) (1993)
#27 “YOU MAKE MY DREAMS” (DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES) (1981)
#5 THE DEATH OF MY FIRST IDOL — MY GRANDFATHER (1978)
My first two idols in life were my my mother, Dessie, and my grandfather, John Henry Peoples.
Sadly, my life with my grandfather was cut short since I had just become a teenager when he died in early 1978.
Iāll never forget his last Christmas as he was dying from colon cancer, it was remarkable how he stayed in good spirits.
Iāll always cherish the weekends we spent together at Kentucky Lake camping out and fishing. Also, all of the memories of just piddling around in the back yard and in his work garage remain vividly clear in my mind. He made me feel loved and appreciated.
I never really liked the taste of beer. But, as a kid, it was so cool that he would let me suck the suds off his beer cans when heād open them.
Maybe itās because of the suds that Iāve now moved on to bubbly champagne as an adult (along with vodka and wine)!
When I finally get to heaven, I canāt wait to say “thank you” and let him know how much I idolized him. I know, as a kid, I never told him.
There was also talk that I was almost named after my father. Iām grateful that I wasnāt. However, it would have been an honor to have been a “John Henry” Junior!
#4 JIMMY CARTER BECOMING PRESIDENT (1976)
In November 1976, as a 12-year-old boy in Kentucky, I cast my first presidential vote for the Democratic candidate Jimmy Carter, and four years later, at 16, I voted for him again.
So, you might be thinking, thatās impossible. Many things go on in Kentucky that arenāt talked about in other states, but kids still can’t vote.
Well, since my Grandmother Helen was not very literate, I accompanied her into the voting booth and I got to vote for the candidates of my choice. Even then, I knew what I was doing. š
Now, you might be thinking, why Carter? Maybe it was because he was a Southerner and he talked like me! Iām kidding. I just liked him.
At age 12, I didnāt know anything about “gay rights”, but then again, there was no such thing as “rights” for those kind of people in the mid-1970s!
While Carter was a deeply committed Christian that taught Sunday school and prayed several times a day, he was the first president to address gay rights and his administration was the first to meet with gay rights activists. He was opposed to the Briggs Initiative in California that would have banned gays from teaching in public schools.
In the summer of 2017, while living in Panama City, Florida, I drove through the darkness of night and across the backwoods of the Southeast to hear President Carter give a sermon at his church in Plains, Georgia, and I got to meet my idols, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter!
#3 MY DECADE LONG STRUGGLE WITH BULIMIA (1986-1995)
Over the years, Iāve written many times about eating disorders from Karen Carpenterās anorexia nervosa to my own battle with bulimia.
Just know that eating disorders affect men and women, girls and boys, the young and the elderly!
I wrote, “In early 1995, I was down to 116 pounds and I thought I was fatā¦ Iām still obsessed with weight gains and losses, eating too much, and fighting the urge to binge and purge.”
Another time I shared, “ā¦ I fight the food demon of overeating every day. A few pounds to the average person is a huge burden, a catalyst for insecurity, and a path for destruction to a food addict.”
While I was a practicing bulimic for nine years from 1986-1995, I got my act together for more than two decades.
Beyond the scope of this blog, I’ve fallen off the wagon a few times and then I just get up and start over again!
Like other addictions, it’s a daily struggle and not something that’ll just go away.
Let the countdown roll on….
#20 “AIN’T EVEN DONE WITH THE NIGHT” (JOHN COUGAR MELLENCAMP) (1981)
#19 “DIM ALL THE LIGHTS” (DONNA SUMMER) (1979)
#18 “ON MY OWN” (PATTI LaBELLE & MICHAEL McDONALD) (1986)
“ON MY OWN” (REBA McENTIRE, MARTINA McBRIDE, TRISHA YEARWOOD, & LINDA DAVIS) (1995)
#17 “NO FRILLS LOVE” (JENNIFER HOLLIDAY) (1985)
#16 “I AM WOMAN” (HELEN REDDY) (1972)
#15 “TWO OF HEARTS” (STACEY Q) (1986)
#14 “FASCINATED” (COMPANY B) (1987)
#13 “I LOVE MY RADIO” (TAFFY) (1986)
#12 “TOP OF THE WORLD” (THE CARPENTERS) (1973)
#11 “MISSING YOU” (JOHN WAITE) (1984)
“TAINTED LOVE” (SOFT CELL) (1982)
“WE DON’T HAVE TO TAKE OUR CLOTHES OFF” (JERMAINE STEWART) (1986)
“ONE PROMISE TOO LATE” (REBA McENTIRE) (1987)
“OH L’AMOUR” (ERASURE) (1986)
“DON’T YOU WANT ME” (THE HUMAN LEAGUE) (1981)
“HARPER VALLEY P.T.A.” (JEANNIE C. RILEY) (1968)
“ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU” (MARIAH CAREY) (1994 ORIGINAL)
“ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU” (MAKE MY WISH COME TRUE EDITION) (MARIAH CAREY) (2019)
EVENTS THATSHAPED MY FIRST 35 YEARS
#2 MOVING TO CHICAGO (1994) & KICKING OFF MY TV CAREER (1996)
In November 1993, my grandmother Helen (the last of my living parents and grandparents) died.
I was still in my hometown helping to take care of her and since Tammy was young and had her own family, I had no reason to stay in Kentucky any longer.
I often wondered “Is There Life Out There?” (the title of a huge Reba McEntire song in 1992), and I struggled through the 1993 holidays and the early winter months of 1994.
In the spring of 1994, my friend Steve shared with me the PBS series, “Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the Cities” and Mary Ann Singleton (Laura Linney) became my inspiration to make a change in my life!
Over Memorial Day 1994, Steve, Dennis, and I went to Chicago to party for the weekend and we had a blast.
At Gentry’s on Rush, the owner started sending over free cocktails and the boys (and the music) were so hot!
It was there that I fell in love with “Dreams” by Gabrielle (back at #28) and Sarah Brightman’s “Once in a Lifetime” from the “Dive” album!
It was also that weekend that I decided I was moving to Chicago!
Six weeks later, over the Fourth of July weekend, I moved to the big city and it was the best decision I ever made!
It was an interesting two years — bartending in a country gay bar, meeting a psycho on my 30th birthday that ended up trying to kill me several times, and then meeting someone that would become my longest relationship (9 years).
It was also during my first residency in Chicago that my television news career took off in the spring of 1996. My first network-affiliated television weather job was in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, that summer. And, from there, jobs in Texas, Ohio, Maryland, Illinois, Florida, and Minnesota followed!
#1 MY MOTHER’S DEATH (NOVEMBER 7, 1990)
My beautiful, wonderful mother, Dessie, died of a heart attack on the morning of November 7, 1990.
While I’ve lived more than half of my lifetime without her, I’m grateful for the 26 years we had together.
She was there to see me make my theatrical stage debut in āThe Curious Savageā and saw me present weather at Murray State Universityās television station that was only broadcast on cable systems in two cities.
My mother was there in the spring of 1989 when I became the first college graduate in our family.
One of the funniest stories I have of my mother happened in the spring of 1990. I took her to Sunday brunch at 101st Airborne in Nashville, Tennessee.
She didnāt drink, but her champagne glass was empty every time the server came by and mine was always full since I kept switching glasses with her. Iām sure the waitress thought Dessie was such a lush and I was so innocent allowing my mother to drink so freely while I just sipped my champagne! š
There have been so many times over the past 30 years that I’ve wanted to grab the phone to share something with her and then realize that I couldnāt do it!
As I reflect back on my life with my mother, I was so fortunate to be loved. She wasnāt just my mother — she was my biggest supporter, she was my rock, and she was my friend!
When I think of all of the things I wrote about today and not having a chance to talk to her about them, I can still smile and feel warm inside.
I know that my mother is with me — in my heart and in my memories!
P.S. The #38 song at the bottom of the blog was played at my mother’s funeral!
To quote Casey again, back to the countdown because “we don’t stop until we get to the top!”
“XANADU” (OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN) (1980)
“IMAGINE” (JOHN LENNON) (1971)
“LET IT BE” (THE BEATLES) (1970)
Casey, take us home, “Keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars!”
I appreciate you taking time to check out my fun little walk down memory lane.
Anthony
*Okay, since I ā¤ļøā¤ļøā¤ļø LISTS & COUNTDOWNS, I’m really sharing my 104 favorites and a bonus song (the first 45 I ever bought as a kid, “Delta Dawn” by Helen Reddy!
104“DELTA DAWN” (HELEN REDDY) (1973)
#103“SO MANY MEN, SO LITTLE TIME” (MIQUEL BROWN) (1983)
#102 “LOVE WILL KEEP US TOGETHER” (THE CAPTAIN & TENNILLE) (1975)
#101 “DREAM WEAVER” (GARY WRIGHT) (1975)
#100 “KISS AN ANGEL GOOD MORNIN'” (CHARLEY PRIDE) (1971)
#99“OBJECT OF MY DESIRE” (STARPOINT) (1985)
#98 “THIS TIME I KNOW IT’S FOR REAL” (DONNA SUMMER) (1989)
That means this horrible year is almost over and the dreadful 2020 presidential election will (hopefully) be behind us soon!
Thank you for taking the time to check out my “Random Friday Thoughts”!
SEASONS IN THE SUN
š¶Summer loving, had me a blastš¶… blah blah blah… bring on the holidays ššš¦šš š¤¶!
It’s now officially “meteorological fall”, the three months (September, October, and November) between the hottest and coldest months of the year.
Big changes will be coming in the weather across Central Illinois. Check out the temperature drop over the next three months with average highs — from 85Ā° to 45Ā°!!!
And, on Monday, Labor Day marks the “unofficial end of the summer”!
Here’s the countdown to fall and the holidays (as of today, 9/4/20).
KYLIE MINOGUE ā¤ļø ME!
I’ve been a Kylie Minogue fan since the 1980s and a super fan since 2001’s “Fever” album.
“All The Lovers” is one of the most amazing songs and videos of the past 20 years and the “Golden” album is phenoemenal.
The video to her latest hit, “Say Something”, from the upcoming “Disco” album (November 6, 2020), is mind-blowing and I just can’t stop watching it. It just makes me smile!
I finally got a reply back from Kylie, so now I can just retire from Twitter! š
If you’re not one of the 4.7 million views of “Say Something”, take three minutes and make yourself happier in time for the weekend!
Here’s the video!
“PARASITE”
I finally got around to seeing the “Best Picture” winner at this year’s Oscars and it definitely deserves the top prize.
Worldwide, it has brought in $257.5 million on an $11 million dollar budget!
While Bong Joo-ho’s “Snowpiercer” was my #14 movie I saw in 2014, it’s not even in the same league as this incredible film!!!
And, what’s shocking is that the two young leads in the movie are almost 30 years old and could easily pass as teenagers! WOW!
GRADE: A
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
CONGRATULATIONS & WELCOME TO THE FAMILY
I can’t wait to see the fourth and final season of “Claws” and see what fantabulously gorgeous Desna Simms and her insane posse!
But, that can wait. I’m blown away by not on the fact that the amazing Niecy Nash just came out, but she also introduced the world to her new wife, singer Jessica Betts.
And, you know how much I love desserts, look at this amazing cake!
Congratulations and best wishes Niecy and Jessica! ā¤ļøā¤ļøā¤ļøā¤ļø
OVERSHARING?
And, since we’re talking weddings and wedding cakes, I was married in a former life.
This was my fall wedding cake.
While not as dreamy as Niecy and Jessica’s, it was beautiful!
BRING IT ON MARIAH CAREY!
2020 is turning out to be the year of Mariah Carey.
At the end of the month (September 29), she’ll be releasing her new autobiography, “The Meaning of Mariah Carey”.
Days later, on October 2nd, a new double album called “The Rarities” arrives!
And, this holiday season, Apple+ will be airing “Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas Special”.
Billboard magazine says this about the exclusive holiday event, “It is being described as an āinnovative specialā that will mix music, dancing and animation ādriven by a universally heartwarming story that brings the world together.”
So, basically, it sounds like a great substitute to her annual “All I Want For Christmas is You” show.
I saw it in Las Vegas in December 2017 and it was the most magical 90-minutes of my life!
SPEAKING OF (SCARY) CHRISTMAS
I finished watching the creepy second season of “NOS4A2”, which was cancelled by AMC this week.
While I enjoyed the series and I’m now going to read Joe Hill’s book that the series is based on, I had already made up my mind that if it had been renewed for a third season, I was already done with it!
So long, Christmasland and Charlie Manx!
“A WOMAN IN CHARGE”
I read Carl Bernstein’s 2007 mammoth 916 page tome (large print) this summer.
Things I learned from the book:
One of Hillary’s mother, Dorothy Rodman’s (in her 70s at the time) favorite movies was 1994’s “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert” — one of my all-time favorite movies about three drag queens on a cross country trip of Australia.
During the 1992 presidential run, in a Chicago coffee shop, NBC News correspondent Andrea Mitchell asked Hillary a question about her working at a law firm that had clients that did business with the state (where Bill was governor) and her answer became the soundbite of the day, “I suppose I could have stayed home, baked cookies, and had teas…”
It came across as condescending to housewives and stay at home moms.
What didn’t get press was the complete quote, “I suppose I could have stayed home, baked cookies, and had teas. The work that I’ve done as a professional, as a public advocate, has been aimed in part to assure that women can make the choices that they should make — whether it’s a full-time career, full-time motherhood, some combination, depending on what stage of life they are at — and I think that is still difficult for people to understand right now, that it is a generational change.”
“Later, Jackie [Kennedy] told friends that of all of her successors as first lady, she was most fond of Hillary.”
About Whitewater, Bernstein says the New York Times and others reporting on the matter “were often contextually misleading, exaggerated in significance, and sometimes factually off-base.”
At another point in the book, Bernstein writes that the “Whitewater story” was “overblown” from the start and that the New York Times stories and editorials during the 1992 campaign were “increasingly long on innuendo, short on context, and in some important ways unfair to the Clintons.”
But, he adds, “The Clintons’ response was not straight-forward, and served only to create more suspicion.”
And, about Hillary’s 2000 successful run for U.S. Senate: “No woman had ever won office in New York in a statewide race.”
“LITTLE”
I finally watched the 2019 comedy “Little”.
It’s about Jordan (Regina Hall), a bully of a boss at her own tech company (she was bullied a kid in school) and her put upon assistant, April (Issa Rae).
Jordan is rude to a little girl who practices magic and is put under a spell.
She wakes up her as a youngster again to go through her childhood years in today’s time period with her current adult mindset.
Rae is so funny that now I’m going to check out her critically acclaimed HBO series, “Insecure”. (She’s also nominated for an Emmy this year in the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series category.)
GRADE: B-
THATāS IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
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