Saturday 9: Valentine

Saturday 9: Valentine (1993)
 
Unfamiliar with this week’s tune? Hear it here.

This song was specially chosen for the Saturday 9 closest to Valentine’s Day.

1) This is a love song written by Willie Nelson for his young son. Have you sent any Valentines this year to someone you love who isn’t a romantic partner? The only time I really do this is with funny Internet Valentines. I share those with whoever I think would appreciate them.

2) Today that little boy, Lukas, is a singer/songwriter who wrote eight of the songs for the 2018 A Star Is Born soundtrack. Have you seen the Bradley Cooper/Lady Gaga big screen romance? I haven’t, but I do want to.

3) On Valentine’s Day in 1876, Alexander Graham Bell patented the first telephone. Who did you most recently speak to on the phone? The woman from my eye doctor, calling to tell me my contacts were in.

4) Penicillin was also introduced on Valentine’s Day (in 1929). When you get a shot, do you look away when the needle touches your skin? Yeah, it does freak me out a little bit. Not so bad that I can’t handle it, but enough that I don’t want to see it.

5) According to legend, a gift of red roses signifies love and romance. When did you last purchase flowers or plants? Did you buy them for yourself, or someone else? I don’t know, it’s been a while. They were most likely for someone else.

6) This week’s artist, Willie Nelson, can trace his family tree back to the Revolutionary War. Captain John Nelson served with the Minutemen back in 1776. If you could go back in time to witness any great moment in American history, which would you choose? Could I just hop around to concerts?

7) Before he became a musical success, Willie was a door-to-door salesman, peddling first Bibles, then vacuum cleaners. INC magazine tells us that the traits of successful salespeople include resilience and good listening skills. Do you think you’d make a good sales person? Just based on those two traits, yes, but not a single thing about that job appeals to me. I’d hate it.

8) In 1993, when this song came out, Saved by the Bell aired its series finale. Crazy Sam likes to tease her brother because he once admitted to her that he has seen all 86 episodes of this teen sitcom. Is there a show that you believe you’ve seen every episode? Oh, there are a few, especially now in the streaming age. I’ve seen every episode of Lost and The X-Files, for sure, and a few others I’ve watched on Netflix over the years.

9) Random question — We’re having milkshakes! What’s your favorite flavor? Strawberry, but depending on what I’m in the mood for, I could go for chocolate.

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Friday 5: QoTD

1. What kind of drunk are you? Chatty, generally more outgoing. I loosen up some and am more open to things like dancing and karaoke, and I’ll probably tell you anything you want me to.
2. What’s one of your language-related pet peeves? “Could of” instead of “could have.” You’re wrong. And then someone once tried to tell me that it was their “local dialect.” No, it’s isn’t. You’re confusing the contraction of “‘ve” with “of,” even though they mean two very, very different things.
3. What would be a good question to ask people you’ve just met, if what you really want to know is what they’re passionate about? You know, an alternative to “What do you do?” or “How do you know so-and-so?” If they could be anywhere in the world doing anything they wanted, where would they go and what would they do? Or if they won the lottery tomorrow–like, a sum so huge that they never had to work again–how would they spend their time? Or even how would they spend the money?
4. When you get home super tired and super hungry, do you usually eat first or sleep first? If I were only a little bit hungry, I’d just go to sleep. If I’m super hungry, though, I have to eat first, because otherwise, I’ll be uncomfortable. I’ll probably fall asleep anyway, but I really won’t like it. Plus if that’s the case, I was probably out and it’s probably late at night, and if I was out and it’s late at night, I need to put on my jammies and take my makeup off, so another few minutes to scarf down a snack isn’t gonna hurt me.
5. You’re taking an exam. You aren’t sure about the answer to question 5, but you know it’s either “lions” or “tigers.” You get to question 11 and realize whatever the answer to 5 is, 11 is the other answer. Do you write “lions” as your answer to 5 and 11, thereby ensuring you’ll get one of them right? Or do you write “lions” for 5 and “tigers” for 11, risking two wrong answers but giving you a chance at two right ones? I probably take my chances putting down two different answers, because even though I know I’ll get one right no matter what, I’ll also be annoyed at putting down two of the same thing. I’m also a born gambler, so it’s a risk I’m okay with.

From Friday 5.

As always, with me working Saturdays for the month, that leaves Sunday as our only day to really do much together over the weekend. This past weekend, we planned to go to a movie…and then I fell asleep for a few hours and ruined that plan. But by the time I woke up, Paul was in the mood for all-you-can-eat sushi, so that’s how we spent our evening.

On the other hand, I do like having Mondays to myself because it gives me the whole day to run errands, make phone calls, and get stuff done. I made it back to the gym after about a week out due to a combination of being a little sick and spending a lot of time at my parents’ house, and I used some of my free time to check out the new coffee shop in the same plaza as the gym. I did some cooking, too–a pretty simple lasagna roll-up recipe, and I took a couple of them over to my parents’ house the next day. I figured either my parents cook divvy them up or my mom could have them for lunch or dinner one evening.

I was back over there Tuesday while they were seeing doctors again, and the mood is a little more optimistic now–I think my dad was expecting to hear his tumor is inoperable or something, but that’s not the case. They do need to treat him with either chemo or radiation before they do surgery, but the doctor sounded pretty confident and my dad’s in better spirits. I think my mom was, too. She seemed to kind of feel like the last round of appointments was bad news on top of bad news, and this appointment wasn’t like that. He can’t see an oncologist until the 25th, though, so there’s no treatment scheduled or even a definite plan yet and that’s frustrating, but at least we know what we’re dealing with now.

So I hung around the house all day Tuesday, and in the evening, Paul and I met up over at his parents’ house for cake for his brother Jonathan’s 17th birthday. Jonathan was 8 when Paul and I first started dating, so…

It was a nice evening. We hung out for a bit before us working adults–which would be the two of us plus Katie and Jacob–had to hit the road and go home to go to bed to get up for work the next day.

So at least for now, I’m expecting some calm. Maybe we’ll make it to a movie this Sunday, and I’ll probably have a normal week or two at work without having to take time off. I’m gonna enjoy that. We’re all staying optimistic, I think, but I don’t expect this to be an easy year, so any time that feels normal is gonna be good.

Saturday 9: Waiting for a Star to Fall

Saturday 9: Waiting for a Star to Fall (1988)

Unfamiliar with this week’s tune? Hear it here.

1) “Waiting for a Star to Fall” was literally inspired by a falling star. The singing/songwriting duo of Boy Meets Girl was at a big, outdoor concert and could have sworn they saw a falling star in the night sky. Have you ever seen a falling star? No, I always manage to just miss them. There have been at least two occasions where I’ve been with other people who have seen one while I wasn’t looking at the sky.

2) They offered this song to Whitney Houston, who declined to record it. Whitney did have hits with two other songs they wrote: “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” and “How Will I Know?” What’s your favorite Whitney song? “I Wanna Dance with Somebody.” I love it so much.

3) Boy Meets Girl were George and Shannon, a husband-and-wife team originally from Seattle, WA. In 2016, Seattle was named America’s most “bike-friendly city.” Do you own a bike? No. I wouldn’t mind getting into biking in nearby parks and trails, but otherwise, there’s no point. I work from home, and although most of the places I go are probably bike-friendly enough to get by, my house is near a lot of hills and back roads, and one in particular leading into to town is a curvy hill that seems like it would be super dangerous to bike, plus a huge pain in the ass. You’d have to be super careful going down, and going up would be exhausting.

4) George and Shannon met for the first time at a wedding. She was a guest, he was in the band. Think of the last wedding present you bought. Was it from the bride and groom’s registry? 99% of the time, I give money. Aside from a bridal shower, the last give I remember taking to a wedding was not from a registry but was a cute little hand-painted set of Christmas ornaments that were personalized. They were for my youngest cousin on my dad’s side.

5) In 1988, when this song was popular, 98% of American homes had a TV set. Today, that figure has dipped to 96%, presumably because Millennials are watching more content online. What’s the last video you watched online? I believe it was Trevor Noah’s take on Liam Neeson’s recent racist comments. I 1,000% agree with what Noah says.

6) In 1988 saw the introduction of one of the most memorable slogans of all time: “Just Do It.” Without looking it up, do you know what brand “Just Do It” promotes? Nike.

7) In 1988, Sonny Bono went from entertainer to Republican politician when he was elected Mayor of Palm Springs. Have you ever met the mayor of your town? Nope.

8) Michael Douglas took home the Oscar in 1988 for his portrayal of Gordon Gekko in the movie Wall Street. The American Film Institute named Gekko one of the “top movie villains of all time.” Do you think bad guys are as interesting as good guys? When they’re well-written–both bad and good guys–yes. It’s easy to make either one too simple, and I think with villains in particular, sometimes it’s like, “This character is evil because I said so and that’s all!” Well-written characters have depth. I love a bad guy whose motivations I understand, and I love a good guy who isn’t perfect.

9) Random question: Have you ever seen a photo of yourself naked? (Baby pictures don’t count.) Just those baby pictures.

Friday 5: Salt Fat Acid Heat

1. What are some very salty foods you enjoy? God, I over-salt everything. Soups, pretzels, Ramen when I still ate it…
2. What areas of your life could stand a little fat-trimming? Debt, but that probably goes for all of us, and it’s a work in progress anyway. My closet because I have way more clothes than I need, but I can tell you I’ll part with a tiny fraction of it. Stuff in general, especially having bought a house last year. There’s the shit from the apartment we don’t need–we still have a lamp surplus–plus my mom took that opportunity to unload junk of mine that was stashed in her basement. So there are all sorts of things lying around that could go.
3. How acid-tongued are you? I can be, but I choose not to be. All in all, though, I think I’m pretty mild, especially compared to how nasty some people can be. I can be biting, but not horrible.
4. What’s an interesting way you’ve burned yourself? I once spilled hot chocolate in my lap as a kid. But now it’s either I’m not waiting for my food to cool down or I used a straightening iron like three times out of the whole year and hurt myself. Or curling iron. Why does someone with natural curls need a curling iron? To make the curls look nice, duh.
5. What are your favorite everyday cooking implements? I don’t think I have one. Could be because I don’t cook enough.

From Friday 5.

So. It turns out that the stomach trouble my dad has been having is cancer.

A tumor, to be specific, where the esophagus meets the stomach. It’s also spread to his lymph nodes, and we’re still waiting on test results to find out if it spread to any other organs.

So over the past week, I’ve spent like four or five days at my parents’ house. I went out last Tuesday night. He had appointments in the morning to figure out what was going on and with snow coming in, my mom figured it made the most sense for them to get a hotel room in Pittsburgh, so I took Wednesday off, drove over Tuesday night, watch Rent live, and essentially dog-sat for the night.

They found out at that appointment about the tumor. I headed home and requested Friday off, then headed back over Thursday night, again, with snow coming in. That Friday appointment revealed the cancer in his lymph nodes.

My mom almost wanted me to stay over again Friday night, but at this point, I’d been over four days in a row and had slept over there two nights, and I kind of wanted to go home.

And I was back again Monday morning anyway while they were getting more tests done.

So things have been…weird. Personally, I don’t think it’s really hit me yet, but it’s also been a really busy week–it’s easy for something to not feel quite real when you don’t have much time to sit still. I think what I’m thinking about the most is how he must be feeling, especially with the first grandkid on the way.

The whole family dynamic is weird. At home, it’s easy to not forget about it, because it’s certainly on my mind, but it’s not in my face. At my parents’ house, the mood is much more somber. For the most part, aside from the initial evening we first found out, everyone’s been their usual selves, but any time I’ve been over since, I’ve definitely had this feeling of heading into a certain vibe. My mom keeps saying she thinks they’re depressing the dog.

And my dad is, naturally, not quite himself. He kissed me on the head and told me he loved me before they left for his appointment, and I can count on one hand the times either of those things has ever happened. One was when he deployed.

My mom said they’ve both been having their ups and downs. She said they went to his childhood church and Sunday and he broke down in full sobs when he saw one of his friends, and he’s been just generally most sentimental and expressing things in a way he never has.

Like I said, weird.

So there’s still some things we have yet to find out and certainly a long way to go. We’re all hoping for the best.

Saturday 9: Backfield in Motion

Saturday 9: Backfield in Motion (1969)

Unfamiliar with this week’s tune? Hear it here.

1) This week’s Saturday 9 has a football theme because there’s a big game Sunday. Will you be watching? Nope.

2) The Super Bowl is the second-largest day for food consumption in the US, second only to Thanksgiving. What’s on your menu this weekend? Last night, it was the new Chinese buffet in town, and today, it was the Cheesecake Factory.

3) Super Bowl Sunday is the #1 day for consuming guacamole. When did you most recently eat something with avocado in it? I actually had a little bit of guacamole today, but normally, it’s rare. I think avocado is boring and overrated.

4) The Pro Football Hall of Fame is in Canton, OH. Have you ever visited Canton, or any other city in Ohio? I haven’t been to Canton, but I’ve been to Columbus and Cleveland. I live close enough to the Ohio border that it’s not a long drive, and my mom has some family in Ohio.

5) This song mentions different moves that football players — and, it seems, girlfriends — can make that will result in penalties. What’s the last rule you broke? What were the consequences? Eh, probably speeding, and there were no consequences.

6) In 1969, the year this song was popular, the Colts lost to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III. The game is famous because of all the hype leading up to it, including Joe Namath “guaranteeing” his underdog Jets would win. Tell us about a time when you felt like an underdog. Ooh, I don’t know. I mean, there have been a lot of times I’ve felt, like, belittled or small or disregarded, but not necessarily an underdog.

7) This week’s featured duo, Mel and Tim, are cousins from Mississippi. Tell us about one of your cousins. My cousin Meredith lives in Texas now, we send each other pretty great politically themed gifts, and I keep telling her I want to go to visit her and the universe keeps conspiring against that.

8) The song is about a man who catches his girl cheating and he just won’t put up with it. In romance, do you find it easy to forgive and forget? I mean, it depends. With my husband? Almost always, yeah, but that’s also because he’s never done anything so egregious that it was difficult to move past or a dealbreaker. But I think sometimes, the idea of “forgive and forget” is applied when maybe it shouldn’t be, in the sense that some people put up with some pretty big things in the name of love when maybe it’s unhealthy to do so.

9) Random question: You’ve collected a box of gently used items to donate to a second hand store. What would it be most likely to contain: clothes, housewares, or books/video/music? Clothes, hands down. I have tons, and I slowly but surely fill bags of stuff I don’t like or that’s old and doesn’t fit anymore to take to donate or sell on Poshmark. Books, movies, and music rarely leave this house at all, and I often try to sell those, too. I don’t think we’ve ever donated housewares. We’ve never had anything to take, although now that we’re going through things from the move, that may change. A few things are going to siblings, but we have so many unneeded lamps that one or two will surely end up being donated.

Friday 5: Then You Begin to Make it Better Better Better Better Better Better Yeah

1. What’s something you hated as a teen but love today? I can’t think of something for this specifically, but I can tell you that teenage me would have some qualms about adult me’s life right now. I’m not where she would’ve thought by any means, and not even in a bad way, just different. My life isn’t as ~cool and edgy~ as she would’ve hoped, but I’m happy.
2. What’s something you recently dreaded that turned out not too bad? Ugh. Man. Ask me this Monday or Tuesday because right now, things are not going well, and by then, there’s a chance there’ll be a tiny spot of good news. Or…it could just be worse.
3. How do you feel about February as it compares to January? The late winter months here for me are basically like a slow crawl to spring, so I see February as progress. It’s still pretty cold and snowy and we’re certainly not out of the woods as far as that kind of weather goes, but there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.
4. Who among people you know is really making the world a better place? My brother and best friend. They’re both working in the psychology field–she works with kids with behavioral issues, and his current job is working with adults in a sort of assisted-living situation, where normally, they’d need hospitalized but are in a program that allows them to live independently.
5. In what way is today better than yesterday? So, as one could guess from #2, there’s some shit going on that’s not good–health issues with my dad. We found out Wednesday and it was surprising. Yesterday, we got a little bit more information, and there’s still more to learn on Monday, where we’ll have a better idea of the scope of things. I’ve been at my parents’ house every day since Tuesday, mostly going over one day, spending the night, going home the next day, then heading back the next, mostly to help out with things. Today was the first time I was in my own home the whole day. I’ll talk more about it eventually, maybe soon, but for starters, it felt more like a normal day, and besides that, the dynamic right now is weird. It’s like…being there, I’m in the middle of everything and there’s just kind of a certain vibe right now, whereas at home, it’s not staring me in the face so much. It’s not like it’s all magically different or better or I’m forgetting all about what’s going on when I’m home, but it’s like there’s no elephant in the room.

From Friday 5.

Saturday evening, we ran some errands–hair trims for both of us, since I can’t get to Emily for another two months thanks to working Saturdays in February, and a trip to the outlets for something my mom was looking for. From there, it was into Pittsburgh.

Earlier in the day, there was a nasty, tragic accident on the parkway. Two men were killed after being thrown off of a ramp and down onto a street below, where they were both hit by another car. Authorities think one man had car trouble and the other stopped  to help, and then a third came and either didn’t see them until it was too late or was going too fast. The men were either thrown from the ramp or were standing between their two cars and jumped to get out of the way. Hours had passed by the time we were going through, but there was a police barricade blocking the ramp to that stretch of the parkway, and although it looked like ay traffic had been cleared, we could still see the lights from the police cars along the stretch where it happened. I think everyone becomes kind of immune to reacting to car accidents, but it was tough to drive by the lights and barricades and not feel horrible for the men killed, their families, and the other drivers involved.

We met up with Chelsea and her friends for her roommates’ birthday at the same bar we went with them to for New Year’s. Katie and Jacob came out this time, too, and we had a nice evening of hanging out, drinking, and meeting a good number of new people, and everyone hit it off really well. Paul moved away from me at one point to the other end of the table to talk to one of Chelsea’s friends about meditation and tai chi and chakras, and I looked at Katie and went, “This is the kind of hippie shit people expect from me.” And there was a little talk of politics, with most of us being on the same side of things, and a little talk of sexism and social issues.

The place didn’t serve food, although we brought in pizzas from down the street, and Katie wanted ice cream, so as things were dying down, Paul and I went with her and Jacob to the closest Primanti Bros. because they’re open late. Turns out not all Primantis serve dessert. In retrospect, we should’ve looked for a Mad Mex, as they have ice cream and are open late, or an Eat ‘N’ Park, which, like Primanti’s, is easily found and open late.

Sunday, we thought about heading out to Row House for a screening of Metropolis, but neither of us was super into the idea of going out–Paul said he could be talked into going, and I said I could be talked out of going. So we decided to skip it, as much as that movie is on both of our lists of must-sees. But it also pops up at Row House often enough, so I’m sure we’ll get another chance to see it in the not-too-distant future.

Saturday 9: My Favorite Things

Saturday 9: My Favorite Things (2018)
 
Unfamiliar with this week’s tune? Hear it here.

1) This week’s artist, Jennie Abrahamson, is very happy living in Stockholm, but she refers to Paris as “a flirt.” She enjoys her time there so much she always wants to return. Is there a place you’ve visited that tugs at your heart and imagination, tempting you to return? New York City. It’s been a good several years since I visited, but I always loved it and felt like I could live there.

2) Jennie has said her music has been heavily influenced by 80s pop, which was popular in her early teen years. Are your favorite songs the ones you listened to when you were growing up? Some of them. My parents raised me on the music from their teens, and I still love that. As for what I discovered and fell in love with on my own as a teenager, some of it I kind of got tired of and have left behind, some I still love–and sometimes there’s a middle ground, where I forget about something for a long time and then re-discover it.

3) “My Favorite Things” is from The Sound of Music. Crazy Sam’s high school claim to fame was playing Sister Margaretta in the senior class production. Though not a big part, her performance lives on because relatives love embarrassing her with pictures of her in an especially unflattering nun’s habit. Who took an embarrassing photo of you? What were you doing? There’s a very unflattering photo, or was, of me asleep on our flight home from Mexico.

4) The lyrics celebrate “brown paper packages tied up in strings.” What was in the last box you received in the mail? I believe it was a cat necklace I bought on Etsy. If not, it was clothes. Can’t remember what came on what day.

5) It mentions doorbells and sleighbells. What’s the most recent bell or alarm that you heard? Probably the bell in professional wrestling I had to watch at work on Friday.

6) This song has nice things to say about cold weather, specifically snowflakes and mittens. What do you like about winter? Snow is pretty. That’s it.

7) Dog bites and bee stings are singled out as things that can leave us feeling sad. What’s most recently given you the blues? A funeral.

8) In 2018, when this song was released, Roger Federer won the Australian Open. Are you good with a racket? Nope.

9) Random question — Your local zoo announced the hatching of three snowy owlets. All males. You won the honor of naming them. Go ahead. Harry Potter names are the obvious choice. You could go with Harry, Ron, and Hermione, or Hedwig and two other owl names from the books.