Saturday 9

Saturday 9: Kung Fu Fighting (1974)

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

1) Have you ever taken a martial arts class? Nope. Interestingly, though, my two most serious relationships were with devotees. One was a brown belt, the other made it to a lower stripe of black. The brown belt bragged about his expertise more than the one who was more successful. I didn't even know he was a black belt until I found some of his trophies in the laundry room while I was looking for dryer sheets. I think there's a lesson in there somewhere.

2) In this song, Carl Edwards sings about funky Chinatown. Many cities – including San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Vancouver, London and Antwerp – have a Chinatown. Have you ever visited Chinatown? Not in decades. My favorite uncle used to take me every summer when I was a kid, but I haven't gone back on my own. My late friend John and I were "gonna go" since he and I had each separately made friends with deep ties to the Chinatown community and it might be fun to arrange a visit for the four of us. But as often with me and John, we'd start to make plans and abandon them when they seemed too complicated. What if my friend and his friend don't like each other? John and I were retired but our friends weren't, so would we have to go on a Saturday when it's busy? You do realize it's an extra bus ride, don't you? John and I shared both laziness and a fondness for just hanging out together, blabbing and drinking and arguing over whether to order entrees or just split a couple appetizers. I miss those lazy evenings terribly.

 

The gate that welcomes visitors to Chicago's Chinatown

3) Many Chinese restaurants give out fortune cookies. Can you recall one of your fortunes? I seldom get fortunes about my future. I get proverbs, like "an inch of time is an inch of gold."

4) This week's featured artist, Carl Edwards, was born in Jamaica, spent his childhood in the US, and relocated to England. Have you ever lived abroad? Nope.

5) In 1974 he became the first Jamaican to have a #1 hit in the US with this song. Have you been to Jamaica? Nope.

6) When this week's song was on the charts, ABC TV had a hit with the show Kung Fu. Today it's available to stream. Were you a fan? Nope.

7) Also in 1974, the FIFA World Cup was played in West Germany. Have you been following the FIFA World Cup this year? Nope. I'm not especially fascinating today, am I?

8) Two of 1974's most popular toys were popular with adults, too. Would you prefer a Rubik's Cube or a Magic 8 Ball? Magic 8 Ball.

9) Random question: Have you ever cut someone else's hair? Nope.