Saturday 9

Saturday 9: My Sharona (1979)

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

 

1) The Knack's lead singer Doug Fieger wrote this song for his girlfriend, Sharona Alperin. That's Sharona on the record sleeve shown here. Who took the most recent photo of you? One of the other guests at the birthday party I attended a couple weeks ago.

2) Today Sharona Alperin is a realtor in Southern California. (The photo on her website is more demure than the recored sleeve.) She specializes in high-end properties. Have you ever attended an open house, not because you were interested in purchasing the property but because you were curious about the inside? Yes. I didn't realize this was a thing until I visited a coworker who had moved to the Dallas area. He and his wife did this every weekend and invited me to go along. I thought it was a little weird. I mean, I had no intention of moving to Dallas and even if I did, the luxury abode of my dreams would be a high rise with a nice view of the city, not the sprawling suburban behemoths we toured. But when it Rome (or Texas) ...

3) Doug Fieger's brother is Geoffrey Fieger, a prominent attorney in Detroit. Have you ever consulted a lawyer? Yes, regarding my mother's final affairs and my own will.

 

4) The Knack's record producer was Jimmy Miller, who also worked with The Rolling Stones. What's your favorite Rolling Stones song? I'm not a big Rolling Stones fan, but I love this very short (barely 2 mins.) song from the album Tattoo You. Every once in a while you just gotta say what the hell and hang fire.

5) In 1994, more than a decade after its initial release, "My Sharona" became popular with a new audience because it was included on the soundtrack of the movie Reality Bites. What's the most recent movie you watched? The Best of Everything. It's a melodrama from the late 1950s about three girls who come to New York in search of adventure and love. It's soapy and absurdly dated and I love it. 

From an early scene of The Best of Everything. Love Caroline's gloves.

6) President George W. Bush said he loved listening to "My Sharona" on his headphones while riding his bike. Do you often have music on when you exercise? Well, they play music in the yoga studio. I don't like it -- it sounds like wind-chimey spa music -- but it's on and maybe it does relax me.

 

7) In 1979, when this song was popular, the CBS TV show Alice was a hit. It was about a widowed mom who made ends meet working in a diner. Have you ever worked at a restaurant? Nope.

 

8) Also in 1979, the Voyager spacecraft sent back photos of Jupiter and its rings. Without looking it up, can you name all the planets in our solar system? Mercury, Earth, Saturn, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Pluto (or not). How did I do?

9) Random question: If you could erase your most painful day from your memory, would you do it? No. I certainly don't want to relive it, and I'm glad I got past it, but it helped me make me who I am.

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 25

My 2023 happiness icon

Today's Happiness: 22º.

That's how much cooler it was today and oh! It made all the difference in the world!

All my systems -- internet, landline, TV (!) -- were down for a few hours while Xfinity did an upgrade. I took the opportunity to get outside and run errands (the bank and the big grocery store on the other side of town). No way I could have done all that in 100º heat. I feel so fortunate that this gruesome hot wave only lasted two days.

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 24

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Today's Happiness: Easy.

I needed a diversion from all the Trumpy drama. Plus the mercury hit 100º and I'd rather have -10º than that kind of heat. So when my friend Elaine said that she was going to be in my neighborhood on an errand anyway and wanted to meet me for pastrami at the deli around the corner, I was in.

That's one of the things I appreciate about Elaine: doing things with her is easy. It isn't that I don't love my oldest friend, I do. But she hurts my feelings and our relationship is fraught because of her very real emotional/physical issues. 

It made me happy to just enjoy a smoked turkey sandwich and some light, drama-free conversation with Elaine.

 

 

Thursday Thirteen #323

 
About our 13 most recent First Ladies.The role of First Lady fascinates me because it's so undefined. Each woman who has held it has fulfilled it in her own way, and in doing so I think she reveals a great deal about herself and her times.

This list is not meant to be exhaustive. It's just a quick snapshot of how each woman handled her very public role.

1. Jill Biden is the first First Lady to continue at her chosen profession -- teaching at North Virginia Community College -- while living at the White House. She uses her platform as First Lady to advocate for military families.

2. Melania Trump was only the second foreign born First Lady (John Quincy Adams' wife, Louisa, was born in England). Her "Be Best" campaign advocated against cyber bullying.

3. Michelle Obama was our first African American First Lady. She concentrated on family health by planting The White House Kitchen Garden (which continues to this day) and introducing Let's Move!, designed to encourage exercise and reduce childhood obesity.

4. Laura Bush is a former grade school teacher and librarian, and, as First Lady, organized the United States' first literary fair. Every year since 2001, The National Book Festival has hosted authors representing a variety of genres and offers programs to encourage young readers. It's free to the public and was held on August 12 this year.

5. Hillary Rodham Clinton concentrated on women's issues. In 1995 she told an audience in Beijing that there is no reason to exclude women from any discussion of human rights because "women's rights are human rights." She also wrote the best-seller, It Takes a Village, about the positive impact influences outside the immediate, biological family can have on children.

6. Barbara Bush embraced her image as America's Grandmother. She promoted childhood literacy by hosting a syndicated radio program called Mrs. Bush's Storytime during which she read children's books. She also wrote a popular children's book about the White House dog, Millie's Book. It reached #1 on the New York Times best-seller list and proceeds were donated to a literacy non-profit.

7.  Nancy Reagan is best known for "Just Say No." She maintained the first step to solving a problem is understanding it, so she focused on educating young people about drugs and the dangers of drug abuse.

8. Rosalyn Carter consciously eschewed glamor. The dress she wore to the Inaugural Ball was the same one she wore to the Atlanta balls when her husband Jimmy was elected governor. While she was First Lady, the White House Christmas Tree was decorated by school children with pine cones and home made egg shell ornaments. She also worked to remove the stigma attached to mental illness, saying it should be regarded as a health care issue, without moral judgement.

9. Betty Ford was the first divorcee to be First Lady. Known for her candor, she openly discussed her mastectomy in the hopes it would reassure other women. Like Hillary Clinton, she is perhaps better remembered for her work after leaving the White House, when she founded The Betty Ford Center for the treatment of alcohol and drug addiction.

10. Pat Nixon excelled at what she called "personal diplomacy." In 1969, she became the first First Lady to visit a combat zone when she went to Vietnam. She traveled alone and in non-campaign-related visits to 39 of the 50 states. She also went overseas without her husband to Guam, India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Pakistan, Romania, and England. She insisted on a small entourage to save taxpayers money.

11. Lady Bird Johnson was a millionaire in her own right. Thanks to savvy investments in radio stations, she was our most financially independent and successful First Lady. As First Lady, she was involved in ecology and beautification. She was responsible for the planting of literally millions of flowers around Washington DC and even more with the 1965 Highway Beautification Act.

12. Jacqueline Kennedy is the one who started all this. Shortly after entering the White House she announced that she was concentrating on restoring it. Ever since, First Ladies have been expected to declare what their signature initiative would be. Though her legacy cast a long shadow across her successors, Jackie wasn't crazy about the title "First Lady." She preferred to be called, "Mrs. Kennedy." She wanted the public to remember that she was the mother to two very young children (Caroline was 3 and John was an infant when she moved into the White House) and they were her priority.

13. Mamie Eisenhower made the White House festive again. Because of the Depression and World War II, the traditional White House Easter Egg Roll had been suspended. She brought it back in 1953. Similarly she welcomed the press to see how the White House was once again being decorated for Christmas and Halloween. State dinners were colorful again, too, with lots of pink flowers on the tables. (Mamie liked pink.)

Please join us for THURSDAY THIRTEEN. Click here to play along, and to see other interesting compilations of 13 things.

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 23

My 2023 happiness icon

Today's Happiness: I can't choose!

I didn't expect today to be such a happy day, but it was. So much goodness, so unanticipated, that I can't choose just one.

a. My annual escrow analysis came in and not only will I be paying a little less every month, soon I'll be receiving a check for the overpayment! This makes me feel better about the economy -- my personal budget and the nation's.

b. My first-ever Social Security check was direct deposited. I put much of it into my savings account, bolstering my dental work fund and life/long term care insurance funds. It's such a relief to know that, when those bills inevitably come due, I won't have to touch my retirement funds to cover them.

c. I went to the doctor today for my annual physical. First of all, I just adore her and her office staff. Secondly, my bloodwork came back pretty close to normal in all areas. Not bad for an old broad.

d. Anthony Rizzo was photographed at Yankee Stadium this afternoon with a bat in hands. He was cleared by his neurologist to hit off the tee. On the one hand, it breaks my heart that an All-Star and World Series Champion is playing tee-ball like a pre-schooler. On the other hand, it's progress and done after consultation with a specialist. It makes me happy to anticipate him well again.

I'd know my lefty anywhere

   

WWW.WEDNESDAY

WWW. WEDNESDAY asks three questions to prompt you to speak bookishly. To participate, and to see how other book lovers responded, click here. 

PS I can no longer participate in WWW.WEDNESDAY via that link because her blog won't accept Blogger comments. I mention this only to save you the frustration I experienced trying to link up.

1. What are you currently reading? Jackie: Public, Private, Secret by J. Randy Taraborrelli. Oh, I don't know why I'm reading this. I guess it's because whenever I hear about a new Jackie book I break into a trot, like a fire horse who hears the bell. J. Randy Taraborrelli is a popular, though not terribly respected, biographer who tends to treat the Kennedy family like celebrities, not historic figures, so I don't have terribly high hopes for this one. Yet I here I am!

 

It has started out promisingly, though. First Taraborrelli recounts his own dealings with Doubleday book editor Jacqueline Onassis. It's ironic since they are discussing his biographies of Diana Ross and why the second one was a better seller. Easy: it's more revealing and juicier. To hear one of the 20th century's most private women admit this so casually is jaw dropping. But, since it happened to Taraborrelli personally I don't doubt it happened. Plus her Doubleday coworkers recall her as a good teammate who appreciated the business side of publishing, so it squares.

Then it segues into John Warnecke's final memory of Jackie. It's 1994 and she knows she's dying. Warnecke was her lover for a short time, and now they're saying goodbye forever. Together they burned some of her personal correspondence in her fireplace. She was aware of her place in history and wouldn't destroy anything she wrote in her role as First Lady. But she didn't want her fame posthumously encroaching on the privacy of those who wrote to her. This, too, seems similar to the story told by Jackie's lifelong friend, Nancy Tuckerman, to biographer William Kuhn. 

 

So maybe this won't be a tawdry, trashy waste of my time after all. But I admit I'm still a little skeptical.

2. What did you recently finish reading? Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover. Tate Collins moves to a new city and stays with her big brother for a while until she gets settled. Pilot Miles Archer is her brother's neighbor and friend. They are instantly attracted, but neither of them is prepared for a relationship. Tate is juggling her busy schedule as an ER nurse with a heavy class load as she continues her education. Miles has a dark secret that has turned him off romance. So they settle for a purely physical relationship.

This book has more sex than I was expecting. Lots and lots of sex. In the shower and on a rug and in the cockpit of a plane and in the car and bent over the dining room table and sometimes even in a bed. At first the sex was sexy. Then it started to read clinically, like a how-to manual. Finally I just got curious about Miles, waiting for him to request a blow job as I've never known a man in real life who never, ever wanted oral sex. (I'm sorry, was that TMI? I'm just trying to emphasize that my mind wandered during the numerous sex scenes.)

It's weird because Hoover's best writing always comes after the sex. She expertly captures Tate's ache as she finds herself falling deeper in love with Miles.

I didn't hate this book. There was a plot twist I couldn't wait to reach and Tate seemed like a nice enough heroine. I just didn't like it. 

 

3. What will read next? I don't know.

 

  

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 22

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Today's Happiness: "We want you!"

So texted my friend Nancy. It was a light-hearted exchange. She wanted to know if I was busy "this weekend." I told her my Sunday was booked but on Saturday, "Nobody wants me. 😢"

I was joking while texting with Nancy but I admit I was feeling a little emotional today, too. Sometimes it feels like my oldest friend is going out of her way to make me feel unimportant. I know rationally she does this unintentionally -- she's doing everything she can to stay afloat while dealing with her very real medical/emotional issues. But still, no one wants to feel incidental.

So while Nancy doesn't realize it, she texted me about Saturday at the perfect time.

  

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 21

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Today's Happiness: Mild sauce on the side.

Today I treated myself to a carry-out chicken lunch. They forgot my cole slaw, but they gave me an extra mild sauce on the side, so I was happy. I don't like the sauce on the chicken, I use it for dipping the fries. 

I learned recently that the mild sauce I love so much is a Chicago thing. So here's a link. 

  

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 20

My 2023 happiness icon

Today's Happiness: Hilary passed her by

I'd been so worried about my oldest friend. She lives in Hesperia, California, which was in the path of Hurricane Hilary.

We talked tonight for several hours and she's not concerned about the storm at all. In fact, she seemed more concerned about her adult daughter's love life. This is such a relief! (That the storm seems to have passed her by, not that her daughter is lovelorn.)

 

Sunday Stealing

STOLEN FROM NED THE DUCK

Name Your Favorite…

Place: The Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field

The good ol' days, when Rizz was here where he belongs

    

Color: Pantone 294, aka Cubbie blue

Smell: I'm partial to cinnamon

Magazine: Online, I like The Athletic. In print, I like Vanity Fair. 

Texture: I like leaves. I touch them gently as I pass leafy bushes.

Thing to do when bored: This.  

    

Precious stone: Are pearls a precious stone?

Animal: I'm a crazy cat lady. This meme made me miss my noisy little man, Reynaldo. Though his operetta would be called, It's Morning Because I Say So.

    

Time in history: The 60s. 1860s or 1960s. Fascinated by them both.

    

Font: Just about anything but courier.

    

Sound: A cat's purr

   

Fruit: It changes: sometime apples, sometimes peaches. I like the taste of banana in smoothies. 

   

Vegetable: Peas.

Store/shop: Target.

    

Quote:

    

Historical figure: John F. Kennedy (the President, not John N. Kennedy, the unfortunately named Louisiana Senator)

    

Letter:  I find the capital L and E are the most fun to write in cursive

    

Memory: It makes me happy to remember taking my nephew to his first MLB game. Now he's a baseball writer!

    

Dessert: I'll have something chocolate.

    

Candy: I'll have something chocolate.

    

Restaurant: There's a deli around the corner I long to return to. They have a really good smoked turkey sandwich.

    

Language: English, because it's the one I know.

    

Thing to learn about: Presidents and First Ladies

    

Thing about yourself: I am a good friend.

August Happines Challenge -- Day 19

My 2023 happiness icon

Today's Happiness: $1.80

That's how much I'll be saving on my electric bill this month. No, it's not much. But that's not the point.

On the 16th, Commonwealth Edison sent those of us participating in the program a notice to reduce our energy consumption during a peak usage time that afternoon. I did. And this morning, I learned my efforts were enough to warrant a discount.

It felt nice to know I helped reduce the stress on our energy grid on a hot August afternoon.  

Saturday 9

 Saturday 9: Michelle (1965)

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

 

1) In this song, Paul McCartney sings to Michelle in French, "Sont des mots qui vont très bien ensemble." Can you say anything else in French? The usual: bonjour, au revoir, merci, oui, non. I wish I had a greater facility with foreign languages, but I don't.

2) Paul admits he that, as a teenager, he'd perform the first few bars at parties to impress girls. It was John Lennon who encouraged him to "turn it into a proper song." Tell us about a time you were glad you took advice from a friend or coworker. "Detach with love." My friend, Patrick, who is also friends with Henry and Reg, has wisely counseled me to not allow myself to get tied up in so many knots over them. Since Henry's TBI, Henry's husband Reg has made so many consequential and unwise decisions and my heart has been broken every way possible. But Patrick is right: I cannot do anything about it except love them. It's hard, because my impulse is to dive in and fix things! But the only one who can change the path they are on is Reg, and no one is helped by me going all tearful and nuts.

 

3) A big Elvis fan, Paul is proud to own the bass that was played on the 1954 recording of "That's Alright, Mama." Tell us about one of your prized possessions. Since we're talking about the fabulous and influential Lads from Liverpool: I have a signed, numbered and framed print of Klaus Voorman's Anthology in my dining room. 

This artwork was converted into the cover of the three Beatles Anthology CDs

4) John was also an Elvis fan and honored The King by naming one of his cats Elvis. Do you share your home with any pets? If so, let us know their names. My little gray and white girlcat is Constance MacKenzie (from Peyton Place) and my massive tuxedo cat, right beside me as I answer these, is Roy Hobbs (from The Natural).

5) John was a heavy smoker who often attempted to quit. He tried hypnosis but that didn't work. Have you ever been hypnotized? Nope

6) George Harrison fell in love with Hawaii and bought a 63-acre estate. If you could take off tomorrow for a vacation to any of our 50 states, which one would you choose? Hawaii has naturally been on mind because of the Maui wildfires. I would love to go there and help in a meaningful way. But, if I was off on a vacation, I think I'd head to California to visit my oldest friend.

6) While Ringo Starr quit signing autographs for fans in 2008, he will donate autographed memorabilia to charity for auction. Have you ever bid on an item at auction? Did you win? I used to bid on eBay auctions. Now eBay more often offers "Buy It Now" at a set price.

 
7) As a young boy, Ringo had a severe case of appendicitis and his appendix was removed. Do you still have your appendix? Yes, though I learned in researching this stuff that nearly 10% of adult Americans don't.

 

8) In 1965 -- before Advil and Tylenol and Aleve -- Americans took aspirin to relieve pain. If we peered into your medicine chest, would we find aspirin? None in my medicine chest. I keep my meds in the kitchen because so many of them go down better with milk. And no, there's no aspirin there.

9) Random question: You're at dinner with a married couple who begins to argue. Would you intercede and try to make peace? Or would you just sit back and mind your own business? Does their argument in any way involve me or something I said? If it did and I could clarify, or help shut it down, I would. Otherwise I would cringingly mind my own business and hope it ended soon.

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 18

Today's Happiness: Carole Lombard Day on TCM Summer Under the Stars.

I adore her. She's beautiful and funny and warm and just an all-around great dame. I've seen two of her movies already today and I may just stay up all night watching more. (The next one, My Man Godfrey, is one of my all-time favorites.)

It's hard to imagine someone as eternally alive as Lombard would be gone at the age of 33. It was January 1942, right after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. She kicked off the nation's first bond drive in Indianapolis, raising $2 million to help the war effort. ($2 million in 1942 would be approx. $35 million today) Then she boarded a plane to go back home to Hollywood, and her husband, Clark Gable. The plane went down near Las Vegas, no survivors.

"She died for her country," said the press release from the Treasury Department. FDR chimed in, "She gave unselfishly of her time and talent to serve her government."

Enjoy 60 seconds of Lombard glamor and charm.

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 17

Today's Happiness: She's a sweetie.

For someone who has no words, my Connie Cat communicates exquisitely. She starts the day by jumping onto my bed and cuddling with me. Oh, how she loves her tummy rubs! When I'm on the computer, usually at the dining room table, she's next to the screen, looking into my eyes, hoping I will do the right thing and get her a snack. Whenever I am on the sofa, she silently appears. No petting required, she just likes being nearby. 

The rest of the time she amuses herself. There are windows to look out, toys to play with, naps to take, and Roy Hobbs to run with and groom. She's a lively girl, and a very sweet one.

Thursday Thirteen #322

Thirteen maladies women can face after 50. Right now, at this moment, as I post this I feel fine. But feeling fine at 65 is something I treasure now, whereas at 30 I took it for granted. My body has experienced wear and tear and I'm not alone. Spinning around the internet I've found experts agree these are issues that commonly plague women over 50.

It can be overwhelming. I feel lucky to have a primary care physician I can talk to about my concerns and I trust if she can't treat me, she'll point me to a specialist who can.

1. Thinning hair. Women over 50 find their hair thins or falls out, which can cause anxiety. No one needs anxiety. If thinning hair bothers you, talk to a dermatologist about possible treatments.

2. Bladder problems. Do you leak? Feel an urgency to go? Struggle to go? Women over 50 frequently experience one of these three. Drink more water and less caffeine.

3.   Obesity. Don't like what your scale reads? You're not alone. Nearly 45% of Americans over 50 can be considered obese.

4.   Hearing loss. Nearly 10% of us deal with this. I'm one of them. I have CC on my TV all the time.

5. Vision problems. Do yourself a favor and get checked for glaucoma and cataracts every year. (I have an appointment in a few weeks.)

6. Back pain. Watch your weight and exercise. Be careful how much you lift and how you lift it.

7.   High blood pressure. Losing weight, limiting salt and stopping smoking can help manage this.

8.   Diabetes. It's estimated 1 in 10 of us will face this over our lifetimes. Four members of my social circle are dealing with it.

9.   Heart disease. While men experience this more than women, it's not like women are immune. Nearly 10% of women over 60 will experience this.

10.   Osteoarthritis. Genetics may play a big part in this one. If you have a family history of osteoarthritis, move more and lose weight.

11.   Osteoporosis: As many as 54 million Americans deal with this and it can to fractures and broken bones. Calcium and Vitamin D are your friends here.

12.   COPD: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Take care of yourself by quitting tobacco.

13. Cancer. For me, this is the scariest one. Genetics play a big part, but you can do yourself a favor by eating better, staying out of the sun, and not smoking.

Please join us for THURSDAY THIRTEEN. Click here to play along, and to see other interesting compilations of 13 things.

  

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 16

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Today's Happiness: Good weather.

Chicago winters build character. We don't get much of a spring here, sliding straight into summer. Chicago summers can be dispiriting affairs, sticky-humid and rainy. 

So I treasure days like today. Not a cloud in the sky. 82º. Made running errands a genuine pleasure.