Saturday 9

Saturday 9: It's So Nice to Be Nice  (to Your Neighbor) – 1947

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

 

1) In this song, Monica Lewis encourages us to greet our neighbors with a smile and a hello. Tell us about one of your neighbors. There's "Encyclopedia Brown" at the end of the hall. Always with the dumb questions! Example: I'm walking toward the backstairs which lead to the dumpsters. I'm carrying a black trash bag. "Where are you going, Gal?" Um ... the dumpsters. Or it's 6:00 PM. I'm heading toward my front door with a pizza box. "Pizza for dinner, Gal?" I know he's lonely and looking for a connection – plus it's so nice to be nice to your neighbor – so I'm always pleasant. But I'd be lying if I said I look forward to our exchanges.

 

2) She reminds us that it's "nice to be nice." Who has recently shown you kindness? We have the best customers at the card shop! Yesterday I was having a terrible time trying to get a woman her rewards points because the register wasn't cooperating. I got the manager on duty involved, but still, no luck. The customer kept saying, "You're fine." I appreciated her patience so much!

 

3) Monica Lewis was born in Chicago, where her mother performed with the Chicago Opera Company. Have you ever been to the opera? Nope.

 

4) Her family moved to New York City, where she attended college by day and worked at radio station WMCA in the evenings to help support her family. Which do you listen to more: the radio or podcasts? I listen to the radio everyday as I shower and do my hair/makeup. But I listen to complete podcasts and often binge. So I listen to the radio more often, but spend more time with podcasts.

5) In the 1940s she appeared all around New York – in nightclubs, on Broadway, and on radio shows. It was then that she got her best-known and longest-running role: the voice of Chiquita Banana. For decades she was heard singing the jingle, "I'm Chiquita Banana and I'm here to say ..." Do you have any bananas in your kitchen now? Nope.

 

6) Around 1950 she moved to Hollywood. She had recently divorced and wanted a fresh start. There she dated an actor who was also newly divorced: Ronald Reagan. Obviously she never had to ask, "Whatever became of him?" Who is the last former romance, classmate or coworker that you looked up on the internet? I used LinkedIn to check on a former coworker. Warren is a likeable guy but I worry about him because he can't stay out of his own way. I hoped to see he'd landed a new job. Alas, he has not.

 

7) In 1947, when this song was popular, actor Ted Danson was born. He's best known as Sam Malone, the bartender at Cheers, "where everybody knows your name." Is there a bar or restaurant where you are recognized on sight? Strangely enough, I'm on a first-name basis with a lot of people at the bank. I'm there a lot – weekly, I guess – to deposit quarters from our laundry room. I take that opportunity to cash my paycheck. I have a "personal banker" and a "wealth manager," which make me sound far more elite than I am. So yeah, when I go in, I often hear, "Hi, Gal."

 
8) The 1947 Studebaker Champion was one of the first cars to have an adjustable driver's seat designed to accommodate motorists of various heights. When you're driving someone else's car, do you usually adjust the seat? I don't drive, but if I did I probably would because I'm only 5'1.

 

9) Random question: When someone takes advantage of you, are you angrier at them for doing it, or at yourself for letting it happen? A bit of both,but it's probably 60% them and 40% me.