On Michael… (and a note from my 45 collection)

I’ve been wanting to write something on Michael Jackson ever since his untimely death last week. I’ve been putting it off and putting it off… mostly because the subject is very overwhelming for me as it is, but even more so because of the amount of negative comments and press I’ve seen. So, you see, this post will be positive. And no comments will be allowed. My opinion and experience is not up for debate. It’s not open for scrutiny. It’s just my opinion and experience. Deal with it!

I am currently 35 years old. I’ll turn 36 next month – the day after Michael Jackson’s birthday. We’re both Virgos. I feel a kinship with the man and always have. I know what it’s like to be misunderstood. Not on his level, of cousre, but nevertheless. I know what it’s like to deal with people whose minds are not open. People who only see what they want to see about you. I can open my mind and understand what it’s like to have people only react to the media they are spoon-fed about you. People suck. It’s sad, but true.

Michael was found innocent in a court of law. Does that matter to anyone? Some of the posts I have seen remind me of the stereotype of the townsfolk coming after the town “weirdo” with torches and pitchforks. This isn’t the 17th century, folks! Right after Michael’s death – and by that I mean within an HOUR, I had people on my Facebook list screaming, “FREAK! WEIRDO!” and of course, all the pedophile comments. I wonder, had he never changed his appearance, would people be so quick to judge? Possibly, epecially because there are still so many racists out there. But I’d bet you anything the judgemental group would be a lot smaller. People tend to hear the word “pedophile” thrown around and immediately assume guilt, expecially if the person accused is seen as strange by the public. What happened to innocent until proven guilty? What happened to the fact he WAS NOT proven guilty? What about the fact that he was SO not guilty he has custody of his own children?

People who lack critical thinking skills, people who lack empathy and especially people who lack both MAKE ME SICK. I don’t want to deal with your kind! And I lost a couple of Facebook friends because of this. I deleted THEM. I say, “good riddance.” If their minds are that closed who is to say they won’t turn on me someday when I am in need of understanding and empathy? Who needs friends like that?

Michael had loads of money and was around hundreds, if not thousands of kids in his lifetime. During that time only two kids have bothered to say anything at all. Doesn’t that ring the warning bells? Money is the great motivater here. I really don’t want to dwell on this. For more info on the first case and how Michael was framed, please read this:

Was Michael Jackson Framed?

He admitted sharing his bed and having sleepovers with children. SO WHAT? Sleeping does not equal sex! Where are these people living, how did they grow up to automatically assume the worst over the word “sleep”? Is Michael guilty of poor judgement? Absolutely. But only because, in this world, as we have seen, a lot of people have completely lost the ability to think that a grown man does not necessarily equal a pedophile. Michael was an overgrown child!!! My goodness, is this not obvious? I seriously doubt he was remotely capable of the things he was accused of. He completely missed his own childhood at the mercy of beatings administered by his own father. He is absolutely guilty of eccentricity and weirdness in the first degree (a similar quote I saw written somewhere else), BUT SO WHAT? Who is to define what normal is? And last time I checked, being weird, different, or strange-looking does not make you a criminal or, most importantly, a pedophile! Come on people!

There is a boatload more I could say about this, but I want to talk about my personal Michael Jackson experiences.

Because I was heavily into shows like Dance Fever and Solid Gold as a kid, I’m sure I took a liking to Michael’s Off The Wall singles, and I do remember them. I think I was too young to have formed any solid memories of them, though. I was 9 years old when Thriller came out in November of 1982. “The Girl Is Mine” was the first single and, eh… I was not of the generation to worship Paul McCartney, so to me it was … eh. I remember “Billie Jean” taking our breath away. The video, with the sidewalks that lit up as Michael moved onto them held us mesmerized. How’d they do that? “Beat It” was next and oh, man! The world was listening. Michael had somehow gotten King Of Guitars Eddie Van Halen to play on this song, and the kids my age were ever so impressed. No one could deny these singles were totally, well, EVERYTHING.

Somehow, by this time (Valentine’s Day 1983) I had still managed to not have any singles or the Thriller album in my posession. Then, the Motown 25th Anniversary Special was shown on NBC. Taped March 25, 1983 and shown on TV May 16th, 1983, I believe this is the event that put me, and probably so many others, over the top for Michael! It’s hard to imagine now, but when he did the moonwalk here for the first time it had people talking for days, weeks, hey, they STILL talk about it. It was like he was other-worldly. No one ever saw anyone dance like that. Again, as a young aspiring dancer, I was hooked! I remember watching this at my friend Linda’s house. Linda lived down the street and I must have been spending the night. After Michael’s performance we tried in vain to moonwalk all over her living room. It’s one of my favorite 80s memories! And thanks to Facebook, I know she remembers it fondly, too!

I was now primed, and since “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’” was released on May 8, 1983, I ran out and bought it!

Furzdurzelette's copy of Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'

I love this song sooo much! It peaked at #5 on the Hot 100 Singles Chart (and I helped!). The red mark on the sleeve is not lipstick, I swear. I marked all of my 45s with a stamp that said “Karen” (my mother’s name – I didn’t have one of my own) to mark it as mine when it was brought to a friend’s house or a party. I played this single so much it started to skip not too long after I got it, and the sleeve is coming apart. I somehow acquired a second copy of it which will remain in my collection untouched and pristine!

Back of Furzdurzelette's copy

This single was released without a video, or I’d have put it here!

It was only after this that I somehow got my hands on Thriller, the Lp, on cassette. I don’t remember buying it, and I don’t remember buying this single either. I have a feeling my parents bought both for me, but most definitely the cassette, as I was still 9 and had not much money to speak of. And for some reason I’m almost certain the cassette came from K-Mart. A good bet, as there weren’t  a lot of places to buy music in my hometown. The cassette is in storage (I’ve been listening to B’s cd copy of it lately).

“Human Nature” and “P.Y.T.” came out as singles after this. I remember not caring for “Human Nature” that much as a kid, but I do like it now. I used to listen to “P.Y.T.” a lot, though, even then though I knew at 10 (I had a birthday by that point) how silly it was! I think that might even be why I liked it so much!

“Thriller” came next and blew the roof off the world. What a song! And what a video! It was definitely one of the videos that molded me as a person and made be want to be a dancer more than anything in the world!

Naturally, they are all over any posting of this video, so I cannot embed it here. If you want to see the “Thriller” video, click here:

Thriller

I have vivid memories of walking through my neighborhood with my tape recorder (I didn’t own a boom box) blasting “Billie Jean.” “Smooth Criminal” was another dance video that had me in awe of the dancing. I love these memories. I know in my heart, and for the reasons outlined above, Michael Jackson was a good man and not capable of the horrible things he was accused of doing. I’ll never understand why he felt the need to change his beautiful face. But he did it, and that was his choice. I adore Michael, and I always will.

Rest In Peace.

Double Whammy Weekend

Thursday night the hubby and I headed out to see Tesla. For the second time in a row of trying, I managed to get front row seats for this band. Such luck! I was right in front of their new guitarist, Dave Rude, all night. Last time we saw them was during the acoustic tour and Tommy (who I loved as a teen) was still there, but totally wasn’t into it. Dave rocked my socks! I was into it, and I think he appreciated it. He threw me a pick, to which I stuck my arm out straight and it landed directly in my hand. People behind me were hungry for it, and believe me, I was ready for a fight. It was meant-to-be, though, and as I turned to tell my husband that I got it I saw Dave pointing at me – indicating to the others it was for me! I was beside myself. I tried to mouth “thank you” but Brian Wheat stepped between us. I still got my mojo! I feel alive again! A good concert is such good therapy!

Last night we went to a series of lectures at the Landmark Theatre headed up by Chip Coffey of Paranormal State. The first lecturer was noted Demonologist John Zaffis, who has worked on many cases, including The Haunting In Connecticut. The second speaker was a woman from our local ghost-hunting organization. Chip Coffey spoke after her. He’s just like he is on TV – only better! He has a great, funny personality that only begins to seep through on PS. We met him and got a picture with him after the show.

We didn’t stay for the Ghost Hunt. Maybe next time. I wanted to see what things were like there, first. Sounds like a good time in the future, though!

Stuff I’m Digging

(embedding disabled on the videos so click the links!)

My Life Would Suck Without You – Kelly Clarkson

Kelly just rules!

Spaceman – The Killers

This song reminds me of all my strange sleep paralysis episodes. Listen to (or read) the lyrics!

It started with a low light
Next thing I knew they ripped me from my bed
And then they took my blood type
It left a strange impression in my head
You know that I was hoping
That I could leave this starcrossed world behind
But when they cut me open
I guess I changed my mind
And you know I might
Have just flown too far from the floor this time
Cause they calling me by my name
And the zipping white light beams
Disregarding the bombs and satellites

That was the turning point
That was one lonely night

The starmaker says it ain’t so bad
The dreammaker’s gonna make you mad
The spaceman says everybody look down!
It’s all in your mind

Now I’m back at home and
I’m looking forward to this life I live
You know it’s going to haunt me
So hesitation to this life I give
You think you might cross over
You’re caught between the devil and the deep blue sea
You better look it over
Before you make that leap

And you know I’m fine, but I hear those voices at night
Sometimes, they justify my claim
And the public don’t dwell on my transmission
Cause It wasn’t televised

But it was the turning point
O what a lonely night

The starmaker says it ain’t so bad
The dreammaker’s gonna make you mad
The spaceman says everybody look down!
It’s all in your mind

The starmaker says it ain’t so bad
The dreammakers’s gonna make you mad
The spaceman says everybody look down!
It’s all in your mind

My global position systems are vocally addressed
They said the nile used to run from east to west
They said the nile used to run… from east to west

I’m fine,
but I hear those voices at night
Sometimes…

The starmaker says it ain’t so bad
The dreammaker’s gonna make you mad
The spaceman says everybody look down!
It’s all in your mind

The starmaker says it ain’t so bad
The dreammaker’s gonna make you mad
The spaceman says everybody look down!
It’s all in your mind

It’s all in my mind
It’s all in my mind
It’s all in my mind
It’s all in my mind
It’s all in my mind
It’s all in my… mind

Unbelievable!

I was completely freaking out, so excited was I that the holiday season is upon us meaning… CRANBERRY SPLASH IS BACK!

Its only the best holiday soda ever invented! I was nervous to have some this year, since I’ve had two UTIs since last February and after the second one my doctor told me to stay away from soda. But, but… my Favorite Beverage On Earth comes but once a year! So when B came home with two bottles of it last night I told myself I’d try to keep my consumption to a respectable level. Moderation, kids! I even waited to have some since it was past 8:30 p.m. when he got home.

I just ate dinner and after drinking 8 oz. of water after work (being kind to my bladder!), I poured myself a small glass of Cranberry Splash to drink with my dinner.

And I don’t believe it! I haven’t had soda of any kind since my last UTI, which was in August. Three months soda free! And guess what? I’m finding Cranberry Splash too sweet! I can’t even finish the small glass I poured. I don’t like it. I don’t like The Best Soda On Earth anymore!

I suppose I should be happy that my body has chosen to prefer healthier things now that I’ve trained it a little. But I’m still sad. Cranberry Splash made me so happy last year! I don’t know whether to be happy or sad. I’m just confused.

“An Historic Day…”

Ugh, if I hear that phrase one more time! I mean, it’s awesome and everything… I’m just so tired. I’m sitting here listening to CNN and the presidential election returns coming in. I have been an Obama supporter since early in 2007. It’s been a long and winding road. Even though the election hasn’t been called, I’ve been getting “thank you” mesages from myspace friends, thanking me for turning them on to Mr. Obama. it means the world to me. Obama really did put together a truly grassroots campaign. It’s one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen. I’m optimistic that he will win, but even if he doesn’t I am so proud of what he’s accomplished. And I am so proud to have helped!

Now, I thought I’d amuse myself while I wait by posting a “Today In…” entry from one of my old English class journals… but lo and behold I was absent on November 4th in both 1986 (8th grade) and 1988.  Wow, a historically “sick” day for me! I am getting a flu shot tomorrow… should I be scared? The only other year I have (1987?) it seems November 4 was not a school day. Incidentally, I believe it was 1986 where November 4 was a Tuesday just like this year. ;o)

OBAMA ‘08!

Amalgamation

I want to be witty and funny in a post to balance out yesterday’s depressing update (and as usual if you want to read my private stuff just leave me a comment and I’ll give you the password – it’s private only to foil sploggers).

I’m so tired I can’t find my wits!

I was reading up on ANA tests again today and came upon the fact that ANA results can be false positive if you’re on The Pill. Oh my freaking god. If I’m going through all this torture again and it’s due to this, my 4th bc pill in as many years… I’m gonna, I’m gonna… ARRRGH!

Things are About To Happen at work. In that “no one knows what the f is going on” kind of way. Tomorrow should be informative and either a relief or extremely upsetting. I can hardly stand myself waiting.

I got a new cell phone. It’s totally gorgeous:

I am massively in love with this phone and my plan. At work they refuse to hook my department up to the internet. With this baby and my plan I have foiled all that. Now I can live in the 00s and check CNN or the weather or even myspace whenever I flippin want to! So, ha ha!

I’ve been desperately looking for a Halloween costume but I can’t decide on anything. I tried this bit of awesomeness on at the Hallween store next to our complex:

So, because this costume would RULE in our circles, naturally it didn’t fit. Which brings me to a bitch fit about Halloween costume companies. Apparently, they think every woman is a playmate with a perfect and unnaturally thin bod. As I’ve said MANY times before, I am not fat. I’m curvy, though. This style doesn’t come in any size over Large. I take at least an XL to get over my chest. I also have a long torso. Consequently this getup barely covered my ass. SO DISAPPOINTED.

I did try on and enjoy this little number at a different store:

And it did fit perfectly and looked AWESOME. My husband didn’t seem to care for it. What the picture doesn’t show is how very VERY bright it actually is. I didn’t care, though. I dig it and still may get it.

Except we suddenly realized yesterday that we have nowhere to go on Halloween night anyway.

(sigh)

Extreme birthday!

I spent my birthday seeng Extreme at our local State Fair. I was so excited that they reunited (ooh, a rhyme!). It was fantastic. I’ve liked Extreme since their debut album came out in 1989.

And I like that first album more than anything they ever did. I was 16 and a pop metal kinda girl back then and Extreme had such a fresh sound and loads of talent. They were hard to ignore! The funk just knocked your socks off. ) Anyway, I can’t discuss Extreme and not discuss Nuno Bettencourt, their amazing guitarist. After this album came out, Nuno was immediately a Guitar God Among Men. And I won’t lie, being a straight female I couldn’t help but notice he was good-looking, too (remember the hairstyles above were not so shocking then! LOL). This was NOT however, the main reason I was a fan of him or the band. It was just a pleasant secondary issue. In college I remember writing a letter to my friend Norah and ranting about Nuno’s talent and beauty. I mentioned he is Portuguese, to which she replied, “I hope you meet the Portuguese man of your dreams soon!” I always found this hysterical and still think of Nuno as The Portuguese Man of My Dreams. LMAO – It just makes me giggle.

So anyway, I have video and stuff from the birthday show, where we were in the second row, but I’d rather make this a “tribute to Extreme” post and put up old stuff I like…

The video for “Mutha (Dont Wanna Go To School Today)” – always a favorite, featuring a kid who skips school to go see Extreme, becomes friends with them and gets a ride home on their tour bus!

Another great song, “Little Girls”

“Get The Funk Out” from their second album, Pornograffiti

This is Gary and Nuno playing “More Than Words” at the recent show I attended. Our sing-along is spectacular, so I’m posting this even though I now loathe this song like everyone else. This is not my video, though I do have my own version of it from Nuno’s side. It was incredibly loud, hence the distortion in the video.

Extreme today (new drummer):

They have a new album – go buy it!

;o)

Like, the 80s are totally back!

So I was at a mall last weekend and decided to stop in Forever 21. This store has a history of having cool clothes that are always sold out in my size. Seriously, I envy tiny chicks – mostly because they always get to have clothes available when they want to shop. I’m not fat – I’m the same size as everyone else. And everyone else beats me to the racks! When when when will stores figure out they need to order more larger sizes and fewer smaller sizes? You’d think they’d get a clue when all the clearance merch is size 0!

Well, while I was grumbling around Forever 21, I made a shocking discovery. The 80s are totally back. I saw this trend coming a few years ago, yes. But it’s shocking that (a) it’s still here (b) it’s more pervasive than ever (c) this is upstate NY (does that mean the trend is dying it’s natural death? oh probably) and (d) the 80s trend covers the best and worst of my 6th & 7th grade years er, I mean 1984-1986.

What got me in the store in the first place is a Duran Duran T-shirt with the cover of the Rio album on it that I think I’ve wanted since 1984. It’s not on the website, and they didn’t have my size (in 2 different Forever 21 stores) so I can’t show it to you. Nor can I show you the T-shirt I did end up buying - a Stones one with a zebra-print tongue logo (not on the site and I don’t feel like taking a picture).

What shocked me the most was (sit down, folks)…

STIRRUP PANTS!

What the…? I mean, I knew leggings were desperately trying to forge a comeback, but stirrup pants? In 7th grade I had a bitchen purple pair. I remember even at that age the stirrups annoyed the living shiz out of us all and we almost never ended up wearing them in our shoes all day. They were so irritating on the feet. This one won’t last.

Speaking of leggings – animal print leggings were in the store. Including this leopard pair!

Need more proof? How about these photos from the Forever 21 site?

You get the idea. Actually, redoing the 80s fashion seems like it could be fun. If only I weren’t about to turn 35! I’d feel totally dorkalicious wearing stirrup pants now! Hell, I was dorkalicious wearing them then!

And the 70s? If you’re looking for 70s yumminess I suggest you look no further than the dress department!