Monday, December 17, 2007

Pearl, you go get your drank on, garrrl, Torn Slatterns and Nugget Ranchers

Good thinking
The Miami Dolphins were able to win their first game of the season against the Baltimore Ravens in overtime, 22-16. It was a brilliant strategy by the Dolphins, they just took their last game plan and executed it in reverse.

Aww, that is nice
“Clash of the Choirs” is a reality show that is suited for the holidays. It exhibits the holiday spirit, for example, Nick Lachey was a choir leader even though Nick’s boss knows this is a busy time of year to give him time off from Starbucks.

First flight
On this date in 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright flew the first airplane at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. And on that same day, a Jet Blue airliner became the first plane to be stuck on the tarmac.

On this date in 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright flew the first airplane at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. It was a sad day for the forgotten Wright brother, Dudley, who missed the flight because he got stuck in airport security because of the metal plate in his head.

We must adapt as we get older
After being married to a tennis player, John Lloyd, a skier, Andy Mills, 52-year-old tennis great Chris Evert is now engaged to golfer, Greg Norman. And when she gets even older, Chris is then going to marry a bowler, then a shuffleboard player and then, finally, a Bingo player.

Awkward
Jessica Simpson watched her boy friend, Tony Romo, and his Dallas Cowboys get beaten by the Philadelphia Eagles, 10-6. It was a little embarrassing when Jessica put on a Romo number 9 jersey, but when Jessica looked down at it she said; “So why am I wearing number 6?”


Unstoppable? Not so much. Unwatchable? More like it
During the New York Giants loss 22-10 to the Washington Redskins, a commercial repeatedly aired claiming Giant QB, Eli Manning as “Unstoppable” as the Citizen watch featured in the commercial. Attention Citizen watch owners: please set your watch ahead at least three hours.

Since you asked:

A few words about the sad passing of Dan Fogelberg.

While it is true many of Fogelberg’s biggest hits were somewhat cloying, sappy songs that did not weather the test of time as well as his contemporaries’ music did, namely Jimmy Buffet, Jackson Browne, Warren Zevon and James Taylor.

But, to be fair, to put Fogelberg’s music in context, this was a time when people truly felt that Farrah-do’s, pucca shells, driftwood sculptures, turquoise jewelry, C.B. radios and robin's egg blue tuxedos and Gremlins were the height of hip. But despite his considerable success at the time, Fogelberg was underestimated as a musician, songwriter as well as a bit of a rocker.

Sure, his most memorable hits – specifically “Longer” - can be turned into jokes about eighties elevator music, I put Fogelberg’s “Souvenirs” album up with among the best of the middle-to-late Seventies. And his song “As The Raven Flies” fairly rocks with soon-to-be Eagle Joe Walsh and then Eagles Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Don Felder contributing licks and harmonies.

But on most of the tracks, Fogelberg played all of the instruments. And he had a great tenor voice. And I saw him in concert at Madison Square Garden in the early eighties and he was an engaging performer.

I’ll never forget, I took a girl to the concert who was, six-to-seven years prior, considered one of the coolest kids in my high school and she clearly still thought she still was. Translation: She was quite snooty and I didn’t think the evening was going anywhere. But bless ol’ Danny boy, he worked his magic and let’s just say, by the end of the night, “Longer” became “Part of the Plan” if you know what I mean . .

Hey, it could have been worse, I could have made a crack about getting to her “Nether Land.”