Month: November 2009

Categories
History Music People Radio

Saturday Night Retro

Long before The Jonas Brothers, ‘N Sync, The Backstreet Boys, Hanson, New Kids On The Block, Leif Garrett, and David Cassidy there lived another HUGE teen pop idol that all of the young girls swarmed after. I’m talking of course about the incomparable Neil Sedaka.

From the age of 19 until the age of 24 (1958 to 1963) young Neil racked up an amazing 14 TOP 40 hits including the # 1 smash “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do” and the TOP 5 smash “Calendar Girl”. But then the American music landscape radically changed in the mid-1960s, and young Neil was no longer the hot thing. (He wasn’t British for one thing.)

Fast forward more than 15 years after his initial debut, and Neil Sedaka started hanging out with Elton John who was at the peak of his long career. Elton helped to pull Neil out of his extended slump, and Neil returned to the top of the pop charts as a middle-aged dude. He took his classic “Laughter In The Rain” straight to # 1 at the start of February of 1975, and just 8 months later in October of 1975 his funky “Bad Blood” (with Elton on back-up vocals) hit # 1.

Here now is that very funky middle-aged version of Neil Sedaka from 1975:

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Astronomy God Health Home Life Music People Weather

The Major’s Walk-A-Thon

Time: 6:33 AM – 7:13 AM
Sky: Clear
Temperature: 58°F
Dewpoint: 55°F
Relative Humidity: 89%
Winds: W 3 MPH
Barometric Pressure: 29.93 Rising

Here are my walking thoughts in 15 words or less:

– This morning I walked around my neighbourhood in the cold.
– 58°F is cold after a long hot and humid South Florida summer !
– I did something quite different this time around.
– I woke up, I put clothes and shoes on, and I did my walk.
– Last season I’d take a hot shower before the long walk.
– That really didn’t make too much sense to me.
– Especially when it wasn’t too cold out and I sweat.
– Now the hot shower comes after the long walk.
– It was the nicest-feeling hot shower in recent medium-term memory !
– This was actually my first walk around my neighbourhood in over 8 months !
– I last did the walk on the first Saturday morning of March !
– I set no records with this walk, but I did walk an estimated 2.2 miles.
– I did that in 40.7 minutes.
– My legs started to hurt just a little bit towards the end of the walk.
– That’s what happens when I don’t walk for over 8 months.
– Sunrise occurred at 6:38 AM – 5 minutes into my walk.
– The Sun first hit me at an incredible time.
– It was when Jesse Santoyo was singing on my iPod Shuffle.
– “I feel so alive – You are by my side.”
– I got the chills when I heard that as the Sun hit me.
– That’s the daylight that I’m chasing on this fantastic journey.
– Walking a couple of miles around my neighbourhood is good for me.
– It’s good for my health, and it’s good for my mind, heart, and soul.
– Thank You Lord Jesus for allowing me to live within your great creations.
– Thank You Lord Jesus for giving me a second chance at this thing called Life.

Categories
History Music Radio

The Major’s Friday Night Disco Party

Kool & The Gang have been together for longer than I’ve been on this Earth – over 45 years. They’ve been known as Kool & The Gang for the past 40 years. In fact their very first radio single in 1969 was titled “Kool & The Gang”, and it was from their debut album “Kool & The Gang”. They got more creative – more funkier – and more rambunctious as the years and the decades rolled on. Their biggest success occurred during the early-to-mid-1980s when they racked-up 10 TOP 10 hits. But a full decade before that they scored this early TOP 5 funky Disco smash that had the whole nation movin’ to the “Jungle Boogie”.

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Blogging Career Computers Driving Food History Holidays Internet Music People Travel Weather

Thursday Night Mini Thoughts

– For the first time ever I’ve got 2 systems connected to the ‘Net simultaneously.
– I bought a ‘Wireless-N USB 2.0 Adapter‘ for my antique laptop.
– That’s the laptop that was my main system before I bought my new desktop.
– It’s so old that wireless technology was a mere option when it was new.
– Now I can access the Internet whereever there’s Wi-Fi.
– OK so I’m about 5 years behind the times here – at least I arrived.
– This suddenly rejuvenated laptop is going on a long road trip with me !
– Next Thursday night at this time I’ll be on vacation.
– I’m actually working for about 5 hours next Thursday morning.
– After that I’m off for the rest of the month.
– I return back to work to celebrate my 22ND anniversary at the air base.
– I’ve got an early departure time to hit the road next Friday morning.
– I’ve got about 825 miles to cover on the first day of my road trip.
– I can’t wait to get out on that open road.
– Late this morning I ventured over to Beef ‘O’ Brady’s for Lunch.
– I rarely eat cheeseburgers nowadays, but when I do Beef’s is the place.
– They also serve up some mightly tasty buffalo wings !
– Pretty much everything that I’ve ordered there was hot and delicious.
– Well the cold air from the north is advecting our area as I type this.
– Once the skies clear out our temperatures will tumble rapidly.
– I’m forecasting a low of 56° for Homestead from 6 AM to 7 AM on Friday.
– But wind chills will actually be closer to 50° !
– Tomorrow (Friday) we will struggle to reach 75°.
– It’ll be another chilly morning on Saturday.
– I can’t wait until I can walk around my neighbourhood in it !
– That’s right – I’m doin’ a ‘Walk-A-Thon’ on Saturday morning.
– This Saturday night on the ‘Retro’ I’ve got a funky Neil Sedaka from 1975.
– But first before that we’re gonna do the “Jungle Boogie” at the ‘Disco Party’.
– Be sure not to miss those weekend shenanigans.
– Those are my ‘Mini Thoughts’ for this Thursday night.
– I thank you for checking them out, and I’ll see ya back here tomorrow.
– In the meantime – REMEMBER THIS !

Chris At The Beach