Category: Life

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Blogging History Life Music Radio

Saturday Night Retro

You can’t schedule Life. Life happens. Some of it you expect. Some of it comes from beyond sight and theory. I had fully expected to continue a previously-scheduled 10-week romp through the decade that was the 1990s here on the ‘Retro’. The goal was to reach 1999 on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. That won’t happen because 1992 has been delayed until perhaps next Saturday night. I’m flashing back this week nearly 38 years ago to the start of 1972, and it’s all because of a song.

So there I was on a random day this past week minding my own business working at my desk at work when a song came on a coworker’s radio. I could barely hear it, but during those 3 minutes that it was on it was the loudest thing in my mind. It was as loud as a speeding locomotive. It cut through me and took me back to a mysterious time and era that I had previously forgotten. A time when I was a wondering 4-year-old kid exploring the world around me from inside of a moving car. I was mentally and emotionally transported back to that time.

It’s crazy how a single song can be so powerful as to totally consume you in the moment. It brought tears to my eyes, and even tonight as I post this and hear it again it gives me the chills over and over again.

I often wonder if today’s hit songs on the radio will remind me of the good and the not so good times of my Life today some 10, 25, or 40 years from now. A little over a month ago I was at cruising speed enjoying Life, bragging about it, and planning it out weeks, months, and even years from now. Unfortunately the other end of my Life was suddenly imploding in an irreversible manner. There I was looking too far into the future while I was neglecting the foundation of the Life of the now. Life happened. You can’t schedule Life.

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Animals History Home Life Music Radio

The Major’s Friday Night Disco Party

Disco Ball

It’s Friday night, and it’s time to kick-off the weekend here on the totally groovy blog. I can’t think of any other way but to kick it old school like we used to do all of those years ago back in the day. So put on your favourite plaid leisure suit, grab your 8-track tapes, don’t forget the fondue, and I’ll meet you at the roller disco.

But anyway – are ya ready for this ?  Let us flashback here to a much simpler time of my life – and maybe yours too. It’s the hot Summer of 1974 in Bowie Maryland (near Washington D.C.), and I’m just an innocent 7-year-old kid hangin’ out with my lovable miniature sheep dog in the backyard of my Peach Walker Drive house. I’m listening to WWDC AM-1260 on my transistor radio, and this smash is playing as afternoon deejay Lou Katz rollz the hitz.

Here’s South Floridian George McCrae with a televised 1975 performance of his Summer of 1974 # 1 Disco smash !

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Career Driving History Life Movies Music Television Travel

Saturday Night Retro

On the last ‘Saturday Night Retro’ I looked back at the great decade that was the 1990s, and I featured one of the hard rockin’ songs of my extended Panama City Beach ‘Summer Of 1990’ – Faith No More‘s “Epic”.

This week I advance forward to 1991. Following a two-month stint over in Al Kharj Saudi Arabia during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm I began what would eventually (and unknowingly) become the final 17 months of my Active Duty Air Force career at the original Homestead Air Force Base (before Hurricane Andrew). After a tumultuous couple of years at work on the base things drastically improved for the better, and I enjoyed a long climb to the pinnacle of my career at that time.

During the Summer of 1991 I turned 24-years-old, and I began my 7TH year in the USAF. I also went on a 2½-week vacation at the end of August including my very first sea cruise ever on NCL (M/S Seaward) with my family as well as a fun tour of various Tampa and Orlando area amusement parks with my brother for a week after that.

Here’s a big-time TV and movie star dude who actually shares my birthday of June 05TH. I was born in 1967. He was born in 1971. He’s Mark Wahlberg, but back during the Summer of 1991 he was better known as Marky Mark. Here he is with his Funky Bunch. Here’s “Good Vibrations’ – the smash hit that made him a star.

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History Life Music

The Major’s Friday Night Disco Party

During the Spring of 1979 I was in the 6TH grade at Magnolia Elementary School right in the middle of my Lanham Maryland neighbourhood.

Magnolia Elementary School, Lanham Maryland
Magnolia Elementary School, Lanham Maryland

The school day began at precisely 9:08 AM, and it ended at precisely 3:08 PM. Magnolia was my school for Kindergarten (1972-1973) and 3RD through 6TH grades (1975-1979). Those last 4 years at Magnolia were perhaps the happiest four years of all of my school years. It would just get miserable for me after that in Junior High and Senior High School (although I do remember occasional pockets of fun and good times during those advanced school years).

In 1979 I was a trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent Boy Scout:

On my honor I will do my best
To do my duty to God and my country, and to obey the Scout Law;
To help other people at all times;
To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.

It’s hard to believe that I’m 30 years removed from that part of my life. Some songs remind me of the bad times, but whenever I hear this song play it reminds me of some of those good times that I lived back then during my active preteen years.

Here’s Amii Stewart with her ‘pay all of the bills’ # 1 Platinum Disco SMASH !