Category: Military

My Top 5 Hits RETRO – 1990

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date August 28, 2020

Every 2ND, 3RD, and 4TH Friday of the month I post the Top 5 of one of my classic hit music charts based on personal preference and influenced by radio airplay from either 15, 20, or 30 years ago this weekend (rotating each week).

It’s the 4TH Friday of the month, so I go back 30 years ago. Here it is – for the week ending Sunday August 26TH 1990:

“(I Can’t Live Without Your) Love And Affection” – Nelson
“Unskinny Bop” – Poison
“Can’t Stop Falling Into Love” – Cheap Trick
“Epic” – Faith No More
“My Kinda Girl” – Babyface

What an amazing Top 5 chart. I consider all 5 of those songs to be 5 of the greatest songs of my 53-year lifetime. They (among others) made-up the soundtrack of the greatest summer that ever existed for me prior to salvation in 2006.

My chart flipped that summer from Top 40 to Rock 40. You may remember Rock 40 as a late-’80s / early-’90s hybrid format of mainstream pop music and hard rock music – with a heavy concentration of the rock hits that crossed-over onto the pop chart. It was an awesome sound. Of course even during my Rock 40 chart era there were R & B, Hip Hop, and Dance hits sprinkled-in. That Babyface song was poppin’ back then !

I was a young and wild 23-year-old USAF SGT (E-4) back then living and working here in Homestead Florida – where I remain today. If this 53-year-old could go back in time and talk to that 23-year-old – first-of-all the conversation would be crazy. We would have a long talk. I would ultimately tell 23-year-old me to enjoy that great season while it lasts, for it will eventually end, and no other season will ever come close to it. As great as that season was – you will mourn parts of it. 16 summers from now you will have a supernatural experience that will change your life forever – and save it from certain death.

It’s halftime my friends. I’ll be back on Sunday and Monday with 2 more blog posts for this weekend. Enjoy your Saturday. Thanks for going RETRO with me !

Tags 1990, Music, Radio, Top 40

Blogging Career Home Life Military

My New Space

28 years ago in 1992 after Hurricane Andrew destroyed my town and workplace I temporarily moved back to my original home-of-record 1,100 miles away. I stored a few of my personal belongings at my parents’ house (my old bedroom) in McLean Virginia. I stored much of them in my dorm room at Andrews AFB Maryland. What didn’t fit in either place went in to a rented self-storage space near the military base. I kept that space long after (several years after) I left the Washington D.C. area and moved back to Florida (and eventually Homestead).

Last weekend I rented a self-storage space here in Homestead for the first time ever. Aside from those 19 months after Hurricane Andrew I’ve lived here in Homestead for almost 33 years, and that includes the past 25 years here in the same small home. I’ve accumulated a lot of stuff (some would call it junk) here in this home. I think I may even be a borderline hoarder. I don’t like throwing things away. I like keeping things indefinitely. I never know when I may need it. (That’s my home motto.)

Today is the day that I will take my first trunkload of stuff / junk over to my new 5 by 10 by 8 space. That’s 50 square feet / 8 feet from the ground up / 400 cubic feet. I’m looking forward to future trunkloads on future deliveries / visits to my new space. I’m looking forward to uncluttering my home of the past 25 years. Eventually I’ll be moving out of this home and moving to a new town about 180 miles away (after I retire in about 3 years).

As I continue to clear space in my home and prepare it for my retirement years perhaps I’ll do the right thing and also start filling-up some dumpsters near me. There’s a lot to throw away. Whether I do it or store it remains to be seen.

Bible Blogging Career Christian Church God Military Ministry Music Scripture Travel

Sunday Scripture

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date August 23, 2020

After observing the 14TH anniversary of God’s fantastic journey for me I’m now into my 15TH year. I believe that this 15TH year will be greater than the 14TH year, for He is greater, and He keeps life exciting with each new day.

It took me exactly 5 months to enter a church building after the start of my salvation. I walked in to Life Pointe Church in Homestead Florida on a Saturday night in January of 2007 for a rock concert. The next morning I went to our new local movie theatre in town for their Sunday morning church service. (They were no longer holding services at their original church building.)

I’ve been part of a church body now ever since that Saturday night rock concert. It was the first time I walked in to a church building as a saved man.

Growing up in the 1970s my family was Catholic. We attended Sunday service every week in Seabrook Maryland (near Washington D.C.). I actually attended Catholic School 5 days a week during my first and second grades (1973-1975). In 1975 my parents pulled me out of Catholic School and placed me into the local public school system. I attended traditional public schools for the next 10 years (1975-1985).

During the Summer of 1985 (at age 18) I actually attended a couple of Sunday morning Catholic church services on Lackland AFB near San Antonio Texas. I was in Basic Military Training at the time, and it was a convenient way to get away from reality for an hour or two. I didn’t really pay attention during the service. I was just there to get out of the heat, get away from the yelling and screaming, and hang out with some of my dorm brothers.

During Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in January and February of 1991 I attended a couple of Sunday morning Catholic church services in a big tent in the middle of the Saudi Arabian desert. Again – it was a convenient way to get away from reality – a diversion from war. I wasn’t spiritual at all. I didn’t know who God was at the time.

I didn’t get to know God The Father, God The Son, and God The Spirit until exactly 14 years ago. A few months later I realized that I would not be fully on the journey until I became part of a Bible-believing church body.

Christ died for us so that we may be saved, and since He saved us we must commit to Him. He told us to love Him. He told us to love others – those who believe – and those who do not yet believe.

He commanded us believers to meet regularly to praise and worship Him, and to encourage and motivate our brothers and sisters in Him. In these last days we must be a strong church that Christ recognizes – one that honors Him above all. When we meet together in corporate worship we practice for what we must do away from the church building, and that is to encourage and motivate and love our neighbor – each creation that we come in contact with on a daily basis.

See God is coming back for His church. He’s not coming back for the manmade buildings or meeting places. He’s coming back for His church body – His creation – committed to Him.

We must be the church in everything we do, and everywhere we go.

Tags Bible, Blog, Christian, Church, God, Salvation, Scripture

1980s Career Life Military Music Radio Travel

My Top 5 Hits RETRO – 1985

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date August 7, 2020

It’s the 1ST Friday of the month, so it’s a special. Back in 1985 I was an 18-year-old USAF Airman Basic living in a dorm at Chanute AFB near Rantoul Illinois. I was in my first week of technical school after 6½ weeks of Basic Training at Lackland AFB near San Antonio Texas. It was my first week ever in Illinois. I lived (and trained) there for about 3 months, and I haven’t been back since. I’m actually having a lot of fun over on Facebook reminiscing with my fellow Chanute AFB colleagues about my short time there.

These were the hottest hits in the land exactly 35 years ago this weekend – for the week ending Sunday August 11TH 1985:

“Shout” – Tears For Fears
“Everytime You Go Away” – Paul Young
“If You Love Somebody Set Them Free” – Sting
“Never Surrender” – Corey Hart
“The Power Of Love” – Huey Lewis And The News

Good solid pop / light-rock music back then. It was the soundtrack of my 3RD month in the Air Force. I remember listening to a local Hot Adult Contemporary radio station at the time out of Champaign Illinois. Once I got my car (which only had AM radio) I listened to MusicRadio WLS – the “blowtorch” out of Chicago. (They made “Chi-CA-go” sound so nice during their top-of-the-hour station identification jingles.)

Next week on RETRO it’s back to my regularly-scheduled program. I’ll go back 15 years to the 2ND week of August of 2005.

It’s halftime my friends. I’ll be back on Sunday and Monday with 2 more blog posts for this weekend. Enjoy your Saturday. Thanks for going RETRO with me !