You Might Be Old

Selectric

Mark Evanier did one of those You Might Be Old If memes. But I think yes-or-no answers are somewhat limiting, so I decided to expand on some of these.

Used a rotary phone. Well, yes. I am fascinated by the fact that there were films to show one how to use a rotary phone 80 or more years ago. Now, there are videos showing us that current students don’t know how to use them. 

Used a floppy disc. Yes, 5 1/4 and 3 1/2 inch. 

I used a typewriter. I was a terrible typist—still am. When I was in student government at New Paltz in the mid-1970s, we had an IBM Selectric. The great thing about it was that it had “an internal correction feature…, intended to eliminate the need for typists to use cover-up tape, ‘white-out’ correction fluid, or typewriter erasers.”  In the late 1980s, I had a Sears typewriter with minimal memory, which I thought was the greatest thing ever.

Taken pics with a film camera. I have at least twenty photo albums worth of pictures taken with a camera, plus a boxful of loose photos.

Right now!

Listened to music on a CD. As I write this, I’m listening to Magic by Bruce Springsteen. If I’m home, I play six to eight CDs per day.  

Watched a movie on VHS. Yes, several. The first VHS tapes I bought were Being There and Groundhog Day. 

Rented a movie from Blockbuster. Probably, but I have no strong recollection.

Learned cursive. Yes. I always thought the G in cursive was kind of boxy and ugly. And I’ve written it a lot.

Played an Atari, possibly at someone else’s house. I never owned one.

Sent or received a fax. When I first started working at the New York Small Business Development Center, there weren’t enough phone lines. So I shared a phone with the fax machine. So when my phone rang, I never knew whether it was a call for me or lots of facsimile noise.  

Had a MySpace account. Maybe. I’m not sure.

Ordered from Columbia House. No. But I was a member of the Capitol Record Club circa 1966-1968. That’s where I bought most of my Beatles albums, plus LPs by Billy Strange, the Lovin’ Spoonful, Roger Miller, Bobbie Gentry, and the Hollyridge Strings.

Had an AOL address. I still have an AOL address. It’s sometimes used for two-step authentication.

Access the Internet via dial-up. Oh, yeah.

Jiminy Cricket

Used an encyclopedia. My parents bought us, but probably more for me, a set of the Encyclopedia Americana, plus a half dozen annual updates. 

Used a phone book. Not only did I use it, but I read it. I used to know all of the area codes in the US and Canada. But it was easier then. The first digit was between 2 and 9, the second 0 or 1, and the third between 1 and 9. 

Send a postcard. Yes, and I used to know how much it cost to send one.

Used a paper map. Yes, and I still prefer a paper map for most purposes. I find that GPS can occasionally be unreliable. For example, my wife and I were traveling to Cohoes in Albany County, and the GPS repeatedly told us to take an exit long before we needed to.

Owned a dictionary. I still do, and it’s less than six feet from where I’m sitting. 

Written a cheque. I did it all the time. Now, I write about five per year if I can find them.

Uncurled a telephone cord. All of the time!

Sunday Stealing: LEP Autumn

sharpening pencils

autumn memeThe Sunday Stealing for today is LEP Autumn. LEP is the League of  Extraordinary PenPals.

1. Do you decorate for Autumn?

There’s a pumpkin on our porch right now. The leaves aren’t swept, so that’s sort of decorative. One of our former next-door neighbors used to have banners for many occasions – Thanksgiving, St. Patrick’s Day, etc. I thought at the time that it was rather corny, but in retrospect, I liked it.

2. How often do you clean out your closets?

I don’t have a closet. When we bought the house, there was a closet in one of the spare bedrooms, but that space was converted into our daughter’s bedroom. (She subsequently moved to the other bedroom, which was larger.) So there’s an armoire in our bedroom for my shirts, etc. I hated it at first, but now I merely dislike it. And I’ve NEVER cleaned it out except when I pull a shirt out, and I decide (or more likely, my wife decides) it’s too worn.

3. When was the last time you planned a surprise for someone?

I used to do so regularly, but I can’t recall a recent time.

4. Are there foods you really don’t like?

Anchovies. Sardines. Most canned vegetables (spinach, beets…) Cucumbers. Watermelon. Any candy that has the faux flavor of watermelon or bananas, though I do like real bananas.

Diversity?

5. What is something you recently learned?

Charles Curtis, Vice-President under Herbert Hoover, was “the first Native American and first person with acknowledged non-European ancestry to reach either of the highest offices in the federal executive branch.”

6. Items you’re most likely to buy at a convenience store

Cough drops or Vitamin C drops, diet Pepsi.

7. Do you believe in the paranormal?

I don’t either believe it or not believe it. That’s a solid maybe, but I spend almost no time thinking about it.

Have you got good religion?

8. How would you describe your spirituality?

The idea of religion is quite appealing. But it’s too often ruined by its supposed believers. Some evangelicals called Jesus “liberal” and “weak, forgetting that Jesus hung out with pretty scuzzy people who heeded the call to follow Him. Others have mistaken Jesus for an ATM. No wonder Mahatma Gandhi famously noted: “I like your Christ, but not your Christianity.” As a Christian, it alternately depresses and enrages me that some of my nominal fellow followers make it difficult/impossible for others to embrace the faith.

And I won’t even get into talking about the heretics of other faiths because it’s not my area of expertise.

9. Do you make plans far in advance?

I HATE doing things at the last minute. But FAR in advance? Aside from our trip to France, which had many moving parts, I avoid planning so far in advance that I can’t envision the end goal.

10. Do you like being scared for fun?

No. Not at all. I don’t see scary movies. Haunted houses are not for me.

11. What has been difficult for you lately?

Time management. Some of that is directly related to my wife’s job as one of the two employees of an afterschool tutoring program. One of the two became sick with COVID, so I spent about 15 hours helping her with simple tasks (sharpening pencils, taking out garbage, etc.) It was fine, but the things I had previously had on my docket got crunched.

12. Have you ever written or read fanfiction?

No; and a smattering.

Barren walls

13. What type of wall art do you have in your home?

This is a bit of a sore point. We have quite a bit of art we COULD put on our walls. My wife said she wanted to wait until the walls got painted before decorating. So they were painted over a decade ago, and still, no art on the walls. Now, you might say, “Why don’t you put them up yourself?” Mostly, I lack the artistic eye to ascertain what piece should go with another and at what height. Maybe I can get my daughter to help me at Christmas.

14. Are you more likely to be private or overshare?

I’ve thought about this a lot. When you have a blog you’ve written for 18.5 years, people think they know all about the blogger. This is not true, but I rather enjoy the myth.

15. What have you recently learned to live without?

Reading a daily newspaper. It tends to collect, and then I’ll pour through a week’s or fortnight’s worth in one sitting. I can skip the stories I already know about, but there’s always something I learn.

Sunday Stealing: 7 Layer Meme

Not for me to say

Seven layersThe Sunday Stealing post this week is the 7 Layer Meme. I misread it as 7 Lager Meme because of the font.Except for the fact that I don’t drink beer, that could have been interesting.

LAYER 1: Tell us your…

* Eye color:  Brown

* Hair color: What hair? Mostly gray.

* Height: 5’11 5/8″

* Righty or lefty: Righty

LAYER 2: What’s…

* Your heritage: I wrote about this last year here.

* The shoes you wore today: Brown

* Your weakness: Left knee from torn meniscus in 1994

* Your fears: Being late

* And your perfect pizza: Sausage and mushroom

* Goals you’d like to achieve: Writing this blog post

* Your first waking thoughts: What time is it?

* Your best physical feature: My eyes.

* And your most missed memory: Presently, my high school yearbook. It may turn up.

LAYER 3: Do you…

* Smoke: No.

* Cuss: Increasingly since 2015.

* Sing: Often.

* Do you think you’ve been in love: Sure.

* Did you go to college: Yes. Then to grad school, twice, one time to completition.

* Liked high school: Mostly.

* Believe in yourself: Occasionally.

* Think you’re attractive: Not for me to say.

* Think you’re a health freak: No.

* Like thunderstorms: If I’m home.

* Play an instrument: Not really.

FORE!

LAYER 4: In the past month have you…

* Drunk alcohol/Smoked:  No (X2)

* Done a drug: Tylenol

* Made out: no

* Gone on a date: Yes, to dinner.

* Gone to the mall: No. I hate malls. Unless you count strip malls.

* Eaten an entire box of Oreos/Eaten sushi: No (X2)

* Been on stage: Define “stage” – I’ve been at a church lectern

* Been dumped/Gone skating/Gone skinny dipping: No (X3)

Fortunately, the conditional “in the last month” is there, or there would be a whole lot more to write here.

LAYER 5: Have you ever…

* Played a game that required removal of clothing: No.

* Been trashed or extremely intoxicated: Yes. The last time was almost 31 years ago when I was a pallnbearer for a dear friend and on my birthday.

* Been caught “doing something”: Probably. Likely more than once.

* And been called a tease: Possibly

* Gotten beaten up: I wouldn’t say “beaten up”, but punched, yes, I wrote about this here.

LAYER 6:

* Age you did get/hope to be married: 19

* How do you want to die: Saving someone or in my sleep

* What did you want to be when you grew up: Minister or lawyer

* What country would you most like to visit: France

Seven and Seven Is – Love

cropped-Roger.singing.TrinityAMEZ.BNG_.jpgLAYER 7: Now tell…

 

* Name a person you could trust with your life: Uthaclena

* The name of a favorite CD that you own: Peter Gabriel’s third album, sometimes called Melt. I have it in German on LP and English. Gabriel’s birthday is this week!

* Number of piercings/Number of tattoos: zero (X2)

* Number of times my name has appeared in the newspaper: dozens. In Binghamton relating to community events. My picture was in the paper singing “O Come All Ye Faithful” when I was six, according to the caption. There was the story about the Green Family Singers  and at least one tied to my 1972 car accident.

In Albany, NY when I worked for FantaCo, the comic book store (1980-1988), there were a handful of stories, plus one UPI piece that got picked up by papers in CA, IL, ME, OK, PA, UT and WA in April-June, 1982.

There was a story about me and the 1990 Census in the Schenectady Gazette.

After I was on JEOPARDY in 1998, I got a few mentions, once in the Boston Globe and several times in the Albany Times Union. I was a blogger for the TU’s community blog (2008-2021), and occasionally an excerpt would show up in the print newspaper. There is a picture of me singing at my present church at some point in the 2010s.

* Name a past experience that you regret: “Regrets, I’ve a few, But again, too few to mention.” It’s not that I don’t have things I wish I had done differently. It’s that there were things learned from the experiences.

Seven Nation Army-White Stripes

Have you evah? (Swell party)

Now I probably never will

Have you evahHave you evah? is a meme done by ADD. Here’s the Cole Porter song, performed by Bing Crosby & Frank Sinatra and Debbie Harry & Iggy Pop.

Driven 100 mph — No, I doubt I’ve ever done 65.

Ridden in a helicopter — No. BTW, there are scenes in the movie Catch-22 and the YV show ER that freak me out.

Gone zip lining — Heck No.

Been to an NFL game — Yes, on October 13, 2002, in San Diego, the Chargers against Kansas City. Also, sometime between 1964 and 1969, probably towards the latter, the New York Jets v. the Houston Oilers at Shea Stadium. The home teams won.

Been to Canada — Several times. To the Toronto area for five days, to Montreal twice (1991/1992), to Windsor for about five minutes, and to Niagara Falls at least a dozen times.

Visited Florida — Twice, both times to ASBDC conferences. Once in Miami; there was flooding on the first floor. And Orlando. Both in the 1990s.

Visited Mexico — Once to Guadalajara in 1987, once to Tijuana in the mid-1990s.

Visited Vegas — Never.

Eaten alone at a restaurant — Many times.

Ability to read music — A fair amount.

Ridden a motorcycle — I’ve been on the back of someone else’s once or twice.

Ridden a horse — I did. The first time was June 9, 1976, after I had suffered a hangover. Not recommended.

Stayed in a hospital — A few times. At five and a half – a nosebleed that wouldn’t stop. At 19, after a car accident. And at least one other time.

Donated blood — 170-odd times. Far less frequently in the past two years because of the increased scar tissue at the injection sites.

Been snow skiing — No.

Wishing upon a star?

jeop
Been to Disneyland — no Disney anything. Pricey!

Slept outside — My family used to go camping, Not my idea of a good time.

Driven a stick shift — My college girlfriend tried to teach me. Then she screamed because I was burning out her clutch.

Ridden in an 18 wheeler — Yes, a few times in the 1970s, when I used to hitchhike.

Ridden in a police car — Yes. In college, writing a story for a college newsletter. When I got arrested in 1972, I think we were put in a van.

Driven a boat — In the past two or three years in western Massachusetts.

Eaten escargot — If I did, I don’t recall.

Been on a cruise — No. And now I probably never will.

Run out of gas — Once, in Speculator, NY with my father when I was about 11.

Been on TV — Technically, several times. My church choir used to sing at telethons when I was a kid. I was on a kids’ show thrice. Ken Screven interviewed me for a benefit called Rock for Raoul in 1985.

There was an anti-racism workshop in the 1990s and I was asked some questions. When the Underground Railroad History Project used to give tours, I could hear me singing in the piece. I was interviewed about a 1987 snowstorm in 2017.

Probably a couple other times. Oh, yeah, I was on JEOPARDY! twice. Also, I was interviewed by the local TV affiliate before the shows aired.

Eaten sushi — A few times. At least once in 2020, at a restaurant in downtown Schenectady.

Seen a UFO — I think so, a couple times, though my recollections are fairly vague.

Been bungee-jumping — Not on your life. Or mine.

A song that reminds me of myself

It could make you wonder why

KermitTheFrogTo a greater or lesser degree, LOTS of the songs I’ve linked to in the past several weeks remind me of myself. Certainly, the ones that made me happy or sad fall into that category.

Still, Having been Green my whole life, I know the wisdom of the song first sung by the great philosopher Kermit the Frog.

It’s not that easy bein’ green
Having to spend each day the color of the leaves
When I think it could be nicer bein’ red or yellow or gold
Or something much more colorful like that

Having been around flashy people, I know that’s just not me.

Bein’ Green was written by Joe Raposo and was originally performed by Jim Henson as Kermit on both Sesame Street and The Muppet Show.

It’s not easy bein’ green
It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things
And people tend to pass you over ’cause you’re
Not standin’ out like flashy sparkles on the water
Or stars in the sky

It has been covered by a number of performers such as Ray Charles, Van Morrison, and Frank Sinatra.

However

But green is the color of Spring
And green can be cool and friendly-like
And green can be big like an ocean
Or important like a mountain
Or tall like a tree

In particular, being friendly-like is important to me, particularly at church, where I see myself as an ambassador of the membership to guests and relative newcomers.

Bein’ Green was sung by Big Bird (Caroll Spinney) at the two memorial services for Jim Henson in 1990.

When green is all there is to be
It could make you wonder why
But why wonder, why wonder?
I am green and it’ll do fine
It’s beautiful
And I think it’s what I want to be.

That’s the end of the 30-Day Music Prompt thing I’ve been participating in this year.

Tom Waits

Tom Waits, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame musician, turns 70 today. Chuck Miller wrote about him recently.

Someone posted these Tom Waits lyrics as condolences to a friend’s loss: “As we scramble on our wheels each day with lights and horns blinking blowing. the loss of such a ray of hope does cause us in our tracks to slow. reflect and remember, recall and assemble.” As was noted: “You may not like his voice but the man has a way with words.”

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