Six-Word Sunday

Love sustains hope;
darkness becomes light.

My idea for Six-Word Sunday comes from the book Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure. Read more about the book at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18768430.

TV Shows from My Youth

In an earlier post, I wrote about songs that take me back to yesteryear. I also made note that when I was a girl, my dad liked to watch Hee Haw. That got me thinking about the television shows from my childhood that shaped my perception of the world. (Coincidentally, The Today Show has been featuring TV cast reunions this week; I haven't seen any of them yet, but I will probably check them out.)

Here are some of the shows we watched in my house when I was growing up:

• The Mickey Mouse Club - I remember watching this when I got home from school. I also remember my brother, Mark, always being on restriction, so even though he was a teenager, he would be watching along with me.
• I Love Lucy - I was a huge fan of this show and continue to enjoy watching it when I come across it because Lucy still makes me laugh. I can remember so many specific episodes and shenanigans from this show--Vitametavegamin, John Wayne's boots, Ricky's mother coming for a visit, Lucy's cousin Ernie, Lucy and Ethel crushing the wine grapes, Lucy lighting her prosthetic nose on fire, etc.
• Leave It to Beaver - The Beav was just so darned cute. His parents, Ward and June, were so different from my parents (at least that is what I thought back then).
• My Three Sons - I had a crush on the oldest brother, Robbie. I liked Uncle Charley, too, because he was spunky. And the whole idea of a house without a mom was fascinating to me.
• Hogan's Heroes - The characters on this show were all funny, especially Colonel Klink.
• Laugh In - This show was always fun to watch and we all grew fond of the regular characters, like Ruth Buzzie's old lady who wielded a mean purse!
• I Dream of Jeannie - I loved the hi-jinks that Jeannie got into. I also thought it was pretty cool that the star of the show and I had the same first name!
• All in the Family - My dad loved this show; I think he and Archie had a lot in common. I remember thinking Gloria was so cool!
• The Waltons - This was a nice show about a big family, and since I was the youngest of 6, I could relate to some of the family dynamics. There was always a good moral to every story. Of course, I also loved the end when everybody said good night!
• M*A*S*H - Always entertaining, this show was very popular in my house. My family was among the 106 million viewers who watched the final episode.
• Happy Days - I loved watching this show. I liked that Richie was a nice kid and, man, was the Fonz cool or what?
• The Brady Bunch - Okay, so there were six kids in the Brady Bunch and six kids in my family. That is pretty much where the similarities ended, but I can recall all of us gathering around the TV on Friday nights to watch this show.
• The Partridge Family - This family had their own band and traveled in a bus they painted. They were way too cool and, of course, I thought that Keith was dreamy!
• The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson - My mom, from whom I have inherited my night owl tendencies, used to watch Johnny every night. I can remember wanting to be able to stay up late enough to watch with her, which I finally got to do when I was in my teens. To this day, I still watch late night TV, though I prefer Dave to Jay, so I don't watch the Tonight Show much any more.

It's funny to think back to my youth when the television airwaves actually went blank after about 2:00 a.m. I think it was after Tom Snyder's show, which followed the Tonight Show. And we only had about a dozen channels, and we had to get up to change them! No comparison with what's available through today's technology, but it is fun to reminisce!

Music & Memories

Have you ever noticed how hearing a certain song can bring back memories of another time and place in your life? You hear a song and the memories of yesteryear come flooding back. Here are some songs that evoke strong memories for me:

• A Boy Named Sue - My dad used to listen to country music; I didn't care for it when I was girl. But my pops liked Waylon, Willie and the boys. And we used to have to suffer through watching Hee Haw, too!
• Smiling Faces Sometimes - This is just one song from the 1970s that takes me back to the days of running around with my siblings and friends. This song in particular reminds me a family vacation when we rented a beach house at Sunset Beach with another family, the Olands.
• Pass It On - Truth be told, I have not heard this song in years. It takes me back to being in Catholic school and having to go to Mass during the school day. With my friends, Mary, Monica and Joan, I seemed to always end up laughing during church. The nuns definitely frowned upon us finding anything humorous during Mass!
• Chantilly Lace - One of my brothers, Gary, loved to listen to the oldies. It made him cool because he wasn't listening to popular rock & roll; he was doing his own thing. I can remember trying to learn the words to the songs he loved.
• Brandy - I don't know how many times I heard this song on a family road trip from Orange County, CA, to Bellingham, WA, but it was a lot. I can remember my dad singing out loud to this song (slightly off key and off the beat) as we rolled down I-5!
• Hotel California - The year was 1977 and I was graduating was 8th grade at St. Irenaeus Catholic School. I remember this song playing during a slow dance with my mad crush, Stephen Denevan.
• I Can't Wait and Nasty Boys - Both of these songs remind me of going out after work at Western Federal Savings & Loan. I was in college and most of my friends at work were, too. We definitely had a great time going out to the local hot spots to dance the nights away. Steph, Pat, Maria, Matt, Pam, Scott, Sheryl, Mike, Ravine, Suz, Debbie, Kirk...we spent a lot of time together laughing and having fun!
• Red Red Wine - After my girl, Georgann, came back from a vacation to Jamaica, we started going out to listen to live reggae music. This song was frequently requested, so hearing it makes me think back to the days when "the drums and the base make me wind up me waist!" This song was not exactly a good representation of reggae music, but it was certainly popular, especially at the clubs in Orange County. And if you know me well, then you know that Georgann's trip to Jamaica had a lasting impact on my life.

There are countless songs that take me back to a different place and time. How about you? What songs evoke your memories?

What's in a name?

In creating this blog, one of the first things I needed to do was come up with a name for it. After thinking about it and trying to come up with something catchy, I decided to use alliteration with my first name. Then it came to me...baloney...which will be a reminder to not take myself too seriously!

I expect to blog about anything and everything happening in my life, about my observations and thoughts on family, friends, coworkers, and people I encounter or meet. Hopefully I will do so with humor and a smile on my face.