Me From A to Z:
Amateur Parodist,
Blogger,
Christian,
David Davidovich,
Evangelical Sans Trump Kool-Aid,
Father of 3 Adult Children,
Giraffe lover,
Husband of One Amazing Wife,
Iguchi Appreciator,
Jester,
Kindegarten Clear,
Library Lover
Muppet Man
Narnian
Optimist
Poet
Quintessential Worker
RITA (Republican In Theory, Anyways.)
Stonehill Fan
Teacher
U of I Parent - ILL,
Voracious reader,
White Sox Fan,
Xenophile
Yankovic Enthusiast
Zoo Afficionado
Sox Fam
A Quote to Start Things Off
We have two lives; the life we learn with and the life we live after that.”
― Bernard Malamud, The Natural
Robert Redford and Rob Reiner were two of my favorite actors turned directors. They both passed away in the last 4 months of 2025 and as a result I've been thinking about them and their work. Yesterday, quite by accident, a movie quote popped into my mind. I could not place the movie at first, so I googled it and soon this scene was on my phone.
This quote from The Natural, although said to Redford's Roy Hobbs rather than by him, informs and leads the protagonist to the decisions that makes up the film's climax.
Thinking of Redford naturally made me think of Reiner. Thinking of Reiner led to thinking of the Princess Bride, which led me to this brief scene.
In reviewing the context of both of these scenes, the hard fact that life is painful cannot be denied. Both characters were denied (albeit temporarily) true love due to circumstances beyond their control. The quotes are both delivered to their respective true loves when at each point of the film a happily ever after doesn't seem to be in the cards.
Hope and bitterness both carry transformative powers. The concept of hope in the line "the life you learn with, and the life you live with" says to me, yes life is pain, but much like pain you endure in a fire swamp you can learn from that pain. Thinking that life is only pain can create a bitterness that is hard to overcome. I am glad that the 4 characters depicted in these scenes found their happy endings. When I think of Redford and Reiner and all the stories they told through their acting and directing, it makes me sad that their lives have ended (especially in the tragic way Reiner's ended ) but glad that I am still learning about life through their work.
Today, is my last post of the year. I originally started this one September 14th after the AP writers release this, their 4th college poll of the year. The University of Illinois was 3-0 and they got ranked 9th to show that, The University of Tennessee was 2-1 having just lost 44-41 to the University of Georgia in overtime so they were rewarded for their loss by staying put at 15th. This may seem unfair to some of the 17 other teams along with U of I ranked in the AP top 25 who started 3-0 especially the 8 3-0 teams ranked below TN all because the Volunteers played the Bulldogs close.
However one team dropped inexplicably in the rankings and they certainly had a bigger axe to grind than the 3-0 teams who felt slighted by TN. This team had started the year ranked 6th in the preseason poll . The next week they dropped from 6th to 9th. They had a bye week in week 2 so they were able to jump us from 9th to 8th but then the indignity of plummeting, freed falling, dropping from 9th to 24th.
This of course was South Bend Indiana's gift to Football itself, Notre Dame. What did Notre Dame do to deserve this national embarrassment? Failure to achieve any of the goals they set for themselves? No, I think that might just be too on the nose for the AP writers. Notre Dame had lost their first game and then after 2 weeks to think about it lost their 2nd game. Now, they only lost by a total of 4 points, so that was plenty of reason to place them above undefeated U.S.C. (who beat their 3 opponents by 115 points), and BYU (+93 point differential in their 2 games).
I mean that's crazy? How entitled can BYU get complaining thinking that their 2-0 start should be rewarded and place ahead of a team that could at that point in the season count all their victories with no hands.
I meant to get that out much sooner than today, but Notre Dame started winning and my original post got relegated to draft status. I always like to resurrect a post or two from draft status near the end of the year and I thought the title of this post, alone, merited an end of the year reprieve.
Yesterday Illinois and Tennessee met for the first time on the gridiron in the music city bowl here are the highlights.
As we speak, I am watching Pierce Pettis in concert in Lake Forest (Go Bears!) Illinois. I was first famiiar with Mr. Pettis' work as a song writer in the late 1980. He wrote I don't ever want to live without You which is a cornerstone of Randy Stonehill's 1989 Return to Paradise. This song Moments is the title tune of his 1984 independently released debut album. Bot sure if he'll play it today, but it should be a good concert either way.
On This Day 45 years ago White Sox Pitcher Ed Farmer faced Pete Rose in the 1980 All Star Game. This was back when the Houston Astros were in the National League and the Milwaukee Brewers were in the American. In the 6th inning with 1 out, Farmer pitched to Rose who hit a ground ball to 2nd Willie Randolph, who flipped the ball to SS Robin Yount for the 1st out and then threw out Rose at First Base.
Special Shout out to Sox Nerd who reminded me of this play in his Jan 1, 2025 post, Pete Rose and The White Sox. Rose passed away in 2024, and Farmer in 2020, making the footage from my youth feel even more poignant.
On April 11th 1955, The Film Marty premiered. It would go on to be nominated for 8 Academy Awards and win 4 Best Film. Best Director: Delbert Mann, Best Actor: Ernest Borgnine and Best Screenplay: Paddy Chayefsky.
Chayefsky's screenplay was adapted from a television play he wrote which was performed live in The Philco Television Hour in 1953. Each Tuesday in June at 6:30 A.M. central I will be posting a section from the television program with some fun facts at the end. Since I am showing these in serialized fashion, and showing them in the a.m., I am calling them Breakfast Serials.
Marty 1953 Part I
.
Fun Fact: Esther Minciotti, Joe Mantell, and Augusta Ciolli who played The respective parts of Marty's Mom ,best friend, and Aunt all reprised these roles in the 1955 film. Mantell was nominated for best supporting actor Oscar but did not win.
Join us next week for another installment of Marty.
Introduction: Vladimir Lebedev is one of my favorite people in the world. I have thought this about him almost since I met him in Khabarovsk, Russia in December of 1992. Vladimir has has worn many hats in the time I've known him. chauffeur, itinerant musician, soldier, interpreter, pastor, international student, father, husband, missionary but with every hat he's always tried to adorn himself with humility, wisdom, grace, and a desire to show God to others.
To that end, I was delighted, but not surprised, when Vladimir shared some thoughts on musicians using their platforms on his Facebook page earlier this week. I am sharing them here with links to some of the songs that he referenced. I'll add some of my thoughts about his musical musings at the end.
Rock musicians keep dreaming. Good intentions. Strong lyrics. Terrific music. Is there a solution to the world’s evils? Can humanity come together to live in peace? Can we stop hypocrisy and greed in the governments to bring wars to an end? Can we finally start caring for one another instead of looking for reasons to separate and hate?
Long ago, John Lennon with his “Imagine.” Freddy Mercury of Queen with his “Show must go on.” Ozzy (Osbourne) with his “Dreamer.” Russian rockers of various types Zemlyane, Kruiz, and Aria with their “songs for peace.” And more recently Udo Dirkschneider with his soul-shattering “One Heart, One Soul.”
This indeed is a passionate call for common sense, for something every human soul feels deep within. But where is it really taking us? Is there something missing in this search? Is it not crying out into a void? It is impossible to, in the words of Bono from U2, "find what we are looking for" without turning to our Creator and Savior who revealed himself to humanity in the person of Jesus the Christ. He has everything that our whole beings are craving for.
Maybe Blacky Lawless of WASP is right when he sings:
[Verse 1]
Gazing through the window at the world outside
Wondering will mother earth survive
Hoping that mankind will stop abusing her sometime
After all, there's only just the two of us
And here we are still fighting for our lives
Watching all of history repeat itself time after time
[Chorus]
I'm just a dreamer
I dream my life away
I'm just a dreamer
Who dreams of better days
[Verse 2]
I watch the sun go down like everyone of us
I'm hoping that the dawn will bring a sign
A better place for those who will come after us this time
[Chorus]
I'm just a dreamer
I dream my life away, oh yeah
I'm just a dreamer
Who dreams of better days
This indeed is a passionate call for common sense, for something every human soul feels deep within. But where is it really taking us? Is there something missing in this search? Is it not crying out into a void?
It is impossible to “find what we are looking for” (in the words of Bono of U2) without turning to our Creator and Savior who revealed himself to humanity in the person of Jesus the Christ. He has everything that our whole beings are craving for.
Maybe Blacky Lawless of WASP is right when he sings:
Jesus, I need you now
Show me, I'm lost somehow . . .
Is there no hope for me?
Oh, somewhere you'll show for me?
Oh, I'm holding on, believing there's a reason I can find
Ooh, Lord remember me, take me up tonight
(Golgotha, 2015)
Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - Sing 2
Draw closer, though they’re still as cold as ever…
And like at the hour of eclipse,
And like at the hour of eclipse,
We wait for light and see our earthly dreams…
And we dream not of thunder at the cosmodrome,
Not of the ice-cold blue of the sky -
But we dream of grass - the grass beside our house
Green, green grass…
—
And we fly our orbits,
Unbeaten paths -
Lifetimes like meteors in the vastness…
Courage and risk were justified,
For the music of space
Floats into our matter-of-fact talk…
In some opaque haze
Earth in the viewport -
An early evening-time twilight…
But the son misses his mother
But the son misses his mother -
The mother waits for her son, as the earth awaits her children…
And we dream not of thunder at the cosmodrome,
Not of the ice-cold blue of the sky -
But we dream of grass - the grass beside our house
Green, green grass…
Dave's Thoughts: I really appreciated Vladimir's take on this, I think it's especially important to note that trying to fix a broken world is a universal pursuit. It is not just an American past time. In the 1970's there were many popular songs that I would call searching songs. Songs like Desperado by the Eagles and Dust In the Wind by Kansas. In the late 70's early 80's the years of my spiritual formation many people would use these songs in the same way Paul used the statues on Mar's Hill, as a way to pointing to the truth of Jesus. Vladimir is essentially doing similar work in his comments here.
Yesterday I posted Ronald Reagan's commencement address from Eureka College when He was President of the Unite States. . Today, I have footage of him while Governor of California performing at a celebrity roast for Bob Hope.
My Brother texted me during the coverage of the announcement of the new pope that one of my childhood White Sox heroes, Chet Lemon had passed away. Now, that Dick Allen has been elected to the Hall of Fame, Lemon is one of the best White Sox players to not make it to Cooperstown. A 3 time all star, and a World Series champion with the 1984 Tigers. Lemon was aggressive at the plate, on the base paths, and patrolling center field. In the time he played in the MLB between 1975 and 1990 he was 2nd in being hit by a pitch. He holds the American League single season record for most put outs as a centerfielder (509 in 1997) when he was with the White Sox.
Some of Lemon's leatherwork is in display when he was on the Baseball Bunch T.V. show. In the episode he works with young players on how to run down a ball and be aware of the fence.
Footage of Lemon's famous catch in game 3 of the 1984 World Series.
I shared a clip from this speech last year. I thought it would be interesting to share the speech on it's 43rd anniversary, the year that the average Eureka grad is reaching retirement age.
Around 5 years ago Allen Levi shared this song on you tube. It was April 27th 2020. We were about 6 weeks into Co-vid lockdown and Allen shared this song from his porch. I meant to share it last Sunday which was the 5 year anniversary of it's release. I was just at the end of catching up in the A to Z challenge and finishing the last week up. Now that the song is 5 years and a week old I'm sure it will resonate just a little differently than it would have last week at 5 ...
My A to Z Challenge Theme this year is the ABC's of me. Each day in the month of April with the exception of Sundays I will be posting about one aspect of my life that begins with the letter of the day. Today's letter is Y so let's get right to it shall we?
Way back on April Fool's day when I was posting about my being an amateur parodist I mentioned a little about Weird Al and his influence on me. Today I will be sharing 10 videos of some of my favorite Yankovic songs. They range from his national T.V. debut on the Tomorrow show to a video my friend Patrick (a hardcoreYankophile) recorded to concert footage from Amsterdam.
Some of these may not be among my top 10 favorite Yankovic songs which is one of the reasons why I am not numbering them or ranking them.
Word Crimes
Ebay
Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota
Another One Rides The Bus
Ode To A Superhero
Hamilton Polka
Don't Download This Song
It's Still Billy Joel To Me
Yoda
The Saga Begins
That's all I have for my penultimate entry in the ABC's of me.
To get to the A to Z Challenge webpage click here.
My A to Z Challenge Theme this year is the ABC's of me. Each day in the month of April with the exception of Sundays I will be posting about one aspect of my life that begins with the letter of the day.
It's time for some A to Z catch-up. , I am currently 2 posts behind. The next letter is M so let's get right to it shall we?
I only like movies about real things, like the Muppets. - Amy Roller
To say I grew up on the Muppets is not really too much of an exaggeration. I remember watching the first episode of the show when I was in Kindergarten and introduced to Muppets like Oscar the Grouch, Grover, Bert and Ernie, Big Bird, and a reporter by the name of Kermit The Frog. The Muppet Show started when I began Jr. High and the Muppet Movie came out the summer before I started High School. My grandmother took us to see it and it changed my life.
Amy had a similar epiphany with The Muppet movie and even had a stuffed animal Kermit which not only attended our wedding, but sat on the piano for all to see.
The day before our first daughter was born we went and saw the movie Muppets from Space. Not a great movie, but just another example of how I can measure my life by the Muppets. I don't really have much more to add so I'm just going to put this music video of Man or Muppet on to end our time together.
Click on the various words to get to the various places.
My A to Z Challenge Theme this year is the ABC's of me. Each day in the month of April with the exception of Sundays I will be posting about one aspect of my life that begins with the letter of the day.
It's time for some A to Z catch-up. , I am currently 4 posts behind. The next letter is J so let's get right to it shall we?
I will use any excuse to play a scene from the classic Danny Kaye film the Court Jester.
I used to describe myself as a court jester in the wrong century. When you think about it a jester is just an indivdualized comic.
I like bringing my sense of humor to every occasion. I grew up watching the likes of Buddy Sorrell, Hawkeye Pierce, and Ralph Malph ( from the Dick Van Dyke Show, M*A*S*H, & Happy Days respectively.) They were all great quipsters but they had a writing staff. Just like I do my own stunts, I write, steal, or borrow my own material.
One if the perks of being a substitute teacher is you don't get annual reviews. Maybe this is different in other districts, and maybe some people don't consider this a perk, but one thing I do miss from annual reviews was when my bosses would write how funny I was. I know that this is probably what they write when they don't have anything else substantive to say but reading that I had a good sense of humor was almost as important to me as my annual pay increase.
At many of my jobs I have the opportunity to improvise and improve bits of comedy. For example as a concessionist at a local movie theatre I do many of the same things multiple times a day like showing customers the sizes of our drink cups. Many folks marvel at the size of our large cup so I told one customer that it was the only cup I knew that came with a diving board. The next time a customer came in I changed diving board to life guard and that joke is the one I use now.
Some of my jesting falls into the categories of timely quips based on the situation. Others have me using the same joke over and over to different audiences. The only cup with a diving board started as the former and is now the latter. One of my favorite types of jokes are the kind that seem like a statement and you don't realize there a joke it's too late. A dated example of this is when people might be talking about a recording artist and I might say I have all their albums. Then after a beat, I would say, "They called me the other day, they want them back. ". Since albums are not what they used to be I don't make that joke a lot anymore. A similar joke to that is when I see some one with any type of Notre Dame gear, I may tell them that my Dad and sister went there, and then quickly add in, "that's how they met.".
Being a jester isn't all about jokes it's also about general merriment, tricks, and enthusiasm. When my son and I went to Joplin, Missouri to help provide tornado relief. We went in early August when the temperature could get over 100 degrees. I would encourage everyone to drink water and make sure they had a water bottle. Then I would say I was the hydration specialist and then add in the words "self appointed." At one point, our bus was having a little mechanical trouble and we had to make a quick stop. I went to one of the teenagers and gave her a water bottle and said I was the hydration specialist. Before I could say anything else she added in "self appointed." That's the kind of impact I like to have.
Here is an example of the kind of tricks I am talking about from a video I used in my vlog a few years ago:
Two aspects of my Jester personality that I bring to the blog are limericks, which I featured at the challenge 2 years ago and parodies which started this years challenge.
I know I jest got started, but I should probably let you get back to the challenge and get back to catching up. To find more A to Z challenge entries click here. To get back to the A to Z challenge blog click here.
Hello, those dropping by from the A to Z challenge and welcome to Team Saturdazzle!
Team Saturdazzle is the best thing on the internet that no one has ever heard of. It's one of those super cool, super hip things that needs no explanation.
Okay here's a small explanation; Team Saturdazzle occurs each Saturday at Leap of Dave and is a Potpourri of randomness and merriment. Team Saturdazzle began when I led a work group chat at a previous job on our Saturday shift. I called the chat, wait for it, Team Saturdazzle.
This year I have titled all the Team Saturdazzle posts with titles that look like they are episodes of the T.V. Show Friends. That's why this post is called The one Without The Kool Aid.
So for the Saturday's of the challenge I will have my A to Z post as the first part of the Team Saturdazzle post.
Before I start I want to share that during the A to Z challenge my Weekly Writer's Workshop submissions will appear as a segment in Team Saturdazzle or as part of my daily A to Z challenge response.
Here are this week’s prompts:
1.Write a post based on the word roommates.
2. Write a post in exactly 12 sentences (lines).
3. What’s something that makes you far angrier than it should?
4. Write about something you’ve recently spent a lot of time wondering about.
5. If you could change the color of one thing, what would it be and why?
6. If you knew you could live forever, how would you spend your days differently?
My A to Z Challenge Theme this year is the ABC's of me. Each day in the month of April with the exception of Sundays I will be posting about one aspect of my life that begins with the letter of the day. Today's letter is E so let's get right to it shall we?
As a Christian I believe that the only thing I deserve is an eternity without God as a result of my own sins. I also believe that my salvation comes from God through Christ and is taught in the Bible. Nothing else is needed. When evangelicals defend unchristian behavior because they like the politics behind it they are not showing an understanding of Christ's redemptive love to a watching world.
Yes, I am quoting myself. I will be making many of the points today that I have made multiple times on this and other platforms. Since it is the ABC's of me, and I am, in fact, me. I will be quoting myself whenever possible. All quotes unless otherwise noted are from the post The Politics of Christianity which there is a link for in the paragraph above this one.
John Holton of The Sound of One Hand Typing put out his prompt list earlier this week for his Writer's Workshop segment. I chose #4: Write about something that you recently spent a lot of time thinking about. I've been ruminating about this topic for many many years and that includes recently. It is one of those things that makes me go" Hmmmm?".
I consider myself an evangelical Christian. This is how Wikipedia defines Evangelicalism:
I know I wrote more experientially and anecdotally when I wrote about being a Christian on my C post. However if I were to take an academic or explanatory approach it would match pretty close to Wikipedia's entry above. The Wikipedia entry is very similar to the 5 Solas (Latin for alone) the tenet's of the protestant reformation.
They are Grace Alone, Faith Alone, Christ Alone, Glory of God Alone, and Scripture Alone. Evangelicals, in a nutshell, believe in those 5 points and spreading that message as a regular practice of their faith. -
Why is the church getting engaged to the republican party when we are supposed to be the Bride of Christ? - Dave Roller TPOC
The problem of putting something in a nutshell, is that there is usually a nut or two alongside. (That is definitely a future quote from me.) Among American evangelicals these days there seems to be many who are nutty about Making America Great Again. It's as if there was a 6th sola, America alone (Sola America) and since 2016 a 7th Sola : Trump Alone (Sola Donalda)
It wasn't always this way. Back in the 1980's and 1990's I knew evangelical Christians who were Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians and some even who were fans of the Green Bay Packers. aka Packertarians. Back then Donald Trump was not necessarily someone you would equate with evangelicalism of any stripe.
A letter to the editor in a suburban Chicago newspaper, The Daily Herald regarding Muslim reaction to Trumps proposed Taj Mahal casino had this to say about Trump:
Donald Trump's very name has become synonymous with conspicuous consumption, greed and arrogance. He is now linking himself with gambling more and more. A Reaction To Trump, Daily Herald April 27th 1990
The author did not identify himself as an evangelical in the letter, however, since I was the author of the letter, I can assure you that I was an evangelical at the time , and still am (sans the Trump Kool-Aid).
Billy Graham, who I will refer to for the rest of this piece, as EFE (Everybody's Favorite Evangelical) had this to say about gambling:
“Gambling is nowhere approved in the Bible. Instead, the Bible stresses that the Christian should earn his living by honest work and effort, and this would exclude relying on chance (2 Thessalonians 3:10-12). The Bible tells us to ‘abstain from all appearance of evil’ (1 Thessalonians 5:22). Gambling has often done untold evil to people by making them lose money that could be used for good purposes or even the necessities of life. Money is given to us by God to be used for good, not evil. Anyone seeking to do God’s will should not be involved in gambling.” Billy Graham - My Answer Column quoted in Gospel Herald Article 1/26/17
Trump still profits from his previously owned casino resorts. The AP reported this past Tuesday that Trump has an agreement with Bally's that if they build a casino on the former Trump Links that Bally purchased in 2023 that they will pay him 115 Million dollars. It is just one of many instances where it makes it hard for me to understand the relationship between Trump and Evangelicals.
Michael J. Kruger wrote an excellent article at his website canon fodder entitled "How the 5 solas do more than respond to Catholicism". Kruger breaks down each sola, saying what it fights against. Kruger says that Soli Deo Gloria (For God's glory alone) is about "letting go of our glory, and living for God's glory." He concludes that Soli Deo Gloria fights against pride.
If that's the case, MAGA doesn't make sense coming from the mouth of an Evangelical. Making America great again and all our energies on being a proud American sound like what people who need Christ may be looking for Glory but not the evangelicals dedicated to sharing that Christ. The Wikipedia definition calls evangelicalism a world wide movement. If that's the case, wouldn't the aims of evangelicals be more global, if not other worldly, than national?
In my post, The politics of Christianity I explain how I have both a passion for political involvement and also a passion to shower the world with the love of Christ. I then say:
If I had to choose between passions I hope I’d choose the passion mandated in the Bible. Jesus states this passion very succinctly in the book of John ...
12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
John 15:12-13
Or in the words of EFE:
“I’m trying to stay out of it and just keep preaching the gospel, because there’s nothing coming out of Washington or any of those places that are going to save the world or transform men and women. It’s Christ,”
Billy Graham 1987 – quoted in What Billy Graham taught us about a healthy relationship between religion and politics – Deseret News 2/21/2018 also quoted in TPOC
The point I hope I am making is that evangelicalism has nothing to do with Trump. This doesn't mean that evangelicals should have nothing to do with him. Evangelicals carry the good news of Jesus Christ and that message is vital and has eternal consequences. It is a message worth sharing to presidents, felons, adulterers, poor losers, and instigators of riots. Evangelicals can and should vote in their countries elections, but that doesn't mean they need to drink the Kool-Aid.
I just love this standup routine from Nate Bargatze from the first time he hosted Saturday Night Live. The first few minutes are pretty good but it's the last 5 to 6 that just about kill me. So funny.
I may have broke AI
While I was researching and writing my A to Z post for today, I searched for how the 5 Solas would be translated in other languages. This was for a point I decided not to make. I looked it up in Spanish, Russian and Greek. Each time Googles AI gave me an overview with the 5 Solas and what they would be called in that language and then I could further search the links below that. Being the totally Saturdazalous person that I am I decided to see how the Solas might look in Klingon. AI went to work but after 30 seconds it was still thinking and I decided that maybe I should back out before anything really bad happened.
That's about all I have for Team Saturdazzle today. Thanks for stopping by either from The Sound of One Hand Typing or the ABC Challenge. For More Writer's Workshop click here. To get back to the A to Z Challenge website click here. To go back directly to the A to Z Challenge Master List click here. Otherwise leave a message at the tone and I'll call you back at my earliest convenience.
My A to Z Challenge Theme this year is the ABC's of me. Each day in the month of April with the exception of Sundays I will be posting about one aspect of my life that begins with the letter of the day. Today's letter is A so let's get right to it shall we?
A is for Amateur Parodist
I love parodies and I came by it honestly. My family listened to a lot of Allan Sherman records when we were growing up. Allan's most famous song A Letter From Camp (Hello Madda Hello Fadda) but I grew up hearing so many more of them. Here is one I just discovered today to the tune of Moon River it's called Chopped Liver.
In addition to being exposed to one of the worlds greatest parodists at an early age. My folks also wrote and published their own song parodies. Each year they would write their annual Christmas letter to the tune of a different Christmas song.
They produces such classic lines as
Good old Wenceslaus looked out from his Window Sill (Ledge)
Then he looked all about and saw Elk Grove Village
The parodies would tell the story of my parents year and what happened to all of us during the course of it. These parodies went on for at least 40 years and began including grandkids and Christmas songs that no one ever hear of.
My sister Kathy was the first of two girls born to my parents over the course pf 11 years. I was the first of 3 boys born to my parents over the course of 6 years. The boys of course came in between the girls setting up this parody of Hark The Hearald Angels Sing in 1974.
Then we were not six but seven
January 27th
On that day in early morn
Bonnie Eileen at last was born
She is Kathy's pride and joy
Specially because she's not a boy.
These influences and being exposed to Weird Al Yankovic singing gems like He's still Billy Joel to me on Dr, Demento put me on the prestigious path to parody. (Not the annoying, alley of alliteration. That's all me.)
The first parody I remember writing down was a parody to the Steve Miller Band 1982 song Abra Cadabra about a guy who worked at a morgue called average cadaver . I kept the lyrics for awhile but soon lost them. A few years later I saw Svengoolie singing a parody of Abra Cadabra also about a cadaver, That's the problem with parodies, if you can put new lyrics on somebody else's song you can't complain when someone else does. While looking for the Svengoolie parody on you tube I found an obligatory co-vid parody of Abracadbra that has to do with pasta rather than cadavers.
.
Over the years I have had occasion to write multiple parodies. Some I've written for people moving away. Some just for fun. The 3 that follow all were written for ir previously published in this blog.
When I returned to the A to Z challenge in 2019 my first theme was the music of the Sherman Brothers. Their music has a special place in my heart. It's no surprise that I've tweaked their lyrics from time to time. Like when I wrote this paean to t-shirts.
The most wonderful thing about t-shirts
Is t-shirts are quite fun to wear
They're great to roll up your sleeves in
They help you let down your hair
They're cool, they're stylish, some think they're childish and while I will not bicker
the most wonderful thing about t-shirts is they're frontwards bumper stickers!
There are a few go-to songs that I like to parody. Hakuna Matata from Lion King and Desperado by the Eagles top that list. If the syllables of your name scan with Hakuna Matata there is a reasonable
I just made one up now:
Olympia Dukakis
What a wonderful dame
Olympia Dukakis
Has a star on the Walk of Fame
She was all the rage
From her great work on stage
Olympia Dukakis
For scanning purposes O-limp-eee-ah is shortened to O-limp-ya
While posting it on my FB page I did a quick Desperado parody:
Silverado, you are in my top eleven.
You star two great Kevin’s
Plus one Glenn, and one Glover
You’re a western
But so much more than your genre
Which is why I’m so fond a
This joy I’ve discovered.
In 2011 when celebrating my 500th post on this blog. I wrote a parody to the tune of the Proclaimers I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles).
I Just Blogged (500 Times)
When I wake up, yeah, you know I'm gonna blog
I'm gonna blog about playin' puppy on the floor.
When I go out, well you know I'm gonna blog
I'm gonna blog about a field trip to the store.
If it's Christmas, yes you know I'm gonna blog
I'm gonna blog about how much we like to bowl.
And if it's Easter, yes you know I'm gonna blog.
That it's not a little rabbit that makes us whole.
I just blogged 500 times
And I might blog 500 more
To blog and ask what you guys do
With children screaming on your floor.
When I'm teaching, yes you know I'm gonna blog
About something good that Bunny or Spider did.
And when puppysims come
I'm gonna post 'em here. She's really quite a kid.
When we travel. yeah, you know I'm gonna blog
Whether close to home or Washington D.C.
And when we get back you know
I'm gonna blog
with words, pics and videos for all to see.
I just blogged 500 times
And I might post 500 more
Just to be the guy whose 1000 posts
Will make you laugh but never snore.
When I'm fed up, yeah you know
I'm gonna blog
I'm gonna blog 'bout how my family drives me mad
But when I think straight yeah you know I'm gonna blog
I'm gonna blog about the super times we've had.
I just blogged 500 times
And I might tweet 500 more
Just to be the guy whose posts and tweets
reveal the passion at his core.
That about does it for my adventures as an amateur parodist.
I just have one more thing to add. Allan Sherman and Al Yankovic were both at one point my favorite parodists and I was a distant third. My daughter Lucy FKA Puppy FKA Wolfina has not only surpassed me as a parodist but I believe she could surpass Sherman and Yankovic in a tussle for the the top spot. My favorite of hers is when she does the preamble to the constitution to the tune of Momma Mia.
We do a lot of collaborating and were having fun last week when she was home on Spring Break just making parodies of songs based on my maintenance medications. They were just a line here, a line there like singing Triamtene to hail to the Chief.
When we were done, I kept on reimagining one until I was telling the story of a man who was singing the praises of his blood pressure medicine but kept on obsessing instead about the Trump Presidency.
