Walking on Sunshine

Posted on August 5, 2016 by Double K

“I feel alive.  I feel the love.  I feel the love that’s really real”

My wife despises this song.  It’s a turn-the-station-quick-or-I-will kind of loathing.  It’s not really a “guy” song either.  Back in the 80’s I probably would have turned it if anyone had been in my car with me, but not now that I’m older and really don’t care what people think of my music choices and preferences.  Personally, I love this song with it’s bubbly, catchy hook.  I’m not ashamed!  I love Katrina and her Waves!

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The song is on my Spotify personal “80’s playlist” and it’s a frequent visitor to my favorite Sirius/XM station – the 80’s on 8 with the original MTV VJ’s sans the late JJ Jackson and more recently Martha Quinn left (oh, why did you leave us @MarthaQuinn)

Band member and lead guitarist for the British/American group, Kimberly Rew, wrote the song that would eventually crack the top 10 in the U.S. in 1985 as the group’s only top 10 hit here giving them the popular but often unfair label of “one-hit wonder.”  I think we would all agree that out of the thousands and thousands of band and singers that come and go in a lifetime, any of us would love to have that one hit that reaches the airwaves and continues to dance off the lips of people everywhere to this day.

Hey!  Alright now.

But, it did get me thinking.  Is it really a negative to be a “one-hit wonder?”  It sounds like it sometimes.  But aren’t we all just one-hit wonders when it comes down to it?  We get one human life and one shot at doing something with it.  We’re tasked with making the most of our God-given talents.  We strive to make this a better world for the next generation.  We long to be a part of something greater than ourselves.  Whether it’s with our family, or a thriving business, or maybe just as part of a band grinding every day at achieving some definition of success, there is something inherit in us that drives us.

What are you doing with your one shot?  What am I doing with mine?  Well right now I’m struggling to write a post that will make you think, make you reflect a little, and maybe even bring you over to my side on Katrina and the Waves if you’re not there yet.

80’s digression:  The irony in the video (at the end of this post) is that it appears the day they did the shoot for the video they ended up with mostly cold, gray skies and some fog.  The only glimpse of any sunshine looks like maybe around the 2:20 mark where I see some shadows as Katrina and the band are walking.  Otherwise, it’s a pretty dreary video.

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Katrina Leskanich is the Katrina, and as I watched her in the video I had some wardrobe thoughts:  1) I wondered what’s up with the matching trench coats of her band mates, and 2) just how many girls/women in the 80’s had a black vest like Katrina?  Fifty percent?  75%?  90%?  I’m guessing the black vest was a staple piece in most closets.  My wife had one, and she’s been trendy since she was a young adult.  It’s even in one of my all-time favorite 80’s movies being worn in the final scene by the late Amanda Peterson in “Can’t Buy Me Love.”)

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(RIP to the late Amanda Peterson shown in her black vest at the end of the movie)

“And I just can’t wait till that day when You knock on my door.”

The concept of that line takes on a slightly different meaning from the song if you choose to capitalize the “Y” in You.  C.S. Lewis brilliantly writes “Aim at Heaven and you will get Earth ‘thrown in’: aim at Earth and you will get neither.”  Ahh… another option for that one shot you get!

Whether you’re religious or not, the virtue of hope and what it means is something we can all relate to regardless of gender or race, or where you live, or what socio-economic class you belong to.  And I think that’s another reason this song resonates with me.  It’s a song full of hope.  There are too many people out there that have given up and have no hope.  If you have no hope, there’s something wrong.  What are you living for?  Are you meandering through life like a pinball bouncing from one bumper to another?  Are you living for that next temporary high that will never truly satisfy you?  I’m challenging myself and I challenge you to dig deep.  Find what drives you.  Find that meaning and that hope and get after it.  Life is a gift, so don’t take it for granted man!  Some say I have some talent when it comes to writing, so here I am proving them wrong (LOL).  Actually whether I do or whether I don’t is strictly opinion in my mind, but regardless I am trying to get better everyday.

Much like our daily lives, and the Bible verse in Ecclesiastes 1:5 – “The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises.”  And it repeats itself over and over and at an alarming rate as you age.

If you need a pick-me-up today, I dare you to be in a bad mood after listening to the song.    My wife may never like or appreciate Katrina and the Waves.  You may cringe every time the song comes on.  But for me, and for some of you Wavers out there (I don’t know if that’s what their fans call themselves or not – it just sounded right), one day when I get to my penthouse in the sky, I literally hope to be doing and to be singing…

“I’m walking on sunshine, wooah.  I’m walking on sunshine, wooah.  I’m walking on sunshine, woooah, and don’t it feel good!”

As always, thanks for reading.

Sincerely,

the 80’s

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“I Got to Keep On Moving”

Posted on July 30, 2016 by Double K

“Ain’t nothin’ gonna break my stride.  Nobody gonna slow me down.” – Matthew Wilder

It was spring of 1984 and Matthew Wilder was climbing the music charts.  Released late in 1983, “Break My Stride” was Wilder’s biggest hit and was on it’s way up to #5 in the U.S. and to the top 5 all around the world.  At the same time that year, a lanky 13 year old living in Seminole, Oklahoma (me) was adopting this song as his theme song and climbing the charts so to speak on the basketball court.  Let me explain (and by saying “lanky” that’s just a nice way of phrasing the fact that I was really skinny).

Every year, the Elks Lodge or Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks sponsors a free throw shooting contest called the Elks National Hoop Shoot in which boys and girls in every state from the ages of 8-13 compete in a contest of shooting free throws.  Each person in the three ages groups (8-9, 10-11, 12-13) shoots 25 free throws over two rounds (10 the first round and 15 the second round), and whoever makes the most is the winner.

According to the website, this contest was the brainchild of Frank Hise of the Corvallis, Oregon Elks chapter, and the organization has had some version of this contest for over 60 years, and it still lives on to this day.

“You’re on the road and now you pray it lasts.”

Wearing my lucky Kentucky basketball t-shirt that had been given to me by legendary Kentucky coach Joe B. Hall (I was a huge Kyle Macy fan back then and had met Coach Hall on one of his recruiting visits to Seminole Junior College where my dad coached one of the top juco players in the country – former Orlando Magic guard Anthony Bowie).  I proceeded to blitz the local competition in Seminole and moved onto the district competition where I once again defeated my competition.  I don’t recall how many I made or how many I competed against, but nevertheless I was off to the Oklahoma state finals!

With each progression in the Elks Hoop Shoot I would always hear “Break My Stride” on the radio the day of or maybe hours leading up to the event riding in the car with my parents.  It was fate, destiny, whatever you want to call it.  It didn’t matter.  That song pumped me up, and as long as I heard it I knew Matthew and I were on our way to a championship.

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“The road behind was rocky, but now you’re feeling cocky.”

Well I was feeling a little cocky heading into the state finals.  There were four of us, and after the first 10 free throws I had made 8 out of 10 while watching two of my three competitors make all 10 (the other one made 7 out of 10).  As luck had it, the two that had made 10-10 both missed three free throws each in their final 15 shots to finish at 22-25.  I know Matthew Wilder got into their heads during those final 15.  I just know it.  I stepped to the line knowing what I had to do and didn’t let anything break my stride.  No one was going to slow me down, oh no.  I proceeded get in rhythm and knock down 15 in a row en route to the Oklahoma state title by making 23 out of 25.

I vividly remember being so excited once I took my seat next to the other contestants and even shot my parents a quick glance as they sat in the stands.  My mom, holding her homemade chart that she would keep track with at every contest, knew I had won as well.

I advanced to the regionals against the winners of Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado.  I remember not hearing Matthew Wilder that day and I promptly finished third out of four and my career in the Elks National Hoop Shoot was finished.  I fell short of my ultimate goal of being a national champion, but maybe it was just not meant to be much like Wilder’s song not making it to #1 because of the likes of songs from Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and Van Halen at that time.

People like to say that music is the soundtrack to your life and it’s so true.  To this very day every time Matthew Wilder and “Break My Stride” comes on the radio I am transported briefly back to that time in 1984 when there was no one better than me (in my mind) from the free throw line.  I could have beaten Larry Bird or Isaiah Thomas or even the great Kyle Macy if I had needed to back then.

(Below is a picture of my dad on the left and maybe the only one I couldn’t have beat shooting free throws in 1984.  Myself, on the right, wearing my lucky Kentucky t-shirt holding my state championship trophy along with my mom and sister holding my other two winning trophies circa 1984 in Seminole.)

You need more proof of my dominance?  LOL.  Here you go!

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Well, I couldn’t be more pumped to post this video and all of its’ 80’s deliciousness.  From the dancers and the costumes to Wilder’s wardrobe and sweet early 80’s stache I just love this video.  Also remember that this is back in the days when it was normal to lip sync when performing “live” on tv, and it’s  easily noticeable as you watch the performance below.

Also of note is a peculiar instrument being played called the Chapman Stick, and you can see it being playing by one of Wilder’s band members over his left shoulder.  Not sure if his name was Floyd or Lloyd Moffitt, but he performed with it on American Bandstand a few times as well with Wilder.  Out of curiosity about the fellow with the funny instrument I shot Wilder a tweet and he responded.  Here’s my brief “Twitterview” with Wilder:

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Well regardless of if he still performs the song with a Chapman Stick player or not, thanks for the perfect song at the perfect time, Matthew.

And thanks for reading.

Sincerely,

the 80’s

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“When the Heart Rules the Mind”

Posted on July 25, 2016 by Double K

“When you want the dream to last, take a chance forget the past.”  – GTR

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I was in Wisconsin recently visiting my only sibling, my sister.  We drove through two states and over 10 hours to get to a pretty little slice of God’s creation about 15 miles to the west of Madison between the two small communities of Black Earth and Mt. Horeb.  My wife, daughter and I spent three days seeing some sights and just enjoying family time with my sis, her husband, and their one-year old, Keller.  

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a photo I captured by the tracks in Black Earth, WI, July 2016

Those of you familiar with the little known band GTR (a name apparently derived from the abbreviation for the word guitar) and their one hit “When the Heart Rules the Mind” may be asking yourselves how this song has anything to do with sibling relationships.  Well, it probably doesn’t have any relation, but I heard it while in Wisconsin and I actually woke up early one morning with that chorus running a loop through my head.  I will admit it’s a catchy hook from the short-lived group assembled by former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett and Asia guitarist Steve Howe, but when that kind of thing happens at four in the morning it’s bloody annoying.  Anyway, that is how it ended up here in this post.

The anticipation and the build up to an event, or in this case the visit, are what we thrive on and what excites us as dates draw near.  It’s the leaving-part that is usually what we dread.  When we left her house that Monday evening for the final time after three full days of being together I felt like Will Farrell when he was in the telephone booth in the movie “Anchorman” – I felt like I was “in a glass case full of emotion!”  It was hard to put anything into words at that exact moment, and I couldn’t.  I just couldn’t muster anything.  I had to just give her a big hug because I was too choked up to say anything.

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My sister and I probably early 90’s; my first car (and hers) – the light tan ’84 Camaro is in the background

“When the heart rules the mind, one look and love is blind.” 

I will say this line beautifully captures a sibling relationship whether that was its’ intention or not (probably not).  We love our siblings (most of the time) because of who they are, not what they are.  They don’t “earn” our love because of what they do.  They just receive it because of who they are in relation to us.  Sibling relationships are complicated and far from perfect.  And for many of us, we’re left with a relationship that can be unfulfilling and empty.

Truly, if my sister and I were to meet as strangers there’s probably very little chance we’d be great friends.  We’re just different.  We’re eight years apart in age.  We don’t talk politics but I’m guessing we differ on many opinions in that arena.  Growing up she was naturally more rebellious and care-free.  I’m more “by-the-book,” less adventurous, and naturally more closed off and introverted.  But because of who she is I love her like she’s my perfect twin, and I’m a better person because of it.

If you ask her, I was “the perfect child” growing up, though I was far from perfect.  I made dumb decisions (anyone remember when I called the high school pretending to be my dad to say I was sick so I could go to a party on “Senior skip day”?  Yeah, that was a good idea).  I sinned like we all have and do.  There were lies and groundings and bad grades and more lies and more groundings, but for the most part there was nothing major that rocked my parents’ world.   My sister, on the other hand, was set at a different speed and temperament than me.  She didn’t just push the boundaries.  Sometimes she just ran through them at full speed and waved at my parents as she flew by.  It was impossible for her to “be more like your brother,” because that’s not who she is or who she was made to be.  I’m sure there was some resentment through the years because of it too.

80’s digression:

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The decidedly bland music video features a stage performance by the band.  I will say they are a nicely dressed bunch, but I always wondered about the medal on guitarist Steve Hackett’s jacket, (wearing it above – second from the left), so I went straight to the source, and here is my very brief “Twitterview” with Steve Hackett:

  1. Jul 18

     what was the medal you were wearing in the GTR video When the Heart Rules the Mind?

It had no significance… Was just decoration.

There you go.  Look how much more informed I just made you about a little known video from a short-lived group!  And you’re welcome.

“Seasons will change.  You must move on.  Follow your dreams.” 

My sister had to go through a lot to get to where she is today.  Some of “the bad stuff” I don’t even know about to this day, but I get a sense of it from time to time by things that she or my parents say.  She’s lived in six different states and three different time zones in her life.    She’s endured pain and rejection and unrealistic expectations, but she’s made it in this world and she made it her way.  She really seems to be in a good place today with a job she was made for, a cool, wood-chopping beast of a husband, and a rockin’ one year old that won’t quit smiling.

“When the heart rules the mind.  One look and love is blind.”

I will always look at my little sister and be blind to any shortcomings or faults she has or even thinks she has.  We should all really be more blind and more forgetful sometimes.  It can be a hard thing to do, but I think it would produce less resentment and less judgment.  I’ve never heard one person say ‘I wish I was more judgmental’ or ‘I wish I resented him more than I do.’

I’ll finish this post by saying that I’m very proud of my little sister.  I love her, and I can’t wait to see where the next guitar riff of life leads her.

Thanks for reading.

sincerely,

the 80’s

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One of my favorites of my sister and I circa 1980-something in Seminole, OK

 

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“Out on the road today”

Posted on July 21, 2016 by Double K

“I saw a DEADHEAD sticker on a Cadillac.  A little voice inside my head said, don’t look back.  You can never look back.” – Don Henley

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Out on the road today myself I was lost in the dichotomy of past and present.  As Henley’s “The Boys of Summer,” played I couldn’t help but reminisce back to 1980 something, while at the same time still living and trying to process through a difficult present day situation.  It’s the unenviable task of watching my parents age, and the difficult decisions that come along with that.

Henley’s song may represent young love gone wrong to some, and I see that in the lyrics, but for me it’s always represented a kind of melodic ode to lost youth.

“Don’t look back.  You can never look back.”

We all know that’s more of a suggestion and just not a true statement at all.  Even in the iconic black and white video shot by French director Jean-Baptiste Mondino the three versions of Henley represented (youth, middle-aged, and Don himself) all look back at the mention of that very lyric.

My point though is that we do look back – all the time.  Sometimes our reflections can be lengthy and reflective, and other times it’s just a brief glimpse or flashback in our mind.    We remember scenes of our past and for most of us those involving our parents as well.  We look through photo albums and see our parents – young, strong, adventurous, and full of life and possibility.

momanddad1985(Taken on my Polaroid instant camera in Norman, OK)

As my peers and I race through a middle age full of job promotions, demotions, and changes, through marital bliss and marital failure, through youth baseball games and dance recitals, and just through everyday highs and lows, we’re faced with an aging generation of parents.  My parents are still living, and so are my wife’s, but just not in the same way anymore.

Gone for most of us are those care-free days, fun-filled nights, and family vacations.  They’ve been replaced with medications, and worry, and physical and mental limitations.  Many of you have traversed this path already and/or may have already lost parents.  I’m sorry if you have.  I hear all the time what one would give up just for one more phone call or one more hug and it makes me grateful and sad all at the same time.  Many of you have already had to run through the obstacle course of funerals and insurance, and wills and trusts, and family (oh, God help you if you have a large family), and feelings of frustration, sorrow, and regret.

Can life ever fully prepare you to undertake this task that most of us face one day?

For many of us that grew up in the 80’s, these music legends like Henley that we listen to are close to our parents’ age whether we believe it or not.  When Henley’s longtime collaborator and friend from The Eagles, Glenn Frey, passed away at the age of 68 I spent much of the evening listening to the music of The Eagles, kicking myself for never getting to an Eagles’ concert, and thinking about his life, my life, and the end that we will all face one day in this life.  I have a good friend who likes to say that we’re all just waiting in line hoping that we’re further to the back of it than the next guy.  How depressing, but how metaphorically true it is.

“The sun goes down alone.”

It can be a lonely feeling, and that sun is setting on our parents’ generation.  I hate watching my parents age.  But, when I think about all the times we’ve had together and I look through the pictures and old videos I’m reminded of all the good times… and there were plenty of them.  The crazy vacations and road trips and family reunions.  And the laughs – and there has been no shortage of laughs.  Sure there have been disappointments and sorrow and frustration, but it’s the joy and the happy moments that we are left to hang onto in our hearts and in our minds.  But I know for me, selfishly, I long for a just a few more of those times to hold on to.

My dad has lost two younger brothers in the last 12 months and it’s been harder and harder to come by those laughs quite as easily as before.  The golden years aren’t always golden in this world.  In the book of Proverbs it says that “Even in laughter the heart may ache, and rejoicing may end in grief.”

I will always think of my parents’ generation as the “Boys of Summer,” a term that I first heard coined by the author Roger Kahn in his book of the same title.    It will be the black and white images, it will be “brown skin shining in the sun,” (who thought about skin cancer back then?) on a beach, or in a car with the top pulled down, young and innocent captured forever in time.

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So for now there’s really nothing you can do but go slide your Wayfarers over your eyes, drop the top or roll down the windows, bump some Don Henley, and savor the warm sun on your skin, the thoughts of good friends, and the memories of your young, strong, cool parents.

Thanks for reading.

sincerely,

the 80’s

“Those days are gone forever. I should just let them go, but…”

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Welcome

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Double K

Welcome to “sincerely, the 80’s.”  I designed this blog to utilize it for my love of writing while using 80’s lyrics as inspiration.

Why this picture in the very first post?  Because how can you not be inspired looking at this vintage picture?  Mr. “Kenny Bloggins” will be here to inspire and push me forward on those days when the words don’t come as easily and the subjects and thoughts don’t play out well on paper.

Anyway, I hope you find some enjoyment or it just makes you stop and reflect for a moment.  Whatever the case and whatever the reason that brought you here, I hope you enjoy it.

sincerely,

the 80’s

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