Musing in Manhattan

This morning my mom talked me into taking my boys to BJs to do some very necessary food shopping—my cabinets were so bare they echoed when you screamed ANYTHING IN THERE????   My eldest was crabby but I dragged him out anyway and found that Sunrise Highway was a bit crowded but not terrible.  The entrance into the Green Acres Mall, Wallmart, and BJs shopping area, however, were horrendous.  This didn’t stop us though, we were out so we figured we would see how bad BJs was.  Who the heck goes grocery shopping the day after Thanksgiving anyway?  So we inched our way through the road that takes you around the back of Green Acres and I noticed that Walmart was relatively bare in its parking lot.  My mother said–Wow, Walmart is empty, I guess no one really is food shopping.  I said:  Walmart should be packed though—-they have more than food and everyone packs into Walmart on a regular day.  Why is it so empty?   We inched our way further toward BJs and found that cops were stearing everyone away from the entrance to Walmart and Home Depot and a few of the other stores.  I didn’t really think much of it though.  We got into the lot of BJs found lots of spots and said:  “What the heck lets just get it all over with”.  A few rows into shopping (in an empty BJs!!!) my little one ran infront of our wagon and I said: ”Buddy, you can’t run in-front of the wagon like that, you’ll get squished!”   As I said this, an older woman said:  “Oh my, did you hear what happened this morning in Walmart?”  OF course we said:  “WHAT?”   She proceeded to tell us that when the security officer opened the doors to Walmart this morning the crowd rushed in pushing the doors off the hinges as the man was opening the lock and they trampled over him and he was killed.  AND a pregnant woman was also knocked over and her water broke and she too had to be rushed to the hospital.  TRAGIC!!!  My mother and I stood there in disbelief and we began to talk about how people have just lost the true meaning of Christmas.  I thought to myself, forget about the meaning of Christmas, what about the meaning of humanity.  It is absolutely disgusting what happened today.  I can not believe that people could be so insane as to converge on a store like that.  FOR WHAT?   It is just disgusting.  By Two O’clock the doors to that particular store were open for business again.  IT IS DISGUSTING –ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING that they opened the doors back up.  That store should have stayed closed out of respect for the man that died there today.  That poor man’s family–how awful.   On the news tonight they announced that even as the paramedics were doing CPR on the man people were still shoving past.  What a disgrace.

     Here is a music trivia question for you:  What song was named the biggest hit of all time on American Billboard’s Hot 100 All Time Songs survey?  Think you know the answer?  If you said:  “The Twist” by Chubby Checker you are absolutely correct.  Yes, Chubby Checker’s 1960 hit “The Twist” still holds the title of the biggest hit of all time by Billboard’s rankings; Which isn’t hard to believe because it seems that just about everyone under the sun (or at least everyone here in the United States) can be seen Twisting their hips to the all-time favorite at wedding after wedding.  What you may not know is this:  Chubby Checker did not write the song, nor was he the first to release it.  “The Twist” was originally written, performed, and released by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters as a “B-Side” to one of their other songs.  “The Twist” was a minor hit for the group in 1959.  One year later, Chubby Checker (born under the name Ernest Evans) covered and released the track.  Chubby Checker’s version was a hit!   Teens all over the country were “Twisting” their hips to the R&B hit song and the dance sensation was born!  Checker and his new hit were on their way to the top of the charts; it reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on September 19th, 1960. 

     “The Twist” (a 12 bar blues song) was Chubby Checkers first of two #1 hits (the second was “The Pony” which also gave way to a new dance trend called–what else:  “The Pony”.   What exactly was the appeal of the song?  Why didn’t it catch on when it was first released by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters?  One can only speculate that Chubby Checker had the magic pipes to bring it to its true potential.  Add to that the fact that the song is simple in its’ lyrics, snappy in its’ rhythm and so fun and easy to dance to and you have a recipe for success. ”The Twist” is a good, clean, fun and wholesome song; one that every generation can appreciate. It’s the kind of song that your parents didn’t mind you listening to on your phonograph over and over again–a harmless ditty that encompassed innocence and at its core was the idea of being young and just having  good clean fun on the dance floor at the local burger joint.  Not dangerous like Elvis’s thrusting pelvic movements, “The Twist” was considered acceptable behavior.  The most rebellious line in the song is probably this:  “We’re gonna twist, twista, twist, till we tear the house down!”  The song caught on like wildfire and Chubby Checker could be found on variety show after variety show performing “The Twist” for live audiences all over the country.

     Today, your great grandparents, grandparents, your mom and dad, even your kids from toddler to teen, love to get up on the wedding hall dance floor and just twist and shake those hips when they hear Chubby Checker’s invitation: “Come on Baby, Let’s Do the Twist!”  The song is a party-goers favorite, get me up out of my seat prompt.  Even the most stoic of party guests (even if they won’t admit it) feels that stirring inside to get up and dance or to belt out the words from their seats.  The great thing about “The Twist” both as a song and a dance is that it allows even the most rhythmically challenged of souls to be a star on the dance floor.  You just can’t do it wrong!  Even Steve Martin as ”The Jerk” probably could’ve managed to play it off. 

     “The Twist” also spawned a sequel titled: “Let’s Twist Again” (Like we did Last Summer) which although it did not reach number 1 on the charts, did very well in its day and continues to be played very frequently on the airwaves of the oldies stations and at parties today.  Its’ predecessor, though, the original “The Twist” still remains the number one song of all time for over 45 years of the Billboards 100 Hot charts.  How long will it reign last?  What could possibly take it out of the running?  Only the future will tell.

Cheryl Anne Nelson Handley  Sept, 2008

     The other day I was checking my email and I found a letter from “Jesus”.  When I opened the email it was a response to a previous post I wrote here on MusinginManhattan about wanting to start a new political party.  He apparently shared my opinions and found himself like me walking down the middle of the road and asked me if I was serious about the project.  Laughing, I replied to him via email and said I was in no way serious about starting a new party and that I was just merely venting.  I stopped by his website and learned that he and his wife are pastors of a church.  I thought how great the internet is to connect people from all over the country to other like minded individuals.   So many wonderful people leave comments here on my blog and I just want to thank each one of you that takes the extra time to write a note to me.  It really means the world to me to have your comments. Whether they are funny, Sweet, challenging my own, or just a quick:  “Hi, I like your site”, they are all very much appreciated.  Sometimes they are motivational as was the comment left by a fellow today.com writer on my post entitled:  “Keeping up with Jesus rather than than the Jones’s” which was a post wherein I disclosed the hardship we are having with money and how many of us (myself included) are too busy keeping up with the world instead of our soul.  The commenter basically told to me to hold fast to God and that he would provide.  It is always so wonderful to receive comments on posts but it always especially nice to receive comments that are positive and uplifting.  The commenter invited me to stop by her site and I did so.  Her site was very positive and very uplifting—typical of the woman who had left me the comment.  She recounted the story from the Bible about the woman who touched the robe of Jesus believing that the mere touching of his robe would provide the power of healing.  Please continue to leave your comments and let me know where I may read some of your blogs as well—I am always looking to read fellow bloggers posts. 

I thought it might be fun and equally embarrassing to create a question and answer page based on our high school days.  I hope lots of you will be a good sport and play along too!  To play along, click on the comment box, copy and paste the questions and add your answers.  Pass this link along to your friends and have them answer the questions in the comment box too.  Check back often to see who commented!  FEEL FREE TO SUGGEST A NEW QUESTION AND I WILL ADD IT!

1.  What is your name?

2.  What H.S. did you attend and what year did you graduate?

3.  Who were your best friends in school?

4.  Who were your H.S. crushes?

5.  Who did you date from your H.S.?

6.  Who were you most jealous of and why?

7.  Who was your favorite teacher?

8.  Which teacher did you like the least?

9.  List the places you hung out after school and on weekends:

10.  Who was your date to Senior prom?

11.  What teams were you a part of?

12.  The most embarrassing thing to happen to you in HS was:

13.  The funniest moment(s) you can remember from HS are:

14.  (Fill in the blank) I still keep in touch with ………………….. from HS.

15.  Who were the hottest couples of your graduating class? 

16.  In my opinion, the prettiest girl and cutest guy in our school was:

17.  In my opinion, the funniest person in school was:

18.  The shyest person in HS I knew was:

19.  The most outgoing person I knew in HS was:

20.  Who was the first person to break your heart in HS ?

21.  What was your biggest disappointment in HS?

22.  Choose the group you most likely fit into back in HS:  Headbanger, skater, intellectual, Jock, Artistic, Wallflower, Cheerleader (create your own if necessary)

23.  Give a brief description of yourself physically and personality wise as you were in HS:

24.  How have you changed since HS?

25.  What advice will you give to your kids when they get into HS?

26.  Where was your prom held?

27.  What color was your prom dress / suit and tie?

28.  Who was your first kiss?

     Life has been a bit tumultuous for my family and myself the past few months.  Between my husband taking a job that cut his salary in half and myself returning to work to make up the difference, our family has been experiencing a lot of heartache, many obstacles, and quite a few arguments. We have needed to make many changes in our routines and we have had to ”suck it up” and deal with it all because—-well, just because we have to do so.   This has left me mourning for the days where I was able to stay at home with my boys and for the days when my husband and I were actually on the same page about a lot of things.  It amazes me how much the lack of money can really turn a family inside out.  It is also amazing how once we decided that we weren’t go to let the situation define us or beat us that we have grown closer because of it.  I have come to understand why on so many occassions in the Bible it is stated to cast off all of your belongings and that God will restore your wealth (not necessarily money) tenfold.  I have always turned to Prayer to get me through things; and the past few months have been full of contemplative prayer.   More than ever before I can hear God speaking to me and guiding me through the overwhelming sea that has been pulling us under.  More than ever I have felt that things will be okay, no –better than okay.  I know that God will see us through, and that he is seeing us through this.  People go through life asking this same question:  What did I do to deserve this?  when they are faced with a bad situation.  I think the better question is:  What didn’t I do correctly that brought me to this?  Somewhere along the line, we made a mistake, perhaps many mistakes, that brought us to this point. We didn’t listen to ourselves when we said:  “Maybe we shouldn’t eat out, or maybe we shouldn’t spend so much this Christmas.”   We should have settled for a cheaper car, bought less toys for the kids, ate out less, etc etc even though at the time we could afford to do those things.  We didn’t bank on misfortune, we assumed that the money would always be there and when it wasn’t there any longer, we fell into trouble.  –God didn’t bring us to the point of despair, we led ourselves here by not following our rational selves.  We knew better, but we didn’t listen to reason.  Everyone wants to keep up with the Jones’s instead of keeping up Jesus.  Yes, we are living paycheck to paycheck, yes it is very hard, yes it is discouraging, but for once, we are fighting to stay together rather than drifting apart.  We are turning to each other and know that God wants us to succeed.  This too shall pass and soon we will have more time to spend with one another and enjoy the little things rather than looking for external things.  We may be bankrupt in our wallets, but we are rich in God’s eyes and in his kingdom there are many mansions.

     Driving into Manhattan on my way to work this week I began to take notice of a few hints that Christmas will soon be here.  They have been erecting the ice skating rink in Bryant Park already.  Pretty soon there will be skaters swooshing to and fro as they are bundled up in their heavy layers, with scarves, hats, and gloves to cut the nip of New York City’s cold winter air. I can almost smell the aroma of the warm hot chocolate that the eateries near-by will serve to the visiting patrons.  

      A little further down the street, Radio City Music Hall has its entryway decked with absolutely gorgeous Christmas wreathes and Christmas Swags daping from column to column.  The signs are up for the Christmas Show with the Rockettes and I must say I am getting a little excited.  This will be my first Christmas season working in Manhattan and I can not wait to see all of the store windows adorned with holiday decorations.  Just seeing the hints of it this week, fills me with anticipation.   Of course, we still have to get through Thanksgiving, but I am really getting excited for the Christmas Season. 

While searching for interesting stuff online I stumbled across a great site that I wanted to let everyone know about.  It’s called The Whole 9 and it is exactly that–The whole 9 yards.  It has a little bit of everything:  Part Networking, part friend finding, part pleased to make your acquaintance, part dating service, and part Business directory and portfolio manager.  I signed on for its Portfolio section.  The site is a great place for artists, writers, actors and other businesses or individuals to post their resume, samples of their work, and photos for the world to see.  There are writers, photographers, interior decorators, publishers, agents, models, and all sorts of people who have listed their personal portfolios.  The great part is, it is absolutely free and so easy to use.  IF you are looking to meet new people, either for dating or for friendship purposes, you can do that too.  Simply fill in the sections that apply to you.  There are always ways to block people from seeing you, so if you are strictly business, you can choose who to block and what is shown on your profile.