Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Stuck Songs, and Shouts at the Shore

This song has been stuck in my head for four days:



I blame it on Mtv. In those days I was sharply crafted by its pulsating glow. If only the marketing machine that we know today had been so astute in those days. Perhaps I'd still be wearing Wayfarers and Jams.


Speaking of music, on the commute into work today, I settled on the Breeders version of "Happiness Is A Warm Gun" from the album "Pod". As I was listening, I thought to myself, "This sounds a lot like it was Steve Albini behind the boards."

Flash forward to this afternoon, and after consulting Allmusic.com, my assertions were confirmed.

So the Beatles, too. Mixed in with Cyndi Lauper, my internal soundtrack today.


I've been riding my bike a lot more in the recent days. It's fun and a great way to get sweaty.

Yesterday, however, it was too friggin hot to think about getting into, so for my daily outdoor activity, I opted instead for a walk with my camera around Jamaica Pond.

As I found the path around the pond, I noticed two people talking about 100 yards in front of me. Knowing that this is a neighborhood where it's easy to run into people one knows, I didn't think much about it.
As I got nearer, the two went in different directions. The old man was now walking toward me. About 15 yards in front of me, he abruptly stopped and threw his hands in the air:

"Smile, for crying out loud!" As he shook his hands I noticed his ear lobes, which were abnormally long, shaking back and forth. I couldn't help but conjuring the word "labia".

"You look as if you're going to a wake!" he shouted at me. All I could do was say, "Perhaps I am..." Lame comeback.

As I walked along, I could hear him shouting at the person behind me as well, and I really had to ask myself what this fellow was all about. Does he think he's doing good, yelling at anyone who'll listen to smile? What if I was indeed on my way to a wake? Does he think he's helping or harming society? How did his ears get like that?

My only regret was that I was not on point with my camera, and was unable to get a shot off of this fella. I walked (against my intentions) all the way around the pond to try and pass him again, but I guess he had had enough of berating strangers into enjoying his idea of an ideal world.

Maybe I'll keep up with the pond walks. I've got a pretty good scowl going on...

1 comment:

Kao said...

Ah, the Smile Commander. Some people seem to think that they can hold people accountable for not looking happy enough, as if they are owed a cheerful face everywhere they go. They think that this mentality somehow makes them into better people, but it's really selfishness disguised as free spirited altruism. If they really want people to be happy and smile, perhaps they should, you know, do nice things for people that would make them sincerely need to smile, instead of demanding outward happiness from others like it's as simple as clicking a remote.