Day 25
What songs really “get to you?”

Oh, dear. So, so, so many songs make me bawl like a fool. Maybe it’s because I’m a textbook performer and my sense of empathy is constantly in overdrive. You know, that intrinsic desire to, as BFF Kay says, feel all the feelings? Not always a good thing.

I remember vividly the first song that “got to me.” I was nine years old, and a song called “Honey” by Bobby Goldsboro hit the charts. (Lyrics here.) I couldn’t listen to it without breaking down bawling. As a third grader, I couldn’t hold it together. Is that pathetic? It’s just all very personal and experiential to me. A lot of sacred songs get to me, too. There’s something about the mixture of melody, chord structure and text that pulls on me; something that instrumental music alone (with some major exceptions) can’t accomplish.

Here’s a short list of “get to me” songs, in addition to “Honey”:

1. “Love Will Keep Us Alive” – Eagles
2. “All I Ask of You” (reprise — sung by the Phantom) – Phantom of the Opera
3. “Bring Him Home” – Les Misérables
4. “Diary” – Bread
5. “The Leader of the Band” – Dan Fogelberg
6. “Only the Lonely” – Frank Sinatra (not the one by Roy Orbison)
7. “Back Home Again” – John Denver
8. “Separate Lives” – Stephen Bishop (Phil Collins later recorded it with Marilyn Martin)
9. “Red Cab to Manhattan” – Stephen Bishop
10. “Madge” – Stephen Bishop
11. “Same Old Tears on a New Background” – Stephen Bishop (you get the idea )
12. “Goodnight, My Angel” – Billy Joel

I could go on with this list for days. If you’re curious about any of them, look them up on Grooveshark.

OK, let’s have it. Give me some cool songs to look up. We all need a good weep to celebrate the END OF SCHOOL! I plan to come home today, place a lampshade on my head, and dance about the parlor.

Day 24
What country or area (to which you’ve never traveled) would you like most to visit?

Definitely the British Isles. I’ve been to London, but not to England’s more remote locales, or to Scotland, Wales or Ireland. Most of my ancestors came from that area; I’d really like to take a leisurely trip through the villages, and enjoy the countryside. Someday I will do this, even though I will need a Valium drip for the flight over.

Anyone else feel POMmy like me, or do you yearn for more exotic venues?

Oh all right, PK, I’ll extend this little project to the 31st. Actually, I never did the math to figure out when the thirty days would end — the 31st sounds like a dandy cutoff.

Today’s is a bit of a tuffy:

Day 23
Name one thing (either physical or abstract) you believe will be obsolete 10 years from now.

Gas-guzzling automobiles.

Day 22
What’s your favorite candy?

And please — no saying, “I don’t like candy,”  because there must be some kind of candy you like. Think hard; it’s out there. Everyone likes a sweet once in awhile. Get in touch with your inner nine-year-old. He or she will guide you.

My all-time favorite candy WAS — I say, WAS — Brach’s Malted Milk Balls. Actually, it still is, but the cheapskates at Farley’s & Sathers changed the recipe (undoubtedly to cut corners) when they bought out Brach’s, and destroyed every last vestige of what made them taste great. Now they taste like Whoppers — eww. So I guess I’ll go with my 2nd favorite: soft, fluffy marshmallows. Or Milky Way bars. Or, um…

Maybe I should have changed the question to a Top Ten list.

We’re nearing the home stretch — only nine more challenge questions. I hope you’ve enjoyed this half as much as I!

Day 21
How did you come to live where you live?

Unlike many of my coworkers and other family, I was a nomad of sorts. I was born in Illinois, then moved to a suburb of Milwaukee. Just before I entered high school in 1973, my family moved to Ohio, and with the exception of an 18-month stint in Florida, I’ve been in the same city ever since.

I know there are some stay-putters as well as other gypsies out there. Let’s compare notes.