Sunday, December 8, 2019

Billie Jean, cover by Donald Trump




I already know that you probably don't like it, so you don't have to say so.

1) It involves Michael Jackson and you'll hasten to say you can't stand him

2) It's autotune and everyone hates that.

See the abuse that I set myself up for? I don't care. 

La la la.


don't

care.

Here's the thing. 

I was listening to music and translating them into sign in my mind

Then I thought of all those songs of yesteryear that held my attention so well way back then but lost track of and lost connection to. I was thinking of all the truly great songs and great performances before everything went to pot. 

Stevie Wonder came to mind. 

When living for the city came on the airwaves it blew my mind. The pulsating Moog, the story that's told. The whole album is great. I practiced every song on that album until each song was nailed right to word, right on the beat. 

I watched the video again and translated it into sign again. For old time's sake.

And that lead to Michael Jackson. I watched a video of him in Germany and the crowd was vast. Jackson had them wrapped around his finger. Women were going out of their minds. Thousands became instantly pregnant. 

I watched the video again and translated it into sign again. For old time's sake.

But that song has a fatal flaw. Billie Jean must be finger spelled and we don't like finger spelling in songs. Any shortcut wrecks the whole thing. The song is fantastic. The dancing is incredible. Kids won dance contests worldwide imitating him. That performance made Jackson a legend. It encouraged tens of thousands of people to learn how to moon walk. Including me. 

I'm trying to loosen up a bit. To not be such a tight ass. 

I refuse to watch the Irishman because it has De Niro in it and I can't stand to see his f-face or hear his voice or watch his lift-wearing runt self act like a strongman. 

I go through Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime video and X out everything with anyone in it that I don't care to see in it. And the older I get the longer that list becomes. People I liked before now I no longer care to see mostly because I am older. I'm turning into an opinionated prick that dismisses too much that is worthwhile. 

I was watching a movie about Buddy Holly and realized I must hate him too because he married a girl. I don't even know much about the guy. I think Presley did a similar thing. Possibly Presley waiting a bit so that it at least appeared decent. I don't know. One got away with it while the other did not. Then there is Polanski. I'm supposed to hate him too, and everything that he did. I think I'm supposed to reject all of that art. I'm not sure that I want to become who I am becoming ... a judgmental prick. 

I used to like Kathy Griffin for her outsider bit. I used to like Barbara Walters, Woopie Goldberg, and Joy Behar and Rosie O'Donnell now I click off The View faster than any of them can say a single word. And that's fast because they're all speed-talkers. I click off anything that features any of them and they're featured all the time. Everyday. 

I'm fighting the impulse of becoming typically old and it's a losing battle. 



3 comments:

The Dude said...

Led.

MamaM said...

Winnowing.

MamaM said...

When it comes to reading signs, there are several good books available on the conflicts, challenges, and invitations that arrive when aging and debilitation begin to limit life energy and require a change in focus.

The Grace in Aging by Kathless Dowling Singh, (who also wrote The Grace in Dying which helped me work through and understand some of what my mom was going through as her life came to end) are two of the books I appreciated, as they invite awareness and account for some of the themes and patterns that show up as typical in those who have lived more years than they have left.

While fighting reality is one approach, recognizing what is most important, valuable or needed in the present moment, and reconciling that with the resources, time and personal energy available is another.

What looks like a losing battle with an irreversible ending, can often become more meaningful with more awareness, if not for the person preferring to fight or deny, then for the people who stand alongside in support and love.