Saturday 9: Voices Carry (1985)
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
This song was chosen because October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Please share this link to The National Domestic Violence Hotline. Let's spread the word that there's help out there.
1) In this song, a woman is "hushed" by her lover. When were you last told to "keep it down?"
A. I can't recall. I am not a very loud person and I live in the country where my little noise doesn't carry far.
2) Her lover tells her tears are something to hide. Researchers tell us that crying can be good for us, because by releasing emotional stress, it lessens physical stress on the cardiovascular system. Are you comfortable crying in front of other people?
A. No.
3) In this video, the woman makes a scene by speaking up in a theater. Today theater goers are more likely to be disturbed by a cell phone ringing or its screen illuminating. Are you careful to turn your phone off in the theater, church, etc.?
A. I am still figuring this out. I have finally gotten a smart phone (yay, I can text!) and I am still trying to understand how people carry the thing with them constantly. It makes my pocketbook heavy and I don't wear a belt. How do women deal with these things?
4) When this group, Til Tuesday, was still struggling, Cyndi Lauper was already a star. Cyndi offered to record this song, which would have brought the group some fast cash, but only if they agreed not to record it themselves. Obviously they didn't take the deal. Tell us about a time you took a risk on yourself, and it paid off.
A. I suppose that would have been when I decided to start freelancing full time, which was a very long time ago. I did well with it until the recession and suddenly everyone was doing the "gig" economy. Between an onrush of unanticipated competition (every out of work journalist in the nation) and the lack of people paying for writing, it became less of a good idea. Another time might have been when I decided to put myself through college and when I earned my masters' degree at the age of 49.
5) Til Tuesday's lead singer, Aimee Mann, went to Open High School in Richmond, Virginia. This charter high school is dedicated to helping students become "self-determined thinkers and learners." Do you recall your high school as permissive or regimented?
A. It was permissive when I began but we had a new principal come in my senior year, and he was a tyrant. He wanted everything done by the book. Our school ended up in the newspapers nationwide because we had a big food fight and he called in the police over it. Up until then you rarely saw a cop on a school campus.
6) Aimee has been on the road through 2017 and, like most artists, sells tour merchandise. Her line includes reusable tote bags. Do you bring your own bag to the grocery store?
A. I do a bit of both. I used to use my own bags more but they fill them so full I can hardly carry them, even if I ask them not to.
7) Aimee has tried her hand at acting and appeared on Buffy, The Vampire Slayer. From Dracula to Barnabas Collins to Lestat, vampires are a popular culture staple (especially in October). What do you suppose accounts for their enduring popularity?
A. Because everyone wants to live forever and we do not like to think we must die. It would be better to be a soul-less vampire than a memory.
8) In 1985, when this song was popular, Bruce Springsteen was at the top of the charts with Born in the USA. A massive commercial success, Born in the USA has sold more than 15,000,000 copies in the United States alone. Is it in your collection?
A. I don't think so. It might be in my husband's, though. We haven't looked at our vinyl in years.
9) Random question: In which race would you do better -- the Iditarod, with sled dogs in Nome, or speeding in a car at 200+ mph at the Indianapolis 500?
A. The speeding car. I tend to drive fast anyway. Plus I'm allergic to dogs.
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I encourage you to visit other participants in Saturday 9 posts and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however.
On the phones? I guess we're just used to them...though I think an awful lot just have the things in their hand all the time so it's purse weight is a non-issue.
ReplyDeleteWay to go...heading back to school at 49! I have thought of it, but eh, I don't know what I'd want to study these days.
I came up with pretty much the same reason for why people like vampires. The idea of immortality intrigues.
Ah, but then why vampires and not ghosts? Still, I love how concise and literate your answer to #7 is.
ReplyDeleteWhen I got a smartphone it was much lighter than my TracFone so that adjustment was simple. I don't know how my students can keep their phones in their pockets--their back pockets mind you--and sit!
ReplyDeleteI like texting. It keeps those long enduring phone calls to a minimum. Some people just have no idea when to cut a phone call short.
ReplyDelete#7. Well, that explains that! great answer. I'd rather be a ghost, too, like Gal.
ReplyDelete39 well, I can see why dogs are out. But 200 mph is exceedingly fast. I've only driven 120 mph and that was unforgettable. I'm sure the Indie would kill me. lol
#3. Congratulations! I love texting. It's a less intrusive way to ask a simple question. People can either ignore the text, or wait to answer it. I carry my phone around with me from place to place, and when I lay it down it's on a big flat surface, like the dining room table, and with the sound turned all the way up! And my phone is light enough to carry in my small purse.
I haven't figured out where or how to carry a cell phone too. It seems it's always where I am NOT and if it is with me, I have turned off the sound for some reason and if it rings I can't hear it.
ReplyDeleteAs for #6, I can't get the baggers to understand that just because THEY can pick up the bag, it doesn't mean that *I* can. They say they can put the bags into the car for me and I ask if they are going to come home with me and carry the bags into the house for me. I've written to the manager of the supermarket, and I am always reassured that they will pack lightly, but they still don't. I may bring 10 bags into the store and leave with 2 too heavy bags and 8 empty ones!