Saturday 9: That's All, Folks

Saturday 9: That's All (1983)Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) In the lyrics, Phil Collins sings of a time he was wrong when he thought he was right. Tell us about a recent time when you got it wrong.

A. I have a tendency to think other people don't like me, and I get that wrong a lot. Actually, they do. So I get that wrong with great frequency. For instance, I recently thought that another player of this meme had for some reason decided she didn't like me. And maybe she doesn't, but we have never met and probably never will, so it's a silly thing to think and worry over.

2) The song is addressed to a lover that Phil clearly feels is contrary. When he says, "day," she says, "night." Is there anyone in your life who seems to disagree with you all or most of the time?

A. Yes. About half of my community.

3) This was Genesis' first Top 10 hit in the US. Can you name another Phil Collins or Genesis song?

A. "I can feel it coming in the air tonight, oh no. And I've been waiting for this moment for all of my life, oh no." It's called In the Air Tonight.

4) Phil Collins is a model train enthusiast. Is there anything special that you collect?

A. I have a small collection of Christmas mice. And a lot of books.

5) Collins was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Berklee College of Music in Boston. At the ceremony, he delivered the commencement address. When did you last give a presentation or deliver a speech?

A. My last presentation would have been in January, when I taught a class on keeping a journal at a writer's conference at my alma mater.

6) One of Phil Collins' early solo albums was called, Hello, I Must Be Going. He took the title from a song in the 1930 Marx Bros. movie, Animal Crackers. What's the last black and white movie or TV show that you watched?

A. The Andy Griffith Show. I watch it almost every day. It comes on at 5:30 here just before our local news, and that is when I'm in the kitchen cooking dinner.

7) In 1983, when this song was popular, the Lotus 1-2-3 program made it easier for PC users to build spreadsheets. Are you answering these questions on a PC or a Mac? Laptop or desktop? Tablet or phone?

A. A PC desktop. I don't see how anybody types on a tablet or a phone. And I am not a fan of Windows 10, not that anybody cares.

8) 1983 is also the year when McDonald's introduced McNuggets. What's your favorite chicken recipe (assuming it's not McNuggets)?

A. I like chicken pot pie, or just plain baked chicken. I don't eat fried food anymore. And I try not to eat things don't actually look like food.

9) In 1983, President Reagan signed the bill making Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday a holiday. What's your favorite holiday?

A. My favorite holiday is Halloween, but I don't celebrate it. No one comes to say "trick or treat" when you live 1/4 mile off the road and you're out in the country. I used to like Christmas but I don't enjoy it much anymore. I am surrounded by scrooges who seem hell-bent on taking the joy out of the holiday. So I guess my most favorite holiday really is my birthday, which isn't a holiday, but it means I survived another year.