Saturday 9: Magic (1980)
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
Ooo. I love Olivia Newton-John. Good choice!
1) This 1980 video depicts Olivia Newton-John as a performer in small club. For the past few years, she's been performing regularly at the Flamingo in Las Vegas. Have you ever been to Las Vegas?
A. I have been through Las Vegas. When I was 12 years old, my family, along with my two young uncles and my grandmother, took a big van across the U.S. from Virginia to California and back. The only thing I remember about Las Vegas was a lot of lights and my mother screaming at my father to stop the van so she could get out and get a quickie divorce, and me crying in the back.
2) Many tourists who want to get away from the glitz of Vegas travel less than 20 miles to visit Red Rock Canyon. This national park is known for its hiking trails, which provide a view of the desert flora and red rock peaks. Tell us about a time you were impressed by natural beauty.
A. I am impressed by it every day. Just a few moments ago I looked out the window and stood for a while watching seven deer graze in the little hidden field in front of my house. It is surrounded by woods and the deer seem to find it safe there: they lay down and sleep there. I love watching them. I do wish they wouldn't eat my roses, though.
3) One of the best-reviewed restaurants in Las Vegas is Andiamo Italian Steak House. When you order a steak, how do you request it be cooked: rare, medium rare, medium, medium well or well done?
A. Medium rare.
4) Olivia Newton-John's father was an officer in MI5, the UK's secret service. Sam's most recent encounter with the law didn't have much drama or intrigue: she asked a cop for directions to the highway. Tell us about the last time you spoke to an officer of the law.
A. The Sheriff and I had a long conversation not long ago about the appropriate time for someone to shoot a gun after I spent a Saturday afternoon listening to someone in behind me target shoot literally for hours. They were also setting off some kind of blasting powder that actually rattled the windows of my home. I don't mind people target practicing to sight in a gun, but hearing gun shots for hours on end gets very wearying and nerve-wracking, and when it shakes the house it is a bit much. It is also against the county noise ordinance.
5) ONJ was awarded the OBE -- Order of the British Empire -- by Queen Elizabeth in honor of her contributions to the arts. Here's your opportunity to boast. What is something you've done lately that you received praise for?
A. I made a good coffee cake.
6) A breast cancer survivor, Olivia helped found a cancer center in her hometown of Melbourne, Australia. When you think of Australia, what comes to mind?
A. Kangaroos.
7) "Magic" was one of the top-selling records of 1980. Also that year, Post-It notes debuted. Do you enjoy shopping for office supplies, or do you consider it a chore?
A. I love shopping for office supplies. I'd rather spend time in an office supply store than a clothing store. There is nothing like the smell of a new notebook.
8) In 1980, the NASA space probe returned the first photos of Saturn back to earth. Do you believe intelligent life forms from other planets are trying to learn more about us?
A. I think intelligent life forms from other planets would take one look at us and move on. We're not advanced enough yet for them to worry about. When we can make it the 40 light years it would take to get to the nearest M class planet, then they will worry about us. But we will destroy ourselves long before we get to that point, so I'm not overly concerned that we will contaminate the rest of the universe.
9) Random question: Are you more confident in your looks or your intelligence?
A. Intelligence.
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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. (This is my 170th Saturday 9. That's over three years of playing.)
#4 -- UGH! I hope the local authorities can help!
ReplyDeleteAnd your Vegas is so sad. But you know, the writer in me knows the writer in you could turn it into a compelling short story.
Ahhh....you might not have been thrilled with us back in the fall. We went up to my stepdad's farm on a Sunday afternoon and the four of us, plus two neighbors who wandered over, spent a couple of hours shooting our guns at targets and the guys did some skeet shooting.
ReplyDeleteAnd yea for someone else who doesn't cook their meat to death and beyond.
I know what you mean about those gun shots. I'm always worried about those stray bullets too.
ReplyDeleteYou and I feel the s same way about office supply stores!
ReplyDeleteCount me in the office supply store camp! They are so much fun! It's the best part about being a teacher (not really but sort of).
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on the office supply stores. Love them!
ReplyDeleteAnd, yes, sadly, we will not make it very far, the way we are headed.
Since the shooting at our neighborhood school, I flat out don't like guns.
The police department let off an old grenade across the street from my home. ( on a firing range) It really shook everything, I thought we were being attacked or that a house blew from a gas leak. They didn't say anything about it not even we are sorry we scared the $**t out of you. A little warning would have been nice!
ReplyDelete