WTIT: The Blog

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Sunday Stealing: The Fun 15

James & I last year on my deck.

1. You have been awarded the time off from work and an all-expenses paid week anywhere in the United States. The catch is that it must be somewhere you have not been before. Where do you choose to visit? That’s not much of “a catch” to it. I haven’t been to a lot of places. Hawaii is the best and most expensive answer. I’ll go with San Diego. My son James lives there and I’ve never been there.

2. Name your guilty pleasures. Smirnoff and two other things. Oh right. Smirnoff, a glass and ice.

3. The best kind of milkshake is: Black and white. It works on many levels.

4. What do you value most in other people? A sense of humor. You can fake so much, like “honesty”. But either you is funny or you ain’t.

5. Be honest. Do you sneak some raw cookie dough when you’re baking cookies? This question is fucked up on so many levels. Let’s start with the fact that I don’t cook. Be honest? Why the fuck would anyone lie?

6. Have you ever looked back at your life and realized that something you thought was a bad thing was actually a blessing in disguise? I was told by a doctor in 2004 that it was unlikely that I would live. I had a bad (as though there is a good one) staph infection. His words still haunt me, “This is the last thing (medicine – antibiotics) that I can try. If it does not work, well I guess you know.” Obviously it worked. But instead of being bitter, I counted my blessings. My kids were all over 18 and I got to hold my granddaughter Lauren. Yep, I was young. But I wasn’t bitter.

7. What is the most beautiful place you have ever visited? St. Martin.

8. Are you more of a thinker or a feeler? We are talking “sex” here, right?

9. Name three things you are thankful for right now. My family, my wife and my friends. A week ago Friday I recorded on WTIT with three of the four guys I started it with. So many guys have come and gone in those chairs. The show was called “The Galloping Gary Garage” and it was 1974 when we last did one. But more importantly, these were my guys. We grew up together.

10. Have you ever participated in a three-legged race? Isn’t that just for extremely well hung guys?

11. When you are at an event that plays the National Anthem, do you place your hand over your heart? No. I respect it, but it’s a song glorifying war. But it should not be our anthem. “This Land is Your Land” would be a much better choice.

12. Have you ever been on the wrong side of the law? Other than an infraction, no.

The night I never thought I’d see. 4 out of 5 of the Original 5 DJs. From top left, then around: Bouncing Billy, Johnnie Walker, Rock Rolling, Galloping Gary & me.

13. When was the last time you unintentionally surprised someone else? Let’s go with when I was surprised. We record at WTIT every other month. Last year (in a story I’ve told here) I contacted Bouncing Billy after 20 years for a drink. It led to his return to WTIT. Johnnie Walker is the only one of our Original 5 that has recorded with us since the late sixties. Six weeks ago that led to a reunion with Gypsy, another of that five we had not seen in years. Friday was recording night. We were waiting on Rock Rolling. There was a knock on the door. There stood Galloping Gary, who simply said, “It’s recording night, right?” He last recorded in 1982. So that surprised me. A lot. Looking around that table with four of the Original 5 was very special.

14. When was the last time you deliberately surprised someone else? It probably was showing up at an ex-girlfriend’s place when I was last single.

15. What was the last really funny movie you watched? I know it doesn’t count, but I’ll go with a Louis Black concert recording.

By this time next week my dad will probably have his new address in the Boston area. His psyche evaluation will be over and the paperwork should be filed. I met my brother at the assisted living place to hand him the coins that my dad collected. We’re letting him cash them in to help in the money department for all he has spent. ($5K a month since December)

I still can’t get over Gary’s shocking return to WTIT. He said he read about the date on Facebook and decided to visit his dad (94, he too battling Alzheimer’s). When Facebook brought us all together I predicted to Johnnie Walker that we’d have the Original 5 back at the table one day. What happened Friday was as close as we will get. The fifth guy is Gypsy who is in stage 4 of COPD. He hopes to return to the table again, but I don’t think that it’s that important to him. Which is fine. I’m lucky to have had such good friends for so many years.

The Cosmic Commando, who recorded once with Bouncing Billy in 1985, recorded with us last in 1999. Johnnie Walker and I just got invites to their daughter’s wedding. We haven’t seen Cos since my wedding to Kathy. It should be a lot of fun. We will do this again. Same time. Same blog. Peace & love.

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