Bringing It All Back Home Friday Random Ten

So it turned out that the surprise that my wife had for me at my "Turned 50/Graduated nursing school on the same day" party last Saturday was that my friend Viktor Zeitgeist, who was my partner-in-crime in the infamous "It's all fun and games until someone gets their eye put out" story, flew in on the redeye from Seattle and was sitting on my couch when I woke up-- my wife had run to O'Hare to pick him up, using some excuse about going to a farmer's market as cover. He's the middle guy in the picture. The other guy is my friend Jamie, who I found a couple of years ago, after having lost touch with him for about ten years.

Most of the people I wanted to be there were there. My friend Larry had planned to attend photography seminar in New Mexico, so couldn't be there. Dobie, another old friend, just moved to Singapore and couldn't be there. And my friend Tasneem, who lives only a few blocks from me had to beg off at the last minute because her two-year-old son was sick. Other than that, just about everybody who is important to me, including Bubs and his bride (pictured here talking to my wife).

It occurred to me that the picture at the top was the 20 year reunion of the "Olympic Beer-Drinking Team." We were dubbed that by Dobie. One night in 1991, we-- Jamie, Andreas, Dobie and I-- were in our favorite tavern, the Gingerman. Dobie was my roommate at the time. We were drinking pitchers of Guinness when Dobie suddenly called it a night. Later he explained: "When you guys ordered the fourth pitcher of Guinness, I suddenly realized that I was with the Gold, Silver and Bronze medalists of the Olympic Beer-Drinking team, and I was but a San Diego Padre."

So now that the fun stuff is done, there's a lot on my plate in the next few months. First, I have to take and pass the NCLEX, the state nursing board. Yesterday I set that in motion. I'm hoping to take the test within the next couple of weeks. Then, on May 31st, the ownership of the restaurant I work at changes. The new guys seem like good guys, and most of the changes they are making seem to be good ones. Then the big one: we have to move by August 1. My landlord is moving his elderly mother-in-law into this apartment-- the apartment I've lived in for 13 years. Kim and I looked at an apartment yesterday that is damned near perfect-- much bigger than what we have, not far from where we are now, in our price range and available a few days before August 1st. We're keeping our fingers crossed.


1. Sexy Sadie- The Beatles
2. Tulsa Time- Don Williams
3. Down To The Waterline- Dire Straits
4. Sunshine- Jonathan Edwards
5. Please Come To Boston- Dave Loggins
6. Color My World- Chicago
7. Subterranean Homesick Blues- Bob Dylan
8. Ain't Got No- Hair
9. You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory- Johnny Thunders
10. Hey Joe- The Leaves

Notes:
1. From "The Beatles," aka "The White Album." I'm reading David Quantick's "Revolution: The Making of the Beatles' White Album" right now.
2. Eric Clapton had the hit with this, but I love Don Williams' original.
3. Might be tied with "The Man's Too Strong" for my favorite Dire Straits song.
4. Seventies one-hit wonder.
5. Another seventies one-hit wonder. I remember hearing a radio interview with Kenny Loggins, who said that he was frequently mistaken for Dave Loggins after he split from Loggins and Messina, and that people would request this song.
6. One of the guys from Chicago went to my son's high school.
7. Was just talking to a friend about INXS' homage to the card scene in the documentary "Don't Look Back" done to this song.
8. Finally got the CD of Hair, though I still have the vinyl copy I grew up listening to.
9. From the late, great Johnny Thunders.
10. One of many versions of this song-- the Byrds, Love, Jimi Hendrix among them.