Three topics entering my fevered brain on a summer Saturday:
Graduation Day. Today I watched on Facebook live video the graduation of the Sherburne-Earlville High School (Go Marauders!) Class of 2019. My niece Kayleigh was among the grads, and although the blustery winds caused the FB video camera to topple, I did get to hear Kay’s name announced to a hearty cheer. Kayleigh is smart as a whip–unlike her uncle, who just barely graduated high school, Kay has been taking AP classes and is getting out a year early. I am awfully proud of her!
Seeing the graduation ceremony brought back memories of my own high school graduation, held (as far as I can tell) in the exact same spot as the 2019 ceremony. We had a rehearsal during which we were trained in the fine art of tassel-flipping, hand-shaking, decorum-maintaining and the like. I remember Mama Mary picking me up from rehearsal and taking me for ice cream. She was so proud (stunned might be the word) that I had pulled out academic victory from the jaws of defeat. In my senior year I cleaned up my scholastic act, and actually got good(ish) grades after 8 years of perpetually being grounded for angry notes home from teachers.
During the actual graduation ceremony our Valedictorian schemed to play a rather light-hearted joke on our principal. Jacks were distributed to each grad, and when we shook hands with the principal we presented him with a jack. (The Valedictorian, of course, presented him with the ball.) I also remember, during the speech of the salutatorian, blowing bubbles and tossing a beach ball around during the pre-determined point in the speech. Class of 1990: We’re a fun class.
Brady Bunch Of Cheese. I have taken possession of “The Brady-est Brady Bunch TV And Movie Collection.” It includes the entire original series, the “Brady Kids” Saturday morning cartoon, all the Brady movies, the 90’s dramedy “The Bradys”, aaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnddd…..”The Brady Brides”!
Sherwood Schwartz, what hath thou wrought?! In 1981 there was a TV-movie called “The Brady Girls Get Married”, which was then spun off into a sitcom, “The Brady Brides.” It’s genuinely awful. But honestly, I kinda dig certain kinds of awful.
“The Brady Brides”, unlike the original series (or really, any other Brady project) was filmed before a live audience. Which means everyone yells everything, and whenever one of the Brady Brides gets to smooching their groom the audience hoots and hollers. There’s about 100% more sex talk, double entendre and the like than you expect from anything with “Brady” in the title. But the plots are goofy and very Sherwood Schwartzian. It’s…an odd mix.
Denver, Here I Come! We are one week away from my little jaunt to the Mile High City. The primary purpose of the trip is a doctor visit to UC Health in Aurora. This will be a consultation, a first step towards possible (let’s say probable) surgery. I will be bringing my Big Medical Folder which now includes a CD of my MRIs, a detailed write-up by the brain and spine team at Regional West, and some other important papers.
The secondary purpose of the trip is to do fun things in Denver. I have a ticket to Bovine Metropolis Theater, an improv comedy troupe Dave Kuskie and I saw when we went to Denver for a Weird Al Yankovic concert many moons ago. I am also planning to visit Mile High Comics, the Denver Downtown Aquarium and perhaps Casa Bonita. (That’s the Mexican restaurant with the cliff divers.)
I’m trying not to get too excited about the trip, because I don’t want to jinx it. Yes, where travel is concerned, I believe in jinxes, Ouija boards, magic 8-balls, gypsy fortunetellers, you name it.
