Man in the Mirror

This week, three entertainment icons have passed on.

Ed McMahon

March 6, 1923 – June 23, 2009

Will always be remembered for
Heeeeeeerrrrrrreeeeeee's Johnny!

Farrah Fawcett

February 2, 1947 – June 25, 2009

Iconic pin-up "Angel" with the

much desired feathered tresses

Michael Jackson

August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009

Michael Jackson is the one that gave me pause. And I don't think I can sum him up, as I have the other two.

You know, when someone passes away, even a celebrity, I think about how that person may have impacted my life. Farrah and the popularlity of Charlie's Angels was a little before my TV viewing days. And Ed McMahon's reign as Carson sidekick was pre-Leno, which was about the time I started watching the Tonight Show.

Somewhat ironically, after years of relativly quiet celebrity-hood, both Farrah and Ed have spent time in the headlines, for moments both would have certainly rather endured privately. Farrah for her battle with cancer, documented in "Farrah's Story", Ed for his bankruptcy.

Then there's Michael. At first, I thought his impact on my life was as his role in public tended to be in the later years - a punchline for jokes about plastic surgery, skin conditions, baby dangling and inappropriate relationships with small boys (there might even be a completely inappropriate version of "Rubber Ducky" floating around from my college days that was inspired by that last bit.) And for a moment, that's how I remembered him.

Then, on the way home from work, my carpool companions (Slacker & Steve) were taking calls from listeners who were sharing stories about Michael Jackson. Not Michael Jackson, the Headline. But Michael Jackson, the Headliner. The King of Pop. The voice of a new generation.

I was never a particularly huge Michael Jackson fan - I knew his stuff and I have his HIStory CD, but I wouldn't have gone to a concert, or actively sought out his new material. But when I got into the car, they were playing one of my favorite songs. And I remember, that for a lot of years - before the headlines and the surgeries and the unfortunate baby dangling - Michael sang for a better world. We Are the World, Earth Song, Man in the Mirror, Black & White and Heal the World.

So today, I choose to remember him as a voice that opened my eyes to the possibility that I can be an instrument for change.

I'm going to make a change for once in my life

It's gonna feel real good, Gonna make a Difference

Gonna make it right...

As I turn up the collar on my favorite winter coat

This wind is blowin' my mind

I see the kids in the street with not enough to eat

Who am I to be blind, pretending not to see their needs

A summer's disregard, a broken bottle top

And a one man's soul

They follow each other on the wind ya' know

'Cause they got nowhere to go

That why I want you to know

I'm starting with the man in the mirror

I'm asking him to change his ways

And no message could have been any clearer

If you wanna make the world a better place

Take a look at yourself and then

Make a Change

I've been a victim of a selfish kind of love

It's time that I realize

That there are some with no home, not a nickel to loan

Could it be really me, pretending that they're not alone

A willow deeply scarred, somebody's broken heart

And a washed-out dream

They follow the pattern of the wind, ya'see

Cause they got no place to be

That's why I'm starting with me

I'm starting with the man in the mirror

I'm asking him to change his way

And no message could have been any clearer

If you wanna make the world a better place

Take a look at yourself and

Make a change

You gotta get it right while you got the time

Cause when you close your heart

Then you close your mind!

Feed My Delusions...

Welcome to the new era of "fan-dom." Now it's even easier to stalk your favorite celebrity!

Welcome to the world of Twitter.

Here's how it works. If I had a life, I could post updates (or tweets) to my Twitter of what I was doing and my "followers" would be kept up to date. If I had a life...

I mean, obviously, I have a life. I just don't have a LIFE. Or at least, I don't have a LIFE where I could post interesting updates on a regular basis. I set up my Twitter account by accident, while trying to read a Twitter feed from Despair.com. And even though I didn't mean to establish a Twitter feed, I can't seem to help posting a random update.

Totally random updates. Kinda like this blog...

Then, one day at lunch with my "book club," someone mentioned following a celebrity on Twitter. And on a whim, I decided to see if Matthew Perry had a Twitter feed. And alas, he does. And there's this amazing option, where I can have his Twitter updates sent to my cell phone like text messages. So now...

I get text messages from Matthew Perry.

Well, me and 80,000 other people. Literally - 80,000 followers and counting. Can you even imagine 80,000+ people interested in you?

But regardless of how many other people read these "tweets," it's still unbelieveable to me, this real-time world of celebrity-fan connections. It's such a strange sensation, to get a tweet on my cell phone and know that right now, MP is settling in to watch a movie, or a hockey game. That just a few minutes ago, MP typed a message and hit send. And instantly, his fans know what he's up to.

Seriously - Does this make me a stalker?

Not that that would be a new role for me. I've always been somewhat of a stalker - just one that's been "locational-ly challenged."

Just kidding - I don't have stalker in me.

It takes too much initative.

(Also, I was thinking of adding a picture of MP to this post, but seriously...that makes me feel like "crazy stalker girl" and I just can't get myself to go there...)

Post-Edit (Like WAY post edit, like 2-17-10 post edit): So (speaking of MP), a few months ago he started this joke and asked his followers to tweet him a punch line. I sent him one and he re-tweeted it. Like seriously...I (stalker that I am), almost kinda had brief, technological encounter with MP. It was cool...well, that and for a short while, because he re-tweeted my post, I picked up some of his crazy stalker fans.

Seriously...Crazy. Stalkers.

Unlike me...Sane stalker who is geographically challenged (in other words, I live too far away to sit at the end of his driveway, looking into windows with night-vision goggles).

MP: "Having lunch with your trainer is comforting and not satisfying all at the same time. Kinda like...(insert joke here).

PH: "Like reality tv..."

Panic Ensues Again (As Does Another Thought...)

Speaking of flu panic...

A few years ago, there seemed to be a lot of news about the Avian, or bird, flu. Now, the threat certainly isn't over. It will someday mutant and spread human to human. I only hope that we have enough time and warning to have treatment options ready.

But right now I'm going with this philosophy: It you don't laugh, you cry.

So...someone sent me this picture, with this headline...

FIRST CONFIRMED BIRD FLU DEATH AT DISNEYLAND

Cause...if you don't laugh, you'll cry.

Panic Ensues

This year, the latest craze is swine flu.

I don't mean to make light of it. It's a scary situation - People have and will die from it. Although the deadly strains seem limited to Mexico, it does make me worry about the next pandemic that will wipe out a percentage of the population. It's coming - we just don't know when or what it will be.

But I do mean to make light of something - the media hype and ensuing public panic.

But regardless of whether you are or are not (I'm not) overly concerned about catching the swine flu, it's probably a good idea to avoid this, at least for now.

Simple Pleasures

Pride and Prejudice

"Confession. I have read Pride and Prejudice two hundred times. I get lost in the language, words like "thither, mischance, felicity." I'm always in agony over whether Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy are really going to get together. Ah! Read it. I know you'll love it!"

Kathleen Kelly, You've Got Mail

I just finished reading Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and I'm in love. In love with it all - Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth Bennet, the grandeur, the romance, the misunderstandings and missed opportunities.

I'm not sure what persuaded me to read Pride and Prejudice, although it does qualify for my New Year's Resolutions, as it is one of those books I should have read in high school. And I have to agree with Kathleen Kelly - I, too, got lost in the language, though sometimes, more lost in the whole "what the heck are they talking about," as compared to being lost in the magic of it.

Seriously - I had to google more than one word along the way. And for the record, "felicity" is not just a Keri Russell TV show from the 90's, but is also "the state of being happy, esp. in a high degree; bliss."

There were so many things I loved about it - the charm, the agony, the wit. I was especially surprised by the wit. Two examples, both from Mr. Bennet, who couldn't be bothered with the raising of his girls. Upon Lizzy's refusal to marry Mr. Collins, Mrs. Bennet tries to get Mr. Bennet to intercede and convince Lizzy to say yes (chapter 20):

"Come here, child," cried her father as she appeared. "I have sent for you on an affair of importance. I understand that Mr. Collins has made you an offer of marriage. Is that true?"

Elizabeth replied that it was.

"Very well -- and this offer of marriage you have refused?"

"I have, Sir."

"Very well. We now come to the point. Your mother insists upon your accept it. Is not it so, Mrs. Bennet?"

"Yes, or I will never see her again."

"An unhappy alternative is before you, Elizabeth. From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents. --Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do."

And again, wit from Mr. Bennet to Mrs. Bennet, as she laments the fact that Mr. Collins and wife (Charlotte) are to the inherit the family estate because of entail (to limit the passage of a landed estate to a specified line of heirs, so that it cannot be alienated, devised, or bequeathed - another one I had to look up) upon Mr. Bennet's passing (chapter 23):

"Indeed, Mr. Bennet,'' said she, "it is very hard to think that Charlotte Lucas should ever be mistress of this house, that I should be forced to make way for her, and live to see her take my place in it!''

"My dear, do not give way to such gloomy thoughts. Let us hope for better things. Let us flatter ourselves that I may be the survivor.''

As all great literature has at one point or another, this novel has inspired countless movies and books. Long before I read the book, one of my favorite movies was Bridget Jones' Diary, and one of my favorite male heroes was, of course, Mark Darcy. I knew that the character of Mark Darcy was inspired by Colin Firth's portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the BBC version of P&P. I had no idea that the rest of the book was a modernized version of Jane Austen's classic.

Let's take a moment to compare, shall we?

Elizabeth has an instant disliking to Mr. Darcy when first they meet. Bridget also has sour feelings for Mark Darcy.

Elizabeth is courted by Mr. Wickham, who has a tragic story of how Mr. Darcy did him wrong. Daniel Cleaver, too, has a tragic story of how Mark Darcy did him wrong, which, as with Elizabeth, feeds Bridget's dislike of Mark Darcy. In both cases, M. Darcy was the victim, not the perpetrator.

Elizabeth's mother is a rather shallow creature, interested only in marrying off her daughters to men of fame and fortune. Bridget's mother, though less overt in her actions, has the same desires.

Elizabeth is easily discarded by Mr. Wickham, as Bridget is easily discarded by Daniel.

Mr. Darcy, somewhat anonymously, rescues Elizabeth's family from social death when her little sister runs off with Mr. Wickham without the protection of marriage.

While the situation is different, Mark Darcy does, somewhat anonymously, come to Bridget's rescue. In the original book, the rescue is of Bridget's mother, who gets herself into somewhat of a pickle involving illegal drugs in a foreign land. This happened in the second movie, not to her mother but to Bridget herself.

And of course, Mr. Darcy loves Elizabeth as Mark Darcy loves Bridget - Just the way she is.

If only I could find a M. Darcy...

Everyone Should Have a Moment Like This...

I've heard the hype, read the headlines...I've seen mention of this on the Internet for a couple of days. And finally, today, I took a moment to watch as 47 year old unemployed, "Never Been Kissed" Susan Boyle blew the world away.

I got goosebumps.

I got tears in my eyes.

I don't know her, but the lack of acquaintance meant nothing. As I watched her on stage, I was so proud of her, so happy for her.

And I think everyone should get a moment like this. A moment all their own. A moment to defy expectations. A standing ovation. Accolades and praise.

To be in that moment and realize you've done it.

If only for a moment, you lived your dream.

Check it out here.

Seriously.