Story Corps.

I wrote a recent post about my adoration for NPR. Every Friday, I look forward to one particular feature, the Story Corps segment. Story Corps is a project aimed at preserving the memories of everyday people for future generations. The stories are always riveting, and I have enjoyed every one of them. These stories are being compiled as part of a nationwide project that is partially funded by NPR and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

The premise of the project is very basic: two people that know each other record interviews that they conduct with each other. Each interview is very unique and personal. My personal favorite was between a young woman, Carly Dreher and her grandfather, Lyle Link. The man's wife had recently passed away, and the interview focused on their relationship and how they bucked the standard traditions of the times when they first got married. It was truly delightful to hear the love in his voice as he described their adventurous honeymoon.

The stories themselves are very interesting, but this series also resonates with me from a historical standpoint. One of the most fascinating courses I took down at ISU was called archives and manuscripts. This course was based on the science of archiving, and the necessary steps it takes to do it correctly. Unfortunately, as we have become more dependent on technology, we have left the art of writing letters and keeping personal logs behind. Part of this is the convenience that computers offer to us. Hell, look at those of us have joined the blogosphere.

Anyways, what I am really interested in doing is starting a project similar to this amongst our friends. Most of us have known each other for the better part of the last fifteen years, and I think we owe it to ourselves and our future families to start recording some of our fondest memories while the remain fresh. I know this sounds like a screwball idea, but I have a feeling we will all learn a lot about ourselves, while visiting the events that have made us who we are today.

Since this is my idea, I will volunteer to be the facilitator of this little project. Depending on the amount of interest, I will go out and purchase a recording device that we can pass around to each other. Considering the fact that we have become spread out, and it is difficult to get us all in one place, I imagine that some packages will be sent around from time to time to help move the process along. Once the recordings have been made, I will put them in a digital format for safe keeping. Another idea could be writing the questions and answers down as the interviews take place. If you don't want to keep the hard copies, send them to me and I will archive them.

Once again, I know this sounds ambitious, but I really feel this is something we can all benefit from. Naturally, I think we should start with the people that are closet to us, such as a significant other. Please let me know what you think.

The Most Important Moment of My Childhood

Sit back folks, this is going to take awhile. During my absence, a very important day passed. While to most people May 4th is the day before Cinco de Mayo, for me it signifies the most important event of my childhood, if not life. (I mean no disrespect to Marilyn by making that statement, and you will soon read why)

May 4, 1992 was the day that I nearly lost my brother Frank. On this date, sixteen years ago, my one and only brother was hit by a car after we had gotten off of our school bus. Frank was twelve and I was eleven. The impact form the collision sent him about forty feet. He had a compound fracture of his left leg and serious head trauma. After he landed on the pavement, I ran straight to him to see if he was okay. He was in a severe state of shock and could not communicate with me or anyone else. The spot of blood on his jeans marked the spot where he leg was fractured and he had a dazed look on his face. Needless to say, he was rushed to the hospital.

Keep in mind I was still a child, so looking back on things, I do not think I instantly understood the ramifications of the situation. Being naive, I fully expected things to go back to normal in a relatively short amount of time, but I was sorely mistaken. Frank was sent to Loyola Hospital, and the painful waiting game began. Due to brain swelling, he was place in a drug induced coma for ten days. Needless to say, those were the ten longest days of my life.

One night that sticks out in my mind in particular. Naturally, my parents had a much better understanding of the situation. As I was getting ready for bed, my dad came into my room and explained the gravity of the situation. The doctors had given my brother a very grave prognosis, if fact, they said he recovery was a highly unlikely. That night, I literally cried myself to sleep. To me, it was totlaly unfathomable that I would grow up without my brother. Fortunately, I never had to face this reality.

The accident occurred with one month left in school, and after being held out for about a week, I went back. This was both traumatic and a relief at the same time. The relief came in the form of some normalcy in my life, whatever that really means. However, the trauma came in the way that I was treated. My fellow students were instructed not to speak to me about the accident, for fear that it would set me off. This translated to constant questions about how he was doing, and isolation from the fear of setting me off, whatever that means. Looking back on it, I understand that my classmates meant well, and perhaps it was the adults who were trying to protect me, that really made the situation difficult. Things eventually started to feel comfortable and school was a welcome relief.

Well, eventually my brother woke up. I got the news at school, and that will always be a great memory for me. My dad came to school to tell me in person and that night, I got to go see Frank. The moment will be etched in my mind forever. He was connected to several tubes an wires, but there was no denying that glimmer in his eye. When I walked in, he demanded that I come by his side so he could see me. I nervously walked up to him to say hi, and he recognized me instantly. This is honestly one of the greatest moments in my life. My parents were beaming and I think that there was a relief to Frank as well. When he woke up, he did not know where he was or what had happened. The situation was explained and he instantly asked for my presence.

Now that I was there, I feel like it was something that made the situation easier for him. As I mentioned, he was connected to an innumerable amount of tubes and cords, and he was holding a blue ball. The ball was meant to be a stress reliever, and I'll be damed if he didn't stop squeezing it the whole time I was there. As a matter of fact, he threw it in my face when I wasn't looking to make sure I was paying attention. He caught my surprise and let out a belly laugh that truly showed me that Frank was back.

However, he was not completely out of the woods. We did not yet know the full extent of his injuries, and only after rehab and time would we fully understand. After spending another week at Loyola, he made the transfer to Marion Joy rehabilitation center to complete physical and occupational therapy. Even though he was closer to being home, he was still anxious to make it all the way back. Frank was making rapid progress and it appeared that he was going to make a full recovery. The cast on his left leg went halfway up his thigh, so he wasn't very mobile. While it was frustrating for him, he knew that it was temporary and didn't complain about it that much.

Well, after a couple of weeks at Marion Joy, he came home. As it turns out, he came home the day before my birthday, making it best gift that I have ever received. Once again, this is not a slight to the gifts I have received in the since then, but nothing will ever replace the fact that I got to have my only brother back to help me celebrate my birthday and his, which is four days after mine.

I hope this post does not appear to be self indulgent, but I wanted to share this experience with you guys since it is so important to me. This singular event has shaped my life more than any other experience. Whenever I feel down on myself or need something to remind me that things are not as bad as they could be, I look back on this fateful day. No book or movie will ever be able to motivate me as much as this real life experience. I understand that not everyone has such an event to look back on, but this explains my skepticism when it comes to people telling me that I need to read the Secret or the latest greatest fade, because to be honest, I do not see how they will be able to recreate this experience that I actually lived through.

This all being said, I would like to dedicate this entry to my one and only older brother, Frank. I love you very much and cannot imagine a better older brother. You have given me more than I could have ever imagined and continue to inspire me to this very day.

Even Better, Has It Really Been Six Years?!

Traditionally, Mother's Day weekend symbolizes two things:

1. A day to honor our mothers
2. The celebration of Wrigley and Gracie's birthdays, which is officially May 12th
   

As hard as it is to believe, our little baby kittens are now six years old. For those that don't know, Wrigley and Gracie are sisters. They are the product of my brother Frank's cat Danger and some cat that I have never seen. When Danger, her full name is Danger Kitty, first became pregnant, Marilyn and I immediately laid claim to two of the kittens. My brother was more than happy to oblige us, and on that fateful day in May of 2002, the litter was born. One cool note to this story is that Marilyn and I actually saw them being born.

We were on our way back to my old place in Lisle when Frank called me to let us know that Danger was in the process of having the kittens. We headed straight to my brother's place and watched quietly as Danger did delivered her precious gifts. It was honestly, one of the coolest things I have ever seen. Danger knew exactly what to do. The information that had been infused in her by nature worked like magic as she instinctively took care of her new babies. As luck would have it, four of the five kittens stayed in the family, including Wrigley and Gracie. So, we would like to thank Frank and Danger for giving us two fo the best gifts we have ever received.

P.S.

A belated Happy Mother's Day our mothers and the seven expecting mothers that we currently know.

Has It Really Been Two Years?

Well, one of the big events that occurred during my absence was Murphy's 2nd birthday. Neither of us can believe that he has been in our lives for two years! The infamous date is April 22nd, which also happens to be Earth Day. I have to admit, we don't know his actually date of birth since he was a stray, but the vet and Mar decided on the 22nd and I agreed. Even though he has tried to leave us twice and is a constant cause of stress, I love the little guy. Our little cats mean the world to us and I cannot imagine what our lives would be like without them. So, without further ado, happy birthday Murphy.

Return of the King

The nineteen years was well worth the wait, at least in my humble opinion. We went and saw Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull last Thursday and it was quite a thrill. I have been hotly anticipating the release of this flick, and Marilyn suggested that we see it on opening night. This was a total surprise to me, but whatever Baby wants, Baby gets. Anyway, the movie was a blast. It was not the best Indy movie, but I don't think it was the worst. Seeing Harrison Ford don the fedora and crack the whip made me feel like a kid again. Speaking of kids, I had an interesting conversation about this movie with some of my ninos.

One day, we were talking about summer plans and the kids asked me what movie I was looking forward to the most. Without blinking, I said Indy. They all seemed surprised that I was not looking the new Batman movie more than Indy, and I explained to them how I remember seeing Temple of Doom in th movie theater. This was apparently a big kick for them because they did started laughing right away, but I told them I was serious. That conversation made me realize how much that character brings me back to my youth, which I really enjoyed.

The bottom line is, go see the movie if you are an Indy fan. It was great fun, and Harrison clearly had a blast playing the role again. Shia Lebeof did a great job as his sidekick, and of course I loved seeing Karen Allen reprise her role as Marion Ravenwood. Some of the plot is a little wacky, but then again, we are talking about Indiana Jones. So, if you go see the movie, kick back and enjoy the ride. Three and a half stars.

Has It Really Been A Month?

I know I have been gone for a while, but here are some grumblings from the past month.

First off, I have another book to recommend. Fluke: Or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings, by Christopher Moore. Hilarious read. After fighting through the Heights, I was in the mood for something light, and one of my students recommended Fluke to me. I will admit that I was initially hesitant after reading the back cover, but I decided to give it a whirl, and boy am I glad that I did. It has been a long time since I have laughed so much while reading fiction, unless you include White House briefings. Anyways, the story centers on whale researchers in Hawaii and a strange discovery that is made. The characters that inhabit the pages are colorful and down to earth, which makes them seem like everyday people. My personal favorite was Kona, a pseudo-Rastafarian white kid from Jersey whose every word had me in stitches. I highly recommend this book for anyone that is looking for a fun read.

Now on to Iron Man. I really enjoyed this flick. Not only was it a fine example of a summer blockbuster, it was a really good movie. Robert Downey Jr. plays smug weapons developer Tony Stark with an understated flair that makes him compulsively watchable. His supporting staff is just as good as the story moves along at a pace that never slows down. I don’t want to give away too many details about the plot, so I will leave it at that. Make sure you stick around after the credits are over. Three and a half stars.

Forgetting Sara Marshall was one of the funniest movie’s I have seen in awhile. It was very funny and the charters were endearing. Jason Segal and the British singer are totally hilarious. Watch out for the full frontal male nudity if you are not in to that kind of thing. Three stars.

The Secret of Alchemy

For the last year or so, my mother has been trying to get me to The Secret, which I have steadfastly refused to do. I am not very big on inspirational fare and do not quite buy into the idea of authors repacking philosophical ideas in the name of profit. A couple of weeks back, we had a lengthy conversation about why people read these types of books, and my position weakened a bit. This is not to say that I will pick up The Secret tomorrow, but I figured that there must be something to the genre if it is so successful. Well, last week I was browsing a bookshelf in my classroom and came across such a book titled The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho. After reading the jacket, I decided to give it a whirl to see if I would be “inspired.”

The Alchemist is the story of a young man, Santiago, in pursuit of his “Personal Legend.” A Personal Legend is the idea that everyone has a preordained mission that will guide him or her through life. Not everyone will come to realize their Personal Legend, but Santiago is told about his Personal Legend by an old wise king and a gypsy. These chance occurrences persuade the young man to sell his herd of sheep and pursue his Personal Legend. Mixed in with this journey are important lessons that teach Santiago the meaning of life. The book itself ended up being relatively harmless, but I am still not sold on the impact of the inspirational novel. Now, I understand that certain people will look at this as a very heartless view from a hardened individual, but hear me out.

As most people know, I witnessed my brother get hit by a car when I was eleven years old, and he came within an inch of losing his life. This incident is the single most important event in my life. I will not go into all the details (if you are interested, just give me a call sometime), but the domino effect that followed made me the person that I am today. I totally understand that not every has an event like that to draw inspiration from, but I find it hard to believe that true life does not give people to opportunity to rise up. I know that sounds cheesy, but I feel that “inspirational” writers often times poach on people that may not have the strength to realize that they are victims of a multi-billion dollar industry. Once again, I know this makes me sound like some kind of jaded individual, but I truly believe that inspiration lies in the world around us, not in some gift wrapped special edition version of the latest fade.

NPR

Over the last few months it has become official: I am a National Public Radio junky. My local affiliate is Chicago Public Radio station WBEZ, which is 91.5 on the FM dial. I used to split my time between WXRT and WBBM during my morning commute, but I found those outlets to be lacking something that I couldn't put my finger on. That something is substance and diverse topics that NPR covers on a daily basis. Morning Edition is what I listen to on my way to work and All Things Considered informs me on the way home. These are both excellent news programs that take journalism back to it core, offering an unfiltered look into the world that surrounds us. One thing that I really appreciate about NPR's approach is it's penchant for covering international stories. All to often, I find that our traditional news outlets ignore the world around us, and NPR does a great job at keeping it's listeners aware of what is happening on all seven continents (yes, there are even stories about how the Greenhouse Effect is impacting Antarctica).

Those of us that are looking for entertainment on the weekend should check out Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me! This is an impromptu news quiz show that features comedians and actors as they play games that are about the news of the past week (big ups to Brian for turning me onto this program). All of these programs can be downloaded as daily podcasts if you want to listen to them on your own time, which I highly recommend.

Wuther or Not

I loved, loved, loved, loved this book. If you cannot tell by the title, I am speaking of Wuthering Heights, the classic novel by Emily Bronte. As most of us know, I support students at a local high school, and in order to do my job to the fullest, I need to make sure that I know the material they are studying. Well, several of them were reading the Heights, as I affectionately call it, and I decided to pick it up in order to know what they were talking about when they asked me questions. I will wholly admit that about fifty pages into the book, I hated it. Well, I'm glad I stuck with it, because as the story progressed, the words jumped off the pages.

This novel is pitched as a story about jilted love, but I would not necessarily agree. In my opinion, love is not about hate and anger, which is bountiful amongst the lively characters that inhabit this story. It centers around two families, the Lintons and the Earnshaws, who are tangled in a wicked web of deceit and drama as different members compete to bring misery upon each other. Our "hero" is Heathcliff, a member of the Earnshaws, who lives quit possibly, the most miserable existence in the history of literature. Heathcliff is a completely loathsome individual that is hell bent on ruining the lives of the people who have crossed him, no matter what their relation. His dastardly actions are what drives the novel as his actions are narrated by his lifetime servant Nelly Dean. As Ms. Dean describes the conflict between the families, the reader cannot help but wonder what will happen next as characters parish and Heathcliff strives to feel wanted.

Perhaps what I appreciated the most about this novel is the fact that it challenged me to fight through something that I initially despised. I am by no means trying to put myself on a pedestal, but this was a definite challenge for me, and I was richly rewarded. Bronte was a master of the written word and while she can be long winded at times, her handle on the English language makes every sentence seem smooth as silk. This is not only a novel but it is truly a piece of literature. Everyone should read this book if they want a challenge that will reward them for their effort with a timeless story.

An Ode To The Troughs

Those of us gentlemen that have been to Wrigley Field know the dirty secret of the men's bathroom, they contain troughs instead of urinals. While some guys love the trough, I don't care from them. Nonetheless, the trough is one of those "experiences" that everyone comes to know after visiting the Shrine. A little while back, our "friend" Andrew, and I only use the term friend because I cannot thing of something more appropriate shared this video with me (WARNING: PLEASE DO NOT VIEW IF YOU HAVE A WEAK STOMACH, THIS IS GROSS):



While the thought of doing this turns my stomach, it is one of the funniest things I have ever seen. I understand that this will probably only appeal to us gentlemen that have experienced the troughs, so I apologize to those of us find who no entertainment in this video. You can simply blame Andrew.

Run, Don't Walk

We had the pleasure last night of watching Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox, a comedy starring John C. Reilly. This hilarious film was made by Judd Apoatow's crew and is a parody of all the biographical movies about musicians that have been made lately. Now I will warn you, the comedy is a rated R, and may not be for the feint of heart if you are opposed to coarse language. That being said, there were several very funny cameos (keep your eyes open for the famous faces that play the Beatles) and laugh out loud moments throughout the whole flick. I give this pitch perfect comedy a solid three and a half stars.

Reunited and It Feels So Good

I attended my first game at the Shrine a week ago Sunday, and I must say that it was fantastic. There is nothing like being at Wrigley Field. I can honestly say that it is on of my favorite places in the world. The game was against the Houston Astros and thankfully, it was a victory. Zambrano pitched seven solid innings, followed by Marmol in the eighth and Woody in the ninth. D-Rock and Soriano homered and that solidified the 3-2 victory. I went with my buddy Ben, who is one of the only people than I can honestly say is as die hard as me when it comes to loving the Cubs. We were lucky enough to have glorious weather that included cloudless skies and a gentle wind blowing out to left field. Another highlight was the seventh inning stretch, which was sung by the guys who sing the "Real Me of Genius" songs for Bud Light. They also sang a special version of the song before the game, which was really funny. That was hopefully the first of many to come this year as I continue my unwavering support of the real boys in blue. GO CUBS GO!!

About Frakkin' Time

That's right folks, tonight is the season premiere of Battlestar Galactica. So, if you are not doing anything this evening at 9 o'clock (CST), make sure you are tuned in to the SciFi channel. If not, set your DVR.

This Year Is Here

Today is Opening Day for the Chicago Cubs. Please make sure that you either watch, listen or monitor the game starting at 1:20 p.m. Central Standard Time. The game will be broadcast on WGN Channel 9 in Chicago and on WGN Superstation for people outside of the Chicagoland area. You can listen to the game on WGN 720 AM if you want to hear living legend Ron Santo and his counter part Pat Hughes.

Please keep the Cubs in your thoughts and prayers throughout the season as they march towards the World Series.

Still Startin' Something

As most of us know, I am a HUGE music fan, and this year marks the 25th anniversary of a seminal album, Michael Jackson's Thriller. Even though I was three at the time of it's release, I have heard it's influence on popular music my entire life. As a matter of fact, I can remember being scared senseless of the epic video that accompanied the album's title track. But, it's not only the title track that is a stand out on this masterpiece.

For those of you that may be asking,"Why Christopher, what made you decide to discuss this topic?", the credit goes to my students. I was in my classroom and one of my students read about the anniversary of the release in the newspaper. The reaction to the article by my student was, "Who the hell cares about Michael Jackson? He is a total freak."

My colleagues and I all shared a little laugh and started to explain the significance of the album. While it is true that Michael may no longer be the King of Pop, the streak of albums he had in the 1980's was nothing short of spectacular. Let's not forget that Thriller is still the best selling album of all time. On top of that, the album contained nine tracks, seven of which were top ten singles in the United States. That was an unprecedented amount then and now. Imagine if one of today's pop stars, say Justin Timberlake or Pink, released an album that saw 77% of it's singles reach the top ten in the singles charts. It simply wouldn't happen.

Personally, my favorite tracks would have to be "Wanna Be Sartin' Somethin'" and "Human Nature." They are both perfect examples of pop songs and along with "Billie Jean", "Beat It", "Thriller", "Girl Is Mine" and "Pretty Young Thing", which formed the seven top ten singles. Let's not forget that the video for "Billie Jean" was the first song by and African American artist to get heavy rotation on MTV. The video for "Billie Jean" proved to be just an appetizer for Jackson's next film endeavor.

Michael Jackson's "Thriller" proved to be a full fledged cultural phenomenon. The video was directed by Jon Landis, the master behind Trading Places, Animal House and The Blues Brothers, who collaborated with Jackson to create an original short length film. "Thriller" also featured makeup work by legendary effects artist Rick Baker. It was a smashing success and changed the way that music videos are made.

So, there you have it, my feelings on the album Thriller. While it my not be in my regular album rotation, I cannot deny it's ingenuity and staying power. So, if anyone wants a to listen to a blast from the past in pop music, you will not find a better listening experience.