Sunday, August 29 marks what would have been the 52nd birthday of Michael Jackson. So this post is in the honor of the King of Pop. I’m posting it a bit early, to spread some MJ love around in advance. Please watch the video, and really listen to Akon’s lyrics. They are truly a fitting tribute to Michael and his memory.
He wasn’t a freak.
He wasn’t wacko.
He wasn’t a monster.
He was music. And magic. And he was a man filled with love and compassion for a world that was only too eager to vilify him…a legacy that his children are now forced to bear. My gift to Michael is to try to right that wrong at every opportunity. And so I challenge you to do what’s right, especially on this day, Michael Jackson’s birthday:
Seek the Truth.
Reject the Lies.
And donate to the charity of your choice in Michael’s name.
As I went through the Mickey D’s drive thru yesterday to grab a quick and fattening-but-oh-so-tasty lunch, I placed my usual order:
McDouble, no onions
Large Fries
Sweet tea, no ice
Yes, I’m one of those people, the ones who want to break away from the default not-so-fast-food preparation and get it my own way. It’s not because I’m trying to be a pain though I don’t really care if I am one. I just want what I want, is that so bad? I mean, I am paying for it, so it seems I should get what I’m paying for, no?
I don’t get onions because they give me bad breath. I don’t like onion breath. On me or anyone else.
And I don’t get ice in my tea because if I do, then the cup is 2/3 full of ice and only 1/3 full of tea. That’s just not good economics, in my humble opinion. Why pay for ice? If I want ice, I’ll add it when I get home. But it’s tea, people. And hot, warm or cold, it still tastes like tea. So going sans ice is no problemo for this chick.
Anyhoots. I always watch the order screen as I place my order at Mickey D’s. When I say “no onions,” then “no onions” shows up on the screen. And ditto when I say “no ice” in the Sweet Tea. That’s just visual confirmation that I am indeed going to get what I ordered. But yesterday, when the gal took my order, I did not see “no ice” under my order of Sweet Tea. So, just to be clear, I repeated it for her: “and no ice in that Sweet Tea, please.” To which she replies, “yes, OK.”
So I pull up to the 1st window, which still amazes me is in use, by the way, for the simple fact that it was put to use as a means to speed up the “fast food” process. But I personally haven’t noticed any change in pace at the drive thru since the extra window’s implementation, so what is the point? But I paid for my order and pulled ahead and waited (naturally) for my food and beverage.
The giddy gal at window #2 [and why is she so giddy if she works at Mickey D's?] hands me my Sweet Tea. And what is that noise I hear inside my decidedly un-eco-friendly styrofoam cup? Um, that’s right. It’s ICE. So, being that I’m one of those people, I promptly hand my environment-killing cup back to her and say, “I requested this with no ice. Twice, in fact.” And as I did so, I couldn’t help but flashback to one of my all time favorite movie moments. It’s from Lethal Weapon 2. The Drive Thru scene. Where Joe Pesci’s character, Leo Getz, lays the much needed smack down on drive thru service everywhere. And I literally laughed out loud, right there in my car.
If you’ve seen it, you know what I’m talking about, but if you haven’t, you have to see the clip. [CAUTION: Rampant F-Bombs Ahead!]
That scene with Leo still gets me every time I see it. He is oh so right. They F*ck You at the Drive Thru. But thanks to Leo, I always check my order, before I drive away.
I’m sure the drive thru gal thought I was insane, sitting there laughing to myself in my car. But she pretended not to notice and apologized for the fast food faux pas with my tea as she handed me a new one, without ice. And I’m equally sure she had a good laugh herself with a co-worker or two after I drove away.
Coworker, to the snickering drive thru gal: What is so funny?
Drive thru gal: Nothing. Just one of those people.
Monday is really beginning to be my favorite day of the week. OK, yeah, I’m lying. But I do love that Mondays mean it’s Michael Jackson time! Seriously, admit it. You enjoy the macro posts too, don’tcha?!
Today’s macros are sizzling…in that one of them literally uses the word sizzling, and the others have a bit of a sizzling undertone. Just as an MJ FYI, “sizzling” is a word MJ used in the movie, This is It. He was taking a pause on stage, kind of feeling the moment, which he called “sizzling.” I loved that part in the film. Anyhoots, here is your Monday dose of the King of Pop.
Now I’m gonna give you a little MJ Monday challenge. Go forth in the world on this not so glorious Monday and use the word sizzling at least once today! Twitter it. Make it your Facebook status. Post it on your blog. Come on, I double dog dare you.
Friday Flip Offs are the brain child of The Kludgy Mom. It’s just a way to vent and get rid of your “weekday angst,” by virtually flipping someone (or something) off. Some might call that passive-aggression. But I call it cheaper than therapy.
So here are my Friday Flip Offs for this week.
To the Facebook Disease: Flip Off! While I do use Facebook, I am not infected with its disease like too many people I know. You know you have it if any of the following apply to you:
You no longer send emails because you can’t be bothered to write something more than one or two sentences long. And yet you can post a sentence or two…like 800 times in one day with no problems at all.
You spend hours upon hours playing Farmville, and yet you have the audacity to state to a friend who casually asks you if you’ve read a certain book, “Read? I don’t have time to read, I have more important things to do.” Um, OK.
You use your cellphone to post on your Facebook wall so your “best friend” will see it…instead of using the phone to actually call your “best friend.” Because, yeah, talking on a phone would just be weird, right?
I could go on and on about the Facebook Disease. But since all the people who need to read it are on Facebook, they probably wouldn’t see it anyway.
To Loud Commercials: Flip Off! It is beyond annoying to be watching a TV show and when it goes to commercial break, the commercial is 10 times louder than the show. I am so tired of the commercial’s-on-volume-down-show’s-on-volume-up-dance for the 2-3 hours a night I watch TV. My finger should be much thinner than it is considering how much exercise it gets on a nightly basis. I mean, I get why they do it–they apparently want you to still hear the commercial while you’re grabbing a snack or in the bathroom going pee, right? But how many people actually leave the volume up like that? Most of us turn it down, don’t we? And let’s face it, sometimes that volume spike scares the bleeping crap out of me! I’m getting too freaking old for those kind of shocks to my system.
To Guys Who Call All Other Guys “Bro”: Flip Off! What’s up, Bro? How’s it hanging, Bro? Bro, are you feeling OK? I feel you, Bro. Seriously, do they really consider all other guys their “Bro”? Is it just a simple form of male bonding? Or do they just say “Bro” because they can’t remember the other guy’s name to whom they’re speaking? Whatever the reason, it’s annoying. Even the Hubs thinks it’s annoying, and I can honestly say I’ve never heard him call any other guy (including any of his 3 brothers) “Bro.” [Just one of the many reasons I love that man!] And some guys say it sooo much. While waiting for a table at a restaurant one time, I heard a guy call another guy “Bro” at least 7 times during their brief conversation. And it took all the strength I could muster to not say, “Shut the F*ck Up, Bro!” For real, people, “Bro” is crispy already. Turn it over, it’s done.
And I’m done too, I believe. Time to flip off the light and head to bed. All this virtual therapy has exhausted me. And now the only flipping off I have left in me is the one I’ll do when my alarm clock goes off at 6:15 in the morning. Seriously. Flip Off, alarm clock!
You just can’t make this stuff up, folks. But sometimes you do have to see it to believe it.
Click here for the full story on “Scrotie, King of the Mascots.” You gotta love a hockey team (well, actually, love may be too strong a word) that has the balls (literally) to have a mascot named Scrotie. And man, their slogan is even better:
