Daily Prompt: Always Something There to Remind Me

A song comes on the radio and instantly, you’re transported to a different time and place. Which song(s) bring back memories for you and why? Be sure to mention the song, and describe the memory it evokes.

I think about at least 80% of my iTunes library (of 100,000+ tracks) all have different memories for me. So it’s really hard to actually pick a couple of them to focus on…

Chasing Cars – Snow Patrol.

Oh this takes me back to when a little show you may know called Grey’s Anatomy first aired on the telebox. Oh, the drama!! Everybody was sleeping with everybody, and relationships were emotional fucking rollercoasters – full of lingering looks, frustration and so much dramatic music. I’m not going to lie, it was through Grey’s that I first heard this song, and I remember bawling my eyes out in that episode… and so now whenever I hear it, it makes me want to cry.

The Blower’s Daughter – Damien Rice

This little gem, is also another one of those gems that I heard on Grey’s… and subsequently turned myself into an embarrassing blubbering mess. Let’s face it, I’m an ugly crier. Like, ugly!! This is also one of those songs that you know you shouldn’t listen to when you have a big fight with somebody, or break up with somebody… but you just. can’t. help. yourself.

Apotheosis – O’Fortuna

This is something that takes me back to my early days when I was taking Jazz dance lessons, and I remember I saw the Seniors perform a dance troupe to this routine, and I became obsessed with it – both the dancing and the song… Then I remember seeing them perform it at a dance comp. It was incredible. That was when I realised that I wanted to do dance lessons all the time and one day, I’d be able to dance with the seniors!

Throb – Janet Jackson

I remember when I was a kid, I was doing my usual saturday thing (which I previously wrote about) and I was dancing around in the loungeroom, when this video came on. I literally froze for four-and-a-half minutes, literally glued to the TV. I then realised that I had recorded that music video, and then as soon as it was over, I started to watch it, and then learn the dance break at the end of the clip. Yes I was that kid.

Spice Up Your Life – The Spice Girls

Remember these ladies?? Well this just takes me back to high school. My best friend and I were obsessed with the Spice Girls. He was in love with Ginger Spice (Geri) and I wanted to be Sporty Spice (Mel C) (who surprisingly isn’t a lesbian!). I remember when a friend of our, J, got her brand new car, we’d go driving around town pumping the Spice Girls on her little stereo. Oh the bubble car was certainly something…

I Don’t Wanna Wait – Paula Cole

Let’s be honest, raise your hand if you just saw the heading and immediately thought of Dawson’s Creek?? This was perhaps the show of my generation. It was everything. The parallels between that show and my social circle of friends was uncanny – to the point where it just got a bit freaky. Each of us was pretty much a character from the show… I was Pacey, and ended up getting caught in the ‘love triangle’ of Joey / Pacey / Dawson… except in real life, I was more like Jack, and Joey turned out to be a lesbian.

Pure Pleasure Seeker – Moloko

This is one of my absolute favourite songs ever. Every time I hear this song, it takes me back to being in high school, and cruising around with my girlfriend B (well, not as in like boyfriend / girlfriend, more like a girl who was my best friend… and is also now a lesbian!). We were a bit crazy when we were together, and always had the best time with each other. This song always manages to put a massive smile on my face – even when I’m in a really shitty mood, and I love that music has the ability to do that.

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Daily Prompt: Out of Your Reach

Was there a toy or thing you always wanted as a child, during the holidays or on your birthday, but never received? Tell us about it.

When I think back to my childhood, there really isn’t anything that definitely stands out as something I always wanted, but never got.

Obviously, there might have been something that I really wanted, whether it was because I just wanted one, or whether it was because other kids had them as well and I simply wanted to keep up with the Jones’. I remember when a friend of mine got a Sega Master System II

Oh how I loved playing Sonic & Alex Kidd

I naturally wanted one of my own, but my parents downright refused to have one in the house. Instead I spent most of my time at my friends house instead. We’d go there straight after school and then play it for three or four hours until it got dark, or it was dinner time. More often than not, I ended up staying over for dinner as well, before walking down the street to our house.

I remember when I was about 11 or 12. Janet Jackson was touring Australia. I was obsessed with Janet Jackson and for many, many, many years, kept dreaming that one day, I would become one of her backup dancers. They were so cool. So talented. I remember watching Video Hits on a saturday morning. This was back in the 90’s when Video Hits went for about 4-5hours! Usually Rage (another music video show) would run from Midnight until about 6am, then there was cartoons from 6-9am and then Video Hits from 9am until midday.

Anyway, I remember watching this one day and they had just played the video for Throb:

and I remember straight after that they announced that Janet was bringing her tour to Australia. That was all I ever wanted: to see Janet Jackson perform LIVE.

…needless to say, it didn’t happen. I remember my mum saying she’d think about it, and then as the date got closer and I got more and more excited, she turned around and told me we couldn’t go. I remember feeling completely and utterly shattered. That was the one thing I ever really wanted, and I couldn’t get it.

Years later, there was an announcement that Janet was bringing her Velvet Rope Tour to Australia. Again, I was beside myself with excitement. I was older now, surely I could go. Originally, mum warmed to the idea – I think the guilt trip of not letting me go last time was working well. And again, she changed her mind. There was nobody else to go with me, and I was too young to go by myself.

GOD DAMN IT!!

After the tour ended, the VHS was released (yeah, that’s right, VHS!!). I bought my copy the day it came out. And the first time I watched it, was spent hyperventilating from excitement.

As were the following seventeen times I watched it.

Sure enough, I watched that video over, and over, and over. As soon as it finished, I would rewind it and watch it again. I’ve lost count how many times I’ve seen it, but I can pretty much recite the whole thing verbatim. Yeah, I’m that kind of person!!

She didn’t bring any other tours to Australia. I thought that I would never see her live. I even contemplated travelling overseas at one point, but then thought that was a bit too extreme.

One day, I FINALLY got to see her. It was her #1’s tour. And it got re-scheduled. I had tickets to two of the shows. It wasn’t a big flashy arena spectacular, instead it was a smaller theatre-style performance of just her number 1 hits. Very simple. Very intimate. Her and only a couple of dancers and a live band. No flashy light shows or pyrotechnics. No extravagant or elaborate costumes. No huge extravagant sets. No big choreographed dance breaks. It sounded disappointing, but I thought ‘fuck it, it’s Janet Jackson!’ and booked tickets anyway. She had 3 shows in Melbourne, but they all got cancelled as it was when Michael died (RIP), and all three tickets were rolled into one performance only. It was good for what it was, but it was still a let down.

 I still never got to see a Janet arena spectacular, and I never will.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/12/10/out-of-your-reach/