Michael Jackson - A Reflection

As a child who grew up in the 1980s, many things marked what it meant to be an '80s kid. Star Wars and its numerous toys. Cartoons like the Transformers. And, of course, Michael Jackson.

I'm not sure when or how Michael crept into my life. My parents listened to oldies stations as I grew up, and I know that station, KHYL 101.1 FM, played (and still plays) Jackson 5 songs. I remember ABC being played. At my grade school, we had school jackets. In 1983, I got one, and it came with a Michael Jackson poster (see image at left). I still have that poster somewhere here. Even though I hadn't started developing my own musical taste back then, I already knew who Michael Jackson was.

By the time middle school came along, FM102 and MTV became the music gods. The latter showcased tons of MJ, and the "Thriller" video was the top video of all time whenever they did "all-time greatest videos" lists. I ended up buying "Dangerous" and "Thriller" on cassette. Sadly, I didn't get much farther, since rock n' roll cemented itself in my love of music. Somewhere, I may have a VHS tape with the original "Black or White" video on it. I think that video was the first sign that something just wasn't right with poor MJ.

My musical tastes have traveled to several realms over the years. Recently, I got into KHYL again, though it's now an R&B and soul station. I won't read anything into me coming full circle with music and suddenly having MJ die, but I do find the timing rather uncanny. In looking over his whole life, I can't help but feel sorrow for him. In many ways, he seemed to live a great life of fame, fortune, and fun. However, I have to wonder what all that really cost him in a lost childhood and a possible reclamation of it in his later life. From what he endured in his youth to the cruel irony of the accusations, hopefully, in time, the truth will come out and can help illuminate us all.

Rest in peace, Michael.

Amish Friendship Bread - A Blessing and A Curse

A fellow co-worker offered up some Amish Friendship Bread starter a couple of months ago. Being ignorant of what it entailed, I agreed to take some on and have fun with it. I didn't realize just how much stuff goes into the base recipe, and I felt sad that I wasn't really a bread but more like a cake. With good cooking self-confidence in hand, I set out to create a true bread with this starter and see where I could go.

Initially, I started by stripping everything away from the recipe and start with the starter, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and flour. I wasn't sure what proportions to use, so I sought out a reputable sourdough recipe (much what I wanted to begin with) and started there. Using that recipe as-is didn't work so well. The bread had good flavor, but it didn't rise at all. Given that Emeril's starter contains active dry yeast and my starter possibly doesn't, I needed to add some sort of leavening agent.

On my next attempt, I added baking soda and baking powder. I added less water than before since my first attempt seemed too wet. This one rose beautifully ... almost too much. Or maybe just the right amount? It tasted wonderful, though.

I've made one or two more attempts with this, and I'm getting closer to an ideal recipe. The bread has very good flavor, but getting the desirable rising has been a problem. I checked my baking powder, and it's still ok despite its age. So, I think I just need to increase the powder/soda in some sort of combination. Added water didn't help, so I'm going to abandon that. If I ever get to a point where the recipe I come up with seems optimal, I'll post it here.

Swinging The Night Away

"A Live Wire
Barely a Beginner
But Just Watch That Lady Go.
She's On Fire
'Cause Dancing Gets Her Higher
Than Anything Else She Knows."

- "Dance the Night Away" by Van Halen


I used to be an officer of a ballroom dance club many years ago. Though I probably didn't become as such under the best of scenarios, I took a shot at it and dedicated myself the best I could. We held car wash fundraisers. I made several different fliers to try to advertise. I took over the web site duties and completely redid the club's web site. I attended various dance venues in the area, including The Ballroom and Spotlight Dance And Fitness. I enjoyed a lot of the dances and especially liked the bolero, I think. Due to various factors, I left the school that housed said club and eventually left the scene as a whole. Ballroom became something I could whip out at weddings to semi-impress and never returned to a formal venue. That is, I never returned until last Friday.

One of my old high school friends dates the manager of Midtown Stomp, a swing group who offers lessons and a venue, the Eastern Star Temple, to dance the night away. Right off the bat, the Temple's ballroom looked perfect: good, solid floor; stage that felt like a high school gym; and an architecture that screams 1930s with its seemingly purposely faded and textured paint. Even the men's and women's restroom portals looked perfect for the occasion. I half-expected an Auburn to roll up with someone in a 'coon coat walking up the steps.

Pam and I watched the lesson and practiced a bit. Something I retained over the years is that any dance usually has its basic step, and anything else you add to that just depends on how you execute it. So, once I saw and recalled the basic step, I began to remember other moves as well. Later in the night, I got schooled that we were doing East Coast Swing, not West Coast. Apparently I had forgotten more than I realized, but knowing what I was learning helps me to recall it better.

As the lesson wound down, Jordan and the rest of the gang poured in. We chatted a bit, watched others dance (especially the competition-level dancers), and danced a bit ourselves. For a bit, they played recorded music, but the highlight was the Jive Aces playing live. A rather cool band from England, the Jive Aces, all dressed in yellow zuit-suit type suits, played all sorts of swing and other related music. They didn't restrict themselves to just east coast swing tunes, though; at one point, Pam and I danced a fox trot. Their varied repetoir allowed for all sorts of swing and period dances, and we got to see quite a few of them.

I had fun. I had many concerns going in and left with none. A rather huge crowd attended with a varying range of ages attending. Jordan mentioned that, because of the Jive Aces, it'd be the biggest draw. It's good to see dancing of any sort still alive and doing well these days.