If Only There Was Such A Place Where Love Makes Everything Right: Sweet Love By The Commodores

With the year about to end, once again I am plagued by another big problem.  It's has given me no peace since I heard it and has made sick with worry ever since.  Man and I thought things would be better this year.  Right now I'm turning on my stereo and listening to a 24K song to soothe my nerves.  A good song to listen to right now is "Sweet Love" by The Commodores.

Love isn't just about romance but also about feeling good and spreading that good feeling around.  As I listen, I get taken to world where everything is cool where people are happy and making others happy.  The love is flowing and there's nothing to worry about cause you'e  good people and you feel the love that they have for you.  In short, everything's all right because the love is right there.  Slowly but surely, the smile comes back to my face and I feel a little relax thanks to this song.

Sadly, reality is a different story.  Still, that doesn't mean that the love isn't there.  Things are just a little hectic and priorities need to be addressed.  Still, never doubt that the love isn't there.  Sometimes you have to be the first to share it.  That said, it would be cool if such a place existed where love makes everything right, that would be cool.

Trying To Stay On The Straight And Narrow: Stay Clean By Motorhead

We all know that no one's perfect and there times that we make a lot of mistakes.  Sometimes those mistakes can be so devastating that you really find yourself in the pits of Hades.  Still if you're determined enough, you will climb out of there no matter how long or how hard it takes.  Just remember to learn from the mistake and keep out of trouble.  When it comes to keeping out of trouble, it reminds me of the song "Stay Clean" by Motorhead.

Yeah well when it comes to making mistakes, I sure made a lot of them which is why I am where I am now.  The worst part of it is that lightning struck me twice and that wasn't good.  Just when I though I climbed out of the pit, something happens and I'm at the bottom of the barrel.  What's worse is that this take took me a lot longer to get out.  Apart from that it took away what could have the best period of my life.  

Though times are hard and uncertain, at least my life has dignity again.  Still I have lot to fix if I am to find real happiness and contentment.  That's the reason why  I keep my nose clean and my head clear cause I' don't, I might get another taste of falling down and I'm sick of it.  A chance at salvation should not be wasted which is why I am staying on the straight and narrow.  Hopefully, I'll get things right at the end.

Still Reminiscing About The Good Old Days: Old Days By Chicago

As I've said before, 24K Weekends (formerly 24K Friday) is the day when time stands still.  My ears are plugged on the radio as I wait for my requested tunes to play on air.  It's not just about hearing music that people have long since forgotten but also remembering the good times that happened when they were still on the air. It takes me back to those days as if they are happening right now.  A good to remember the old days is the song "Old Days" by Chicago.

When the music plays, it all comes back to life.  The times when you're laughing with your friends about the jokes and stories that they tell.  Going around the mall to watch a movie or play a few coin-operated games till you had no money.  Best of all was on the weekends where you either went to your friends house for a few brews and partied till the sun came up.  Back then, you thought those days would never end.

Today as I've always blogged is a different story.  Bills to pay and deadlines to catch are things that occupy my mind everyday of the week.  True, today we have the internet, smartphones, Ipods, Ipads and a host of other gadgets.  Still, I would give all away to go back in time just to relive the good times that I had with people who I care for.  Though there's no such thing as a time machine.  The old tunes are good enough to bring the old days back to life.

Optimism Even During Difficulty: Tough All Over By John Cafferty

The great about the 80's sounds was that even if the song was about how things were, the tun of the music was upbeat.  I guess it was because it was their was of keeping their chin up and moving on even when things have not gone well. Apart from that, it was great era and everyone was happy that even the sad songs were cheerful.  It was just a great to grow for a lot of us.  Another song that had that kind of contrast was "Tough All Over" by John Cafferty.

If Reo Speedwagon's "Summer Out Of Season" was upbeat even after getting dumped, this song was about hard times yet the tune was so uplifting,  You can tell that once you hear it.  Despite the fact that it tells about the tough times, you feel a slight ray of hope that things will be better.  Even if it tells it as it is, you don't feel despair when you hear it.  Instead, you feel pretty good and that's the mark of a good song.

Nowaday, I don't even know who's on top let alone what's hot and what's not.  Quite frankly, I don't care cause I'm sticking with the classics.  These were songs you can listen to all day long and feel good when the chips are down.  Well right now things are still a little chaotic around here but I am still determined to find a way.  With songs like this to, I can always get by.  That's because they give me optimism during the difficult times.

What Freedom Means: Freedom By Chaka Khan

I remember one of the funniest films that I watched back in high school was Moscow On The Hudson which stars Robin Williams as a Russian Musician who defects to the United States.  Though he had a hard time adjusting to the U.S. and he had a hard time pursuing the American Dream, he came to love living the U.S.  The best part of the movie was when he met other immigrants who helped remind him why they sacrificed a lot to go to America. The reason why was freedom.  Apart from the movie, I also like the sound track that was sung by Chaka Khan called "Freedom".

Though the film was funny, it did point out the struggles that people living under Communist rule.  The constant threat of nuclear war and lack of basic goods as well the constant harassment of Communist agents have often pushed those living in that part of the world to try all means possible to escape to the West just to have a better life.  Some dug holes, while others hid crates on ships and some even flew balloons just to escape.  They were willing to die just to escape that kind of oppression.  That's just how desperate they were to get just a taste of freedom.

Today, Russia itself is now a democracy and the former U.S.S.R. has broken into separate countries.  Business is thriving though the shadow of totalitarian rule still hovers over the country.  What did the film taught us apart from making us laugh?  That freedom and the pursuit of a better life was something people were willing to die for back then and though it was a distant memory that people take for granted now, for us it was a matter of life and death.  Freedom is the most important right that everyone should defend because if that is lost, then all is lost.

When The Classics Get Ruined:What They've Done To My Song By Melanie Safka

When a song is good I can listen to it all day,  That's why I keep my ears glued to 99.5 rt's 24K Weekend program cause they're so good that I can't get enough of them.  Same thing goes when I watch a great movie or television show or series.  However, whenever a great song gets used a commercial or remade and a movie is redone only to become a poor imitation, well that gets to my nerves.  When songs and movies are ruined due to these kinds of actions, the song "What They've Done To My Song" by Melanie Safka comes to mind.

When song is remade by another artist, for some reason I get warning bells.  Some remakes by contemporary artists make me want to shut off the radio or tempt me to smash it with a bat.  It gets worse when it's used in a commercial because it takes away the substance from a very good song,  When I hear that a movie is going to be remade, I am not impressed.  It either gets glossed over with so much violence or repackaged to be "politically correct" and for me that's an insult to the original.

The originals were classics because they came up with good things that people at the time were not able to conceptualize.  It also hit  a certain message to its viewers and despite the restrictions and lack of resources, they came up with something poignant.  Just because we have better technology or more financial resources, we think we can do better? Not! Leave the classics alone because they're originals that deserved to stay untouched.

Everything Sure Is Unstable: Shakey Ground By The Temptations

ust when you thought things were bad, they just got worse.  Things are just tough all over, what you thought would always be there suddenly disappears in a blink of an eye.  Just when you thought you found something that you can build on, it all just falls apart.  Just goes to show that things sure can be unstable. When I think about how unstable things are, the song "Shakey Ground" by The Temptations comes to mind.

Back when times were good, you thought it would last forever.  Sadly, when it's over reality can really give you a hard slap in the face.  Back then, it was easy to come with a back up plan when things go awry.  These days you have to have a back up plan for every back up plan.  You can't be sure of anything anymore.

So what do we do?  I guess we keep on going even if the ground crumbles from underneath our feet.  It's when we give up then it's really over.  The ground maybe shaky but don't let shake you up.  There's stable ground out there so just keep that head up and keep on going.