TIME IS GOING BY...FAST

A song that I remember from my formative years was "A Child Of The Fifties" by the Statler Brothers. In the song, there was a line that said "When Elvis Died, We All Knew That We Could Too." That was a sentiment that I remember from my favorite authors, Lewis Grizzard, when he was writing his thoughts about August 16, 1977. Of course, being a teen-ager or in my 20s, mortality isn't something you think about too much.

The past few years have changed that outlook considerably. Losing a parent is always one of the first stages of this, or so I have been told. I am also reminded of a quote by Bill Anderson that the legendary producer Owen Bradley once said about a sign of getting older is going to more funerals. Though some still say that I am a "baby" when I get worried about my career future, 35 isn't as young as it once was. But at the same time, it isn't as old as I once thought it was....if that sentence makes any sense whatsover.

Like many children of the 70s and 80s, I was saddened early Thursday morning to learn of the death of Farrah Fawcett. She enchanted so many during her career with her Texas charm and irresistible beauty. Though "The Poster" (As if you have to be told which one) came out in 1976...it still had a life of its' own in the 1980s. I was telling my wife that I remember my brother (from another Mother) Randall and I being quite the Farrah fan in the 80s. How could you not? Even after her run on "Charlie's Angels" ended, she was in plenty of movies....and even though the Catherine Bach poster was maybe a little bit bigger in the early 80s......the Farrah poster lived on!

After I went back to checking e-mails, I began to recall that there was only one time in almost thirty years of knowing him that I ever got mad at Randall. It was the spring of 1984, and we were having an Easter egg hunt at Burns Elementary School. Randall won the big prize----a Michael Jackson poster. Keep in mind that this was the age of THRILLER---which, no matter what happened in the 90s and beyond to Jackson, will always stand as one of the best Pop albums of all time. At that time, there was no one any more cool. I had my share of MJ memorabilia---tapes, trading cards, magazines...and since Randall wasn't a fan---I assumed that I would be getting the poster. However, there was a higher bidder---one of our mutual friends offered him $ 5 for it. That was the equivalent of a week's allowance back then---which could easily be redeemed for quarters for video games, or even a Stomper! So I didn't get the poster....Well, I didn't stew about it too long...and actually I smiled about that as I thought back to my youth. That was about 3:30 that afternoon or so.....

Then, about 4:30, I logged on to see the news that Michael Jackson had been taken to UCLA. Then, not too long after, came the news that the "King Of Pop" had died. While there were a lot of aspects to Michael Jackson's life that many of us may not fully comprehend--He was a era-defining artist, who (lest any of us forget) was also a son, brother, and father.

The subject line of this blog sums up my emotions of the day about as good as I can say it. It's not so much about death, because as Dan Miller (WSMV Anchorman who passed away earlier this year) was quoted as saying...."We're all in line, we just don't know where we stand at." and though I can be a wayward child of God at times, I know where I'm going....but these two deaths, as well as the events of the past few years prove more than ever that 1983 is never coming back. Not that I thought it would, but nostalgia is a sweet place to visit....if only in the mind.....