OMG Moments

This morning I was listening to the Gayle King Show. Her guest was Philip Galanes, author of the book, Social Q's: How to Survive the Quirks, Quandaries and Quagmires of Today.

Their discussion centered around the question, "Did you ever have an embarrassing moment when you wished you had a social expert on speed dial?"

Of course, that sent my mind whirling to the past, remembering my embarrassing moments. The first one that always comes to mind?

Had I still been a child, it might have been funny. But, as a teenager, it was the most horrible thing that could have happened. There I was, sitting across the table from the man (okay, boy) of my dreams. Though I'd been suffering with a cold, I certainly wasn't going to turn down his invitation to have ice cream. After all, he was my soul mate. I stared into his hazel eyes as he licked his Rocky Road ice cream cone. Life was good.


Then, he told a funny joke and I laughed -- snorted, really. And with that snort came snot. Yes, snot. Gobs of it, too. And though I tried to recover with a quick inhale--tried to hide behind my strawberry cone--I knew he'd seen it.


Even today, I wonder how that snort changed history.

And what about the lesser quandaries? We've all experienced those awkward moments when we notice someone's zipper was down. To tell, or not to tell?

What about when you accidentally sent a text or email?

Ever walk into the wrong sex bathroom?

Enough of my explicit and implicit true confessions. Are YOU brave enough to share an embarrassing moment or a quandary?

Music Time Machine

This morning as I drove in to town, I listened to Gayle King interviewing Jimmy Webb. I must admit, I almost changed the station, thinking he was a new artist I probably was too old to appreciate. But I told myself, "Oh, just listen for awhile. You might learn something."

Boy, did I.

Jimmy Webb is the creator of two of my favorite songs, "Wichita Lineman" and "MacArthur Park." The very sound of their first chords can whisk me back to a time when I was ten years old and my parents were about to divorce. And though at that age, I'd never been in love, I'd certainly had crushes and therefore, thought plenty about love. (Or, what I thought was love, anyway.)

For me, these songs defined lost love in such a poignant way, that now that I think about it, they must have been a spark to my desire to put my own feelings in to words.

Wichita Lineman

And I need you more than want you.

And I want you for all time."

Does that not just rip your heart out?

 

MacArthur Park

Someone left the cake out in the rain.

I don't think that I can take it,

cause it took so long to bake it.

And I'll never have that recipe again.

I'll admit, when I first listened to the lyrics of "MacArthur Park," I did not yet understand about metaphors. So, I couldn't understand why someone would write about leaving a cake in the rain. And what was it doing in a park in the first place? However, many years and many life experiences later, I see the words as a powerful representation of loss.

Thank you, Jimmy Webb. Your lyrics takes me back in time, and they still inspire me today.