MelaniePenelope

Saturday 9: Money (That's What I Want)

Hello, my friends. It's 9 o'clock on a Saturday (AM), and the regular crowd rushes in (two snoring dogs), so I'm going to get at it. Welcome back to Saturday 9! I've had another pretty heart-rending week, but I'm trying this new thing where I let myself have my feelings and then I look up and look onward. Easier said than done, folks.

Thankfully, we've got another rousing round of questions (I'm guessing, since I don't read ahead and since Crazy Sam always delivers) to answer, and! the! sun! is! also! shining! Holy crap, the weather has been high muckety-muck for days. If you'd like to join Sam and me and the rest of us, link up here! We'd love to have you.

Here we go:

Saturday 9: Money (That's What I Want) 1959

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) The lyrics mention "the birds and bees." Who told you about the facts of life?

 

Mostly the kids on various school playgrounds and such. I wasn't allowed to learn those things in the classroom, and I SURE as hell wasn't being taught them at home or in the cult. Wait. We had HBO and Skinemax. At a very young age I was watching movies marked as having "strong sexual content" and sometimes violent sexual content, and I remember those scenes.

 

2) Barrett Strong sings that love won't pay the bills. How do you handle bill paying? Do you set aside one day a month to take care of all your bills, or do you pay each one as it comes in? What's your system?

 

We pretty much get one payday per month, so when that hits I try to pay all the bills, do the grocery shopping (online, for Hubs to pickup), order the pet needs (for our two pups and three kitties), and so on ... until it's all taken care of. Inevitably it takes me a few days, though, because I tire so easily now.

 

3) He refers to dollar bills as "lean greens." Can you think of any other euphemisms for money?

 

 

"Benjamins" is my current favorite; no clue why, since it's kind of an older term at this point. But Japan is still largely a cash-based society, so we had a lot of cash on us, and it amused me to have so many "Benjamins" on us at one time, as if we were normally like that, at all!

 

4) April is tax time, so money is top-of-mind for us all. Do you do your own taxes or do you seek the help of a professional?

 

I usually do our taxes, but this year, I'm giving them to Hubs to take to a professional.

5) On this week's song, Barrett does a solid job on the vocals and he handles the keyboards well. In addition to performing, he was a talented songwriter. One of his most popular compositions was "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," a song about a lover who listened to gossip and got some useful information. Have you ever been the subject of gossip? If yes, was there any truth to the rumor?

 

 

I've been gossiped about numerous times; I seem to be one of those people who drama follows no matter wherever I go. Don't need it; don't want it. I'm sure there's some little tiny raisin of truth in every tale, but I've heard so many farfetched stories about myself, I'd laugh if I weren't a crybaby! Well, now, I'm more likely to get angry, get over it, and get on with things.

 

6) He worked with Motown and its sister label, Tamla, for years, but when they moved their offices from Detroit to LA, he quit. Have you ever relocated for your career?

 

I have. Several times. It paid off, and then I took a quick break to get my bearings, got married and pregnant within that break, and no more career. I preferred the family. Then when I was starting to get ready to back to school to re-enter the workforce, I got so sick. No more dreams of career.

7) In 1959, when "Money" was popular, "Huckleberry Hound" was a hit with young TV viewers in 1959. What was your favorite cartoon when you were a kid?

 

 

Oh, I was a HUUUUGE fan of "The Smurfs" from the moment they came out! I have always loved them.

8) While children were enjoying daytime cartoons, their parents were discovering The Twilight Zone, which also premiered in 1959. Decades later, it's still being rerun on cable and streaming services. Are you a fan?

 

I've seen it a few times because I couldn't get into anything else that was on, but uh, sorry Mr. Roddenberry, it wasn't really my cup of tea.

 

9) Random question: Right now, would you prefer to grab a snack or take a nap?

 

 

I would prefer to grab a snack, if one of these jumbo lump crabcakes that Hubs has been whipping up for me a couple of times a day (at least) for several months now could be called "a snack." They are magnificent, and he has dazzled me with their perfection. All they need from me is a little freshly-squeezed lemon - and sometimes, not even that!

 

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Well, that's my show. I've to go catch my helicopter. Thanks for another fund round!

 

Fin.

Saturday 9: Flowers

Y'all. Oh, my word. There are fewer than two weeks - 11 or 12 days, maybe? - before our plane lifts off and hopefully carries us off to Tokyo. First off, with all these plane crashes everywhere, I'm skittish about that right now, and I love to fly. Second, there are so many minute details to plan for a trip of this magnitude (if you're a detail-oriented perfectionist such as myself, unfortunately), and I still have a lot of those balls in the air to juggle. Third, there are still so many ?? question marks on areas of our itinerary where there shouldn't be, and it has me chomping down more anti-anxiety meds than I would like (but still well within prescribed doses, don't worry). That said, I simply can't wait until we can get there, and I can see that ahhhh, all will be well, and I can relax.

That's all about that, so you know my head-spinning mindset. Today, we're working with Miley Cyrus in ye olde-fashioned Saturday 9. If you'd like to link up with us this weekend, check it out right here! And Finnegan, begin again:

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Saturday 9: Flowers (2023)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 

1) In this song, Miley Cyrus sings about gold as though it represents the best. Do you more often wear gold or silver?

I rarely ever wear gold, but my real wedding set of rings are gold, so I'm trying to work on that. However, they are too big for me now that I have lost a lot of weight again, so for Japan, we have bought this temporary faux set of rose gold wedding set for myself and for Hubs. Reason being, I lose my real rings frequently. Case in point: I was going to do a side-by-side with this faux set, but I must have slept in them last night, and now we can't find them. It happens. Rob will overhaul the bed later. TL;DR: I prefer to wear silver or rose gold, actually, and I have a LOT of piercings, so finding gold for all the piercings to match my rings can be challenging.

 

Update: Aha! I found my real wedding ring set:

 

 

2) She also sings the praises of buying herself flowers. Are there any cut flowers in your home right now?

 

There are! I got a couple of quite lovely bouquets for Valentine's Day. I received this more wildflowery-looking bouq in the bedroom, and later I found this more upscale rose-and-lily bouq in my office. They're all so beautiful, and I love them!

 

3) She tells us she's going to paint her nails cherry red. Do you handle your own mani/pedi, do you go to a salon, or do you just let your nails go natural?

 

I hate going to a nail salon. I either just do it myself (these are my Valentine's nails, haha), or they just go au naturale. I try not to let it be the latter, though, because they are by turns brittle and will crack, and by turns week and flexible and will just chip chip chip away.

 

4) In 2019, Miley had vocal cord surgery, and her recovery required her to go weeks without uttering a sound. Would it be difficult for you to keep your lips zipped for a week?

 

 

Oh, heck yeah! I am a chatterbox, through and through, with absolutely no filter. It's a problem!

 

5) Dolly Parton is Miley's godmother, and Miley singles Dolly out as the one who taught her "how to treat people well." Tell us about someone who was a positive influence on you.

 

I can do that. One such person would be Mr. Jim Brickley, the owner and main attorney of the law firm where I was legal secretary for a while in St. Pete. He and his wife really took a shine to me, and he became like a father figure to me. When an ex-boyfriend chipped my teeth, Jim sent me to his dentist to have them fixed and had the dentist send him the bill. I lived in Tampa for part of the time I was working at the firm in St. Pete, about an hour+ away.

 

I was having some unknown illness one week that, in the middle of the work-week one day, made it unbearable to continue working. I told Pam, who told Jim. He sent for a taxi instead of having me drive home. He had the taxi take me to a hospital up in Tampa, wait for me, and then the taxi took me to my apartment. The next day, or the day after that (can't remember), the taxi was there to take me to work). Those are just two of many examples I have about Jim that influenced me. He always showed the people that he cared about that he was going to take care of them, full stop. And I miss him dearly.

 

6) She is a massive Elvis fan and swoons every time she watches Blue Hawaii because he professes his love for Maile, pronounced "Miley." What movie have you watched many times?

 

 

⚡️ Grease, among others! ⚡️

 

7) In 2023, when "Flowers" was released, actor Sir Michael Gambon died. Though he distinguished himself performing Shakespeare with the Royal National Theater, he is best known for playing Dumbledore in several Harry Potter movies. Who is your favorite Harry Potter character?

 

 

To be honest, I've gotten into neither the books nor the movies, so I can't proclaim to know for sure. But Hermione Granger, played by Emma Watson. I think I'm a big fan of both the character and the actress.

 

8) 2023 was a busy year for England's Royal Family, with the crowning of King Charles III and the publication of Prince Harry's memoir, Spare. Do you have a favorite among the Windsors?

 

 

I'm partial to Prince Harry, myself. I feel like I "get" him, like I understand where he is coming from, the most.

 

9) Random question: Do your siblings have children? If yes, are you close to them?

 

 

I have a half-sister whom I've never met, who I believe is institutionalized and who never had children. I have two older, former step-sisters I'm not in contact with, and I don't know anything about them and their children. I stopped speaking to my full- (whole- ???) sister - and thus her kids - in the summer of 2021, and I'm sure I'll never speak to any of them ever again.

 

Thus, my answer is a resounding NO.

 

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Well! Here it is well after midnight, and I'm finally finishing S9. It was a two-nap day, and I kept getting distracted by Japan-related things when I was awake. My mind is agog with all the possibilities! You, you, and all of you, take good care of yourselves!

 

Fin.