I woke to an alarm today, as I have done on Tuesdays for almost a year now.
That's because this is the day that Mayor Van Johnson gives his televised update to we citizens of Savannah about our progress during this time of pandemic.
It's usually at least thirty minutes in length, with questions from the media after.
Today, he didn't do that.
Not any of it.
I have no idea why, but it didn't happen.
So, instead, I pulled up a tv show I haven't watched for a while: "Beat Shazam".
That provides me a bit of entertainment and music, a winning combination, right?
Absolutely!
And I got that in spades today!
(Give it a minute and you'll know why I went and fetched that definition.
I don't want anyone thinking I''m being racist with my choice of words.
Go ahead, look up the phrase, I'll wait.
*
*
*
Just a reference to a centuries-old game of cards, naught else.
Okay, forward we go!)
So... where was I?
Oh, yes, watching Jamie Lee Fox and his daughter, Corinne, this morning.
Episode 1 of Season 3 featured three pairs of teachers vying for the money.
One of the pairs, two brothers, did poorly the first round, scoring no money.
Then, for the second round, in which they were able to choose the song categories (they opted for 80's rather than 2010's), they continued to fare poorly...
until the final two songs, which they answered correctly...
preventing them from being dismissed and allowing them to continue playing.
They had gone from zero dollars to $9,000, putting them in second place.
For the next round, which was Corinne's choice, the artist was Shania Twain.
Let me allow that to sink in a moment while you recognize who that is.
Got it?
White woman, Canadian, the Queen of Country Pop.
Honestly, I know, possibly four of her songs, primarily because my husband was working at "KIX 96 and a half" during our first few years of marriage in the 1990's.
Two of those tunes I knew showed up in the game; I didn't know the other three songs that showed up at all.
I mean, I'd never even heard them and they were supposed to have been some of her top hits, as only those are used for the game.
The contestants - the two brothers versus a pair of female friends - had to correctly guess the title of the six songs and score the most money in order to continue to play for the truly big bucks in the final round.
"That Don't Impress Me Much" was one of the two I knew and the fourth one in the set...
and the one that cinched their lead.
After the last one in this set, Aaron and Martin, two African-American men, had $64,000 and had won the chance to play, versus the machine, for a million dollars.
Wow, what a Cinderella story, right?
From absolutely zero in the first round to almost losing out on the second round and missing the Motown song, then knowing all that country music that few would regard as culturally relevant for them and going to the final round - wow!
But it wasn't the two of them that knew the songs...
oh, no, Aaron didn't have a clue and was openly surprised that his brother knew them.
Seriously.
He was in open-mouthed surprise by the third Shania song.
Even the two white women they were playing against were in awe.
But Martin had it down pat.
I was thrilled!
I always am when people venture outside their comfort zone and open their minds.
That's what I do, trying out new ideas and concepts from different cultures, embracing the activities in the Savannah Black Heritage Festival, in the Jewish Film Festival, in the Clergy Talks by Zoom on Wednesdays, in the Savannah Music Festival, in the Telluride MountainFilm on Tour, in the Savannah Jazz Festival, in the Savannah VOICE Festival - most of which is free, by the way, so there really is no good reason to not attend.
Seriously.
Some folks may think I'm "just going to a lot of movies", but that isn't how I regard it.
Movies are the fastest way to 'read' a story about another person, another country, another culture, another way of thinking.
I've been a bookworm since I was young, eagerly reading of other's adventures, and I credit books with opening the door to travel, with the military, and on my own afterward.
I know so many who do not venture outside their circles, staying around only those who look like them and think like them.
How wonderful to watch this show this morning and see another adventurer!
And what were Martin's plans with the money?
His daughter was going to college to become an immunologist and he wanted to be able to help her with that so she wouldn't have loans to repay.
Wow.
So, how did their story end?
The two brothers won the million dollars, that's how it ended...
with Martin answering all the questions, correctly naming all six songs before the computer could.
The first was Taylor Swift's "22", a song I have never heard.
The second was an oldies tune that I did know: "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys.
Third was a pop-rock hit, "Hey, Soul Sister" by Train, a song I love!
The category for the fourth song had him worried, but Martin recognized Harry Chapin's "Cat's In The Cradle" before I did, and, more importantly, before the machine did, too.
The penultimate song was rhythm & blues and one I didn't know: "Nobody Knows", from the Tony Rich Project in 1996.
I suppose I might have been too busy trying to finish my doctoral dissertation...
but Martin knew it.
He knew it justthatfast, too, as he had known all of these songs.
His knowledge had brought them $189,000 and to the point of no return -
hmm, I wonder if he might recognize the pun-titled song by Kansas? -
(I'm guessing he would) -
meaning, they would need to decide if they wanted to opt to leave the game and to keep the money amassed, or risk losing half of it if they continued to play.
That final song category was "90's".
After the commercial break, Aaron had convinced Martin they should continue.
Aaron's wife had been in a recent car wreck and had not worked for some time.
Aaron told the audience that their mother had always told them to never give up...
so they kept playing, gambling that the adventurous brother would know the song.
And he did!
So did I, incredibly.
The Gin Blossoms' "Found Out About You" was, literally, the million-dollar tune for these two Pennsylvania teachers.
Wow.
He had a moment of uncertainly after, wondering if it should be "I Found Out About You",
as he said in an aside to his brother, then he had shaken his head -
no, he'd said it right the first time.
And he had.
Wow.
Good for Martin!
Being adventurous truly paid off for him, literally and figuratively.
I hope his daughter is just like him...
and I hope his brother will try to follow his lead.
What a wonderful way to start my day!
i thank You, God!
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