Memories

Tonight, I was feeling lousy, real shitty. I was close to just opening up a large bottle of Smirnoff Ice and staring off into space. I don't need to discuss why I was feeling so crappy, but how I got myself out of that funk. I decided to go onto Limewire and search around for some more Robin Williams' clips - after a friend gave me some the other night. I found plenty of them, but with a little more searching I found my saviour for the night... Fraggle Rock. It was amazing. After how many years of it not being on television, I was thrilled to discover that it lives on. What I didn't realize was how popular it was on the internet. People have devoted entire pages to this show. With a little browsing, I discovered that the entire season one of the show is going to be produced on DVD because of the fans signing a petition. Supposed to be in the fall, in September. Can't wait. In the mean time, I had season one, episode one, waiting for me. I was anxious like a kid again seeing it. I think it had one of the most memorable theme songs ever, something real catchy that the kids could sing along to. I had forgotten how music-centred the show was, but it's still quite enjoyable after all these years. I loved seeing all the old fraggles again, from Gobo, to Red, to all the little doozers running around (for puppets, these little guys are friggin' complicated), to the gorgs and the trash heap with the two rats. And Sprocket, loveable, poor Sprocket. What a torturous life that dog had staring into that hole in the wall. I'm very glad Jim Henson created this show for kids, along with some of his other memorable hits. He was pure genius and really understood what kids needed while making its lessons worth learning. It's sad to have him gone now, but I'm glad I lived through his era. On the flip side of all this was a video of Nirvana's Lithium performed live at the MTV video awards in '92. I was a young teenager when Nirvana made it big, so it seemed appropriate that I would be watching this after seeing Fraggle Rock. What caught my attention the most while watching this was how raw it was. The three men, on stage, minimal lighting - no flashing or moving lights- with a videoscreen behind them showing their image. Even the stage space was small and up tight against the fans - who towards the end were jumping on and off the stage.  I want to say it was moving, but that sounds sappy. It was powerful stuff, with no movement besides a few sways, minus the drumsticks flying around. And at the end, it became destructive and degenerated into noise, while the guys trashed their set, as usual. Such a contrast to the million dollar sets and large spectacles that are produced now on stage. It's as if the music business has to cover up the crappy songs with epic events to brainwash the fans into watching it. Nirvana's performance was anything but splashy. It was crystal clear, with Kurt's words dancing on top of the guitars. And it was live. No lip-synching here. Kurt was even late getting into a verse. All in all, it was a good way to top my never-ending night. And at least I'm still sober and haven't even tasted the alcohol yet. So thank you Fraggle Rock, and thank you Nirvana. [side note- the moon was golden red tonight and was moving like a jet in the sky. Went from a peak to nothing within 30 minutes. Very bizarre, but interesting to watch] ---