jazzgirl

My favorite TV interview was the GMA Diane Sawyer TITN immediately after AI2, closely followed by the Clay/Ruben Today show GBTUSA on Memorial Day 2003. That's when I knew that I had to find out more about this guy (I only watched the last few AI2 shows), and that's when I started searching the internet. Amazingly, I'm still here over five years later.

This is so cute! (I haven't been around for a while and didn't know what it meant until I clicked on it) I wonder how our wide-eye wanderers are doing. From Reuters:

I appreciate you posting my news, annabear, and thank you all for the condolences :F_05BL17blowkiss: . Annabear and I have a connection in that my mom passed on her birthday. Tomorrow will be three weeks. I took a reasonably healthy 83 year old to the hospital in hopes of improving the quality of her life and came out with a dead body. The death certificate says she died of kidney failure. More accurately, she died of medical miscommunication, inattention, and a fragmented, uncoordinated system. Life is not valued in hospitals, especially the lives of elderly people who are labeled as "having co-morbidities". I practically lived at the hospital for the 16 days mom was there. It was and continues to be a living nightmare, only now the nightmare is the "life without you" part. A mother is truly irreplaceable.

Aikim's reports of tales from our "Happy Wanderers" got me here. Big hugs :F_05BL17blowkiss: for them on their journey. I have a "giggle" song for Scarlett to help pass the time and lessen the travel angst: Think yodel (*Spam gave you some practice for this*). In a moment of perversity, "Happy Wanderers" reminded me of The Sound of Music's "The Lonely Goatherd": What a duet for KAndre and Scarlett, lay odl lay odl loo As for your connection, I have confidence that you will get there anyway you can. Welcome to preden and hugs to annabear on the roll-away cans; I've had the same thing happen, only in the store's parking lot and the cans roll under cars!

:F_05BL17blowkiss: Back at you to Aikim and Annabear {{{{Hugs}}} for muski. I remember when I was 13 and I wouldn't want to go back there for anything.

I'll play! Clay songs or "I love Christmas Clay"!: All is Well - hands down, my absolute favorite, I listen to that year-round! Celebrate Me Home - my favorite singer covered one of my favorite songs, so a perfect mesh! Don't Save It All for Christmas Day - I love the message and "the note" Non-Clay or "I love Broadway and Broadway voices": Being Alive from Company by Raul Esparza Man of La Mancha by Linda Eder Old Man River by or Michel Bell

Speaking of "Hips Don't Lie", that is quite the video! :00003653: Ansa The pasta bar sounds like fun!

Couchie! I think it was "Guys and Dolls" -- too bad for them. Imagine hearing this with everything Gibby wrote about Clay's voice and you'll have an idea of what they missed out on! <snip> Oh, yes! Clay would have made a great Sky Masterson in "Guys and Dolls" (Peter Gallagher in the 1992 Broadway version was my favorite). IIRC, somewhere from the recesses of my memory, I "think" Clay was offered the role performed in the 1955 movie version by Stubby Kaye with the song "Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat" (a svelte Marlon Brando was that movie's Sky Masterson). Why settle for the Stubby Kaye role when you could outsing Marlon Brando or Peter Gallagher? ldyjocelyn, about your knee.

Interesting Tony Awards trivia: the actor who won for best musical performance, Boyd Gaines, was Barbara Cooper's dentist boyfriend in the 1980s TV show "One Day at a Time". It is amazing what 25 years does to a person! http://goldderby.latimes.com/awards_goldde...gaines-not.html

The age difference is about 20 years and eight months *g*, not 29 years. I heard recently that approximately one-third of all births are to unmarried partners, so that part is not unusual. The unusual part is a pregnant woman over age 50 as this article describes. Couchie, for you and your mom; glad to read that all she needed were stitches. What a scary thing to happen!

Is the Pope Catholic? *jokey rhetorical question*

*Starts humming Mary Tyler Moore theme song: "Who can take a nothing day and suddenly make it all seem worthwhile"* IIT, I remember reading about legal commentator Nancy Grace, who gave birth at 48 and had life-threatening post pregnancy complications of blood clots in the lung, and an wondering if any comments from the alleged parties will not be made until after the health of the mother and child are reasonably assured. Also IIT, I also remember other cases of assisted reproduction cases among those wealthy enough to afford it. The actor, Randy Quaid, was recently in the news because of his newborn twins who received a heparin overdose, and were also incidentally born via surrogate. Also, the Iraq-injured former ABC anchorman Bob Woodruff had twins born of a surrogate mother (IIRC, his wife had a hysterectomy). Of course, Joan Lunden has had two sets of twins via surrogacy. In the celebrity world that Clay and Jaymes inhabit, a woman seeking genetic material from someone she shared a deep friendship with doesn't seem that far-fetched to me. IIT, I just see two people who decided to make the most of their time as long as they're here and their calculus of this was to share a child together.

True, it is helpful to count your blessings, and as you said, how can you begrudge an 87 year old mother in love? As for the poor house, what jumped out at me in that rather touching article was the private nurse that the man's family hired in addition to having the patient in the nursing home. I had heard about that extra layer of protection before and those fortunate few able to afford that level of care, as that likely doubles (at least!) the normal nursing home fees.

Happy Birthday, justclay! Or it could just be the family's attempt at a completely understandable "zone of privacy" by issuing a denial, even if he is ill. Go figure is right.

Given the page-producing topic of conversation, Dylan songs such as "It Ain't Me, Babe" (IINT) or "Lay, Lady, Lay" (IIT) seem oddly appropriate. So does this, it actually makes sense!

I loved Carol's version too; as someone commented, she made it her own. As a matter of interest, Carol Burnett is married to a man 23 years younger than she: http://www.angelfire.com/stars4/lists/coup...fferences2.html Wow to have heard that live, couchie. What kind of a commune is FCA, or has this been discussed? Anarco-sydicalist, as indicated below? Maybe at least in terms of selecting thread titles *g*, where a majority does rule for internal affairs. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071853/quotes

All this talk of libations here, reminds me of Elaine Stritch's "The Ladies Who Lunch" in Company. I keep hearing "I'll drink to that". If anyone wants a good drinking song, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fwfimjV4dQ Here's to the ladies who lunch-- Everybody laugh. Lounging in their caftans And planning a brunch On their own behalf. Off to the gym, Then to a fitting, Claiming they're fat. And looking grim, 'Cause they've been sitting Choosing a hat. Does anyone still wear a hat? I'll drink to that. And here's to the girls who play smart-- Aren't they a gas? Rushing to their classes In optical art, Wishing it would pass. Another long exhausting day, Another thousand dollars, A matinee, a Pinter play, Perhaps a piece of Mahler's. I'll drink to that. And one for Mahler! And here's to the girls who play wife-- Aren't they too much? Keeping house but clutching A copy of LIFE, Just to keep in touch. The ones who follow the rules, And meet themselves at the schools, Too busy to know that they're fools. Aren't they a gem? I'll drink to them! Let's all drink to them! And here's to the girls who just watch-- Aren't they the best? When they get depressed, It's a bottle of Scotch, Plus a little jest. Another chance to disapprove, Another brilliant zinger, Another reason not to move, Another vodka stinger. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh! I'll drink to that. So here's to the girls on the go-- Everybody tries. Look into their eyes, And you'll see what they know: Everybody dies. A toast to that invincible bunch, The dinosaurs surviving the crunch. Let's hear it for the ladies who lunch-- Everybody rise! Rise! Rise! Rise! Rise! Rise! Rise! Rise! Rise!! Tony's are on this weekend!!!!!!!!

This seems like it would fit here with problems others are having; it's an "Exhausted Caregiver" Q&A from Salon.com (if you click on the link, the "letters" written in response are also a good read).

I think this sounds promising. Keep us posted. It may work because your mom, IIRC, is a "young" senior. I tried taking my mom to a senior center run by seniors that had lunch, bingo, and discussions, but most of the seniors there were fairly active people in their 70s who were in much better shape than my mom, so she really didn't fit in. The other seniors were solicitous of mom, but she was like a child promoted out of her grade level, so it didn't work.

Congrats to future MIL, aikim! Finally, after four daughters, you're gaining a son! I never thought of this as a mean board, just as one having an above average representation of no-nonsense, robust personalities. I love some of Clay's listening choices. I am madly in love with "Gabriel's Oboe" and really, really like Buble's "Everything"; when I first heard the latter, I thought what a great song that would be for Clay! Other than the requisite AI mentions, I thought Clay's choices were eclectic (Andrea Bocelli) and esoteric (the above-mentioned "Gabriel's Oboe"). Does Britney have a list? *g*

I'm reliving it all -- that tingly shiver in my spine whenever he whispered "dark" as in "You would rather die than leave us in the dark" and the surge of passion that begins with "You were the Victor and the King" until I pretty much stop breathing from "You are the strength when we have none" on to the end when I'm left gasping as he is slowly lowered from the stage. If anyone beside me had stormed off in a hissy fit during that time I wouldn't have noticed nor would have cared unless the now empty seat were closer to the center than mine, giving me an opportunity to move up. heh, now that's just smutty!! Not smutty at all. Think career as a romance novelist. The "floor photo" as cover art. Title? "Love Needs No Airbrushes". I think that could give "love means you never have to say you're sorry" a run for its money.

I have found these useful, the bed cane, in particular: couch cane bed cane

I don't think a kick start is the aim of TPTB, just a way to mitigate questions about whatever happened to Ruben, given that AI Rewind is covering season two and also to preserve whatever credibility the show has as a vehicle that finds successful artists.

Couchie, I do know it is important to keep a humidifier clean: http://www.doityourself.com/stry/cleanuphumidifier I could not agree more. Seeing one particular campaign banner here made me want to "run away" to quote some Spamalot-ese. Far, far away.

Play asked a good question, especially with your mother's occupational background. Couchie, is it possible to "hire" a friend of the family or neighbor to look in on mom? Last time that I checked on this, home health aides were fairly reasonable (RNs not so reasonable!), but finding a quality, trustworthy person can be difficult.