Magic Jewball

So, as you all know, because I’ve said it a lot and you all have photographic memories, I have like 200 blogs and other sites on my feed reader. Recently, like within days of each other, every one of them seemed to have a post saying, “We have a Facebook page! Be a fan!” Because I’m smart, S-M-R-T, it began to dawn on me that this is some kind of newfangled trend. I’m just that observant! Now, as I’ve told the 101 people who have sent me e-mails about being their Facebook friend, I’m not on Facebook, as it entails giving up your identity and we all remember I hate this. Also all the poking and whatever. I was one of those people happy to graduate all schools I attended and never go back. But this is different! It’s a page for my page! Which is SO necessary. Websites should always be advertised by other websites, right? Right?

No, I have no idea what it’s for either. I don’t know anything about Facebook. I had to send five e-mails back and forth with tech support just to set it up. So basically, I didn’t know how to set it up, I don’t know if I did it right, I have no idea what it’s for, and I’m not really sure why I even spent the time.

Oh right, because every one else was doing it. I guess I am still in high school.

So if you’re one of those 101 people who wanted me to swell their friends list, why, just be a fan instead. Be the first! Two through one hundred are also fun.

The J-Ball Facebook Page

Speaking of dreams, one of mine came true this week and it’s going to change my life. Dear diary, it’s really happened, they opened a Target near me. If you are savvy, and you know New York or Target or both, you will say, “Becca, there’s no new Target near you – the last one opened like last year. Or the year before.” True. But I thought it was in The Bronx. It turns out, it’s in Riverdale. If you are inclined to think that Riverdale is actually in The Bronx, hey, just ask someone from Riverdale. Or plug the address of the Target into Hopstop and use The Bronx as the borough. Nothing, right? Well, try Manhattan. Yes, Hopstop considers 225th Street in Riverdale to be Manhattan. Nice.

I just consider it somewhere safe to shop. And shop I did. It’s 25 minutes away by subway! And no changes! One line, up, down, etc. Do you know how nice that is with bags filled to the brim with inexpensive merchandise? I may never shop at Duane Reade again, I don’t care if it’s on every corner of my intersection. Which it is. On the way back, I ended up talking to some lady from the Village (she didn’t understand the weekend service changes on the IRT, which have been going on for most of my adult life, it seems, so I am a fount of information) who had only come so far because she had a gift card. For ten dollars. And she said it took her an hour to find anything she could possibly want. Are you kidding me? I made comments to the effect of “$5 toothpaste at Duane Reade, $2.39 at Target” and such, and her answer was, “I shop at the 99 cents store, I never go to Duane Reade.” Well, if you want to die of poisoning from Crist brand Chinese toothpaste, have at it, sister! It later emerged that her handbag cost four hundred dollars. I cannot make this stuff up. By the way, I spent $165 at Tar-jhay. And I may go back this Sunday.

I want you to know, I have nothing against The Bronx. It’s actually my third favorite borough! Right in the middle. Here’s how it shakes out:

1. Manhattan – This may surprise you if this is your first day on this website.
2. Brooklyn – Sentimental favorite – I’m half Brooklynese and have swell memories.
3. The Bronx – Yankee Stadium, The Bronx Zoo, Botanical Gardens – what’s not to like? Please don’t answer that.
4. Queens – I suppose I just don’t really like Queens, maybe it’s the fact that I only find myself there in a huge hurry to make a plane. But it has the National Tennis Center and until they move it to somewhere better, I’ll continue to just enjoy it one week of the year.
5. Staten Island – I’ve seen it more often in Working Girl than real life. I believe I have spent one day there ever. I think I was ten.

So there you have it. And actually, I’m not sure I want a Target in Manhattan. Have you seen Union Square lately? And by lately, I mean in the last ten years. No, really, it’s beginning to make even I, who love chain stores, kind of queasy. So let’s keep it just over the border in The Bronx Riverdale, shall we?

KRS-One – South Bronx

I thought of adding it to celebrate Mark Messier’s induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame this week in Toronto, but somehow there just didn’t seem to be room for this on my iGoogle page. Sucks to be me, doesn’t it.

It took me a minute there to catch the season finale of Curb Your Enthusiasm. Sometimes I forget things are on what with the ReplayTV. Then I see them in my list of shows and realize they’re there. But if you haven’t seen it, stop reading! And you know I never tell you to stop reading here so I must be serious.

If you’re still here, and even if you’re not, this scene made me laugh so hard that I could barely breathe. Then I watched it again and again and again. Was this all a dream? Who knows. I just love seeing Larry waving behind Loretta and the look on Susie Greene’s face. Bwahahahaha!

[flv width=”320″ height=”240″]http://www.magicjewball.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/CurbYourEnthusiasm-TheBatMitzvah.flv[/flv]

Oh, and there’s profanity. I should have mentioned that first.

Disco, baby!

When I was a small child, sort of like you see in that photo on the right, I was mostly a rock fan. Also that “Somebody Come and Play” song from Sesame Street. But I had a soft spot for disco, especially Donna Summer. You see, even then I could tell the quality amongst the dreck, and Donna Summer was quality disco. First off, those pipes. On some songs she sounds like a gospel singer, on others totally sultry. And then there was the melody and craft. It was like people wrote their best disco songs for her. You notice there were no Ring My Bells for Donna.

Back then, listening to disco was hard. I mean, sure, they played it all the time on the AM radio I listened to, but I was too young to have a stereo and none of my sibs would allow the stuff to touch their turntables. Life was tough. Then the other day, I suddenly realized that I am a grown-up (sort of) and downloaded her greatest hits from iTunes. Take that!

This is not actually my favorite song by her. That would be “Dim All the Lights” but it sounds kind of dated and I realized I only loved it because I had loved it then. I know, I know, don’t they all sound dated? Well, admittedly so. But after giving the hits another listen, I found that this song still holds up lo after all these years. Maybe it’s the Kraftwerk-esque drumming, the human croon over the machine beats, I don’t know. But this is still IT.

Napster:
Donna Summer – I Feel Love

Streaming audio available on the iPod Song of the Week page.