I had a lot of fun in April blogging about 26 of my favorite things in the A to Z challenge. So much fun in fact that I wanted to list all of my favorites in this one blog post, each highlighted with links back to the original posts. I have also included some honorable mentions to truly include all of my favorites. So here are 26 of my favorites from A to Z!
A is for (brady) Anderson with Autobiographies as honorable mention.
B is for (denver) Broncos with Biographies as honorable mention.
C is for (johnny) Cash with Casinos as honorable mention.
I will definitely participate the A to Z Challenge again next year. I met lots of new friends, read a lot of interesting new blogs, and I loved writing my about all of my favorite things.
A favorite of mine that begins with Z is Zoo. I’m still not sure exactly how I feel about zoos – whether are they are good or bad for animals. But I love animals, so I enjoy going to see them. When I lived in Memphis, I had an annual pass to the Memphis Zoo, which is one of the nicest zoos in the US. I would visit often spending most of my time with the polar bears, which are my favorite animals after dogs. I went to the Polar Bears’ birthdays and the International Polar Bear day celebrations. I just love being outside with the animals.
How do you feel about Zoos – good or bad for animals?
This blog post is the last of my A to Z April Challenge – 26 of my favorites. Thanks for stopping by. It’s been a great month blogging about my favorites. I will be posting a recap soon. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog On the Road with U2.
A favorite of mine that begins with Y is YooHoo. It is one of my favorite drinks. My favorite drink is sweet tea, but Yoo-Hoo is a close second. When I was little, I loved drinking Yoo-Hoo with pizza. It was a Saturday night treat to grab a cold bottle of Yoo-Hoo out of the cooler at the pizza place and taking it home to enjoy. And today I still like Yoo-Hoo with pizza, actually I like pizza with anything. But I often grab a Yoo-Hoo out of the cooler in the mart when I stop for gasoline. For those of you who don’t know, Yoo-Hoo is a chocolate drink – not chocolate milk, so it won’t spoil. Next time you’re out, try a Yoo-Hoo – you won’t be disappointed.
What is your favorite drink?
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge – 26 of my favorites. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog On the Road with U2.
A favorite of mine that begins with X is Xanadu. Actually Xanadu isn’t one of my favorite movies now, but it was when I was little and it is the only thing I could think of that begins with X. It is one of Olivia Newton-John’s movies, and she is my favorite female performer, so Xanadu counts as my favorite ‘X.’ Plus the definition of Xanadu is an idyllic, beautiful place and that is fantastic. The movie Xanadu was a campy 1980′s romantic musical fantasy, but for me as an 8 year old it was all about roller skating. My best friend Cindy and I spent hours and hours roller skating in her carport while listening to our Xanadu record.
What is a favorite of yours that begins with X?
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge – 26 of my favorites. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog On the Road with U2.
A favorite of mine that begins with W is writing, my worthwhile passion. I say writing is my worthwhile passion because my other passions are musicians, actors, athletes and sports teams. Not sure how ‘worthwhile’ they are, but they do bring me happiness. Anyway, I first discovered I loved to write at the end of 2010 when I started this blog. I had kept a journal for years, so maybe I have always loved to write. I don’t like to write fiction as I’m not very creative. I like to review events and share my experiences with others. I would love to make my living as a writer, covering local events like concerts, festivals, exhibits and openings. I have written a book and am currently looking for a publisher. It is called On the Road with U2: my musical journey and is about my travels over the past 20 years to 75 U2 concerts. I have one published article, which I did not get paid for, that I wrote for a magazine called Twisted South. It was a review of Jerry Lee Lewis’ lastest cd. So until someone decides to pay me to write for them, I will continue entertaining the world through my blogs and tweets.
What is your worthwhile passion?
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge – 26 of my favorites. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog On the Road with U2.
A favorite of mine that begins with V is Vegas, as in Las Vegas my second favorite city. I love Las Vegas so much that I am planning to celebrate my 40th birthday there in October.I have been to Vegas four times, and two of those times have been with my best friend Cindy who will also be joining me in October. The first time was for my job, the second time was for U2′s Vertigo tour, the third time was for U2′s 360 tour, and the fourth time was for the opening of NKOTB’s tour and to see the Viva Elvis cirque de soleil show. Whenever I go to Vegas, I stay at Bally’s. It’s a great casino and hotel centrally located on the strip. I love everything about Las Vegas – the lights, the energy and the many, many slots! It is the perfect place to celebrate my milestone 40th birthday! I can’t wait until October!
What is your favorite city?
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge – 26 of my favorites. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog On the Road with U2.
A favorite of mine that begins with U is U2, my favorite band. More than my favorite band, U2 is one of my greatest passions. And as such, U2 has two shelves of memorabilia in my place as well as walls of posters and a display of hundreds of cds and dvds. My passion for U2 began 25 years ago.
I was a freshman in high school when The Joshua Tree was released in 1987. I remember hearing With or Without You and realizing it was by the same band that sang that song Pride I had heard a few years earlier. Luckily a classmate had a picture of U2 because at the age of 14 it is VERY important what the band that you might be interested in looks like. Out of the four guys, one was stood out. His name was Larry Mullen Jr,, and I have been in love with him ever since. Besides being gorgeous, Larry is my favorite member of U2 because he is very matter of fact, no nonsense, and always says exactly what he is feeling. I admire that about him. I have seen U2 in concert 75 times over the past quarter century, and I have had a few personal encounters with Larry Mullen Jr along the way.
Because of Larry Mullen, there is U2. He started the band with a note on the school bulletin board. And for a few minutes, the band was known as The Larry Mullen Band, which is the t shirt I wear to every U2 show. Because of Larry Mullen, I discovered U2 my favorite band for a quarter century. Because of U2, I have traveled all over the United States seeing great places and meeting great people. My favorite U2 song is I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For. My favorite U2 album is The Joshua Tree. My favorite U2 tour was the Elevation Tour. I am currently searching for a publisher for my book about my travels on the U2 tours the past 20 years called On the Road with U2: my musical journey.
Who is your favorite band?
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge – 26 of my favorites. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog On the Road with U2.
A favorite of mine that begins with T is Turner, Lana better known as Lana Turner, my favorite actress. I love her. Lana Turner was independent and confident and portrayed these characteristics in her movie roles as well. It seemed in every movie she was single and making it on her own, and that was in the 1940s and 1950s. My favorite Lana Turner movies are Imitation of Life, A Life of Her Own, The Bad and the Beautiful and Peyton Place.
I’ve probably only seen about half of Lana Turner’s movies. They are hard to find and rarely on TCM, except for the obvious ones. I have read both her autobiography and her daughter’s and any other biographies I can find. So if you have any questions about Lana, just ask.
Who is your favorite actress?
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge – 26 of my favorites. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog On the Road with U2.
A favorite of mine that begins with S is Soap Operas, my favorite kind of television. I have loved soap operas since I was little. I would come home from kindergarten and sneak to watch Days of Our Lives. My mom said she always knew when I was watching soap operas because it was the only time I was quiet. In middle school, I became obsessed with Santa Barbara. In fact, it was one of the only places I wanted to visit on our trip out west in 1984. In high school I started watching As the World Turns, which I watched faithfully until it was cancelled in 2010 – a sad, sad day. I loved As the World Turns, especially Jack and Carly. I was lucky enough to meet each of them a few years ago at a soap event in Kings Dominion.
In college, I started watching Beverly Hills 90210, which quickly became my second favorite show and still is today – second only to Happy Days. I have all 10 seasons of 90210 on dvd and still watch it daily on soapnet. I pretty much can recite the dialogue, especially from the first four seasons. My favorite was Kelly, with Brenda as a close second.
Other soaps I have watched over the years are Young and the Restless, Guiding Light, Dallas, Knots Landing, Melrose Place, Felicity, Party of 5, and My So-Called Life. It is terrible that they have cancelled all but four daytime soap operas, an American institution.
What is your favorite soap opera?
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge – 26 of my favorites. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog On the Road with
A favorite of mine that begins with R is Robert Cassotto, whose stage name was Bobby Darin. My favorite artist, after Elvis and U2, is Bobby Darin. I first learned of Bobby Darin at age 4 while watching my favorite tv show Happy Days. Potsie, Richie and Ralph would sing Bobby’s hit Splish Splashevery time they played Arnold’s. Of course I called it ‘Pish Pash.’ I didn’t speak too well back then, but I loved that song.
Splish Splash was pretty much the extent of my knowledge of Bobby Darin until I became an adult. I heard and fell in love with Beyond the Sea, and I was hooked. I read every biography I could find. I first read Me and Bobby D by Steve Karmen, Bobby’s boyhood friend and first music partner. Then I read Roman Candle: The Life of Bobby Darin by David Evanier, Bobby Darin by Al DiOrio, Bobby Darin by Michael Seth Starr, and finally Dream Lovers by Dodd Darin about his parents Bobby Darin and Sandra Dee. I also bought the three movies Bobby Darin starred in with Sandra Dee: Come September, If a Man Answers, and That Funny Feeling.
I learned many interesting things about Bobby Darin while reading all those biographies. The most attractive to me was his passionate performances. The main reason I love Elvis and U2 is for their passion. Actually passion is probably the most attractive and admirable quality to me. Bobby Darin was so passionate about performing that he wore a condom on stage while singing because he would get so excited. Music moved him that much! Of course after reading this, I had to find DVDs of his performances. I bought Bobby Darin: The Darin Invasion, Bobby Darin: Singing at his Best, and my favorite and his last Bobby Darin: Mack is Back.
Bobby Darin was born Walden Robert Cassotto in 1936 in the Bronx. He grew up poor and sick. He was stricken with recurring bouts of rheumatic fever, which weakened his heart. Bobby lived his life knowing that it would be a short one. This motivated him to do as much as he could as quickly as he could. Bobby grew up with his mother and his sister. The man who he thought was his father died in jail before he was born. Bobby Darin married Sandra Dee in 1960, and they had one son Dodd. Unfortunately they divorced in 1967. A year later Bobby, at age 32, was shocked when his sister Nina told him that she was actually his mother and his mother Polly, whom he adored and had died years before, was actually his grandmother. Bobby never learned who his real father was. Later that same year Bobby was devastated when his friend Bobby Kennedy, whom he had been traveling with on his campaign, was assassinated. After all of this, Bobby sort of lost his way. He spent some time in seclusion in a trailer in the woods and turned to folk music. He eventually returned to the stage. Bobby Darin died in 1973 at the young age of 37 from an infection after forgetting to take his medication to protect his heart during a dental visit.
Bobby Darin was a great singer, a great performer, a great actor, and a very passionate man. He starred in many movies and was even nominated for an oscar. Bobby also played many instruments, including the drums. But what I admire so much about Bobby Darin was his singing – he was so passionate and versatile. He sang all types of music really well. He could sing 1950s pop like Splish Splash, big band standards like Beyond the Sea and folk music like If I Were a Carpenter.
What do you think of Bobby Darin?
This blog post is part of my A to Z April Challenge – 26 of my favorites. Thanks for stopping by. I am also blogging the A to Z Challenge on my other blog On the Road with U2.
