jordan knight 2.0

Okay y'all, so the final verdict is in and my favorites off J's first solo album are: Finally Finding Out (#5) and When You're Lonely (#10). When You're Lonely reminds me way too much of The Stylistics... (...it's okay. I'll wait while you Wikipedia them...they are amazing.)

On Friday, I got the second call from Plan 9 that the second CD had come in. YAY! And I have to say I now have to eat some of my words from a previous post...about not really liking when artist cover other artist's songs...well the CD is called Love Songs and it's a blend of covers and his own material. He does an awesome remake of Careless Whispers (Wham!) ... I actually think I like it more than the original (gasp! Yes, it's true.) I was also impressed to see Waiting For A Girl Like You (Foreigner) and again it's awe-some. =) I say check it out, but that's just me and sooo not bias...hee hee.

I am ME

He said maybe he didn't know me and wanted to get to know me again. This after I said I'm not the same person I used to be.

I'm still the girl who gets motion sickness and who giggles when she's nervous. And still the girl who in spite of life experience still believes in fairy tales. Happily ever exists ... doesn't it?

I'm still the girl who as a child decided that the yellow honeysuckles taste sweeter - and better - than the white ones, and even though it's been a good 20 years since I've tasted one, I somehow know my opinion hasn't changed. I still appreciate 'the small things' like getting a card 'just because' or listening to a new mixed CD - made especially for me ...

I still have my unique sense of humor, my sarcastic humor, my fear of abandonment, my love of music in general (especially 80's), my appreciation of nostalgia, my random knowledge ... am overly emotional/sensitive (I blame it on being a cancerian) and have a huge heart. These are just a few of the concrete things that are me. And while I've done some things I'm not proud of, haven't you?

I'm working on the realization that I do have value. I do matter ... maybe not to you, but to someone ... plenty of someones. I know my life is different from the people who have come into my life. I'd like to believe that some of them are different because of me. Because of this...

I am not who I once was, but I am who I've become. The path I've traveled is mine alone: the good, the not-so-good, and the bad have brought me to where I stand today, which I have to say is not a bad place to be. It's taken me a long time to get here, but there is something to be said about arriving fashionably late. =)

I was told that 2008 would be my year - I truly believe it to be. One third in and much of what I want to do has been done or is in the works to be done before the year ends. I'm tickled finding myself here. A place that for a long time I didn't feel worthy of ... was never good enough for...A place of genuine happiness. And I hope that say 10 years from now I am not who I currently am, but who I will have become.

"Life is about change, sometimes it's painful,

sometimes it's beautiful, but most of the time it's both."

- Lana to Clark, Smallville (1.2, Metamorphosis)

(Sidenote: Any 'you' in this posting isn't directed to any one person in particular - it's directed at you, the reader)

jordan knight

Okay, perhaps you all are tired of hearing about New Kids, but if you knew me at 12, they were pretty much my entire world. (and this is my blog ;) Well, I have to say that I feel bad that I didn't buy Jordan's solo album when it came out in 1999. I bought the CD single for 'Give It To You' back then, which now when I think about it...the price I paid for one song would have been pretty dang close to an entire CD...what was I thinking?!!

But thanks to Plan9 Records, they were able to track down a 'gently used' CD...and it only cost me $4.99. I got the call yesterday that it had come in...so I hopped in the Jeep and made my way to Carytown to pick it up and it's all I've been listening to. I knew two of the songs before buying it...one of them being a remake of a Prince song...

I have the 2 disc Greatest Hits of Prince and I had already found the original of 'I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man' and listened to it. Yuck! I so did not like it. It was amazing that Jordan had been able to 'convert' it into a ballad. His version is beautiful...I usually am not a big fan of remakes... (although I do like No Doubt's take on Talk Talk's 'It's My Life')

I find with listening to the CD all the way through, I seem to be stuck on #7...'Don't Run' and #9 'Close My Eyes'...I know the more I listen this'll very well change... and I'm kinda sad that I've missed out on this for nine whole years...

And I'll be honest...the '95 South Remix' of 'Give It To You'... yeah, I don't like it. It's not recommended...no offense to Jordan or the 95 South peeps...besides, I don't think that just because you enjoy a musician/band that you have to like ALL of their songs...there's quite a few DMB songs I'm not crazy about...and we all know how I feel about DMB...

Now, I'm just awaiting Jordan's second CD ... it too has been ordered and should be coming in next week. YAY!! :)

(PHOTO: LUIS GUERRA / RAMEY)

30 Going On 13

This is the name of the screenplay I'll be writing...

Reese Witherspoon will play the lead character who encounters the magic dust, which transports her back to the awkwardness that is 13. Only this time, she'll have a chance meeting with her favorite group - New Kids On The Block (yes, they will play themselves).

When I saw them at Reynolds in Raleigh, Aundrea, Sara and myself met some girls from Fuquay and while hanging out we discovered an unlocked door to the coliseum...so of course we went in. We stumbled across a downward staircase and leaning down, we saw Craft Services - ah, their dinner. About that time, we were caught and chased out of the coliseum. If I remember correctly, there was a gun involved in the chase. I had never run so fast in my life. No, we didn't meet them that day. However, earlier in the day we met Yasko, their keyboard player. That was the closest we got.

This memory serves as the basis of the beginning of my plot. Stay tuned...

**********

Actually, with the announcement of the reunion, I found myself going into my storage - digging out the VHS tapes and cassettes. I spent the weekend watching and listening to my youth. It was a strange experience watching with the eyes of a 30 year old. I didn't scream at the screen like I would have back then. I just giggled a lot. Watching their moms on Oprah caught me emotionally - with Danny's mom having passed in 1999. You could just see the love for her son in her eyes. And when it came to the videos, I was amazed at how much of the dancing I actually remembered...yeah, that's right...I bet you remember some of those moves, too. :)

It was nice to spend some time with old friends

Everytime I hear Step By Step - it's like hearing it for the first time...even though I believe I've heard it a gajillion times now. Correction: A gajillion and one. I actually remember where I was the first time I heard it. Aundrea and I were coming back from having visited some of her family in/around Monroe, NC and we caught it midway through. I think we were too busy squealing to have actually heard it...

Sidenote: Not even joking, Step By Step is now my ringtone...so call me...

I have countless memories of the "Boys from Beantown" ... countless money spent at Spencers on t-shirts, buttons, etc. My 14th birthday party was NKOTB...and Aundrea and I kept 'inventory' of our collection: the posters, the buttons, comic books... and not just Buttons: 30 ... we broke it down by each member...counting posters was a real pain...but we did it. And even though at 13 we had moved away from each other, we would mail each other updates. We addressed our letters Aundrea McIntyre and Sarah Knight. ;) (still have the ones sent to me) We had it ALL planned out. She'd marry Joe. I'd marry Jordan. We'd live next door to each other. Plan our pregnancies out. And own our own local advertising agency. Of course real life didn't turn out like that...

Summer of '90 was the "Magic Summer Tour" where they had their own Coca-Cola commercial...I remember the song... Magic is the real thing. You never know wherever you go you might find magic in a Coca-Cola Classic. Can't beat it. Can't beat the real thing ... Between the two of us, we would easily go through a 12 pack in ONE day. So imagine an entire summer of Coke. We never found any magic in one of those cans and to this day I cannot stand drinking Coke. I'm totally a Pepsi girl. :)

I have to say I was tickled to hear of their reunion. I cannot wait to hear their new music...and would definitely go see them...perhaps Aundrea and I would be able to make it together...it would be our third. For every girl who was a 'blockhead', each would have their own story. This is just a small fraction of mine. And I have to say I'm glad I shared that experience with my dear Aundrea.

I have to say I'm not at all ashamed to admit...
Hi, my name is Sarah and I love the New Kids.

oUBAD

Watching the Hangin' Tough VHS, one of my favorite parts was when the guys visited the Vegas Neon Graveyard. They each had a letter: o, U, B, A, D..."Oh, U Bad? ... Oh, U Bad"...eh, you'd have to watch it yourself. Anywho, if I were to be able to ask the guys any question it wouldn't be "So, what is your favorite song from the entire NKOTB catalog?" or "What is one memory that stands out like it happened yesterday?" No, I would want to ask:

What happened to Biscuit?

He was their bodyguard. Well thanks to the wonderful world of the internet, I googled Steve Walker and got my answer: He is a national tour manager with AllGood Entertainment. From the site: Steve is a voting member of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS), a member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), among many other industry unions, and foundations.

Had no clue he had been in the business for as long as I've been alive. :) So since I was able to answer that question for myself, I guess my next question would be:

How is Jon handling all of the attention?

He left the group in '94 because of anxiety and he looked a bit nervous on the Today Show. I thought it was so great of Donnie to gently pat Jon on his back as if to say "Hey bro, it's okay." He looked so nervous. It makes me wonder how he was able to get on stage and perform in front of MILLIONS. So I give props to Jon for doing this a second time. I can't begin to imagine how anxious I'd feel in his shoes.

NKOTB Reunion?!

See 'em on the TODAY show FRIDAY...

(think I may be late to work?!)

After all this time - yo, they are still hot!! =)

Photo by Olaf Heine

Performing first live concert since 1994 on 16 May on TODAY Show and here's the link to the reunion news:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/23942736

Hil-ar-ious...

Okay, so as some of you know How I Met Your Mother is one of my favorite comedies. And last night, I was laughing sooo hard I about fell off my couch as it was uncontrollable. Barney, who is played by Neil Patrick Harris (you know - Doogie Howser), typed in his blog and his screen was blue with white text ... and they were playing the theme music to Doogie Howser overhead while he typed. I'm laughing again just thinking about it.

(This may be my first 'pointless' blog ... but I just had to share)