the absurd bird - contribution post

We are so lucky to have Jillian here again with her contribution post. I have a feeling this one will be a wee bit sentimental for many of us. Take it away.

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Hello Shiny Paper Readers... Guess who's back? Back again? The Absurd Bird's back... Tell a friend


The End of an Era...


Like many girls within a 10 year span of my birth year, I sang along to Whitney Houston songs a lot. I had "The Bodyguard" soundtrack on tape and wore it out. I would sing along while I did my chores with my Walkman headphones on, thinking that someday I would be able to hit those notes too. Actually, in my head, I already thought that I could. Unfortunately, I was wrong... as are most people who try to sing any of Whitney's songs.

When I was old enough to go to a bar, I discovered the world of karaoke. It is safe to say that I spent most of my young drinking days in search of the approval of a bar room full of strangers. I would sometimes hear a "You were great!" or a "Nice job!", but my favorite thing to hear was "You should audition for American Idol!". So I did... twice... it didn't go well. I have such a problem with nerves. I botched nearly all of my high school musical auditions because I would get too nervous and mess up the words. Performance competitions are just not for me I guess.

I loved karaoke though because it was pretty anonymous and I am decent enough not to get booed off stage. There are always more "interesting" performers than I. One of the funny things about karaoke "culture" is that when someone decides to sing a Whitney Houston song, you know that they are either (A) Really Good (B) Think they are really good or (C) Really Drunk. Most people will turn around to actually watch a person who decides to sing Whitney. It is funny to watch the whole room turn to hear the first few notes... if it is good (obviously not as good as Whitney, but we are talking about a local watering hole crowd here) people happily return to their conversations or comment on the stellar voice they get to hear. Sadly, most times they are a train wreck and no one looks away and the room has a collective laugh as the performers expense... Hence, I will never perform a Whitney song at karaoke unless I am totally inebriated which will of course limit my performance abilities. Besides, I kind of have a lower voice for a chick so the high stuff doesn't really work for me. If I am feeling daring I would rather sing my epic rendition of "Wonder Boy" by Tenacious D than attempt a Whitney Houston classic, at least in public. I have been known to pull out a little "Greatest Love of All" while showering... because I truly do believe that children are our future...

I guess what I am getting at is that Whitney Houston had a voice that all other voices would be judged by, eventually even her own. I was never enveloped in her career or drug addiction or failed marriage. None of that really mattered to me. All that mattered was that she made me love singing (well, her and The Little Mermaid) and although I will never sing like her, I still try to this day. Her voice was amazing and we may never hear anything even close to it again. So thanks, Whitney. Thanks for giving me endless shower tunes to belt out and songs to clean by; Anthems to scream and songs for when I wanna dance with somebody (usually my son). I will never forget your voice and am glad that I was lucky enough to live through your best times.

Lesson: Whitney is rad and don't sing her songs at karaoke unless you want to look silly.

Here is a tribute by my favorite male singer of all time... Chris Cornell!!! Thanks Shiny Paper readers for indulging me here and if you like what I have to say, come check me out at my blog HERE.




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Thank you my dear. Seriously did that video give anyone else chills or is it just me?