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FB10: Week 19

A bit of a drop from the previous week, but I still managed to land on the good side of 30,000 steps.  Despite rain and an aborted attempt to attend the afternoon’s White Sox game, things got off to a decent start on Sunday with 4200 steps.  The Memorial Day holiday on Monday left me just 3 steps away from 3300.  A trip to Guaranteed Rate field for a baseball game on Tuesday night helped push me back up, finishing 3 (again!) steps shy of 6400.  I dropped back down on Wednesday, needing 32 steps to get to 4200.  Another slight drop on Thursday left me 18 steps short of 4000.  A walk down to the end of the block and back on Friday pushed me higher again, needing just a single additional step to reach 4500.  Another rainy day on Saturday left me 20 steps shy of 4100.

Total steps: 30,634

Daily average: 4376.3

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Your Latest Crosstown Batting Leaders

The battle for the 2024 Crosstown Cup kicks off tonight at Wrigley Field, with the Cubs looking to take retain possession of the cup after winning it back last year.  The White Sox currently hold a slight edge in the overall series, going 74-68 over the past 27 years.  Let’s take a look at the offensive leaders for the now 89 (out of 142) crosstown games I have attended since the start of interleague play in 1997:

Home Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 15
Carlos Lee 9
Aramis Ramirez 8
Sammy Sosa 8
Jermaine Dye 7

Hits

Name Total
Paul Konerko 50
Carlos Lee 41
Jose Abreu 36
Sammy Sosa 29
Derrek Lee 28

Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 26
Magglio Ordonez 19
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Fifty Years Of Music – 1994

Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth.  In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.

We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 1994, the year I settled on a major, finished my second year of college, started my third year, and turned 20.   Only 57 songs on the Hot 100 remain familiar to me today, with 42 of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.

#97: Haddaway – What Is Love
iTunes stats: N/A

The debut single from the singer managed to make the year-end charts two years running despite peaking at #11 in the fall of 1993.

#95: General Public – I’ll Take You There
iTunes stats: N/A

Featured in the film Threesome, this cover of the classic by The Staple Singers reached #22 on the Hot 100.

#92: Melissa Etheridge – I’m the Only One
iTunes stats: 20 plays

The lead single from Etheridge’s fourth studio album, it was re-released following the success of Come to My Window and managed to surpass it, hitting #8.

#91: Bon Jovi – Always
iTunes stats: 2 plays

The requisite new song added to the greatest hits album, it became the band’s eleventh, and final, top ten hit, topping out at #4.

#89: The Four Seasons – December, 1963 (Oh What a Night)
iTunes stats: 27 plays

This remix spent 27 weeks on the chart, matching its original run across 1975 and 1976, and peaked at #14.

#85: Ini Kamoze – Here Comes the Hotstepper
iTunes stats: N/A

Spending two weeks at #1 in December of 1994, it was the only single from the Jamaican artist to break into the Top 40.

#82: Queen Latifah – U.N.I.T.Y.
iTunes stats: 21 plays

Confronting the disrespect of women in society and slurs against women in hip-hop culture, the song remains Latifah’s biggest pop hit, reaching #23.

#77: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – Mary Jane’s Last Dance
iTunes stats: 32 plays

Petty’s first Top 20 hit since 1989, it topped out at #13 on the Hot 100 and topped the Album Rock Tracks chart for two weeks.

#76: Culture Beat – Mr. Vain
iTunes stats: 13 plays

The German group’s only single to chart in the US, it went to #17.

#72: Aerosmith – Amazing
iTunes stats: 17 plays

Featuring backing vocals from Don Henley, the track peaked at #3 on the Album Rock Tracks chart and #24 on the Hot 100.

#68: Aerosmith – Crazy
iTunes stats: 28 plays

Accompanied by a video featuring Alicia Silverstone and Liv Tyler, this last single from Get a Grip reached #17.

#65: 69 Boyz – Tootsee Roll
iTunes stats: 19 plays

The group’s debut single, it became the only one to crack the Top 30, topping out at #8.

#63: Real McCoy – Another Night
iTunes stats: 20 plays

The German group’s first single to chart in the US, it went all the way to #3, where it spent a record-setting eleven non-consecutive weeks.

#62: Snoop Doggy Dogg – What’s My Name?
iTunes stats: 57 plays

The first solo outing from the west coast rapper, it peaked at #8

#61: 2Pac – Keep Ya Head Up
iTunes stats: 19 plays

Focusing on black womanhood, the rap track reached #12.

#60: Jodeci – Cry for You
iTunes stats: 19 plays

Topping out at #15 on the Hot 100, the lead single from the group’s sophomore album sat atop both the R&B/Hip-Hop songs chart and the Billboard Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop airplay chart.

#59: Warren G – This D.J.
iTunes stats: 15 plays

The second single from the rapper’s debut album, it was his second straight top ten hit, going to #9.

#55: Domino – Getto Jam
iTunes stats: 15 plays

The rapper’s debut single became his one and only top ten hit, peaking at #7.

#54: Bruce Springsteen – Streets of Philadelphia
iTunes stats: N/A

Recorded for the soundtrack to Philadelphia, it reached #9, becoming Springsteen’s twelfth and final top ten hit.

#52: Snoop Doggy Dogg – Gin and Juice
iTunes stats: 49 plays

Nominated for a Grammy, the second solo single from Snoop went to #8.

#51: Gin Blossoms – Found Out About You
iTunes stats: 23 plays

Originally written in the mid-80s by the band’s former guitarist, it peaked at #25.

#50: Beck – Loser
iTunes stats: 16 plays

Beck’s first single to chart on any major chart, it reached #10 in April and was named one of the 500 best pop songs of all time by Billboard magazine.

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Book 22 (of 52) – The Light Fantastic

The Light Fantastic – Jeffrey Lang

When Professor Moriarty kidnaps Lal, Data and Geordi try to find a way to meet his demands: finding physical bodies for both Moriarty and the Countess.  Over the course of a couple of days, they go on many avenues of investigations, encountering old friends from their time on the Enterprise and others encountered by previous versions of their ship.  Can they find a way to give Moriarty what he wants and keep Data’s daughter safe?  Even if they could, should they?

In The Light Fantastic, Jeffrey Lang picks up the threads of the Cold Equations trilogy, which brought Data back from the dead, and sends him on an adventure that crosses paths with many characters from the wider Star Trek universe, familiar to the reader if not necessarily the characters.  It was an interesting tale and leaves Data in a good place for the next writer to pick up and play with.

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Post Mortem – Ted Lasso

Ted Lasso, the football comedy that put Apple TV+ on the map when it premiered in 2020, wrapped up its run with the release of its third and final season last spring.  Based on a character created for promoting NBC’s coverage of the Premier League, the show starred Jason Sudeikis as an American football coach hired to coach an English soccer team and who brings a folksy, down-to-earth approach that overcomes his lack of knowledge of the game.

While there has been talk of spin-offs or other continuations, nothing has been announced as of yet.  Sudeikis seemed ready to move on, but the rest of the cast seemed ready to continue in some shape or form.  Time will tell, but I hope to revisit AFC Richmond and its cast of characters again in the future.

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Book 21 (of 52) – The House Of Last Resort

The House of Last Resort – Christopher Golden

A young couple moves to a small town in Sicily from the US, hoping to find a simpler life and reconnect with family.  Instead, they find a secret about their new house which makes everyone uncomfortable.  As strange occurrences happen and they learn more about the history of their new home, they come to a serious conclusion: demonic possession is real.  Can they escape before the demons come for them?

The House of Last Resort is the latest from Christopher Golden, who I have read mostly in connection with the Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise.  I liked the setup, but the overall story didn’t grab me.  There was a lot of the plot driven by choices that nobody in real life would have made, seemingly just to get to the next plot point.  I guess you can’t win them all.

 

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Post Mortem – Never Have I Ever

Created by Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher, Never Have I Ever premiered on Netflix in 2020 during the early months of the pandemic.  While I enjoyed the show, I lost track of it and didn’t realize additional seasons were released until 2022, when I caught up on seasons two and three.  The fourth and final season was released last June.

Loosely based on Kaling’s childhood experiences in the Boston area as the child of Indian immigrants, the show centered around a teen girl trying to balance her life in high school with a more traditional experience at home, with her widowed mother and a grandmother over from the home country.  Series star Maitreyi Ramakrishnan has what it takes to build a sustainable career, so I’ll be interested to see what she has coming out next.

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FB10: Week 18

A pretty good week, leading to my highest step total since September.  Angelina’s graduation and the following activities got the week off to a good start on Sunday, coming a mere 10 steps shy of 8400 and finishing above goal for the second consecutive day.  Lunch in Boston on Monday, followed by a flight back home left me just 7 steps away from 7600.  A Cubs game Tuesday night helped push me above goal for the fourth, and final, day as I surpassed 7500 steps.  I crashed on Wednesday, as I managed only 2800 steps.  An improvement on Thursday pushed me back up to 3800 steps.  Friday saw another slight increase, going over 3900 steps.  An afternoon ballgame at Guaranteed Rate Field left me with 5400 steps, ending the week on a high note.

Total steps: 39,509

Daily average: 5644.1

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Fifty Years Of Music – 1993

Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth.  In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.

We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 1993, the year I completed my first year of college, started my second year of college, moved out of my childhood home, and turned 19, in that order.  My musical landscape was continuing to change, as I navigated the different music I was exposed to between the middle of Indiana and the Chicagoland area.  A whopping 86 of the Hot 100 are familiar to me now, with 51 of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.

#100: Def Leppard – Two Steps Behind
iTunes stats: 24 plays

Featured on the soundtrack to Last Action Hero, the acoustic ballad peaked at #12 on the Hot 100.

#97: Tony! Toni! Toné! – Anniversary
iTunes stats: N/A

Reaching #10, it was the second single from the group’s third studio album.

#96: Sting – If I Ever Lost My Faith in You
iTunes stats: N/A

Topping out at #17, the track earned Sting a Grammy in 1994.

#95: Gin Blossoms – Hey Jealousy
iTunes stats: 28 plays

Written by the band’s former guitarist, who was fired before their breakthrough album was released, it went to #25 on the Hot 100.

#94: Aerosmith – Livin’ on the Edge
iTunes stats: 21 plays

The lead single from the group’s eleventh album, which I bought in a midnight release at the Musicland that would eventually become a bar off of Purdue’s campus, it peaked at #18

#93: Green Jelly – Three Little Pigs
iTunes stats: 27 plays

Spending 20 weeks on the chart, the sole hit from the band, originally called Green Jellö before a lawsuit forced them to change their name, reached #17 in June.

#92: Joey Lawrence – Nothing My Love Can’t Fix
iTunes stats: N/A

The first, and most successful, single from the Blossom star, it topped out at #19.

#91: Tears for Fears – Break It Down Again
iTunes stats: 23 plays

The group’s first hit since 1989, it peaked at #25 and became their final track to enter the Top 40.

#90: Rod Stewart – Reason to Believe
iTunes stats: N/A

Originally released by Stewart in 1971, this live version, from his Unplugged appearance, reached #18.

#87: Sting – Fields of Gold
iTunes stats: N/A

Released in June, it hit #23 on the Hot 100.

#83: Michael Bolton – To Love Somebody
iTunes stats: N/A

Originally released by the Bee Gees in 1967, Michael Bolton took his version to #11.

#82: Haddaway – What is Love
iTunes stats: N/A

The sole hit from the Trinidadian-German singer, it topped out at #11.

#81: Digable Planets – Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)
iTunes stats: 25 plays

Peaking at #15 in March, it remains the group’s lone Top 40 single.

#80: The Heights – How Do You Talk to an Angel
iTunes stats: 22 plays

Spending the two weeks at the top of the charts between the record-breaking runs of Boyz II Men and Whitney Houston, it also finished at #59 in 1992’s year-end chart.

#78: Ice Cube – It Was a Good Day
iTunes stats: 43 plays

Ice Cube’s highest charting single, it peaked at #15 on the Hot 100.

#77: Inner Circle – Sweat (A La La La La Long)
iTunes stats: 15 plays

Released in July of 1992, it eventually worked its way up to #16.

#76: Restless Heart – When She Cries
iTunes stats: N/A

A crossover hit for the country band, it reached #9 on the Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart and #11 on the Hot 100.

#75: DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince – Boom! Shake the Room
iTunes stats: 24 plays

The final Top 40 hit before the duo split, it peaked at #13.

#74: Janet Jackson – Again
iTunes stats: N/A

Included in her film Poetic Justice, this third single from Jackson’s fifth studio album topped the charts for two weeks in December of 1993.

#69: Inner Circle – Bad Boys
iTunes stats: 20 plays

The theme song to the television show Cops, it was first recorded in 1987 and finally released as a single in 1993, reaching #8 and giving the group their only top ten hit.

#68: Jeremy Jordan – The Right Kind of Love
iTunes stats: N/A

The lead single from the Beverly Hills 90210 soundtrack, it topped out at #14.

#67: Madonna – Rain
iTunes stats: 18 plays

Released in July, it hit #14 on the Hot 100.

#65: Cypress Hill – Insane in the Brain
iTunes stats: 15 plays

The lead single from the group’s sophomore album, it topped the Rap charts while peaking at #19 on the Hot 100.

#64: Zhané – Hey Mr. D.J.
iTunes stats: N/A

The debut single from the group became their first top ten hit, reaching #6.

#63: Positive K – I Got a Man
iTunes stats: 22 plays

The lone Top 40 hit of the rapper’s career, it hit #14 in March.

#62: TLC – What About Your Friends
iTunes stats: 27 plays

The third straight top ten single from their debut album, it topped out at #7.

#61: Ugly Kid Joe – Cats in the Cradle
iTunes stats: 16 plays

The highest charting single of the band’s career, this cover of the Harry Chapin classic peaked at #6.

#60: Aerosmith – Cryin’
iTunes stats: 22 plays

Released in June, the first single of their Alicia Silverstone trilogy reached #12.

#58: Mary J. Blige – Real Love
iTunes stats: N/A

The first top ten hit for the singer, it topped out at #7 on the Hot 100.

#57: Bon Jovi – Bed of Roses
iTunes stats: 20 plays

Hitting #10 on the Hot 100, the single was released in January.

#53: Dr. Dre – Dre Day
iTunes stats: 31 plays

The second single from Dr. Dre’s debut solo album, this Eazy-E diss track peaked at #8 in June.

#52: Prince and the New Power Generation – 7
iTunes stats: 16 plays

Released in late 1992, the song reached, of course, #7.

#51: Ace of Base – All That She Wants
iTunes stats: 20 plays

The first single released from their North American debut; it went all the way to #2.

#50: 4 Non Blondes – What’s Up?
iTunes stats: 28 plays

The band’s lone single to crack the Hot 100, it hit #14.

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