World turned upside down

"Woke Up This Morning"
(theme song for "The Sopranos" -- HBO TV show)

For some reason, this song makes me feel much better, whenever / listen to it.

"I woke up this morning
Got myself a gun,
Momma always said you'd be the --
chosen one.
She said you're one in a million,
'Cause you got that --
shotgun-shine.

You were --
born under a bad sign,
With the blue moon in your eyes....

Woke up this morning...
All that love had gone....
Your papa never told you about --
right & wrong --
But you're lookin' good, baby,
I believe 'at you're-a feelin' fine,
(Shame about it,)
Born under a bad sign
with a blue moon in your eyes....

Woke up this mornin' --
World turned upside down,
Things ain't been the same, since the
Blues walked in our town.

Said you're --
one-in-a-million...

=--------------
etc.
whatever.
I love it.

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I love music, and get inspired by it, and I write, but I could not even begin to think of
Writing Music.

Not gonna happen.
I don't think up new melodies;
and I don't really think in terms of poetry.

I can take it in, but can't come up with my own.

My only musical talent is --
buying CDs - !

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When I was in fifth grade the teacher, Mrs. Otterson, used to have us write stories, or essays, sometimes. I'd sit there and write and write, really fast, with pen (didn't like pencil) on lined notebook paper.

Once we were supposed to take either a sentence or an idea -- can't remember which -- and write a story from it.

My story was a mystery. The bad guy had the good guy in his power, at one point, & was going to tie the good guy's hands behind his back.

The good guy was struggling, trying to get away, and my bad guy said to him, "Hey, do you want this rope around your hands, or around your neck?"

I had just heard that line in a TV show the night before.
Was it wrong to use the same line in my story?
I was a little worried about it, but I liked the way it sounded so much, that I went ahead and used it.

Mrs. Otterson asked me to get up in front of the whole class and read my story out loud.

I was pretty shy and ordinarily wouldn't have wanted to be "up in front" but since it was about my story, and I was used to reading aloud, I wasn't too scared, and I did it.

My classmates were riveted.
I believe they liked my story;
and I also think they were each relieved that I had to be "up there" and not them.

After class a kid named Alvin (the things we remember! -- it's been 400 years ago !!) said to me, with a big grin, "I really like that part where he said, 'You want this rope around your hands or around your neck'!"

Sure! The line from the professional television writer was more popular than my stuff!
Damn!
Well at least at the age of 11 I was smart enough to borrow the good stuff ...!

(And still feel a tiny bit guilty about that...Neurotic Monday.)

-30-