This Is Me--2024 A to Z Theme

My A to Z Themes in the past have covered a range of topics and for 2024 the theme is a personal retrospective that I call "I Coulda Been" which is in reference to my job and career arc over my lifetime. I'll be looking at all sorts of occupations that I have done or could have done. Maybe you've done some of these too!

Monday, August 8, 2016

Flyin' Home (#BOTB results)

The flying Car, pastell colour, 49x31 cm, 1964...
The flying Car, pastell colour, 49x31 cm, 1964 (WV-Nr.3019), 
by Margret Hofheinz-Döring
 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Homeward Bound

      Vacations can be such fun, but going home is something I do look forward to when I've been away for a while.   It's been nearly a month of being away with a visit to Seattle, a tour across Canada, a sweep through New England, several days in New Jersey, a stop in Virginia, and a relaxing visit to East Tennessee for a week.

     As always, vacations must end and ours is winding down in the next few days of heading back to Los Angeles.   We'll be flying home--not literally, but still in our van--with plans to be in our own house before the week end.  Then it's back to the old grind--and thankfully back to my faster computer which will facilitate internet activity for me.

      I love road trips, but as the old adage proclaims, "There's no place like home."  That's true to a certain degree.  It's also true that there's no place like anyplace else.  Once I'm home I'll be missing the travels and thinking about our next road trip wherever that may be.

Battle of the Bands Results


       My most recent battle was between versions of the 1967 song "Wings of Love" from the concept album The Story of Simon Simopath by an English group called Nirvana which preceded the same named grunge group by nearly 30 years.  This contest was between the original artist and the popular 60's English group Herman's Hermits.

        Herman's Hermits has its fans and I think that contributed to their win.  I too might have gone with the Hermits if not for the "Hey, hey" shtick in the chorus as was pointed out by Stephen T. McCarthy in his comment.  I particularly liked the choppy guitar in that version.  I think it is very reminiscent of some of the guitar sounds in The Who's Tommy which might indicate that the Who could have been influenced by this particular recording.    

        This time around my wife was listening as I was preparing this Battle (which is unusual) and she was taken in by the sounds of Nirvana, casting a vote which I have included in my count.  The Nirvana album holds fond musical memories for me and I tend to enjoy this style of popular music.  My vote also goes to Nirvana putting me on the losing side, but not by too many votes.


Final Tally

Nirvana                  10 votes

Herman's Hermits   14 votes

See ya soon!

        Since I'll be flying home over the next view days, my blog rounds and activities may be a bit sparse and sporadic, but I'll try to  be as blog diligent as I can.   Be back on the 15th with a hot August battle.

         Are you ready to head back out again after you've been home from a vacation for a while?   What do you dislike most about traveling?    Did you hear a similarity between the Herman's Hermits version of  "Wings of Love" and parts of The Who's Tommy?





33 comments:

  1. It's great to go travelling but grand to get back to some normal;ity.
    I recall Herman's Hermit's when they released their first single"Im Into Something Good".
    Yes I do believe that is why he is this month's winner.
    Have safe travels and a grand week.
    Yvonne.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yvonne, Herman's Hermits had some fun hits an d I guess a lot of people still remember those.

      Lee

      Delete
  2. I think I voted for Herman's Hermits.
    Vacations are fun but it's always great to get home. Safe travels.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alex, yes, you helped put Herman's Hermits over the top, but you didn't particularly like either version. I'm looking forward to getting back home now.

      Lee

      Delete
  3. Sounds like a really fun road trip. Me? I hate packing, especially for road trips where I'll encounter many weather changes. I always overpack.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Em, my wife does most of the packing. I load the van. We tend to over pack for the road trips, but that's okay since we have the room. When flying we try our best to keep the load smaller.

      Lee

      Delete
  4. Sounds like a wonderful trip and great battle.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mike, not a bad battle I will agree.

      Lee

      Delete
    2. Yeah, that's another close Battle for you, LEE. That's several in a row now. I think you're getting the hang of this thing!
      Ha! [:-D

      ~ D-FensDogG
      'Loyal American Underground'

      Delete
    3. STMcC, I don't do too badly I think.

      Lee

      Delete
  5. The thing about a good vacation is that it can wear you out! I think that's why we say "there's no place like home", just a normal routine. Be careful "flying" home in that van.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Judy, I'm kind of worn out, but I'll probably be ready to go soon after I get home. Don't know when that next trip will be though.

      Lee

      Delete
  6. Enjoy the rest of your trip, and have a safe journey home. As much as I love travelling, I don't like the actual getting from place to place part. It's difficult to have to rush from place to place in an airport, find a parking spot, make sure everything's packed and on your person, sit next to strangers, deal with turbulence, and not be on solid ground. Since I'm so prone to motion sickness, I particularly dislike long car and plane trips.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Carrie-Anne, you've described what I don't like about air travel, but I love the car trips.

      Lee

      Delete
  7. Every day is a journey and the best journey itself will take you home.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Good as it is to go, getting home is better. Have a safe trip back!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Diedre, getting home is nice so I can think about my next trip.

      Lee

      Delete
  9. Karen, as usual I didn't take as many pictures as I should have, but I have a few and will try to put up some next week. It was a fabulous trip.

    Lee

    ReplyDelete
  10. I'm a sucker for Herman's Hermits. I do love going away and travelling but I would say the walking....not that I don't love it as there is so much to see and do but it's the pain that gets to me. You are so right that it is so nice to get home. Funny how we love to get away but equally love to be back.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Birgit, it's nice to find the happy medium, but there is no perfect situation I suppose.

      Lee

      Delete
  11. After a while, you just want to have a vacation vacation...though I'll take one any time!

    Have you stopped by Vienna Coffee while in Maryville? I was just down that way a week ago. There's a little market I love (the name eludes me 'round midnight...long day). Great baked good and organic meat.

    Stephen M had good, spot on comments about the Noone/Nirvana tunes. I just had to go with Noone...nostalgia plus vocals. I'm a sucker for the lead guy.

    Thanks, Lee!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cherdo, I'm not familiar with Vienna Coffee, but we didn't go out to many places in Maryville. Stayed at my sister's house most of the time or went up in the mountains.

      I think many agreed with your affection for Peter Noone.

      Lee

      Delete
  12. Have a good trip! It's always bittersweet when vacations end. Start planning for the next one. ☺ I chose Herman's Hermits too, because I preferred the vocals, despite the "Hey, hey" chant. I don't think anyone liked that bit.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Debbie D, we have 1 1/2 days of driving left. We're anxious to pick up our mail and be in our own home.

      Lee

      Delete
  13. Your road trip sounds wonderful, Lee. I've always wanted to do that long drive (or train trip) across Canada.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Patricia, we want to do another cross Canada trip, but do more things and go more places. But first to deal with the time and money issues.

      Lee

      Delete
  14. Lee, I went with HH this round. Yay, me! The thing I dislike is the time it takes us to get from one point to the next. It doesn't matter which way we're going to or away from home. After returning home from a long trip the last thing I want to do is get out for a few days. I usually want to stay home to recuperate a bit. One of these days, I'd like to have a small RV for extensive traveling. This way, we can pull off the road anytime to crash for a for a bit before resuming. That sounds like a good idea any how. Be safe heading back to LA!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cathy, I sometimes dream of the RV idea, but then again I think I'd prefer to just have my van. Advantages to both.

      Lee

      Delete
  15. What a great trip! How many provinces did you hit?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. JoJo, we entered Canada at BC and then passed through ALB, SASK, Manitoba, ONT, and Quebec. It was a lot of territory.

      Lee

      Delete
  16. That was a really decent battle with a close result.

    Sounds like you've had a magnificent vacation! I miss vacations. I never get any. That's my fault, of course, because I don't make time for them. But I do so desperately need one. A good one!

    Will look forward to your next battle. Safe travels!

    Michele at Angels Bark

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Michele, hope you can manage some kind of vacation eventually. It's good to get away sometimes and you don't have to go all that far away to do it.

      Lee

      Delete

Go ahead and say something. Don't be afraid to speak your mind.
I normally try to respond to all comments in the comment section so please remember to check the "Email follow-up comments" box if you want to participate in the comment conversation.

For Battle of the Bands voting the "Anonymous" commenting option has been made available though this version is the least preferred. If voting using "anonymous" please include in your comment your name (first only is okay) and city you are voting from and the reason you chose the artist you did.

If you know me and want to comment but don't want to do it here, then you can send me an email @ jacksonlee51 at aol dot com.

Lee