two janes and a june

"Is that some new form of poker with a nontraditional deck?"

Hahahaha! Good one... but, nope! That describes the company I kept tonight.

"Okay, a riddle! Let's see, I know this was Monday, so that's been meaning Music Bingo of late. But the bingo caller is named Jade, not Jane. Isn't that right?"

Absolutely right that her name is Jade. Absolutely wrong, though, on my being at Midtown Sports Grill this evening. Want to try again?

"Hmm... maybe not. This will go a bit faster if you just tell me."

Spoilsport. Fine. I will tell you. I blew off Bingo for the 5-buck "Mystery" at NCG. All I knew was that it was rated PG-13 and a running time of 103 minutes. That meant it wasn't in the horror genre, so that was good enough for me. It turned out to be "Eleanor The Great" and was fabulous, even though it did have me in tears a time or two. That's because the topic was grief over a friend's death, so it had me thinking again of Christa and Barbara and Mister Willie.

"2023 and 2024 have seen some tough losses of friends and family." 

For sure. In that movie tonight, June Squibb played 'Eleanor', a 94-year-old forced to move from Miami back to New York City after the death of her best friend, 'Bessie'. Back in the Big Apple, 'Eleanor' goes to the Jewish Community Center for a class, to appease her daughter, but ends up in a support group for Holocaust survivors... where she shares the many stories from the life of 'Bessie', who was a Holocaust survivor. Later, 'Eleanor' decides to get the Bat Mitzvah she never had and the rabbi assigns her the story of Jacob and Esau. No coincidences, right?

"Wow. That must have gotten some wheels turning in her mind."

Oh, yes. She and the Rabbi had quite a little discussion about deceit and consequences. And do you know how it was that she was assigned that story from the Bible? It all had to do with the date for her Bat Mitzvah. So, the Universe set that up for her. Just like the Universe set me up with a cool odometer reading! Not a palindrome, but a mileage that might have had a pattern: 243024, which could be taken as 24-30-24, or two pair in poker.

"LOL! Yes, dear. So, I take it that the movie had your 'June'. So, where were the others mentioned in your post title?"

Well, that would be Jane Krakowski, the host of "Name That Tune", plus Jane Lynch, the host of "The Weakest Link". The first 'Jane' will be 57 years old next month; the second 'Jane' is already 65 years old, like my brother Smitty, having her birthday just five days after his. I had recorded both shows tonight, as they had a different theme than usual. The first one had two celebrities from "Modern Family" playing for charity; I hadn't watched that show when it was new, but it used to follow the "Two And A Half Men" reruns, so sometimes I tuned in. However, it was the gimmick used for "The Weakest Link" that really got my attention! It reunited Lynch with eight of her castmates from "Glee". Let me state that I didn't regularly watch that show, either, but I had seen a handful of the episodes and was curious to see how the teen actors turned out a decade later.

"I see. And the consensus is...?"

Well, here's the thing: not a single one of those actors was a teen in 2009 when "Glee" began. Not one. They were almost all born in 1986, making them 23-year-olds playing teens. So, now, they're almost all 40-year-olds. It's akin to "The Breakfast Club", in which only Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall were actually teens (they were both 17) playing high school seniors. The other four in that ensemble were 23 and older.

"Well, that's the magic of Hollywood, dear. A little makeup can make up for the years."

Heard. That's the beauty of youTube in a way. There are so many candid videos there, with the people not prettied up, just as they are. Take this one from my first year of teaching full-time at Armstrong. I was the only one in the Chemistry & Physics Department that participated in the Common Read program. That's because I knew all of my students had to read "Waddie Welcome And The Beloved Community", so I did, too. Set right here in Savannah, it followed the story of a man with physical disabilities and his quest to live with family.

"Oh, my!!! I remember doing that video!" 

I was having a discussion with Tom Kohler and Susan... somebody, who were both promoting the book. After talking with me, they asked if they could record me saying what I'd said. Of course I said they could! That was September 6, 2010. Hard to believe that was fifteen years ago.

"I love the title attached to that video: "I Teach The Future". Very cool!"

Very incomplete and out of context. Those were simply the first four words I spoke after giving my name and status at the university. "I teach the future nurses, and respiratory techs, and physical therapists, and dental hygienists, who service the community, who service all of us in the community." That's what the entire line was.

"I still like that title the book folks gave the clip. I also noticed that you mentioned the youth group at Asbury Memorial, as well as the man with spina bifida who attended. What was his name?"

Ron. All I remember is his first name. He moved away and I haven't heard anyone speak of him in probably a decade. Recently, though, I keep thinking about him. I know that's because my first niece is dating a man with spina bifida. Anthony Brooks is her age. I don't recall how old Ron was, but I feel like he was probably in his early 40's, too, like them. Like Ron, Anthony also walks awkwardly and uses a cane. Actually, it isn't walking so much as it is lurching. I have to wonder if it's as painful as it looks like it would be.

"Well, perhaps you should ask him the next time you see him. I imagine the girls have all already done that."

You're likely right. Yes, I'll do that. Now, time to wind down. 'night, dear.