Random Thoughts On President's Day

 Hello everyone, except you Pam Bondi. Nothing else better to do this President's Day but to give you some random thoughts I have had over the past couple of weeks.

Happy President's Day, this is a better dance than Trump's.

Watched some, but not all of the Daytona 500 yesterday, and I have to say NASCAR has become a joke, or at least a shell of its former self. Tyler Reddick won, which gave owner Michael Jordan a Daytona victory on top of his victory in court late last year. It was the typical restrictor plate race from what I saw; pack racing followed by a stupid wreck, followed by more pack racing, followed by "the Big One," followed by more pack racing, followed by several wrecks on the last lap. Just ridiculous. When does Formula 1 start?

Nancy Guthrie has now been missing for two weeks, and I hate to say it, but I don't think she'll be found alive when that case in Tucson, AZ finally concludes.

I had the best Valentine's Day EVER this weekend. Didn't do a whole much, just got to spend time with my boo at work, and that's all that really matters. 

I have only watched a couple of hockey games in these Olympic Games, both US victories. Haven't gotten too much into these games but I do admire members of the US team speaking out on what's going on here, which hasn't been ideal to say to the least.

Along those lines, I don't get why so many people (mainly on the far-right) had with Bad Bunny's halftime show. If people had a problem with the language being spoken in it, why then...

• Did you sing along to La Bamba in 1987?
• Did you dance the Macarena in 1996?
• Did you shake your hips to any song Shakira did over the last 25 years?
• Speaking of whom, just six years ago she was in The Super Bowl Halftime that also featured Bad Bunny...
• Do you seemingly enjoy Pitbull?

Not to mention, the alternative halftime show, which should have been sponsored by Dollar General and Steak N Shake, was woefully performed by a bunch of second-rate country artists and Kid (c)Rock, who despite his claims on Faux News, lip-synched horribly his performance of "Bawitdaba."

On a brighter note, it finally rained here in west central Florida.

In what some would still consider a "cancel culture," I think it's time to cancel the Slam-Dunk contest during NBA All-Star Weekend. I think it peaked about ten years ago when Aaron Gordon dunked over Stuff the Magic Dragon, a performance that, no thanks to Dwayne Wade, got him second (he should have won). But this year's contest featured a scary moment involving Jace Richardson of the Magic. 

Speaking of which, remember the Tik Tok trend early last year that featured audio of that Saturday Night Live skit involving The Maharelle Sisters in their spoof of "The Lawrence Welk Show?" For those that don't recall, it featured concert footage of three singers of well repute, followed by Katy Perry's awkward dancing being performed over the "AND I'M DONEEEESE" part. Well, someone ought to show clips of Dwight Howard, Aaron Gordon, and Max McClung doing their dunk contest performances, followed by that fall Jace Richardson had.

Well, I guess I should do some doom scrolling this remainder of President's Day. I'm not watching the news or Olympics; in fact, my TV is on Music Choice to ensure that I have as peaceful as an afternoon as possible. Until then, have a good one.

BonyScribe

Bony Scribe's Random Top 40 Flashback, Volume III

 Hello once again. If you didn't catch my last entry, we had snow in Florida yesterday, and south of Tampa, there still may be a threat of snow showers believe it or not. Later today, the NHL Stadium Series comes to Raymond James Stadium as the Tampa Bay Lightning face off vs. the Boston Bruins.  As of right now, the temperature in Spring Hill (about 45 minutes north of Tampa) is 31 with windy conditions and going down to about 25 by daybreak. Quite the start to my birthday month. 

Today marks the third edition of my random Top 40 flashback feature. In November, I did March of 1989. Then in December, I did May of 1987. Today, I'm going to do the fourth week of August 1997. For those of you who may be new to reading this blog, the way I do my flashbacks is that I take the data (depending on the date) from either the Billboard (Hot 100 from 1980-91, Hot 100 Airplay from 92 on) charts, the Radio & Records CHR charts, or both. For these random ones, I utilize both. A predetermined point value is given to a song in relation to the position of that particular chart, along with bonuses for longevity, or how long that song has been charting. I wrote how and why I did this several years ago on this site, I might have to repost it to give you a reference. Anyway, from the data given, here were the Top 40 songs for the week of August 22, 1997.

Before we begin, there were fifty songs that charted on the BB Hot 100 Airplay and R&R CHR pop charts, so ten missed the cut. Those were:

On My Own by Peach Union (#40 R/R)
Everything by Mary J. Blige (#40 BB)
Turn My Head by Live (#39 R/R)
Love You Down by INOJ (#39 BB)
What Do You Want From Me? by Monaco (#38 R/R)
Supernatural by Wild Orchid (#37 R/R)
Not Tonight by Lil' Kim (#37 BB)
Happy With You by Samantha Cole (#36 R/R)
Stomp by God's Property (#35 R/R)
Walkin' On The Sun by Smash Mouth (#35 BB)

40. Takes A Little Time by Amy Grant (#33 R/R--8 points)

39. G.H.E.T.T.O.U.T. by Changing Faces (#32 BB--11 points)

38. When I Die by No Mercy (#32 R/R--11 points). While both GHETTOUT and When I Die had 11 points, When I Die was on its ninth week on the R/R chart while GHETTOUT was on its eighth week on the Billboard chart.

37. I Belong To You (Every Time I See Your Face) by Rome (#34 BB--12 points)

36. To The Moon & Back by Savage Garden (#29 R/R--17 points)

35. Barbie Girl by Aqua (#36 BB, #27 R/R--19 points)

34. How Do I Live by Leann Rimes (#38 BB, #26 R/R--20 points)

33. I Wanna Be There by Blessid Union Of Souls (#30 R/R--21 points)
32. MMMBop by Hanson (#30 BB--21 points). MMMBop was a former #1 on both charts. I Wanna Be There merely reached the top 20 on the R/R chart and only charted for one week on the Hot 100 airplay chart. Interesting because IWBT was on its 18th week on R/R while MMMBop was on its 19th on Billboard; it had already reached recurrent status on R/R (Under #20 with 20 or more weeks since its debut). Kinda indicates some vast differences between the BB Hot 100 Airplay, which I assume covers all formats, and the R/R charts, which only covers mainstream pop. I wish I had worked in the radio business so I could better try to explain it and possibly give some insight as to why IWBT didn't get as much run on BB.

31. I Don't Wanna Wait by Paula Cole (#33 BB, #24 R/R--27 points)
30. Mo Money Mo Problems by The Notorious B.I.G. f/Puff Daddy & Mase (#19 BB--27 points). In this instance, the opposite of what occurred with the last two songs appears evident, as this was the only song by Biggie to chart on R/R (it hadn't reached the Top 40 yet), and when it did it only reached #29, doing so in October. I'll have another example of that featuring Diddy later.

29. Fly by Sugar Ray (#25 BB, #31 R/R--28 points)

28. Coco Jamboo by Mr. President (#31 BB, #20 R/R--33 points)

27. The Impression That I Get by The Mighty Mighty Bosstones (#27 BB, #28 R/R--37 points)

26. Invisible Man by 98 Degrees (#28 BB, #18 R/R--38 points)

25. Say You'll Be There by Spice Girls (#29 BB, #34 R/R--39 points). Pause here to give some of you some eye candy:

...and you wonder why my affinity towards redheads comes from? Forever grateful, Geri.

24. More Than This by 10,000 Maniacs (#26 BB, #22 R/R--41 points)

23. Building A Mystery by Sarah McLachlan (#17 BB, #25 R/R--42 points). No, there wasn't a sappy commercial from the ASPCA that accompanied this song, nor was it featured in that infamous dead dog dedication. Maybe my next flashback will feature the song that was involved with that.

22. Barely Breathing by Duncan Sheik (14 BB--45 points). Already reached recurrent status on R/R.

21. A Change Will Do You Good by Sheryl Crow (#22 BB, #23 R/R--47 points). The song with one of my favorite lines, "Jack off Jimmy everybody wants more."

20. If You Could Only See by Tonic (#21 BB, #21 R/R--47 points)

19. The Difference by The Wallflowers (#23 BB, #16 R/R--47 points)

18. One Headlight by The Wallflowers (#11 BB--52 points). As was the case with Barely Breathing, One Headlight had also reached recurrent status on the R/R chart.

17. Honey by Mariah Carey (#18 BB, #14 R/R--53 points). I read recently that Mariah has only five Grammy wins. How is that possible?! Then again AMPAS voted Jethro Tull over Metallica for best hard rock performance in the early 90s and in 2001 had an album of the year win by Steely Dan. Steely Dan.

16. Crash Into Me by Dave Matthews Band (#20 BB, 19 R/R--58 points)

15. Push by Matchbox 20 (#13 BB, #12 R/R--73 points)

14. Foolish Games by Jewel (#12 BB, #10 R/R--76 points)

13. Return Of The Mack by Mark Morrison (#16 BB, #17 R/R--79 points)

12. Where's The Love by Hanson (#24 BB, #6 R/R--84 points). Coming off the heels of "MMMBop," this track proved that a strictly pop hit while almost a certain smash on R/R doesn't guarantee success on the Hot 100 Airplay chart.

11. The Freshmen by The Verve Pipe (#9 BB, #13 R/R--97 points)

10. I'll Be Missing You by Puff Daddy & Faith Evans f/112 (#6 BB, #15 R/R--103 points). Remember the earlier example regarding Biggie? Diddy reached #4 on Billboard with this tribute track to Biggie and Tupac (who were assassinated in separate incidents over the prior six months), and surprisingly got some rub on R/R yet only managed #13.

  9. Do You Know (What It Takes) by Robyn (#15 BB, #7 R/R--108 points)

  8. Bitch by Meredith Brooks (#10 BB, #9 R/R--110 points). Don't think that song would work today. Censorship has started to run rampant present day. Case in point, the E****** files.

Seriously, nothing makes sense anymore. That gets bleeped out on TikTok while Chappel Roan practically exposed her breasts on the red carpet of the GRAMMYs last night.

  7. All For You by Sister Hazel (#7 BB, #8 R/R--120 points)

  6. 2 Become 1 by Spice Girls (#8 BB, #4 R/R--137 points). Again, I ask for your indulgence:

  5. Sunny Came Home by Shawn Colvin (#2 BB, #11 R/R--167 points). Speaking of the GRAMMYs, remember Colvin's win for Best Song in 1998 and her acceptance speech got hijacked by Ol' Dirty Bastard? Come to think of it this was the same GRAMMYs where "Soy Bomb" interrupted a performance by Bob Dylan. Now, the whole WORLD is unhinged...

  4. Quit Playing Games (With My Heart) by Backstreet Boys (#5 BB, #2 R/R--190 points)

  3. How Bizarre by OMC (#4 BB, #3 R/R--195 points)

  2. Men In Black by Will Smith (#1 BB, #5 R/R--210 points)

and my top spot for the week of August 22, 1997 went to...

  1. Semi-Charmed Life by Third Eye Blind (#3 BB, #1 R/R--235 points).

A quick word about this week before I wrap things up for this entry. Not only is Sunday my birthday, but it's also Super Bowl Sunday. I pick Seattle to get revenge on what happened a dozen years ago in Arizona to the hands of New England. Friday I'm going to have some fun, but also the Winter Olympics begin in Italy. During the Opening Ceremony, wouldn't it be something if, given the state of matters in the US, a member or several members of Team USA as they're marching into the San Siro for the parade of athletes did THIS gesture:

Food for thought. Anyway, enjoy the week!

Bonyscribe.

Hell Hath Frozen Over

 Good evening, and I sincerely hope you're staying warm. As I'm typing this, there are scattered snow flurries across Florida. You read that right, it's snowing in Florida. For the second time this year in some spots in the panhandle. We don't plan on getting any accumulation of course, and anything from this point forward will only be some stray flakes every now and then, but the bottom line is hell hath frozen over.

I wonder for a brief second if this is karma for what has been happening in Minneapolis this month; ICE terrorizing the citizens of MSP. You already know about the two shootings that happened there this month, but according to eyewitness accounts on the ground there, it's been worse than what you're being told by the media. 

So, what happens? Mother nature has sent two wicked winter storms the past two weekends over MAGAland. Oh, and the new Melania movie that's out? 7% on Rotten Tomatoes. Add that to the batch of Epstein Files that were released last night, and this has been a rough weekend for MAGA.

Good...

Bonyscribe

One Year In...

 Good early morning to everyone, especially to Curt Cignetti, who has successfully turned what was a traditional basketball school into a football school with their triumph over Miami last night. Congrats, Hoosiers. Before the game, as the "Star-Spangled Banner" played, the cameras at Hard Rock Stadium cut to a shot of the Petulant Toddler in Chief, to a mixed reaction. Which reminded me that we are now exactly one year into Trump's second term, and to call this administration of Keystone Cops a shit show wouldn't do it any justice whatsoever, and folks this seems to be the general consensus around the world.

Seriously, covering Trump if you're a journalist (unless it's Fox "News") has been more than annoying and exhausting, and it's only getting worse because HE'S getting worse. Did you hear his latest presser outside Air Farce 1 (that's what I'm calling his plane while he's in office) last night? Batshit crazy stuff coming out of the man's piehole. Remember last year when I predicted on this very blog that Trump wouldn't make it for the entirety of this term? That still applies, but I'm now willing to bet his presidency doesn't survive the calendar year. 

This just in: Trump is threatening to send Army troops to Bloomington, Indiana if Curt Cignetti doesn't hand over Indiana's newly earned National Championship trophy. 

I just want to post blogs about music charts of days gone by, sports, and life in general. But these past two weeks have really been tough. 

Oh, by the way, about that ICE shooting. I am of the opinion that the wife of Renee Good bears some responsibility for what happened. Now does that justify his actions? Abso-freaking-lutely not. He was very thin-skinned and obviously less than qualified to be in such a position, however, the wife, obviously not knowing he was this way, didn't help the situation by taunting him and getting in his face. That's all I have to say about that.

Back to Trump though. He's leaving (or has left) for that economic conference in Davos this morning, and the way he's been carrying on about occupying Greenland in what is tantamount to what is called in the business world as a "hostile takeover," this should be a doozy.

And we're only one year in...

Bonyscribe

Happy New Year, Welcome To World War III

 Good afternoon, I'm more than a little bit late with this, but since I had to wait to have a procedure done in Tampa yesterday (isn't getting older fun?) I had to wait until now to say it...

...and no sooner than the calendar had been freshly turned, the United States, or rather Donald Trump's regime, sprung itself to a war with Venezuela. JFC.

Now, is Maduro in the words of Trump a "bad hombre?" Of course he is. But the way this administration has went about this capture and arrest, as well as the reasons we're being told Maduro was arrested, is totally bogus. It isn't about fentanyl, which is evil in its own right because there have been friends of mine that have been greatly affected by it. It isn't about cocaine either. It's about Venezuela's crude oil supply all for the purposes of making the American Oil Lobby richer. Remember George Carlin's line from that one comedy special he did about twenty years ago, in which he said, "it's a big club, and you're not in it" when he was talking about the rich and powerful? The American Oil Lobby is part of said club.

And now, Trump is bitching and whining about wanting to take over Greenland...again. Greenland was part of the Kingdom of Denmark long before the United States even came to existence. Furthermore, Denmark has been a long-standing ally of NATO. In the words of Scott Van Pelt, "what are we doing here?" Then again, Trump has never been a friend of NATO and totally wants to upset the "New World Order" applecart that George H.W. Bush spoke of in 1988. It seems like he wants the new axis of evil to be us, Russia, and China. Let me repeat that, US, Russia, and China, an axis of evil.

Folks, we're better than this. At least I thought we were. Because this isn't the same America that I gave six years of my life defending in the US Navy in the early 1990s. One such indicator is probably the obscenest "billboard" I have seen in my life, heading northbound on US 41 just north of Tampa. If you're from that area, and you know my world view, I think you know what I'm referring to.

But don't take my word for it, check our my reposts on my TikTok page (@bonyscribe1), especially from Former MLB agent Joshua Kusnick. There are other reposts I have on there sounding the alarm that World War III is impending.

Folks, it isn't impending, it's here. The world is at war. Buckle up buttercup.

I should have my normal flashback blog post sometime later in the week. But for now, 2026 is off to a rough start.

Be sure to follow my socials:

Twitter, Threads, and Bluesky: @bonyscribe
TikTok: @bonyscribe1

Happy New Year, I guess.

Bonyscribe