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Wednesday, July 9, 2025

In My Footsteps Podcast Episode 203: VH1 Behind the Music, Starting Lineup Figures, Most Controversial Songs Ever, Roswell UFO Incident(7-9-2025)

 


A look back at the popular Starting Lineup sports figures. Behind the scenes of Behind the Music. Some of the most controversial songs ever written.

Episode 203 of the podcast unloads a tidal wave of nostalgia for you to enjoy, no matter where you are.

We start off with a deep dive into the world of Starting Lineup sports figures. Straddling the line between toys and collectibles, these figures were desired by 80s and 90s boys, from preteens to much older collectors. What made them so popular? 

VH1 Behind the Music was a compelling and, at times, depressing television show. It delved into the lives of musical acts, showing them as humans and not just celebrities. We will examine the show in general, some of its most well-known episodes, and also explore why the show resonated with so many for so long.

Controversy is on the menu in this week's Top 5. We will look at some of the most controversial songs ever written. This spans genres and decades. These songs caused discussions, arguments, and boycotts. We will try to give the reasons behind the controversy. 

There is a brand new This Week In History and Time Capsule looking back at the infamous Roswell, New Mexico UFO incident.

Become a supporter on Patreon! $5/mo. gets you access to bonus podcast episodes and more!

Helpful Links from this Episode

Listen to Episode 202 here


Monday, July 7, 2025

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #76: Party Boat, 4th of July, Hairy Observations, etc.





1. While out for a walk on a sunny morning, I stopped at a favorite spot. It is a small dock on Bass River, approximately 1.5 miles from where I live. As luck would have it, a boat was coming down the river, so I waited to get a photo of it at the end of the dock, sort of a perspective shot. This was one of those pontoon party boats, which you can see in the photo. Within seconds of me snapping the photo, the boat got wedged on a sandbar in the river. They must not have been from Cape Cod because those familiar with Bass River know that there is some shoaling in that area. They were going full throttle in reverse, trying to break free of the sand. They got free and went on their way. I didn’t stick around. There was nothing I could do since they all had phones and it didn’t seem so dire that I needed to run for help like Lassie.
The moment before they got stuck


2. Updating my hand injury. It ended up with the back of my hand being a massive bruise for days. For those who don’t know, I got my right hand smashed between 2 steel bars that are a part of a piece of exercise equipment at my day job. Anyway, we’re almost 2 weeks out from the injury, and I can finally attempt to use my right hand to lift things heavier than 3 ounces. The interesting thing is that the better my hand felt, the more the enormous bruise on my hand started looking more like I had done a bad fake tan on it.


3. From the My Life Is A Movie Department. As many of you know, I developed a very close connection to Cape Cod’s infamous Lady of the Dunes murder mystery. I met producer Frank Durant, who created the Lady of the Dunes documentary that helped spur on the case’s resolution after nearly 50 years. I then wrote the book based on the documentary. I still consider it to be my proudest moment of my professional career. Through the resolution of the case, we found out that the titular ‘Lady’ was a real woman named Ruth Marie Terry. Not only that but she had a son. This is where the story becomes even more like a movie. This week I got a letter in the mail addressed to myself ‘and Guest.’ Inside was an invitation to Ruth’s son’s wedding. It is a surreal moment and an unbelievable honor. If you had told me even 5 years ago that not only would I play a very small part in the solution of the Lady of the Dunes case, but that I’d also be going to her son’s wedding, I’d have said you were crazy. But here we are. I might not be exactly where I want to be in my life but one thing is for sure: my life will be a pretty good movie someday.


4. Fourth of July can be fun with gatherings of family and friends, cookouts, and of course, fireworks. They are illegal in Massachusetts but of course, loads of people shoot them off every year. You’d think the drunken yahoos shooting off their boom sticks would be the ones to get injured, and sometimes that’s the case. This year in Mashpee, which is about 20 minutes from me, the town was setting up for a fireworks show later in the evening. So these are ‘professionals’ handling the fireworks. I don’t know what the cause was, but in the late afternoon, nearly the entirety of the cache of fireworks exploded in a massive plume of smoke and color. I know that several people were hurt, but luckily, I think none were life-threatening. The photos of the immediate aftermath are wild. It looked like a bomb had exploded on a golf course. It just goes to show you that accidents can happen whether you’re a supposed pro hired by the town, or some drunk stumbling around their backyard after their 10th Bud Light.


5. It was madness on July 4th. The weather was perfect so I went out for a run. On a favorite route, which is mainly back roads, I must have seen 100-150 people walking, running, or cycling. It felt like I was a part of a road race where I was passing people but also smiling and waving. It always amazes me how overcrowded Cape Cod gets in the summer. It’s like pouring 50 gallons of water into a bucket that holds about 5. In the end, the water gets everywhere and you have to run away to keep dry. Or something like that.
along my favorite running route on july 4th



6. During that same run, I ended up down at the local beaches. The craziness there was off the charts. There is a strip of beach with, I believe, 5 different parking lots down the entirety of the street. The line of cars to get into the first beach was at least 20 cars deep. It was like trying to park at a concert. The big difference was that unbeknownst to the drivers, there was a sign at the entrance saying the lot was full. It was a cluster to end all clusters. Me though, being a runner, was free and easy to go wherever. I thought of it like an episode of Seinfeld. I saw the sign, looked at the growing line of cars, and thought to myself, ‘well, that’s a shame.’


7. A funny observation. For about 14 years, almost straight through, I shaved my head probably weekly. I did it because I didn’t like my hair, plus it helped me stay cool when running. I know I got looks from people when I was super thin and walking around with a bald head. Now I have spent several months growing my hair out. It’s the longest it has been in I don’t know how long. I am getting comfortable with wearing it spiked up. This look gets me looks also. I’m not sure if it is people thinking of how good my hair looks, or if maybe it is people who remembered when I had no hair and are wondering what in the world is going on. Yes, I have a full head of hair. I didn’t shave it because I am going bald.


8. While out for a run on a different day, I had to stop at a porta-potty. It might have been the worst one I had seen yet. It was as if the people who had used it went out of their way to not use the actual toilet. I won’t get too graphic for those who might be eating, but you can imagine the horrors I saw. I felt so bad for anyone else who had to use it, especially women. When I walked out, I was only a few feet away when a woman walked up and went in. She’d have had better luck just going to the bathroom on the sidewalk. It was so awful. Yay tourists!
It really was this bad, sorry



9. I love fire pits. That being said I do feel like I am a magnet for smoke. It seems like no matter where I sit in the circle around the pit, the smoke from the fire finds me. I can change seats, and it doesn’t matter. I end up with a cloud choking the life out of me. So I am a smoke magnet. I’ve heard of guys being called ‘chick magnets,’ I guess I’m the first ‘smoke magnet.’ It does not evoke the same level of cool, however.


10. For as overcrowded as tourists make Cape Cod in the summer, they do pay the price when it comes time to leave. Fourth of July weekend is one of the worst for exit traffic, right up there with Memorial Day and Labor Day. There are two bridges leaving Cape Cod. Unless you’re flying out of the airport in Hyannis, you’re stuck going over one of those bridges. Before 9am on Sunday, traffic was either stopped or slowed down on the Mid-Cape Highway for nearly 35 miles. My goal on those types of days is to go the opposite direction and try to find an empty spot to enjoy a quiet moment, until they all come back the next weekend, that is.

Thursday, July 3, 2025

2006 - 2020: My Life In Poetry Form - Throwback Thursday

 



This is a recurring series featuring five poems all written within the same calendar year. They capture a sense of what my life and mind were like at a certain age and show the evolution of my life, mind, and writing style. We will cover the years from 2006 through 2020. I was staring down 30 and began working on ebooks. Eventually, this led to 9 published books. It meant that my poetry days were far fewer. That said, there are still some great works to share.

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Emerald Eyes


My breaking point is my waking point.
The dream like your emerald eyes, was too good to be true.
Hoping and wishing but I don’t get through.
Can’t go on living my life around you.
I felt so much so deeply, but now I won’t cry.
A cast away on a desert isle, I’ll be living in solitude for a while.


C’mon baby, gimme what I need, prettiest girl I’ve ever seen.
C’mon baby now don’t you cry,
this is the point where I say goodbye.
C’mon baby I got what you need,
love to satisfy you if you know what I mean.
C’mon baby it’s time you know, this is the point where I let you go.


Tried making a point I couldn’t get to the point.
You should have known but didn’t have a clue.
The velvet skies, your perfect disguise, I feel older but not wise.
You will never know how far I’d have run,
moving in slow motion, the scenery is losing focus.
Angel soft skin, where should I begin.
Sail off to the open sea, because my will is growing thin.
Hurt raining down on me, guess I’ll love alone because love is a sin.
Raise the white flag for there is no way to win.


C’mon baby, gimme what I need, prettiest girl I’ve ever seen.
C’mon baby, chased you for too long,
this is the point where I move on.
C’mon baby, I got what you need,
love to satisfy you if you know what I mean.
C’mon baby it was you all along, there is no point only the release here in this song.


I loved you so deeply but time will wash you away.
The winter sun is gone and now I close my eyes,
breaking down for a little while.
Feeling love should not be wrong, if inside you feel it’s right.
Emerald eyes hiding lies behind a thinly veiled loving disguise.
Overwhelming beauty, I didn’t realize.
It’s the beauty that I fear, it’s the beauty that’s the prize.
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To Be In Love



How does it feel to be in love? It is something I thought I had known.
It’s a little more when you’ve had enough, and it’s a little less when you’re alone.


How does it feel to love and lose? How can you hide it so it’s not stolen away?
It’s a little more free when you’re locked up,
love finds you when you’re looking the other way.


How does it feel to be in love? The feelings, just seedlings, until the sun is shown.
It’s a little magic when you don’t believe,
and a lot of hurt when it decides to leave.


I’ve made my mistakes, given all it could take. Some were real, most were fake.
I’d die for it, and give all I have for a moment in it.
I could live with the end if I could just begin it.


How does it feel to be alone? You’re just finding out everyone has gone.
It’s a little more empty in a wide open space,
and a little more lonely when it’s looking you in the face.


How does it feel to look and wait? Is it still too early, or already too late?
It’s a little more words with a lot less to say,
and a little more gone when you expect it to stay.


How does it feel to say you love someone and feel the cold from the other side?
How can you give and give so much ignoring your head and your pride?
How is the fight for it worth the pain, when there are never guarantees?
You want her but can’t find her because she doesn’t care where you’ll be.


But I’ve lived my life right, been alone in the night. Sometimes I give up and sometimes I fight. But I keep looking and asking because I need to know.
How does it feel to be in love?
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1,000 Days



Woke up, from a dream of 1,000 days
Brushed away the fog of a mirror and a mind in a haze
Ice cold water, the sun in my eyes, I finally saw my face
Peel away the layers, wash away the years, reclaim your place


Feel something when you have nothing, 
numb when your fingers are on everything
Bent to fit another’s mold, when like water, you find your own path
Watch the events unfold, like living inside another’s life
Determined to let the day pass by, resigned it’s all by design


Woke up, from a journey of a million miles
Mountains and valleys, standing solo against the rising tides
Reached through fire and ice in the darkness of trials
In an ocean of uncertainty floating on a raft of denial


1,000 days and 1,000 more
One step closer to my hand on the door
A million miles in every inch and one second takes a year
The clock strikes midnight and tomorrow is here
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Quiet, So Loud


Inside a vault in a hurricane, quiet so loud
Screaming sirens, blood curdling silence, quiet so loud
Slow motion shatter, closing eyes, constant chatter
One voice rises above the crowd, yours in your mind, quiet so loud


Foggy reflection does the mirror proud
Running from, holding on, setting sun, breaking dawn
Damaging the honor, quiet so loud
Each word is a chapter, each day a thousand years


Dirty nails, scratching the surface, up from underneath
Immortal, immobile, untethered, untouchable, 
quiet so loud like raindrops on the ground
Words scrawled on the mirror proud
Tornado in a mailbox, quiet so loud


Burdened by fire of the red sunrise
Frozen by the chills of a moonless sky
One voice rises from all around, yours in my mind, quiet so loud
In your honor, quiet so loud
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Wednesday, July 2, 2025

In My Footsteps Podcast Episode 202: Back To The Future Turns 40, 1995 Year In Music Pt. 2, Symbols of the 1970s(7-2-2025)

 


Back to the Future turns 40. More of 1995, the year in music. Symbols of the 1970s.

July brings the heat and the fireworks, and so does Episode 202 of the podcast!

It begins with a look back at the king of time travel movies and one of the best movies ever, Back To The Future. 40 years ago this week, Doc and Marty began their adventures and we will look at the legacy and impact of this beloved film franchise. Tune in for the killer 8-bit version of the movie theme by Bitonal Landscape.

We return to 1995 to look at Part 2 of the year in music. This spans July through December. Legendary albums, untimely passings, and deep dives into under the radar alternative music since that was my jam in high school.

What do you think of when someone mentions the 1970s? This week's Top 5 will look at some symbols of the 70s. Fads, products, odd choices, and of course loads of disco.

There is a brand new This Week In History and Time Capsule centered around the death of iconic Doors frontman Jim Morrison.

Become a supporter on Patreon! $5/mo. gets you access to bonus podcast episodes and more!

Helpful Links from this Episode

Listen to Episode 201 here