The Cling of Cartoons
by Your Diva, Robin Pastorio-Newman

You: Ooooooh, I heard a new band! The So-And-Sos from Such-And-Such. They're fantastic! What a great singer! The drummer's a genius! The bass player's more charismatic than a tent preacher passing a collection plate! Don't get me started on that godlike guitar dude with the great hair and an ass you could bounce quarters off!

Your Friend: They suck!

You: Color me mortified! And outta here.

Sound familiar?

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It is December. On a Louis Street rooftop in New Brunswick, an autoanimatronic reindeer glances from North to South and North again. Those tacky Victorian figures dot George Street, as they do every Christmas season. Balconies and porch railings are wrapped in garlands and strings of light. On Suydam Street every night, the lilting "Mairzy Doats" drifts along the gentle path of the ice cream truck.

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A friend of Your Darling, Your Diva, Your One True Love phoned to describe an evening spent forcefully winging anything within reach at his television. He'd made the mistake of watching a PBS pledge month special highlighting the achievements of Sun Records. Our friend spent the eighties expressing his political opinion of President Reagan with flying ice, so surprise was not in order. His frightful and invective-enhanced list of "highlights" made Your Peppermint Treat spit coffee at her computer monitor. Investigation will ensue, promise!

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Indulge a moment in a non-music-related musing. Saturday afternoon, Your Peach Schnapps found a curious and only mildly humiliating Reason To Live: an episode of V.I.P (you heard me) directed by Savage Steve Holland. In 1998, when the episode first broadcast, it slipped under my radar and perhaps under yours as well, but he apparently directed more episodes in 2000. Times change! It's a hoot, and everyone's teen angst is avenged, and Pamela Anderson wears a blonde afro wig. I love cartoons!

©2001 Robin Pastorio-Newman