Christmas time means end of the year which often calls for a bit of introspection and a lot of retrospection. Sounds like this could be time better spent on other things, but still I'll add my thoughts about the year in entertainment...
Looking Back on 2018
Since I don't keep up with music much anymore, I'm not very familiar with anything that came out this year. I think most of it probably sounded like stuff that came out in previous years. Don't ask me about current music because I don't know much. This past year I mostly focused on my own songs. Now to figure out what to do about them.
Sadly, I haven't been keeping up with reading. When I read, it's mostly older books or non-fiction. With all the crazy stuff going on around us everyday, who needs to read fiction? Things get more fantastical every day so I don't need any fantastical story to carry me to another realm.
Since retirement I've been watching more television than I've watched at any time since my pre-college days. That's not been the best thing for me, but I've fallen into a bit of a habit. Unfortunately for me (or is it a good thing?), most of the TV shows that I get into seem to get cancelled or just disappear without any fanfare. As usual I guess mainstream tastes don't match mine or perhaps there is something more nefarious afoot. There have been some TV shows that I've liked a lot that apparently most other people don't care about. So it goes.
Finally, there are the movies. As a bit of a refresher, I had to look up the movies that came out in 2018. I came to the realization that not only had I seen very few new movies (about 5 or so), but I've not even heard of a good many of them. I definitely have not been keeping up with new movie releases! Of the few 2018 movies that I did watch, there are none that I would likely watch again because I was essentially unimpressed. Were there any good movies that came out in 2018? Not for me I guess. Or at least I haven't seen them yet.
So that's my retrospective look at 2018 from the standpoint of entertainment. Not very enlightening I suppose. This was a mostly good year for me, but the good parts came from my own life and the things associated with it. Hollywood has little to offer me nor does much of the rest of the world of entertainment. Maybe that world has become too obsessive with messages and agendas.
I live less than 20 miles from Hollywood, but you'll rarely find me there. Normally I only go to Hollywood if I have a visitor who wants to see the area attractions. There's nothing in Hollywood that I particularly need. If I saw a celebrity or a movie star it's likely that I wouldn't know who the hell they were. But they wouldn't know who I am either. I guess that puts us on an equal plane and that's about the only thing we'd have in common.
Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Make your own life and memories. Don't let someone who doesn't really care about you decide what you should and shouldn't like.
And that's as controversial as I'm going to get for now. I'd hate to offend anyone.
Battle of the Bands Results
My previous Battle was between versions of "Lavender Blue" that came from two different Disney films. The first was a more widely known version by Burl Ives first recorded in 1949 while the second appeared in a live action version of "Cinderella" that came 66 years later.
I kind of thought that there would be more voters who wouldn't care for Burl Ives' voice or the old style of the song while more would appreciate the updated style of the song. With a different voter demographic this probably would have been the case, but the voters for this Battle went for the more traditional sound. I did too--my vote went to Burl Ives.
Final Vote Tally
Burl Ives 21 votes
Muffin Songs 5 votes
Next Battle of the Bands on Tuesday January 1, 2019
I'll be back on the blog next year for my first Battle of the Bands post of 2019. Next year is really only a matter of days away, but I can use the blog break. Of course, if the whim hits me, I might post before then, but don't count on it.
Again, Merry Christmas!
What great innovative music did you hear over the past year? Are there any television shows that captivated you in 2018? Please, please name a movie from 2018 that is not only worth watching, but worth adding to my home film library to watch more than once?
