College Football National Championship

Now that it is over, I can write about it.  I usually don't write about teams I like while they are still playing because that is bad luck, the kiss of death.  This year it didn't matter as my team, University of Georgia, lost last night.  But i wasn't taking chances.

That Rose Bowl game that Georgia won last Monday was one of the best games I ever watched.  It had it all.  The highs and lows.  And then, winning in triple overtime like that.  Wow.

And things were sure looking good in the first half last night with Georgia leading 13-0 at the end.  Sadly, one more touchdown and then the offense disappeared.  And, the defense wasn't much better.

The Alabama coach did the surprising removal of his starting qb to put in a freshman.  Georgia was not ready to play him.  I wish more coaches would pull their starting qb when he even isn't performing or the other team has his number.

And, then Alabama missed that winning field goal as time expired.  Then, in overtime, the Georgia field goal kicker made that long one to go up by three.

Could the two announcers say freshman or true freshman anymore times.  Seemed like every other word at times.

Oh well, that was a good game, regardless of who won.

I don't like Alabama very much, especially since they have so many national championships, but the Alabama fans paid me the greatest compliment ever when we were at the GoDaddy Bowl in Mobile back in 2011 and they told me, when they saw me wearing my Northern Illinois gear, "We remember you guys.  You beat us!" We did beat them when they were ranked back in 2002.  NIU's all-time record against Alabama is 1-0!!!

Go Dawgs.  --RoadDog

WLS Top 40 for January 15, 1968-- Part 1: "Itchy Coo Park"

From WLS OldiesLoon site.

From fifty years ago, the Top 40 Songs in Chicago on WLS 890 AM.  (D) is for debut songs.  The number after the artist is the highest the song got on the Billboard national charts.

40.  ITCHY COO PARK--  Small Faces    (D)  #16  One of just two top 100s.  Became Faces in after Steve Marriott left to form Humble Pie.  I really like this song a lot.

39.  COME SEE ABOUT ME--  Jr. Walker & the All Stars   (D)   #24  R&B group formed in South Bend, Indiana.  Their take on an old Supremes song.

38.  I WISH IT WOULD RAIN--  Temptations  (D)   #4   Its "B" side made the R&B charts at #41 and Bubbled Under on the pop charts.

37.  BABY, NOW THAT I FOUND YOU--  Foundations   #11  British interracial R&B group.

36.  I CAN TAKE OR LEAVE YOUR LOVIN'--     Herman's Hermits  #22  Their last Top 40 song.  Produced by Mickey Most.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Build My World Around You, I Need You So."  Answer below.  --RoadDog

ACCIDENT REPORTS:  "I told the police that I was not injured, but on removing my hat, I found that I had fractured my skull."    I sure hate when that happens.

"Baby, Now That I Found You"

WLS Top 40 for January 15, 1968-- Part 2: "There Was a Time"

35.  NOBODY BUT ME--  Human Beinz   #8   As fine of garage rock as you're gonna get.    Rock band from Youngstown, Ohio.  One of two top 100s, the other "Turn On Your Love Light (#80--1968)

34.  ZABADACK--   Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich    #52   Go figure out that group name.  English quintet.

33.  LOVE IS BLUE--  Paul  Mauriat   (D)   #1  French conductor/arranger.  His biggest hit.

32.  WE CAN FLY--  Cowsills   #21   Follow up to "The Rain, The Park & Other Things." 2:16 minutes.

31.  THERE WAS A TIME--  James Brown   (D)   #36   The Godfather's next song out was "I Got the Feelin'"  (#6-1968)

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Shing-A-Ling, Skate, Boogaloo, Philly."  Answer below.  --RoadDog


"Nobody Bur Me"

17 Facts About McDonald's That Will Blow Your Mind-- Part 4: One Restaurant a Day in China

14.  From 2011 to 2013, the goal was to open one restaurant a day in China.

15.  McDonald's makes deliveries in 18 countries.

16.  The only place in the lower 48 states more than a 100 miles from a McDonald's is a barren plain in North Dakota.

17.  Americans alone consume one billion pounds of beef at McDonald's in a
year.  This equals five and half head of cattle.


Lots of Cows.  --RoadDog

WLS Top Ten for January 8, 1968: "Green Tambourine"

1.  JUDY IN DIGUISE--  John Fred
2.  BEND ME, SHAPE ME--  American Breed
3.  GREEN TAMBOURINE--  Lemon Pipers

4.  WOMAN, WOMAN--  Union Gap
5.  DAYDREAM BELIEVER--  Monkees
6.  BOOGALOO DOWN BROADWAY--  Fantastic Johnny C
7.  SUSAN--  Buckinghams

8.  SKIP-A-ROPE-- Hensen Cargill
9.  WHO WILL ANSWER--  EdAmes
10.  HELLO GOODBYE--  Beatles

Name That Tune from the above songs):  "Oh I Could Hide 'Neath the Wings Of the Bluebird As She Sings.:  Answer below.  --RoadDog

ACCIDENT REPORTS:  "I was backing my car out of the driveway in the usual manner when it was struck by the other car in the same place where it had been struck several times before."

"Daydream Believer"

This Week, Or, How to Survive the Cold-- Part 3: A Band and the Joy of Having Cars

JANUARY 6, SATURDAY

Drove to Menard's in Volo and bought little containers of two-cycle oil for the snowthrower.

Of course, what better way to spend a cold January afternoon than sitting at the Legion and watching the Neil Rose Band play from 3 to 6 pm.  Lots of blues and oldies music.  We sat with Kora, Glenn and Barb and the dancing couple.

Came home and enjoyed Margaritaville and the Ultimate Jukebox.

JANUARY 7, SUNDAY

Lots of cold-related fun today.  The Dodge Dakota has been outside in the cold the last several weeks and will not start because of a dead battery.  I was going to use my starter, but it was blocked in by the '85 Firebird, which also wouldn't start with a dead battery.

Normally, I would just push it back, but a tire is about flat and I couldn't do that.  So I couldn't jump the Firebird to get it started so I could move it and get to the truck.

Then, I couldn't get the snowthrower/blower started.  Some days it just doesn't pay to get up.

I did unplug all the outside Christmas lights and shovel some of the driveway as we finally broke this streak of ten straight days where we didn't get over 20 degrees.

Enjoyed the happy hour at Sunnyside and watchedWildcard games.

--RoadDog

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2018 Induction Class

The Class of 2018 was announced December 13, 2017.

Moody Blues
Dire Straits
Cars
Bon Jovi
Nina Simone
Sister Rosetta Tharpe

Induction will be April 14, 2018, in Cleveland.

--RoadDog

ACCIDENT REPORTS:  "I had been driving for 40 years when I fell asleep at the wheel and had an accident."

17 Facts About McDonald's That Will Blow Your Mind-- Part 1

From the December 7, 2012 Yahoo! Finance Business Insider by Gus Lubin and Manmta Badkar.

1.  Sells more than 75 hamburgers every second.

2.  68 million eat at McDonald's per day.  That is 1% of the world's population.

3.  $27 billion in revenue makes it the 90th economy in the world.

4.  The $8.7 billion in revenue from franchise stores alone makes McDonald's the richer than Mongolia.

And, There's More.  --RoadDog

ACCIDENT REPORTS:  I was on my way to the doctor with rear end trouble when my universal joint gave way causing me to have an accident."

This Week, Or, How to Survive the COLD!!-- Part 2

This has been some serious c-o-l-d this past week.

JANUARY 4, THURSDAY--  Fed the birdies for first time in weeks.  between the extreme cold outside and the flu or whatever I had, better to just stay inside.  Found out the truck battery bit the dust in the severe cold as it is outside.

Went over to Kevin and Kelly's bar at their house  Kelly makes her own beer.  I love craft beer.

JANUARY 5, FRIDAY--  Did some shopping and then went to Lake Geneva where Liz and I had the fish fry at Popeye's (not the fried chicken place).  Popeye's is located right across the street from frozen Geneva Lake and the Riviera.  We used Liz's $20 off birthday coupon.  They have one of the best fish fries anywhere.

Later, we went to the Legion, met the Usual Suspects, and had the 50-50.

When we got home, we found that we couldn't open the garage with the opener and then realized that the electricity to the house was off.  That really made our night.  Fortunately, the gas company had it fixed thirty minutes later.  You don't want to be without electricity on a cold night like this.

Could've Been a Really Cold Night Inside.  --RoadDog

This Week, Or, How To Survive Some Serious COLD!-- Part 1

Well, this new year has certainly started off cold here in the Midwest. But, it is even cold in the South and the poor Northeast really got pounded with that storm.

JANUARY 1, MONDAY--  We celebrated an early New Year's Eve at the Fox Lake, Illinois, American Legion yesterday with toasts at 4 p.m., our kind of celebraton anymore.

Today we met Kevin and Kelly at J's in Ingleside for half price pizza, $1.50 pints and NTN.  We did quite well at NTN/Buzztime with five Top Twenties.  Watched that great Georgia-Oklahoma game there and at home in Margaritaville.

JANUARY 2, TUESDAY--  Stayed home because of the cold and we're both recovering from the flu thing going around.  Met Kora at Sunnyside for a few.

JANUARY 3, WEDNESDAY--

Went to Donovan's Reef in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin,  and met Kevin and Kelly for drinks and 50 cent jumbo wings.

On the way home, we stopped at a new place that opened yesterday in Spring Grove, Illinois, (where we live) called Bricks & Ivy (a take on Wrigley Field).  The building has been about four different places over the last years, MVPs, Dill Pickle, 21st Amendment and Spring Grove Tavern.  Let's hope this one takes.

We saw that Tommy's, right down US-12, had reopened and stopped for a couple more.  They just opened today.  So, we were first-nighters.

Here's Hoping the Two New Bar/Restaurants Make It.  --RoadDog

ACCIDENT REPORTS:  "I had been shopping for plants all day and was on my way home.  As I reached the intersection, a hedge sprung up, obscuring my vision."

Movie Scratches: Thank-- Daddy's-- Murder

Movie Scratches--  Movies I saw at the theater in 2017

53.  THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE--  11-10--  Fox Lake, free--  We're just not taking care of our veterans  with problems when they get home.

54.  DADDY'S HOME 2--  11-14--  Woodstock, $5--  This time the two Dads battle their Fathers and Adriana.

55.  MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS--  12-7--  Fox Lake, $6--  Whodunit?  Everybody had a motive.  Everybody could have done it and the world's UGLIEST-ever mustache.

Another Year Done Gone.  --RoadDog

ACCIDENT REPORTS--  "I was thrown from my car as it left the road.  I was later found in a ditch by some stray cows."

And, For That Matter, Please No More MAC Bowl Games

And, as bad as NIU is at bowl games, the whole Mid-American Conference is fairly futile in bowl games.  Northern's sad effort this past week ended the MAC at 1-4 in bowl games.  That was one more win than in 2016 when teams went a combined 0-6.

2016 Bowl Games

Well, at least the scores were mostly close.

Camelia Bowl  Toledo lost to Appalachian State 31-28
Miami Beach Bowl--  Central Michigan lost 55-10
Dollar General Bowl--  Ohio lost 28-23

Bahamas Bowl--  Eastern Michigan lost 24-20
St. Petersburg Bowl--  Miami lost 17-16 to Mississippi State
Cotton Bowl--  Western Michigan lost to Wisconsin 24-16

2017 Bowl Games

Boca Raton Bowl--  Akron lost to FAU 50-3
Famous Potato Bowl--  Central Michigan lost to Wyoming 37-14
Dollar General Bowl--  Toledo lost to Appalachian State 34-0

Bahamas Bowl--  Ohio lost to UAB 41-6
Quick Lube Bowl--  Northern lost to Duke 36-14

A Record of Futility.  --RoadSad

Please, No More Bowl Games for NIU: Northern's Bowl Woes Continue

After sitting through the latest debacle of Northern Illinois' football team, all I can say is, "Please, No More Bowl Games!!"

Northern was dominated and thrashed by a so-so Duke team 36-14 to finish the season 8-5 after losing three of the last four games it played.  Other than one brief exciting three minutes when Northern scored twice on some great plays to tie the game at 14, it was horrible.

Northern has won just two of its last ten bowl games and have been absolutely blown out in the last three.

2006  Poinsettia Bowl  Lost TCU  37-7
2008  Independence Bowl  Lost  Louisiana Tech 17-10
2009  International Bowl  Lost  South Florida  27-3

2010  Humanitarian Bowl--  Won  Fresno State  40-17
2011  Go Daddy Bowl--  Won  Arkansas State  38-20
2012  Orange Bowl--  Lost  Florida State 31-10

2013  Poinsettia Bowl--  Lost to Utah State 21-14
2014  Boca Raton Bowl--  Lost  Marshall  52-23
2015  Poinsettia Bowl--  Lost  Boise State   55-7

2017  Quick Lube Bowl--  Lost Duke  33-14

I Am a Huskie Fan, But This Is Just Too Sad.  --RoadDog

ACCIDENT REPORTS:  The accident happened when the right door of a car came around the corner without giving a signal.

Movie Scratches: American-- Geostorm-- Thor-- Moms

Movie Scratches--  Movies I saw at the theater in 2017.

49.  AMERICAN MADE--  11-2--  Fox Lake, $6--  A CIA, drug cartel, gun-running romp through the 70s and 80s.

50.  GEOSTORM--  11-2--  Fox Lake, $6--  "Dutch Boy" goes awry with frozen people in Afghanistan and Rio, Burns to Hong Kong and Moscow

51.  THOR:  RAGNAROK--  11-8--  Woodstock, $6--  Thor and Loki's sister is a real mean gal as in the fire devil.

52.  BAD MOMS CHRISTMAS--  11-8--  Woodstock, $6--  Moms having problems with their moms at Christmas.

Long Lines Just Before Your Movie Starts.  --RoadDog

ACCIDENT REPORTS:  "The indirect cause of the accident was a little guy in a small car with a big mouth."

Music Deaths: David Cassidy

DAVID CASSIDY

Died November 21, 2017

Teen heart throb on "The Partridge Family."  He and stepmother Shirley Jones were the only members who actually sang.  The popular TV series was on from 1970-1974 and based on the Cowsills.

Some hits:

"I Think I Love You"  (#1-1970)
"Doesn't Somebody Want To be Wanted"  (#6-1970)
"I'll Meet You Halfway"  (#9-1971)
"I Woke Up In Love This Morning"  (#13-1971)

As a solo act he had "Cherish"  (#9-1971) His stepbrother Shaun Cassidy had three top tens in 1977.

Music Deaths: Keely Smith "That Old Black Magic"

KEELY SMITH, 89

Died December 116, 2017

Singer with Louis Prima, whom she also married.  Had one Top 100 song, "That Old Black Magic"  (#18-1958).

But, the two of them had a lot of great songs before rock and roll, especially that "Just a Giggilo/I Ain't Got Nobody."

My Second Blog Starts Its 12th Year

Today marks the beginning of my 12th year of doing this blog.  It started when I couldn't get back into my first blog, RoadDog's RoadLog Blog and I was testing to see if I could find a way.  Turned out to be a good move as the first one was nothing buy old roads, I have many more interests than that.

This one became one for music, history and what I was doing.  I have since spun the history aspect into other blogs (too many of them, though).

Last year I posted 508 times to this blog and this is the 5,880th article since 2007.

Must Find Something Else to Do With My Time.  --RoadDog

JSS: It Is COLD!-- The Drive's A to Z-- Bowls

JSS--  Just Some Stuff.

1. IT IS COLD!--  To say it has been a bit cold around here is an understatement.  Doggone Canadians and their weather.  Wish they would be nice enough to KEEP IT!!

Looking at the weather forecast from yesterday's paper, highs and lows:

THURS:  14 // 6,  FRI.  16 //  -1,  SAT.  7 // 1,  SUN.  13 // -5,  MON.  11 // 1,  TUES. 10 // 5,  WED.  19 // 8.  A real heat wave Wednesday.  Time to start working on the old tan.

2.  THE DRIVE'S A TO Z--  I've been enjoying listening to the Drive's A to Z going on right now.  (WDRV, 97.1 FM and streaming.)  They are in the letter "L" right now.  Last songs played:

LIGHTS--  Journey
LIGHT UP--  Styx
LIGHT MY FIRE--  Doors
LIFE'S BEEN GOOD--  Joe Walsh
A LIFE OF ILLUSION--  Joe Walsh
LIFE IS A ROCK--  Reunion
LIFE IS A HIGHWAY--  Tom Cochrane

3.  BOWLS:  NIU's Bowl woes continue after Tuesday's 36-14 drubbing by Duke in the Quick Lube Bowl in Detroit.  In the last ten bowls Northern has appeared in our record is 2-10 and we haven't won the last  five and have been blown out in the last three.

Please, No More Bowl Games for NIU.  It Is Too Embarrassing to Watch.  --RoadSorry