Man, it was a dire news week -- war, more war, a mass shooting, and the election of a nutty right-wing Speaker of the House. See, that's the problem with current events right now, the bad isn't just bad, it's bad with no end in sight. The war between Israel and Palestinian extremists has been going on, in some form, almost nonstop for the last 75 years, and nobody has a workable solution. The indiscriminate killings in Maine illustrate, yet again, the devil's bargain we've made with guns in this country, and it's not going to get better anytime soon given our current political climate and Supreme Court makeup. I mean, just look at whom the Republicans finally settled on for speaker, a hard-core religious right-winger -- and this is their compromise guy. The dude who lost the vote before him was worse. Oh, and if all that stuff I just mentioned somehow gets resolved, there's always climate change to keep you up at night.
It's enough to drive you insane, if you let it, but you can't let it. You need to take solace in the good things in your life and find joy where you can. To that end, I shall shift gears and write about the game night we had at our house last night. It was super fun. Lil' S1 has a little crew of friends he's known forever -- they've been dubbed the D&D group, even though they rarely actually play D&D -- and we know, and get along with, all the parents of the kids, so every now and then everybody will meet at somebody's house, and the adults will play board games and kids will run off and do whatever it is kids do these days. We had one of these events at our house last night.
Game nights can go one of two ways, depending on the makeup of the participants and the games you're playing. They can either be game-first, where you play something requiring attention, like Scrabble or Catan, and then the other aspects of the night (music, gossip, food) are kinda in the background, or they can be game-second, where you play something requiring little attention, like Farkle or Sevens, and then the other aspects of the night are in the forefront. Last night's was very much the latter. It basically just turned into a '90s music nostalgia-fest.
Fran Lebowitz once said that she could only really understand people from her generation. There is something about living through the same cultural events at the same age as somebody else that can instantly connect you to them. (This fits in with a definition of intimacy I once heard: shared experience.) Music is a huge part of this. If you get people together who are in their mid-40s today and play certain songs for them, they are very likely to vibe to them in a positive way, even if they didn't even (and still don't) particularly care for those songs. There are the mega-hits, of course, "Motown Philly" by Boyz II Men, "Jeremy" by Pearl Jam, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana, "Wannabe" by the Spice Girls. But there are also the lesser hits and one-hit wonders that speak to people even more so: "Flagpole Sitta" by Harvey Danger, "You Get What You Give" by the New Radicals, "Add It Up" by the Violent Femmes, "Been Caught Stealing" by Jane's Addiction, "Linger" by the Cranberries. And then if you can find the niche songs that somebody listened to, that's when you really hit the nostalgia sweet spot. I put on some Ned's Atomic Dustbin last night, and one of moms there was like, "Omigosh! 'Kill Your Television'! This is so my jam!"
Another woman there said she was really into '90s gangsta rap, so I played a bunch of Dre and Snoop and some Warren G., and then we did that thing white liberals do, where you rap along with the song but get quiet every time there's a racial or gay slur. It's a skill I've really honed over the years. You should hear me do "Forgot About Dre." I can nail both Dre's and Eminem's parts without uttering a single epithet. It's kinda funny that this particular woman is into gangsta rap because she's a completely unassuming, kinda granola in appearance, middle-age mom -- the type who has a pride flag in her yard and a nonbinary child. But it just goes to show you the power of culture. If you were a 14-year-old in 1991, you probably smile every time "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" of "Fuck Wit Dre Day" comes on, even though they are largely about slapping bitches and imploring your foes to perform fellatio on you.
Anyway, I'm going to end this post with something that has nothing to do directly with '90s music: chips. It is apropos in that I ate some Ruffles last night for the first time in I don't even know how long. They were pretty damn good. Chips, like soda, are something I've largely cut out of my diet (with one exception, as noted below), but I still appreciate a good chip from time to time. Here's my top-10 list.
10. Doritos: Nothing was better as a child than Doritos. Cool Ranch was my favorite flavor, but I also liked regular Nacho Cheese and the now discontinued Jumpin' Jack. I definitely do not feel that way about them now, but the other day, the kids got some, and I had a few, and they weren't bad.
9. Fritos: I don't know that I will ever sit down and eat a serving of just Fritos ever again, but they're pretty good with other things. Throw some Fritos on chili, and that chili instantly gets 25% better. Also, Fritos are really good with bean dip.
8. Ruffles: Classic, delicious. The flavored ones are decent, and they are really good with French Onion dip, but I like them even as standalone.
7. Miss Vickie's Sea Salt & Vinegar: Salt and vinegar chips are an
acquired taste, and I've acquired it. If you eat more than like five
chips, though, your lips start to pickle.
6. Skinny Pop Popcorn: Is popcorn a chip? Technically, perhaps not, but it certainly is in spirit. It's sold in the chip aisle, and if you bought a sandwich that came with a bag of chips, you wouldn't think it was weird if popcorn was one of the options. I like Skinny Pop because it's not too greasy.
4. Tim's Cascade Jalapeño: This was my go to chip in high school. I could easily house an entire bag while playing NHL Hockey for Sega Genesis. They do light up your mouth, though.
3. Sun Chips: These are great for when you want a snack that probably is just as unhealthy as any other chip, but feels healthier. Garden salsa is the best flavor, but cheddar and French onion are both pretty good, as well.
2. Kettle Krinkle Cut Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper: These are the most addictive chip on this list by far. As far as pure flavor goes, they're the best. The problem is that they are too good. I can't help but gorge myself on them, and then I feel like shit afterwards.
1. Tortilla Chips: This is the one chip I still eat regularly. The thing about tortilla chips, however, is that they are extremely dip-dependent. Unadorned, they fall off this list completely. With salsa, they move into the top spot, and with guacamole, they belong on a whole other list altogether, as they are so much better than every other option. So, there is some debate in the chip world (the crisp world, in the UK) about whether or not tortilla chips should be ranked at all, since they do not rate as a standalone snack. I understand both sides of the argument, but I ultimately I think tortilla chips with dip do count. They're number one with a bullet.
Until next time...
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