Cuz we all wanna get jiggy wit it once in a while

To fully equip your media player/itune playlists with you 90's musical needs, download these songs. Originally, I had been posting popular songs from each year of the 1990's in my sidebar. As it got too cluttered pretty quickly, I have decided to move 1999, 1998, and 1997 to this post. 1996, 1995, 1994 remain on the sidebar for now, until they are replaced by 1993-1991 sometime soon. Enjoy!


1997
I Believe I Can Fly - R. Kelly
MMMBop - Hanson
Bitch - Meredith Brooks
Barbie Girl - Aqua
Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix) - Los Del Rio
Hypnotize -Notorious B.I.G.
When You Love A Woman - Journey
Candle In The Wind 1997 - Elton John
I Shot The Sheriff - Warren G
Don't Cry For Me Argentina - Madonna

1998
Truly, Madly, Deeply - Savage Garden
The Boy is Mine - Brandy and Monica
Gettin' Jiggy Wid It - Will Smith
You Make me Wanna - Usher
Tubthumping - Chumbawumba
Show me Love - Robyn
Semi-Charmed Life - Third Eye Blind
Quit Playin' Games with my Heart - BSB
Spice up Your Life - Spice Girls
I'll be - Edwin McCain

1999
Believe - Cher
Kiss Me - Sixpence None The Richer
Every Morning - Sugar Ray
All Star - Smash Mouth
Mambo No. 5 - Lou Bega
Steal My Sunshine - Len
Iris - Goo Goo Dolls
Baby One More Time - Britney Spears
All I Have To Give - Backstreet Boys
Unpretty - TLC

Bah Humbug!

(Warning: Long, ranty, scattered post ahead. But it's about Christmas - so suck it up and read)

December 18th. One week till Christmas. . . .

Somehow, I think I should be more excited. Maybe my lack of eagerness comes from the fact that, with only seven days left until Christmas, I have officially bought zero Christmas presents. Now mostly this is because I am tight on the funds and waiting for Friday's pay cheque (boo for getting paid every other week), but also this is because I never know what to buy people. I'm the type of person who reallly reallly hopes to find that *perfect* gift for everyone on my list. But somehow, every year, I seem to disappoint someone. (i.e. - the year I bought my Dad the VengaBoys CD, or the year I bought the Guiness World of Book Records for my secret santa. Thank God it was secret).

Anyhow, I still really enjoy Christmas and the holiday hooplah, but buying gifts is DIFFICULT. And I'm sure the people I buy for do like their presents, but even more than that, I want them to enjoy their presents. And K, call me shallow since I know its the "thought that counts", but when the thought of the reciever is "Who the f*ck are the Vengaboys", it counts for...well, feeling a little short of Christmas cheer. Gift giving is just not for me, bring on the recieving. (kidding

In an attempt to make this Christmas a good one, I got thinking about what makes a gift truly "loveable", and I concluded that gifts that come from the heart (or the wish-list) are the best ones, for me. I looked back to my life as a kid and tried to remember some of my favourite gifts. Though not one gift stands out in my head, I can remember feeling generally ecstatic at receiving a ton of beanie babies, pony surprise, N64 games, or the latest disney movie year after year. At fear of sounding too self-abosrbed/selfish, I just want to say that I still enjoy gift-giving at Christmas, I simply have a harder time with it now that I'm older. (If only a pinecomb ornament would still suffice). Simply stated, Christmas as a child was much, much easier - because it consisted mostly of receiving gifts, rather than searching and giving a "good" gift). **(note - end of rant)**

While browsing the internet for some "good" Christmas gift ideas, I came across a link to a site called "The Most Popular Christmas gifts". I clicked on the link expecting wonderful gift ideas for everyone on my list - but to no avail. Rather, what I found was an interesting list of popular gifts from the past - namely, the 1990s! So, although I'm still stuck for ideas of what to buy Mom, Dad, sisters, and the like - atleast I know in 1962 The Yo-yo and the Pogo Stick were the most popular Christmas gifts. Who knew. And since this is a 90's blog, I feel it my duty to post those adored gifts of the 1990's:

1990 Teenage Mutant Turtles figures and Video movie.

1991 Constructicons, and Super Nintendo Video game.

1992 Barney dolls and WWF Wrestlers toys.

1993 Star Trek characters, Deep Space Nine figures, and Jurassic Park dinosaurs.

1994 Lion King animals and Power Rangers.

1995 Playstation Video game, and Pocahontas

1996 Tamagotchi, Nintendo N-64 and Buzz Lightyear figure

1997 Sing N Snore Ernie, Teletubbies, and Share a smile Becky doll

1998 Beanie Babies, Furby, Playmobile video system, and Lego Robot’s Revenge

1999 Pokemon, Frby Babies, and Sega Dreamcast video system

Right, so there it is. My most scattered post yet maybe. But forgive me. Theres a week till Christmas. I've been out of school for a week. I have no money in my bank account. I'm waiting anxiously for my grades to be posted. And , I'm sick.

So, wish me luck with gift buying. OH, and Merrry Christmas!

To blog or not to blog?

Well readers (if there actually are any of you), I have not completely forgotten about my blog. Amid my three written exams and two ten page papers all crammed into three days, my christmas shopping, and my somewhat hectic work schedule, I did remember that this blog still sat here on this webpage, completely deserted. You might even say that , like the 1990's, I missed it. *sigh*

These past few weeks, I have debated whether or not I will continue posting as the class assignment portion of this blog is complete. My initial instinct was to stop because, hey, what kind of person would continue an assignment after it was done? (other than my little sister Sandra, that is). That would be like taking on an extra assigment, and I feel busy enough as it is. However, while creating my final portfolio for my class, I completely changed my mind.

One portion of the portfolio was to choose 7-10 pages of our best blogging. So, in an attempt to be either very thorough, or procastinate writing some paper or studying some shizzz, I read through my entire blog from start to finish. While I read my posts, I realized how much this "assignment" didn't quite feel like work. In fact, (yes, I'll say it), this assignment was fun.

Furthermore, I developed a surge of hope as I found that I am not the only lover of the 1990's out there. While procastinating a little bit more for exam prep, I found a contest on collegehumour called "The Gnarly 90's" (sidenote: that would have been a great blog title!). Unfortunately, the contest is now closed because submissions ended on the 12th of this month, but it's still totally worth checking out for a good laugh. Basically, the person who submits the photo with most "90's" elements wins. Here, clik on the link to see the hoop-lah!

That all being said, Tanya, you can expect more posts to come. If anyone else still reads this, then you can expect more posts too. So like, I guess it's safe to say that "OMG my blog is back again!". Or is it? Gawwwshhh, I really need a new blog title. Any suggestions, readers?

I Saw the CD...

I don't really purchase CDs now that I'm a "downloader". That's why all of the CDs in my car are a) burned, b) Highschool musical sound track(s) or c)...dated. Well I'm sure you can all vouche that High School Musical only lasts you so long till you know like every song by heart, so a few days ago I decided to switch it up. I rummaged through my CD case and pretty much exploded with excitment when I found Ace of Base at the bottom of my collection. Woo-fricken-hoo! I popped that baby in and sang along so loud I didn't even care that my windows aren't tinted.

If you direct your attention to my sidebar for a moment, you'll see that Ace of Base had 3 top hits in 1994. My eight year old self certainly enjoyed them all. I can remember like it was yesterday my sisters and I on my parent's bed creating dance after dance, especially to "The Sign". Now I don't know much about music, besides everything about the Backstreet Boys, but I was curious about AoB so I did a bit of research (I love Wikipedia).

The first interesting tidbit of information I discovered was how the band formed their name. Apparently they went through many options (Kalinin Prospect, CAD (Computer-Aided Disco), Tech-Noir) but finally settled on Ace of Base because the others were impossible to remember. Ace came from the fact that they were "masters of their studio", and base came from the fact that their studio was in the basement of a car repair shop. Alas, they became Ace of Base.

Ace of Base, though mostly popular in the mid 1990's, actually recorded singles and albums steadily through out the 90's and even into the new millenium (with a lesser degree of success of course). Their first album The Sign was given the Guinness World Record for "Best-Selling Debut Album".As for what they band is up to today, apparently they're recording a new album due for release around April 2008. Rumours have started that there will be an accompying world tour. On their official website, there are a few confirmed tour dates for this month and next (unfortunately all venues are overseas).

It would be nice to see Ace of Base in concert, but I know it won't happen. In the mean time, youtube clips and old CDs will do me good. And rockin' out by my lonesome in my car? Well that stuff never gets old for me.

Tired of Using Technology?

Every holiday season, when I'm busy with end of term papers and exams, my parents demand a Christmas list. So every year, I write them an elaborate list with one item I know I won't get. Last year it was a labtop. The year before it was a new cell phone (there was nothing wrong with the one I had). One year it was even a way to Save the Whales. But this year, there were a few things: a new digital camera, an iPod alarm clock, and again...a labtop.

Well no wonder I don't always get everything I want. I'd be costing my parents a fortune, and they've got three other daughters to please. Plus, my lists are a bit overwhelming and filled with all these technological items my Mom probably thinks you can download online. (She thinks you can download everything) So how does my Christmas list relate to the 90's? All the things I want pretty much come from the fact that the internet dominates my life. And , when did the internet first come out? Though it had been worked on for many years previous, By 1996 usage of the word "Internet" had become commonplace.

If the internet had never came to be "common place", would I still crave all of these things? Well I certainly wouldn't want a digital camera as bad. I mean let's face it, I want one so that I can post all my photos on Facebook, and show my online friends what I've been up to - even if its as simple as a night out to the movies, or a night of playing in the leaves. And without the internet, what purpose would an ipod alarm clock serve me? Better yet, what would I do with an ipod at all? No internet would mean no Limewire, which would mean no song downloads, which would mean....no ipod. And lastly, a labtop. I know I wouldn't want a labtop if the internet didn't exist. What would be the point? Would I bring it to lecture and "take notes", while actually playing Mindsweeper or drawing pictures in Paint? No way, I'd need the internet as my distraction -able to lead me to the online world of e-mail, random websites, and of course Facebook. Never in Dale's class though.

The internet has obviously changed very much since the 90's. I remember the day we got dial-up. My Uncles all came over to help set it up as my Dad ran around the house screaming
WWW. we-are-a-hip-familly-now. com! In the 1990s, when it was new to me, I used the internet minimally - for the purpose of search engines, and the occasional Yahoo game. After I was introduced to instant messaging, the internet pretty much crawled into my life and leeched onto to my existence. I try to picture my life without MSN , Facebook, or e-mail, and sadly I just can't do it. I have come to rely on the internet so much that my Christmas list pretty much revolves around the fact that the internet is such a dominant tool in my life.

Sheesh, no wonder Justin Timberlake is "tired of using technology".

It (was) a Twin Thing

You know the "Windows Live Today" window that pops up everytime you log onto MSN? (It tells you how many e-mails are in your inbox, and has other random links to interesting news stories). I barely ever pay attention to it but today I actually clicked on a link. It was about one of the Olsen Twins. And it was about one of the Olsen Twins being in the hospital. My heart dropped when I read the title, as I thought Mary Kate was having another anorexic episode, but to my relief, it was simply a kidney infection that forced her into the hospital. *Phew*.

After reading the "article" (it was like 10 lines long), I wondered to myself why I was so interested in this random celebrity's health issues. Then I realized, this star was not so random to me at all. In fact, I would consider Mary Kate Olsen to be one of my... friends. I've never met either one of the Olsen twins, but still, I pretty much grew up with them. Admitedly, it may have been a "long distance relationshiop", as there was a television screen between us, but I tell you, I love(d) those twins. I mean, who didn't, they were America's favourite twins.

My "friendship" with the twins began with my discovery of Full House in the early 90's. "You're in big trouble mister" and "You got it dude" were as cool as saying "Hollla" today, (right?). They were cute, they were funny, and most of all, they were two. When I found out there was two Michelle's, I became doubly fascinated.

I watched FullHouse faithfully, collected the Michelle Book series, and bought and memorized all of their movies. Two of a Kind, How The West Was Fun, Double Double Toil & Trouble, To Grandmother's House we Go, Billboard Dad, Passport to Paris - I still have e'm all. The Adventures of Mary Kate and Ashley series was my favourite. It featured the twins solving various mysteries, and I think that was around the time I decided I'd grow up to be a spy. However, my all time favourite MK & A video was definetely "Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen: Our First Video". The video was just a compilation of songs that the twins sang, but I adored it, and I can honestly still remember the lyrics today.

The twins have been heavily criticized for their lack of acting and singing skills, and I can't say that I do not agree. Past their "prime" (the 90's) they never put on award worthy TV show or movie roles. Anybody remember "So Little Time"? It's kind of like they grew up and lost their ability to "get away" with thier lack of talent. Was it because they weren't cute little Michelle Tanner anymore? Or was it simply because they had grown out of their childhood?

I might wager the guess that it was also because they began to stray away from their "twinness". It seemed that after years of being viewed as one cohesive unit, the girls began to search for their own, seperate, identities. This began with little things - different hair cuts, different fashion choices, and more recently it has turned into taking on independent acting roles. (MK in Factory Girl and The Wackness, and Ashley in the upcoming The Informers) America's favourite twins were definetely my favourite twins in the 90's. I hear of them every once in a while in current Celebrity Gossip, and when I do, I always turn an eager ear. Like today, when I read that MK was in the hospital again, it felt as if a friend was sick. Kudos to Mommy Olsen for auditioning them for Full House. According to Forbes' magainze, they're now estimated at being worth 100 million dollars, and were placed together at #11 richest women on the Celebrity 100 List. Good things come in pairs? Besides the (post 1990) lack of skill and sickly eating disorder, "You got it dude!"

*~The P0L!tiCz of ICQ~*

I am fluent in internet slang. They say the best way to learn a language is to practice speaking it, and I've been "speaking" (typing) Internt slang, since about 1998. Internet slang was first introduced to me via instant messaging, and more specifically via ICQ. ICQ was an instant messaging program, one of the originals, that has since been replaced by popular IM programs like MSN and AOL.

Like all online social tools, ICQ had politics. Loosely, ICQ had "rules", even if they were unwritten.

I got ICQ in grade 7. (I thought I was so cool. I had like three ICQ friends, and one was my older sister, who barely counted since we lived in the same hourse and couldn't even communicate online as we only had one computer). Anyways, my screen name never ever read plain old "Angela", but rather, it incorporated "funky" letters and annoying little swirlies. If I remember correctly, and I do, my first ICQ name ever was ~()T@l!@n_pR!n(e$$~. It often changed to other cool things like "I love BSB" and "**an_juh_lah**". But definetely, it was never just "Angela". That was the way ICQ worked.

My "Info box" in my profile details was updated almost daily, and rather than actually listing information about myself, it was always fully equipped with inside jokes and shout outs to as many of my ICQ friends as possible. Most of the time, it looked something like this:

~~Hey to all my gurlz - haley*nicole*cassie*vanessa*liz*danielle*sandra*sarah*amy*andrea
*blah*blah*blaaaaaaaaaah*blah*blah

Hey to all my boiz - mike*mat*chris*brian*kevin*AJ*howie*nick*blah*etc*and*so*on.
To anyone i forgot, tell me so i can add u~~~~

(the info box always included swirls and/or stars)

If ever I added another friend's name to this urgently important list, I sent out a "notification" to my entire list. It usually read ~update info~(again, the swirls). My friends on my list then navigated my details till they found my info box, hit update, and hopefully, saw their name and were thankful for it. This was another way that ICQ worked.

Another ICQ "rule" was that you should never actually be available. I never put myself "Online" on ICQ. Usually, I put myself to N/A, even if I was at my monitor, so that I could fill in my away message with something sweet like "here w/ the galz!". For the times that I left my ICQ on when I was actually busy, it would have to read something like "out'n'about with (followed by a long list of names).Other times, I put myself to "Invisble" so that I could message only those people who I wanted to talk to. But I don't know what the point of that was since most of those people I wished to chat with were on my "Invisible List", which meant they could see me at all times, invisible or not, when everyone else couldn't. It was a popularity thing I guess.

ICQ was fun times. I can still hear the "Uh-Oh" everytime I think of receiving a message. I can still hear the "knock..knock...knock" when I remember a friend logging in. I can still remember ending every convo with "Lylas" (Love you like a sister). And most importantly, (or strangely), I can still remember my oldest ICQ # - 1019654710. If anyone still uses ICQ, feel free to add me. Just don't feel offended if you're not in my info box.

Fruit Salad Anyone?

No, this is not actually a post on food...Go here for that. What I really wanted to say is that a few weeks back, in the midst of my novel-reading and paper-writing, I was distracted by a conversation I overheard my roommates having in the next room.

“Hmm…what about “Ava” ?
“ No, I still like Marlana – oh…and Victoria, so I can call her V”
“ Whatever, I’m naming mine Lemon and Lime”

Quickly I gathered that my “busy-with-school-university-student” friends were discussing potential names to call their children. Ha. It got me laughing at how ridiculous some of these names were, and reminded me of current celebrity children’s names like “Co-Co” and “Apple”.

Honestly, I don’t know if this even pertains to the 90’s, or just passed times in general, but I’d still like to discuss. I got thinking back to my grade school days and tried to recall any absurd names of my classmates. The most original I think I could think of was “Holly”, and that name is completely normal in comparison to… “Orange” (errr….Apple, sorry Gwenyth)

Whatever happened to plain old calling your child ..John…or Susan? I did some quick internet research on baby names from the 90’s vs. now, and found it to be what I expected. Though I was born in 1986 and still grew up in the 90’s, I decided, for the sake of this blog, to only examine names given during the 90’s (those kids count for something too).

Popular, recurrent girls names from ‘90-‘99 were – Jessica, Ashley, Brittany, Samantha, Taylor, Sarah, Nicole, and Elizabeth, to name a few. The most popular boys names were Michael, Matthew, Christopher, Nicholas, and Joseph. Ahhhh, I liked the sound of these 90’s names – traditional, “regular”, plain old names.

Has naming children turned into a creativity competition? I argue that, for some, it definitely has. And seriously, if my friend actually names her children “Lemon” and “Lime”, what’s gonna happen when they run into “Apple” at recess? Uh-oh, Food fight?? On a brighter note, maybe fruit salad instead!

Virtual Pets- Virtually Replaced

I volunteer in a grade one classroom on Fridays, and lucky pour moi, Friday is show'n'tell day. Sometimes the kids bring in some pretty sweet stuff - I've seen light sabres, an old hornet's nest and old baseball cards to name a few. But what I cannot believe is the overwhelming amount of WEBKINS that are brought in. Week after week, it never fails. I know fosho that atleast one kid is bringin' in a webkin.

For those of you who don't have younger siblings, or simply don't know what Webkinz are, they look like your average stuffed animals - cute, fuzzy, with those big droopy eyes. What is so popular about them though, is that they require more "care" than plain old Mr. Bear does. At WebkinzWorld online, kids can register (a.k.a adopt) their webkinz via a secret code found on their tags to delve into an online world of fun.
Once adopted, children can earn "kinzcash" to build their webkin a house, buy their webkin clothes, purchase their webkin food, and even play games with their webkin

So....right. How does this relate to the 90's? Well, the concept of Webkinizm reminds me an awful lot of the virtual pet craze that passed in the 90's. Just about every kid I knew owned a Nano, Tamagotchi, or Gigapet, and in some cases, they owned all three...(lucky ducks). I am no toy expert, but I assume what was so cool about these egg shaped computers too was the fact that, as children, we could control the happiness of our virtual pets through feeding, cleaning and playing with them simply by clicking three small buttons.

Now let's compare webkinz and Tamagotchis.

Webkinz world is available online anywhere. Tamagotchis were only available if your battery didn't die out. Webkinz come in all sorts of animals - tigers, elephants, bears, cats. Tamagotchis were only one kind of pet .... but ummm .... .whoa .. .. what were tamagotchis? Webkinz allows you to build your pets new homes. Tamogotchis were restricted to life inside an egg. And finally, Webkinz are soft. Tamagotchis were plastic.

So like, holy-genius Webkinz inventor. Way to re-invent (and improve) the virtual pet of the 90s. I give you my kudos big time. You're like the next Ty Warner! Combining various kinds of play into one furry plush toy, what a great concept. Looks like if you take the centuries old stuffed animal and inject it with some "virtual pet" qualities, bam, you've got yourself a recipe for success.

Help Wanted: TV Junkies

From the time that I started University four years ago, I can count on one hand the number of Saturdays I've been awake before noon. I'm not some scum of the earth loser who sleeps the day away, but weekends are a time where I usually get to embrace the joy of having no school or work obligations. Any student can vouche that catching up on the zzz's is a good thing, but what about the 'bad' part of sleeping in? And especially on Saturday mornings - what, if anything, am I missing?

The reason I wonder this is because growing up in the 90's, sleeping in on a Saturday would have meant missing out on solid Saturday morning TV. But whatever happened to those programs? I don't wake up early often, but the few (errr...3) times that I have watched morning TV on a Saturday, I'm pretty sure the pickings have been slim.

Admittedly, I could be wrong, and if I am, I wish to be corrected. Please, those of you overly ambitious early birds feel free to tell me about Saturday morning TV nowadays. Has it changed much since the 90s, (assuming that you watched it then too)? If so, has it changed for better or for worse? Favourite programs, crappy programs - I'm curious about them all.

Now if you're wondering what shows I did enjoy watching as a kid, my Saturday morning line up usually included all or some of these shows: Breaker High, HangTime, Saved by the Bell, and DOUG. That being said, you might consider me the type to enjoy shows similar to programs of this nature. Oh and FYI, I hated Barney. But I'm still fairly open minded.

So, again, if you have any recommendations, I'd me more than willing to check them out. I hope to compile a sort of examination of morning TV from the 90s vs. now. And to be honest, I simply don't want to wake up early on Saturday if the shows aren't worth watching. Girls gotta have her sleep. Help a sista out!

All of THIS, just cuz I forgot about "Shuffle"

Every once in a while, like today, I set my Windows Media Player to "shuffle" and just let the songs play as they may. Completely forgetting that my song choice was on 'shuffle', I failed to deactivate my MSN feature "Turn on what I'm listening to". (Basically this means that any one of my friends online this afternoon could see what songs I was listening to.) I'm not saying that I'm ashamed of my tunes, but we all have our guilty pleasures in life, right? This afternoon, my guilty pleasure took shape in the form of Celion Dion's "My Heart Will Go On".

Actually, it's not right to call this song my guilty pleasure, as I don't even particularly like it. In fact, I even find it mildly annoying. But I am guilty of having it downloaded on my computer. Don't judge me, I bet you've downloaded it too. It's okay, here's the reason why: Titanic. It's pretty much impossible for me to listen to the song without thinking of Titanic, simply because Titanic was huge. Well, yes the ship itself was huge, but I was more pertaining to the 1997 movie. No need for me to explain much - historical tragedy + star crossed lovers = huge blockbuster hit that won enough Oscars (11!) to weigh down the whole Titanic (not funny? K.)

So what I'm wondering is why this film was so popular in the 90's? I mean, there had been earlier adaptations of the Titanic story , but none were comparable to the quality put forth by James Cameron in the '97 version. I'm nor Siskel or Ebert, or even Roeper, but I guess I'll wager a guess. It had to have been that love story (Correction* obviously it was the love story) . Seriously, mention the movie Titanic to any female friend, and I bet she'll turn googly eyed, and go "Awwww". Me being no exception.

I loved Titanic because it went above and beyond love story.

First of all, Jack saves Rose from plunging head first into the Atlantic. Then teaches her how to 'fly'. Rose is then forbidden to see him and they sneak around the ship in secrecy - scandalous. Then of course comes the the naked sketch. Everyone remembers the naked sketch.

Very passionate also was the sex scene, in the car, aboard the ship - will you ever look at a hand print on a fogged window the same again? (sorry, couldn't find a pic) And then of course Rose risks her own life, leaving her family behind, in saving Jack when the ship is going down. On the whole, I adore this film and could watch it over and over. There is however one part of the movie that really pisses me off -the ending. Listen carefully in this clip, as Jack's voice has been edited in, but you'll hear Rose's (in)famous words at the end. (Sorry, only one I could find under ten minutes).


Did ya hear that!? She says she'll never let go. Then she instantly pushes him into the icy waters and he dies. What the hell? Sure, the movie wouldn't have been complete if they had both lived, and as an English major I should understand that figuratively, "in her heart", she won't ever let go (Notice the song in the background?) But in 1997, I was 11, and Leanardo Dicaprio was hot. I walked out of the theatre fairly upset, but my young opinion alone did and does not change the fact that this film was hugely famous in the 90s, with reason. That being said, I guess all good things must come to a (sometimes crappy) end.

Read : Halloween fans who are "all that"

I have not forgotten about my blog or somehow managed to go back to the 90's without plans to return. Rather, I've just been busy - midterms, papers, work, and of course - Halloween. I love Halloween more now-a-days than I did when I was a kid. Besides the fact that candy is now replaced with alcohol (score), I love this holiday primarily because of costumes. At the school pub on Wednesday night, best costume, hands down that I saw : a guy dressed up in a round, black body suit with a piece of white rope shooting up from his head, (I wish I had a picture). When I asked him what he was, he simply replied "I'm da bomb".

"Ha, ha, ha". But not one of those awkward lame laughs, I actually thoroughly enjoyed his costume because he took some 90's slang, "da bomb", and constructed a sweet Halloween costume out of it. So at this point, I'm thinking that I absolutely must make mention to this moment of 90's pride in my blog, but was wary of how I could do so. Alas, after much thought and consideration, I have decided to tell the tale of my Halloween through a short anecdote, using 90's slang as frequently as possible. I'm doing this firstly, because the story of my night is kind of good, and secondly, because I love 90's slang and have thus far had absolutely no other ideas how to work it into my blog.

So, I present to you: Halloween 2007 = Hellasweet (with 90's slang in bold)

I knew Halloween was gonna be hella sweet this year because I opened a can of major whoop ass on my Italian midterm. I bounced outta Dillon Hall feeling like all that and a bag of chips, and practically ran home to start getting ready for my evening. Unfortunately, upon arriving at home, my roommate informed me that she'd be calling it a night in. Okay, so I was just like, as if! I just called some other pals and was like "Whatever, I'm coming out with you chicas instead".

So life was good again, we all got ready together and it was all really girly and fun. Around ten oclock, we departed for the pub and daaaaaaaamn skippy, I kid you not, the line actually wrapped around the building. (K, like, eat my shorts "The Basement", you're a crappy bar anyway). Lucky for me, I spotted classmate Ellen in line and she gave me free cutsies. You go girl! (with finger snap).

After a whole hour of waiting in line, we can finally see the popos and bouncers at the door. This was around the same time that I realized I had left my ID and wallet at home. DANG, major brain fart. So I informed the bouncer of this promptly, and instead of just like telling me it was all ages night, he says that I can call my roommate to bring me my ID. Well, Duh, like three minutes after that, she tells me this bouncer must be bunk cuz it's all ages night anyway. So again, everything is good and my friend lends me a couple bones for cover.

We got inside and hilarity ensued. A good Samaritan, who I think was dressed up as batman, donated to me 20 more bones for the night and my friends and I all had a bitchin' time. I won't delve much deeper into detail because, well, drink specials were wicked cheap and we took advantage of that. But I will end my story by saying that although I dressed up as a nurse, I somehow came home with a pair of angel wings on my back. Thank god Dale canceled class, Halloween 07 totally rocked!

Remember the roots of all the Magic

After reading classmate Tanya's blog entry on J. K. Rowling, I got this huge surge of love for Harry Potter all over again that all HP fans are so familiar with. Now I agree with most of what Tanya says in her entry, so I won't simply regurgitate her thoughts, but HP and J.K. Rowling definitely deserve recognition in my blog too. I mean, the magic all started in the 90's, right?

J.K. Rowling released the first of her seven books in the series in 1997. Now unfortunately I wasn't one of the kids who discovered Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in the year of it's release. And I wasn't one of those kids who stumbled across the book in a bookstore or library either. Rather, the only reason I discovered HP was because my grade 8 teacher, Mr. Simone, forced my class to listen while he read it every afternoon. And boy, am I thankful he did.

At first, I acted like most of the other kids and pretended to dislike this 'silly tale about witches and wizards'. But secretly, when the rest of my class slumped down in their desks and dozed off every afternoon, I stayed awake, wide eyed, and eager for what would come next. By the end of the school year, Mr. Simone had not finished reading the book because we ran out of time. To my pleasant surprise, my Mom had a copy at home, and I devoured the rest of the tale in one evening.

Since 1997, J.K. Rowling has released six other books, which follow Harry's seven years of adventure and schooling at Hogwarts. This past summer, it was with bittersweetness that I completed reading the 7th book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. And although the series is technically over - the movies, the t-shirts, the figurines, the journals, and memorabilia - all still live on. The Harry Potter books are a series I know I will return to, as J.K. Rowling's intricate detail and imagination make the books worthy of multiple reads. Though the hype for HP grew most dominant in the new millenium, it is important to remember the origin of the marvel - and that all happened in the 1990s.

Good Idea: Read this post...

So remember last post when I told you I stayed up till 3 to watch 90210? Well that means I didn't get to bed until past 4...and had class early(ish) the following morning. I honestly couldn't keep my eyes open through lecture and still had loads of work to get done before today. Wednesday sucked, and all in all, I made a bad life choice.

Bad-life-choice. I mean, it's not often that I make one, but when I do, I truly feel the pain. Like the time I thought it would be wise to tell a bouncer she was actually confusing me with my "twin sister", as she suggested that I immediately stop drinking ( sorry Mom & Dad =) ) But that's a different story. On the contrary, the majority of the choices that I make are done in good esteem, like my decisions to volunteer in the community and to maintain dilligent study habits (Wuv you Mom & Dad)

Making choices between smart/stupid, safe/dangerous, good/bad is a practice that human beings from all ages and places can relate to. And finally, I arrive at my point. First and foremeost, I attribute my good decision making skills to my parents, but, secondly, I attribute them to a friendly animated TV series that was popular during the 1990's - Animaniacs.

Animaniacs, aired by Warner Bros and created by Steven Spielberg, was a comical cartoon program comprised of short educational skits on topics like history, geography and science. Every episode was divided into 2 or 3 portions, each featuring a different set of characters. My personal favourite, and seemingly most educational, of these mini segments was the "Good Idea/Bad Idea" portion put on by Mr. Skullhead. (see clip below)



With the help of Mr. Skullhead's monotone narration, and his painfully obvious good and bad ideas, I developed some (for the most part) pretty great decision making skills that date back to the 90s. The program was not only popular amongst children, but according to Wikipedia, adults liked it too. I've said it once and I'll say it again - Speilberg is a genius.

So, the next time you find yourself in a "sticky" situation - I urge you to reconsider the circumstance from Mr. Skullhead's point of view. An example : With Halloween just around the corner, it might be a good idea to dress up like a pirate. On the flip side, it might be a bad idea to dress up as a pinata.

"The End".

On Tuesdays, I stay up till 3 a.m.

This morning, like all other Tuesday mornings, I woke up with a sense of bitter-sweetness inside. On the sweet side, I eagerly looked forward to my work shift that was to ensue later this afternoon (coaching gymnastics is actually fun) . But on the bitter side, I sadly remembered that my Tuesday shift (4:00-7:30) unfortunately produces a major conflict in schedule for me. Being at work for these hours every Tuesday sucks about as much as swimming in a cesspool of disease would. You see, working these hours means that I have to miss TVTropolis' daily re-run of 90210.

Beverly Hills, 90210 dominated prime time television for the entire decade, and I am not embarrassed to say that I still enjoy it. That's why, on bitter Tuesdays, when I know I won't be home at 4:00, I realize that staying up till 3 a.m. to catch the episode is my only alternative option. Why not record the episode, you ask? Simply because my VCR is broken, and I'm too broke to buy a new one. Oh, and why not miss one episode, you wonder? Well, then I'd be lost on Wednesday... they play them in sequence my friends.

As this program was the most popular teen drama of the 90's, I will argue strongly that it lies as the precursor to many programs of the new millennium . Almost everything about the show is entirely corny - that is undeniable. But watch this clip here, and you will recognize how the show encapsulates many aspects of "teen life" that are still portrayed in primetime dramas we watch today. (well, some of us watch today. Oh, and sorry for the foreign words on screen ) In under nine minutes, this clip includes instances of/references to: betrayal, fist fighting, booze, sex, virginity, relationship break up/ make up, love triangles, parental issues, peer pressure, rich kids, a dreamboat boyfriend, a saviour mother, and of course intense climactic music to accompany each scene. Throw in a little teen pregnancy and some more gossip, and the modern day formula for teen drama would be complete.

So what are these "teen dramas" of today that I keep talking about? They are the programs that, (usually unsuccessfully) mimic or re-tell storylines from 90210:

The O.C.
Though it's been cancelled from FOX, this show also followed the life of a few, hot rich kids, residing in California, whom all ran to "the saviour parental figure(s)" when any trouble arose. (in 90210, the Walshes solved the problems, but in The O.C., it was all about the Cohens). The love triangles, fist fighting, parental conflict, and relationship betrayal was all there. I suppose it's main difference when being compared to 90210 would be that a) the geek was actually hot and b) the main female character turned into a lesbian for about 5 episodes.

One Tree Hill
No rich kids, and not in California, but the teen pregnancy, the recurring love triangles and the boozing in this show are strongly reminiscent of instances in 90210. ( i.e.- Andrea giving birth while in college, the Brenda/Dylan/Kelly love fiasco, and of course, the drinking). However, the show varies mostly from 90210 in it's inclusion of creepy stalkers and even, murder. Beverly Hills was too upper-class for that.

Gossip Girl
Again with the beautiful rich kids, but this time in Manhattan, this show relies heavily on gossip (hence the title). Messy cat fights, peer pressure, and naughty love triangles drive the plot into what the show is: a pathetic attempt to make interesting all the storylines we have been watching since 1990 when 90210 began. Don't waste your time

In fear that this blog has turned into a review of modern day teen dramas, I will state that I referred to them simply to prove this point. 90210 was essentially the show that began the teen drama craze. As unrealistic and corny the episodes sometimes were, that was just the way television was in the 90's (think: FullHouse). Since the show ended after 10 seasons in 2000, other programs have attempted to re-work the storylines, but sometimes with lower ratings and success rates (The O.C. = cancelled after 4 seasons)

In short, the partying, the dramatic arguments, and the never ending love triangles just worked in 90210 because it was the first program to bring all these issues together on screen. These on screen issues were so popular amongst viewers that, a decade later, we still see them recycled all over the place while watching prime time. But, in my busy life of school and work, primetime TV is like a delicacy I can rarely experience, and instead, I happily opt for the post primetime options, and enjoy watching 90's reruns of 90210 in the wee hours of the morning. Woohoo, only an hour left till today's episode!

Take this as a Warning

Ugh. This post was supposed to be my BEST post yet. But, due to unfortunate circumstances beyond my own control, this just will not be the case. Now let me tell you this tale, because it is one (sort of) worth telling. In order to do that, we must go back to the day of ...well, sometime about two weeks ago.

It was a typical evening for me - I had been staring at my computer screen for hours, alternating between homework related websites and facebook. Somewhere in the course of all this, my roommate comes into my room and we get into one of those roommate chats - we bash our landlord, we cry about our decreasing account balances, and we laugh at conversations we'd overheard on campus that day. (I wish Windsor had one of these) Anyway, she tells me that in one of these conversations she had/overheard, she learned of a new bar in downtown Windsor called "Old School"(for which I couldn't find a website) . She also learned that it was a bar decorated in an "old-school" fashion, and that it was purely dedicated to playing "old school" tunes, primarily musical hits from the 90's. Well at this point, I'm more excited than a teeny bopper at a Backstreet boys concert, cuz for the sake of my social life and blog, this seems golden, right?


...wrong.



I went there on Saturday night. I, as a 90's lover, was thoroughly disappointed with my experience at the bar, especially because it was such a let-down after two weeks of waiting in suspense. Now on the bright side, the bar was decorated quite nicely - with walls of royal blue, covered with vintage records, and mini basketball nets - I suppose it brought me back a bit. But as for the musical selection - it was not what I thought it would be. I requested Spice Girls, Backstreet boys, and Barbie Girl, but, no dice with the DJ. After this, I realized that maybe what my roommate heard was wrong, and that maybe music from the 90's wasn't "old - school" enough. So, I requested Brown Eyed Girl and Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, but again, I had no luck.

I'm not hatin' on the bar in general - I had a pleasant time, and enjoyed the 2$ whiskeys. But as for it being a place that is dedicated to the 90's (or even 80's, or 70's for that matter) , other than the decor, I have been clearly misinformed. I recognize this post is written in quite a different style than all of my others, but this was something that I needed to share. Lovers of the 90's, if you too hear that this bar is a place that will take you back to that 90's feel, do not be fooled. I had high hopes to make this a post of praise for a 90's lovin' organization right in our own backyard, but instead, well this is what you get. My experience was nothing out of the ordinary, and my night ended off like it does every other Saturday night - alone in my living room, at 2:30 a.m., trying to remember that Spice Girls Dance...

Beyond the world of play and make believe ...

there were the tragedies, and the scandals.

When most females are little girls, they imagine that being a princess means living in a castle, having a crown of gold, and wearing a long gown of pink or lilac. My ten year old self was no exception. At this age, I enjoyed a plethora of make believe games, like playing dress up, as it gave me the chance to boast my early dramatic flare. I pranced around my house in over sized dresses and sparkling shoes from my dress up box and spoke in a lofty accent to my playmates. This is probably the reason why, on the long weekend in August of '97, when family and I were visiting with friends, my Mom simply laughed and shoo-shooed me back to my sisters as I marched up to her and the other adults on the deck to announce that "Princess Diana has died".

I did what my Mom said -went back into the TV room where the news was on every channel, reporting the death of this princess. What my mom didn't realize that night was this time, my princess game was not entirely made up. By the next morning at breakfast, my Mom seemed to have heard of the international news. She asked me if I was just playing the night before when I had told her about Princess Di, to which I shrugged my small shoulders and said "the TV said so". In this moment, I can still remember the look on my mother's face -one of simultaneous shock and sorrow. When we returned home, the face of Princess Di (who wasn't at all what I thought a princess looked like) was everywhere - in the newspaper, on covers of magazines, and on the TV. And I will never forget that.

This, to me, is unbelievable. A lifestyle above me, an ocean between us, and nothing at all in common, I can still remember the vivid details surrounding Princess Diana's death. For the rest of my life, I expect to remember the details of world events like 911 or the Virginia Tech Massacre. But Princess Diana? Undoubtedly it was a huge event, but I didn't watch the news when I was a kid, I played pogs and sang Spice Girls.

Of course, when an event is as big as something like the death of Princess Di, it moves beyond news coverage so that people of all ages remember it (albeit in different ways). Like Princess Di, there are parts of the 90's, besides toys, movies, and television, that I can clearly recall hearing about as a kid. A child and adult perspective vary greatly from each other, especially on instances of importance. I've decided to make a list of some of the top "news-related" things that I can, as accurately as possible, recall learning about in the 90's, whether voluntary or not:

1. Princess Diana (see above) and Mother Theresa - I still remember the deaths of two prominent promoters of charity that passed on within two weeks of each other. I knew that both must have been very good people, as the story of their lives' dominated the mainstream media.
   
2. O.J. Simpson, 1994/1995 - I was only 8, and I remember that my Mom said he was a 'bad man" with a black glove (which I often times got confused with the white glove of Michael Jackson, but still, they were both scary). Anyway, I knew he was in the NFL too, and football still scares me to this day.
3. Nancy Kerrigan vs. Tonya Harding, also in 1994 - I remember that Harding clubbed Kerrigan in the knee so she could win a gold medal. I never really knew exactly what happened but I got the gist - it was the wrong thing to do and Harding still placed 10th. Guess she missed about nine targets.
   
4. JonBenet Ramsey, 1996 - All I remember is that she was pretty and rich. And because of that, she was killed. But nobody knew by whom. But she was pretty.... and rich.
   
5. Bill Clinton & Monica Lewinsky, 1998 - I was 12 when this all broke out, so I understood that Clinton was adulterous, and because of that, he was an inadequate President of the U.S.A. (*Some things never change...)

These are not all the scandals, tragedies, or big news stories of the 90's. They are simply the ones I, personally, can recall best at this time. In keeping this blog, I have been doing some research into more news related issues of the 90's, and have found it interesting to learn that things like the L.A. riots and the availability of the internet also occurred in the decade. Some of these events lived solely in the 90's, but many have obviously lived on to influence our life today. To put it in perspective - without the introduction and popularization of the internet, how would I even be keeping this blog at all? (*Well, I guess some things change)

Ho-Wii Fun!

On friday night, instead of going out, I had the pleasure of playing Nintendo Wii for the first time at a friend's house. After about two hours, I had gone to the bowling alley, performed abismally at a home run derby, ventured to the tennis courts, and punched and got punched out by my friend in the boxing ring - all without leaving my friend's living room OR spending a cent. I am no gamer, but WOW, what a break through!

On my way home, I got to thinking about how the world of video games has changed significantly from the 90's. Remember good ol' Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis? Yes, they were both great systems, and Sonic the Hedgehod and Super Mario Brothers were the shiz-nit. But seriously, they got nothin' on Wii.

Now don't get me wrong - I loved and still do love Super Nintendo and am proud to say I can hum the theme song to every level of Super Mario. But since the 90's, I am happy to say that I feel video games have changed for the better. Back in the day, I, and countless other 90's kids, could frequently be found plopped one foot in front of the TV screen, craning our necks playing Nintendo or Sega. But NOW, us same kids can be found jumping around swinging bats and punches in mid-air or throwing imaginary bowling balls at the television! That, to me, is all kinds of awesome.

Sitting infront of the television vs. jumpin' around like a lunatic infront of the television. What's the better situation here? Obviously, in our North Amerian society of increasing obesity, the latter. I'm not saying that Wii will in any way solve all health problems, but alteast it encourages physical activity more so than pushing the controller to where you wanted Mario to jump did. And in present day society, where kids enjoy playing with toys like Webkins, physical activity is just what they need.

Obviously, there are still things about Super Nintendo and Sega that I will sorely miss. These primarily being the games. Paperboy, Zombies Ate My Neighbours, 3 Ninjas Kick Back. And pre Super Nintendo, Blades of Steel and Duck Hunt. As I said previously, I am no gamer, so correct me if I'm wrong but I'm pretty sure these games don't yet exist on Wii?

On the bright side, I look forward to venturing further into the world of Wii, and experiencing an all new way to game. But, at the same time, I will never neglect to play Super Nintendo or Sega given the opportunity. So what's the verdict - old school gaming systems or Nintendo Wii? Like I said before, Nintendo Wii wins the battle. But Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis will always hold a special spot in my heart. Think of it like your first love, that bond can never die.

It's finally here...The Plog

A few posts back, I took a big step. And, in taking this big step, I may have seriously injured my reputation as a lover of the 90's. But, although I told you I didn't watch Ninja Turtles, I can assure you that I did do other cool things growing up (I mean, besides collecting beanie babies). One of these cool things I did was play pogs. So, I'm pretty confident my rep. should still be in tact.

Pogs. Ohhh pogs, they were quite possibly my favourite fad of the decade. Because of their cool factor, I have decided to title this entry after a newly crafted word I've invented through combining the word blog and pog. "PLOG". You are reading a plog. A plog does two things: elicits those warm nostalgic fuzzies we all get in our tummies, and also, investigates deeper issues - like the mysterious disappearance of pogs from the playground. Well, that's what my plog does anyway. I don't actually know if other plogs exist.

So for that first part. Warm fuzzies. I will take this time to recall my experiences in the pog world, and hopefully they will be somewhat similar to your own.

Pogs were first introduced to me at school, when I was about 9 or 10. At first, I did not quite grasp the concept of the game, but after observing for a short amount of time, I dived into the pog world head first. I mean this literally - head first - becuase in my head, I thought I would be good, but in actuality, I was just a mediocre pog player.

Because my pog collection was still quite small, and I was not a great player, I knew it was not wise to play for "keeps" right away. I didn't give up, and I continued to practice until I felt confident in my pog playing abilities. Soon, I knew how to throw down my eight ball slammer sideways to make the pogs flip over just right (commonly known as knifing) , I knew that metal slammers (especially the ones with the spikes) got the job done, but were mostly banned from keepsy games, and I knew which pogs were the "good" ones. (not those crappy imitation pogs with a goofy made up cartoon character on the front)

I was ready to enter the real gaming world and play for keeps. In the real world, I learned the various pog personalities that existed faster than I had learned the basics. The pog personalities that I was familiar with were as follows: the spectator, the poser, and the gifted. The spectator was that kid who didn't actually own any of his or her own pogs, but took pleasure in observing games, and sometimes, even spectating aloud the happenings of the match. The poser was that kid who had more than one pog case to keep all of his or her pogs in. But this was not because the poser was especially good at playing pogs, it's because a) they were spoiled or b) they stole. And lastly, the gifted. The gifted pog player had a crapload of pogs because he or she was just plain good. When playing for keeps, I always avoided the gifted players, and seeked out the posers instead. It worked to my advantage.

My pog collection blossomed, and I even got the chance to play in my friend's brother's pog arena. I played pogs every recess at school, after school in my neighborhood, and in the evening against my sisters. And then - suddenly - pogs were banned from school. :(


This brings me to the second part of my plog - attempting to uncover the reasons behind the banning of pogs at school. First I would like to note that I, myself, was a fairly reserved pog player. I followed the rules and played the game fairly, and always made it clear when I was or was not playing for keeps. Unfortunately, not all pog players were like me, and there were matches that caused absolute mayhem amongst my school mates (like when a poser beat a gifted player). I remember once, my teacher announced that 100 pogs from a classmate's desk had gone missing, and I bet you that kid is still mad. But these were just the extreme cases. More generally, I think pogs went bye-bye as they were considered a form of gambling.

Schools simply could not advocate the playing of pogs for "keeps". We were kids afterall. When we lost our "good" pogs, we just didn't understand the concept of gambling. In our minds, the pogs we had just lost somehow still belonged to us, and we envied little Johnny as he added them to his collection . In addition, children were getting "tricked" by wise pog players, who would trade their pogs of low value for pogs that were worth much more. I don't even know how small pieces of cardboard varied in value at all, but hey - that was pogs.Pogs still existed outside of school, but as children spend most of their time there, the popularity of pogs declined.

It's sad really, especially for us pog players who weren't the hard core gambling type. On the flip side of that, I recognize the problems that playing pogs at school posed. The same went with hockey cards and pokemon cards. The practices themselves kicked ass, it was just the fact that children were not mature enough to comprehend gambling that they didn't work. Alas, now that we are older, I believe that us kids of the 90's should, and could, revamp the popularity of pogs amongst adults. I just hope we don't get them banned from University too.

TY Warner, you owe me $1800

Coming home for Thanksgiving brought me back to my 90's childhood more than I ever imagined it would. This afternoon, as I was leafing through my family albums for some good ol' fashioned nostalgia, I stumbled across an album featuring photos that I had totally forgotten about. It seems, that in my childhood, dedicating an entire 24 roll of film to pictures of my sisters and I with our beanie babies was a sensible thing to do. The pictures featured us sitting in, around, among, and maybe even on, our beanie babies - and quite frankly, angered me to look at.

Here, I'll share one with you.... On the surface, this picture is a little but cute right? (sorry for the bad quality)

But I encourage you to look deeper, and you will see how this picture is alot nauseating. Keep in mind readers that this photo was taken sometime closer to the beginning of my BB collecting days. I know this because our beanie babies still fit on a shelf. Not long after this "photoshoot" was completed, our collection grew too large for that small shelf, and moved on to bigger and better storage : one of those net thingy-mah-jings that hanged from the ceiling of my bedroom.

Now this is the very reason why this picture makes me go BLAH. This photo is pictorial evidence of the utter obsession I - and many other kids of the 90's - had, with coloured bags of , well....beans..with googly eyes, tails, and red TY tags sewn on them. This picture alone features roughly 27 of these bagged beanie animals that I (err...my parents) actually spent money on. And this is nowhere near how many BBs I had at the end of my collecting days. In fact, by the time I had purchased my last BB, I boasted a collection of about 150 plush toys. If I remember correctly, beanie babies costed between $10-$15 in the 90's, but for the sake of this next experiment, let's say the average cost of a BB was...$12.

Though math has never been my strong point, I do know that $12 X 150 = ALOT. ($ 1800). GAH! One-thousand,-eight-hundred-smackers gone from my life forever. Here are the reasons why I'm bitter:

$1800 = a good fraction of a semester's tuition
$1800 = approxiametely half a year worth of grocery shopping
$1800 = around 30 tanks of gas
$1800 = about 765 bus fares
and the shocker $1800=...........900 2 dollar drinks.

Oh - and that 2 minutes just wasted of my life calculating that, I'm pissed about that too.

When I collected beanie babies, I totally thought they were going to be worth something some day. I bought tag protectors (because they were more 'valuable' with their red tags in tact) I kept them on display and out of harm's way, I dilligently examined each tag for the silver stamp to indicate their autheniticity before purchase, and I even spent hours arranging them according to natural habit (water animals, rainforest animals, farm animals) Hahah, maybe that last one was just because I'm a geek. Whatever the case, I have been sadly misinformed...as my BB's are now estimated to be worth about $1.25 a piece. (Just check your e-bay account)

Don't get me wrong readers, I loved the 90's. But I definetely do not love Ty Warner for inventing beanie babies during the 90's. (Either that, or I'm mad I didn't come up with the idea first.) Maybe then I'd be sitting where he is...#49 on the "400 Richest Americans List". And, I hope, in all his richness, if he ever stumbles across this rant - that he is so moved he decides to give me back my $1800. C'mon Ty, that's freaggin pocket change for you!

A Couple of Things

Number one: Out with my old layout. It was as tacky as a 90's pair of skants.

Number two: TMNT are still "all that". I just got home from dinner with my mom (who teaches kindergarten) She informed me that two of her students won't listen to her unless she calls them "Leo" and "Raph". Holy turtle power.

Cowabunga Dude!

90’s lovin’ readers, I have a tiny confession to make. But before I do that, I feel I should explain myself. One of four sisters, I grew up in a fairly ‘girly’ household playing dress up, barbies, and reading J-14. I’m not saying there were “girl” things and “boy” things to do as a kid, but I blame my impending confession on my gender. I…didn’t watch Ninja Turtles. I know what you’re thinking…(…that I’m lame? ...that I shouldn’t even call myself a lover of the 90’s without having watched TMNT?) Well, just cut it out. I fully recognize that TMNT ruled the decade. And I know the basics – it started off as comic book around late 80’s, and erupted with fame on TV in the 90’s. But still, I need to know more, like about the characters. So, I took it upon myself to do a bit of umm…fieldwork..,– which can be more accurately described as… chatting with pals on MSN. I am now slowly realizing what my childhood majorly lacked.

Study A – Leonardo

- * a n g i e * - says:
who was your favourite ninja turtle?
Chuck says:
Leonardo!
- * a n g i e * - says:
why?
Chuck says:
cause he's blue, has the best weapon (sword), and is quite brave

So between Chuck’s description of Leonardo as “quite brave”, and some of my own further research, I think it’s safe to say that Leo was sort of the alpha dog of the group. He was fair, and valiant, and took his martial arts studies seriously, like a good turtle should.

Study B – Donatello

- * a n g i e * - says

who was your favourite ninja turtle?

Miss Nicole says:

purple!

- * a n g i e * - says:

do you remember why?

Miss Nicole says:

I dunno, he was the brains of everything

My level headed, intellectual roommate chose Donatello, and it seems to make perfect sense. Apparently he was the most peaceful Ninja turtle, and used his brains over weapons to solve problems. Oh – and thiis guy was plain brilliant – inventor of the Turtle Van and the Turtle Blimp!

Study C – Michelangelo

- * a n g i e * - says:
who was your favourite ninja turtle?
ness says:
LOL Mikey!
- * a n g i e * - says:
how come?
ness says:
because he's fun like me! and says cool things like DUDE and RADICAL! and COWABUNGA!

So I might not have actually watched TMNT but I definitely copied the cool kids at school and said COWABUNGA. Michaleangelo was the fun turtle – laid back, relaxed, and eating pizza with anchovies most of the time. He wore the orange mask and had a sweet pair of numchucks too.

Study D - Raphael

- * a n g i e * - says:
Dave, who was your favourite ninja turtle?
Dave says:
michaelangelo
- * a n g i e * - says:
didn't ANYONE like raphael??
Dave says:
nah, he was a pretty angry and secluded ninja turtle, not very fun, or even useful

My friend Dave summed poor Raph up pretty well. Last but not least, he was the cynical figure of the four. Always sarcastic and probably the most violent, he often was instigating fights with others.

So there you have the stars behind all the hype- the TV show, the backpacks, the action figures, even the shoelaces that my cousin Mat stole from Zellers when he was five. As for where the “Turtle Power” lies today, Imagi Animation Studios released a comeback film , entitled TMNT in March of this year. The story seems to pick up where it left off : in the sewers of NY after the defeat of their arch nemesis , “The Shredder”, the troop has somewhat drifted. Leonardo and Master Splinter forge some unity into the group of turtles and once again, they save the city. Like many other passed crazes of the 90’s, I was not surprised to read that the movie received some pretty harsh reviews. Just like TGIF, the popularity of TMNT flourished in the 90’s and lacked it’s turtle power in the new millennium. As one critic and former fan of the turtles put it best, the movie “ is a bland, plain cheese when it shouldbe a supreme with extra anchovies.” Michelangelo would not be impressed.

Just (don't) call me.... Fashion Diva Extraordinaire

Now that I’m keeping this 90’s blog, I frequently visit the TeamSugar’s 90’s group site. Yesterday I came across a pretty cool discussion entitled “90’s Clothing: What Did You Wear”? A few replies made mention to the same types of clothing: overly baggy pants, knee highs and plaid skirts (a la Clueless), and of course those God awful spiral perms. I personally felt there were a few key styles of the 90's that still deserved mention:

THE TRENDS…

Butterfly Clips
Didn’t actually do much to hold things in place, but what was cooler than having pink and purple butterflies in your hair?? Nothing. I had them in every colour.

90’s Grunge Appeal
I remember the big high school kids passing by the fence at recess wearing over sized flannel shirts over top rock concert tees. Oh, and long tresses of dark greasy hair.

Back Pack Purses
Ahh, these things were the coolest! I know for a fact I never kept anything inside of mine. I remember my first one looked a lot like this. <-------

Northern Getaway
The One-Stop-Shop for my back to school wardrobe every year. Oh how I miss the floral print leggings and baggy sweatshirts.

THE FAUX PAS…

Overalls
By far the most uncomfortable look of the 90’s, but still - I had a pair. Ugh, worse than wearing a one piece pyjama set.

Doc Martens
Reeedonkulously overpriced ($100 a pair!) and they looked like freakin’ combat boots.

The Fanny Pack
Seriously, wearing these things made it look like you had two asses. One in the front, one in the back. ‘Nuff said.

Skants
A skirt…a pair of pants? A case of dressing in the dark? What (and WHY!!) were they? I’m still confused ten years later.

There's tons more...Platform shoes, the return of bell-bottoms / "flares", snap bracelets, and tear-aways. But that's all for right now... I'm no fashion diva. I still wear my fanny packs!