Whither Upside?

That is a picture of my grey tabby cat Bluto upside down. He was all of maybe five months old in that picture. But to this day he still enjoys being upside down. You can hold him & he will stretch out until he is upside down. No other creature in the house - nor any cat I have ever owned - enjoys this particular thing.

Anyway. The theme this week is "upside." It could also be "upside down" but I wanted to find songs that specifically mentioned the word "upside." Since an "upside" is a different thing than the word "upside" in the phrase "upside down." Spoiler alert! I found more upside down songs than upside songs. Perhaps I'll discuss it on the show.

& no this isn't telling you why that's the theme because the reason it's the theme is a little dumb. I was looking at the list of themes I have explored (which you can find here) & I noticed I had only explored - in 23 years! - themes that began with the letter U a mere eleven times. What could I explore to add something to that short list? "Up" would have too many choices. My upside down? But then I thought - let's see if there are any songs just using the word "upside." There couldn't be a downside to that!

The upside show airs in this upside down world tonight from midnight to 2am on KBOO - 90.7fm in town, kboo dot fm everywhere. Maybe there's an upside to all this.

Preface To Upside: Upside Down Nation

That picture was taken in Fort Worth, Texas, a lifetime ago. Or maybe just eight years. It seems too long ago. Every day we walked with the dogs in our neighborhood, & our walk took us past an elementary school, Ridgelea Hills Elementary. Sometimes our walk took us behind the school, in the area where the children played/had recess. One day - apparently March 11, 2018 - I saw that someone had taken apart some monkey bars - that's what we used to call them - & turned the thing upside down.

A year after that, my wife would accept a job in Portland & my life would change again, but I had no idea that would happen when I took this picture. Then as now, I did my best to find joy where I could - that usually involves radio, my pets, & my wife - despite what is happening in the world. I have lived through the Reagan presidency, as well as two Bushes, & was living through Trump One at the time that picture was taken. It has been exhausting but nothing could have prepared me for the first three weeks of this year.

This morning on The Dickenbock Report, I said something like this: Please don't think because I try to have fun with this ridiculous radio show that I'm not aware of the creeping fascism that threatens our lives. I try to have fun but it's hard when goons who can't even pass an open-book test murder nurses in our streets. Please know I'm sad & angry & know this cannot stand.

What's true is I feel helpless too & don't want to be like my German grandparents were in the 1930s when Germany went full fascist. My mother used to tell me about people in her village disappearing but also that the economy was great & my grandfather could buy a car for the very first time. I don't want the fact that I allowed to make stupid radio shows to be a freedom I have at the expense of others. I am carrying within me an alarming amount of guilt.

The people in Minnesota are so strong, the proud boy gestapo so despicable. We marched in the No Kings March & the stations I am at are proudly anti-fascist. But I do wish I could do more.

If you notice any hesitancy - any embarrassment - any small lack of commitment to my programs - it's because seeing my fellow citizens stand up to a mad king's private racist army while I make dumb noises into a microphone seems like a betrayal. & yet there's really little else I can do.

My apologies. But also my gratitude if you understand. Because I'll keep making my dumb radio shows.