If you’re a fan of this site then it should come
as no surprise when
I say everyone here at the office is a lil’ obsessive.
Lulu will stay up
until 2 am on a school night rereading Nancy Drew mysteries,
Chris
will see some Old Navy commercial, then turn to me and say, “Put
your shoes on. We’re going to buy Performance Fleece NOW!!!” and
me, well, it seems each week I’ve got a new crush. On Tuesday I
can’t
stop talking about Vinnie and his tampon cases and then by
Sunday I suddenly
must know everything about Claire Grogan of
80’s band Altered Images. Whatever
did we do before Google?
Actually, I remember. When I was a kid I would go to the library
each week and
carry out mini research projects. I’d scroll through
the microfiche to
learn all I possibly could about Doug and Suzie
Tompkins of Esprit or check out
back issues of any magazine that
mentioned the CK model Josie Borain.
But I’d also have these weird fascinations with people in my every
day
life, like Alice the lunchlady who had the word “Elvis” inscribed
in her gold tooth. Those subjects were more difficult to discover, but
not really.
I’d simply interview them for my zine “Hurricane.” We’d
talk up a storm! Turns out working at a high school is the perfect
set-up for
Elvis fans. This way you’ve got summers off and never
miss your yearly
pilgrimage to Graceland to honor the King on
August 16th, the day of his untimely
passing...
Point is, you can learn a lot from a crush. Best case scenario, your
life will
completely be changed. Try to remember that the next time
you see some cute boy
or girl on the bus and then let shyness get
the best of you. I’m living
proof! I met Chris and Lulu at a birthday
party in 1996 and now can’t imagine
what I would be doing without
them. There would be no fredflare.com,
that’s
for sure.
This year for my birthday those two gave me my very own column
which you are
reading right now! (Thanks, guys.) This is where
you’ll learn about some
of my all-time fave people as well as a few
new discoveries. I’m actually
pretty shy myself but here you’ll find
me to be a real people person! I’ll
give raves, I’ll gush and every
coupla weeks I’ll tell you a secret
crush... Email me anytime at keith@fredflare.com and
tell me yours. I’d
love to hear from you! Xoxox, Keith
You know how you have certain friends or family
members that you pretty much only see at holidays? Charlie Brown is
kinda like that for me. If I’m lucky we get to spend Halloween, Thanksgiving and
Christmas together. Most of the time, though, I am not so lucky.
This year I decided to take matters into my own hands and purchase
the Peanuts
Holiday Collection DVD, a blockhead bonanza featuring It's the Great
Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, A
Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, A Charlie Brown Christmas as well as a few
other delights. Happily,
Charlie and I have been hanging out a lot
this season!
Watching those amazing made-for-television specials is like traveling in a
time machine. Wasn’t I just enjoying this while dancing in my pink jammies
with the feet? Didn’t Mom just sew a red zig-zag sweatshirt for my brother
Kevin for Halloween? It seems like yesterday. Now Kevin’s started a new
job as a professor in a strange new town, Fargo, ND. We’re both in our
thirties. How did this happen? Good grief!
Charlie hasn’t changed, though, and he reminds me of my brother as much
as ever: somewhat unlucky and a lil’ depressed a lot of the time. Gosh,
that doesn’t sound like much of a compliment. All the same, you can totally
relate and you keep rooting for the sweet boy who shows up with the tiny tree
that just needs a little TLC.
I read something recently about A Charlie Brown Christmas that
I found fascinating. Apparently, in 1965 James Aubrey, an executive at CBS,
originally vetoed the
special because he feared good ol’ Charlie Brown was too much of a "loser" and
wouldn't draw an audience. Of course the opposite happened and the show has
been rebroadcast ever since. It’s true what they say: You’re a
winner, Charlie Brown!
Hey Kevin! What are you doing for Thanksgiving? Why don’t you come up
to NYC and Charlie and Snoopy can fix us some popcorn
and toast. I miss you!
