Archive for radio sites

Summer Numbers. Rocking at Rogers.

{ October 5, 2006 @ 6:05 pm } · { radio sites }
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Summer Number Crunching’: It’s that time in the year that no real radio guy really cares about, but should – especially if you want to know if you have anyone listening to you. The summer radio ratings came out this week. Again, no one really cares. See, radio habits change during the summer. People leave on vacations. They sleep-in and call it a long weekend. Kids are home and in the car and they take over the radio presets. The morning show groups take off and the boss has the PM guy fill in for them. Then, the weekend prime time guy fills in for that guy and the weekend producer slash intern slash newsperson fills in for that guy and… Well, you get the picture. Usually, I would be more insightful about these numbers but again, it’s only the summer numbers, so I’ll just give you the important news. In that all-important 12 plus bracket, CHUM-FM continues to lead the pack with a promising 8.7 share (one share equals 100,000 ears tuned in) while soft rocker CHFI follows gaining a couple of points with a 8.6. It’s been a year since the media swamped Erin Davis and Mike Cooper took over the morning drive show and the numbers are showing that Davis devotees and long time Cooper groupies are plugged in throughout the day. While its obvious that Toronto women lead the way for listening to radio (both ‘FI and CHUM target the women ear), Toronto’s cornerstone for guy radio climbed in with another hard showing moshing in at 3rd place. The still Mighty Q107 did a dazzling 7.9 and is clocked in at number one for males 25-54 with a solid 14.6 share point. Meanwhile, Q’s brother station and innovative rocker, EDGE 102 continues to be chosen by most males in the local area between the ages 18-34 with a sturdy 18.8 share while they were 16.7 last year. While EZ Rock falls down from their once comfortable lead over the heap and MIX went out of sight, it’ll be interesting to see what the suits will do to gain better numbers for the upcoming fall book. That’s the book that people actually care about. Yes kids, There is a reason why your radio station always gives you a million bucks and a trip to Cuba during the fall months.     Rocking with Rogers: My first day was on Tuesday where I did the camera for this show called In Tune with Real Estate. Good group of people and a fast show. At least, that hour for me went really fast. If you’re in York Region you can catch the show live every Tuesday at 8-9pm. Check the site for more details and when it’ll repeat.

Playing Tag on the Radio

{ September 20, 2006 @ 2:40 pm } · { radio sites }
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I remember when I first met Dick Smythe. It was the same day when met Tom Rivers. It was a weekday morning in the summer of 1989 when my father and I got up in the wee hours of a summers morning, to head downtown Toronto to meet the Rivers Air Force on All Hits 680 CFTR. Back then, a young person to head into the studio to meet the number one morning show, was like being able to sit in on a studio session with Beyonce.

In those days, the disk jockeys were celebrities. The radio show was like a TV Show. If you met one of those guys on the radio, you better have your autograph book out because you’d need proof when you tell your friends you met a real life Dick Jockey from the Radio!

I met a few that day. First it was in master control to meet my pal, Rivers. We chatted on and off air. I looked around examining how he would answer the phones, talk to the producer, and get into the mood before going on air. I drank my orange juice slowly taking everything in and practicing any bits that Riv would pass my way. Then, it was a break. Rivers got up and told me I was taking `a trip around the Force’. He and show producer, Dave Tooke gave me the tour. First, the Music Library where I learned that Rick Deez never did a show from the downtown studios, but it was pre-recorded and put on record. Second, it was other production rooms where the commercials were made. I took a quick peak inside the some offices of “the suits” – as Riv would call them – and then it was time to head into the newsroom. Three of my favourite all time news people were working, that morning. Evelyn Macko, Gloria Martin and the legendary Dick Smythe.

“He was the guy from TV,” I thought. Both my Dad and I were memorized as I remembered how I made fun of the broadcasting vet just a few weeks prior. After a Jays game one Sunday, I saw Smythe walking out and throwing something into the fountain. As the good RAF correspondent that I was, I called Rivers the next morning to tell him the eyewitness report of the events that went down the day before. Earlier on that morning, Dick remarked during a commentary that he had spent most of his time at the bar because the game of baseball was getting boring. As Tom and I were waiting to record the bit, Tom advised me to say something as the punch line. I agreed. Seconds later, we’re on. Tom and I talked about the Jays win and my new box seats that my father had just bought earlier on that season. I then told him of the Smythe sighting. I told him that I saw newsman throw what looked like a penny or a dime into the fountain after the game. Tom asked if Smythe said anything when he did it. I promptly replied, “Yeah. He said to keep the change, bartender”.

I quickly zoomed back to the present day. I heard someone talk to me. It was he. Smythe asked me if I was the little guy who is always on the radio with Tom. I replied, “Yes I was, sir”. He asked me if I liked news. I said, “kinda”. He asked me if I wanted to replace him. I said “someday”. He laughed and went on with his work.

People you look up to always seem bigger and have this light surrounding them when you first meet them. Dick had the light. He seemed huge. Moments later, I would see him in his realm. In the newsroom reading the news. His shaking head would move from left to right constantly looking up for the time check. Confident. Determined. Passionate. He was the Dan Rather of Toronto radio news. The Paul Harvey of Toronto radio Commentaries.

Always controversial, Dick was the best at delivering his own opinions. Sometimes it sounded like how he just wanted to get through the news just so he could tell the listeners what was on his mind – much like how a kid had to clean his room before going to play tag. The commentaries were Dick’s game of tag.

In Toronto, some people were fans of Brian Henderson. Some were fans of John Gilbert. I was a Smythe supporter.  Like how a “bad-guy” wrestler knows he did a good job after a match when the whole venue wants to kick his butt, Smythe knew he did a good job when he got calls about what he said during the 8 o’clock commentary. Fans would’ve gotten into the ring with him after each morning show in a steal cage match.

The passion Smythe carried into the newsroom every morning is missed. We still do have the Oakley’s, the Richards’, the Stafford’s, the Carroll’s, but like how every year the grade nine class looks up to someone in grade 12, the kids looked up to the vets of the school. They paved the way, after all. Smythe was the rebellious one. The one in the leather jacket, smoking his cigar in the middle of class – but still scoring top grades because he had intelligence.

   

Watch out Barkeep, your talking to a wise one there.

Mixing Up a Good Idea

{ August 8, 2006 @ 11:11 pm } · { radio sites }
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Mixed Up: Contemporary Hit Radio is the place where the kids can be kids – times a thousand. It’s Chuck ‘E’ Cheese, The Gap, the candy store, Friday night at Famous Players and the biggest, baddest concert all rolled up into one gnarly audio package of coolness.

Our parents had CHUM, The Beatles, Jay Armstrong and Terry Steele. We had CFTR, New Kids on the Block, Tom Rivers, and Jesse and Gene. The new generation had KISS92.5, Kid Carson, and Tarzan Dan. Top 40 Radio has been a cornerstone to a teenagers’ life since the five boys from England came overseas and stole the hearts of our girlfriends. It was in the background when we were scheming to skip school on Friday so we could line up for concert tickets. It was there when we were buying our first CD at HMV. It sat next to us when we were on our first date. It held our hand during those troublesome teenage years

Top 40 Radio was our Friend.

Real Top 40 Radio has been out of this market for the past few years. Ever since KISS 92 was silenced back in 2003 when the frequency flipped over to the popular JACK format.

Rumours said Toronto’s MIX99.9 will be doing some shacking and tweaking. They fire local morning hero Humble Howard. Not even a week after, they let all the jocks go on summer vacation. They’ll return in a few weeks, they promise.

Or will they?

August 8th marked the new day of the MIX. Now known as “Ninty nine nine Mix-Fm”, instead of “The Mix Ninty Nine Point Nine FM”, the station reunites popular morning combo of Mad Dog and Billie who were formally fronting the KISS morning run. They add in a few more tracks namely of the Top 40 kind. The Urban Top40 kind. Rihanna, Gnarls Barkley and Shakira were some of the new students in the class.

The New Mix has Energy. In your face fuel that’s full of back-to-back music, high power jocks, fast and quirky promos and a good beat to top it all off.  Then I saw the new logo.

I lost confidence in the change.

  

I then realized that people were programming the new station in town that’s supposed to be for the Kids are three times the Kids age. The people who think that Michelle Branch – who they also play – is heavy metal and should go well inside that six in row music sweep. If it was made after ’95, them kids will like it said the directors in the office. The logo gave everything away. MIX is still the processed cheese that Standard hopes the kids will fall for and bit into.

They always experiment on the little mice.

 If you build it, they will come. They will listen. But before you open the front gates, make sure that home base isn’t broken.

Blockage, Radio dildos and one for Lance, Too…

{ July 27, 2006 @ 12:53 am } · { blogs, music industry related stuff, radio sites }
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My weekly dose of random thoughts, verbal barfs, intoxicating written farts and mental drunken dots on the great big white paper that we call the Internet blog.

  

Writers block sucks: Here’s a little secret: When I have writers block, I tend to refrain from picking up one subject and running with it, but I instead pick various subjects and make little snappy quirks about them. It works, most of the time. Sometimes, I can’t even make a sentence about anything and decide to just stop for the day and come back to it tomorrow. What inspires me to write? Other people, mostly. When I know I’m going to write a blog (usually on Tuesdays) I frequent some other blogers and see what they’re writing about. My favourites are usually from the same kind of mind-frame as I. Music, Media, Television, and Sociological issues. Life. Anything that sparks my imagination and creativity. Lately, I’ve been hooked on the latest trend of Hollywood gossip pages like Parez Hilton and Socialites Life. They make me feel like I’m a ten year old again, reading the latest happenings of Cory Haim and Alyssa Milano in Tiger Beat Magazine. I do it for shit and giggles for the most part. And yes. Maybe there’s this tiny part of me that really wants to know which guy Tara Reid was walking around with last night at some tiny LA café/bar/nightclub/drug dealer hangout.  Just a tiny bit. Okay. Maybe this much. But that’s the most. I swear.

A Mixed Feeling: Someone asked me how do I know that MIX will be changing formats come fall. Or maybe even sooner? You don’t really have to be a media expert or anything but when a station fires the whole morning team, asks the listeners what that want the station to sound like and even remove all on-air talent from the stations web-page, you know SOMETHING is up. Top40 Gabber? Smooth Jazz? Country? We don’t know. Some media nerds did some research, though. Standard seems to own a wack-load of Top 40 stations out west and are bringing in decent numbers. Maybe that’s what they’ve been looking for since the MIX format has slowly fallen to the heap of demolished formats and lost listeners. Could this also confirm that Madd Dog and Billie could be fronting the morning rush? Reunite the same due that took TOP40 jukebox KISS92 into glory and then for a quick fast fall into the ground?  I think we might have a new station, Mr. Slaight. Oh by the way. Breaking news. Z103’s own gossip queen, Pina will be running across the street come fall to the MIX. She joins EZ Rock’s Ron Young who have been both hired by the Standard station.

Lance likes it in the A^%: Who knew? I did. The ex-boy band play-toy Lance Bass has come out of the closet. I sure did get the hints way back when his former Nsync band mate Justin Timberlake broke up with Britney Spears. I mean, you’d think Justin would get a hint when Bass was the first one to ask out for dinner.

Seriously, though. I can see this being the beginning of a new road for the old pop star. A new solo album. Doing a cover with Elton John. Interviews galore. A candid talk with Oprah. This really does smell familiar. Oh wait. We’re missing one thing to make it sound exactly like George Michael’s career. Yeah. That whole washroom thing.

Nevermind. Maybe he could do something risqué in an adult cinema and then push for a top rated Saturday morning kids show talking to furniture and wear a red bowtie with a grey suit.

Mom, Pop and Howard, Too…

{ July 17, 2006 @ 10:43 pm } · { blogs, radio sites }
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Home Cooked Meals: There’s this mom-and-pop store down the block. For years the little variety store has become the fabric of the community. Over the years they’ve become a bit bigger and owned a few other stores in the city. But they remained local. Intimate. It’s at the store where we picked up the newspaper to read about 9-11, The Jays World Series win. Kept up-to-date with OJ’s trial. We always picked up our birthday cards for family and friends from there. We even invite the owners into our house once in a while – just to say thank you. Thanks for being them – Small, personal. Family oriented. Home grown. In a world of high sky rises, folks trying to race to be The Apprentice and big corporate chains where your only a number to the Big Guy, it’s always nice to have a family owned business that you can support.

Always support the Little Guy.

Just got word that the mom-and-pop store is being bought by one of the biggest competitors in the city. This same company owns many other variety stores not only in the city but also in the whole of Canada. The word is that they’ll be cutting jobs to “increase focus on service” to local customers.

Cutting jobs to increase focus? Huh?

What will happen to the 191 full time employees and 90 part timers who’ve made this family owned company their home for so many years? Some of them too old to find another job and some are too young to find a gig as good as the one they once had.

Okay. You get it. I’m not really talking about a variety store.

Nah.

I’m talking about the CHUM/Bell Globemedia merger.

CHUM being the little guys. Bell Globemedia being the big dudes.

Some say that CITY-TV won’t be here in a year. Some others say that CHUM radio will be going through major facelifts throughout the next six months.

What will happen to our TV station that’s promised us to be “everywhere?”

Will they still be everywhere?

Who will be the voices and faces of the CHUM outlets in a year?

Questions. Too many. Change. For the better?

This is the media world, after all.

This is the biggest merger in northern media history, they say. It’ll take some getting used to. Change is good, sometimes. Sometimes it’s for the best. But not when the people you’re kicking out of the door is all part of one family. Your family.

I Saw this Coming: I’ve been covering radio for so long, there’s usually a bad aroma that goes around in my mind when I feel like something huge is going to happen. Not a merge or anything, but a firing. A MIX-up. A time when a loved morning man will be shown the door to be replaced by a new crew come fall. I saw this one coming. Humble Howard – local morning man in the Toronto market for two decades was given the pink slip this week at Mix99.9.

He’s still going to get a Standard cheque until the Summer of 2008.

Where does this leave Howard? Getting back with Freddie P – his long time partner who together made classic radio at CFNY, MOJO Radio and lastly at MIX? Speculations are that an old but familiar morning team will be filling the shoes of the morning stint at the MIX come fall.

Madd Dog and Billie who haven’t been heard in this market since their CHFI downfall two years ago, is said to be pairing back up to try to save MIX’s low numbers.

Will it work?

Does this whole CHUM deal with BGM have anything to do with it?

Where does this leave our listeners? Loyal ears that will miss the morning mix-up with Howard and company?

Will we ever hear how respected jock, again?

Come fall, hopefully some answers will be given. But this is radio’s favourite time to play tricks on us. Just like that guy who went away for the summer only to return to realize his number one morning team has been shown the door, Howard is basking in the sun down south – trying to fathom what will he be doing in the fall.

Dust of the resume, Howard. Clean your demo, Bud. You’ll need those.

Dark Clouds come over the CITY

{ June 22, 2006 @ 8:23 pm } · { blogs, radio sites }
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Dark Clouds: Clear sunny days. Dark dim stormy overnights. He forecasted the Indian summers, the deep freezes and the Hurricanes. He spoke of sizzling summer Sunday sundowns while grabbing protection when pouring rain was on the horizon. He brought out the boots when teen feet of the white stuff covered the city streets.

Now, he’s out in the cold.

With one phone call on Sunday from CITY head brass saying he’s not to report to work on Monday, Meteorologist Harold Hosein was trying to fathom how his unique and long loved local forecasts are no longer needed. The first time in 17 years.

“I was pushed out,” Hosein told the Toronto Sun. Meanwhile CITY-boss Stephen Hurlbut relayed a different story. Hosein “was at that stage in his life when he was looking for a new challenge” Hurlbut said of little hints Hossein made of becoming a financial planner. “We wish him nothing but the best of luck”.

Hosein said that the planner line was just a “front”. “I am not a financial planner. I do not know what I am going to do”.

The 66-year old Trinidadian worked at Environment Canada for 21-years before entering the 299 Queen West offices. He still can be heard on 680 News where he has been delivering weather on the tens for years. “I’m happy that they’re still glad to have me”.

Hosein is the second victim of the firing bug going around the CHUM Empire. A month back, another meteorologist, Nadine Hinds-Powell was suddenly axed from the Queen West weather-roof. She soon reappeared over at Global.

Starting Monday, CITY brings in weather-guy, Michael Kuss to replace Hosein.  Kuss worked in the local market at Global and also at Edmonton’s A-Channel. The BC-born is “a perfect fit,” remarked Hurlbut. “He’s a full, blue-blooded meteorologist”.

While there isn’t any formal goodbye planned for the friendly weather guy on the roof at CITY, Hosein stated that his co-workers were in “utter-surprise, dismay, disbelief” upon hearing the news on the release of the vet.

CITY scored poorly in the last ratings book while finishing third for their six o’clock newscasts. With just 100,000 eyes tuned in, they were behind first place CTV and runner-up, Global.

Dreaming about a Relay for Money Makin in the Northern Land.

{ May 25, 2006 @ 7:03 pm } · { blogs, music industry related stuff, radio sites }
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Knowing the News: A while back I taught eager readers how to write. Forget all format, rules and write like you speak, I yelled through the pages. Yes, Correct. Keep that in mind. Now let’s continue.

News.

What is News? Why are some News stories bigger on Friday and not on a Monday?

Here ya go.

Take notes.

News is something worthwhile to talk about on the top of each hour to inform the listener of what’s really happening in the world while they’re busy driving the kids to school, picking up groceries, running other errands or heading to work. It’s blabber glue to keep the head together throughout the day. Some stations give an in-depth look at the happenings while others just play with the headlines. These stations are usually music driven, female focused outlets that make you think everything in the world centres around your three year old tot and how much tissue is today at Loblaws.

When writing the news, you have to know your audience. Even if you’re a top rated hard – hitting news radio station, sometimes your listener needs a break from the doom-and-gloom of today’s world.

Rule of thumb. News is usually the hardest on Monday’s. That’s when everything that happened during the weekend is given airtime. How many shootings in the local bad part of town, the local solder shot on Sunday, and tax hikes that are planned to be talked about in this weeks meeting. That’s what I mean by Hard Hitting. Stuff that makes you want to stay in bed for five more days.

Tuesday is the leftover from the weekend news stories and what ever happened during the wild Monday drive. If you notice, Mondays’ always have some kind of car crash somewhere. Monday is the worst day to be on the road. People aren’t always at their best.

Wednesday is hump day. Talks of the upcoming long weekend could be the forth story in.  Words from the Entertainment world like the latest Cowell comment from the previous nights American Idol, or new information on who got married on a private beach would be top fluff stories.

Thursday is the beginning of the fluff stories taking priority. The news desk is gearing up for the weekend and don’t want to bother their listener with sad stories on the latest shooting in the city.

Friday is when weekend events like the food festival, the opening of an amusement park is more important than tax cuts or the latest on the war.

All in all, writing news is hard. You have to “feel the room”, you have to write something in two lines or less but still inform your demographic in a way that they can have a valid understanding of what’s going on. They use you to see their own newscast inside their mind. Listen to news people and see how they do it. EZ Rock’s Evelyn Macko and FAN’s Larry Silver are two of note in this market that do it best.

  

Money Makers: Last month’s Toronto Life magazine gossiped about the major money earners in the Canadian media market. One of my local favourites, George Strombo is pegged in at $150k a year even though on his CFRB radio show, he confirmed that the amount wasn’t right but not outside of the ballpark. Strombo’s former Much Music mate, Steve “Ed the Sock” Kerzner blabbers for a listed $120k and a writer for the latest chapter of the Degrassi drama scribes for a minimal 49k a year. However, the cover boy for all media moneymakers in Canada comes from northern government royalty. The host for Canadian Idol and once touted as the Most Annoying Canuk, is a million dollar baby. Ben Mulroney shows off regularly for 400k. What do his bosses make? The big boys who run the TV stations and radio companies? CHUM exec Jay Switzer does a staggering $2,211,140 a year while CORUS Entertainment hot shot; John Cassidy scores just about Five million a year.

Relay for Life: Last fall I did the Terry Fox run in memory of my late pal, Tom Rivers. The walk killed me. I was home on the couch rubbing my legs for three days after that. It didn’t help that the night before the run, I was at a club celebrating my sisters’ birthday. This year I still want to do something. I decided to volunteer at the Relay for Life. It’s an overnight run, walk or roller blade thing where people go around a track for hours on end to raise money for cancer research. I signed up for entertainment department. Doing what? I have no idea. Just sent in the application yesterday. Hopefully I’ll get the word soon. If you would like to help out send me a note and I’ll pass on the info. Otherwise, you can always check out the website.

And yeah. I’m doing this for Tom. I think of everyday. I miss him.

  

  Dreamin’: Had another weird dream of sorts last night. See, for as long as I can remember, I’ve had this recurring dream where at the end, I would wake up wondering where I was and If I should wake up, get ready and leave to head home. Last night I woke up and sat in my bed for half hour awake wondering what to do. I stared at my television and computer wondering why it looked so familiar. I guess I was still in half dream state, but I totally knew what I was doing. It wasn’t like I was awake and made a conscience attempt to do something. Go downstairs and get a drink of water. Go on the computer. Watch TV. Just something. But I just sat there and wondered. I don’t remember how I fell back asleep but when I woke up this morning, I realized how weird that was. Still don’t know what I was waking up from. Just know that I was up doing nothing

Hittin’ Dreams

{ May 18, 2006 @ 2:34 am } · { radio sites }
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 Back with the Hits:It’s this time of year when the radio industry brings up whispers of different ideas, thoughts and rumours of what’ll be the next big thing for the ever so important fall ratings period. For the non-educated, late spring and early summer is when stations tweak their format or flop formats to gear up to the most important time in listenership – September to December. This year, the industry ears are all focussed on Jack92.5. Due to lack of ratings for the past few rating periods, the rumour mill says that the Rogers owned station is going to flip formats come summer. To what? Company line Is tight lipped. No one is saying anything. Talk of going back to Contemporary Hit Radio is one possibility while others say they’ll compete with the ever so popular rock format that’s dominating the Toronto radio airwaves with Q107,  and well..Let’s put Edge102.1 and MIX99 in that demo, too.

If you remember way back when, it was the Rogers owned station CFTR that ruled local ears in the 80’s and early part of the 90’s before the station became the first All-news outlet in the market and the country. Could Rogers pull off another legendary CHR following as they did way back when? Should they focus on another side of the demographic? Or should they just go all talk and again, be the first in the country to have an all talk format on the FM band? All we know is that we have a few great talents wanting jobs with Rogers needing big names to boast up ratings for the re-formatted 92.5. Jay ”MadDog” Michaels  is a name being circled around the industry watering holes being the one fronting the new station.

Will the head brass over at Rogers let Mad Dog return to his dog pound to boost up ratings like how they did when they had Erin Davis come back home to CHFI last fall?

Or will Rogers bring in new pipes into the sound system that’ll just surprise all ears with a full out fall ad campagne?

Wasn’t Fred Patterson looking for work?

  

Contemporary Hit Radio hasn’t been done properly in this market since CFTR. If anyone could do that kind of format well, is Rogers. They have the dough. They can bring in the talent and the suites to make it sound good.

Hollar back girl, Jay-Z, Puffy and Beyonce might be hitting your speakers come fall. And finally…

  

Jack will Jack-Off.

  On To the Dream: Ever so often I have dreams that I add to my journal. Someday I would like to go back to them and make this new concept for a movie. I think it would sell large at the film festival if done properly.

Anyway. On to the dream.

Let me preface this by saying that today I took a nap while going full steam ahead on no sleep for the past twenty-four hours just writing and doing odd stuff around my room and actually drawing. Yeah, Drawing. Weird.

On to the Dream.

The dream took place in a classroom setting. I was around a bunch of Goth type teenagers and skater punks. The Teacher was Canadian rocker, Robin Black. What would he be doing in my dream? I haven’t thought of him since the last episode of Much Music’s VJ Search.

Uh..

I had to go up to his table for some reason. It wasn’t too clear in the dream. For argument sake, I was getting my paper marked or something.

Every time he would talk to me, He would scream at me. His face would come out in a phsycadelic kind of way like one of those early Pink Floyd or Grateful Dead videos.

I knew this dream was freaking me out but I also knew I was dreaming. I was able to withstand it. Every time he talked to me, he continued to break into song and have his head move out of his body and make crazy weird shapes like he was a snake.

Crazy.

When I woke up I was just confused. I know the television was on at the time, but he wasn’t on. It was an episode of Newhart. Yeah, I had Newhart on the tele. Go figure that out.

Weird day.