Simple successes
Friends of ours are returning to the USA from their semi-yearly trip to
Canberra. We met up for a final dinner before a dance, and they mentioned
that they were big fans of Tom
Lehrer. As it happens, so am I - my Mum wisely bought me a record of
"That Was The Week That Was" back in 1987 or so and I loved it. In 2000
she also gave me "The
Remains Of Tom Lehrer", a remastered 3CD set of his
entire recorded output, including several that had never been released
before, wonderful stuff he did for PBS and light orchestra versions of some
of his more popular ones such as "The Hunting Song" and "Poisoning Pigeons
In The Park". It also comes with a booklet with a foreword written by
Dr. Demento and with
lots of fun stuff, including the Mad
comics done of some of his songs,
illustrations from the various records and other interesting tid-bits.
"Remains" is a must for any true Lehrer fan.
Now, as it happens, I knew where I could lay my hands on another "Remains". You see, my father-in-law volunteers at the Life Line book fair, and he picked up another brand-new-still-in-the-wrapper "Remains" some time ago for $5. A scheme lit up in my head when I heard they wanted a copy, and afterward I asked John if he would give his copy of "Remains" to them. He did, and I did.
It's rare to find a gift that just absolutely knocks someone else out of
the park. It's even rarer that that gift is something that you can lay
your hands on relatively easily and cheaply. To hit that spot with these
friends - to give them something that they and their kids enjoy and
treasure when I won't see them for possibly years - is its own reward.
I just feel really glad that all the pieces of the puzzle just came
together in front of me.
posted at: 18:09 | path: /personal | permanent link to this entry
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