A Little Bit of Bega in My Life

I’ve always been a fan of Lou Bega’s classic “Mambo No. 5”, but that fondness has been boosted in recent years by the fact that hearing it reminds me of arriving in the lobby of our hotel at Disney World at the outset of my family’s vacation in high school, whereupon I was greeted by a version of that song Lou had recorded about Disney characters.

So today I thought “Instead of just being reminded of that by the original song, why don’t I seek out the Disney version that enchanted me so in that hotel lobby, where the sun was shining through the vast windows at the far end?”

So I found it on iTunes, which I still use because I just like the feel of having the files on my phone. But I had to buy the whole album to get that one song despite the fact I’ll probably never listen to any of the other tracks, which also seem to be Disney-focused covers of pop songs. Bega’s might be the only one by the original artist? Anyway, it was a worthy purchase.

Bonus Question!

Favourite Disney song?

Mermaid Energy

So. I never actually watched “The Little Mermaid” in its entirety. It came out in the year before I was born, and my parents didn’t really go out of their way to get a bunch of Disney stuff till I arrived. Thus, I have vivid memories of constantly watching “Aladdin” and “The Lion King” in my early years. 

I always meant to get around to it, but I never did until I started seeing this girl who loved it. She had strong mermaid energy anyway, and she seemed like the right person to watch it with.

Seeing it in its fullness for the first time felt like connecting all the scattered dots I’d accumulated through osmosis and occasional peripheral clips over the course of the last three decades. Everything finally got assembled and reinforced by a bunch of songs I didn’t really know.

I always liked “Under the Sea” though.

Sebastian’s got wild pipes.

Bonus Question!

Which Sebastian has the wildest pipes above the sea?

 Bach. The guy from Skid Row. Not the composer.

Fast or Fantasy

I had to decide between two movies to see recently. Which to see first. The obvious choice would have been “Sonic the Hedgehog”, since I’m always up for a silly adventure like that. The fact that Jim Carrey became my first favourite actor after I saw “The Mask” at day camp when I was 3 or 4 is just a bonus on top of everything else that guaranteed I’d see that movie. However, I became increscently intrigued by “Fantasy Island”. Old television shows have been rebooted into new movies for ages, and they’ve switched tone and genre before. But I can’t recall any example wherein an old comedic series became a modern horror. And that very thing, which so piqued my curiosity, combined with the surprising financial success of “Sonic”, made me think that “Fantasy Island” would have a tenure in theatres far outmatched by the furry blue dude, and I hit up “Fantasy Island” first.

And then I realized Ryan Hansen was in it, and that dude resonates in everything I see him in.

So yeah. A good time.

Bonus Question!

Best furry blue dude?