Yes, people in the 80’s weren’t afraid to touch each other…
May 25, 1986 will go down in history as the day the most ridiculous charity fundraiser in human history was attempted as Hands Across America decided that the best way to raise money to feed hungry people was to try and line up enough people to form a country wide game of Red Rover from coast to coast. If you’re interested in all of the ways this event was an epic failure (right down to the fact that it’s little remembered today), feel free to check out this ten year old post I wrote mocking Hands Across America. After numerous highly public events to feed the children of Africa, the organizers of Hands aimed at combating hunger in the US… because what’s the use of helping the world if you can’t even take care of your own problems first?
According to its Wiki page, Hands Across America netted about $15,000,000 once all of its bloated operating expenses were accounted for. That sounds like a lot…. only it really isn’t given the magnitude of the fundraiser and just how many hungry families there are in the country. Regardless, the California to New York (almost) human chain will always sit at the top of the list of insane ways to raise money for charity…
I can think of more practical ways to feed the hungry.
And now we’ll leave the fundraising activities to experts like Sally Struthers and go on to answer this week’s Share Your World questions from Di!
It’s about time for Hands Across the World! We just need a few rafts…
Growing up, were you closer to your mother or father, or was it a balance of both depending on the circumstances?
I don’t think I really had a preference for one or the other. Since my parents both worked odd hours, many times only one of them was around at any given time. I probably had more “bonding” experiences with my Dad, though (like this one)….
Ody and Spilly preferred my Dad as well…
What was your favorite toy as a child, and do you still have it?
Any toy me or my sisters had was lost or destroyed almost upon receipt. Probably the one thing I “played with” the most was a nifty electronic typewriter I got from one of my aunts at some point in my early teenage years. In a day when computers were hardly ubiquitous, I used the hell out of that typewriter to type up all kinds of stuff….. just because I could and it was cool!
I think this may have been the model I had.
And no, I don’t still have it…
Did you have any secrets?
Everyone has secrets.
And no, I’m not going to blow my cover by spilling any of them.
What did you want to be when you grew up, and are you anywhere close?
Like all curious kids who grow up in the central part of the United States, I took an early fascination in the weather…. because our weather is weird, wild and almost always changing. Though the TV weatherman is the face of meteorology, I never wanted to be one of those clowns…. but the many guys behind the scenes who work in forecasting. I even went to college and have a degree that says I’m a fucking meteorologist!
But none of that worked out, and instead I’ve stocked shelves and handled the backroom overnights at Mecca for 25 years now. Good thing, because I forgot all those silly differential equations and complex physics they tried to teach me anyway…
What every child dreams of doing when they grow up!
Gratitude Retro Comic:
The second most ridiculous scheme ever to raise money for charity…..
Evil Squirrel's Nest 
I like this way of feeding the world… ;O)
Just gotta make sure Sally Struthers doesn’t eat it all first…
Thanks for the interesting post about a failed charity event! I think the video We Are The World did better in raising money. As for what I wanted to be when I grew up? I had no clue!
We Are The World definitely did better, but it had fewer expenses and the proceeds went out of the country. Americans would rather feed starving kids in Africa than their own hungry…
Agreed. It’s sexier for the stars. Ten of them from the original recording are now dead.
I have a degree in web design and once knew how to code in HTML. Thirteen years ago when I was unemployed I was going to start over and be something “more” than a secretary my whole life until I realized I would cut my pay in half to start over as an entry level computer geek. I took another decent-paying secretary spot. It pays the bills.
Prestige doesn’t always pay the bills. There’s no reason anyone should feel like a failure as long as they’re supporting themselves…
In an age of COVID, I doubt Hands across America would work. Then again we’re not the brightest bulb in the chandelier of culture.
Hands Across America didn’t work back then. Forget germophobia, trying to form a human chain over 4,000 miles long was just stupid on its own merits…
I do remember that Hands Across America deal. Cool idea, and I wished it was close to where we were so we could participate. Sadly it didn’t. 🙂
It went through my area, but I remember nothing about it other than all the hoopla leading up to it. And the fact that it was so silly…
🙂 🙂
Speaking of Mecca, the Sam’s Choice Spinach Florentine Pizza is great.
Spinach and pizza should never be in the same sentence…
Ahhhhhh……another example of “Revenge Is Sweet” ! I like it.
Pam
Or sour, depending on how much sugar was added…
Thanks for joining in again and sharing your wit and your world. Take care!!
I had a typewriter just like that. Garry had one too. I think it was a VERY popular machine. I wanted to be a writer. My mother thought I should be a teacher. In a way, I was both because most of the things I wrote were intended to teach people how to do stuff. But I didn’t think it as teaching. To me, it was always writing. Not fiction, but absolutely writing.
Anyway, it turns out I did a lot better as a tech writer than I would have as a teacher. They pay teachers really badly.
They were really cool machines. And since I was nowhere near coordinated enough to type the way they teach you to, I was able to come up with my own method that works for me by using that old typewriter so much and prepare me for the internet age!
Garry is also a 2-fingered typist — and he is faster that I am using all 10 fingers.
After all these years and we discover you’re a meteorologist! You could be the featured Weather Squirrel on your local channel…
I’ve mentioned it a couple of times. Including in my Millionaire story since I was told it was my impromptu weather forecast at the audition that got me through to the show. Which is doubly ironic since I never wanted my meteorology background to put me on TV…
Of course you have, there’s nothing wrong with my memory… 😮
My family did hand across America. From what I remember, it was fun.
I loved my typewriter, too!!