Evil Squirrel's Nest

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…..