YESTERDAY'S TWEETS

16:40 Thomas the Tank Engine, Tagged! tinyurl.com/ycxjh7a #graffiti #street #art

19:13 Seeing "Fantastic Mr. Fox" — at AMC Promenade gowal.la/s/VBN

23:57 As if Patton Oswalt's tear-assery of the god-awful "Christmas Shoes" wasn't funny enough, now it's been animated: tinyurl.com/yczvny6

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29 YEARS AGO TODAY

John Lennon died when I was ten. My parents were adults themselves by the time the Beatles got huge, so they didn't really have anything more than a passing affinity for them while I was growing up. So, I had no real context of who the band was or why people were freaking out, beyond knowing a few of the more signature songs, and knowing they came roughly "from the 60s".

Growing up in LA in the 80s meant you were either a KMET/KLOS listener (classic rock), or KROQ listener (alternative/punk/new wave). I chose the latter, which made it de rigeur to vocally dismiss The Beatles.

It wasn't until later in life that I started to discover how many of the bands I loved -- ELO, Jellyfish, Fountains of Wayne, Nirvana, Keane, Muse -- had a similar sensibility and pop/rock lineage as The Beatles. Since then, I have have explored most of the Fab Four's catalog and found my own adult opinion of them. I'm hardly a fanatic, but they're certainly a band I admire and enjoy.

However, I tell this story because, when I tell Beatles fans this history of mine, they totally get hung up on the first part -- "How could you not like them!?!?!?"

Me: "But I just told you, I discovered them later in life."

Them: "BUT... HOW COULD YOU NOT LIKE THEM?!?!"

Sigh.

I'M DOPEY

I'M DOPEY
Originally uploaded by davecobb

PRITTY!

PRITTY!
Originally uploaded by davecobb

The holidays have begun. Yay!