You'll Never Bike Alone . . . or
What’s That Thing About Six Degrees . . . and Small Worlds, Afterall?You
know that Rogers and Hammerstein song about when you walk through a
storm, hold your head up high and you’ll never walk alone? I once loved
playing that on my piano . . . and singing along with Pop, who had a
very big bass voice and led the church choir . . .
So,
tonight I happened to be singing that song and decided to have a look
see . . . and I came upon an account of how the British Invasion group
Gerry and the Pacemakers recorded "You'll Never Walk Alone." It became a huge hit in
Liverpool . . . and as it tuned out, the song has been sung frequently at soccer games played at Anfield Stadium there ever since.
@Now
. . . how can it be that I’ve not placed a new entry here in more than
a week? Well . . . maybe it’s because this is a very exciting time for “
Betty’s
List” with lots of new things happening and lots of fun and creativity
. . . and stuff brewing that is . . . (as one of my California
girlfriends, who actually grew up in Washington Heights, taught me to
say) . . . just “way cool.”
Our new
Ladies Go Biking Group
came into being very quickly during the past couple of weeks, thanks to
Kathleen McGuire and the more than 95 women who have written to say
they wanted to be on the special e-mail list for the group.
Kathleen
and I went on a test run ride of the first route last week and I came
away with a very sore you-know-what and the realization of how rusty I
am when it comes to bikes . . . and she made a terrific
blog that tells all about it . . . I do love creative people.
So,
on Sunday the group met and we actually went on that first ride . . .
from here in The Castro through Golden Gate Park, down Ocean Beach
passed those sand dunes (where my "way cool" former girlfriend used to
like to go nude sunbathing and make out with me in the weeds) out to
Lake Merced, then around the Lake and back . . . which means I’ve
ridden more than 25 miles in less than a week after not having ridden a
bike very much for years.
@ Catered-By-The-Chorus – Our dinner party (one of 13) enjoyed a feast, courtesy of Chef Sean, at
Tangerine Restaurant and then we were off to the All About Me – Art Gallery & Antiques Showroom for a fancy
Dessert Soiree
hosted by none other than our good friend Empress Donna Sachet,
featuring a silent auction and music entertainment by the Sydney Gay
& Lesbian Chorus. The whole thing was another one of Kathleen's
grand ideas that worked. More than $14,000 was raised to support SFGMC
on that special evening of good fun. Afterwards, a big batch of us went
to The Café and created our own dance area where I . . . along with a
number of other enthusiasts . . . danced for at least two hours into
the wee hours.
@Treadmill – I’ve been especially inspired this
month going to Gold’s Gym for a work out on the treadmill almost every
night . . . singing “
Waiting for a Star to Fall” . . .
What
else? – Oh, just exciting meetings with exciting people in our
community talking about lots of new exciting things that just might
hatch into a bunch of other new stuff for us to plan and do and smile
about.
@ Which brings me back to this new biking group (. . .
and the new Smart Women Get Together Business Network that Catherine
Pinkas has inspired . . . and the new
Betty’s
List Book Club that Cynthia Katona has inpired . . .) and
g-e-e-z-z-z-z-z-z it is so true . . . I’m like saying to myself now .
. . “Girl, you will never bike alone.”
So, I got this idea to check on YouTube and see what was there for
"You'll Never Walk Alone"
and . . . oh yes . . . ! There are like so many videos posted by soccer
fans of times when the song's been sung before games, after games,
planned ones, spontaneous ones . . . That's a metaphor for life, isn't
it? Before. After. Planned. Spontaneous.
And, you know, I am
truly glad I got those padded bike shorts and Kate let me borrow her
jell-filled bike seat cover or my you-know-what would just never be the
same riding alone or not . . .
