Loyal Blog readers have heard me say that everybody and his dog thinks he is a DJ now. Many have seen the now-viral photo of my chimpanzee DJ.
Just when you think you have seen it all, the trend becomes a royal mess – yes, HRH the Prince of Wales had to try it out:
Perhaps I should take up polo.
I write a lot about traditions. I have posted about ethnic traditions, school traditions, family traditions, yachting traditions, and weird traditions.
At Texas A & M University, the big joke is that if you do it twice, it’s a tradition. Their Traditions Council has recorded the origins of some of their long-standing traditions. But the origin of many traditions is often lost to the mists of time.
Do you remember the last time anyone threw rice at a wedding?
Newlyweds were once pelted with rice when they left. Now birdseed seems to be the weapon of choice.
It was the tradition for many years for guests to throw rice as the Bride and Groom made their honeymoon getaway. The origin for this is vague, but it is supposed to symbolize wishing prosperity and fertility to the newlywed couple. In other cultures, guests might throw dates or figs.
In America we stopped throwing rice, in favor of birdseed, due to fear of harming birds. Seems the birds would eat the dry grains of rice, which would expand in their stomachs, ultimately causing the poor bird to explode. Everyone now “knows” this, and it is simply not PC to throw rice any longer.
Turns out it’s all nonsense.
Why aren’t there stories about exploding birds? Because it doesn’t happen.
Pigeon shrapnel!
I always suspected this. I recall driving through the rice fields of south Louisiana and seeing that they were filled with birds. Some were eating the crawfish and other critters in the flooded rice paddies, but many birds were eating rice. And we never once saw a bird explode.
Our culture is so pre-programmed to believe that any story that gets repeated enough must be true. So it became universal practice to use birdseed instead of rice. The past few decades have seen couples running through bubbles, rose petals, and sparklers as well.
There are some practical reasons to favor birdseed. Rice can be hazardous to walk on, and a bear to clean up. Many venues banned rice for these reasons…but it had nothing to do with exploding pigeons. And so far no one has exposed a conspiracy by bird seed companies to promote their product this way.
I recently heard of a hazardous birdseed story. Someone purchased birdseed for a wedding that was specially treated to keep squirrels from eating it. After showering the bride and groom with it, they developed a painful burning and itching, as did many guests who came in contact with the seeds. Turns out the active ingredient was capsaicin, extracted from chili peppers. That was a hot wedding!
So now that the truth is out, will we see a return to the rice throwing tradition?
We now have special "Designer Wedding Rice"
There are new, improved rice products being marketed for weddings that are supposed to be safer and easy to clean. Some is even heart-shaped! And it won’t make birds explode – just as regular rice won’t.
I’m not one to cast aspersions on any group, nor to perpetuate any stereotypes.
But stereotypes generally arise based on some real-life experience, so with apologies to my blonde friends who are reasonably intelligent, I share this recent experience.
Party Machine Celebrations was providing Karaoke entertainment for a High School dance troupe that was in town for a contest. This group had plenty of talent, and several had obvious choral and stage singing experience.
One girl sang a solo of a current hit song, and was midway through and doing quite well, when the song went into an instrumental break. The on-screen instruction stated “Instrumental,” and then changed to say, “Spoken word.”
The singer panicked, threw her arms up, and shouted “I don’t know the words!”
Imagine her surprise when the words she didn’t know, magically appeared on the screen in front of her!
Yes, she was blonde.
23) Listen for the Squawks!
I love to fly. I have friends who are pilots, and have flown with them in small planes on numerous occasions. Today’s lesson was learned from pilots, but has served me well in the entertainment business.
The aircraft must be maintained 100 percent.
Every time a plane takes flight, it has to be perfect from a safety standpoint. 100% safe; if it’s only 98%, the plane must stay on the ground. A little thing like a loose connection could cause a tragic accident. So a pre-flight safety check must be performed before each and every take-off.
And every pilot keeps a “Squawk list.” If he notices an unusual noise or vibration, or that a light bulb is burned out on an instrument, he writes it on the list. Each item that needs attention is called a “squawk.”
And every squawk must be investigated and repaired, before the plane flies again.
This is a great way to maintain anything. With sound, lighting, and video systems, there are many little things that could go wrong. One bad cable could spoil a presentation. So we began tracking “squawks” at Party Machine Celebrations.
Failure to fix squawks can lead to disaster!
In 35 years, we have certainly experienced technical difficulties! But because of redundant systems, the show always goes on, without a delay.
But we don’t have many technical problems, because paying attention to the squawks prevents them from happening in the first place.
It’s part of “the Party Machine Difference.”
