start your day the hyphy way

Jun 01 2022

Is there a song you think about every day because something you see during your daily commute reminds you of it? Is it a good thing or a bad thing?

Several years ago, I would walk by a shop called Donut Connection on the way to work, which meant that five mornings out of seven I'd start my day thinking about Rainbow Connection**¹ by Kermit the Frog (or more accurately, the part of Broken Needles Vol. 1**² that samples it.) This was slightly annoying, because I thought about the song, but I didn't actually want to listen to it. Obviously not the unaltered original, and although it's used to good effect in Broken Needles, that mix is a little too long and intense to listen to every single day.

There are no donut shops on my current walk, but now I pass by a big, prominent street marker for Oakland Avenue. There are a few streets in my neighborhood that, in addition to the traditional green rectangular sign, have pillars at eye level that look a bit like miniature Washington Monuments. It was slightly confusing when I first moved here, because the text is written vertically, which makes it seem like I'm walking down Oakland, when I'm actually walking down a street that intersects with Oakland.

Ah, my mistake, it's actually Woakland Ave

Anyway, I see a big prominent "Oakland" every time I walk past it, which makes me think of the one song that my brain definitively associates with Oakland, California: Ghost Ride It**³ by Mistah F.A.B. It's a much better song than Rainbow Connection to start my morning thinking about. I have a playlist queued up each morning that includes it with some other fun, energetic (funergetic) songs.

I recommend it, particularly if you don't drive to work. Get out the way, let Casper drive. You can imagine a driverless car slowly rolling down the road beside you and dance a little bit, if you like. Just don't actually ghost ride any whips, or you might accidentally start a moral panic. Unless you're a rich white dude, in which case you can let your cars kill a few people, it's cool⁴ 🦝

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