"Bonzaiiiiiiii!"

Question: What spiritual 1984 Ralph Macchio movie featured the somnolent stylings of pan flutist Zamfir?

Wax on, wax off. Sand the floor. Paint the fence. Paint the house. The Karate Kid was one of my favorite movies growing up. I just happened to be flipping through channels this afternoon and caught it on the ABC Family channel. Even though I own the DVD, I haven't actually watched this movie in at least 5 years. I wasn't surprised, however, that I remembered almost all of the lines. What I didn't remember, was the horrible fashion from the movie. If Ralph Macchio's pants were pulled up any higher or were any shorter, he never would have been able to do all of that physical labor that taught him the karate moves. Elizabeth Shue's big hair was also quite funny and really took over entire scenes.

The walls of my room were covered with pictures of Ralph Macchio when I was about 6 years old. He and Ricky Schroeder were the dream guys in my young girl world. Watching The Karate Kid again today, I can see that Ralph Macchio actually became my "type" of guy as I grew older. I have always been attracted to impossibly skinny, somewhat tall, dark-haired, borderline nerdy guys (just like my husband--I love you, honey!). Seeing the scenes of Daniel-San in the ocean learning to balance made me laugh at exactly how skinny he really was.

The Karate Kid has some really great lessons to learn throughout the movie beyond how to properly wax a car. Patience, trust, and hard work triumph in the end over the bad guys. This is a story we can all appreciate and a philosophy everyone should live by. Thank you, Mr. Miyagi, for teaching us all a little something. After watching the movie, I feel like I can accomplish anything like catching a fly in chopsticks and I won't be "squish...like a grape."

Answer: The Karate Kid

Teen Pop--80s Style

Question: Who began to challenge Debbie Gibson as the new teen queen, after taking I Think We're Alone Now to the top of the charts?

In one of the classes I teach, I happened to mention Debbie Gibson and Tiffany and they had no clue who I was talking about. Granted, these kids weren't born until the 90s, but come on! How can you not know who Debbie Gibson is? The closest I got was one of the girls realizing that she was a judge on American Juniors, that awful spin off of American Idol.

Debbie Gibson and Tiffany were the voices of my Electric Youth. I learned how to Shake Your Love and what Could've Been. Long before the Britney vs. Christina debates were those of us who spent our time defending our choice of teen pop queen--Tiffany or Debbie. Debbie Gibson wrote her own songs, but Tiffany was vocally superior--even if most of her songs were Beatles covers. Boys found themselves choosing between the saccharine blonde Debbie and the sultry redhead Tiffany. It was a tough decision to make. I decided to like them both and had all of the cassette tapes they released throughout their careers. I even got to see Tiffany in concert when she came to the Heart of Illinois Fair (and the then unknown New Kids on the Block was her opening act).

I still sing along to Tiffany and Debbie Gibson when I hear their songs on the radio during Flashback weekends. I've even done some of their songs when I've sung karaoke, although most karaoke DJs don't stock that type of music. What a shame. There is an entire generation of kids who have never known the original queens of teen pop.

Answer: Tiffany

What was it about those dolls?

Question: What brand scored a marketing coup in 1985, when little "Christopher Xavier" hitched a ride on the Space Shuttle?

I was one of those kids in the early 80s who HAD to have a Cabbage Patch Doll for Christmas that year parents were getting into fist fights over those toys. Why in the world were they so popular? I still have all three of my Cabbage Patch Dolls, as a matter of fact. My original, Bianca Wendaline, is a blonde doll with blue eyes and looks nothing like me. She is from that first batch before the signature on the butt had the year written in it. I imagine she'd be worth a fortune now if she wasn't so "well-loved" when I was a kid. My second doll was named Debbie Autumn and I got her because she had the same middle name as I do. She's got brown hair and brown eyes and came with a pacifier, so her mouth is stuck permanently open even though the pacifier was lost in a mattter of days. The final Cabbage Patch Doll I received was from the "World Traveler" series of dolls. Her name was Joyvita Heddy from Holland and she had red hair and even came with wooden shoes (that were made of plastic).

I was in first grade and had a "boyfriend" named John. He had a Cabbage Patch Doll too (I think its name was David). He told me that his Cabbage Patch Doll liked my Cabbage Patch Doll and that's how we started "dating". We would set up our Cabbage Patch Dolls in between us on the couch and then hold hands behind them so no one would know. If only dating was always that easy, but I digress.

I remember proudly signing the adoption papers and sending them back in. I was so excited that first year when I received a birthday card for my dolls on their birthdays. Of course that was only for their first birthdays and then the company forgot about them. Over time, so did I and they were relegated to the attic. That's where they are today--in my dad's attic. Maybe if I have a daughter, she will inherit those dolls that were so popular long ago.



Answer: Cabbage Patch Kids