We've got some work to do now...

My love affair with the teevee started a lo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ong time ago (incidentally not in a galaxy far, far away).  I can remember when we lived in Virginia Beach, my bed time was really early, so I would occasionally be brave enough to try to sneak out of my room and look around the corner to watch the last few minutes of "The Incredible Hulk" (I have always loved the ending theme song, when Bruce Banner is walking down the road, hitch-hiking - just beautiful), or "Mork And Mindy", or whatever happened to be on that evening.  

When we moved to Missouri, for the first few months we lived with Grandma and Grandpa, and I remember that the television fare got a lot more "wholesome": "Little House On The Prairie", "The Waltons",  "Barbara Mandrell & The Mandrell Sisters" - Irlene (on the left) was one of my first crushes (and why wouldn't she be, in that outfit?) - even before Daisy Duke!

We finally got our own house across the road from G'ma and G'pa a few months later.  Mom got a job teaching down at Southwest High School (in Washburn, about 8 miles south of Cassville, and where I ultimately ended up graduating), so we got home from school quite a bit earlier than she did.  In that time, I got into the routine of watching some of the awesome (in my opinion) afternoon programming that was on then: "BJ and the Bear", "Lobo", and, of course, one of my all-time favorite (if not my all-time fave) "Scooby Doo".  They played the original "Scooby Doo, Where Are You" shows, as well as the "New Scooby Doo Movies" and "The Scooby Doo Show" - all of my favorites! 

Scooby Doo has stuck with me since then - it has really become a part of me!  I collect as many of the shows I can on DVD (by the way, I'm still looking to get "The Scooby Doo/Dynomutt Hour", if anyone happens to be in a giving mood!).  I've learned all sorts of trivia about the show (Casey Kasem, of American Top 40 fame, did the voice of "Shaggy".  The original theme song, as well as most of the early "montage songs" were written and performed by Austin Roberts, who had a minor hit in the 70s with a song called "Rocky".  I've actually seen Austin Roberts on a couple of internet forums, and thought about contacting him for an autograph - didn't know how he'd be, though).

I try to extol the virtues of Scooby to all of the young'uns that I can - I've been successful with Jenny's cousin, Sweet Pea - she loves Scooby and the Gang!  I just need to work harder on the rest of the girls - Katie's 2 girls, as well as Erica's little baby girl.  I've got a better chance with Savannah (Erica's daughter) since she's here in town.  I just think that all little kids should know the joys of "The Doo"!  I am, after all, "Unca Doo"! :-)

Anyway, I thought of all of this today because, as Jenny and I were driving along, I was looking at the fall leaves, and all of the colors, and, for some reason, I immediately started thinking about Scooby Doo - I think because of the Halloween episode, with the Headless Horseman.  I've always thought that the Ichabod Crane story was really interesting, probably because of that episode.  I decided that even though Halloween was a couple of weeks ago that I would go ahead and make an orange stroke this evening, just for ol' Ichabod's noggin.  Zoinks!