My ABBA Day
My ABBA Day started off much like many others, except I had an Abba song stuck in my head. Tiger. That’s how I woke up; to the tune of Tiger by Abba. No idea where it came from, but I woke up singing words to a song that had been sung over 30 years ago.
Let’s put you in the picture, back up a little. Picture the Earth from out in space. That big blue planet, filled with oceans and seas and land. Zoom in a little, towards Europe. Now let’s scan over Sweden and Norway, Switzerland, Austria and let’s settle on Italy. Towards the center, perhaps up a little, there. See it? That’s Florence. Zoom in a little more. That’s it, now you can see the statue of David, all those Piazza’s and near to Santa Croce, where Dante’s statue stands, my little apartment overlooks an internal courtyard.
It’s 6am and my Abba day started with that song stuck in my head. Now let’s play a soundtrack, because that’s what I did. As soon as I woke up, I lay for awhile and I played over the events of the past few days and I tried to think about where Abba had appeared for that song Tiger to get stuck in my head. So I reached over and opened my laptop and typed in Tiger into YouTube. So that’s how it started – my Abba day. I then played Dancing Queen, SoS, Waterloo, Money, Money, Money and for several hours, I played Abba tunes as I thought about these people, who at the height of their fame, suddenly chose to step out of the limelight and voluntarily entered obscurity. They shut the doors on public adoration and stepped off the world stage into a different life of Nordic simplicity in complete obscurity. Especially Agnetha, who refused to speak English or accept any form of fame, for decades after the band split. All this shit is going through my head at stupid-o-clock.
Then I start thinking about how much our world has changed so much since then. I look at those innocent adolescent faces of the young Abba members and I wonder what they see now. This world of social media and selfies. This harsh world of wars and terrorism and anxiety and fear and I wonder, do they see what I see? Do they also long for simpler days of the 70’s and innocence and love for one another. Has our world changed them too?
Am I the only one who watches these people who come from an era where things seemed so much more innocent and friendly and loving and think, can we go back? Can we step back in time to a world where we don’t fuck each other over for a dime?
There’s so much struggle for power; which isn’t new. Though these days that power seems to be in the hands of the wrong people. Terrorists and money hungry, greedy conglomerates who will stop at nothing to corrupt our youth all to make a quick buck. Sparing no thoughts whatsoever to the long term repercussions of their actions. Would-be presidents in the world who won the selfie contest, making me wish the entire world could vote on the new US president candidacy.
Let’s step outside of my apartment now, zoom back out. Above Italy and Europe. Zoom all the way out and back into space. See again that blue Earth? Now look around you at all the other planets. All those inhospitable planets and stars that are supposedly devoid of life. In comparison, Earth is so alone and so small. From out here, our planet looks so innocent and inviting. Yet it is filled with people – in bathrooms, taking photos of themselves for Instagram and Twitter and Facebook and Snapchat. Photos they will probably regret one day. Scientists and physicists and theorists spend countless hours trying to find out how our world works and trying to understand the quantum theory of entanglement, while countless others stand in bathrooms taking selfies and wonder if their bums look big in that picture.
And I wonder if from this vantage point, from this view in space, if the former members of Abba look at our planet and wish the same thing I do, that it was more simple and filled with love and a lot less self-involvement.
I decided that given Rome wasn’t built in a day, I couldn’t come up with a solution in a day either. So back in my apartment, I played Tiger again and resumed my Abba day, while my neighbors cooked pasta and hung laundry out on their balconies and looked towards my apartment with judgement in their eyes and wondered, ‘who is that idiot playing Abba at this time of the morning?’.
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I wish I was around in the 70s…. would be more fun then wondering how my massive nose looks in Facebook pics haha.
Nothing wrong with admiring Abba 30 years later Nick!
Oh and um… get out the bathroom and stop taking selfies. Really!
So funny! Luv ABBA!
I hear you, man. What on earth happened this morning? I woke up to ABBA’s ‘The Winner takes it all’ in my head.
The 70’s were much nicer in my opinion. Gone are they days where I could just stroll around without fear of being mugged, go and get milk from the farmer around the corner just after 6pm, not caring about politics. Yes, we have all grown up from childhood. Have we matured? The winner takes it all. Not everyone of us has been brought up to be a winner, but we can make a change to become winners. Fight like in Waterloo and win against all odds (OK, this is not an ABBA song, but Phil Collins has been in my ears for many years). Even on ABBA days like these, there is much more to crazy wannabe presidents, bullish emotionally unintelligent bosses. Put it into perspective: life is good, if you want it to be good. Agnetha made a conscious decision to step out of the craziness of this world. She wanted her life to be good for her. She is a winner. Fox is a winner. He stepped out of the corporate world to live a good life doing what he is passionate about, writing books. I keep on fighting in Waterloo manner against new bosses, against mediocre bludgers in this corporate world. Let this ABBA day be an inspiration to you to become a winner. It is all in your (and my) mindset. Play that funky music, get ridiculous, have another day in paradise, even if there is no milk today, money money money is not everything. Show your true colours and beat it. Your life is a thriller, there will be no white flag as we fight against all odds and want to break free.
Thanks Fox for your thoughts… we do miss you in corporate world ☺
Hey Bodo! Thanks for the comment, very nice to hear from you. Maybe it’s time you took a risk and a break and stepped off the stage for a short period of time. You just never know what might happen!
There’s a few things I miss from the corporate world and working with you is one of them!
What an ispiring thought! I thougt that it was a joke an then read it again and thougt that it is so true! in sweden there is a lot of love for abba and there are so many thougts like this ones! Thank you for what you wrote fox!
I can’t wait to visit Sweden Stevie! Sadly it’s one country I haven’t got around to seeing yet. It looks amazing! And of course it’s where Abba came from so it must be good! Thanks for your comment 🙂
I’m really getting into your posts! This is my favorite so far hands down. It really made me realize that we live in a cold world. i’m only 23 but I have been thinking lately about the presidency and what choices we have. I can see underneath the words what yuou’re talking about!!! I am listening to ABBA on youtube and I’m getting what you mean! Awesome!
Thanks Christian. I really enjoyed writing it. It’s one of those things, at the right time, the right post pops into your head. Glad you liked it and understood the message 🙂
Dude, nice work. I used to be a huge fan of abba back in the day though I wouldn’t admit it these days lol
Dave you need to come out the closet and just embrace your love for Abba! Spread the Abba love lol
Yes! now got abba stuck in my head
ABBA was — is, my favorite band. In 1982, when ABBA (rested), I was so upset that I vowed I would never fall for another bands music, and I didn’t. Last May 2015, I rediscovered ABBA while re-recording VHS tapes to DVD, I found out Agnetha released six English CD’s, I ordered them all, Frida’s too. I’m still trying to forgive myself for missing Frida and Agnetha, to watch them progress musically. It was a bit of a shock to see Frida and Agnetha in their mid to late 60’s when I was so used to seeing them in their 20’s, but I got older too, (57). I can’t believe I missed them “grow up”. It feels like I missed my own daughters grow up. THIRTY FOUR YEARS, I’m back to stay….
Hi Larry, good to hear from another ‘fan’. Such timeless music – applicable today, though so out of place at the same time. Hope you enjoyed the blog.
I feel similarly because I watched them for so many years and then soon I watched them and they were older and I thought that they suddenly wasn’t the same people. Because of course that was a long time ago now. I like that you put about looking at Earth from out of space because it reminds me so much that we see the world so different if we look outside of everything.
So good! Glad I found this post. I secretly like Abba shhh
I love ABBA.
ABBA is iconic. Brings back so many memories.