Power pop

For the last two days, my #EarwormOfDeath has alternated between the Luis Fonsi/Daddy Yankee version of "Despacito" (the original, most definitely not the "Justin Beaver" version, a song I came to like very late last year, after everyone had said adios) and K.C. & the Sunshine Band's (but really just K.C.) 1982 (or 1984, but who's counting?) hit, "Give It Up."

Why you ask? Well, they're both very catchy, and they both make me think of Miami.. And February in Toronto is all the inspiration you need to contemplate and dream of Miami.

There's also the fact that pundit and journalist Ana Navarro (a personal fave for being something near nigh impossible these days--a Republican with a conscience, a heart, and a sense of humor) recently referred to Our Fearless Leader as "Despacito." Which can mean two things in Spanish--"slowly" or "a little slower" and "little slow one." I think it's safe to assume she meant the latter when referencing Our National Treasure of Humility and Good Feelings.

Ms. Navarro also posted a picture of her at Miami International Airport meeting Luis Fonsi. It doesn't get much more South Florida than that.

Speaking of which, last spring I flew through Miami International on my way to Jacksonville for a conference. And, ay, no puede ser, as they say in the 'novelas, that was the first Spanish-speaking country I've been to in many years. Seriously, at the airport, the default language for many personnel was Spanish. I had to keep switching back and forth between Spanish and English to communicate.

So how does K.C. & the Sunshine Band, the party band of choice in the mid- to late '70s (sort of way less ironic LMFAO of days gone by), fit into all of this? Well, my friend The Archivist's recently visited cold Toronto from South Florida and like a Florida iguana, she was stunned by the cold and nearly fell out of her tree. And then there's this South African radio station I listen to, Smile FM (and, yes, my South Africa obsession's still going strong), which twice recently has played "Give It Up," a song more than 30 years old (gulp), a hit when released in the UK in 1982, then a hit when finally released in the US in 1984.

The thing about "Give It Up" is that I guess you could call it goofy, shallow, throwaway pop, but it still puts me in a cheery mood enough that I do a little dance on the streetcar platform at 10 in the morning in -12C weather. Goofy, shallow, and throwaway maybe but also upbeat, well-made, and still boasting a lot of staying power all these years later.

Dear Reader, I just realized that "Give It Up" may be me, Montag, in musical form!

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Thanks to the video, we all now know that Harry Wayne Casey dresses to the right.

Some of us might have preferred never to know, but I would argue that knowledge in any shape or size or color is important. And the more knowledge the better, especially when it's encased in tight aqua trousers.