Usually I write the post first, and then I come up with a title. Not this time. Title first: John Jacob Jinglehiemer Schmidt.
I woke up with it in my head. I keep trying to remember the point of the song. I mean, I know in “Bingo Was His Name-o” the point was to clap for the missing letter. In “99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall” there’s a countdown to the 1 bottle of beer…
What the hell was the point of John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt? I think it had something to do with the dynamics… singing softly in the verse, and then shouting “BAH-DAH-DAH-DAH-DAH-DAH!” Which was obnoxious. And fun. Was that the point?
I’m naturally inclined at this point to say “I miss simpler times.” But I won’t. I tend to groove on the complexity of life. Life isn’t meant to be simple, I don’t think. At least not my life.
I’m complicated. I think constantly, I talk too much. I observe, I analyze… You know, when people say “Don’t overanalyze,” I wanna throw punches. Hard. Do l say to them, “Hey, maybe you should think more?” No. Just shut the hell up. Life is a puzzle, a giant game of Jenga, the game of Operation: “It takes a very steady hand.”
So. Now we come full-circle. John Jacob Jingleheimer Schimdt. It’s a complicated name. He’s a complicated man. Is it a complicated song? Are there other verses? Why did we learn it?