Remembering Whitney Houston

So, I felt it inappropriate to instantly write my thoughts about Whitney Houston. It’s not like I have ever met her or worked with her. In all honesty, she was not an inspiration to me in my life. I will say that her voice is amazingly beautiful and many of my favorite memories living with Emma in college happened while listening and dancing and singing along to her songs. If anyone was a fan of Whitney Houston, it was my roommate.

Two nights before my wedding, we went to the state fair and had the best day ever. Towards the end of our day, we sat down to have a beer at the beer gardens and watch karaoke. Emma made the mistake of using the restroom and Mary & I signed her up for one of Whitney’s greatest hits, I just want to dance with somebody. Emma was not impressed when she got back from the bathroom and realized what we had done, but when she hit the stage in front of 250 people, she totally rocked it. It was the most unforgettable wedding gift I received.

Trust me, there are many more memories that involve hairbrush microphones and a coffee table stage in our small but cozy living room in the “owl’s nest.” I loved watching her music videos at friend’s houses as a preteen. We did not have cable and I did not have access to MTV. We also didn’t have access to the Internet as freely as now. Kids should be happy that they can see the latest Katy Perry or Lady Gaga video within seconds. I am also happy now that I can catch a good old fashioned Whitney video with a few taps of my fingers.

So, as much respect and awe as I have for Miss Houston, I feel as though our response was a tad inappropriate, but it fit the relationship that I have had with the Queen of Ballads. Mr. Peters was checking his twitter and saw Drake tweeting a simple “RIP Whitney.” Our table instantly whipped out our smart phones and started googling. Much to our dismay, we discovered that it was true. Whitney Houston had been found in her 4th floor room of a Hollywood Hotel in a bathtub. We were shocked at first, and then felt only right to celebrate the life she had and the impact she had had on each of us. We took a shot of liquid cocaine (I told you it was inappropriate) and each sang our favorite Whitney Song and then toasted her and her beautiful voice.

I definitely sang out proudly a few of my favorite lyrics: “Give me one moment in time, when I’m all that I wanted to be…” After our small memorial ceremony in the middle of the Muddy Pig at 6:00 PM, we decided that we must head to uptown to our favorite karaoke bar. There were quite a few Whitney songs sung and the whole bar sang along. It got a little emotional at times, but I will say that I was proud to know the lyrics to so many of her greatest hits. I spent Saturday night with a few of my best friends and definitely the people that I would have wanted to celebrate the life of the one and only Whitney.