"And if ya don't know, now ya know..."

If you've known me for just about any amount of time, or seen me in any party setting, you know that I have a weird obsession with knowing lyrics to songs. Memorizing written/spoken word is one of my favorite nerd activities (along with trivia and word games).

And I don't really discriminate either. Here's a random smattering of some things I have memorized in my lifetime: Paul Revere's Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, "The Way I Am" by Eminem (and countless other songs by him), the entire opening monologue of The Wild Thornberries (Hi! I'm Eliza, part of your average family...), the FUN song from Spongebob, "Gangsta's Paradise" by Coolio, pretty much every scene from Matilda...the list could go on and on.

For whatever reason, however, there are two songs that I repeatedly come in contact with that I just cannot memorize. The two have nothing to do with each other, and one of them I probably should know at this point...but it just hasn't happened. So instead, I sit enviously watching those who have conquered the words.

I'll start with the more difficult of the two. If you know the words to this song, you have my unwavering respect (when it comes to memorization skills)....

I'll give you a couple seconds to guess what it is....





"We Didn't Start the Fire" by Billy Joel.

If you have EVER defended a professional singer for forgetting the words to our national anthem, I want you to reconsider after thinking about the fact that Billy Joel sings this song. Even if he has a teleprompter or something. I don't even think I could read this song correctly.

Unlike most other songs, there are absolutely no context clues as to what random pop culture reference is coming up next. Anyone who has memorized this song must have some pretty stellar mnemonic device-making skills. (That word isn't spelled pneumonic by the way...I looked it up.)

The other song I can't get a grasp on is "Juicy" by Notorious B.I.G. For some reason, I missed the memo way back when that it was cool to know all the words to this song. And I feel bested by anyone who gets past "It was all a dream, I used to read Word Up Magazine." I know random lines here and there but I can never really seem to connect them all. So about every 20 seconds I can contribute "Stereotypes of a black male misunderstood..." "Super nintendo, sega genesis.." "birthdays was the worst days, now we sip champagne when we're thirsty..." but sadly, it's the best I can do.

Did I mention that I know every word to Nelly's "Hot in Hurr"?


"Mr. Viscardi Eats Many Juicy Steaks Upon New Plates"
-The mnemonic device I was taught to remember the order of the planets