Three Beautiful Things 08-05-2026: Calm Hospital Day, Winning Wednesday!, It's Even in a Pampers Ad

 1. After Monday, when the orthopedic surgeon dropped the news of Christy having her hip replaced the next day and after Tuesday, when the surgery had to be postponed because Christy had gone into AFib, today, Wednesday, was a quiet, I'd say, smooth day. 

I visited Christy twice and we yakked about different stuff. When I returned for my second visit, Christy told me she'd had a Physical Therapy session which went well.  Christy learned more about her injured hip and leg and about the virtues of a two-wheeled walker and that it'll be a while before she uses a cane. 

Today, with the aid of a walker, Christy walked around her room and tomorrow the therapist will help her navigate the bathroom. 

As of now, Friday's surgery is scheduled for first thing in the morning -- 7:30, I think -- or was in 7:00?

2. I thought in the midst of all that's been going on lately, I might enjoy a short stint at the CdA Casino, spinning some reels and ordering the Winning Wednesday Wings special with a garden salad at the Red Tail Bar and Grill. 

I did enjoy it. 

I won some money to stick into my "stupid money" envelope and I enjoyed sitting quietly in a corner booth of the bar and grill munching away on five chicken wings and eating a green salad for the first time in a few weeks. 

3. Today, on the Symphony Hall Facebook page, someone at SiriusXM raised this question: 

Someone's who's never listened to classical music asks for one piece to start with. What do you recommend first? 

I would have to recommend the person first of all acknowledge all the classical music s/he's heard just by watching Looney Tunes, scores of movies, television ads, television shows, and other popular media that integrate classical music into their creations.  

Music from Bizet's Carmen was featured in Friends as well as on Gilligan's Island. I first fell in love with Bach's 3rd Brandenberg Concerto when I saw Hannah and Her Sisters. Multiple pieces by classical composers were featured in Looney Tunes cartoons. An Old Spice ad drew upon Orff's Carmen Burina. 

Even Pampers got into the act, accompanying a montage of infants' pooh faces with Richard Strauss' Also Spake Zarathustra, made famous by the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey.  You can watch the Pampers ad here: Also sprach … Pampers poop commercial

I'd have to say to the person asking, don't look to me for recommendations. 

You have been and will continue to be introduced to classical music in countless works of popular culture. 

Pay attention to it. See what you like. Look for and listen to other works by these composers, ones not found in the old Anacin ad (Beethoven's 5th) or in Ordinary People (Pachelbel's Canon) or in Bugs Bunny's performance of Chopin's Minute Waltz.