Rosie Exists!!

Okay, I’ll admit it, I’m a little behind on my reading. Last night I picked up the May issue of More magazine, which had been sitting in the slush pile on my desk, since, well, May. I was flipping through it and I came across a piece called, “I Was the Girl in the Song: Four Famous Names from Rock History Fess Up,” by Peter Knobler [Now for those of you who don't know me, it's important to point out that I am a huge Bruce Springsteen fan. I love my husband, but he and I have an agreement. If Bruce ever beckons, I'm free to cross the line, no questions asked. Hasn't happened yet but a girl can dream].

My first thought was, “what a cool assignment!” I started to flip the pages and met Judy Blue Eyes, Rikki (as in Rikki Don’t Lose that Number) and [My] Sharona. On the last page I came to, the pull-quote jumped off the page at me: “Bruce and I tucked around behind a rock and started kissing.”

“NO. DON’T TEASE ME,” I thought. Sure enough, that quote was attributed to one Diane Lozito, who was the inspiration for Rosalita. Seems that Diane met Bruce one night in 1971 when she went to hear him play. Since Bruce didn’t drink or get high, (I knew he was good boy) they wound up tucking around that rock on the beach after hours. She and Bruce co-habitated for quite some time, even though “I know your daddy don’t dig me ‘cus I play in a rock and roll band,” during which he wrote such classics as “Spirit in the Night,” “Backstreets,” etc. When Diane asked why she wasn’t in any of them, Bruce replied, “nothing rhymes with Diane.”

Fast forward a bit, and Bruce meets Diane’s grandmother, Rose Lazito. In that part of New Jersey, the name was pronounced Lazita, so she was Rose Lazita. Ah.

Diane left Bruce (silly, silly girl) in 1975, just as Bruce was finishing Born to Run. Years later, she visited Bruce at his hotel after a concert. As he opened his arms wide for a hug, she whispered, “That man behind me is my husband.” Bruce replied, “Ewwwww!” Is he adorable or what? One of the newer musicians on the tour asked who she was, and why everybody was hugging her. Someone replied, “You know who that is? That’s Rosalita!”

Diane’s photo shows a fair-skinned brunette with shoulder-length hair cut in long layers and wearing a very classically cut silk dress. If I was only 15 years older, IT COULDA BEEN ME!

Until Next Time,

Joan

(c) 2008 Joan McCue All Rights Reserved

No Refunds, No Exchanges? No Problem.

Despite the fact that I think concert ticket prices have gone way, way beyond where they should be, I can’t help myself, and like to see a couple of big name concerts each year. Fans are pretty much limited to using Ticketmaster to satisfy their desire to see Bruce or Elton or Jon; Carrie or Tim or (don’t tease me!) Garth.

I bought tickets to a very popular concert via TicketMaster online, congratulating myself on my “score.” Much to my consternation, when the tickets arrived in the mail, they were marked, “Restricted View,” a detail that wasn’t disclosed when I clicked “buy now.” I immediately called Ticketmaster and told them that while I understood their “No Exchanges, No Refunds” language, I never would have purchased the tickets in the first place had they been upfront about the restricted view. It took asking to speak to a supervisor, keeping a civil tongue in my head, and just politely stating my case, but ultimately, I was able to return the tickets and received a full refund.

I’ve also gotten a refund from Priceline when a hotel I was assigned made the Bates Motel look like the Taj Mahal and managed to return an electronics purchase to a “big box” because it was missing the owner’s manual and they insisted I couldn’t return the item because I didn’t have the manual (no I’m not making that one up).

What’s the common denominator? In each of these “I’m stuck” consumer situations, I stayed firm but polite, refused to take no for an answer and came across as reasonable and (relatively) sane. It may have taken some serious deep cleansing breaths to stop myself from Crossing the Line, but in the end, the merchants came over to my side.

Have any similar consumer triumphs to share? I’d love to hear them.

Until Next Time,

Joan

(c) Joan McCue 2008 All Rights Reserved