hands down

among the long list of perks of chris's new job (interested in why SAS is the #2 employer in the country? click here) are deep discounts on the summerfest series.  the NC symphony plays most saturday evenings in the summer at an outdoor amphitheater and guests can bring their own picnics to enjoy while they listen to the music.  each week has its own theme, so we invited another family to join us for the "magical mystery tour" that was all about the beatles.

to get ready for the event, chris queued up all sorts of beatles tunes that afternoon and had them playing through our stereo system.  we were eating lunch on our screened porch when my absolute favorite popped up on the rotation.  "oh kids," i said, getting ready to belt it out (much to their dismay), "this is my favorite beatles song ever, hands down."

that evening, after the sun set and we had all had our fill of delicious food and more than a few beverages, the first few notes of that same tune reached my ears.  susanna was sitting in my lap and after a while, turned towards me.  "i wonder why the beatles didn't just name this song 'let it be'," she said.  "that would make a lot more sense."

"they did, sweetheart.  the title is just like the chorus -- let it be."

she looked at me, confused.  "i thought you said it was called 'hands down'."

hands were UP for the final number -- "twist & shout", of course