Pepper On My Brain

Copenhagen, Denmark

I'm in the garden at Rosenborg Castle. The Copenhagen Jazz Festival is in full swing. A sax-drum-bass trio is rattling out some tunes. I'm sitting on the grass, reading a book, enjoying a rare 30 minutes when my tour group is off with a local guide, and I am all caught up on my phone calls and paperwork.

Usually when I'm not with my group, I am in what I call "the treadmill," scrambling to keep up with the behind-the-scenes tour logistics. I experience a fleeting moment of guilt as I pay for my beer.

"Is this okay?" I wonder. "What would the group think if they knew I was lounging in the garden, drinking a beer, while they were in the castle learning about King Christian IV?"

But then I remember -- Christian IV really liked beer. I am experiencing his castle garden as he would want it to be experienced.

I look up from my book and spot a boy of about 15, wearing a very retro T-shirt from America. "I'm a Pepper," it says.

I can't help but wonder: How and why has a Danish teenager acquired a T-shirt with a 20-year-old slogan for a soft drink that has never been sold in Europe?

I am now oblivious to the jazz trio. Instead, the old Dr. Pepper jingle is bouncing in my brain.

"I'm a Pepper, you're a Pepper, he's a Pepper, she's a Pepper, wouldn't you like to be a Pepper too?"

Is that how the words go? That doesn't make sense. Why were they singing, "You're a Pepper," but then asking, "Wouldn't you like to be a Pepper too?"

I get so worried that later in the evening, I rush to my computer to look up the lyrics online. I had them a bit wrong. In the real commercial, they make more sense.

But I'm in Denmark, trying to lead a tour. Why am I worrying about things like this? When you start editing advertising jingles that haven't graced the airwaves in more than a decade, you know your penchant for writing has morphed into a full-blown mental illness.

Comments

[Nancy]

I think Barry Manilow wrote that Dr. Pepper jingle. Is he a theme for trips?

[Dave Fox]

Nancy, is everything okay? You know way too much about Barry Manilow. I think there might be a new medication for that or something.

[Dan]

With our State Farm Insurance (Like a Good Neighbor...), Nancy can get a shot to cure her, and use a Band-Aid (I am stuck on Band-Aid...) to cover the shot. Of course, it won't cause a reaction like Acne (Give your face something to smile about). She probably will be hungry though, so we'll go to KFC (and have a barrel of fun).

Yep, all product jingles written by the illustrious Barry Manilow!

And you thought it was just Copacabana...:)

[exposed skincare]

Stress causes outbreaks of acne as well. Stress does not care if you are 16 or 36. Stress can cause acne in a person of any age. Other causes of acne are bad diet, as we mentioned earlier, fast foods, greasy foods and junk foods. Dead skin cells can cause acne as well, as the dead skin cells accumulate, they block the pores, and so air cannot get to them. Then a build up happens and the end result is acne. Wash your face twice a day and if you wear makeup then use soap and then use a Stridex pad to make sure...