Zillagod!

I remember when the nightmares first began, after we took in the then-dated Godzilla movie starring Raymond Burr. It was part of a sci-fi double feature at the local drive-in movie --The Derby Drive-In. If I had to guess, I’d say that was in 1964, since my sister was almost a toddler.

Soon after, Godzilla dominated my frequent dreams. In fact, he had a monopoly. He’d chase me. He’d stomp on the buildings I was in. He’d attack my house and damn near everything else that eked into my dreams at the time. We were once shopping at the local Bradlee's department store when thunder came rolling through the valley. I damn near jumped out of my skin.

I became so preoccupied with Godzilla (especially after dark), I would not enter my bedroom after dark without first pulling down the window shades before the lights went on. Simply put, I did not want him peeking in at me. It was as if those window shades offered some sort of protection from monsters, much like blankets do for most vertically-challenged sprats.

So I’m a big boy now, and I have no lasting fear of Godzilla on most days. The dreams kind of dried up when I was a teenager. But to this day, the big lizard does come and visit me in the middle of the night every now and again. And after waking, I look kind of longingly at the dream that ended but minutes ago, as they are a long lost part of my boyhood.

During those aforementioned teen years (and to this day), I became a huge fan of Blue Oyster Cult. I first saw them at the Paramount (Kirby Center) in 1974. I took in their 120 decibel show at the Spectrum. Then later on at the Kingston Armory. And also at the Station Complex.

If you know these guys at all, you know that Spectres (1977) followed up on the massive success of Agents of Fortune (1976) and made them a huge commercial success, where before that they had a sort of cult following. Spectres spawned a couple of classic songs, which are concert staples to this very day: R U Ready to Rock, and the thunderous Godzilla.

Anyway, after days worth of checking the latest heartbreaking news from the Kyoto Wire in Japan, it dawned on me that Godzilla had finally come ashore. Well, sort of.

Check these lyrics that sound eerily similar to the breaking news from Japan, but we'll replace the word HE with the word IT.

With a purposeful grimace and a terrible sound
IT pulls the spitting high tension wires down, Godzilla!

Helpless people on subway trains
Scream My God! as IT looks in on them, Godzilla!

IT picks up a bus and IT throws it back down
As IT wades through the buildings toward the center of town, Godzilla!

From what I’ve been reading, that’s pretty much the way it went down when the massive tsunami came inland.

As far as the nuclear plants are concerned, I’ve read all I can read on that. They had steel/concrete containment structures. Good. They were built to roll and sway with an earthquake of any enormity. Good. They had diesel-powered backup generators to make certain the reactor cores were kept cool in the event the power should go down. Good.

But who could have figured on a 9.1 Richter scale earthquake immediately followed by a killer tsunami?

Here comes the last stanza from Blue Oyster Cult’s Godzilla:

History shows again and again
How nature points up the folly of men, Godzilla!

Weirdness, ain’t it?

In parting, if you're of the praying variety, it's time to work some magic.

Later