2/19/26

Thought of the day

Every now and then, I need to remind you, my dear, wonderful blogging friends, why this blog is called “Confessions of a Dumb, White Guy.”

I was watching a Western called "Hang ’Em High," and the scene that will ensure that I am voted into the Dumb White Guy Hall of Shame on the first ballot was when everyone in a 50-mile radius gathered in the town square to watch a hanging.
Life moved a little slower back then, I guess, so when word spread there was going to be a hanging, everyone quit churning butter and showed up like it was the town‑square version of pay‑per‑view.

As the hanging party got the condemned men ready for the gallows, the town pastor got the crowd even more fired up by leading them in the hymn “Rock of Ages.”

I remember thinking to myself: "Sweet. I like that song. But I only know the Def Leppard version. I didn't know it was a cover."

Turns out it was no cover at all.

Def Leppard’s 1983 hit “Rock of Ages” is a hard‑rock anthem, the kind of song that makes you want to throw your hands up and air‑guitar in the middle of your living room.

The other “Rock of Ages” is a 19th‑century Christian hymn written by Augustus M. Toplady—the kind of song that’s sung at funerals, weddings and the occasional 1800s public hanging.

The fact that I didn’t know the difference between a salvation‑seeking hymn and a stadium‑rock scream‑along is the kind of clueless mash‑up that helps me live up to this blog’s title and keeps you, my dear, wonderful blogging friend, coming back for more.