12/3/09 - Penguin Parade.
As for the "parade" reference, three of my four kids (the ones that can walk) are going to be in the Monrovia's annual Holiday Parade tonight. One because she's in the Girl Scouts; one because, though she's not old enough to be a Scout, begged the troop leader to let her go along; and one because she's in the Duarte High School marching band. Yup, bunch of nerds.
12/2/09 - Just Wine.
the Little Penguin 2008 Riesling: This Austrailian is was pretty good...crisp, and very slightly dry. Better than the Barefoot Riesling, anway (below). What I find weird is that the Riesling does not appear on the Little Penguin website...has it been discontinued? I sent them an email today, in attempt to find out...we'll see what they have to say, if anything.
Barefoot Riesling: I love Barefoot Moscato...sweet, smooth and delicious. So I figured their Riesling (my favorite varietal, as of late) would be good too. Unfortunately, it was way too dry for my taste. I wouldn't buy it again.
Barefoot Sauvignon Blanc. I purchased this one the day after trying the Riesling, to give Barefoot an opportunity to redeem itself. I liked it better than the Riesling; it had a nice tartness, but was still too dry.
By the way, I was noting the other day how back in the 90's, the only places I would ever see Barefoot wines were at specialty stores like Trader Joe's, or at the Ren Faire. Now, the brand is everywhere (supermarkets, convenience stores, discount stores); but not at TJ's. Could this indicate a decline in quality, or merely an increase in the popularity of wine in general?
Oak Leaf Vinyards White Zinfandel. Recently, I picked up a bottle of this bargain (under $2) White Zin at Walmart. Total impulse buy. As it turns out, it's not bad (good with a nice home cooked meal), and I've bought a couple of more bottles since.
This label appears to be fairly new, and has been called Walmart's answer to 2 Buck Chuck. It's wines have gotten mixed, though generaly positive, reviews at CheapWineCritics.com and WineForTheCheap.com (though that's not saying much).
Miramonte Riesling. Currently one of my favorite Rieslings. Sweet and smooth. Available only at Miramonte Winery (see my previous post) for $21.95.
Sutter Home Moscato. While I usually shun Sutter Home wines, I decided to try their Moscato, as it was on sale at my local Ralphs for $4. It's a bit sweeter than I normally like, but great for the price.
Lastly, I want to mention a red wine that has become one of my favorites: Joseph Handler Sweet Red. It's damn good. Rich, velvety smooth, and not overly sweet. My wife discovered it at Trader Joe's a couple of months ago, and it's been a repeat purchase (though last time I was there, it was sold out). And speaking of "velvet", another wine I love, which I haven't had in a while, is San Antonio Velvet Burgundy. Looks like it's time to get myself down to the winery.
9/17/09 - Wines and Cracker
We'd gone on a wine tasting tour up in Santa Barbara County a couple of years back, and so I'd based my expectations on that experience. During that trip, we were driven around to several wineries (at least five, Sunstone and Kalyra being the most memorable), each a fair distance from each other, and sampled wines for about a half hour or so at each place. While the wines were (usually) quite excellent, all the rushing around somewhat detracted from the experience. Still, when Hector said that we'd hit two, maybe three wineries tops, I was a bit taken aback, thinking "Don't we want to try to hit as many as we can?"
The night before going, I did a bit of research, and discovered that all the Temecula wineries are clustered along one road, which is incredibly convenient. The down side, however, is that most of them close around 5PM (which appears to be typical winery hours, but to me, seems way to early). So, I made note of the various closing times and prices, printed some online coupons, and was determined to maximize my time there.
We were originally supposed to caravan out there with our friend Gabriel, and his "friend" Joanne, however we got a late start. They went on ahead, and by the time we got there, were at a bar, into their second beer. Once Hector and Carol showed up, we decided to get lunch at Marie Callender's, so we didn't hit the wine trail until about three in the afternoon.
We visited Falkner, Callaway, and Mt. Palomar, in that order. The wines were decent, and I bought a few bottles at Falkner and Callaway, and ended up joining Callaway's wine club (which means I'll be going back every other month to pick up a couple of bottles at 30% off, and do some free tasting).
The crowds at these places seemed to be a lot more laid back than those at the Santa Barbara area wineries, and while frankly, the wines weren't as good, we had a lot more fun.
Around 7PM, Mt. Palomar was closing up, and we were feeling pretty good. Hector was about to call it a night, when I suggested we try one more: Miramonte Winery, which closes at 10PM on Saturdays.
The scene was more like a bar than a tasting room, and the crowd was already getting lively. Pretty soon, a rock/blues band came on, people started supplementing their wine with beer, and the place became pleasantly raucous. Aside from the drunken dancing and mesmerizing sunset, what I remember most about the place is their Riesling. It was sweet, smooth and delicious; and reminded me of mead, but with a much softer edge. Unfortunately, I was too bombed to remember to buy a bottle. Oh well, next month, I guess.
On another recent (9/10) outing, I met up with a couple of co-workers (Sam and Ethan) at the El Rey Theatre, to see Camper Van Beethoven and Cracker.
I had only been to the El Rey once (that I can remember), and had forgotten what an awesome place it is to see a show. The bands were great, though I wish the lengths of their sets were reversed (I was there for CVB, more so than Cracker). Also, I was in agreement with Ethan, that the sound guy either didn't know what he was doing, or didn't care. The meters were slammed into the red the whole time, causing a less-than-clean sound.
One of the great things about CVB shows, is that they don't care if you bring recorders. Unfortunately, the volume was too great for my digital camera's mic, and the clips I captured have pretty distorted sound. Regardless, it was a great way to spend a Thursday night.
7/9/09 - Bummed Out.
At the funeral mass, I was semi-prepared to say some words, however, the opportunity did not arise:
I've always thought of my grandfather as a man of great strength and integrity; a loving and hard-working man. He was also a modest man, who never talked about himself very much. If you asked, though, you could discover no end of new and fascinating things about him. One thing I wanted to say to him, that I didn't (I couldn't figure out how to bring it up, or the exact words to say), was that I hope to be the same kind of person and grandfather that he was, when I someday become "Grandpa Martin".
Well, something like that, anyway. I can think of more things about him now, like his selflessness and his unfailing willingness to provide help to whoever should ask of it. Regardless of what I did not say to him, I was able to tell him that I love him, and thank him...and being a quiet man of few words himself, I think that was enough.
Between the days that his suffering ended, and that he was laid to rest, I admit that I was too engrossed in my own problems to let the sadness sink in too much. This quiet morning, however, alone with my thoughts, I feel the sad emptiness of his departure, which I try to soften with happy memories of who he was.
I also cannot help but think of my other loved ones who have passed on: my maternal grandparents, Mario and Lillian, and my cousin Ralph, whose life ended just as the adventure of adulthood was beginning. May they all rest in peace.
7/2/09 - Farewell and Godspeed.
4/29/09 - Dreaming of me.
First of all, my dream band consisted of the four of us in BPM (myself, Ger, Rosa and Hector), plus three backup guitarists, all old guys whom I used to work with, and whose names I no longer remember. Also, Rosa was some blond chick who was the spitting image of Black Canary from the Justice Leage of America.
So, after not having played a gig for some time (as in real life), we were preparing to do a show at the Occidental College gymnasium. It was 15 minutes till show time, and we were just about finished setting up, when I realized that I'd forgotten my bass.
I had taken the bus to the gig, as the only vehicle I owned was a tiny, beat-up Honda scooter, with which I could not transport my amp. Either nobody would give me a ride, or I refused their offers (I don't remember which it was), so I ran to the bus stop, knowing there was no way I'd make it in time.
When I got to my apartment (I was apparently single again), I opened my bass case to find that it was in pieces. I had taken it apart to clean it, but hadn't put it back together. I kicked myself for procrastinating as usual, and tried to rebuild it. Unfortunately, there were way more pieces that there should have been, and I couldn't figure it out.
Just then, then band showed up, understandably pissed off, saying that there was no point in trying to play, as we were already a half hour late. Everyone quit the band and left. As I stood there alone, feeling like an idiot, I looked up and saw my other bass hanging on the wall, in perfect working order.
4/20/09 - 17 Again again.
Anyway, the plan was to see Monsters vs. Aliens, and since we're on a tight budget, I figured that the drive-in would be the economical choice, as kids (under 9) are only $1, and we can bring our own refreshments. So, we popped a big menudo-pot full of popcorn, filled up some bottles of water, grabbed the one can of soda in the fridge, and set sail!
Moviephone.com had listed Monsters vs. Aliens as starting at 7:30PM. However, when we got there, we were informed that it was actually 17 Again that was showing at 7:30, with Monsters vs. Aliens to follow. Ironically, my wife had taken the oldest kid to see 17 Again the night before, and was therefore annoyed at having needlessly spent the money; while I was annoyed because I thought I had managed to avoid watching it.
So, we sat through it...and, I must admit; it wasn't so bad of a movie after all. Unfortunately, all our home-spun refreshments were consumed during the first half hour, and people were getting hungry (we kinda forgot to have dinner before we left).
I walked down to the snack bar to find that it was Cash Only. We only had $10 cash left, but luckily there was an ATM. I walked back to the car to inform the wife of the situation (it was her ATM card we were using, so I wasn't sure how much cash to take out). At that point, everyone needed a pee break, so we all walked back to the snack bar. As the rest queued up at the Ladies Room, I went over to the ATM, only to find that it was out of order. So, between the five of us, we ended up sharing a churro, a box of Red Vines, and a bottle of water.
While waiting for the second movie to start (the one we had actually gone to see), we noticed that the row of cars in front of us had cleared out, giving us a nice clear view of the screen. This apparent boon, however, was quickly dispelled by the lady in the next car, who informed us that the projector had broken, and that there would be no Monsters vs. Aliens tonight.
Feeling tired and ripped-off, we joined the exodus to get our rain-check passes, and drove sadly home.
The End.
3/18/09 - The Martin and Ger Show, Episode 8!
2/26/09 - Sleepless in Duarte
She's healthy and adorable. It looks like she lucked out and got some of the few good chromosomes we had left. Good work, gonads!
2/11/09 - People actually remember Harm Farm?
15 plus years later, in an effort to slowly replace my old cassettes (now boxed up in the attic) with their CD equivalents, I found "Nice Job, Einstein" on Amazon...and still for only a buck, oddly enough.
So, while listening to the CD at work, I Googled 'Harm Farm lyrics' in the off-chance that someone had actually posted some, and came across a blog called Drilling Holes in the Wall. The author reminisces on liking, almost grudgingly, it sounds like; the track "Daisy, I...", despite the fact that he had grown sick of "Clams" (the single off their previous album). I found a sample of "Clams" on Amazon, and yeah, it's kind of annoying...but I'll probably download it anyway.
"Daisy, I..." is a great song though, as are others on the CD, such as "A Fine Elixir", which has a very Camper Van Beethoven feel. It's a worthwhile listen for anyone who enjoys the CVB/Monks of Doom/Cracker oddball genre of music. There are some tracks where the lyrics detract from the music (I hate when that happens), and the vocals get a bit too annoyingly nasal, but overall, the raw goodness of this fiddle-laden backwoods rock really shines.
Oh, and speaking of the bass still being for sale, I got an email response to my craigslist ad from one Rafael Rodriguez, who gave me some spiel about sending me a money order if I agree to take down the ad now, and that he would then pick up the bass when he had time.
Apparently this is some kind of weird prank or scam, because I got that same email sometime last year, the last time that I had put this bass up for sale. After had I responded to his email, agreeing to take down the ad, he said he'd have his assistant send me the money order, then arrange to pick it up. Of course, I never received any money order, or another email after that. This time, I just replied that I wasn't falling for that crap again. I wonder if he'll write back...
2/10/09 - Any day now.
BTW, the bass is still for sale :)
1/28/09 - Bass for sale.
The next thing to go will be my 1966 Mustang...which is why I've been procrastinating for years on fixing it.
Speaking of cars, check out this guy below. I despise these car mods; not only are they tacky, they never look like they fit quite right.
1/7/08 - Musician's Friend, yet again.
Shortly after making the order, I realized that I'd forgotten to check Amazon.com first...and I'm always telling people to do exactly that. Well, I did, and sure enough, they have the same mic package for $67 less.
Normally, this would have severely pissed me off. However, since I was getting the $100 in Bonus Bucks (or so I thought), I was still up by $33 ($332 Amazon price - $399 Musician's Friend price + $100 Bonus Bucks), so it was all good.
About a week later, however, I got an email stating that I'd been issued $65 in Bonus Bucks. "WTF?" thought I. So I called up Customer Support and wrangled with them for awhile, but due to a technicality, I was only eligible for that much. I was now down by $2.
In that email, however, was a blurb about the Musician's Friend 45-day low price guarantee. "We'll beat any price," it claimed; so I called up Customer Support again, to get my $67 refund. After they looked up my claim, however, they refused to refund me, as the vendor selling through Amazon (Unique Squared, Inc.) is not an authorized Shure dealer, despite the fact that Amazon itself is (the "authorized dealer" catch is buried in the fine print). I was feeling a bit screwed at this point.
Fortunately, when I received my package, a $20 "loyalty coupon" was included, so, combined with the $65 in Bonus Bucks, I got $85 off my next order (a headphone amp, and misc accessories that I was going to buy anyway). So in the end, I ended up with $18 in savings over Amazon. I guess I still got a good deal, but what a hassle! Ger says that's what I get for trying to scam them. In a way, I guess he's right...I do get too tempted by loopholes, and sometimes "working the system" just isn't worth all the trouble.
Speaking of Amazon.com, they issue a credit card that gives you a $25 gift cert for every $2500 you spend. Seeing as I how I use that card extensively, I usually get a cert each month. I used my last one for a Nady direct box, and I plan to get another with the next one.
The GAS doesn't end there though, as today, I purchased a pair of Samson C02 condenser mics from, yes, you guessed it, Amazon. This time, I'm confident that I got the best price (there were a few other stores with the same price, but nobody lower). I'm excited about these, as every review I've read about these is positive. I plan to use them mainly as drum overhead mics.
In other news, the wife and I saw George Lopez perform at the Nokia Theatre on New Years Eve. This is the third year in a row that we catch his winter tour. Personally, I wasn't all that enthusiastic about it, as his '06 and '07 shows didn't differ all that much from eachother. Thankfully, he had a lot of new material this time; though his perpetual opener, Bryan Kellen, did not. I'm gettin' kinda tired of that guy. George was hilarious though, and I'm glad we went.
12/23/08 - Discarded Childhood.
Yesterday, my brother and I exchanged gifts early, as I'm going up to the mountains for Chirstmas. One of the items bestowed upon me was a Star Wars land speeder. Awesome.
A sci-fi geek since the age of 4 (i.e. when I saw Star Wars at the Mann's Chinese Theatre), my favorate toys were always Star Wars-related. As with most short-sighted youths, however; once some of these toys got old, I gave them away to make room for the new. Let's start with this baby: the Blaster Pistol!
Not only did it look cool, it made cool sounds. With this puppy, I was the one to fear when playing "guns" with my cousins. No mere cap gun could deal as much imaginary death! This one was held onto the longest, before being passed on to who-knows-who.
Next we have the Droid Factory. This combined Star Wars with toys of the building genre (tinker toys, erector sets, etc.) of which I also enjoyed. Very cool.
While not being true Star Wars toys per se, these Star Wars-themed vans were way cool. They were powered by rip-cord action, and threw sparks as they sped off on thier collision course with whatever action figures were unlucky enough to be standing in their way. By the way, that reminds me, remember that old driver saftey ad? "A car is not a toy!"
The CAP-2 was part of series of small vehicles that didn't actually appear in the movies. I remember buying this one when K-mart was trying to get rid of them at close-out prices.
What I still do have (along with most of my action figures), are the following:
BEST CHRISTMAS PRESENT EVER (well up there with the Atari 2600, anyway):
The Snowspeeder.
The venerable Darth Vader collector's case. It's pretty beat up now, but I just can't seem to let it go.
12/17/08 - Sucker for a good deal.
For the past year, my music gear purchases have mostly been made from Sweetwater Sound and Parts is Parts, whom I both highly recommend. Musician's Friend, however, has finally made me an offer I just couldn't refuse.
I had earmarked a portion of my Chirstmas bonus (yup, some places still give those) for a Shure Drum Mic Kit:
I had originally intended on buying it from Sweetwater Sound for the low price of just under $500.00. While researching other mic options, however, I discovered that Musician's Friend is selling it for $100 less...and as if that wasn't enough to sway me (which it was), they're also having a promotion where you get $25 in "Bonus Bucks" for every $100 you buy in gift certificates. You see where I'm going with this, right?
So, I bought myself $400 in gift certificates, which I'll use to by the mics, earning myself $100 in "Bonus Bucks", which should be just enough for a 4-channel headphone amp, 3 mic stands and 3 mic cables. A nice bit o' Christmas magic, if ya ask me!
Yup, it all sounds good on paper. I haven't forgotten, however, that this IS Musician's Friend I'm dealing with here. Already, I'm a bit nervous, as I ordered the gift certs yesterday, and they have not yet been emailed to me. Ger suggests that the credit card charge needs to clear first. I'm hoping that's all it is, however, if the certs don't come by this afternoon, it's back on the horn with my old pals in Customer Service.
On an unrelated note, my digital camera broke again back in August (it got wet on the Roaring Rapids ride at Six Flags Magic Mountain), hence the lack of Discount Food Review updates. There IS the can of Clamato Engeria still sitting in my desk drawer that I keep putting off. I guess I'll finally crack it open today...I just know this is gonna suck.
12/12/08 - RIP Bettie Page.
11/5/08 - The obligatory post-election day blog entry.
Though I've been rootin' for Obama (at least since Clinton lost the primaries), I could not have predicted such a huge win. I thought that if Obama were to win, it would be by a very narrow margin. John McCain basically got his ass handed to him, and I'm glad. Not because I don't like the guy (I would have voted for him over John Kerry), but because it helps balance out my angst over the fact that I almost always lose when it comes to ballot measures. Only two of the tweleve California state measures went my way. It almost makes me feel bad to be a Californian. But I digress.
Back to Obama's veritable landslide victory; during the past two elections, I was so sure that the Dems would take the Presidency, I was absolutely dumbfounded when Bush won. Especially the second time...I just couldn't believe it. Kerry was no ringer, but we had just gone through four years of crap; who would want four more of the same? I guess news travels slower, the further inland you get.
Anyway, this time around, an actual decent human being was running on the Republican ticket. I figured that if the current lunatic could manage to get elected twice, the Dems were going to have an even harder time winning now. Well, for once I'm glad I was wrong.
The past eight years have been a huge waste of time for this country. I usually refer to the Bush presidency as 'The Eight Year Scam', because I can't help but feel personally ripped off. Now, though I'll never get those eight years back, I at least feel like I can breathe a sigh of relief. Soon, it will be time to move on. In the mean time, it's a race for the Bush adminstration to fuck up as much shit as they can in the next few months.
OK, aside from all that, here are a few highlights of things that have happened since last post:
- Finally bought another car (1998 Nissan Sentra)
- Finished Moby Dick
- Ger and I (along with a couple of co-workers) came in 5th place (out of 14) in the Rock Band competition at work.
- 4 family birthdays
Yeah, it's been an expensive few months...and Christmas is looming ominously in the distance! Is there time for one last stimulus package?
6/24/08 - Ridin' the bus.
Speaking of the wife, I recently started driving her car to work, as it is (well, was) more fuel efficient than mine, in addition to my commute being twice as long as hers. However, one week ago today, as I was driving home, I got into a rather nasty accident. Now, I'm bussin' it.
It takes four busses, and almost the same amount of hours, to get from Duarte to Burbank (normally about a one hour drive). Kinda sucks. Fortunately, I've only had to make the full trip once so far. For the most part, I only have to take one bus to the metro station, where Ger picks me up. If he's out that day, however, it's the bus ride of tears for me.
Ironically, I had been toying with the idea of bussing it, just to cut down on our gas expenses, but had been reluctant to start actually doing it. Oh well, at least I have time to finish Moby Dick now.
6/13/08 - Music Stuff.
The Things We Do For Love - 10cc
Cities in Dust - Siouxsie and The Banshees
Daniel - Elton John
Cigarette Man (Cast of Characters) - Monks of Doom
Taxman - The Beatles
Cocktails For Two - Spike Jones
Money/Hollow Inside - Buzzcocks
Jim Gore and The Ghost of Missouri - Monks of Doom
Who Can It Be Now - Men At Work
Say It Isn't So - Hall and Oats
Don't Ask Me Why - Billy Joel
Dear Prudence - The Beatles
I'd say the Classic Rock was a bit over-represented, but hey, that's what came up.
In other music-related news, Bad Poetry Minute has scored a gig at the Los Angeles County Fair (9/13/08 @ Noon)! We're pretty damn excited, as this will potentially be the largest crowd we've played for yet. Should be fun
Also, I've been in the process of trying to refurbish my bass amp (a 1995 Carvin Pro Bass 300 Combo), as it's over ten years old, and I can't afford a new one at this time. It's problems are all basic use-and-abuse type stuff: carpet covering shredded by cats; a worn speaker; dirty, crackly pan pots; and a recent development (which finally led to the decision to refurbish): a short of some kind, causing the speaker to buzz and cut in and out when playing certain frequencies.
The first thing I did was strip all the covering off and sand the sucker down:
I noticed some black spots which looked like they could be mold, so I got out the heat gun and scortched the area just in case. I then went to work on trying to fix the short.
I first thought that it was one of the speaker wires, so I replaced them both, but had the same problem. I then ordered a new speaker cable from Sweetwater Sound, but that wasn't it either.
Further troubleshooting indicated that it was a problem with the jack (which is soldered to a circuit board that the speaker wires connect to). Upon closer inspection, I noticed that the solder had fallen off one of the jack pins that connect to the circuit board. I re-soldered all the connection points and gave it a quick test. It sounded good so I called it quits for the night.
I decided to practice a bit the next day, and found that the problem was still there. I couldn't easily check if there was a problem with the plug-to-jack connection, as the jack is encased in a plastic housing, so I decided to replace it.
Instead of soldering the same kind of jack to the circuit board, I decided to go simple and get rid of the circuit board altogether, and wired the speaker to a basic phone jack from Radio Shack. I tested the amp at high volume, and so far, it seems to be alright now.
Speaking of the circuit board, this one was actually a replacement for the original, which burned out about a year after I bought the amp. The original had connectors for both the 15" woofer, and the 2" horn. The replacement, however, only had 1 set of connectors, so the horn has been unused since then. One of my next projects is to figure out how to get it working again. But I digress.
As for the pan pots, etcetera, I cleaned them all with denatured alcohol...no more crackling. What's left now is to install the tolex that arrived yesterday. We'll see how that goes.
I'm putting off replacing the speaker for now, but I'll definitely do it before the LA County Fair gig.
Lastly, with regards to music stuff, a new episode of The Martin and Ger Show is long overdue, so hopefully I'll get that up soon.
5/16/08 - New Food Reviews!
Also, I got this Reader Comment from Marilynn back in February, and thought I'd share:
Subject: thank you
Message: Love your food reviews. Found your site while looking up info on Hartford House stew which I got from a food bank.
For the last couple years I have been buying most of my groceries at 99 Cent Only Stores. Love the treasure hunt to find real bargins.
Morally this is a problem. These stores are real competition for the chain markets whose personnel are union members.
It is a tough call to decide between cheap eats and supporting labor unions.
I suppose Marilynn's got a point there, and one that's becoming more relevant as the economy gets worse: Do you save money by shopping at a discount store, or support the economy by buying retail? Not only is there the question of union vs. non-union stores, but there's also the food manufacturing employees to consider. Will Kellog's lay off a thousand people because I bought some cornflakes made in Brazil? Wow, what a downer...Gee, thanks Marilynn!
4/10/08 - Seattle.
In other news, the wife I recently visted Seattle, WA. Interesting town...modern, but with a old-timey vibe. Some highlights included the Pike Place Market and the Seattle Public Library (seriously)...not to mention all the cosplay freaks walking around (there was an anime convention going on during the four days we were there).
The day we got there, we decided to get the Space Needle over with, only to discover that it was closed for a private party (the gift shop, of course, was still open to the public).
We were going to try it again a couple of days later, but decided to skip it and try the Columbia Center, which is twice as tall, and only $5 to ascend (compared to $14 for the Space Needle). Unfortunately, that was on a Saturday, and lo and behold, they're closed on weekends.
Still, we had fun while we were there. Getting home, however is another story. We ended up missing our 11:10AM flight, and couldn't get another one until 7:45PM. That sucked.
To make up for not ascending the Needle or the Columbia Center, we were plannng on checking out our very own Library Tower, which is the tallest building west of Chicago (we were by it this past Saturday at the Los Angeles Central Library but didn't have time to check it out). Unfortunately, research indicates that it does not have an observation deck (it has restaurants and other public amenities though, so maybe we'll be able to get up there). City Hall apparently does have an observation deck though...that might be worth a look. One downtown building we have been to the top of, is the Bonaventure Hotel, where we ran into Max Hardcore.
3/17/08 - Band strife rears its ugly head.
Whilst doing Mad Dog shots (vodka, grenadine or raspberry syrup and tabasco) at practice the other day, the name "Virgin Mad Dog" was suggested as a replacement for our long-time, yet no longer widely recognized name, Bad Poetry Minute. Seeing as how arguments over the band name was one of the major conflicts that led to the bands dissolution back in the late 90's; when we got back together a few years ago, I had told myself that if the issue were to be raised again, I'd abstain rather than take my former hard-line stance against change.
Due to the nature of how this name was suggested, however, I'm not counting on it sticking. I'll let it stew around in Rosa and Hector's minds for awhile and see what happens. For now though, I'm not going to bother scrapping the BPM website or anything.
Another reason I don't consider this change written in stone is because Ger has yet to voice his opinion on the matter...and Ger has very vocal opinions. The main problem with this, however, is that Rosa and Hector have begun to suggest giving Ger his walkin' papers, as he has consistantly not shown up for practice lately. This has resulted in him not only getting rusty on playing certain older songs, but also being pretty much left out entirely in the creation of new material. This suggestion, however, I am openly opposed to. Bro's before (decently played) shows!
Ironically, this is the same kind of thing that Ger scolded our former keyboardist for back in the 90's. I pointed this out, to which Hector replied "Hey, what comes around, goes around."
So yeah, we'll see what hilarity ensues when I talk to Ger about it tomorrow.
By the way, speaking of Ger, BPM and hilarity, a new episode of The Martin and Ger Show is now available. Its entitled "Adventures in Home Recording, Part I" and documents our attempt and recording a new demo CD.
2/29/08 - Upcoming unpleasantness.
En otra noticias, I recently picked up the Robotech: The Shadow Chonicles DVD.
Being a big Robotech fan since it first aired in the 80's (I think I was in 5th or 6th grade at the time), I was stoked
when I heard that Harmony Gold was going to release a new movie. It was supposed to hit theatres in 1/07, but it apparently
went straight to DVD after running the film festival circuit.
It's set at the end of the TV series, during the Earth's occupation by aliens called the Invid, and features both old characters (including the venerable Admiral Rick Hunter), and new ones (like yet another Max and Miriya Sterling offspring).
Being used to the gritty style of 80's-era anime, the ultra-clean animation and heavy use of CGI threw me off a bit, but the story remains true to Robotech form in the sense that it's yet another "man behind the man" (or more accurately, "alien species behind the alien species") plotline, and in that poor old Rick Hunter is once again stranded out in deep space. Without giving too much away, the long-standing Invid invasion comes to an end, and a new threat is introduced, setting the stage for the sequel (which is currently in production).
IMDB currently rates it at 6.3/10, which seems fair enough to me. Not a ground-breaking film by any measure, yet for a true Robotech nerd, I'd say it's good enough!
2/15/08 - Martin and Ger Show, Episode 5!
1/9/08 - Desperately Seeking Pasta.
Subject: Pasta Select Ravioli
Message: I live in Iowa City, IA and someone just gave me a can of this. I liked it so much that I looked it
up online trying to find where to get more. That is how I came upon your page here. This stuff is delicious.
If you know where I can get more around here, please let me know.
So, as for other goings on, I won a pair of tickets to see Camerata Pacifica this morning, from my favorite radio station: KPCC. A little culture should be nice.
On the down side of things, my camera is still out for repairs, so no new Food Review posts for probably another month. (I contacted the repair center yesterday, and they said that they've been waiting for a parts shipment since November, and if it doesn't come by the end of next week, they'll just replace my camera.)
On the upside of things again, I managed to once again score some (practically) free gear from Musician's Friend. Because of the crap they put me (and presumably, many others) through last year, I recieved a 20% off apology coupon from them. Combined with a close-out sale and some credit that mysteriously showed up on my account, I got two pretty cool microphones for the price of shipping!
12/3/07 - Reader comments.
So I've been doing this site for nearly two years, and save for a few of my friends, I really had no idea if anyone was actually viewing it. Well, lo and behold, I got this qwirky little email the other day:
Subject: htbftbvxkm
Message: Hello! Good Site! Thanks you! kvdpsdfwcuslm
Name: htbftbvxkm
11/20/07 - Now I hate Starbucks more than ever.
It's been a busy month...always is around the start of the holiday season. Only just started my Chirstmas shopping...yup, time to run up those credit cards. I already spent a ton of dough throwing a costume party this past Saturday. It was fun though. Got to hang out with a lot of people I hadn't seen in awhile. Pics from it can be seen here. I'm also going to be throwing a Chirstmas party this year, which should be pretty huge (got a big family). No party for New Years though, as we got tix to see George Lopez at the Nokia Theatre. We'll probably seek out a party afterward though, or perhaps join some friends who said they'd save us a space at the Rose Parade.
As for the Starbucks reference, let me just say that I am sorely disappointed in myself right now. I was listening to Larry Mantle on the way in to work, and he was talking to the author of a new book about Starbucks. I decided to call in and verbally rip Starbucks a new one, but when the call screener asked me for a single sentence to describe my topic, I was unable to articulate my thoughts (which mostly had to do with why I miss all the now extinct independant coffee houses that I used to go to). She put me on hold so I can try to think of something, but I just hung up. I suppose it was for the best, seeing as how the next three people to come on the air were way more interesting that I would have been.
10/18/07 - Updates!
As for what I've been up to lately, the only thing really worth mentioning is that I spent a week in Hawaii earlier this month. Sadly, I really don't have anything to say about it, or anything else at the moment. On my drive to work this morning, I was considering writing about how much I utterly despise "Hannah Montana" (as well as almost everything else that airs on the Disney Channel), but there was a point to it that I can no longer remember.
9/12/07 - Cuttlefish.
9/5/07 - Finally got it.
Anyway, as I mentioned we had a gig at a local bar called Mr. T's Bowl. There was a decent crowd for a Wednesday night...I think most of 'em were there to see us. It was fun...we stumbled a few times but we've had worse performances.
We threw our hat in to play at the upcoming Eagle Rock Music Festival (10/6), and for awhile I was really hoping we'd get to play...until I realized that I'm going to be in Hawaii that day and would have to find someone to fill in for me. (Un)fortunately, we weren't selected after all. So, we don't have any more shows lined up at the moment, we're just kind of waiting to see what comes up. It's probably time to start recording that new demo.
8/23/07 - Done with Musician's Friend.
After briefly considering keeping the VIPER, I remembered the Schecter Ultrabass and inquired about that one. Sure enough, they're out of stock on that one too. So, having reached the bullshit limit with these people, I've decided to return the VIPER, get my money back, and avoid any future purchases from musiciansfriend.com, guitarcenter.com or music123.com (all ship from the same warehouse, as far as I can tell).
One thing I've considered that puts things at least a little bit into perspective is that Musician's Friend is in the middle of moving to a larger warehouse, so that place has got to be in chaos right now. I'd recommend anybody to avoid any purchases from them for at least another year or so while they get their shit straightened out. At the very least, NEVER order anything that is "backordered", even if they say they're expecting more in by a certain date. Another thing to be wary of are all the websites that look like independant dealers, but are just fronts for Musician's Friend.
That said, I was still determined to buy this damned bass, and ended up finding an independant dealer called guitarplaza.com, who have a brick-and-mortor store in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. I called them up, and a dude named Mario confirmed that the EC-404 is in stock. When he mentioned that it ships from California, I said "Wait a minute, it doesn't ship from Musician's Friends's warehouse, does it?" He laughed and said "Oh no, we have nothing to do with those people." I then remembered that Musician's Friend ships out of Kansas...but still, just the fact that he can't physically confirm that the bass exists makes me nervous. Well, I ordered it anyway. Really, I'm not a glutton for punishment...just a bit of a Captain Ahab, I guess. Oh, BTW, the pickholder arrived, and the strap, cable and strings should arrive any day. Yup, $50 of accessories, but no actual bass. At least those I didn't pay for.
8/17/07 - The Musician's Friend Saga Continues.
a bass gig bag
a guitar cable
a set of guitar strings
a guitar strap
a guitar wall hanger
a pick holder
So today, I called Customer Service to find out what happened to my other items. The rep was surprised to hear that I've received the hanger and the gig bag, as their system shows them still being in the warehouse, along with the rest of my items. So she sends a note to the warehouse telling them to update their inventory, and says that my other items are ready to be shipped and should be soon. She also notes that the pick holder was shipped on the 13th. I find it both hilarious and perturbing that the item I ordered as an afterthought is the only one that they've been tracking...especially since I've checked the tracking number on FedEx's site, and FedEx's system has absolutely no info on it! Wow.
As for the bass I ordered, received (wrong one) and returned...I got an email yesterday that it's shipped again. UPS's website shows it as being in transit, and scheduled to arrive four days from now. If I receive the wrong one again, I don't know if I'd have the patience to do the whole exchange thing over again. I'm crossing my fingers that the stoners over at Musician's Friend got it right this time, but if not, they could at least send me something more expensive like a G&L or a Lakland...I think they owe me that by now. Hell, I'd even settle for a Schecter Ultra Bass and a $50 refund...I'm just tired of waiting.
8/7/07 - Here Fishy Fishy...
We rotate landings, and this year, boarded the Seabiscuit out of Channel Islands Sportfishing Center (Oxnard).
My dad caught some nice lingcod, though two of them were just shy of being legal, and one mysteriously disappeared.
So now my two oldest girls want to go fishing. I might take them out on a half-day trip sometime before school starts up. We'll see how that goes.
After the trip, I went to an art show at boutique/gallery in Whitter called Casita Del Pueblo (unfortunately, I forgot to take my camera). It was a collective show dubbed "La Loteria - A Lottery of Chicano Pop Art." There were some good pieces, and free mojitos. Good turn out. I ended up purchasing an Eric Valdez original...now I'm broke again.
8/3/07 - Musician's Foe?
OK, so I call them up to get this taken care of. One thing I'll say about Musician's Friend is that I've never head trouble contacting their Customer Service...they're always friendly and quick to respond. I just wish I didn't have to call them so frequently. The rep takes care of setting up an exchange and says I'll get the shipping label via email in a couple of days. I note that I'm wary about this, because I've already called twice about a $50 coupon I was supposed to receive via email (at two different addresses) and it still hasn't shown up.
She says she'll look into this as well and puts me on hold. Several minutes later, she comes back and says the shipping label has been sent, and sounds like she's about to end the call. I bring up the $50 coupon again, and ask if it's possible to just refund me $50 and forget about the coupon. She puts me on hold again, and a few minutes later comes back and says that I've been refunded $15. I say "Fifteen bucks? It was supposed to be fifty bucks...five zero." She laughs and says "Oh, okay I see now. No problem, let me put you on hold again"...then we're disconnected.
I call back, explain the situation to the new rep, and he verifies that she indeed refunded me $50. Cool, though with the way things have been going, I won't feel better until I actually see that money back on my credit card. I then checked my email, and the shipping label had indeed been sent. So I suppose we're square for now. If there are any problems with the exchange, however, that's it... I'm done with Musician's Friend. They had already kept me waiting for over a month for a toggle switch that I could have just gone and bought a Fry's (I ended up just cancelling the order).
On a different topic, tomorrow morning I'll be getting up at 2AM to get ready for a day of fishing out near the Channel Islands. I'm pretty psyched up, as I haven't angled in about two years, and I've been checking the fishing reports daily. There have been pretty good hauls in the Port Hueneme area (which is where I thought we were going), but it's been looking pretty weak near Channel Islands. Also, later that evening, I have an art show to go to that my younger brother is participating in. It should be interesting...I wonder if there will be free wine. Anyway, for more info on the art show click here.
7/2/07 - Site updates.
6/26/07 - Stuff to look forward to.
For a little while, I was tempted to buy the G&L ASAT bass below ($850 on eBay...an absolute steal). I recently sold an '82 Chevy S10 that I inherited, plus some Warcraft, Warcraft III and Diablo II action figures that I got when I used to work at VU Games; so I had some cash...but, my sense of responsibility got the better of me and I used the dough to pay off yet another credit card (one down, three to go.)
Also, my oldest kid's birthday is coming up in August, so I used some of this cash to buy her a Rogue electric violin (about $175 on eBay):
But I digress. So, I'm looking forward to my new LTD. Some stuff for you to look forward to (I'm being presumptuous, I know): A brand new episode of The Martin and Ger show, featuring interviews with and live music from The Able Lincoln story, and more. Also, some additions to the Discount Food Review. Hopefully I'll get those things up in a few days.
Oh, BTW, that "bass" from the previous post ended up selling for $23.50 (plus $45 S&H). Out of curiosity, I checked out the recent purchases of they guy who bought it. They include another God-awful bass (below) and miscellanous parts...so it's probably being used for salvage...I hope it was worth it!
6/8/07 - Bass atrocity.
What is it? A dog bone/spade/bird with a big ass? The seller claims its "brand new", but doesn't say much else. There's no name on the headstock, and judging by the paint job, I have to guess that this is someone's project bass. Its stuff like this that deters me from trying to build one myself. I don't want to put all that work into it, just to look at the finished product and say "What was I thinking?" and then try to get rid of it on eBay.
Bizarre basses on eBay are by no means a rarity, and Bunnybass.com has a nice collection of them. A couple of other weird guitar galleries can be perused at Otherroom.com and Bunnybass' apparent arch nemesis: Edromanguitars.com.
5/31/07 - It slipped through my fingers!
I found this on eBay: an ESP LTD EC-304. It's an earlier model, but basically the same bass as the one I've been planning on getting.
The guy selling it is the bassist for a NY band called Jupiter Sunrise, whom I accidentally saw at Spaceland a couple of years ago (I had actually gone to see Coheed and Cambria, but it turned out to be the wrong night). Anyway, it went for $314... a damn good price. As it usually goes on eBay, it was a battle during the last minute or so...sadly, one that I was not able to win.
5/24/07 - Another cool bass
So I'm less than a month away from buying my EC-404. In the mean time, I've been searching high and low for any other basses
that I might consider getting instead. So far, I haven't found anything I like better (in the same price range), though I've
developed an interest in the Electra MPC-X-610. These were produced in the late 70's, and I remember often seeing these in
pawn shops during late 80's. As of late, however, they seem to have become something of a collector’s item.
They're supposed to have a good sound, and I dig the body shape...reminds me of The Tick. And check out all those knobs...what's that one on the
right horn? Here's another picture for a
closer look.
Instead of buying one, though, I think I'd rather build a bass with this body shape. I'd keep the speed knobs (though I'd use the blue DiMarzios that go to "11", heh-heh), but lose the switches, and maybe even the pickguard. I currently envision it in classic Mustang "Springtime Yellow". I've been looking into the whole bass-building thing lately, and it seems like a fun project. Knowing me, though, I'd never finish the damn thing.
5/10/07 - The ALS
A couple of nights ago, Ger and I went to see The Abe Lincoln Story
at Spaceland, for their CD release party. I've been a fan of The ALS
since the late 90's, and despite the fact that I've been feeling dead on my feet all week, I was looking forward to a night out.
Unfortunately, we ended up getting there right after they finished their set. I'm still kind of pissed about that, but they've
been playing about a show a month so far this year, so perhaps I'll be able to catch them again sometime soon. It wasn't a total
loss though, as I picked up their new CD, Kings of the Soul Punk Swing for a paltry $5 (which BTW, was the same price as the cover
charge). It's reminiscent of their first CD, Dance Party, but has a slower, more laid-back groove. Even the consumer-rage
classic "I Don't Need a Bag" seemed slowed-down a bit. Still, it's a good album, and very listenable. For some reason, a couple
of the tracks made me think of Chicago Transit Authority...I think it was horn section. It's mixed fairly well, though I think
that the drums are a bit too much in the forefront.
There were three other bands playing that night, but we only ended up catching the closer: Pleaseeasaur. They're a two-man absurdist comedy/performance art act, with one guy singing in various costumes, and the other working the props. They apparently have an album out, released by Comedy Central. I enjoy absurdist humor, and found their set, though short, quite entertaining. What impressed me the most though, was the innovative use of overhead projectors.
5/1/07 - I want one.
4/27/07 - Even at the ripe old age of 33, I still manage to learn something new every day (usually from Wikipedia or NPR). For example, yesterday I learned that the city of Pomona is named after the Roman goddess of fruit trees. Today, I learned that trying to eat a Taco Bell chalupa whist driving is a very, very bad idea. I look like I just came out of a Jr. High food fight (ah, good times!) I also made the mistake of forgetting to specify "No sour cream" (lactose is my foe). Nevertheless, I still find those things damn tasty, and therefore I REGRET NOTHING! Oh, BTW, the party last night wasn't too bad, aside from having to drive through West L.A. in rush-hour traffic, and the subpar food.
4/26/07 - OK, so I've changed the format here a bit. Rather than having a homepage consisting of 80% empty space, The Blahg is now the main page. So it lacks the hipster-geek, smarmy good looks of blogs such as Craig's; but...well, but nothing, it's just damn ugly (you have no idea how long I sat here, staring at "butt...", trying to come up with some excuse for my gross lack of web design skill.) At least now it's going in the right direction; the old Blahg page had the newest content at the bottom of the page. Baby steps.
So tonight I'm going to a corporate party. Unfortunately, it's only Thursday, so I'm going to have to lay off the sauce if I want to make it into work tomorrow (not that I do)...plus, I volunteered to do an hour shift at the guest check-in table (since we're strongly encouraged to go to these things, I figured I might as well get paid for it.) It's one of those deals where one big company spends obscene amounts of money on a lavish soiree, to thank other big companies for continuing to give us their money. Seems kinda perverse to me. Then again, it's not that our company has anything better to pour money into...like, say updated equipment or additional staff. I was really hoping for some low-key assignment like hanging peoples' coats or something, but it looks like I'm going to have to actually talk to people, and try to be friendly and charming for a while. Damn.
3/22/06 - OK, two site updates: first off, the podcast now has it's own domain: www.fsgcast.com. All podcast updates will now be posted there. Also, I'm in the process of adding a bunch of stuff to the food page. I can't think of any personal stuff to write at the moment. Perhaps later.
3/12/06 - Alright, Episode 1 of the podcast is now available for download (I still haven't started editing Episode 2 yet)! A couple of things about this first effort: First of all, for some reason the audio is all on the Left channel. Secondly, all you can do right now is download the file to your PC. Apparently, there's an XML component to the whole podcasting thing, which Ger is supposed to be working on. Personally, I don't know what the hell it's for, but we'll let you know when that part's done.
So, I went to a typical Hispanic kid's birthday party on Saturday. If you're one of us, you already know that I'm not talking about clowns and puppet shows. The essential elements were there: cake, presents, candy, and a rented jumper to keep the kids out of the way. Also present, however, was a DJ blasting ranchero music so loud that you had to scream at the person next to you to have a conversation. Also, being that it's still winter, and rainy, you'd think that a kids party--especially an outdoors one--would end before sunset; however, for a ghetto party, sunset means it's just getting started. I think it was almost 9PM by the time they cut the cake. Apparently lighting a small fire in the driveway was more than enough to prevent everyone from freezing their asses off (except for the kids crammed together inside the jumper). There was food and alcohol, which usually helps to pass the time, but it just wasn't enough this time. At least I reduced our stack of "to be re-gifted" items. The rest of it will have to wait until there's a toy drive...I don't have the nerve to give this stuff to anyone I actually know.
3/9/06 - As you may have noticed, most of the photos on this site are of rather low quality. That's because all I've had to work with lately is my camera phone. I used to have a Minolta Dimage EX, but it recently gave out on me (not that I was too upset...it sucked up batteries like they were boiled bacon). So, if anyone out there has an old digital camera they'd be willing to donate, send me an email (I know it's a long shot, but ya never know)!
3/8/06 - Welcome to The Blahg, your source for website updates and other random goings-on. First off, the updates. Well...there aren't any yet. I've finished editing the 1st episode of The Formerly Single Guy Podcast, but haven't had a chance to start on the 2nd one yet. Also, as far as I know, Ger still hasn't signed us up with a hosting company. I was originally going to use the one that hosts this site (Websytz.com) but supposedly Ger was going to strike up some deal with GoDaddy. Chances are, he's forgotten about it.
On a personal note, it's been a typically irksome week, and I'm glad it's almost over. I missed work Monday because my youngest kid got sick, and then on Tuesday, I burned three fingers and a thumb with hot cooking oil. Now I have these big gross-looking blisters. Anyway, that's it for now.