See the cop on the horse? The way that Florida traffic moves, he can overtake anybody. Hell, downtown, the guy on the bicycle could race you. Do you think when the cop takes a coffee break he has to pay the Master Meter? When I see touristy things like this, my one thought is, “Who is paying for this?”
Music took a serious step forward tonight as I held a rehearsal over at Staci’s. I’m not seeking perfection, rather a stage presence that allows us to play relatively complicated duo arrangements. Although Staci lacks many of the telltale clues of a stage performer, she knows the ropes. (Such clues include things like a drawer full of expensive cables and adapters, the ability to play other disks than CDA, and a pencil and paper to write out the song list. It is rare.)We have roughly the same 15 tunes as last, what was it, November? I did not see as much progress as I’d like, for instance, she still does not have the tambourine back-beat down perfect, something that has to be. Five of the above total are songs I sing solo. This is the path of least resistance, so bear with it for now. We will never be recording stars.
Having said that, we do dynamite adaptations of Faith Hill using only bass and vocals, which I know are original because I wrote them. Much of it is truly innovative considering how few people have even tried this type of music but one thing built in when I get involved is painstaking attention to detail. I know which two refrains in the chorus of “Take Another Little Piece Of My Heart” drop a half beat and which one isn’t. I know which lyrics in “Heartache” don’t work because vocalists don’t mispronounce the right syllable.
To get all this done, I had the scooter out on the highways (not the Interstate) at full throttle. The engine is sluggish and top speed is 50 mph, less than my old Honda 90. So the good news is the rehearsals with Staci are moving ahead faster. The bad news is that that one single practice left me exhausted for the next 24 hours.
The AARP is on another blitz, this time selling $50,000 worth of death insurance. They’re working the angle that your family would have to pay all your debts if you kick off. Actually that isn’t true since they didn’t borrow the money and therefore don’t owe it back and most consumer loans are automatically insured against death by the lender. But as a scare tactic, it is hard to beat.
[Author’s note: beware of AARP. There is something stinky about their business. When I tried to use their advertised job placement service, they gave me the third degree, asking police style questions, such as had I ever gone by any other name and if so where and when. They asked about child support payments, old addresses, and whether I had children. I tried to steer the conversation back to job skills and the AARP interviewer objected.
Also, it was plain the interviewer was on the spot when I asked questions about her job placement success rate and average wage amounts—she knew I was on to her and tried the old “how can I help you if you won’t help me” scam. Warning, the AARP’s primary purpose is to update the files on older citizens who may not already be on other government databases. Their questions have nothing to do with getting you a job.
Don’t fall for their hidden agenda.]
Last, your old boy network wins out again. My completely tested partition recovery software goes over to Fred early tomorrow in return for an easy callout for a printer fix and some software installs. That weekend trip to Everglades City may not be as far away as I thought. The only people who complain about an old boy network are those who don’t have what it takes to get into one. It is, in fact, a very efficient way to do business in the face of extortionate advertising rates. (The bad name comes from the way bureaucrats abuse the old boy network with impunity, but most of us are not bureaucrats.)
PS. The Panera is not an old boy network, it is an old fart’s network. The difference is that in an old boy network, the talk is followed up by action.
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