First random topic is the Discovery Channel on-line. It is amusing, but you quickly spot most “new” inventions are boring attachments, cases, and speakers for iJunk. Occasionally, you get novelty such as this key shown. The ring is built into the key itself, see that? Even Discovery editors hit the nail on the head sometimes.Trivia time. Did you know that poison ivy does not bother native North Americans. That’s right, Indians can play in the stuff just like it was tall grass. I know it barely bothers me, but now I know that others can be immune. Of less importance is the presidential “race” where the American sheeple are about to “elect” yet another total jackass. That grinning dough-head clone is exactly what they deserve.
I was over at Cowboy Mike’s for five hours, though it was more like a conference. Both of us are cautious of committing to any venture that has no guarantees of success. Although he remembers that I fired him once, he forgets why. By the same token, I keep remembering him as a guitar player rather than a harmonica player.
The reality of the matter is I fired him for not learning any new music in a month, I felt he had not devoted even one hour to it. He hadn’t. I also drew the conclusion that he was only pretending not to be able to sing any songs he did not personally like, while I had to put up with all his ancient blues. That was then.
Here’s the wall of his place, with more guitars on the floor. How is it I mistake him for a guitarist? What’s changed is I can now sing my own tunes, all he has to do is strum. He reports never having played thirty songs in a row, but I assured him if he couldn’t, he was working it too much. Plus, now all my theories have been proven quite correct and I know exactly how to make up for just about anything on stage.He’s been working with backing tracks and a couple other people. I pointed out that none of that comes close playing in a real band. We had the usual talk about live versus tracked, blues versus country, and solo versus duo. I explained I could do a solo act any time I felt like it, but that it was such a parched lifestyle I’d rather put up with nonsense. Solo acts with backing tracks are a form of torture. No single can match the dynamism of a coordinated duo, and I am the top gun coordinator. He’s sold on that part, but still hesitant about playing part time.
That’s because there really isn’t such a thing as playing in a band part time. The effort is virtually identical to playing full time since most of the same ground has to be covered. I just lost one of the best potential accompanists I’ve ever worked with over this cold fact and feel the need to tell the world that talent and ambition are not enough to become a performer in this era.
And while I’m clearing up any potential misunderstandings I explained to a friend about how I lost my entire life’s net worth over an uninsured heart attack. Before I was admitted to emergency, I was required to sign a form giving the hospital a right to do a credit check on me. I complied because I’ve never had a credit card, credit rating, or even a loan application and such a check should turn up nothing.
Wrong, wrong, wrong! The credit reporting agencies WHO SHOULD NOT EVEN KNOW MY NAME had every one of my assets on their files without my knowledge or permission—and supplied that data to strangers who used the information to harm me financially. Later on, I learned if they had not discovered my assets, my treatment would have been free and written off. That taught me a lot, it did.
MapQuest. Have you put up with their nonsense lately? Try it. They have gone downhill too far, the site was getting increasing plastered with ads and harder to use until I could not take it any more. Pop-ups that won’t go away, idiotic screen clutter for crap you’d never buy. Up yours, MapQuest. Good riddance.
