Music at Allan's today...

 

This is not the Hip Replacements, or the Brothers MIM.  I call this group "the Allan Lindsay Project," or "the local guys."  (3 of us are within 5 minutes of each other.)

Some background on this - we would generally get together every other week.  Allan's wife Carole, was suffering from a terminal illness, and it has been a couple months since we've gotten together to jam.  Allan's wife passed about two weeks ago... and he invited us guys to his place today to make some music.

The mood was not jovial, as you'd expect, but I think each of us wanted to be there for Allan.  We made some music.  I took a few photos...

Allan above, Bob below...

Joe above, Tony below...

Yours truly making a selfie...

 While taking a break, I offered Bob a try with my PRS...

 Bob also plays guitar.

This is a good bunch of guys.  The music is not my style, but it's another circle of friends.  I think I speak for all the guys in that this was being there for Allan.

 

 

The Little One...

 

Talking about Stella?  Well, she is "the little one," but I'm talking about the new, more portable catio.  Both of the cats are good with it, but Stella seems to think she is "camping" when in it...

 That is her long, lean, jungle cat look above.  She is good in it in the house, or outside...

 That will be good when we're in the van.  A lot going on right now, so who knows when we'll get out in the van next.  Murphy, being the big boy he is, gets to be out without a leash in our yard...

 Yes, that is a bit blurry - it was early morning, just before the sun came over the mountain, and he was moving right along.

This evening, I have been entrusted with taking care of the new Guide Dog puppy, Natty (Natalia).  She is young enough that she needs frequent "potty breaks."  After giving her a kong (a hard rubber container that you put food in and freeze it), we went outside for one of those p-breaks.  She goes on command.  It is part of her training.  I have to say that I am impressed with how advanced she is for her young age (just 4 months old) - she walks great on the leash, knows basic commands, and seems to take joy in doing good.

She is the puppy of one of the Guide Dogs that Steph and Dan trained that is in the breeding program.  Good genetics.

With Steph and Dan out for the evening, I sat on the couch and played some mellow acoustic music for their cats and Natty.  An attentive audience.

I didn't take my phone with me for this, but here is a photo of Natty taken not too long ago...

 Yeah, that was for Halloween - Natty was a Wendy's soft drink cup.  She quite patient, too.

 

A Blue Tsunami?

 

I generally keep politics out of this blog.  Well, other than to say "Vote for none of the above."

I don't think the results of this election show that the country favors the democrats - I see this as a "mandate" that people are fed up with their elected officials.  Both sides.  Will it change things?  We can hope, but I don't have a lot of faith in the political system.

Something needs to change.  People are tired of the rancor.  They are tired of politicians who think things are good as long as "their side wins."  It shouldn't be about beating the other side, it should always be about doing what is right for the American public.  High gas prices are not good for people who are working to get by.  Nor ever-increasing food prices.  People are fed up.  And this election is a sign of that.

Will the President "get it"?  I doubt it.  Will the legislators?  Not if they think a win in this election is for "more of the same, but now for the other side."

A change is long over-due. 

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Music today with the Brothers MIM (the big group); 6 of us there: Mark, Ron, Danny, Gil, Carl, and me.  A good time making music.  We took turns picking what song to play.  We're a bit heavy on guitar: 4 guitars, 1 bass, 1 percussion.   Good friends.

 

O-Dark:30

 

We woke up around 4:30(ish) to find the power out.  My first thought: check on Steph and Dan, since they have to get ready to go to work.  I went next door, and they were feeding their cats... by flashlight.  I was concerned that they might miss their alarm (it's very rare that we have to set an alarm). 

Steph's first thought when they discovered the situation: "Someone has cut power to the house, and they are going to break in.  Well, until they looked out and saw no lights anywhere."  Dan's first thought: "Armageddon - it's related to the election."  They had already checked SRP's site - it is localized in our vicinity and power should be back on around 3:00 am.  And then moved back to around 6:00 am.

It is 5:44 am as I am writing this.  If the power isn't back on soon, I, too, will be feeding cats by flashlight.  And, the power just came on... it is not quiet in our house as all the things connected to power beep and flash their blinking "12:00."

"So, how are you writing this if the power just came on?"  Thanks for asking.  The laptop was plugged in overnight and the internet connection is being provided by my iPhone hotspot.  No idea how long it will take the whole house router to reset and turn on.

So, time for me to go feed kitties.  Fortunately, not by flashlight, and with some air moving thanks to the ceiling fans.  At least, it isn't hot right now, so it stayed pleasant in the house.

Oh, and I'm happy to report no one broke in to kill us, and there appears to be no Armageddon in the making. 

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Oh, yeah - and, it's Election Day.  Over a million early and mail-in votes have been counted in Arizona.  Of course, no reveal on how those votes are going.  We'll see how things shake out.  In the meantime, the political ads on TV are still going.  Yes, with the power on, we have TV.  And internet... all those modern conveniences. 

 

 

One More Day...

 

One more day of all the political ads.  All that money spent to convince no one.  Millions spent to get a job that pays $174,000 (the annual pay for a US Senator).  Each side trying to convince the undecided that their side isn't as bad as the other side.  Each side blaming the other side for high prices for everything.  Neither side saying what their intent is once in office... only blaming the other side for what is wrong.

What is wrong is the incredible waste of money to try to secure "a win for our side."  All that money could be spent to improve our roads and bridges, educate our kids, and pay down our huge national debt.  A debt that each side blames the other for.

In places that allow early voting and voting by mail, the numbers are averaging about 1/4 of the eligible voters.  While these mid-terms are expected to have a higher turnout than usual, all that money spent hasn't influenced the majority of voters to participate.

Brewster's Millions, a film starring Richard Prior from 1985 had it right...

 

 

Trick or Treat!

 

It was a rainy Halloween evening - that definitely cut back on the number of little spooks and goblins that came to visit.

We discussed different options on how to stay dry out there while handing out candy: set up a pop-up kiosk in the driveway; move the cars out onto the street and use the garage... in the end, we set up right at the front doors, where it is covered...

 No, that is neither spooks, nor goblins; Steph, Dan, and I manned the candy, while Joan was inside baking.  When kids came to the door, we encouraged them to take several from each bowl (chocolate in one, sugary stuff in the other).

Steph estimated about 25 kids came to the door.  That is way less than we had the last two Fright Nights, but this was the first time since 1987 that Phoenix had rain on Halloween.  We are on a street with only 3 houses, so this is not a "target rich" location compared to other streets in our neighborhood.  Steph tried to "drum up" business by going to the intersection closest to us and letting people know there are "treats at that 3rd house."  Nothing creepy about that: "Hey, kids, want some free candy?"  The only thing missing was a ratty white van.  ;-) 

At one point, a father and adult son we know from the neighborhood stopped by - we met them 2 years ago at Halloween.  The son, in his 20s has some kind of malady that leaves him painfully thin and pale; he is a budding guitar player.  I invited them in to check out my music room.  And invited the son to play some of my guitars... he is considering a carbon fiber acoustic and was delighted with the opportunity to play some.  I missed out on some of the trick or treaters, but had a good time talking guitars.  I am older than the father, so it was a wide range of music tastes.

About 8:15, we decided to call it a wrap, and brought the stuff we set up in the entryway back inside.  Steph and Dan will have plenty of left-over candy to take to school for the "tech boys" Steph works with.

Still raining this morning.  The mountains are shrouded with clouds.  It let up enough for me to get Murphy outside... I had to dry his feet and towel his fur before we came back in.

100% chance of rain through today, with possible flash flooding in parts of the Valley...

 High temps in the 70s all week.  That is a treat!

Also, 100% chance of political ads for the next couple days... we voted by mail; I will be glad to be rid of the ads.  Anxious to see where this country is heading after the election.

 

You Make A Strong Case...

 

You won an argument, Jim?

Well, if it is really an argument, does anybody win?  

There was no argument from me - I really like my PRS SE Studio Standard guitar.  It plays great.  Lots of good tones.  Looks decent (although I am very partial to the forward thinking Emerald designs).  The only thing that is less than great about the PRS is the gig bag.

You may be aware that I really like a well-designed gig bag.  The Emerald gig bags I have for the X7 and X10 are great - the have something solid in the sides that keeps their shape, and a neck support that provides protection for the neck, headstock, and tuning keys.  The PRS gig bag looks very nice, but... nothing solid in the sides and no neck support; every time I pull the guitar out of the gig bag, the tuning keys have been moved and the guitar needs to be tuned.  Tuning isn't a problem, but the fact that those keys get moved around means there is no real protection for the neck and headstock.  When it was shipped, there was a piece of foam around the headstock.

So, I have been researching cases and gig bags.  The Studio Standard has a similar look to the venerable Fender Stratocaster, but the physical dimensions are not the same.  With actual measurements in hand, Joan and I both researched options.  After extensive research (more time into this than that put into selecting the guitar), I had narrowed it down to two options: an injection molded thermoplastic case with interior appropriately shaped, and a more traditional wood/Tolex case like what I have for my Taylors and the Gibson ES335.  A significant price difference.  I liked the look of the wood/Tolex case (it was a deep blue on the outside, tan on the inside), but having other ABS molded cases for a couple of my Emeralds, I know that, with the right interior, it gives better protection for the guitar.

Joan said, "Forget about the price.  You plan on keeping this guitar a while, don't you?  Get the case you want."  I made the decision, and she pressed "Add To Cart."  Done.

The SKB...

 I thought the case looked too small when I pulled it out of the box.  As you can see in the top photo, it is a perfect fit.  All that research paid off.  With the neck supported, there is room around the headstock, so the tuning keys won't get knocked around.  Another plus: the injection molded material is tough and light weight.  

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I'm not the only one to get something.  Murphy and Stella got another bed/toy - they heavy felt structure, with a carboard scratcher, and noisy plastic balls underneath that they can reach in and bat round.  We have one like this, just a different color.  The cats love this toy.  It took Stella about 12 seconds to pull it apart and get the noisy plastic balls out of there.

Murphy looks a bit too big for the bed part of it, but can can relax most anywhere...

 Joan has another one on order.