Madame President
I got out of the house for a while this morning and ran a couple of errands. Went to State Farm to settle a small discrepancy with our camper situation. We overpaid $169 out of pocket yesterday. Our deductible was $250, and we paid $419. It had to do with the freight shipping estimate and actual cost. So they faxed everything to the home office in Illinois and we are supposed to get a check in the mail next week. Wouldn’t it have been easier to just cut me a check right there at the office in Baxter? I guess that’s big business.
I am getting braver with my iPod. I have downloaded a few songs. I’ve downloaded songs before (for Farm Fest), but I have never synched them up with digital media. It wasn’t difficult at all. I am making an “ultimate” 80’s compilation and I already have most of the songs on a seven CD box set, but a few essentials (in my mind) were missing. One is a gem called “On the Loose” by Saga, which was a hit in 1982. I remember recording that song off K106 out of Wadena, long before that station converted to a country format. Another was “She’s a Beauty” by the Tubes. I doubt my cousins Blaine or Jody read this blog, but I bet they remember singing that one when we were kids. Another was “Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince. I thought of my niece Lisa immediately and I thought she would be proud to know I downloaded a Prince song! I don’t mind Prince at all, but I don’t like all of his stuff. I do think he is a brilliant musician, but he’s got short man syndrome.
Speaking of music, you better believe I have March 18th marked on my calendar. Not only are we seeing Bon Jovi that night, but another one of my favorite bands, Def Leppard, is releasing a new studio album on that same day, entitled Songs from the Sparkle Lounge. This is a big deal, because a new Leppard album comes around an average of once every six years or so. The first single from the new album was co-written with and features country superstar Tim McGraw -- at first glance, you would assume they have been taking notes from Bon Jovi, but if you dig deeper, there’s more to the story. Tim McGraw’s tour manager is Robert Allen, brother of Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen (the one-armed “Thunder God”). And it was McGraw who initiated contact with Leppard, not vice-versa. It turns out he is a huge fan of the band and wanted to work with them (source: www.timmcgraw.com). I am more than a little curious as to what this is going to sound like.
Let’s see, where was I going with this? Oh yeah, I was talking about my iPod (see, when I start talking music, I get totally sidetracked). After stopping at State Farm I went to Radio Shack to figure out how to get the best sound in my car with my iPod. I bought a cheap FM transmitter at WalMart, but I haven’t been happy with it at all. So I was looking for a more expensive model, thinking if I spent more money, I would get a better result, but the salesperson helping me at Radio Shack recommended that I try a $19 cassette adapter and connect that to my iPod. This person was young and seemingly “hip” with this kind of stuff, plus they were saving me $40 by pointing me toward the cassette adapter, so I decided to give it a try, and I believe it is going to work just fine. You see, I love it loud (I’m still not too old), and this seems to be more than adequate for producing volume and doesn‘t lose too much clarity or low-end, which I couldn’t say for my cheap “hissy” FM transmitter. Sometimes -- often times -- the simplest solutions are the best ones.
Stacy asked me who I was voting for. Well I can’t really answer that yet, since I am not sure who is going to be nominated, but I can assure you I will not be voting for anyone named Hillary. And no, it is not because she is a woman. There have been a number of excellent female presidents in our history, including Edith Wilson, Abigail Adams and Nancy Reagan. If you don’t know your history, you won’t know what I mean.
But I have a bad feeling about Hillary. She wants to come across as an independent, progressive, sovereign woman, yet she’s stayed with a cheating husband who has had at least four documented extramarital affairs (Gennifer Flowers, Kathleen Willey, Paula Jones and Monica Lewinsky). I am a red-blooded heterosexual male and even I think Bill is a womanizing creep. There are some who argue that Hillary is protecting the sanctity of marriage, but I would argue the only thing she is protecting the sanctity of is her political aspirations. Once you have violated that holy trust between a husband and wife, there is no longer “sanctity” to a marriage. That’s just my opinion, but I’m right. There are other bone-heads who argue that Hillary hasn’t filed for divorce because you can’t be elected president if you have gotten a divorce. Again, if you don’t know your history, don’t open your yap. Look at Ronald Reagan‘s personal life.
We are off to Bob and Kathy’s in the morning. I am really looking forward to it. And we are getting out of town at the right time. The big ice fishing contest is tomorrow and it is a good time to split for the weekend.
Better hit the sack.
I am getting braver with my iPod. I have downloaded a few songs. I’ve downloaded songs before (for Farm Fest), but I have never synched them up with digital media. It wasn’t difficult at all. I am making an “ultimate” 80’s compilation and I already have most of the songs on a seven CD box set, but a few essentials (in my mind) were missing. One is a gem called “On the Loose” by Saga, which was a hit in 1982. I remember recording that song off K106 out of Wadena, long before that station converted to a country format. Another was “She’s a Beauty” by the Tubes. I doubt my cousins Blaine or Jody read this blog, but I bet they remember singing that one when we were kids. Another was “Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince. I thought of my niece Lisa immediately and I thought she would be proud to know I downloaded a Prince song! I don’t mind Prince at all, but I don’t like all of his stuff. I do think he is a brilliant musician, but he’s got short man syndrome.
Speaking of music, you better believe I have March 18th marked on my calendar. Not only are we seeing Bon Jovi that night, but another one of my favorite bands, Def Leppard, is releasing a new studio album on that same day, entitled Songs from the Sparkle Lounge. This is a big deal, because a new Leppard album comes around an average of once every six years or so. The first single from the new album was co-written with and features country superstar Tim McGraw -- at first glance, you would assume they have been taking notes from Bon Jovi, but if you dig deeper, there’s more to the story. Tim McGraw’s tour manager is Robert Allen, brother of Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen (the one-armed “Thunder God”). And it was McGraw who initiated contact with Leppard, not vice-versa. It turns out he is a huge fan of the band and wanted to work with them (source: www.timmcgraw.com). I am more than a little curious as to what this is going to sound like.
Let’s see, where was I going with this? Oh yeah, I was talking about my iPod (see, when I start talking music, I get totally sidetracked). After stopping at State Farm I went to Radio Shack to figure out how to get the best sound in my car with my iPod. I bought a cheap FM transmitter at WalMart, but I haven’t been happy with it at all. So I was looking for a more expensive model, thinking if I spent more money, I would get a better result, but the salesperson helping me at Radio Shack recommended that I try a $19 cassette adapter and connect that to my iPod. This person was young and seemingly “hip” with this kind of stuff, plus they were saving me $40 by pointing me toward the cassette adapter, so I decided to give it a try, and I believe it is going to work just fine. You see, I love it loud (I’m still not too old), and this seems to be more than adequate for producing volume and doesn‘t lose too much clarity or low-end, which I couldn’t say for my cheap “hissy” FM transmitter. Sometimes -- often times -- the simplest solutions are the best ones.
Stacy asked me who I was voting for. Well I can’t really answer that yet, since I am not sure who is going to be nominated, but I can assure you I will not be voting for anyone named Hillary. And no, it is not because she is a woman. There have been a number of excellent female presidents in our history, including Edith Wilson, Abigail Adams and Nancy Reagan. If you don’t know your history, you won’t know what I mean.
But I have a bad feeling about Hillary. She wants to come across as an independent, progressive, sovereign woman, yet she’s stayed with a cheating husband who has had at least four documented extramarital affairs (Gennifer Flowers, Kathleen Willey, Paula Jones and Monica Lewinsky). I am a red-blooded heterosexual male and even I think Bill is a womanizing creep. There are some who argue that Hillary is protecting the sanctity of marriage, but I would argue the only thing she is protecting the sanctity of is her political aspirations. Once you have violated that holy trust between a husband and wife, there is no longer “sanctity” to a marriage. That’s just my opinion, but I’m right. There are other bone-heads who argue that Hillary hasn’t filed for divorce because you can’t be elected president if you have gotten a divorce. Again, if you don’t know your history, don’t open your yap. Look at Ronald Reagan‘s personal life.
We are off to Bob and Kathy’s in the morning. I am really looking forward to it. And we are getting out of town at the right time. The big ice fishing contest is tomorrow and it is a good time to split for the weekend.
Better hit the sack.
