HDTV What The..?

Boy, I hope I don't have a need to buy a new television set any time soon.

But then again, you can't really buy a "television set" any more, can you?

I would have to buy an HDTV. You know, one of those high-definition flat screen thingies.

Sigh.

I see that Best Buy has a 26" "INSIGNIA" brand on sale for $400. 720p with a built-in DVD player. I guess that wouldn't be too bad, though it is about 3x what I paid for my last TV fifteen years ago.

Maybe I need one of those monster wall-mounted units. That's where the big money goes to die.

Forget about the $1,500 - $4,000 price tag for the HDTV unit. The real money is in the accessories!

The graphic here is a scan from this weekend's big-box retailer ad.

Yes, they are telling me that I am getting SUCH A DEAL by paying "only" $90 for a single four foot long cable!

And guess what? I can buy a sexed-up extension cord for "only" an additional $80!

And even more guess what! Yes, I can mount my TV to the wall for "only" an additional $200!

$370 on stuff that should come with the set?!?!? Stuff that allows you to plug it in and keep it from falling over?!?!?

Forget it!

I've owned cars that cost less than this!

Start the digital revolution without me, gang...

Atones '79

Thanks to facebook, I was alerted to the fact that I had been "tagged" in a photo.

Sure enough, Marc Weinstein had posted some pix of THE ATONES, a band I was in with him back in 1979!

The top photo is a crude cut-n-paste of two photos taken of us during a gig at Hallwalls in Buffalo, NY. Left to right:

Rachel Weinstein - Organ
Tony Billoni - Sax & Vocals
Kenny Kearny - Guitar
Craig Davison - Bass
Marc Weintsein - Drums

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For me, the big thing about The Atones was that, after years of playing cover tunes in a various garage bands, I was in a band of that wrote all their own songs!

Amazingly, Tony had never evidenced any particular musical talents but became the lead vocalist, lyricist and saxophone player. I don't know how, when, where or why he got a sax, but there you are.

Our song-list included titles like, Tree Surgeon, Spheres of Influence, Four Wheeler, Music + Dance = Party and I Like To Talk. Once, we did a free-form jam where everyone, except the drummer, played bass guitars.

Wow, were were arty, or what?!?

We only played a few gigs and the band fell apart when Marc went off to school in the fall.

After that I returned to the land of garage bands. My next band (Mystic Eyes) played both covers and originals so you can see how "The Atones Experience" was an important stepping stone.

The Best Present Ever!

My sister, Kim, sent me a potato peeler for my birthday.

I was over-joyed.

I felt like little Ralphie Parker did on that special Christmas morning when he got the Red Ryder carbine action BB rifle.

Why?

Because you could put an eye out with this thing!

Thanks, Kim, for the best present, ever!

Fifty-One

Well, hi, everyone! Welcome to Groundhog Day, 2009.

This can only mean one thing.

Yep. The guy who writes this blog is another year older and deeper in debt, to paraphrase the immortal Tennessee Ernie Ford.

Or was it Tennessee Tuxedo?

What was I talking about?

Oh yeah. How lame my blog has become.

Well, it's my party and I'll post what I want to, to paraphrase the immortal Leslie Gore.

Or was that Al Gore?

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VOX UPDATE

My pal, Bill, sent me a message with a couple pictures of that Super Lynx Deluxe he has been rebuilding:

Hi Craig, Here it is all back together and playing nice. I needed to glue in a new brace under the bridge and that stopped all the vibrating noise. All the notes play loud and crisp all down the neck although the action is a bit high for my taste. I will let is set for a few days under tension be for I lower it make and make any more fine adjustments. These single coil pickups really sound great and I am really starting to love this old guitar. Can't wait for you to check it out.

I can't wait, either! Hold onto that puppy until I can make my next trek Northward.

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HYPERSPACE DELIVERY BOY

I got a demo version of the game "Hyperspace Delivery Boy" on a CD-ROM a while back and my daughter loves it. Turns out that the company that published it ("Monkeystone") went out of business 'way, 'way back around 2003, or so.

Does anyone know how I can get my hands on the full version of this thing?

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To quote the immortal Chuck Woollery, "Gosh, I guess this blog has become really, really lame!"

Or was that Chuck Roast?