Episode #220: Wasting My Hard Earned Money On Bad Music

I often find strange items during my weekend walks. The weekend of 4/20 was no exception. The only thing I can say about this tree is that the homeowner did an absolutely sensational job with his creativity.

For the longest time, I did not have the same affinity for used c.d.'s as I did for used vinyl. I'm not really sure as to why that was, but in the mid 2010's, that philosophy had pretty much changed. One major reason for the change was that my public library started having daily sales of all of used c.d.'s that they didn't sell during their semi-annual used book fair, and being the devotee of my public library at the time, what better way to help out my library (and boost up my collection) than to purchase c.d.s that were priced from $1 to $3. 

The other major reason why, was that I was growing increasingly irritated on dropping major dollars on a new c.d. on an artist that I had a passing familiarity with due to their one "known" song, only to have that c.d. not live up to the hype of that one "known" song. So I figured that it would make more sense to drop a $1 on a used c.d. on that same artist to see if anything else of theirs would click for me.

This particular philosophy has worked quite well for me in the preceding 10+ years, especially when I started pairing YouTube with that same philosophy to my music purchases. YouTube has allowed me the luxury of sampling an artist's body of work w/o going broke before deciding to dive headlong into their back catalog (examples being Band Maid {Japanese hard rock}, Jinjer {thrash metal}, Samantha Fish {blues}, Sammy Kershaw {country pop} and The Pretty Reckless {hard rock}).

But man, it was such a very expensive journey that I had to undergo before I could reach that particular philosophical goal. In this particular case, "expensive" means dropping good money on bad music and in quite a few instances, dropping pocket change on bad music. 

Let me give you a few examples of the former. The first one was the debut c.d. of one of those hybrid rap/rock (think Linkin Park, only with less talent) called Hollywood Undead. I had first heard of the song "Undead" from their debut c.d. first on radio (heavily censored) and the video maybe on Vimeo. I was intrigued enough to drop $15 (this was back in 2008) on this c.d., and let me tell you, while the initial song was decent, the rest of the c.d. was so bad, so juvenile that I gave up after five songs. The impression I got was that the "group" sounded like a bunch of wannabe suburbanites pretending to be thugs, and in fact it was one of the few times that I actually left a two star review on Amazon about it (before Amazon tightened up their rules on reviews).

This next one, while it technically didn't cost me any money, only a Border's gift card, was a great example of not reading the liner notes on the c.d. case. I had found a 3 c.d. set called "Best of Bluegrass Gospel", and I thought, 'cool this would be a fantastic listening adventure', since I was starting to get into other genres of music. Sadly, this turned out to be simply one of the compilations where all the songs were played by one band, much like those Pickwick Record compilations of the 60's & 70's.

Now, a few examples of dropping pocket change on bad music. To be honest, these don't bother me as much, because I'm of the mindset that my money is going to a very good cause (supporting my public library). Sort of the equivalent of buying a candy bar due to the hype, but ultimately having a "meh" reaction afterwards.

One example of this was a Russian pop duo called t.A.T.u. that were all the rage in 2000/'01 before flaming out (I think). I was intrigued enough to purchase this c.d. and suffice to say, even though I'm open to trying most genres at least once in my lifetime, this was not a good representation of what passed for the pop genre at the time. I think they could be classified as all show (the cover artwork really confirms this) and no substance. Very slickly produced and in a head-to-head battle with Milli Vanilli would come out on top, barely. So, this one cost me the equivalent of a instant lottery ticket with the exact same payout.

Another example of dropping pocket change on bad music, was on a "super group" punk band called Me First & the Gimme Gimmes (original, I know). Now, I had first heard about this band from a former co-worker way back in the late 90's who absolutely raved about them. So I filed this little snippet of info in my memory bank and moved on.

Fast forward about two and a half decades and I found a copy of a c.d. called "Take A Break" by the aforementioned band. So I dropped my hard earned, yet very worn out one dollar bill to buy this c.d. Suffice to say, I only got a few tracks in before giving up. While I'm all for listening to new cover versions of old songs, listening to punk versions of old songs was a whole other level of noise. There are times when certain genres aren't meant to inflict ear noise on old songs from other genres, and this was one of those times. To me, it was very irritating ear noise, because in my opinion, they were inadequate in their execution. I should note that this "band" is still around, sporadically playing gigs throughout the years.

In general, I have a very high threshold when it comes to music and books, and I often try to find the good in whatever book I'm reading/band I'm listening to, especially if it's something that I've got only a passing familiarity with. But there are times when something absolutely doesn't live up to the hype, and you ultimately lament the amount of money that you spent on a mediocre product.

So give my philosophy a shot. Buy used books and c.d.'s, especially from your local public library's semi-annual book fair. It's the best way to check out a writer or artist without breaking the bank, while supporting a worthwhile cause at the same time. And if it doesn't work out, you can take comfort in the knowledge that your money is supporting a cherished institution.

{c} 2024 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved

Episode #219: I Found A Little Music Walking Under An Eclipse

The locally famous plateau on Cedar Mountain, looking across the town towards New Britain CT.

I had a most enjoyable walk during the solar eclipse of 2024. It was a gorgeously sunny day with temps in the high 60's/lo 70's, and I came across a multitude of people that I hadn't seen since year one of the pandemic (the mountain was an extremely popular site to practice socialized distancing w/o feeling guilty).

Apparently, this plateau, plus an area in front of the Hartford Regional Center was deemed to be above average places to watch the solar event of the year. As I walked by, I wished everyone good luck and much success with their viewing and (hopefully) their photography.

As for me, the only effect that I got from the eclipse was becoming very cold while walking through the shadow of the eclipse. However, there was a small positive to be had during that very long walk: music.

I came across a recycling bin that was not picked up by the recyclers (odd that they would want to enforce their rules about what you can recycle. :/s), that had a bunch of DVDs and CDs left behind. Being the enterprise older lad that I was, I perused the remains and made a selection of almost one dozen c.d.s of various genres to take home with me.

I would like to point out that, as I've gotten older, I've been exposed to more genres of music than I ever was in my youth. In my youth it was 70's pop, 60's/70's country, 60's folk and 50's doowop/rock. As a teen, I completely missed what is now disgustingly called "classic rock" and instead concentrated on the aforementioned genres. I really didn't come out of my shell until I was introduced to the world of college radio in the mid 90's during my time as a state worker drone.

Humorous aside: I once made a request of an AOR station (album oriented rock) to hear an Eddie Rabbit song. I'm sure I was the butt of jokes for quite a while at the station.

So after bringing my haul home and having to dispose of four empty cases, I was left with seven very intriguing c.d.s to listen to at my leisure. Fortunately for me, I was hip deep in transcribing three chapters, so I really needed something to keep me occupied.

Ultimately, I managed to listen to four in their entirety. What follows is my opinion on those four, along with my observations on the other three. 

1. Fun.: They were a pop/rock band out of NYC from the very early 2010's. They produced two very well received c.d.'s, of which Aim And Fire is the one that came into my possession, before going on "hiatus" to do other projects. The c.d. had that power/pop vibe going for it, and I really found myself grooving to it.
2. David Guetta: Is a French producer/DJ who is very well known and successful on the club scene circuit. This particular c.d., called Listen, was very enjoyable to listen to, as it featured guest vocalists such as Sia, John Legend and Nicki Minaj.
3. Lindsay Stirling: An accomplished violinist, who apparently has fantastic stage shows featuring all kinds of dance, while playing. The music absolutely blew me away (being that I've had long time exposure to classical music, I can really appreciate the tonal quality of the instruments used) and for those who are fascinated by intriguing musical pairings, the title song, Shatter Me, features Lizzy Hale of Halestorm on vocals.
4. Of Monsters And Men: Icelandic folk/pop/rock band that theoretically burst onto the alternative scene with their c.d. My Head Is An Animal, which spawned two radio friendly hits, Mountain Sound and Little Talks, I was able to listen to about half of this c.d., which created a very good personal vibe for me. Tightly crafted and the lead singers have the kind of voices that never quite match up with the actual image of the singer as opposed to the image you've created while listening. Highly recommend.
5. Red Hot Chili Peppers: No real need to point out the obvious, but this particular c.d., Californication, in my personal opinion, is where the band really peaked creatively and commercially. Three monster radio hits, plus other assorted tracks that flew under the radar. It's a decent c.d. that is now...GASP!....25 years old.
6. Capital Cities: I have not listened to In A Tidal Wave Mystery yet. The best I can tell is that they're a pop duo that has released exactly two full c.d.s and two e.p.s since 2011. On a personal note, I have always been leery of listening to modern pop music, since to me, it basically sounds the same, no matter what kind of tweaks you make to the music. But, I am willing to keep an open mind about this (someday I will tell you about the absolute worst dollars spent on a c.d.).
7. Neon Trees: I haven't listened to Pop Psychology yet. The best I can tell is that they're a combo of new wave/synth pop/dance/rock. Like the previous entry, I will keep an open mind about this one as well.

In general, I think I made a good haul with these c.d.s., as I'm always on the look out to expand my musical horizons. I'm always of the mindset that buying used c.d.s is the best way to explore different genres, because honestly, I'm not a fan of buying a c.d. just for one song that I've heard on the radio somewhere. I have made exceptions to that rule over the years, and for the most part, I haven't been disappointed in my expensive ($15-$25) choices. There have been misses over the years, but have been few and far between.

Have a fantastic week everyone, and if you want to explore your musical horizons, check out college radio. You'll be happy that you did.

{c} 2024 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved

Episode #218: Memories Of A {Mostly} Pleasant Library Serfdom

Flashback to when my work life had a bit more levity to it. I think I still got this bear stashed away somewhere in my basement.

A comment a semi-regular visitor to this blog made about early work life got me to thinking about how much had changed, technology-wise, for the 24+ years (1996-2020) of my state employment.

For starters, when I started working in 1996, if you can believe it, that was my first exposure to computers. Prior to that, I had no such exposure to using a computer, at least since my high school days (1979-83). I'm pretty sure I had a familiarity with Microsoft products in 1996 and zero familiarity with e-mail prior to working for the government.

So if you think about it, I was literally straddling the fence between blissfully living without technology and painfully living with it. So, in no particular order of importance, let me give you a tiny flashback to what my work life was like at the dawn (1998) of the Google empire.

1. Netscape was the top dog for search engines, at least prior to Google. There were quite a few others (Dogpile comes to mind) but they quickly disappeared.
2. My entire work life ran the M$ gamut starting with Win 6.0 and finishing with Win 10, and yes, the State skipped 8.0, 8.1 and Vista.
3. E-mail was Groupwise, for at least a decade. And ListServs were very, very popular in the academic world.
4. Voice mail was (and still is) a thing, along with other outdated technology like fax machines (current technology is that you can fax directly to your computer).
5. Because smartphones were waaaaaaay in the future, Mapquest was very much a thing, back in my early years. Nothing like printing out directions before going off on a work related trip to some college or public library to get you psyched up for the day. My daughter insists to this day that I had actually performed this task for her when she was a teen in the mid 2010's.
6. My first job with the state was at the CT State Library, helping to prepare newspapers for microfilm. Yes, before the concept of digitizing took off (my first job started digitizing in the mid-2000's) there was microfilm. I can absolutely guarantee that I can still rattle off enough minutia about microfilming that will make your brain yearn for speeches from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Yeah, I was JUST. THAT. GOOD.
7. Speaking of microfilming, I got to be very good in using bottles of powdered toner for one of the machines. Yes, you read correctly. Back then, one of the machines that we had you were able to make photocopies directly from a reel of microfilm. Note, microfilm will always be a thing, because nowadays, it's a great back up to digitized records and if you're a research library, it's more of a user friendly product than digitized records (at least IMO). Any who, I had to use two different types of toner, and yes, I did have a few accidents over the 8 years of working there.
8. And for #8, we actually do not have anything else. By the time I was involuntarily laid-off in 2003, I was firmly entrenched with such nascent technology as Google, Word and Excel (yes, my work life also predated those two programs), discovered the joys of Internet radio and the crap that was AM Radio (talk that is, with Dr. Laura and Rush Limbaugh being the predominant programs of the day) and the absolute joy that was/is college radio.

Thank you for taking the time to join me on my trip down memory lane. Oh and, one more terrifying thought for you: I was a sophomore/junior in high school when MTV premiered in 1981. Bonus points if you know what the very first video aired was.

{c} 2024 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved

Episode #217: E-mail Humor of the {G}entler Rated Kind

Spring is very much trying to make itself known these days, and this daffodil is a prime example.

For those of you who may not know, I used to be a state government worker, from 1996-2020. And during that time spent at four different agencies (State Library, Attorney General, DoC and DCF), I had a good working relationship with a lot of my co-workers, which in turn netted me a plethora of ye olden e-mail of (mostly) office humor.

Now, to give you just a tiny glimpse on how far back these e-mails go, the following statements are considered to be true:

1. When I started working for the state in 1996, Windows 95 was a thing;
2. When I started working for the state in 1996, Groupwise was the premier e-mail system being used; and finally,
3. When I started working for the state in 1996, Google was still someone's brainchild two years away from being launched.

Suffice to say, I've seen quite a few technological thingys during my working lifetime. Any who, I used to get a lot of e-mail humor (all of it clean) forwarded to me, and I thought after probably a two year hiatus, I would share a few of them with you.

The first one is entitled "Hymn #365

A minister was completing a temperance sermon. With great emphasis, he declared, "If I had all the beer in the world, I'd take it and pour it into the river."

With greater emphasis, he declared, "And if I had all the wine in the world, I'd take it and pour it into the river."

And then finally, shaking his fist in the air, he declared, "And if I had all the whiskey in the world, I'd take it and pour it into the river."

Sermon complete, he sat down. The song leader stood very cautiously and announced with a smile, nearly laughing, "For our closing song, let us sing Hymn #3665, Shall We Gather At The River."

This was the kind of kid friendly e-mail that were sent to/forwarded by, everyone in our various work places. We weren't allowed to really send anything that could be considered to be "adult" {nudge, nudge, wink, wink} through the official e-mail channels.😏

Another fine example, that those who are readers or writers would definitely understand, had to deal with historical libraries of the late 18th century. Back then, the library was often one of the few places outside of the church that a person could visit to have contact with other members of the community.

This particular e-mail highlights a September 1796 meeting held in Ware, Massachusetts about the establishment of a "Librarian's Society" (aka public library).

In September 1796, a meeting at the Ware Center Schoolhouse voted to establish a "Librarian's Society", and each subscriber contributed $1.00 to buy books. That sum procured about 50 volumes, with sermons, histories, and essays predominating. Fiction was represented by "Pilgrim's Progress" and two other titles. To preserve the books, fines were imposed: "For every leaf that seems to have been turned down, 3 cents. For every drop of grease from a candle or lamp, 6 to 25 cents at the estimation of the Librarian or the committee of inspection. For effacing a book with dirty hands or any other way, from 8 to 25 cents. For tearing a leaf or injuring the cover, not less than five cents." The Society flourished for many years, but came to an end in 1822.

Just out of curiosity, I found an inflation calculator, and in today's dollar values, $1 in 1796 equals $23.51 in 2024. In regards to fines, the max level of $.25 in 1796 equals to about $5.88 in 2024. A lot of bang for your buck back then.

I sincerely hope you enjoyed the gentle humor of the former e-mail and the snapshot of New England history of the latter, and I wish you a very Spring-like Monday.

{c} 2024 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved

Episode #216: When Nothing To Do Becomes A Prompt For...Writing?

My local Dollar Tree store has got all kinds of Spring/Summer season planting items, from potting soil to flower seeds, and everything else in between. Like tiny garden figurines such as what you see here. I have four of these little buggers scattered about my den, keeping watch over the various items that I possess, like myself.

Today's post is about when you hit that self-imposed rest area on your writing journey and suddenly you need a little something to occupy your time. In my particular case, I had just finished book #3 of my four volume low fantasy series with the blog tag called Hot Mess, and I wanted to take a mini-mental health break before diving back into the land of volume #4.

The first two weeks of my mental health break were spent putting all of the final pieces together for my new novella The Mortality Of Familial Love, of which creating A+ marketing content for the book was the absolute final piece (waiting for approval right now) of the publishing puzzle. 

After finishing that interesting piece of advertising (many thanks to KDP for providing step-by-step instructions), I found myself with absolutely nothing to do and all day to do it. This, my good reader, was not a good thing to undergo. I didn't want to get back into the grind of writing that fourth volume just yet, but I also didn't want to radically change my morning routine, which was spending approximately 1 1/2 hours writing prior to my morning walk. Thus, we decided to have a waltz with the ginormous animal that had been periodically, and with even temperament, persistently nagging me to write....GASP!...a proper outline for that final volume of my low fantasy series.

Now this is pretty much a foreign concept to me, as I thought that writing a story should come pretty naturally and one should use their memory and plan on the fly while writing (aka "pantsing" or "being a pantser"). This memory thing quickly went down the drainpipe as I realized that trying to keep track of multiple characters and plot points in my head was not feasible. So that'ss when I came up with the idea of printing out my chapters of my work as I progressed along, mostly to use for reference and editing notes.

I have been doing this for the better part of several years now, and it really has helped me maintain the sanity/stability that I need in order to properly function as a writer. But, it has now gotten to the point, at least with this series, where I really need to step up my game with a better tracking system for this series.

To whit: I currently have about 6 distinct plot lines going that I will need to make sure that they finish to a satisfactory conclusion, good or bad. I'm also dealing with the fact that there are eleven major character changes going into the fourth volume that I must properly work into the overall story, which includes four prominent deaths, five serious woundings and two defections.

Now, I have been able to negate some of the persistent nagging about a proper outline, in that I managed to create, 39 pages and counting, a chapter-by-chapter highlight guide (aka bullet points) of exactly where this story is heading. Still, it's an idea that is slowly wearing me down, only because I'm coming to the realization that with at least 6 distinct plot lines going, I really do need pull it all together so that it makes perfect sense at the end. I really can't afford to write a half dozen or so pages on a particular tangent only to belatedly realize that the tangent doesn't mesh with what was written previously.

So after talking it over with myself, especially when I decided to start on another short story to keep myself occupied (very, very wrong thing to do), I broke down and resigned myself to a fate worse than inspecting microfilm: writing a proper outline for the final volume. And suffice to say, after three handwritten pages in, which translates to about 1 1/4 pages typed, it's turning out to be something that I'll pretty much grow to loathe in the coming weeks/months.

But, as they say, you can't always go through life like a Luddite. Sometimes you just have to join the modern age of using the tools that you loathe the most that will help you perfectly achieve your goals.

Happy Monday to one and all, and remember, you are as old as you feel young!*

*quote from an old Popeye cartoon of the late 50's/early 60's. Made absolutely no sense then or now, but it always stuck in my memory like a bad video earworm.

{c} 2024 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved