(I as usual have important money stuff to talk about, but can't, so you get this. All apologies.) I've never been a Strauss boy, and never thought I had any interest in the waltz or waltzing. But I'm gradually finding out that some of my favorite rock songs from over the decades are actually waltzes. I find this somewhere between alarming and embarrassing, and can't really figure that out either. I guess because The Blue Danube became somewhat less cool as the years passed. I guess.
It doesn't help that my favorite songs aren't exactly too many other people's favorite songs, so citing examples isn't going to help a lot. Three that leap to mind (you can probably find them all on YouTube if you're curious) are "Change Partners" by Stephen Stills, "When You Make Up Your Mind" by Gutterball and "The Slim" by Sugar. The latter to me always sounded like a seaman's shanty, but more recently I think I pick up the strong ONE two three. If I'm wrong, though, I won't be too surprised. Counting is hard!
What puzzles me mainly, as I am the least dancin' of all Dantzlers, is why this beat makes me want to dance. Having at most two feet, I don't see why a three-count would inspire them to get moving. My best guess is that the strong ONE sets one off, and the other two counts give your feet the simplest thing to do. Maybe. I don't know. Anyway, they all make me much more inclined to dance than did The Blue Danube. Perhaps waltz technology has advanced with the discovery of the electric guitar. Or perhaps everybody becomes a waltzing fool after age 50. Makes as much sense as anything!
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Monday, April 6, 2015
Will the miracles never cease?
Oh it's nothing. At his death, Dad had a largish credit balance on his Discover card. I called to report his death and they said no problem, that they would send a check. I guess I should have asked when. What annoyed me wasn't so much the wait but that they kept sending bills with a credit balance, which suggested that they weren't doing squat. Anyway, today I got the check. Granted, it's made out to Dad, deceased, c/o me, which strikes me as a tricky one to deposit. I mean, if it were going to my account, that would be no problem, but it needs to go to the estate account. Then again, what could be more appropriate for an estate account than a check that says the recipient is resting in peace? I'm sure I'll find out tomorrow.
Meanwhile, the AAA Atlanta Braves are kicking off their season in Miami, where it's pouring down rain. The Marlins' stadium has a retractable roof and the fans, such as they are, are not best pleased. (During the rain delay, the Braves broadcasters are taking the opportunity to talk to the GM about why he traded his best players away. Reading not very far between the lines, he pretty much flat said yes, we're the AAA Braves now. But hey, we'll be great in a couple of years!)
Meanwhile, the AAA Atlanta Braves are kicking off their season in Miami, where it's pouring down rain. The Marlins' stadium has a retractable roof and the fans, such as they are, are not best pleased. (During the rain delay, the Braves broadcasters are taking the opportunity to talk to the GM about why he traded his best players away. Reading not very far between the lines, he pretty much flat said yes, we're the AAA Braves now. But hey, we'll be great in a couple of years!)
Sunday, April 5, 2015
A slight bout of conscience
It's Easter Sunday; retail options are fairly limited. Paul suggested 2d & Charles, a used book/record store, apparently a chain. Regardless, they were open, and we went. I got some very nice CDs cheap and also Andrew Vachss' first novel, so a win!
But before that, I was in the cheap PC games section. These are almost always dreadful. A very smart young kid and his somewhat slower older brother (I'd guess) were also looking. The young fellow was looking for first-person shooters. The games they have, though, besides being dreadful are nearly always hidden object games. I did find a first-person shooter all the way at the bottom right. And I just couldn't tell him. It's silly; he likes first-person shooters so he'll play them anyway. It would have only been nice to show him one for just $5. But I couldn't. I wasn't being shy; I wasn't being mean. I just didn't want to be party to it. He's young; maybe he'll fall in love with hidden object games.
If this happens again, I think I'll do the most honest thing: tell the kid about it, but damn it with faint praise. As I've found out through bitter experience, there's a reason that their games are $5!
But before that, I was in the cheap PC games section. These are almost always dreadful. A very smart young kid and his somewhat slower older brother (I'd guess) were also looking. The young fellow was looking for first-person shooters. The games they have, though, besides being dreadful are nearly always hidden object games. I did find a first-person shooter all the way at the bottom right. And I just couldn't tell him. It's silly; he likes first-person shooters so he'll play them anyway. It would have only been nice to show him one for just $5. But I couldn't. I wasn't being shy; I wasn't being mean. I just didn't want to be party to it. He's young; maybe he'll fall in love with hidden object games.
If this happens again, I think I'll do the most honest thing: tell the kid about it, but damn it with faint praise. As I've found out through bitter experience, there's a reason that their games are $5!
Saturday, April 4, 2015
Decisions, decisions
In the Further Grownup Stuff Department, I need to decide if I want to buy a house or not. On the one hand, rent is a dead loss. On the other, property taxes seem pretty high around here. Owning a home outright and then still having to pay isn't very appealing, either.
Unfortunately, my dream house is probably a dream. All I want is a small (cottage-size) country farmhouse that's also conveniently located (which in my world means near an Aldi). Of course, it needs to be in my price range (meaning the lowest). The place I really want is literally condemned. I would try to get a hold of it anyway, except that it has (as the song says) a tin roof, rusted. I don't think I have the kind of money needed to buy a house and put a new roof on it. But I'm insane enough to be tempted.
Columbia is really odd, because we have some terrific houses, but when new houses are built, they usually imitate styles from elsewhere instead of the good houses we have already. This means that the few terrific ones are really expensive even though they're in not the best neighborhood ever. Then again, the neighborhood I'm in (not the best either) has terrific mill houses. But talk about imitating styles from somewhere else; they're based on the mill houses of New England of 100 years ago, and are built to shed heavy snows! Brilliant, these mill owners were! They're too big for me and anyway I'd like to get out of this neighborhood (as it's shut in by frequent freight trains), but might be within my budget. Maybe. As I say, decisions, decisions!
Unfortunately, my dream house is probably a dream. All I want is a small (cottage-size) country farmhouse that's also conveniently located (which in my world means near an Aldi). Of course, it needs to be in my price range (meaning the lowest). The place I really want is literally condemned. I would try to get a hold of it anyway, except that it has (as the song says) a tin roof, rusted. I don't think I have the kind of money needed to buy a house and put a new roof on it. But I'm insane enough to be tempted.
Columbia is really odd, because we have some terrific houses, but when new houses are built, they usually imitate styles from elsewhere instead of the good houses we have already. This means that the few terrific ones are really expensive even though they're in not the best neighborhood ever. Then again, the neighborhood I'm in (not the best either) has terrific mill houses. But talk about imitating styles from somewhere else; they're based on the mill houses of New England of 100 years ago, and are built to shed heavy snows! Brilliant, these mill owners were! They're too big for me and anyway I'd like to get out of this neighborhood (as it's shut in by frequent freight trains), but might be within my budget. Maybe. As I say, decisions, decisions!
Friday, April 3, 2015
Not complaining
But yes, I would like some dairy-free fake cheese with this sulfite-free whine. Really, though, I'm not so much complaining as still reeling in shock. It occurs to me that one of the disadvantages of not being poor anymore is that I actually have something to lose now. So whereas before, I wasn't risking much by flying nekkid as regards, say, health insurance, now I'm risking much more. When my net worth topped out at about the price of a fairly nice late-model used car, that was one thing. Now it's more and (am I being vague again? Yes!) that's quite another. Ditto life insurance, ditto not having a will, ditto I'm sure a dozen other things that I'll be finding out sooner or later.
This grownup stuff is a drag. (OK, so I AM complaining.) No wonder I stayed away from it for so long!
This grownup stuff is a drag. (OK, so I AM complaining.) No wonder I stayed away from it for so long!
Thursday, April 2, 2015
More good hiky news
Or good biky news to go with good hiky news. This town sits on a river. OK, three rivers. One is called the Broad River for reasons that might occur to you. (It's not all that broad compared to the Amazon, say, but I'm not sure I'd want to swim across.) Crossing the Broad River (this'll surprise you, too!) is the Broad River Road which, unbelievably enough, does so on the Broad River Bridge. This bridge needed replacing, but it's also an essential artery, so it needed replacing while staying more or less open. Apparently this is pretty tricky. It took, by our calculation, 115 years. (This may be an exaggeration.) Seriously, my friend Paul thinks it has taken the length of the Obama Administration; I think it's been a bit less than that.
Anyway, it's been at least 5 years. What makes it hiky/biky is that they had built a pedestrian/bike bridge down from it to the Columbia Canal/Riverfront Park, just about five minutes before cutting it off again for a century of construction. That little connector was particularly handy for Paul, as he bikes everywhere, and it let him bike from up/downtown (where he lives; it's called either up- or downtown, though I admit I prefer both) to a good thrift store and a good new/used record store with much greater safety than otherwise. And now it's back! And in the interim, they've put in interesting riverfront trails to go with the canalside one that was always there. So yay again!
Anyway, it's been at least 5 years. What makes it hiky/biky is that they had built a pedestrian/bike bridge down from it to the Columbia Canal/Riverfront Park, just about five minutes before cutting it off again for a century of construction. That little connector was particularly handy for Paul, as he bikes everywhere, and it let him bike from up/downtown (where he lives; it's called either up- or downtown, though I admit I prefer both) to a good thrift store and a good new/used record store with much greater safety than otherwise. And now it's back! And in the interim, they've put in interesting riverfront trails to go with the canalside one that was always there. So yay again!
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
They are! They are! They really are!
So a year and some months ago, in February I think, there was a severe storm in the area. It had little lasting impact except for severely damaging the elevated boardwalk at Congaree National Park, which has been closed ever since. (The boardwalk, that is.) It was supposed to be repaired last summer, but that never happened, so when this spring rolled around and it was still closed, I was starting to give up hope. How happy was I then when I found that they really are starting work to rebuild it? Very!
People not living in this area code might not understand. This state is basically a big cleared swamp. In metropolitan areas, the mosquitoes are under control; out in the country, not so much. At Congaree, I never really had trouble with mosquitoes. It isn't that they aren't there, but rather that the flies are so annoying that I never got around to being bothered by the smaller set. (However, if you ever stop at all, you can get eaten by mosquitoes. That's why I never stop.)
In the summer, which is half the year around here, this gets to be a real problem. However, the elevated boardwalk, even though it is only elevated five or ten feet, seems to confuse the flying bugs. It makes for a substantial improvement, and makes it possible to visit practically year-round. (Not for nothing is there a Mosquito Meter at the Visitors' Center that goes up to 6: War Zone, though.) Without that elevated boardwalk, they might as well close by May. It'll be great to have it back. Hopefully by May!
People not living in this area code might not understand. This state is basically a big cleared swamp. In metropolitan areas, the mosquitoes are under control; out in the country, not so much. At Congaree, I never really had trouble with mosquitoes. It isn't that they aren't there, but rather that the flies are so annoying that I never got around to being bothered by the smaller set. (However, if you ever stop at all, you can get eaten by mosquitoes. That's why I never stop.)
In the summer, which is half the year around here, this gets to be a real problem. However, the elevated boardwalk, even though it is only elevated five or ten feet, seems to confuse the flying bugs. It makes for a substantial improvement, and makes it possible to visit practically year-round. (Not for nothing is there a Mosquito Meter at the Visitors' Center that goes up to 6: War Zone, though.) Without that elevated boardwalk, they might as well close by May. It'll be great to have it back. Hopefully by May!
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