...about the top albums of the decade. I am writing that post in spurts and will post when I am finished.
However, first I wanted to vent about something that just happened to me.
You may recall my undeniable love for Sunny Day Real Estate and especially for Diary, their first album. You may also remember that I mentioned how the band had released remastered versions of Diary and LP2 this year to coincide with their reunion tour. You might remember, too, that I said they were available on vinyl. And finally, you probably forgot that I told you that I received LP2 Remastered on vinyl for my birthday. What you definitely don't know (because I haven't told you yet) is that for Christmas, my friend Beth gave me Diary Remastered on vinyl the Saturday before Christmas. The very next day, I put it on my turntable and lowered the stylus onto the record. I waited for the needle to find the groove. I watched as a really nasty warp kicked the stylus up and off of the record. I swore.
I called Beth up just to ask where she bought it, and she told me Amazon.com. So I called Amazon, and set up a gift return (I was trying to set up an exchange, but apparently the guy I was talking to did not understand that concept). So, I printed out the shipping label, sent it off on the Tuesday before Christmas. On Christmas Eve, I got an e-mail saying they had received the package and that I had been refunded with a gift card, so on Christmas Eve I ordered the album again.
So today, four days after Christmas and a good ten days after I received the album as a present, I checked the tracking status of my order and saw that it had arrived at my door. I had to stay late at work, which of course made the anticipation nearly kill me, but I waited it out and returned home two and a half hours late. I ate dinner, took a shower, threw in a load of laundry, talked to Kathy, then unboxed the record, removed the shrink wrap, put the first record on the turntable and lowered the stylus onto the record. I waited for the needle to find the groove. I watched as a really nasty warp kicked the stylus up and off of the record. This time, I really swore.
It was then I noticed the condition of the album cover; the upper left corner is all mashed up. This thing looks like it had been shipped from Seattle to Kentucky to St. Louis to Kentucky to St. Louis. In short, I am fairly certain Amazon.com shipped me the record I just returned to them as broken. Which means I will have to wait another four business days at least before I can listen to my record. Considering Friday is New Year's Day, that translates to at the very earliest I will be able to listen to this record next Tuesday, nearly two and a half weeks after I got it as a present.
I asked when I authorized a return this time if I could get the refund on my credit card rather than as a gift card. No can do. I asked, "What if the same thing happens again?" Then the same thing will happen again, and I can get the refund on my credit card if when I check out the next time I buy it with my credit card. That means I will have an Amazon gift card to spend, sure, but this is the only thing I am wanting to buy right now. Sure, down the road, I will buy something else on Amazon, but it's not like I was planning on buying a movie at Best Buy and might as well buy it online and get the record at Euclid Records or Vintage Vinyl here in town. I don't plan on spending they money, you know?
I guess the moral of this story is, if you're going to buy vinyl records, don't buy them on Amazon.com, buy them at a local record shop. If you're unlucky and don't have one of those anymore, you'd probably have better luck opening a local record shop yourself rather than ordering vinyl from Amazon. If you don't have the means to do this, you'd probably have better luck driving several hours to some other locality's local record shop. Bottom line, this experience has taught me to never order vinyl from Amazon again. I will gladly order DVDs, books, and other crap. But never will I ever order vinyl from Amazon.com. EVER. /End Rant.
Showing posts with label Holidays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holidays. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Friday, December 25, 2009
Merry Christmas From Your Writer & His Family
Acrodyl Joseph, Christmas 2007.
Amethyst Bernardette, Christmas 2008
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Coming Soon
Everybody is doing their top ten lists nowadays. Makes sense, as it's the end of the year and also the end of the decade. NPR Music has been doing a great recap of the best music of the decade, including All Songs Considered's 50 Most Important Recordings.
Well, I thought, why not do some of that myself? So, starting later today, you will begin seeing my top ten lists of the best of the decade. Topics will include best albums, best books, best movies and best television.
A caveat: This will be limited to those albums, books, films and shows I have actually heard/seen/read. It will include some very obvious entries (nobody expects Fox's Arrested Development to not be my top television show) and some really obscure entries as well (I doubt many of you have actually read All Things, All at Once by Lee K. Abbott). So be looking for those.
Just so everybody knows, I am aware it has been nearly two months since I last posted. Again, I thrive on comments, and when nobody comments on my posts, it makes me less likely to post again in the immediate future. I understand that my last few posts were, um...lengthy? And also very in-depth about an obscure subject. I promise to be more brief with my top-ten list justifications than I was with my Sunny Day Real Estate reviews. That did get a little out of hand, but it had to be done.
Something very cool; I got a Sunny Day Real Estate t-shirt sent to me by my good buddy Zach (who also happens to have been the bass player in my old band The Hitchhikers, the best man at my wedding, and a former cycling team mate) who attended their show in Boston. I was then wearing this shirt on my 27th birthday when my friends Melinda and Jake gave me LP2 (The Pink Album) on Vinyl. The remastered one with bonus tracks. It's pink. I don't mean the cover is pink, because if it wasn't pink it would be a travesty. No, the vinyl itself, is pink. Pink vinyl. I also received a receiver so that I could hook up my record player so I could then listen to pink vinyl. It even sounds pink it's so awesome.
Other than that, I failed at NaNoWriMo this year. I just, for some reason, have hit a wall. This is a bad thing. I need to power through it. It's among my new years' resolutions, and anyway, 2009 has two weeks left to redeem itself and all signs point to it being a major let down. There were good things that happened in 2009, but...well, that's a post for another day. New Year's day, probably. That, I have been working on. I have my farewell to 2009 all written out already. Expect that.
Let's see; I turned another year older last month on the 21st. Got the album, the stereo receiver, an electric razor (Kathy was tired of having to buy me Mach 3 turbo blades), Up In the Air by Walter Kirn, three albums via iTunes giftcards (The Crane Wife and The Hazards of Love by The Decemberists and Raditude by Weezer), some cash and a six pack of Magic Hat Not Quite Pale Ale (top ten beers of the decade sounds like a dangerous list). Good haul. Most importantly, I got to spend my birthday with good friends and family.
After that, well, nothing much. Took a trip to Chicago and fell in love with our friends' condo. Get this: two grocery stores, a CostCo and a Menards, all within walking distance. Drew carried their Christmas tree home. How awesome is that? Don't answer, I'll tell you; Super awesome. We did some shopping at Ikea and came home with a new CD shelf and a new bookshelf (with glass doors on the bottom half). Got my Christmas shopping done, really excited because I bought Kathy a really nice *** ******** **** of **** ******** ***** *** *********** even though I **** **** ******, but it will **** **** ** *** ********* (the preceding was redacted to preserve surprise for Kathy on Christmas morning). Trust me, she'll love it.
Okay, well, look for a blitz of posts in the next few days. Starting with this one.
Well, I thought, why not do some of that myself? So, starting later today, you will begin seeing my top ten lists of the best of the decade. Topics will include best albums, best books, best movies and best television.
A caveat: This will be limited to those albums, books, films and shows I have actually heard/seen/read. It will include some very obvious entries (nobody expects Fox's Arrested Development to not be my top television show) and some really obscure entries as well (I doubt many of you have actually read All Things, All at Once by Lee K. Abbott). So be looking for those.
Just so everybody knows, I am aware it has been nearly two months since I last posted. Again, I thrive on comments, and when nobody comments on my posts, it makes me less likely to post again in the immediate future. I understand that my last few posts were, um...lengthy? And also very in-depth about an obscure subject. I promise to be more brief with my top-ten list justifications than I was with my Sunny Day Real Estate reviews. That did get a little out of hand, but it had to be done.
Something very cool; I got a Sunny Day Real Estate t-shirt sent to me by my good buddy Zach (who also happens to have been the bass player in my old band The Hitchhikers, the best man at my wedding, and a former cycling team mate) who attended their show in Boston. I was then wearing this shirt on my 27th birthday when my friends Melinda and Jake gave me LP2 (The Pink Album) on Vinyl. The remastered one with bonus tracks. It's pink. I don't mean the cover is pink, because if it wasn't pink it would be a travesty. No, the vinyl itself, is pink. Pink vinyl. I also received a receiver so that I could hook up my record player so I could then listen to pink vinyl. It even sounds pink it's so awesome.
Other than that, I failed at NaNoWriMo this year. I just, for some reason, have hit a wall. This is a bad thing. I need to power through it. It's among my new years' resolutions, and anyway, 2009 has two weeks left to redeem itself and all signs point to it being a major let down. There were good things that happened in 2009, but...well, that's a post for another day. New Year's day, probably. That, I have been working on. I have my farewell to 2009 all written out already. Expect that.
Let's see; I turned another year older last month on the 21st. Got the album, the stereo receiver, an electric razor (Kathy was tired of having to buy me Mach 3 turbo blades), Up In the Air by Walter Kirn, three albums via iTunes giftcards (The Crane Wife and The Hazards of Love by The Decemberists and Raditude by Weezer), some cash and a six pack of Magic Hat Not Quite Pale Ale (top ten beers of the decade sounds like a dangerous list). Good haul. Most importantly, I got to spend my birthday with good friends and family.
After that, well, nothing much. Took a trip to Chicago and fell in love with our friends' condo. Get this: two grocery stores, a CostCo and a Menards, all within walking distance. Drew carried their Christmas tree home. How awesome is that? Don't answer, I'll tell you; Super awesome. We did some shopping at Ikea and came home with a new CD shelf and a new bookshelf (with glass doors on the bottom half). Got my Christmas shopping done, really excited because I bought Kathy a really nice *** ******** **** of **** ******** ***** *** *********** even though I **** **** ******, but it will **** **** ** *** ********* (the preceding was redacted to preserve surprise for Kathy on Christmas morning). Trust me, she'll love it.
Okay, well, look for a blitz of posts in the next few days. Starting with this one.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
It's Coming...
...the Annual I'm o.k, I'm all write end of year reflection blog dealy thing whatsamajigger.
It will be filled with reflections on school, the writing process, love, family, felines, age, money, politics, work and others. Keep your eyes peeled for it!
And now, an announcement:
Kathy and I would like to announce to the blogniverse (and, I suppose, to the blogosphere, too) that our family has recently grown. We have adopted a new kitten.
She is four months old, weighs about two pounds, and is a long-haired red tabby (orange tabby, as I like to call them because they are way more orange than red). Her name is Amethyst, and despite my mother's suggestion her nickname will not be Meth. I will post a picture (because apparently, blogs with photos are more interesting than just words) as soon as she stays still long enough for us to snap one. If we're lucky, we'll get a picture of the both of the cats, Acrodyl and Amethyst, so that you can see the contrast between a long hair and a short hair and also the even more alarming contrast between a two pound cat and a thirteen pound cat.
This is likely my last post of 2008, so enjoy your New Year's Eve! I'll be back shortly after the start of 2009.
It will be filled with reflections on school, the writing process, love, family, felines, age, money, politics, work and others. Keep your eyes peeled for it!
And now, an announcement:
Kathy and I would like to announce to the blogniverse (and, I suppose, to the blogosphere, too) that our family has recently grown. We have adopted a new kitten.
She is four months old, weighs about two pounds, and is a long-haired red tabby (orange tabby, as I like to call them because they are way more orange than red). Her name is Amethyst, and despite my mother's suggestion her nickname will not be Meth. I will post a picture (because apparently, blogs with photos are more interesting than just words) as soon as she stays still long enough for us to snap one. If we're lucky, we'll get a picture of the both of the cats, Acrodyl and Amethyst, so that you can see the contrast between a long hair and a short hair and also the even more alarming contrast between a two pound cat and a thirteen pound cat.
This is likely my last post of 2008, so enjoy your New Year's Eve! I'll be back shortly after the start of 2009.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Getting Older
Getting older has its perks. I mean, I'm not talking like I'm really old or anything. Twenty-six is still young and vital and there's plenty of time for me to make an impact in the world, hell, there's time at 56, 76, 96 to do so. But what I'm talking about is generally aging one year, and specifically reaching that mark where you officially turn the page on a year in your life. I'm talking about Birthdays.
Birthdays are fun because for one day, everybody sort of treats you like royalty. This isn't always true, though; I've had some doozies of bad times on my birthdays before. Any year my birthday falls on a Wednesday, it sort of gets swallowed up in the pre-Thanksgiving madness. The last time my birthday fell on a Tuesday, I had to be up at 5 in the morning to go to work. I've faced math tests, literature presentations, a girlfriend cheating on me (she didn't want to break up with me and ruin my birthday, she told me three days later when she did break up with me, and then it was New Year's Eve before I found out about the cheating from-get this-the guy she cheated with, real class act this girl), blizzards, a family neglecting me because my grandmother had just died (which, okay, really I forgive them, but it adds extra spice), long car trips, severe disappointment in gifts ("Oh boy...double A batteries. I could use those in a Sega Game Gear...if only I had a Sega Game Gear. But I don't. And this was the last present. Gee, thanks."), and the inevitable birthday beatdown from "friens" such as Chad Thompson and Cullen Shearburn. And, let's not forget that my father's birthday is one week and one day before mine, so now instead of doing two separate celebrations, we just group them together on the Sunday in between our birthdays (but I don't really mind sharing with my father).
But all in all, birthdays are great. Good looking girls who normally give you a passing "hello" in the halls smile and give you hugs. People spend money on you. Mom asks you what you want for dinner, and then actually makes it for you. And did I mention that people spend money on you? My father and I had our dual celebration this evening and one of my gifts was a pack of AA batteries and a Mary Kay Timewise Lotion box containing a Wiimote. The Wii, itself, was at home. And now it's hooked up and ready to distract me from all of my studies, family, work, obligations and (most dire to you folks) this blog.
My birthday takes place this coming Friday, November 21st. I like Friday birthdays for all the obvious reasons; you get to actually go out on your birthday and stay out late. You have a full day to recover from it afterwards, and then another day after that to accomplish all the things you meant to accomplish the rest of the weekend.
The last time I had a birthday on a Friday was 2003, my 21st birthday. The golden birthday, as it were. On a Friday. I mean...how great is that? But, as I recall, I somehow ended up only drinking a (pronounced "ah" as in one very singular depressing) beer and then managed to end up at my place of employ, buying a fake Christmas Tree for my parents (using my discount, of course). Then, we went to The City Museum, but for some reason I ended up driving...
And this Friday, I will actually be packing for a weekend trip to Springfield, IL, to see the Christmas Decorations and the Lincoln museums and such, with Kathy and our friends Heather and Drew. But that should be a great time, so no reason to complain there.
But, all you readers out there, if you would like to celebrate with me, you are welcome to come to The Blues City Deli on Thursday, November 20th, from 6 pm to 8 pm to get yourself some good food, good beer, and listen to some good music as The Rum Drum Ramblers take the stage.
Hope to see you there! Blues City is kind of a small space, so get there early and often. Er...or, just...get there early?
Birthdays are fun because for one day, everybody sort of treats you like royalty. This isn't always true, though; I've had some doozies of bad times on my birthdays before. Any year my birthday falls on a Wednesday, it sort of gets swallowed up in the pre-Thanksgiving madness. The last time my birthday fell on a Tuesday, I had to be up at 5 in the morning to go to work. I've faced math tests, literature presentations, a girlfriend cheating on me (she didn't want to break up with me and ruin my birthday, she told me three days later when she did break up with me, and then it was New Year's Eve before I found out about the cheating from-get this-the guy she cheated with, real class act this girl), blizzards, a family neglecting me because my grandmother had just died (which, okay, really I forgive them, but it adds extra spice), long car trips, severe disappointment in gifts ("Oh boy...double A batteries. I could use those in a Sega Game Gear...if only I had a Sega Game Gear. But I don't. And this was the last present. Gee, thanks."), and the inevitable birthday beatdown from "friens" such as Chad Thompson and Cullen Shearburn. And, let's not forget that my father's birthday is one week and one day before mine, so now instead of doing two separate celebrations, we just group them together on the Sunday in between our birthdays (but I don't really mind sharing with my father).
But all in all, birthdays are great. Good looking girls who normally give you a passing "hello" in the halls smile and give you hugs. People spend money on you. Mom asks you what you want for dinner, and then actually makes it for you. And did I mention that people spend money on you? My father and I had our dual celebration this evening and one of my gifts was a pack of AA batteries and a Mary Kay Timewise Lotion box containing a Wiimote. The Wii, itself, was at home. And now it's hooked up and ready to distract me from all of my studies, family, work, obligations and (most dire to you folks) this blog.
My birthday takes place this coming Friday, November 21st. I like Friday birthdays for all the obvious reasons; you get to actually go out on your birthday and stay out late. You have a full day to recover from it afterwards, and then another day after that to accomplish all the things you meant to accomplish the rest of the weekend.
The last time I had a birthday on a Friday was 2003, my 21st birthday. The golden birthday, as it were. On a Friday. I mean...how great is that? But, as I recall, I somehow ended up only drinking a (pronounced "ah" as in one very singular depressing) beer and then managed to end up at my place of employ, buying a fake Christmas Tree for my parents (using my discount, of course). Then, we went to The City Museum, but for some reason I ended up driving...
And this Friday, I will actually be packing for a weekend trip to Springfield, IL, to see the Christmas Decorations and the Lincoln museums and such, with Kathy and our friends Heather and Drew. But that should be a great time, so no reason to complain there.
But, all you readers out there, if you would like to celebrate with me, you are welcome to come to The Blues City Deli on Thursday, November 20th, from 6 pm to 8 pm to get yourself some good food, good beer, and listen to some good music as The Rum Drum Ramblers take the stage.
Hope to see you there! Blues City is kind of a small space, so get there early and often. Er...or, just...get there early?
Thursday, December 13, 2007
I Promise A Real Update Soon, But In The Meantime...
O Holy Crap!
I mean...
Happy Holidays!
Enjoy Straight No Chaser and their awesome rendition of The Twelve Days of Christmas:
I mean...
Happy Holidays!
Enjoy Straight No Chaser and their awesome rendition of The Twelve Days of Christmas:
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