ksdaddy

I think music theory is a pile of poo. I think I could play 7 random notes and someone would come up with a name for the scale. Lay three fingers somewhere on the fingerboard and sure enough, I just made a G#msus4+13 chord. If I moved it up a fret, that should be a Amsus4+13 but it's not a leap year so.... I'm being a smart alec of course. I don't understand it so I have to poke fun of it. This guy starts talking gibberish about 0:25 and by 1:30 I'm pretty sure it's not even English. And I'm sure he's on the more casual end of the spectrum of learned music people.

I've got a sunburst 89 and a blonde 2000. The 89 is a little fancier in the headstock binding....multiple layers as opposed to ONE strip of binding on the 2000. The sycamore is plain on the 89 as one would expect. The flame on the 2000 is spectacular. I haven't actually measured but the neck on the 89 might be a tish wider and might even have slightly fatter frets. Tone wise, all being subjective of course, the 89 is thick and mellow. The 2000 sounds like a grand piano exploded by someone jumping up and down on the sustain pedal. If you held a gun to my head and demanded I make a choice, I'd probably take the 2000.

You win the internet today.

No brand in particular. When I said "not a Gibson case" that was my way of saying, "Henry, you chose to not give us a decent case, thus forcing me to buy something better. You're not selling me a case. I'll buy it from someone else".

17 degree headstock + gig bag = broken headstock. It's not a matter of 'maybe'. It's a matter of 'when'. I would just add $100 to any new Gibson I was considering and buy my own case. And not a Gibson case.

*ahem* I will be shot for what I will say but that's fine. I speak the truth as I know it. I've owned LPs from 1955 to 2009. probably a dozen or 15, I don't know. A pile of them. My favorite, and one I have owned since 1997, is a Norlin era 1971 gold top Deluxe. It's overly heavy but it just feels right. Two others that stand out (that I owned) are a 1979 and a 1980 Standard. At the time I owned them I either didn't know or didn't care to determine whether they were made in Kalamazoo or Nashville. Both were superb guitars with wonderful necks. I also had a 1970 cherry sunburst that was nice. The circa 1970 necks had a fullness to them that was comfortable. The 79-80 necks seemed more sleek and fast. The 1955 gold top? meh. It was 'okay'. My least favorite? A beautiful cherry sunburst Standard from 1989. My second least favorite? A LP Classic(?) from 2008 or 2009, black with a matte finish on the back. WTH? Matte? Cheap much? Sorry I'm not much help. The take home message is they made good and bad in all eras.

I used lacquer thinner. I then wiped on one coat of what was labeled Danish Oil. A couple days later my dog brushed her wet nose against it and it ruined that spot. I thought, "Well that's pretty useless" so I put on a couple coats of wipe-on poly.

The Deputy just left here. I had texted him a few days ago telling him I had the final bills. Slow night; we bullsh***ed for almost an hour, everything from dogs to Crown Vics. I gave him the final bills so he can turn them over to the DA's office. Her charges are "violation of conditions of release" as she was already OUT ON BAIL for another charge, "unauthorized use of a motor vehicle" for the theft itself, and "criminal mischief" because of the damage. Her court date is in November I guess.

Old school talk!

Thanks for the kind words. I'm not exactly pure as the driven snow so sometimes it's hard for me to be hard nosed about it even though I'm pretty sure this girl needs a kick in the butt of some sort. The more I think about that nights' events, the more I am convinced the hardest, saddest part was talking with her father. He clearly felt bad about it all and really didn't know what to say or do. Being the father of two girls, 24 and 22, I can't begin to imagine what would be going through my head if one of them got into a scrape like that and I had to face the victim, even for a few moments such as we did. She screwed up and needs to make it right but I also pray for her. She's got her whole life ahead of her. Back in '97 I went into work a few minutes late and tried to prank a co-worker, stammering, shaking, and being all apologetic because "I accidentally scraped his new Bronco as I was backing into my parking place and I feel SOOOO bad and....." I hadn't hit his truck at all, I just wanted to joke him. He was unfazed. He just shrugged and said, "It's just a machine." I never, ever forgot that!

I got the Blazer back last Saturday. The first engine was delivered long ago. My mechaninc put it in and it ran fine for a few minutes, then made a horrific squeal and then began knocking. Gerry figured it had probably sat on a shelf a long time and a rod bearing was stuck to the crank. *sigh* I emailed the junkyard and they were SOOOOO nice about it. I explained my plight and they could have told me to pound sand or demand I ship the 'bad' engine back. Instead they shipped out another V-6 the next day. It was a newer engine and they even provided info on what had ot be changed to make it fit. Top notch all the way and here's a shameless plug for them: https://www.facebook.com/DingsAuto So the new engine was installed. $50 for the tow, $650 for the engine, and $871 for all labor and related costs (gaskets, fluids, etc). Gerry was very apologetic about the labor bill and I'm sure he 'forgot' to tally up several hours. I picked up the Blazer, handed him ten $100's and told him I rounded up. He just wadded it into his pocket without counting. I'm sure it was a pleasant surprise and I was more than happy to 'tip' him. So for a while I'm 'upside down' with the Blazer, having more into it than it's worth. That feeling will wane if I drive it six months or a year with no repairs. Been there with most all of my cars. This winter is up for grabs though. The Corvette and the '57 will be parked in my mother's barn, my '82 Ford pickup will likely be taken off the road permanently since it's not very safe and has outlived it's predicted life span by several years... leaving the Blazer. My commute is 55 miles one way. I can (and will) use the Blazer but it's grossly underpowered and the long hills make for a long frustrating drive. A couple weeks ago I bought a 2000 Honda Civic from a buddy for $1000 and figured that would be my commuter. I crawled underneath to fix some rust and found it to be getting weak in more spots than I felt like dealing with. I'm too old to be laying underneath an old car with a rivet gun. I've paid those dues time and again and I just said "no more." I flipped it at a $400 profit. Maybe I'll pick up a big fat LeSabre so I can enjoy the ride.

Yep, I never thought of that. Amazing how the innocent dupe with the assets all of a sudden can be found liable. The engine was delivered to my mechanic today. We're on the road to recovery.

Evidently she has several charges but he said the one with my car is the strongest and easiest one for them. It won't be Grand Theft Auto because in Maine they have to prove a car was stolen with the intent to sell or strip, not just a joyride. Doesn't make sense to me but whatever. I did ask him for a copy of the report and he said he'd email it to me. Her court date is in October and at that time she will probably just enter a plea on the charges. The Blazer will be back up long before then. Bender I do like the 2.8 as far as dependability and smoothness but this particular vehicle is geared all wrong. It never should have had an automatic with overdrive. It's really anemic on the hills. Otherwise I'd drive it to Hades and back.

The deputy came to interview me and take a statement the other night, just stating I had not given anyone permission and that it ran fine. Everyone has told me I won't get a nickel out of her but he said restitution will be part of her probation conditions and if she fails to pay, that's a probation violation and she could go off (or back) to jail. I'm just thankful nobody got hurt or killed, her or anyone in her path. The story gets weirder. The deputy told me that she "ran out of gas" (it had a half tank and was only driven a total of about 40 miles according to my memory) and was on the side of the road... I have no idea why she was on the side of the road and/or thought she was out of gas or PRETENDED to be. She was stopped alongside the road regardless. A good sam stopped to help. He went to his house and got her a can of gas. The good sam was an off duty US Customs/Border Patrol agent.

Probably one of my golden retriever Maggie's stuffed animals. They have a life span of about an hour here.

Good news! I scored an engine and it'll be palletized and on its way tomorrow. I like that little vehicle. Dad bought it over the phone in 1990. He told the dealer what he wanted and the dealer found him one at the auction. Dad had an '85 Chevy 4x4 with a 454 in it that he was trading in. The dealer called him and told him he had a little blue Blazer for him and Dad said he'd take it. by the time he drove out to the dealers, the dealer had Dad's 454 all sold! Dad took sick in '93 and passed in '99. The Blazer remained registered and insured but was only used occasionally. My mother handed it over to me in 2008 and I think it still only had 66,000 miles on it. I drove it a couple years and one day a head gasket blew. I mean big time. I limped home with it. I shouldn't have done that; I should have gotten a wrecker. Basically toasted the engine. I bought one from a junkyard in Massachussetts I think. That was 2010. So here we go again. I'll get a few more years out of it, mark my words. It's a cool little vehicle. For whatever reason, I feel safe in it. Safe, secure, down to Earth, comfortable... It's not so pleasant commuting the 55 miles with it because it barely has enough power to pull itself over the hills but I can live with that. The 2.8 should NEVER have had an automatic transmission with overdrive but that's water under the bridge.

Sad deal there. I looked at her facebook page and in looking at the posted photos, I saw a girl who went from a bright eyed pretty young girl to someone you'd see at WalMart wearing yellow sweat pants with a baby on her hip. She gained a lot of weight, her complexion went bad, and her eyes are dull. There's pictures of a little boy there too. I heard he was taken away from her by the state department of health/human services. I guess it's easy for me to be compassionate because of the relatively low amount of loss. If someone broke in and stole some guitars or vandalized the house, or harmed a member of my family, I would be the one in jail by now.

I spoke to someone who knows her and he said she's "not a bad person" but has a long history of drug and alcohol abuse and allegedly was scheduled to enter into a local 30 day rehab. She also 'talks to people who aren't there'. On a personal level I forgive her, for whatever that's worth. It's only a machine. My wallet will bounce back. I hope she gets herself together. Not sure how much I want to get involved in the judicial process. If I knew this was an isolated, impulse, or capricious incident it would be more clear cut.

I did some snooping and suffice to say this girl has a long rap sheet. All I had for coverage is liability so it will be 100% out of pocket. I could just junk it but it was my fathers and if I can throw a grand or so at it and make it whole again, I will. It's a cool little wannabe Jeep.

I don't know. There's also "theft by unauthorized taking" whatever that means. I'll stop at the DA's office this morning and if nothing else at least make it known that IF I have a voice in this matter I would like my thoughts to be considered.

I'll look into that. It's early in the game but maybe now is the time to do it.

My daughter's Volvo was at the mechanic's yesterday. I let her use my little '88 S-10 Blazer. It was my father's (he passed in '99) and I use it as a commuter/knockabout. Once her Volvo was ready, she switched vehicles and left my Blazer there. The keys were in it. This is Caribou, Maine. We can leave keys. Sometimes. Not this time. Yes it was stupid to leave the keys in it. I know. But it's a lifestyle here. Small town 'doors unlocked' America. I meant to go pick it up last night when my other daughter got home from work at 10. At 9:00 the phone rang and it was the Sheriff's office asking if I had given permission for someone to use my Blazer. I said no. They then told me where it was (a neighboring town) and the investigating officer would call soon. Once we got the call, we drove there to pick it up. No visible damage....but wait. Apparently this 25 year old girl was quite drunk and decided to 'borrow' the Blazer and ride to her parents house. I'm pretty sure she put it in first gear and held it to the floorboards the entire way because now the engine has a severe knock. I mean like a rod bearing or main bearing. The driver's seat MAY be broken too (it was dark). I left it at her parent's house and I'll have to get a wrecker to go get it I guess. I don't know the girl or her parents. They were very apologetic and I believe them. They aren't well off and likely can't bail her out of trouble. She was arrested for the theft. I wasn't asked if I wanted to press charges, it was just done. I don't know how that process works. I'm sure she will be ordered to pay restitution but you can't get blood out of a turnip. I could walk away but I won't. I like that little Blazer. I'm shopping for an engine right now. I'm pretty upset at the loss but at the same time I feel bad for the girl. It was stupid what she did, and I'm thankful nobody got hurt or killed and the only loss was a 26 year old car, but at the same time I'm out maybe $1200-1300 to have a used engine dropped in. Mixed feelings for sure. I have no problem forgiving other than my wallet is going to take a hit.

I've seen some of the dark tinted J-40s. I always assumed they had some off-colored spruce and stained it dark so they could use it up.

I briefly owned a '93 Gospel. Bought it cheap because of a side crack that ran almost heel to end block. Fixed it, strung it, it was okay. Sold it to a guy and he raved. He wanted a good Gibson acoustic for a stage guitar that would get thumped. He was happy. It didn't set me on fire but in fairness I didn't spend much time with it and certainly didn't take the time to find the right strings, etc.

I've had 4 SGs in the last year. I tried to like them. It didn't work out. It was mainly the long neck and the fact I felt like I was reaching an arm's length to play in the first position. No fault of the guitar, it just didn't work for us.