Saturday Night Special Lunch Report - 9/25/10

While I enjoy sushi ,the wife does not really, so I eat it sparingly. The last place we tried she did like though (not went crazy over, just found decent). I really like eel.

Not a soccer fan, just cannot get into it. Too slow for me, coming from a guy who grew up on hockey.

I am pretty good at detective work when shopping for guitars ,but have yet to buy on Ebay. I am no G&L expert, but I have spotted a few very fishy carvin auctions, and reported them. Wish more could be done. The carvin boards tend to share the info as they come across em.

Man am I ever up late.. Thanks for the week Tim, it has been excellent.

Soccer
I, like you, never played soccer. It wasn't a sport at my high school...and I'm only 31. We live in Clinton, Mississippi...and soccer is basically a religion here. Soccer starts as young as 3. My son just turned 3 and is in the "mighty mites" league. It's cool...all of the jerseys have #1 on them. My daughter is playing her 3rd year in Clinton Soccer Association. We have a tournament today and tomorrow. Her team won all 3 games today and advance to the semifinals tomorrow (1st time she's been on a winning team...not to mention undefeated in regular season and tournament). Clinton High School has won 5A state champs every other year or so. Soccer is also popular at Mississippi College in Clinton. We also have a USL PDL soccer team called Mississippi Brilla. It was cool to see their players do clinics for the Clinton kids.

So...yes...I think soccer is taking root across the country. You can play it anywhere...and don't need special equipment...just a ball.

Will it usurp the NFL's reign in the US...probably not for a long while.

I like sushi. When it's good and fresh, it's great. When it's bad, it's REALLY bad.

Sorry, just can't get into soccer; though I did watch a bit of one of the USA games at the World Cup.

I have bought most of my G&Ls used from Ebay. Let's see, one new Legacy; one private party S-500. Got the ASAT Deluxe used at Guitar Center; and my latest Legacy was a score off Craiglist. I think I have two that I found in the Harmony Central classified ads. So that's six--so that's eleven that came from E-Bay. I traded the ASAT Classic SH off on a Comanche on a local sale. I would say that I did very well on the E-Bay auctions; though the first one, a Legacy, came and it was horribly filthy; and one Legacy had some damage to the maple fingerboard that was not disclosed, and we settled with him giving me a $30.00 rebate. I would say I have been very lucky. I have WONDERFUL guitars!

A G&L is one of the very few guitars I would buy on-line, sight unseen. Might do it with a Taylor; but certainly not a Gibson or a Martin--unless it was a great price and I wanted it really bad; and it was a reputable dealer with a great return policy.

In this day and age, Caveat Emptor is good policy.

Bill

Sushi: yes sir!! Fortunately one of Seattle best sushi places (Toyoda) is not too far away from where I live. Great stuff. And if you would have told me 25 years ago I would love eating raw fish not called 'brined herring' I would have called you crazy.

Water polo: Ever tried one of these horse shaped floatation devices? You wouldn't need a 'No Animal Were Hurt In The Making Of ...' and it might work better

Soccer: Hey, I'm Dutch! What do you think? Given that the locals here play a kind of 'football' where they make a hand ball constantly, the 'American' qualifier is most certainly needed. But we now also have a fine soccer club in the Seattle Sounders FC. Especially the games with famous international clubs (Chelsea, Barcelona, Celtics) making a stop in Seattle during summertime is fun. Then you'll notice the difference in agility and quality of players. And it always helps if there is a chance that Drew Carey buys you a beer at the Fuel sports bar before the parade starts at Occidental Square ...

G&L related: It is always Caveat Emptor. Especially when you buy the first time from somebody. Only after a couple of purchases, and not having been burned by them, you can let your guard down a bit and be able to place your order with these people of stores without too much worry. There seems to be a kind of 'Golden Rule' than no matter what system you talk about (taxation, welfare, awarding of contract, politics, etc) give and take 2% of the people will try to abuse it. As far as G&L's go, I have my list of people I trust and buy from.

Hey, I dig sushi and sashimi. I either make or by something twice a week. I played soccer in college. It's great cardio and good for balance, etc. Don't have enough auction experience to make a judgment.



Cheers,

Will

1.) I love sushi, and I often make my own. I discovered a Korean market that has sushi/sashimi grade tuna, salmon, and yellowtail, and octopus (cooked of course) quite consistently. It's good because I haven't been going out for sushi as much as I did when I was married, which was at least once per week. I still haven't had the guts to try uni (urchin). Anyone out there an uni eater?

2) Non-G&L Topic: Soccer

I'm about as into soccer as I am into other televised, organized sports, with the exception of Amerian football. That, I watch about 2 games per year. I'm just not wired to be a spectator while I"m still able to participate in my own sports.

That said, I remember visiting a family friend up in the San Jose, CA area nearly 40 years ago. He was totally into soccer and predicted it would catch on soon around America. My high school also had a soccer team back in the seventies. I certainly have an appreciation for the amount of stamina that soccer players must have with all of those anaerobic sprints they do, and they do cover a lot of ground. However, I don't find it anywhere near as interesting, from a strategy standpoint, or as exciting as American football. Just my fumbled opinion.



3) G&L on Auction Sites:


What’s your take on G&L’s on such sites? Caveat Emptor? What’s been your experience?

If someone has the internet access to find guitars online, they have the ability to research things before their purchase. So I guess I fall into the category of "Caveat Emptor", however with this caveat, fraud is fraud. When it's intentional, it's actionable. Sites that have names that would indicate an area of expertise, and then attempt to fall back on their ignorance on that easily discoverable, should be shut down. Perhaps you're right, Tim, in that most people are honest. If that's true, then I'll still fall back to one of the only times I'll quote Ronald Reagan on anything, "Trust but verify."

BTW:I have a "parts guitar", and it's definitely one of my favorites. You can find it in the registry, described as a "put together" guitar. It's my blue ASAT III, and it's a good 'un. I put it in the registry just in case it gets sold someday, by/to someone, who may not know its true provenance. It'll be discoverable with minimal effort, hopefully.

So are you saying Drew Carey bought you a beer? Inquiring minds want to know!

Well, on that particular occasion he didn't just buy my beer. He picked up the tab for the whole bar. Being good friends with the owner and waiting staff even allowed me to know how high the tab was. But I'll keep that to myself