Very brief emergency report for 5/30/13

[zapcosongs]

Wow, I had a moment to check in this evening and found no LR for today - and it's five minutes to midnight here. Close call, but I must be quick (also, I have nothing in my head at the moment).

Lunch was a bagel with chive cream cheese, a banana and orange juice. So sue me.

G&L Question: Is there a G&L in your stable that you just don't play much? If so, why is that, and why, if you don't play it, have you not passed it on?

Non-G&L Question: Let's hear about your Memorial Day holiday last weekend. What did you do? We had a bit of excitement here, as a canoe with three people and a dog capsized in the lake behind our house. My boy (eleven years old) heard screaming, brought one of our kayaks down to the water and helped rescue these people (who were from Russia, btw, and didn't speak much English). Several rescue vehicles responded on our little street, and it was quite a scene.

Thanks, and good evening! - ed

[zapcosongs]

Hey Tim - Thanks for the great response. Lots of holiday weekend action there. Congrats on your daughter's soccer teams success.
You still doing martial arts? - ed

[darwinohm]

Ed, my F-100 Return virtually gets no play as I am keeping it new. I have many others to use anyway.

We used the weekend to rest up a bit. I had a tough gig schedule the previous week doing a gig in Bemidji Mn on Wednesday. It is 500 mi round trip and I got home at 1 AM. Also cauth up on some of the yard work.

Kudos to your son for his rescue involvement. He will always remember that! Great stuff!-- Darwin

[KenC]

I have two G&Ls that rarely leave their cases: the John Jorgenson Sig ASAT and the ASAT Bass. Both are pristine, and I guess I just don't want to be the one to put the first ding in either one. I've been holding onto them as trade fodder. I would swap the ASAT Bass in a heartbeat for another one in similar condition that doesn't have a flake finish, but I've just been too lazy to take initiative on that.

My ash F-100 hasn't been out of the case very often since I found a hardtail 'hog last winter. I know it isn't rational, but I've held onto it because of the low serial number (the lowest one in the registry). It would be the next in line to go out the door if I had to make room for a new instrument.

Memorial Day weekend was good. I had five in-laws arrive at the house on Thursday. I took Friday off from work and took them into DC to visit the Smithsonian. We ended up breaking into three groups, so I had most of the day with my sons at the National Gallery of Art. I was surprised at just how much they enjoyed it. Saturday and Sunday were spent relaxing with family and friends. On Monday my sons and I took my father-in-law (another Navy vet) to the maritime museum in Baltimore.

Ken

[GDub]

G&L Question: Is there a G&L in your stable that you just don't play much? If so, why is that, and why, if you don't play it, have you not passed it on?

Non-G&L Question: Let's hear about your Memorial Day holiday last weekend.

Of the G&Ls, my custom ordered, butterscotch blonde S-500 gets played the least. I keep it because I rarely sell gear. Also, I have a love/hate relationship with the small MFDs, and it's the only guitar I've custom ordered... I figure one of these day I'll bond with it and start beating it up like the rest of my G&Ls.

Memorial Day weekend started with a BBQ at the homestead on Friday evening. Saturday I went to a little juggling festival put on by my old juggling partner. Passed clubs with some famous and not so famous characters who I've known for a very long time. Afterwards, we (Maggie joined me later in the day) headed over to my friend's house and sat around a fire pit until the wee hours drinking beer and shooting the bull. Sunday was the usual band rehearsal at my house. Monday was a recovery day--recovery from drinking too much beer and being sore as hell after a day of juggling (which I hadn't done since the same event last year).

Glad you we able to help those people!

--GDub

[bassman]

I haven't used the L-1000s in a while, and my G&L guitars never see the light of day. I should probably sell some of them.

[sirmyghin]

My G&L is 3rd down the line of 4, meaning 1-2 practices a week or so with it. the 4th gets nothing and I a m considering hauling it to a camp if that is where I end up at my next job opposed to a travel guitar. Sounds like a good idea bassman, give em a chance to scream/acquire some loving.

Was just another weekend in Canada last weekend so nothing special.

[zapcosongs]

I haven't used the L-1000s in a while, and my G&L guitars never see the light of day. I should probably sell some of them.

Hey Bassman, did you mean to say "non-G&L guitars?" Every time I've seen your band, you've been slinging a G&L. How have you been? - ed

btw, I was planning to see you guys at the end of April up this way, but unfortunately, one of the kids had a playground mishap and we ended up at the emergency room instead. Ain't life grand? Ha!

[zapcosongs]

G&L Question: Is there a G&L in your stable that you just don't play much? If so, why is that, and why, if you don't play it, have you not passed it on?

Non-G&L Question: Let's hear about your Memorial Day holiday last weekend.

Of the G&Ls, my custom ordered, butterscotch blonde S-500 gets played the least. I keep it because I rarely sell gear. Also, I have a love/hate relationship with the small MFDs, and it's the only guitar I've custom ordered... I figure one of these day I'll bond with it and start beating it up like the rest of my G&Ls.

Memorial Day weekend started with a BBQ at the homestead on Friday evening. Saturday I went to a little juggling festival put on by my old juggling partner. Passed clubs with some famous and not so famous characters who I've known for a very long time. Afterwards, we (Maggie joined me later in the day) headed over to my friend's house and sat around a fire pit until the wee hours drinking beer and shooting the bull. Sunday was the usual band rehearsal at my house. Monday was a recovery day--recovery from drinking too much beer and being sore as hell after a day of juggling (which I hadn't done since the same event last year).

Glad you we able to help those people!

--GDub

Hey Gary. Sounds like a fun and exhausting holiday weekend. Glad to hear that you and Maggy are still making music. I still enjoy and appreciate the DCs you sent me back in the day. Hey, what's going on with you guys and the Canada plan? Have you reconsidered? And when the heck are you coming east to visit your friends in the Charm City area? I'd still like to shake your hand a buy you a beer one day...... - ed

[zapcosongs]

I have two G&Ls that rarely leave their cases: the John Jorgenson Sig ASAT and the ASAT Bass. Both are pristine, and I guess I just don't want to be the one to put the first ding in either one. I've been holding onto them as trade fodder. I would swap the ASAT Bass in a heartbeat for another one in similar condition that doesn't have a flake finish, but I've just been too lazy to take initiative on that.

My ash F-100 hasn't been out of the case very often since I found a hardtail 'hog last winter. I know it isn't rational, but I've held onto it because of the low serial number (the lowest one in the registry). It would be the next in line to go out the door if I had to make room for a new instrument.

Memorial Day weekend was good. I had five in-laws arrive at the house on Thursday. I took Friday off from work and took them into DC to visit the Smithsonian. We ended up breaking into three groups, so I had most of the day with my sons at the National Gallery of Art. I was surprised at just how much they enjoyed it. Saturday and Sunday were spent relaxing with family and friends. On Monday my sons and I took my father-in-law (another Navy vet) to the maritime museum in Baltimore.

Ken

Hey Ken - Thanks for chiming in. Sounds like a nice weekend with family. Haven't been to the National Gallery in too long, and though I lived in Baltimore for 5 years or so, I never made it to the maritime museum (but I did manage to get into a lot of O's games at the old (horrible!) Memorial Stadium!

What's the story behind your change of heart on the flake finish. Did it lose it's luster to you over time or wake up one day wondering "What the heck was I thinking!" ?????

[zapcosongs]

My G&L is 3rd down the line of 4, meaning 1-2 practices a week or so with it. the 4th gets nothing and I a m considering hauling it to a camp if that is where I end up at my next job opposed to a travel guitar. Sounds like a good idea bassman, give em a chance to scream/acquire some loving.

Was just another weekend in Canada last weekend so nothing special.

Hey Sirmy - Appreciate your response. You have me wondering: Which guitar in the herd is your number one, and what the heck is number 4? Thanks! - ed

[zapcosongs]

Ed, my F-100 Return virtually gets no play as I am keeping it new. I have many others to use anyway.

We used the weekend to rest up a bit. I had a tough gig schedule the previous week doing a gig in Bemidji Mn on Wednesday. It is 500 mi round trip and I got home at 1 AM. Also cauth up on some of the yard work.

Kudos to your son for his rescue involvement. He will always remember that! Great stuff!-- Darwin

Hey Darwin - Thanks for the kind words. The boy's scoutmaster got wind of the lake rescue somehow, and has asked that we write up the details for submission to some committee and maybe publication in the scouting magazine.

And I do understand your wanting to keep one G&L in pristine condition. Answering my own question, the only one I don't play at all is my '81 L1K time capsule. I did bring it out once to show Bassman when his band was playing in my neighborhood, and he ended up playing a whole set with it. She's been recuperating ever since - which sounds a lot like your holiday weekend!

[GDub]

Hey, what's going on with you guys and the Canada plan? Have you reconsidered? And when the heck are you coming east to visit your friends in the Charm City area? I'd still like to shake your hand a buy you a beer one day...... - ed

We're moving to Montreal this summer. Will be, no doubt, visiting Maryland friends sometime around moving time. I'll keep you in the loop.

--GDub

[zapcosongs]

Hey, what's going on with you guys and the Canada plan? Have you reconsidered? And when the heck are you coming east to visit your friends in the Charm City area? I'd still like to shake your hand a buy you a beer one day...... - ed

We're moving to Montreal this summer. Will be, no doubt, visiting Maryland friends sometime around moving time. I'll keep you in the loop.

--GDub

Hope you like winter as much as I do, Gary (though as I get older, I appreciate the cold a bit less each passing year). I do wonder what will become of the Maggies with you and Mags more than two thousand miles northeast of the others.... - ed

[GDub]

Hey, what's going on with you guys and the Canada plan? Have you reconsidered? And when the heck are you coming east to visit your friends in the Charm City area? I'd still like to shake your hand a buy you a beer one day...... - ed

We're moving to Montreal this summer. Will be, no doubt, visiting Maryland friends sometime around moving time. I'll keep you in the loop.

--GDub

Hope you like winter as much as I do, Gary (though as I get older, I appreciate the cold a bit less each passing year). I do wonder what will become of the Maggies with you and Mags more than two thousand miles northeast of the others.... - ed

Yes, winters in Quebec suck, but healthcare RAWKS. Let's see.. $2k+ a month for health insurance in California or $0 in Quebec. ... I'm 59 and Mags is 62. Make a choice. Work is irrelevant because we're both heavily tech savvy. I choose the winter. And with the money we save, winter months in Mexico! The band will endure the move because it's all about Maggie's songs. The core people will hang in there and new musicians will fill in the gaps.

--g

[KenC]

What's the story behind your change of heart on the flake finish. Did it lose it's luster to you over time or wake up one day wondering "What the heck was I thinking!" ?????

It wasn't really a change of heart. From the start, the JJ Sig was more of a piece of the collection than an everyday player. Shortly after buying it I found my first '86 ASAT and really bonded with that one. You know how I am with older G&Ls, and especially maple bodies. Anyway, the JJ Sig is waiting in the wings for the right trade opportunity.

I bought the ASAT Bass on line, without seeing a picture of it first. The sales clerk at Guitar Center described it as having "a kind of sparkly, gold-ish finish". No matter how he tried to describe it, it came out sounding like Shoreline Gold. I was baffled when I opened the case and saw Gold Flake. Truth is, I was just looking for a player with a 1.5" nut and would probably have passed if I had known how flashy and pristine this one was. That had to be close to a year ago, and I'm still watching for that player to pop up.

Ken

[Philby]

Of the G&Ls, my custom ordered, butterscotch blonde S-500 gets played the least. I keep it because I rarely sell gear. Also, I have a love/hate relationship with the small MFDs, and it's the only guitar I've custom ordered... I figure one of these day I'll bond with it and start beating it up like the rest of my G&Ls.
--GDub

This pretty much sums up the relationship I have with my S-500. I play it unplugged occasionally 'cos the neck and action are so nice, but most of the time I'm underwhelmed by the small MFD's when I plug her in. As a result she sits on the rack. I should sell her or put some different pickups in. But I'm hoping one day I'll get the point of the small MFD's.

[zapcosongs]

Hey, what's going on with you guys and the Canada plan? Have you reconsidered? And when the heck are you coming east to visit your friends in the Charm City area? I'd still like to shake your hand a buy you a beer one day...... - ed

We're moving to Montreal this summer. Will be, no doubt, visiting Maryland friends sometime around moving time. I'll keep you in the loop.

--GDub

Hope you like winter as much as I do, Gary (though as I get older, I appreciate the cold a bit less each passing year). I do wonder what will become of the Maggies with you and Mags more than two thousand miles northeast of the others.... - ed

Yes, winters in Quebec suck, but healthcare RAWKS. Let's see.. $2k+ a month for health insurance in California or $0 in Quebec. ... I'm 59 and Mags is 62. Make a choice. Work is irrelevant because we're both heavily tech savvy. I choose the winter. And with the money we save, winter months in Mexico! The band will endure the move because it's all about Maggie's songs. The core people will hang in there and new musicians will fill in the gaps.

--g

Well, it's getting easier and easier to make music across the miles. Hey, you must know the story of how "The Wall" was recorded..... Regarding medical care, although there are certainly some advantages to the Canadian system, I think you need to take off you rose-colored glasses at least a little bit. I have a client who is a Canadian citizen (temporary resident, US) and she actually likes the system here much better. For example, she needed an MRI of her knee when injured in an accident here locally. She was actually shocked when she was able to pick up the phone and make an appointment to have the test done within a couple of days. Why was she so surprised? She tells me that if she was in Canada an needed an MRI, she would be put on a list and would have to wait many, many weeks to get the test that she really required immediately. So like everything else in life, there are trade-offs......

Anyway, I wish you the very best of everything in all your endeavors, and I look forward to meeting you before too long..... - ed

[zapcosongs]

What's the story behind your change of heart on the flake finish. Did it lose it's luster to you over time or wake up one day wondering "What the heck was I thinking!" ?????

It wasn't really a change of heart. From the start, the JJ Sig was more of a piece of the collection than an everyday player. Shortly after buying it I found my first '86 ASAT and really bonded with that one. You know how I am with older G&Ls, and especially maple bodies. Anyway, the JJ Sig is waiting in the wings for the right trade opportunity.

I bought the ASAT Bass on line, without seeing a picture of it first. The sales clerk at Guitar Center described it as having "a kind of sparkly, gold-ish finish". No matter how he tried to describe it, it came out sounding like Shoreline Gold. I was baffled when I opened the case and saw Gold Flake. Truth is, I was just looking for a player with a 1.5" nut and would probably have passed if I had known how flashy and pristine this one was. That had to be close to a year ago, and I'm still watching for that player to pop up.

Ken

Well, I'm sure the guitar is nice and it will be perfect for somebody out there. Seriously. That said, there is something to be learned here, I think, about relying on Guitar Center clerks and making sight-unseen purchases, no? Regardless Ken, we live so close that it would be a shame if we didn't make some effort to do something together this summer. How old are your boys? - ed

[zapcosongs]

Of the G&Ls, my custom ordered, butterscotch blonde S-500 gets played the least. I keep it because I rarely sell gear. Also, I have a love/hate relationship with the small MFDs, and it's the only guitar I've custom ordered... I figure one of these day I'll bond with it and start beating it up like the rest of my G&Ls.
--GDub

This pretty much sums up the relationship I have with my S-500. I play it unplugged occasionally 'cos the neck and action are so nice, but most of the time I'm underwhelmed by the small MFD's when I plug her in. As a result she sits on the rack. I should sell her or put some different pickups in. But I'm hoping one day I'll get the point of the small MFD's.

Hey Philby. So glad to see you post! I understand some of the angst with the small MFDs. Kind of interesting, given the almost-universal love folks seem to have for the larger ones, which are actually quite similar in design (or so I believe - remember, I'm a moron!).

I've got the large ones in an early SC-2 and an '86 ASAT. I have the small ones in a 1st style SC-3 and a similar pickup in the bridge position of my Bluesboy. After some trial-and-error tweaking, I love the small MFD in the Bluesboy, and it's just plain heaven in the middle position in conjunction with the Seth Lover in the neck. That said, when I pick up the SC-3, sometimes I'm floored by the sound they impart, but at other times they leave me wanting for the CLF singles in my Legacy. So it seems to be a mood thing for me to some extent. Strange, but I love having all these options - even though I am and remain a basement wanker. G'day! -ed

[GDub]

Hey, what's going on with you guys and the Canada plan? Have you reconsidered? And when the heck are you coming east to visit your friends in the Charm City area? I'd still like to shake your hand a buy you a beer one day...... - ed

We're moving to Montreal this summer. Will be, no doubt, visiting Maryland friends sometime around moving time. I'll keep you in the loop.

--GDub

Hope you like winter as much as I do, Gary (though as I get older, I appreciate the cold a bit less each passing year). I do wonder what will become of the Maggies with you and Mags more than two thousand miles northeast of the others.... - ed

Yes, winters in Quebec suck, but healthcare RAWKS. Let's see.. $2k+ a month for health insurance in California or $0 in Quebec. ... I'm 59 and Mags is 62. Make a choice. Work is irrelevant because we're both heavily tech savvy. I choose the winter. And with the money we save, winter months in Mexico! The band will endure the move because it's all about Maggie's songs. The core people will hang in there and new musicians will fill in the gaps.

--g

Well, it's getting easier and easier to make music across the miles. Hey, you must know the story of how "The Wall" was recorded..... Regarding medical care, although there are certainly some advantages to the Canadian system, I think you need to take off you rose-colored glasses at least a little bit. I have a client who is a Canadian citizen (temporary resident, US) and she actually likes the system here much better. For example, she needed an MRI of her knee when injured in an accident here locally. She was actually shocked when she was able to pick up the phone and make an appointment to have the test done within a couple of days. Why was she so surprised? She tells me that if she was in Canada an needed an MRI, she would be put on a list and would have to wait many, many weeks to get the test that she really required immediately. So like everything else in life, there are trade-offs......

Anyway, I wish you the very best of everything in all your endeavors, and I look forward to meeting you before too long..... - ed

I've done a LOT of research over the past several years, which includes several real world examples (not Google searches) and I have to say that my conclusion is that Canadians are at the least 90+% happy with their healthcare system. That's pretty good! They might bitch about this and that, but, in general, it's A-OK by them. Except for, maybe, the wealthy. But they can get what they want anyway. As a healthy beast I'd rather not pay exorbitant prices for care I plan on rarely using. If I need it, I'll play the odds.

--GDub

[supereiv]

Reading your stories about healthcare from France is scaring !
Everything is more or less free here ! Hence we pay a lot of taxes... But I don't really care, I couldn't pay $2k a month for health.
I had an infarctus 3 months ago, being a former professional firefighter I knew what it was. As a result, the firemen (8 of them) hit my home in 6 mn after the phonecall, I got out of surgery 2 hours later, I'm fine now ( and will be running 10 to 20km competitions this year), and didn't pay anything !!!
Wow, glad to be here.

Excuse my digression