everywhere there's lots of piggies

oh sweet sweet vinyl, how do i love thee, i can't count the ways!

today, after getting home from a kick ass bachelor party in big sur, for keith, i finally received my garrard cartridge slider from the turntable factory in south carolina. i have been waiting for this with coffee-baited breath for weeks. i can finally play my records.

i started out with 'seven swans' by sufjan stevens, which kicked some major major ass. then i opened up with all barrels and threw on my original white vinyl version of 'the beattles' aka the white album. oh lordy, i haven't listend to this copy, save for maybe once at the manor, since i was in junior high. i was probably sitting with my mom, wondering how she got so cool, and realizing that this album probably had a major influence on her. no wonder she loved listening to hank williams on sunday morning am radio, or that she was the first one to ever play guns and roses for me. with the playing of this album so many years ago, everything clicked into place for me. i finally began to understand my mom as a person, and not just as my mom.

on throwing away instructions

please please never do this. matress tags, ok i can deal with that, but not instructions, particularly ones with diagrams. after opening up my garrard cartridge slider, i soon discovered to my dismay that amanda had thrown away the diagram telling me which of the four different wires connected to which of the four posts from the slider to the cartridge respectively. so i drove to best buy. they had already lowered the metal doors across their entrance, but a yellow-shirted guy was guarding the exit for customers still leaving the store. i explained my problem, that i just wanted to run in and draw the diagram from the back of an unopened package. through the grace of that young yellow-shirt, i am listening to the white album right now. thanks best buy guy, my mom would give you a big kiss on the cheek.

so i'm going to be busy for a while

there's some fine tuning to do with the turntable, getting everything balanced, anti-skated etc. then there's the listening to do. for those of you that are interested, tomorrow morning is the only time i work this week until i leave on friday morning to paint a house. i will be spending my hours this week drinking coffee and listening to records. feel free to take some days off work, bring some snackies, wear a jacket and a neck-tie and settle into a musical vacation. drop me a line if you are thinking about coming over.