I hate Barnes & Noble. There's this dude that works at the music department who I never liked a whole lot anyway, and I called B&N (the one in Cape Girardeau, for those of you possibly reading this who don't know where I live...) to find out if R.E.M. 1983 classic MURMUR was the same price as their website was selling it for. The front desk clerk was obviously exasperated with me 'cause she either didn't know what I was talking about or what I was saying, except when I said "it's a CD", then she transferred me to Mr. A-Dole who, after me stating my inquiry, said "just a minute" then hung up on me.
This dude has worked at Barnes & Noble for at least a few months, about as long as they've been open in their new location, and if B&N thinks he's that good, then F*** Barnes & Noble and their high prices and stuck up self/selves. I was going to buy a $25 membership in January, when I got enough money to do that, but this kind of behavior is just intolerable. I HAVE HAD ENOUGH. I'm not even going to use their "10% off coupon" that I got via email; I can get AT LEAST 10% off just about everything Amazon.com sells and if that wasn't enough reason to shop at Amazon, they also have great customer service.
You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
always something
Man, I've written a lot of lists. I've written a few at least while I was unable to connect to the internet for a day and a half, but I don't see the point of posting them here; any list is incomplete by nature, unless you're dead already, since the future is ongoing and everchanging. New CDs come out every Tuesday, and I don't forsee becoming some old fart who complains about "today's music" anytime soon. Music has always been comprised of some good, a lot of b.s., and a small handful of truly special gifts. Of course, unlike a lot of people, I happen to have an actual opinion of music and a basis for it. It's not based on nostalgia or some ideological standpoint or what my friends think of it. If it moves me, it's good. A lot of people treat artists such as Bjork and Radiohead like they deserve some sort of award for being different, when their music does nothing for me, with the exception of a very small handful of songs. Artists like Nickelback and Fall Out Boy get awards and tons of sales (neither of which impress me or encourage me to buy their music, BTW) and they don't deserve it, although there's probably a bigger handful of their music that moves me, but that can be said of just about any pop-punk/anthem-making artist/band; their music may be good, but it's not GREAT(++).
My lists are mostly based on a mood or a theme anyway. It's difficult to think of even 5 CDS that I feel like I can't live w/o. If I put 1 or 2 on a list, then what's the point? I can't listen to both ALL THE TIME, I'd get bored and then I'd end up even more bitter than I already am. I can definitely think of at least 5 CDs that strongly moved me, but those are the kinds of CDS that moved me more b/c of my current circumstances at the time they happened to be there for me to listen to than the music it/them-selves.
And really, what's the point of having a "CD collection"? It's nothing more than a hobby. If I want music, there's always the radio, even though it offers a highly narrowed selection of music, especially in this town I'm living in. And, of course, INTERNET radio is free and highly available, unless I have my computer off for some reason...
My lists are mostly based on a mood or a theme anyway. It's difficult to think of even 5 CDS that I feel like I can't live w/o. If I put 1 or 2 on a list, then what's the point? I can't listen to both ALL THE TIME, I'd get bored and then I'd end up even more bitter than I already am. I can definitely think of at least 5 CDs that strongly moved me, but those are the kinds of CDS that moved me more b/c of my current circumstances at the time they happened to be there for me to listen to than the music it/them-selves.
And really, what's the point of having a "CD collection"? It's nothing more than a hobby. If I want music, there's always the radio, even though it offers a highly narrowed selection of music, especially in this town I'm living in. And, of course, INTERNET radio is free and highly available, unless I have my computer off for some reason...
20 is the new 11
My CD collection is now almost 20. I think I have like 16 or 17 in my entertainment center, and I have 2 more that should be arriving in the mail either today, tomorrow, or...sometime soon (hopefully!). I'm gonna wait until my entertainment center can't hold them anymore, then get a media tower-thingy, or a media shelf or whatever...I have a book shelf, but I'm thinking I should get rid of it. I'm not real into books, and I don't know where I would put the media shelf/tower/rack/whatever with that big ol' book shelf taking up the space it takes.
It's probably gonna be AT LEAST another month before I have that many CDs though. The first shelf of my entertainment center is a little over halfway full. I still have a 2nd shelf vacant. And, of course, I can put CDs behind other CDs, 'cause the shelves are even deeper than they are wide.
It's probably gonna be AT LEAST another month before I have that many CDs though. The first shelf of my entertainment center is a little over halfway full. I still have a 2nd shelf vacant. And, of course, I can put CDs behind other CDs, 'cause the shelves are even deeper than they are wide.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
u-reak-uh!
("speak for yourself", you say. "I am", I say...anyway...).
Columbus Day, to some, is a celebration of this society's/country's origins. To others it is a condoning of many atrocities, including the rape of the Native American culture and its people. I'm one of the later, being of a bit of a cynic and non-conformist...
The holiday wouldn't bother me so much if it weren't a "national holiday", observed by our gov't and enforced by its offices and business partners (i.e.: the bank, health centers that receive gov't funding...).
But there lies the irony; the government (i.e.: Christopher Columbus) is not always right. The government makes mistakes, and, if we let them, they intentionally harm us, the general population.
Is that a good thing? Hell no. But it is a reality, which is why we have laws and which is why those laws are enforced. Bad people, or people who do bad things, will always exist. It is the government's job to, as best as possible, shield the public from these things, or at least condemn them by enforcing these laws with sometimes seemingly vengeance-like consequences.
THIS government is "of the people, by the people, and for the people". I've always argued that if the people of the U.S.A. want communism, they should have it. Likewise, if they want to let the Muslin Extremists take over this country, so be it. However, I don't think the MAJORITY (even half, really) of this country would stand for Muslin Extremists taking over our culture. However, one could argue, that's exactly what the Native Americans did. However, such an argument would be rather weak by itself, since much of the fall of the Native American people was due to deceit (i.e.: spreading diseases...), which can be hard to detect...
The sad fact is we put so much trust and respect in our government, when most of us don't even know much of anything about our leaders. Most vote based on the candidate's Republican vs. Democrat status/label, in most cases w/o even listening to other side's case/plea. If one were running as a Democrat and wanted to lower taxes and better enforce the laws against sex offenders and murderers, the Republican-voter wouldn't even be aware of the aformentioned Democrat's stance.
And, I must admit, I don't know a whole lot about our candidates either, except 99% (or almost) are not running for the good of the country and they, more or less, have some shady business going on behind the public eye.
Even worse, despite how much trust we put in our government, most of us don't vote. I do, but most don't even bother. I heard one guy I used to go to high school with, saying he didn't/doesn't vote b/c there's too many things going on behind closed doors. I agree that is the truth, the little I know about the Bush presidents, J.F.K. (the president, not the film), and that justice who died a few years ago (was it Burger? I think this was around 2004 or 2005...) just reeks CONSPIRACY! And the L.A.P.D. practically brags about their corrupt existence.
BUT WHAT DOES ANYBODY DO ABOUT IT? We just let it happen. Many of us are too busy trying to rake in as many latest-and-greatest video games and toys for our children and the newest chic clothing for ourselves and all the up to date technology to look up the potential fate of this country. Being noble just isn't as important as being rich is it? But then again, I'm poor, so maybe I'm just jealous (I'm not really, I know I don't deserve a penny that you haven't already given me - I live 0n "welfare", FYI).
Anyway. I guess all I'm saying is that Columbus day IS important, b/c it gives us a "reason" (as if we need one anyway...) to reflect on the past and use its lessons to determine our future. Isn't that what every Holiday is about?
Columbus Day, to some, is a celebration of this society's/country's origins. To others it is a condoning of many atrocities, including the rape of the Native American culture and its people. I'm one of the later, being of a bit of a cynic and non-conformist...
The holiday wouldn't bother me so much if it weren't a "national holiday", observed by our gov't and enforced by its offices and business partners (i.e.: the bank, health centers that receive gov't funding...).
But there lies the irony; the government (i.e.: Christopher Columbus) is not always right. The government makes mistakes, and, if we let them, they intentionally harm us, the general population.
Is that a good thing? Hell no. But it is a reality, which is why we have laws and which is why those laws are enforced. Bad people, or people who do bad things, will always exist. It is the government's job to, as best as possible, shield the public from these things, or at least condemn them by enforcing these laws with sometimes seemingly vengeance-like consequences.
THIS government is "of the people, by the people, and for the people". I've always argued that if the people of the U.S.A. want communism, they should have it. Likewise, if they want to let the Muslin Extremists take over this country, so be it. However, I don't think the MAJORITY (even half, really) of this country would stand for Muslin Extremists taking over our culture. However, one could argue, that's exactly what the Native Americans did. However, such an argument would be rather weak by itself, since much of the fall of the Native American people was due to deceit (i.e.: spreading diseases...), which can be hard to detect...
The sad fact is we put so much trust and respect in our government, when most of us don't even know much of anything about our leaders. Most vote based on the candidate's Republican vs. Democrat status/label, in most cases w/o even listening to other side's case/plea. If one were running as a Democrat and wanted to lower taxes and better enforce the laws against sex offenders and murderers, the Republican-voter wouldn't even be aware of the aformentioned Democrat's stance.
And, I must admit, I don't know a whole lot about our candidates either, except 99% (or almost) are not running for the good of the country and they, more or less, have some shady business going on behind the public eye.
Even worse, despite how much trust we put in our government, most of us don't vote. I do, but most don't even bother. I heard one guy I used to go to high school with, saying he didn't/doesn't vote b/c there's too many things going on behind closed doors. I agree that is the truth, the little I know about the Bush presidents, J.F.K. (the president, not the film), and that justice who died a few years ago (was it Burger? I think this was around 2004 or 2005...) just reeks CONSPIRACY! And the L.A.P.D. practically brags about their corrupt existence.
BUT WHAT DOES ANYBODY DO ABOUT IT? We just let it happen. Many of us are too busy trying to rake in as many latest-and-greatest video games and toys for our children and the newest chic clothing for ourselves and all the up to date technology to look up the potential fate of this country. Being noble just isn't as important as being rich is it? But then again, I'm poor, so maybe I'm just jealous (I'm not really, I know I don't deserve a penny that you haven't already given me - I live 0n "welfare", FYI).
Anyway. I guess all I'm saying is that Columbus day IS important, b/c it gives us a "reason" (as if we need one anyway...) to reflect on the past and use its lessons to determine our future. Isn't that what every Holiday is about?
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
LET'S PUT THE "S" IN LIST!
CDs
CD-R#1: TEEN SPIRIT/GROWING UP
- Aerosmith - Big Ones
- Aerosmith - Aerosmith's Greatest Hits
- American Football - s/t
- Armor For Sleep - Dream To Make Believe
- Armor For Sleep - What To Do When You Are Dead
- Blink 182 - s/t
- Cold - Year of The Spider
- Phil Collins - Both Sides
- Phil Collins - ...But Seriously
- Phil Collins - No Jacket Required
- The Cure - Pornography
- Finch - What It Is To Burn
- The Fray - How To Save A Life
- Genesis - s/t
- Genesis - Abacab
- Genesis - Duke
- Genesis - Invisible Touch
- Genesis - Live/The Way We Walk Volume One: The Shorts
- Genesis - Live/The Way We Walk Volume Two: The Longs
- Genesis - Seconds Out
- Genesis - We Can't Dance
- Gentle Giant - Acquiring The Taste
- Gentle Giant - In A Glass House
- Gentle Giant - Octopus
- The Get Up Kids - Something To Write Home About
- The Grateful Dead - American Beauty
- Hidden In Plain View - Resolution
- Whitney Houston - Whitney
- Michael Jackson - Dangerous
- Michael Jackson - Thriller
- Judas Priest - Stained Class
- Avril Lavigne - Let Go
- Aimee Mann - The Forgotten Arm
- Metallica - s/t
- Metallica - ...And Justice For All
- Metallica - Kill 'Em All
- Metallica - Master of Puppets
- Metallica - S&M
- Nirvana - Incesticide
- Nirvana - In Utero
- Nirvana - Nevermind
- Number One Fan - Compromises
- Oingo Boingo - Nothing To Fear
- Oingo Boingo - Skeletons In The Closet: The Best Of
- R.E.M. - Murmur
- R.E.M. - Reckoning
- Saves The Day - Stay What You Are
- Senses Fail - Let It Enfold You
- Silverstein - When Broken Is Easily Fixed
- Taking Back Sunday - Tell All Your Friends
- Trespassers William - Different Stars
- Trespassers William - Having
- Trespassers William - The Natural Order of Things
- Trespassers William - The Noble House Sessions
- Virginwool- - Open Heart Surgery
- "Weird Al" Yankovic - Even Worse
- Yellowcard - Ocean Avenue
- Bringing Out The Dead
- A Clockwork Orange
- Eraserhead
- Forrest Gump
- Ghostbusters
- Ghostbusters II
- Henry: Portrait of A Serial Killer
- Heathers
- Heavenly Creatures
- The Last Unicorn
- L.I.E.
- Lost Highway
- Mysterious Skin
- nowhere
- 2001: A Space Odyssey
- Dennis Cooper - Guide
- Michael Crichton - Jurassic Park
- Justin Evans - A Good And Happy Child
- John Fowles - The Collector
- Harper Lee - To Kill A Mockingbird
- Don Shay - The Making of Ghostbusters
- Various - Batman: Bloodstorm
CD-R#1: TEEN SPIRIT/GROWING UP
- Thank U - Alanis Morissette
- Torn - Natalie Imbruglia
- Angel - Sarah McLachlan
- Get What You Give - New Radicals
- Flagpole Sitta - Harvey Danger
- Real World - Matchbox 20
- Eyes Wide Open - Goo Goo Dolls
- Letting The Cables Sleep - Bush
- 6 Underground - Sneaker Pimps
- Everyday Is A Winding Road - Sheryl Crow
- No Such Thing - John Mayer
- The Game of Love - Santana Ft. Michelle Branch
- Fat Lip - Sum 41
- My First Trip To Mars - Atticus Fault
- Life On A Chain - Pete Yorn
- Last Defense - Year of The Rabbit
- I Miss You - Blink 182
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
OOOH!
man, I'm so digging this Armor For Sleep WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU ARE DEAD (2005) CD. I've been listening to it all late morning and this afternoon thus far.
so, yeah, like I need anything that I don't already have...here's to shopping!
so, yeah, like I need anything that I don't already have...here's to shopping!
- American Football - s/t
- Armor For Sleep - Dream To Make Believe
- Armor For Sleep - What To Do When You Are Dead
- Peter Gabriel - Up
- Genesis - Duke
- Genesis - Invisible Touch
- Genesis - Live/The Way We Walk Volume One: The Shorts
- Genesis - Live/The Way We Walk Volume Two: The Longs
- Genesis - We Can't Dance
- Gentle Giant - Octopus
- The Get Up Kids - Something To Write Home About
- The Grateful Dead - Europe '72
- The Grateful Dead - Two From The Vault
- Hidden In Plain View - Resolution
- Aimee Mann - The Forgotten Arm
- Number One Fan - Compromises
- Oingo Boingo - Nothing To Fear
- Oingo Boingo - Skeletons In The Closet: The Best Of
- Silverstein - When Broken Is Easily Fixed
- A Skylit Drive - Wires & The Concept of Breathing
- Trespassers William - Different Stars
- Trespassers William - Having
- Trespassers William - The Natural Order of Things E.P.
- Trespassers William - The Noble House E.P./Sessions
- Virginwool - Open Heart Surgery
PLAN D
well...my Deep Discount order was canceled.
so...idk...NOT HAPPY...don't feel like shopping...
ten CDS is plenty anyway...it's kinda nice to be back to having some $ again...but...I feel flat...calm...to the ground...ummmmmmmmmmmmmm....rgg...
(sigh)
so...idk...NOT HAPPY...don't feel like shopping...
ten CDS is plenty anyway...it's kinda nice to be back to having some $ again...but...I feel flat...calm...to the ground...ummmmmmmmmmmmmm....rgg...
(sigh)
TOTAL! TOTAL! TOTAL!
wow, I am now the coolest stuck-in-the-'70's dude in the town!
I just bought almost $50 worth of Grateful Dead CDs from Deep Discount (dot cooooom!) and signed up to some shopper discount thingy so I could $10 cash back on my NEXT order from DpDscnt.cooooooom! and then I ordered $18 MORE worth of stuff from them. I probably would steer clear of them, based on their poor-fair feedback on the Amazon Marketplace, except Microsoft has this cash back thing that gives 4% back on top of their already lower-than-Amazon prices...
so then I ordered the "next" order and got ANOTHER "cash back" offer (from a different company...), except I can't use it 'cause I don't have any more $...
at least I got 4 CDs (8 discs, one's a 4-CD set and ones a 2-CD set) of Grateful Dead comin' to me...well, at least I dang well hope...last I heard from Amazon, my card was having "difficulty" being processed, which usually means the $ that my sister transferred to it hasn't posted yet (she initiated the transfer from her bank acct to the card on the 30th)...hopefully they won't cancel everything...oh, yeah, my Microsoft cashback is over $2.50! cannot believe this!! of course, that won't be usable until probably March 'cause a) i have to have $5 to even ACCESS the cash-back and then b) it takes 60 days for each transaction to go from pending to non-pending (and i don't have the ability to buy double what I've already bought thus far...as I said b4...).
oh, and unless you count each individual disc as its own album/CD, I have/will-have, once the 4 albums ship and I rec' them, FOURTEEN CDs! I know, seems like I should have almost 20 by now, right? So much excitement!!
I just bought almost $50 worth of Grateful Dead CDs from Deep Discount (dot cooooom!) and signed up to some shopper discount thingy so I could $10 cash back on my NEXT order from DpDscnt.cooooooom! and then I ordered $18 MORE worth of stuff from them. I probably would steer clear of them, based on their poor-fair feedback on the Amazon Marketplace, except Microsoft has this cash back thing that gives 4% back on top of their already lower-than-Amazon prices...
so then I ordered the "next" order and got ANOTHER "cash back" offer (from a different company...), except I can't use it 'cause I don't have any more $...
at least I got 4 CDs (8 discs, one's a 4-CD set and ones a 2-CD set) of Grateful Dead comin' to me...well, at least I dang well hope...last I heard from Amazon, my card was having "difficulty" being processed, which usually means the $ that my sister transferred to it hasn't posted yet (she initiated the transfer from her bank acct to the card on the 30th)...hopefully they won't cancel everything...oh, yeah, my Microsoft cashback is over $2.50! cannot believe this!! of course, that won't be usable until probably March 'cause a) i have to have $5 to even ACCESS the cash-back and then b) it takes 60 days for each transaction to go from pending to non-pending (and i don't have the ability to buy double what I've already bought thus far...as I said b4...).
oh, and unless you count each individual disc as its own album/CD, I have/will-have, once the 4 albums ship and I rec' them, FOURTEEN CDs! I know, seems like I should have almost 20 by now, right? So much excitement!!
Monday, December 1, 2008
in a song...
SONGS
- Thank U - Alanis Morissette
- Torn - Natalie Imbruglia
- Angel - Sarah McLachlan
- Everyday Is A Winding Road - Sheryl Crow
- Eyes Wide Open - Goo Goo Dolls
- Real World - Matchbox 20
- You Get What You Give - New Radicals
- Letting the Cables Sleep - Bush
- Until She Comes - The Psychedelic Furs
- No Such Thing - John Mayer
- The Game of Love - Santana Ft. Michelle Branch
- My First Trip To Mars - Atticus Fault
- Fat Lip - Sum 41
- Life On A Chain - Pete Yorn
- I Miss You - Blink 182
NEW
I just bought 4 CDs from Hastings
Armor For Sleep "what to do when you are dead"
Genesis "we can't dance"
Nirvana "Incesticide"
Silverstein "When Broken Is Easily Fixed"
the Silverstein one is HORRIDLY scratched, huge scratch running down...ugh...man...anyway...the Nirvana one was BRAND NEW, on sale for $5.99 (same price as Amazon!) although I ended up stacking a bag of groceries on top of it so the case is now cracked. The Genesis CD was only $1.99 and the Armor For Sleep CD was used at $7.49 which I think is a reasonable price for a CD as good as that one.
all together, it was less than $24, although I do intend to return the Silverstein one; which really sux 'cause I really looking forward to listening to it when I got home.
oh, yeah; dear mother also got me a couple CDs online over the weekend. Genesis DUKE and Judas Priest's STAINED CLASS (I'll be paying her back, not like she "gave" them to me or anything...).
so all together, I now have TEN CDs (counting the ones coming in the mail...). Would be 11, but dang it! My DVD/CD player MIGHT be capable of reading the Silverstein CD, but what about if I ever get a better sounding stereo system? Will the component(s) read the disc? Somewhere along the line I'm gonna be at least mildly annoyed by its (lack of?) presence and I don't really feel like ATTEMPTING to listen to a CD so obviously scratched when time and time again I have tried selling CDs to Hastings and they rejected them b/c of scratches way less noticable than this/that...
hopefully they won't give me any hassle over it...they have lousy customer service (see their feedback on Amazon under "gohastings").
Armor For Sleep "what to do when you are dead"
Genesis "we can't dance"
Nirvana "Incesticide"
Silverstein "When Broken Is Easily Fixed"
the Silverstein one is HORRIDLY scratched, huge scratch running down...ugh...man...anyway...the Nirvana one was BRAND NEW, on sale for $5.99 (same price as Amazon!) although I ended up stacking a bag of groceries on top of it so the case is now cracked. The Genesis CD was only $1.99 and the Armor For Sleep CD was used at $7.49 which I think is a reasonable price for a CD as good as that one.
all together, it was less than $24, although I do intend to return the Silverstein one; which really sux 'cause I really looking forward to listening to it when I got home.
oh, yeah; dear mother also got me a couple CDs online over the weekend. Genesis DUKE and Judas Priest's STAINED CLASS (I'll be paying her back, not like she "gave" them to me or anything...).
so all together, I now have TEN CDs (counting the ones coming in the mail...). Would be 11, but dang it! My DVD/CD player MIGHT be capable of reading the Silverstein CD, but what about if I ever get a better sounding stereo system? Will the component(s) read the disc? Somewhere along the line I'm gonna be at least mildly annoyed by its (lack of?) presence and I don't really feel like ATTEMPTING to listen to a CD so obviously scratched when time and time again I have tried selling CDs to Hastings and they rejected them b/c of scratches way less noticable than this/that...
hopefully they won't give me any hassle over it...they have lousy customer service (see their feedback on Amazon under "gohastings").
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