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The More You Know

I also have my funerary arrangements in place. One thing that I brought with me out of the horrible 90s was the urgency to get that shit taken care of so your survivors don’t have to. I contacted The Neptune Society (again, based on my experience in the 90s) and arranged everything so Ben wouldn’t have to. It wasn’t cheap, and they force you to buy a ridiculously expensive wooden box to hold your ashes that isn’t worth a quarter of what you’re charged, but it was still cheaper than going the traditional route. When the time comes, they’ll pick up your body pretty much anywhere in the world, take care of all the paperwork, cremate your remains, and deliver the ashes to your loved ones.

Many years ago Ben gifted me a big blue Tardis ceramic cookie jar with the intent it would hold my ashes until he could decide what to ultimately do with them. Personally, my first choice has always been to have them scattered at North Baker Beach in San Francisco, but I realize the logistics of actually pulling that off are more difficult now since I don’t actually live there any more. My second choice would be in Sabino Canyon north of Tucson. Ultimately, Ben will do what he feels is best and brings him the most peace, so if that means scattering over the back yard so the dogs can roll around and play in me, that’s fine too.

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For Those Who Have Large CD Collections…

Do you find that you actually only listen to about a dozen discs with any regularity? I know I have my “go to” titles that seem to get all the rotation in my collection especially when I don’t know what to listen to.

In no particular order, they are

  • Verve Remixed (vols. 1 thru 5)
  • The Best Of Blue Note
  • Blue Note Reimagined
  • Blue Note Reimagined II
  • Marla Glenn – The Best Of
  • Nina Simone – Four Women (box set)
  • Chris Isaac – San Francisco Days
  • George Michael – Listen Without Prejudice
  • George Michael – Faith
  • Miles Davis – Kind Of Blue
  • Miles Davis – Blue Miles
  • Disco Discharge – European Connection
  • Anything on the Three Blind Mice (Japanese Jazz) label.

And of course, probably because of the novelty of something new from Madge….

  • Madonna – Confessions II

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Did I Say Eight Was Enough? I Meant…Nine, Er…Ten Was Enough

You may have noticed that sapphire blue beauty in the top row in some of my recent posts.

It’s a Sony D-EJ985. While not from the last model year Sony made portable CD players or even the newest in my collection, it (along with the D-EJ915) are my favorites and is one of their best IMHO.

You’ll also notice another D-EJ985 in silver at the lower right corner. That one appeared on my eBay feed first, and was advertised as “Untested. Comes with charging stand, but power cord is frayed and I have no gumstick batteries to test functionality.” It was ridiculously cheap, looked to be in excellent cosmetic condition, and since I’d been wanting this particular model for a while and the 985s are usually way out of my price range, I jumped on it. I figured I could always send it off to “my guy” Shawn for repairs if it wasn’t working.

Of course, as is often the case, within a day of sending payment, the much more desirable blue one appeared. That color! Yowsah! I had to get it. (It was also manufactured in a plum/maroon color.) Despite my rather monotone existence, I do enjoy splashes of color.

It was selling for about $20 more than the silver model, but the seller evidently didn’t do his homework prior to putting it up, because I got this one well, well below what a fully functional, “tested” unit typically goes for.

Turns out they both work beautifully. I have Sony power bricks that work with them just fine and I’ve even got an inline remote that came with one of my MD players that is essentially the same thing that originally shipped with the 985s.

I certainly don’t need two of the same model in my collection (even if they’re different colors) so I’ll be eBaying the silver one this weekend.

 

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“I Could Live There”

 

From thearchmagazine:

Behind a quiet wall in Scottsdale, a different kind of desert residence begins.

From the street, it feels protective and sculptural, board-formed concrete, corten steel, black metal, sand-toned plaster, and desert stone shaped into a low industrial silhouette. But inside, the house softens into stillness: warm oak, limewashed textures, black reflective water, filtered courtyard light, and Japandi interiors guided by Wabi-Sabi calm.

This is a private residence designed around contrast, raw exterior, silent interior; urban edge, desert retreat; architectural strength, human warmth. Every frame is built for atmosphere: the corten entry portal, the courtyard pool, the rooftop terrace at sunset, and the living spaces that open quietly toward the Sonoran landscape.

A modern home for slow mornings, cinematic evenings, and refined desert living.

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Forcing Myself

Since WordPress first introduced the Block Editor in 2018, I have avoided using it like the plague, going to far as loading a plug-in that activates (or at least recreates) the Classic Editor.

After 8 years, however, I’ve decided it’s time to embrace change and give the Block Editor a serious try. It’s still confusing as hell to someone like me who has been using WordPress for the last twenty-some years and didn’t immediately adopt the new paradigm.

Maybe you can teach old dogs new tricks. Let’s see how it goes.

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