Category: Longform
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OfficeMax Replacement Watch, Day 22
Date I started the process: August 6. Days since I called to start the process: 22. Days since I sent the dead PDA in: 11.
Assuming a 4-day USPS trip from Cedar Rapids to Dallas.
Projected days until they send the gift card: 3 to 8.
Assuming a 3-day USPS trip for the gift card.
Projected days until I get the gift card: 6 to 11.
Projected total cycle time: 28 to 33 days. (For an “immediate” replacement!)
Projected date I get the new PDA: Sept 6 - 10.
OfficeMax Replacement Watch, Day 19
Almost three weeks now and still nothin’. Geof suggests I should skip the Tungsten and go for a Treo. I suppose that’s an option, although if the Treo ever breaks then that means not only have I lost my PDA but I’ve lost my cellphone, too…
The other thing that irks me about Palm (not OfficeMax) is that none of the PDAs come with cradles any more. They all have a mini-USB port for syncing and a separate power cord. Dang it, I like the cradle. It gives me a place to keep my PDA charged and visible while I’m at my desk. They sell one, but it’s an extra $40. They used to include it with the PDA. Arrrgh.
As an addition: I just found this fun clause in the OfficeMax MaxAssurance fine print:
Meaningful service will be initiated within 48 hours of Your request and will be completed as soon as reasonably possible. If no meaningful service is initiated within such time limits and You have reasonably been available within such time limits, You may engage Your own servicer at Our expense.
Such great nebulous terms. “meaningful service”. What if I don’t think it’s meaningful? “As soon as reasonably possible.” I’ve got to think that three weeks (and counting) is waaaaaay longer than “reasonably possible.” I think it’s time to write a nasty letter to the store and regional managers…
Worship Team changes...
We had our first worship team practice using individual microphones last night.
Currently, we just have one condenser mic on each side of the stage and 3 or 4 people gather around it. The sound quality is terrible. Thanks to Nate Hines who graciously loaned us 4 SM-58’s, we now can practice using individual mics. We’re going to split into two worship teams, each with 3 vocalists and some instrumentalists. The start date is Sept 11, so we’ve got some work to do pretty quickly. I think it’ll turn out OK, though.
Practice last night went about as well as it possibly could have; the singers really noticed how much better things were with handheld mics - better sound, you can hear everybody… good stuff. It was kinda funny - I told Janice “sing louder, we can’t hear you”… and her reply: “I thought if I can hear myself then I’m singing too loud…” Welcome to real sound with monitors! :-) It’ll take some ironing out, but in the end it will be a huge improvement over our current configuration.
Odds and Ends
Just miscellaneous stuff from my life today. I got my DSL modem hooked up last night so the Casa de Cakeboy is now surfing the web at high speed and wirelessly! I’m sure it’ll take me a while to fully comprehend the different things this will allow me to do online… fun fun!
Tomorrow I’m getting a new car stereo installed in the Saturn. The old one is the factory-installed basic model, and the two big problems are that a) one of the knobs is broken, and b) there’s no good way to get iPod music through the stereo. (Waiting for somebody to suggest an FM modulator… decided against it.) The new deck was one of the less-expensive ones at Best Buy, but it has the magic feature: an AUX input to run a line in from the iPod. I can’t wait. Especially if I’m doing road trips to Oklahoma and Door County, Wisconsin in the next few months… gotta have the music. I’ve had an iTrip FM transmitter for the past several months and have come to the conclusion that it just doesn’t have the power to give me decent sound quality, and in addition it’s really annoying having to switch frequencies every hour or so. So, the deck gets installed tomorrow. I got free installation on it too.
OfficeMax Replacement Watch, Day 16
Nothing to report. I have meetings all morning this morning and would love to have the PDA for note-taking and boredom-reduction. Oh well…
On the other hand, I did get a new car stereo last night which is getting installed on Friday. And tomorrow they should be turning on the DSL at the house… woohoo for broadband internet! Now if I could only get my home network functioning…
not all that amusing: a review of Chris Rice's new CD
I pre-ordered Chris Rice’s new album, amusing, back a couple of months ago when it was advertised by eb+flo. This is Chris’s first album with his new record label, INO, so I was looking forward to hearing what the effort would sound like. The album doesn’t hit the stores until tomorrow (Tuesday August 23rd), but I received my copy in the mail last Friday. Having now had the chance to listen to it a couple times, I’ll hazard an opinion or two.
The Music Musically, Chris makes the most of being on a new record label that has, apparently, given him much more musical freedom. The styles are varied; from the Steven Curtis Chapman-esque bluesy-country-rock of Love Like Crazy, to the made-for-adult-contemporary-radio sound of When Did You Fall, to the quiet piano-driven tones of Sleepyhead Sun, he explores many sounds that will a suprise to those familiar with his discography. I could complain that it isn’t very cohesive in sound, but that’s the case with most of Chris’s albums, so I won’t suddenly hold it against him now.
The Content The subject matter of the songs is perhaps also typically varied; he includes a couple songs that deal with romantic love which lead me to wonder if he (the long-time bachelor) has a new relationship that is driving these thoughts. But the interviews I’ve read don’t mention a thing about it, nor do the liner notes. Bummer.
The Lyrics Here’s where I am more disappointed with amusing. It seems to be missing a song or two with the depth that his previous albums have included. Think back on Deep Enough to Dream (from the album Deep Enough to Dream), The Power of a Moment (from Past the Edges), Home Tonight (from Smell the Color 9), Untitled Hymn (Come to Jesus), or Wonder (both from Run the Earth, Watch the Sky). They are songs full of picturesque, thoughtful lyrics, laden with symbolism and imagery. They are the depth that keeps me coming back to those albums again and again. Sadly, amusing doesn’t seem to include much of anything in that vein.
What it does contain in great measure is the more overt, and, to my mind, less-insightful lyrics that eventually drove me away from the music of Steven Curtis Chapman. For instance, the chorus of Love Like Crazy:
Love like crazy We gotta love like crazy We gotta love like crazy The way he loves you and me ‘Cause if the world’s ever gonna change We gotta love like crazy
This may be insightful and motivating for the high-school camp crowd, but it leaves me wanting more. Or this one:
Life gave me lemonade and I can’t imagine why Born on a sunny day, beneath a tangerine sky I live life without pretending I’m a sucker for happy endings Thanks for the lemonade Thanks for the lemonade!
Sure, it’s OK…. but color me a bit disappointed.
This album will not really change my overall opinion of Chris Rice; he’s still one of my favorite songwriters, he’s still provided some of the most thoughtful and worshipful stuff that I’ve ever heard. I’m hoping that amusing is just one slightly low spot in the road that will quickly be forgotten when the next album comes around. It may, though, prompt me to skip the pre-ordering next time and wait to get a listen before making my purchase.
My CD wish list
OK, I’ll admit it: I have a CD-buying habit. It’s not as destructive or expensive as many other habits I could have, but it still drives me to purchase more music, new music all the time.
My last new CD came in the mail on Friday - I had pre-ordered Chris Rice’s new CD, amused, back a couple of months ago. I’m not sure how well I like it yet; I’ll have to listen some more. Chris Rice has been on my automatically-buy list pretty much ever since his first album, and I haven’t been disappointed yet. Hopefully the streak continues. Before that, I got Andy Osenga’s [Souvenirs & Postcards], and then just before that Randall Goodgame’s War and Peace. I guess you could say I’m just doing catch-up as I find these new artists that I like so much.
Since I have to hold back a bit, I’ll at least post my list here so I can add to it from time to time, or note when I have purchased another one. If any of you reading this feel the desire to get one for me, go ahead. :-) They are listed in a basic priority order… which is always subject to change.
The Normals I don’t own any of their albums yet, but I should get all of them:_
- A Place Where You Belong
- Coming To Life
- Better Than This
They are available, all 3 for $24 at http://www.creativesitesmedia.com/normals/merch.shtml. I will admit to being torn between getting them for that good price or supporting Andy O directly by buying them from his site at a slightly higher price.
- Arkadelphia
- The Hymnal
Available for purchase at http://www.uthstuph.com/ws/randallgoodgame/. I appreciate his War and Peace more every time I hear it… I need to catch up on his other stuff.
- Illinois
I wrote about this one before. I still haven’t purchased it.
- Gypsy Flat Road
- The Crucible
I have only one of Sandra’s albums right now: Best Laid Plans. I’d sure like to add the other two.
Other things floating around at the bottom of the list: Ryan Adams’ [Cold Roses], and maybe Nickel Creek’s [Why Should the Fire Die?].
I guess that’s it for now. I imagine I’ll be adding to this list before I subtract from it too much. :-)
OfficeMax Replacement Watch, Day 15
Yes, it’s been over two weeks now since I first took my dead PDA in to get it replaced. If their estimates hold up, sometime around Labor Day I should be receiving my gift card so I can purchase a replacement.
Arrrrrrrgh.
OfficeMax Replacement Watch, Day 12
No events to report today.
It is starting to drive me crazy not having my PDA. I didn’t realize how much I rely on it for calendar and note-taking (not to mention game-playing) until I’ve been without it for the better part of two weeks. If I had any other big purchases planned, I’d just go buy one from somewhere today and then use the OfficeMax gift card later for that purchase… but I don’t know what it might be.