I didn't get too much done today, but at least it was enjoyable. I slept past 9:30 for the first time in a long time, mainly because after Kristi left I didn't even wake up until 9:50. I think I was pretty tired from the whole school ordeal yesterday, and I guess Oliver is wearing Lucy out, because she was still sleepy when I got up.
I got ready and hung out with Oliver and Lucy for the rest of the morning. They really seem to like each other. They both licked each other for a little bit and then commenced into their normal playing, which consists of Lucy poking Oliver with her nose and then Oliver hitting her in the face with his paw. Then Oliver runs to a different part of the room and they repeat. Lucy seems really frustrated that Oliver is allowed on the furniture. Every now and then she just can't take it and jumps up on the chair. I yell, and she gives me this exasperated look like, "how is what I'm doing wrong when this punk is constantly up here." I almost feel sorry for her, but she'll get over it.
Around 12 I went to the bank and deposited a check. My dad said he would call when he was on his way to eat, so after that I went to Home Depot and then waited in the Zaxby's parking lot. I've been listening to the Jack's Mannequin CD again lately...it is just so good. While I was waiting my dad called to tell me he wouldn't be there until 1. That gave me even more time to kill, so I made a quick trip to Target where I found a good Christmas gift for Kristi. She likes to pick out most of her gifts, but I can't stand not having anything I picked out myself. I don't think she ever reads my blog, but just to be safe I won't say what I got. Chad, you've got such a big mouth, I just can't trust you. Why my brother-in-law reads my blog, but my wife doesn't, I will never understand.
Dad and I ate lunch and then talked for a while. He came over for a little while afterwards to see some of the yard progress. His dog Molly was along so she came in too. She is one of the most well behaved dogs I have ever met...very laid back and never does anything mischievous. She seems really interested in the kitten, but just kind of stares at it. She gets intimidated when he slaps at her, unlike Lucy who seems to not care at all.
After they left I took Lucy for a walk and then did a little cleaning. I actually get a little sad that Lucy doesn't really pay me attention anymore. She used to hang on my every move, just waiting to play or go on a walk. I guess I've been replaced...by a cat. Kristi just told me I'm weird when I told her that. Anyways, at least Lucy still gets excited about walks. Oops, I mean w-a-l-k-s.
Kristi came home and we decided to go to O'Charleys. Their food has been so good every time I have been their recently. They have this soup called "Chicken Harvest," and it is incredible. Plus it comes with my meal, so that makes it even better. After that we did some quick shopping and then came home. We watched a little tv and then went to bed.
Tomorrow the guy that won my guitar head is supposedly going to pay me, and then I will go ahead and order a snare. I know you have a week to pay with ebay, but bidders who take a few days to pay really bother me. Not only that, but I have to leave them positive feedback even though it took them so long because technically they did everything right. Why can't people pay within a day of winning the item? Seems better to me. Did you know sellers can't even leave negative feedback anymore? That is just ridiculous. Like this one time this kid bought a bass from me and then didn't have the money and wanted me to wait a month or something. If that would have happened recently I wouldn't have been able to leave him a bad review...ridiculous.
So, the 6.5 inch that was on sale on MusiciansFriend.com went up 130$ yesterday, and they won't honor the old price (already asked), so I'm just going to go with a 5.5 for now and get a 6.5 later on. That being decided, I've boiled it down to this Mapex Saturn snare or this Tama Starclassic Snare. Both are typically 350$ to 400$ drums, so they are both great deals. Both have solid hardware, and both are thin maple shells. The Saturn is unique because it has 2 plies of Walnut on the inner part, and from what I've read it makes for a great combo. On the other hand, Tama Starclassics are more of a proven line that alot of pros from bands I like use. Both are pro level drums, and I don't really know whether I like flanged or die-cast hoops, or exactly what angle I like for my bearing edges. I have YouTubed the 2 models as much as possible, and have found videos of both that sound wonderful. I think probably what it boils down to is that they are both going to sound great, just slightly different. The Mapex would be a little bit cheaper, so right now I'm leaning that direction, but it is going to be a really hard decision to make. I wish I could just go play them, but unfortunately in my price range I have to look for deals online. I don't think Guitar Center carries Mapex anymore anyways, and I doubt they have any Tama Starclassic Maples in stock. I guess tomorrow I'll just have to think through it one more time and then go with my gut. I prefer not to leave decisions up to my gut, but oh well.
I'm also looking for a 70's Ludwig Acrolite on Ebay that Kristi can get me for Christmas. Our Christmas budget this year is pretty low, so I'm having a hard time finding one cheap enough. Alot of times though people don't know what old stuff they are selling so they do a poor job listing it and it gets less bids...I almost won one like that tonight. The Acrolite is a seamless steel shell alot like the Supraphonic, except only has 8 lugs instead of 10. The Supraphonic is the most recorded snare drum in history, and is pretty expensive for a good one, but the Acrolite was marketed as a student drum, so they can be found for very cheap. Both are known for being great drums. I think ideally in my mind I would like to end up with 4 snare drums many years down the road. A 14x5 Acrolite, a 14x6.5 Supraphonic, a good maple 14x5.5 (hopefully the saturn), and a good maple either 14x6.5 or 14x7. You may think that that is alot of snare drums, but great drummers have alot of snare drums. For instance, I was reading about Jimmy Eat World producing their newest album, and in the article it stated that Zach Lind has over 30. They each have their own distinct qualities. Oh, also, did you know that it is kind of my dream to one day have a project studio in my house? This may answer alot of questions for you about why I am slowly trying to get to a point where I have a solid arsenal of pro instruments. I would love to be able to produce music as a side job...I don't know if that means for local bands, or possibly for a ministry for churches, or even both...but I would really love to be able to do that. And I figure with a little patience and smart buying I can get to a point where I have enough solid equipment to make some decent sounding recordings. It all starts with the instruments too, because let me tell you, a great signal chain is just going to make an entry level drum kit sound exactly like what it is...an entry level drum kit.
So that last paragraph got really long. Sometimes I wonder if the few of you who read this blog actually read my tirades about music and musical equipment or if you just skip over it. I imagine if I was reading Joe's blog and he went into a long explanation about birdwatching or something, I would probably just skip over it. What can I say? I just can't help myself.
If you have some nice piece of musical equipment you would like to donate to the cause, just let me know. I'll go ahead and sell it on ebay and get something better :).
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