OMG.

Last night was lots of fun, but a square dancing disaster in the mesmerizing style of a slow moving train wreck.

It felt like not a single person (except for newbies Gordy & Deb) was awake. I've never seen so many people find novel new ways of mangling "acey-deucey." Hell, "circle left" was a challenge. Still, everyone seemed to be in a happy, giggly mood. We did several tips of Plus, two of class-level MS and I did one of A2 (which I think was the most successful tip of the night).

I was personally gratified to receive several comments about my selections of non-traditional music, esp. an instrumental version of "Don't Cry For Me, Argentina" used for the A2 tip. I've been searching for up-tempo music not in the old bluegrass/country hoedown style and it looks like some choices are paying off. My quest for more singing calls continues though, as I have no more than a dozen I really like so far. I figure I need at least 25-30 in my repertoire to avoid repetition and provide variety of style & mood.

The latest eBay acquisition of 25 records arrived yesterday afternoon and I was able to scan through the lot in about an hour. If a recording isn't going to work for me, I can usually tell in the first 64 beats or so; the ones with promise are allowed to run their full length before I skip to the next. In all, there were two potential records out of this stack, although I can't recall which ones they were at the moment. We'll see if I still feel the same way after reviewing them again in a couple of days.

OMG.

Last night was lots of fun, but a square dancing disaster in the mesmerizing style of a slow moving train wreck.

It felt like not a single person (except for newbies Gordy & Deb) was awake. I've never seen so many people find novel new ways of mangling "acey-deucey." Hell, "circle left" was a challenge. Still, everyone seemed to be in a happy, giggly mood. We did several tips of Plus, two of class-level MS and I did one of A2 (which I think was the most successful tip of the night).

I was personally gratified to receive several comments about my selections of non-traditional music, esp. an instrumental version of "Don't Cry For Me, Argentina" used for the A2 tip. I've been searching for up-tempo music not in the old bluegrass/country hoedown style and it looks like some choices are paying off. My quest for more singing calls continues though, as I have no more than a dozen I really like so far. I figure I need at least 25-30 in my repertoire to avoid repetition and provide variety of style & mood.

The latest eBay acquisition of 25 records arrived yesterday afternoon and I was able to scan through the lot in about an hour. If a recording isn't going to work for me, I can usually tell in the first 64 beats or so; the ones with promise are allowed to run their full length before I skip to the next. In all, there were two potential records out of this stack, although I can't recall which ones they were at the moment. We'll see if I still feel the same way after reviewing them again in a couple of days.

Laundry Update

Tuesday night, Kent & I dropped by Home Depot to order a new washer & dryer.

After some research and soliciting the personal experiences of various friends, we settled on the LG series: the WM2277HW (front-loader washer) and DLG5988W (gas dryer), as well as pedestal drawers to go under each. Including taxes, the total bill is just a little north of $2400 USD. But damn, they look good on the showroom floor!

The next big headache is getting a gas line run from one side of the basement to the other so we can connect the dryer. We've tentatively scheduled delivery for mid-November to give us time to get the gas line worked out and to avoid colliding with family visits next week.

Laundry Update

Tuesday night, Kent & I dropped by Home Depot to order a new washer & dryer.

After some research and soliciting the personal experiences of various friends, we settled on the LG series: the WM2277HW (front-loader washer) and DLG5988W (gas dryer), as well as pedestal drawers to go under each. Including taxes, the total bill is just a little north of $2400 USD. But damn, they look good on the showroom floor!

The next big headache is getting a gas line run from one side of the basement to the other so we can connect the dryer. We've tentatively scheduled delivery for mid-November to give us time to get the gas line worked out and to avoid colliding with family visits next week.

NPR quandary

Our two local NPR stations, WAMU and WETA, are deeply embedded in their annual fund-raising drive at the moment. On the one hand, I would like to give them financial support as I listen to both avidly. On the other hand, I abhor the idea of being placed on yet another mailing list; both stations also routinely sell their mailing lists to other organizations. I get far, far too much junk mail already.

I wish NPR had a method of accepting donations anonymously. I feel like running up to the station door at 2 AM, taping a $100 bill to the door, ringing the doorbell and running like hell before anyone sees me.

NPR quandary

Our two local NPR stations, WAMU and WETA, are deeply embedded in their annual fund-raising drive at the moment. On the one hand, I would like to give them financial support as I listen to both avidly. On the other hand, I abhor the idea of being placed on yet another mailing list; both stations also routinely sell their mailing lists to other organizations. I get far, far too much junk mail already.

I wish NPR had a method of accepting donations anonymously. I feel like running up to the station door at 2 AM, taping a $100 bill to the door, ringing the doorbell and running like hell before anyone sees me.