JACkory's Listening Room

Well, the novelty of MySpace Karaoke has worn off for me, after spending several hours with it yesterday and a couple more this morning. I’ve learned a valuable lesson: I should probably stay away from karaoke bars. It’s not that I can’t sing…but there are only a limited number of songs I can do justice to. I have the freedom to write within my range when I compose my own songs. The tracks they use all seem to be a key or two higher than what I am comfortable with. Which results in a totally cringe-worthy listening experience.

That said, I do kind of like my version of the Psychedelic Furs’ “Pretty In Pink” (which I linked two or three posts down from this one). Of course, I’ve been singing along to the original on that one since about 1982, so it wasn’t too hard to do. And my take on Billy Swan’s “I Can Help” is not too bad if you can get the humor in it. But after that I gave up trying to do it up right. I resorted to one of the silly effect pre-sets and recorded a bizarre rendering of the Andrea True Connection’s disco classic “More More More”.

It is a lot of fun, and my son is going to have a blast with it (he is quite a good singer and loves karaoke). As for me, I think I’ll lay it aside for the time being. Surely I can find more productive things to do.

I have plans for a trip to Oklahoma City tonight. My best friend lives there and his band is playing their final show at the Belle Isle Brewery. I’ve got their CD but I’ve only seen then play live once. They are extremely good. They’re called Little League Hero. They’ve been together for at least 10 years that I know of, though there have been a couple of line-up changes (mainly in the bass player slot). It’s sad to see them bow out, but all good things must come to an end, eh?

More important than seeing the band, to me, at least, is the chance to hang out with some naggas I don’t get the chance to see all too often. Capital is coming out of hiding for the event. BoBo is coming up from Texas. The plan was for Big D to accompany him, but apparently work travel called him away. That’s too bad, because I love the guy. The Big Man (not to be confused with Big D) may make an appearance, but I wouldn’t put any money on it, because he has become even more of a hermit than Capital.

I know it will be big fun, but I’m still hesitant to go.

Number one, I don’t like driving to OKC. Even though I’ve found an alternate route that will keep me off of the interstates, I still dread the trip.

Number two, good God but have you seen the gas prices? $3.29 here in town. I find it hard to justify spending so much money for a tank of gas (that will be burned up for a journey that is not exactly essential) when we have so many other things we need to get. I’m surprised that my wife doesn’t have a problem with it…but she does want me to get out and socialize a bit, seeing as how I am an even bigger hermit than Capital OR the Big Man.

And finally…I have to drive to Chandler and back here in about 2 hours. If there’s one thing I can’t stand it’s traveling somewhere, coming back home, then driving somewhere else. I wouldn’t have a problem with it if I could go from Chandler straight on to the City, but there’s no route that would save me any more time than coming back home and heading out again later. Actually, that’s not really true…I don’t know why I think it is…the real reason is that if I leave Chandler when I think I am going to, I will arrive in OKC too early for my tastes. I do want to see my friends, but I do not want to lollygag around there hours before the show. I don’t even think my naggas will even be congregated by the time I would get there.

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On an unrelated note…have there ever, in the history of television advertising, been so many stupid, annoying commercials? Maybe it’s just me…corporate sponsors are not aiming these stinkers at my demographic, apparently. Maybe the young folks don’t have such a harsh opinion of them as I do. Who knows, they might actually enjoy them? I don’t see how.

For instance, those three idiots with their dumb little band and the singer bemoaning how he wouldn’t be wearing a stupid costume in a seafood joint if he’d only checked out his credit score. Or every single one of the spots that use massacred versions of Beatles songs (Michael Jackson must really be hard up for the cash). Or that goofy bozo who cooks up the steaks at Golden Corral, who has a special kind of radar that helps him determine just how his customers want their steak cooked. His friends call it “Steak-dar”. Now please, someone tell me that isn’t so idiotic that it makes you want to puke.

Just TV. It’s to be expected. The best course of action is to completely tune them out. Don’t give them the power to insult your intelligence. Don’t dwell on the idea that if this is all Madison Avenue has to offer, well, you could have been a millionaire by now with your own superior ideas (and no doubt they would be…I sometimes think these ads are created in an experiment with 5th graders).