Jim Alfredson

Oh, what a conundrum for a Pistons fan like me. On the one hand, I'd love to see the Heat get swept by Chicago, just because it would be hilarious. On the other hand, probably the best thing for the Pistons is for the series to drag out to 7 games. If either Chicago or Heat win, both teams will be tired (the Heat more-so), while the Pistons will have (most likely) a week off due to sweeping the Magic.

Just got an Epson R220 through the kindness of Greg. I forgot to mention that the ability to print on CDs is a must and Epson really is the only one doing that with InkJets that I know of. So far this baby is printing beautifully. What would be nice is the ability to print 11x17's so I could print custom posters for venues.

Yawn.

Minor update to the homepage: Changed some colors, added some tabs, more pictures, etc.

Considering the search engine doesn't work very well (and I cannot get a straight answer from Invision why this is so), I would think it behooves the community to have patience with people, especially new members, repeating subjects.

If the image is on your desktop and is not already on a website, then you either have to put it up on a website (a free image server like photobucket.com) and then use that link or you can post it as an attachment.

Joe, Rachel, my wife and I had the pleasure of seeing the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra in E. Lansing last night. Before the show we took fellow board member and pianist Michael Weiss out for some killer Indian food. The band sounded great and featured some very inspired solos all around. MSU trumpet professor Derrick Gardner sat in on the last tune (he used to sub in the band) and played a nice solo on Groove Merchant. Gary Smulyan and Dick Oatts were my favorite soloists in general, although everyone played their butts off. Great show! Nice to meet you, Michael. I hope we can hang when we're in NYC this fall.

Experiment first with mic placement. Don't automatically put the mic on one speaker, perpendicular to the cone. Try angling the mic, aiming it at different parts of the speakers (not just the middle). Also, experiment with the distance that the mic is from the cabinet. These things will massively affect the tone of the captured amp.

Good thing we can all make snap judgements about people we've never met, much less talked to!

My favs: Understanding Oh Baby! The Way I Feel Got A Good Thing Goin'

Wasn't it Chris Rock who said every rapper has the same two movies in his collection: New Jack City and Scarface?

He'd also never lost to Brown or the Pistons, but that didn't matter in 2004, did it?

Maybe, but Crawford was totally out of line giving Duncan a tech for laughing on the bench. I think the refs will be a lot more careful with their calls. But I agree that Shaq and Wade get the benefit of the doubt from the refs.

I am saying there is no way a Heat team with an injured Wade, injured Posey, half-effective Shaq, and a bunch of guys who should be second stringers can get past the Pistons, for no other reason than the Pistons are going to want revenge for last year (and their bench is MUCH stronger than last year). The refs gave Miami the series last year, but the suspension of Joey Crawford has put all refs on standby... they won't be so bold this year, I'm predicting.

Marc Stein is also picking the Heat to win the East. The guy is delusional.

I find it tasteless that the media is playing this guy's video and showing his pictures. Just what he wanted: To achieve matyrdom status like his heroes, the Columbine killers. Why not say, "He mailed us a package containing his manifesto. In respect to the dead and in defiance of the killer's intention, we're not going to show anything from it." And then hand it over to the FBI.

Personally, with the kind of arseholes running our country, I'd like to keep the freedom to bear arms. Who knows when we might need them?

I think that when you have an event like this perpetrated by a foreign national, that nationality becomes an object of at least some interest. Certainly, people in Korea are going to be asked their reactions. Does South Korea have a problem with nuts turning into mass murderers? Those are the questions to ask. Those are the questions to ask? Are you serious?

Putting the whole gun control issue out the door for the moment, I was disturbed to be channel surfing last night and finding little vinettes on some of the news networks, focusing on the fact that this kid was Korean. On CNN, they were interviewing some guy from a Korean-American society. On another channel, they mentioned the president of South Korea was "stunned". It seems like the media is making a big deal about this. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't remember the media interviewing random white people after Timothy McVeigh was charged with the Oklahoma City bombing. "Hey, white guy... what do you think of McVeigh's arrest?" Who? Seems a little fishy to me.

Getting some money back due to buying that new Hammond digital organ last year (big ol' tax write-off). I keep telling my wife, "See, it's good that I spend money on gear!!!"

We couldn't play any gigs within 100 miles and 60 days before or after the Philadelphia Museum gig. Since we don't live on the east coast, it wasn't that big of a deal. But for local cats, it's a deal breaker.

Allen, you must not be listening to a lot of blues guys. For them, it's all about the tube amp.

What a drag. I've read everything he wrote. Cat's Cradle, Player Piano, Slaughter-House Five, etc. Wow. RIP

Wow. Sorry to hear about this. The Tritone was one of the best gigs we did, energy-wise. Great crowd and atmosphere there. What a bummer. Condolences to his friends and family.