Readers who listen to Hyper Nonsense know that I’ve been plagued by equipment problems lately. Specifically, my Firewire mixer stopped working, and I couldn’t fix it. In a fit of frustration over an item that is not even two years old, I sold it on eBay. It is gone now. On its way to Ohio, I think. And by the way, I fully disclosed the mixer’s problems. I’m honest like that.

Thanks to an early Christmas gift from my mom, I was able to buy a replacement mixer. I opted for what I believe is a bigger, better and more reliable model (made by a different company). I’m looking forward to getting the new mixer, and I really hope it’s everything I need. Time will tell.

Along with the mixer, I’ve picked up a nice collection of other “new” gear. Most notably, a (mostly) “new” Mac Mini with some cool external peripherals. I’ve also got some cool “new” music equipment on the way. You may have noticed my use of talky marks ’round the word “new” (there they are again) in this paragraph. That’s ’cause most of the stuff I’ve purchased is actually used. So, while it’s new to me… well, you know what I mean. I’ve funded most of these purchases through a fire sale of my own things. And while it’s definitely good to let go of old things and make room for new ones, it’s not always easy. I’ll be shipping my guitar amp off to its new owner tomorrow. For the first time in nearly 18 years, I’ll be without a guitar amp. Sure, I can always buy another one (and I probably will). But I don’t know. It’s all kinda depressing, really. And I don’t like being depressed.

I know I’ll feel better soon. Once I’ve got all this stuff here, and I can bask in the warm glow of dancing LED’s, that’ll help.

I hope so, anyway.

(Photo also available through Flickr.)

I went downtown last night after work to get something to eat. I thought about having a slice and a salad at Woodstock’s, but the place was PACKED. I took a short walk one block north to Mo’s Barbecue instead, and that place was almost empty, which worked just fine for me.

My customer number:

The lit-up sign looked cool:

Read on …

For as long as we’ve lived here, we’ve had a back “yard.” And that yard hasn’t been good for very much. In fact, it had been left to grow wild and free. It looked like this:

Here’s how it looked from the other side:

Read on …

On Friday afternoon, Jen and I headed downtown. Our planned first destination was Aquatic Adventures. We had to make a decent hike from the parking garage to the pet store, and we hadn’t been to the pet store before, so we weren’t entirely certain where it’s located. We ducked into a nearby antiques store and one of the shop’s employees was able to point us in the right direction.

We were pleasantly surprised to learn that Exotic Adventures is not just a fish/aquarium shop, but they also deal in birds. The following cage contains an unusual combination - parakeets and quails:

Aquatic Adventures also sells pond fish:

This parrot was described by a store clerk as “grumpy.” Of course, it couldn’t resist Jen’s natural Snow White vibe, and wanted to perch on her arm:

Read on …