And this is just from birth through high school (if I can get this link to work right, that is:)

( Read more... )

Karen, who was originally dubious about this post, proofread the list above and heartily approved. We'll see if she feels the same about the next 100, when she enters the picture.

Relatively uneventful day. Bought my fifth CD Walkman in the last two years:

#1: Panasonic
Reason for Purchase: I wanted a Walkman that played CDs
Price: $89.99
Radio Included?: Yes
Quality: outstanding
Reason I'm No Longer Using It: Got caught in an unbelievable rainstorm with it. It was in my briefcase, but that didn't protect it enough from getting soaked.
Current Status: in a landfill, after waiting for eight months for it to get better

#2: GPX
Reason for Purchase: to listen to CDs in the Escort
Price: $39.99
Radio Included?: no
Quality: awful
Reason I'm No Longer Using It: Didn't work in the car, didn't fit in the pouch when I was power walking, batteries would run out before one CD could be completed
Current Status: in a landfill, and good riddance

#3: Sony
Reason for Purchase: to replace #1
Price: gift, but probably $89.99
Radio Included: yes
Quality: varies
Reason I'm No Longer Using It: volume stays constant (about 2) no matter how much you dial around, sound quality fuzzy. It did work better for about two weeks, but has since reverted
Current Status: alive, but not using it

#4: Memorex
Reason for Purchase: to supplement/replace #4
Price: $49.99
Radio Included: yes
Quality: pretty mediocre
Reason I'm No Longer Using It: works fine if you're standing still or listening to the radio, but it skips after 10-20 minutes of power walking
Status: maybe Karen will use it to listen to NPR

#5: Aiwa
Reason for Purchase: to replace #3 and #4
Price: $69.99
Radio Included: no
Quality: so far, so good
Status: full-time use for the Superhits CDs

Anyone else have opinions on good/bad Walkmen?

Feeling much better today. My sleep deprivation Monday led to a high temperature that night and Tuesday, which I slogged through without missing any time from work (I haven't taken a sick day in nearly three years). Since I'm going on vacation next week, I need to be around in case questions arise.

I have just about completed Disc 26 of Superhits 1978-1983 -- the halfway point, since it straddles 1980 and 1981. This means there's no way I'll finish this puppy by Friday morning unless I pull a couple of all-nighters, and obviously that's not a bright idea before a vacation. I expect I'll have 30 discs or more done when we leave, possibly as many as 36 -- which, at 75 minutes of music a disc, would mean anywhere between 37.5 and 45 hours of music on the discs, more than enough for the 24 hours or so of driving. We like having familiar music on our travel CDs for singalong purposes on long trips -- this keeps the driver awake, and since both Karen and I can carry a tune and occasionally can harmonize together (believe it or not, I used to take the high harmonies until I had a cyst removed from my throat and lost most of my falsetto abilities), it's actually a lot of fun. The reason I wanted to finish the whole thing is Karen really didn't start seriously listening to Top 40 radio until she started in college in the fall of 1983 -- her older brother listened to a lot of alternative, and her mom kept the radio locked on classical. (I, on the other hand, started listening to Musicradio 77 WABC in the summer of 1970 at age 7-1/2, and have become a Top 40 historian of sorts.) So although she's familiar with most of the songs from the earlier years, it would have been nice to get to her era. I'll finish this pr#ff0t when we get back -- I hate the fact that I sometimes leave major projects unfinished (see Game Shows '75 and the pages that have been labeled "Still to Come" for four years for details). This will be completed, then I'll go back and finish some other projects as well. A New Year's Resolution in mid-July.

I should have mentioned this earlier, but do try to watch "The Most Outrageous Game Show Moments" on NBC television tonight at 8 p.m. Eastern (7 Central). It features clips and outtakes of crazy moments on game shows throughout the years, including the famous "Urban Legend" clip from The Newlywed Game. The producers were nice enough to consult some of us game show fans for advice on what to use, and were especially nice enough to give me a credit at the end of the show (although my last name was spelled wrong; this was an NBC transcription error). They're working on two additional specials as I write this.

Bill Madden of the New York Daily News has written a fascinating column that appears in today's paper. MLB has been sued under the RICO act by the former partners of ex-Montreal Expos owner Jeffrey Loria (who, having nearly ruined that team, is now weaving his magic on the Florida Marlins). It helps solidify my feelings about Bud Selig -- that he's done a truly awful job as commissioner, and continues to ruin the game. Baseball desperately needs someone who can make the game trustworthy again -- a Pete Rozelle, a Peter Ueberroth, or someone similar -- to get the Selig stench out. The problem is, he's the owners' man, and they support him to the hilt -- for the most part. If MLB loses this suit, Selig might finally be forced out.

I continue to have much admiration for Newsweek magazine. (Well, I can't stand George Will, but to paraphrase the late Washington Post publisher Phil Graham, every publication needs at least one crummy columnist.) I switched from Time a few years ago because I got the impression the magazine was becoming less distinctive and more frivolous, and was a small and less signficant part of a giant media empire (and this was before AOL bought them). Newsweek is part of The Washington Post company, an organization that is involved only in journalism. Anyway, they have two worthy columns on their web site. But if you read this much later than a week or so after I've posted, they may be gone; Newsweek tends to archive quickly.

Howard Fineman writes about George Bush, and the struggles he will face in the next six months. I hadn't realized "changing the rules" was his modus operandi, and Fineman's point of view may be a bit caustic. But it seems no president has been able to tame Washington, and I don't think Bush will be any exception.

Meanwhile, Jonathan Alter's column on Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is downright frightening. Alter concedes the obvious -- he'll probably get what he wants in this particular instance, because of Texas' rules regarding criminal cases and the fact that the mental retardation of the defendant is subject to debate -- but Scalia has made his opinion very clear: you're either for execution of criminals or you're un-American. (Scalia has recommended that judges who cannot authorized executions when that is a sentencing option leave the bench, per CNN's Bill Press.) Scalia slipped under the radar when he was nominated because he's lived a pretty clean life and Ronald Reagan (who appointed Scalia to the Supreme Court) had very high ratings at the time; the Democrats took their wrath out on Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas later on, winning one and losing one. It's often been noted that William Rehnquist, who will turn 78 later this year, may retire soon, with Scalia the possible nominee as his successor (Scalia is 66). I can only hope opposition can be organized -- Scalia's opinions, on this issue and many others, are not only in the court's minority, but out of step with much of the country. If he stood for elected office he would certainly not be elected; I fail to see why he should ascend to the most powerful judicial position in the land without a peep.

Best news of all -- Karen's back tomorrow from New York City. Can't wait.