Our amigo, Juan Calypso, over at Viva Veracruz, has donned his Beelzebub outfit.
So far, he has not tempted me with "all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor." But he has come close.
He is in Las Vegas. And one of his first stops was Fry's Electronics.
He described, in almost sensual detail, the joy of walking the aisles of one of the best electronic stores in the United States. I hope to follow in his footsteps next month in Oregon.
One thing I have no intention of buying while I am there is a set of speakers to improve the sound produced by my computer. I use it (once or twice) to watch movies. I brought along two Sony speakers that are better than the internal laptop speakers, but not by much. If I want to risk shutting out the world, I can always resort to my headphones.
But I do miss my full audio system in Salem.
Some of you may recall that Calypso, Felipe, Babs, and I had a long-running discussion on the reduced quality of most MP3 sound files. That was the genesis of my Hamlet routine concerning my speakers.
I have a friend who recently graduated from video school. When I was preparing to move, he tried to talk me into buying a pair of expensive studio monitors.
I demurred. The speakers undoubtedly would produce great sound. I simply did not have the room to haul them down. My plan was to restrict my possessions to the size of my SUV. I want to be able to put all of my possessions in my truck within an hour. Speakers simply did not meet the priority or size limitations.
Well, my friend finally purchased his full setup, and he claims the speakers are better than a new girlfriend.
But here is the irony. We were going to set up a video call so I could see them and hear them.
The seeing made sense to me.
But listening to quality speakers through my little plastic bookends would be a bit like pumping a Placido Domingo live performance through the radio of a 1957 Buick Roadmaster. Interesting, but hardly satisfying.
So, here I sit in Melaque with some great music -- and even better soundtracks attached to actual films -- and I have to wait until I get back up to Oregon to experience some good sound.
Even as I write this, I hear Calypso's whisper over my left shoulder: Buy the speakers. Buy the speakers.
There are certainly worse things I could do with my money.
Now, how do I get them on the airplane?
So far, he has not tempted me with "all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor." But he has come close.
He is in Las Vegas. And one of his first stops was Fry's Electronics.
He described, in almost sensual detail, the joy of walking the aisles of one of the best electronic stores in the United States. I hope to follow in his footsteps next month in Oregon.
One thing I have no intention of buying while I am there is a set of speakers to improve the sound produced by my computer. I use it (once or twice) to watch movies. I brought along two Sony speakers that are better than the internal laptop speakers, but not by much. If I want to risk shutting out the world, I can always resort to my headphones.
But I do miss my full audio system in Salem.
Some of you may recall that Calypso, Felipe, Babs, and I had a long-running discussion on the reduced quality of most MP3 sound files. That was the genesis of my Hamlet routine concerning my speakers.
I have a friend who recently graduated from video school. When I was preparing to move, he tried to talk me into buying a pair of expensive studio monitors.
I demurred. The speakers undoubtedly would produce great sound. I simply did not have the room to haul them down. My plan was to restrict my possessions to the size of my SUV. I want to be able to put all of my possessions in my truck within an hour. Speakers simply did not meet the priority or size limitations.
Well, my friend finally purchased his full setup, and he claims the speakers are better than a new girlfriend.
But here is the irony. We were going to set up a video call so I could see them and hear them.
The seeing made sense to me.
But listening to quality speakers through my little plastic bookends would be a bit like pumping a Placido Domingo live performance through the radio of a 1957 Buick Roadmaster. Interesting, but hardly satisfying.
So, here I sit in Melaque with some great music -- and even better soundtracks attached to actual films -- and I have to wait until I get back up to Oregon to experience some good sound.
Even as I write this, I hear Calypso's whisper over my left shoulder: Buy the speakers. Buy the speakers.
There are certainly worse things I could do with my money.
Now, how do I get them on the airplane?
