When I was a kid, you couldn’t turn on a TV in Canada without seeing Dave Nichol in ads pushing the new President’s Choice Memories of something or other. He was everywhere…until he disappeared. I can’t remember when those commercials suddenly stopped (I want to say mid 90’s), but it’s been a long time. But …
Category Archives: so long
So Long, Ray Dolby
If you’ve listened to recorded sound or watched anything in the last 50 or 60 years, you owe Ray Dolby a pretty big thank you. Most of the audio and video technology we enjoy today is stuff that he either helped to invent or to dramatically improve. The one thing that really bothered him about …
Maybe He’s Not Really Dead. He Might Be Playing Possum
Just heard the news that George Jones has died. He was 81. Considering some of the stories that have come out about him over the years, that’s kind of impressive. Even when I was a little kid who didn’t care much at all for country music, I had to admit that I liked George. If …
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Rest In Peace, Paul Bearer
This has been a bad week for deaths. Not long before Stompin Tom, I learned of the passing of William Moody, better known to pretty much everybody as Paul Bearer, the Undertaker’s manager in the WWF during the 1990’s. He was just 58, but had been having some health troubles in the last few years, …
Roll On, Stompin’ Tom
It’s hard to put into words exactly how much of a legend Stompin’ Tom Connors is. It’s also hard to explain how much he meant not just to Canadian music, but to Canada itself. Think of something Canadian. Whatever crossed your mind just now, Stompin’ Tom probably wrote a song about it at some point. …
Come See Me Today For A Dan Good Keel
Well damn it all…or maybe I should say Dan it all. Before I left for CSUN, Steve’s sister said that she heard that Dan of Dan’s Discount Windows and Doors died suddenly. For anyone not close to here, that wouldn’t mean a whole lot. But he has a huge warehouse that sells…well…windows and doors, and …
Poor Pepper No Longer Has Pep
Here’s a small post that I really wanted to get up there. There’s more of the great beast of a post to go, but this one would be quick and easy. When I got Trix, mid-way through class, I got a sheet called “fun things about my puppy.” They read it to me, and it …
So Long, Dave Brubeck
I don’t know when it started, but from a pretty young age I had a thing for jazz. I wasn’t a super fan by any stretch, I just found it fascinating. How can these guys play what sounds like a half a million random notes that they’re making up as they go along, yet everybody …
So Long Uncle Mike, You’ll Be Missed
Man, I’m in the midst of all sorts of chaos, but I have to write this down. I just found out on Tuesday that my uncle passed away. It was totally unexpected. He had been dealing with cancer, but that was under control. Then, suddenly he got a blood clot, and…wammo! Now he’s gone, and …
Ray Bradburied
I heard about this a few days ago, but didn’t get a chance to write it down. Ray Bradbury dies at 91. I had read quite a few of his short stories, some of them creepy, some of them neat, some of them made you think about colonization and automation and machines in different ways. …