Who R U?


A while back Garfish mentioned he lked the idea of getting to know some of us better.As no one has started a thread like this before I will take the plunge.I have been involved in and read many heated exchanges here in AudioGon.I hope no one attacks me for this thread saying "who cares about you,this is audio" Anyway,Im 45 and live in W.N.Y.I have never been married but have a music loving 11 year old daughter who lives with me.I have been a nurse for 20 years.Before that I was a Navy Corpsman for several years.I recently became engaged (first time) to a beautiful 30 year old music loving woman.At my age a 30 year old is a keeper and I have never been happier!! My other interests??Im into vinyl,who has time for anything else??
david99
tthomas: you are a fortunate man, being able to spend so much time with your sons during their most formative years. i have two sons, as well, tho mine are aged 32 and 28. i hope your boys turn out to be young men in whom you can take as much pride as i do mine. they will, i am sure, be better for having lived with music all their young lives. welcome, and may your days be always filled with the sounds of music amid the voices of those you love. -kelly
I'm 45, married for almost 25 years to a wonderful woman who understands that my SoundLABs need to be out at least 6'. I have loved music all my life and took years of piano lessons. I still play, but am sure my piano teachers would deny that they ever taught me. I have been an avid reader of the audiogon forums for over 2 years and only wish I would have discovered audiogon a lot sooner as it would have saved me a fair bit of time, effort and $$. I currently stay at home with my 2 boys by choice, courtesy of a corporate restructuring and buy out. They will both be in school next year and the job search will begin. Yes we waited by choice a long time before having kids. In the mean time, I get to listen to music a lot. My music tastes mainly rest with what used to be called fusion jazz, some new age, and classical.
kjg: tho you've been posting for a goodly time, i've not gotten acquainted with you before. great to hear your story. i do hope you find success and good fortune in the coming months. -kelly
thedautch: good to have you among us. your story is another exemplar of timing being everything. i feel for you, having been a law school graduate a mere 32 years ago. i was a "fed" lawyer for 13 years (FTC). since joining the dark side of the force, my income has been as the ocean, troughs and peaks. thankfully, the peaks have been more frequent than the troughs. may the same be true for you. -Kelly
d99,
yeah, i sometimes miss the snow butmostly the FALLS at niagara. saw it an about 1am in feb, full moon, frozen over!! AWESOME!!!
.....regards....tr
I guess I should post a bit about myself as long as I'm responding to other folks this thread. I'm 43, single – no children, and living in Silicon Valley. I've worked in the software biz since getting out of school and in my current position I'm managing a user interface development team at a down, but not quite out dot-com company. Lest you think that Silicon Valley startups are (were) a sure fire recipe for success, I’ll be happy to set you straight ;-).

During my time at college (2 stints, 2 degrees), I supported myself selling audio equipment at several mid-fi audio stores in L.A. and Santa Barbara. I'm not sure I can say that sales was an especially good fit for me, but being able to spend that much time with music that I loved was absolute heaven. Very often, when IÂ’m looking down the barrel of a high stress, frantic production schedule, I think back on those days with a great deal of fondness.

Over the years, IÂ’ve had a number of reasonably modest, nice sounding audio systems to support my love for music. A couple of years ago, thanks to an extraordinarily generous Nasdaq, I was able to manage a full upgrade to my audio system, which not so coincidently, was about the time I started conversing with the great folks here. I enjoy a pretty wide variety of music, which in recent years has included a lot of classical, jazz and folk, and every now and then a bit of good, hard edged rock (I've mellowed a lot with age, but not completely).

Cheers,
Ken
You're in good company Thedautch. I had a wonderful Accuphase system many years ago when I was in college (and about your age) and had to sell it as well to pay rent and eat. While I don't regret having to get rid of it given the circumstances, I do wish I still had it.

Ken
No you're far from dumb, Thedautsch! Your Kimber Select will be well broken in, once you restart building a system. May that be soon and the best of luck to you.
I'm 27, and I've been in school for 9 years (M.A., political science, J.D.). When I got out, I was supposed to have a reasonably lucrative job lined up. Right after I signed a lease in DC (for $1100 a month, fairly modest by Washington standards), I got laid off from the job, before I even started it. So, I sold all my audiophile gear to get by. I had a respectable rig, too...Theta Data Basic II transport, MSB Gold Link III, Adcom GFP-750, cables, power cords...everything, gone. Oh! I did keep one thing. I'm the only dumb SOB on earth who has a one meter pair of Kimber Select 1030's running from his digital cable box to his television. But hey, that'll be my one building block when I can afford to get back in the game.
Kelly:
Nice to be joining you. When my partner and I started the company we wanted our name to do three things: 1)be memorable; 2)reflect that we would specialize in pre-owned, vintage and collectible items; and 3)be broad enough to cover multiple industries. I'd hoped to add a new department every two years, and so far we're on track. When we are seen in specific arenas the name is well received. Readers of Stereophile, for example, are clear on what we do. For regular consumers on the street however, our name can cause a bit of confusion. Nothing a few million in advertising can't clear up! :~) In addition to hi-end audio and theater we have a stringed instrument department (primarily those which are plucked or strummed, rather than bowed) and a watch department. The watch department specializes in Swiss and German mechanicals, but we do have some better quartz's as well. The store is a reflection of my belief in the old adage, "The difference between men and boys is the price of their toys." Dealing in a variety of highly specialized items has proven to have its challenges, especially since the market has rarely seen it attempted. But I figured if Sears could sell underware, tools, eye glasses, jewelry, insurance, car batteries, etc., etc., we could certainly give this a shot. Sorry for the long winded answer, and thank you for asking.
Mario
Welcome Mario, from one analog junkie to another :>)
There are lots of very informed audiophiles here and everytime I visit here I learn something new.
I think you will make a great member here! You chose the right site to involve yourself with....
Your analog enthusiasm and knowledge I especially look forward to!
Again,welcome Mario! Its about damn time my friend!
welcome aboard mario. and what i'd like to know is: how did you come up with "toys from the attic"? -kelly
Alright guys...here goes. I'm in my late 30's (unless you're reading this after 2002, in which case, I'm in my early 40's!). I've loved music all my life. At age 10 I used to lock myself in my grandmothers dining room under several blankets with a portable radio & a cassette recorder waiting for my favorite songs to come on so I could make myself tapes! I bought my first compact when I was 14 (two paper routes) and have been upgrading ever since. My big break came at age 18 when I landed a job at Lyric Hi-Fi here in White Plains (a satelite store to the famous Manhattan location). My thanks to Steve Zipser, then manager, David Wilson, my mentor and Mike Kay, infamous owner, for feeding my addiction. Over the years I've been a DJ, a program director, a sales consultant at several audio shops or departments and other music related jobs and/or hobbies. I'm especially proud that our store sells string insruments because I can attest to the fact that we know music. I'm currently in the process of producing a record, a jazz trio, that is coming out even better than we hoped. I've listened to more gear than I can re-count. One of my basic philosophies in dealing with so much pre-owned equipment is, if it gets my foot tapping, I know it has a place in someones system, somewhere. I love this hobby! (The business on the other hand ...Thanks,
Mario
Amen, Joe, if I may say so. Your words give strength.
And let's all keep the ball rolling whatever happens...
Greg
Thanks for the welcome, y'all. Just been listening to Jeff Beck and Todd Rundgren on the TT. Just found out my neurologist (I've had MS for a long time) died of a brain injury after a bike accident in a MS bikeathon in TN this past weekend. He was a world famous MS researcher and a nice guy. Life is short - enjoy it while you can. I continue to work and do my research despite my chemo. Also listen to all the music I can.

Joe
Joe- Glad to hear from you and best of luck with your health. You'll find that there are lots of reformed hippies and the like here, who started in hifi in the 60s, got away from it and then came back as life and circumstances allowed. If music is important to a person, they'll probably get back to it sometime/somehow.

BTW, you'll find lots of great digital gear here you can try for a fraction of new, even while the format wars are getting worked out, altho I did it the other way around and am now assembling a used analog rig.
jphilips: let me echo david's welcome. boy, if we get any more physicians on board, we're gonna need a hospital administrator just to monitor them. ;^] . kelly
Hey Joe,welcome!! Glad to hear the chemo' is tolerable.
Sounds like you love your vinyl! Many here are heavily into vinyl...love your musical preference also! You are so right!!! KEEP ON ROCKIN'!!
Name's Joe. I'm 52 and am a Professor of Pediatrics at a major southern university. I take care of premature and sick newborns. I got interested in music in college (in the late 60s) and was equipment manager for a rock band. It's a wonder I can still hear after that, but I can. Started collecting records and had a KLH model 20 which was audio heaven at the time. Most of my original records are ruined, but I keep them for nostalgic reasons anyhow. Went to med shcool in '71 and hooked up with a guy who ran an upscale stereo shop in Chapel Hill. Couldn't afford Mac stuff, so I had large Advents with a Sansui AU 555 as I recall. Can't remember the TT brand I had but it was sweet. Got married at the end of med school and wife definitely wasn't into audio, so the stuff kind of languished. Got divorced in '94 and began to build a collection of old mac tube gear. At present, I've got about 16 tube pieces and my HT setup is amped with mac SS pieces. Gone thru several speaker setups, and am now playing M&K S1-Cs in my main system with a separate Def Tech powerfield 12 sub. I LOVE the S1-Cs and can't understand why they don't get more press - they ROCK, especially with the new Musical Fidelity Nu Vista M3 integrated I just got. What a piece this is! Current TT is a VPI HW-19MkIII with SME 309 arm and Benz Glider - great sound. Have a Nitty Gritty and each record goes on it, has the liner replaced (old one kept if collectible) gets one treatment with Gruv-Glide and jacket goes in a Japanese resealable. I like the ritual of vinyl. The sound is WAY better than the Marantz 65 SE playing thru an X-10D with X-PSU. CDs do sound better thru the M3, but still not up to the vinyl sound (see comments in vilyle thread). Like many, I'm waiting for a clear winner in the SACD - DVD audio battle and for more material. Gotta record shop here that buys folk's collections and sells 'em for mostly $4 each. Where else can you get such great sound at such a price? I'm up to 4 or 5K records now and there seems no end in sight. Got lots of reissue heavy vinyl, too. The new Led Zeps and Hendrix releases are wonderful, as are the Simply Vinyl Dire Straits LPs, not to mention MFSLs. My main interest is classic rock and roll with some light new age (Scott Cossu, Michael Hedges - what a tragic loss!), bit of jazz, and occasional classical listening. Well that's enough for now, except for the fact that I had a big shock this spring. I had a colon cancer resected and had one positive lymph node out of 18, so I'm getting chemotherapy. I'm tolearting the chemo much better than I expected and am able to pursue one of my other passions - fishing. Got an 8.5 lb largemouth in June and an 80 lb tuna in the gulf a couple of weeks back. Also collect (and drink) wine. Blown away by the incredible Shirazs from Australia, as well as with what's happening in southern France. I'd be happy to provide advice on my faves if you want to email me at jphilips@uab.edu. Meanwhile, it's great to be in the thread. Keep on rockin'

Joe
Welcome Travis! This place is really full of fascinating people. Your mentioning of Gould's humming reminds me, when in my early twenties and at Salzburg with my then pianist love of my life, I stumbled into a room at the conservatory, where he was sitting before a Bechstein, in the warmth of late August, with a heavy overcoat on, a long shawl around his neck, a cap on his head and an electric heater going full tilt on his left and on his right, playing Bach's Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue at an incredible speed, yet with the most delicate of phrasings and not humming, but almost shouting. We sat down behind him in awe and amazement and as my chair suddenly creaked, he turned around, still playing, looked right through us, as if his gaze was fixed upon a point far from this world, turned back low over the piano again and played on. There was an incredible aura around this grey, frail figure, which, though he seemed physically already quite emasculated, emanated an incredible spiritual strength. I had forgotten all about this, but it just came back now , as if it had happened yesterday. So thanks, Travis!
Today I ran across this thread and spent 2hrs learning more about many of you whose opinions I have come to respect over the past few months, and decided to toss in my 2cts.
I'm 33, American, married to a French woman who has been the light of my life for 10yrs. We live in Japan, have one 2yr old 'tube toucher' (a boy) and another on the way. Born in NYC, raised all over the mid-Atlantic, school in upstate NY, deferred law school to spend a year in Japan and I'm still here after 11 yrs. I have worked in the financial sector for 5yrs and now work (is it really "work" if you love your job?) as a proprietary money manager for a large institution. My wife and I listen to all kinds of music; classical, jazz, some rock, blues, etc. We are big fans of single instrument (cello, piano, organ), small ensemble music, and vocal music in particular. Our other hobbies include travelling, and collecting Japanese furniture and Central Asian textiles.
I have listened to music since I was 8 when my parents bought their first system and I got to hear something better than a table radio and I was smitten. I also studied classical piano for 10+yrs in my childhood. Money to go beyond mid-fi for me took 5yrs from college but with a career change, two moves, subsequent employer change, a kid, etc, it took another several to get my act together. I happened across Agon on the web. Reading the highly informative, mostly supportive words has been a great help - in learning much of the theory, and especially in giving me the confidence to trust my own ears. It has helped to build our current system - tubes & panels (ML SL3s, VTL MB450s, SONY SCD-777ES, Cello passive attenuator, Audioquest cbl) upon which subsequent upgrades will likely be inflicted. For the moment though, I have rediscovered my little bit o' heaven where Glenn Gould hums with a graceful intensity (he plays well too), Elvis Costello pours out his soul, and Arvo Part's Berliner Messe gives me shivers, all in my living room.
I thank all those who contribute to Agon, making it a great place to learn and share our common passion for music.
Regards to all, Travis
No no, I said I have loved home theater since I was 17. I didn't get my first piece of gear till I moved out at 18 to go to school. That was a Harmon Kardon AVR20 mk2. After that came the Cerwin Vega RE25 speakers and a Toshiba SD3006 dvd player. I was in heaven at the time! My how times have changed though!
David, too kind and thank ewe for the inside joke! and it's never to late to start with the girlfriends -
I would title the book
FAW - Females and Winning (that's WAF spelled backwards)
pcweber11: glad to have you among us, phillip. you've been buying equipment since you were 17? interesting that you can't buy cigarettes legally 'til you're 18, and they're much less addictive than audio/ht gear! (but, for god's sake, don't let the politicians know this.) -kelly
Welcome Phillip!!
Angela,those are very good tips you gave! I wish I would have known about them 7 girlfriends ago!!
"EWE" should write a book "Love and the Audiophile"
Philip- welcome! You got bit by the bug, my friend! Welcome to the madness. Just kidding. It is a wonderful journey and you are lucky to have discovered it so young.
Tip on the girlfriend front
1. get her involved in your hobby and help her "hear" why it is so cool - this will help out in the long run.
2. Also, be ready to compromise - now, before you say WHAT?!?!?! - what I mean is, support her "hobbies and ESPECIALLY spending" as well.
3. Ask her to come along and listen, let her know that the female ear is so much better than a man's and that you NEED her to HELP. This, my friend, will go a LONG way to her feeling a part of it and not in COMPETITION with it.
4. Never stand her up for something about audio or HT. If you made a date - KEEP IT.

Any other tips?

Now, Phillip, you just sit there and stare without it being on? You may need some professional help (just kidding).

How did you "stumble upon us"?
Glad that you're here and hope that this helps in your journey.
cheers,
AJ
Hello all. My name is Philip Weber, and I am a home theateraholic. I've been hooked now for a good while. I also just want to say that this is a great site, and I'm glad I came upon it like I did. Scary to think it was by mere accident, and might not have happened at all! Whew!
Alright, well, I am a fairly young guy(23), still in school trying to make a life for myself, and a total gear head. I have been into home theater since I was 17 when I picked up my first copy of Home Theater Technology Magazine. Albeit I was not able to actually purchase any of the great gear I saw in its pages at the time, but that didn't stop me from putting together my future system in my head! I knew from the moment I saw how elegant and heard how powerfull audio/video equipment could sound that I was hooked. Visions of amps and D/A converters have danced in my head many a Christmas night since that fateful day.
I'm not really an audiophile per say. Not yet anyway ;]. I do have a good ear though, and will only accept the best that my money can buy. Maybe that explains why I have still yet to buy a new car. Oh well.
I wanna start off by saying one thing first. Actually, it is more of an observation of myself as it relates to the state of mind of the afficionado. Am I the only one here who can sit in my living room and just stare at my "gear" for hours without care? Please tell me I am not alone, or I may give this hobby of mine up for fear of being dumped by my girlfriend. Or do I not have my priorities in order? Heh.
One thing I have learned in my short time among'st the chosen is what someone one time said to me. He said that you may be able to get a decent system together consisting of a home theater in the box packaged with a reciever, but you will never know the true potential of your system unless it is comprised of seperates. How true that is. Within the past year I have been able to assemble a pretty decent sounding seperates system, and will never go back to an all in one solution. Hassle of setup be damned, I want my superior sound quality!
To wrap things up before I go a make a novel of this I'll go ahead and stop now. I know I have to be rambling by now. I always tend to do that when I think of audio/video. Chalk it up to the exuberance of youth. Besides, I'll have plenty of oppurtunity to tell you about myself and what my system consists of at a later date. More importantly, I have to go pay the better half a visit before she thinks I've been hugging the equipment again. I look forward to interacting with my fellow audio/video affecionados! Later everybody!

Philip Weber,
Total gear head and slave to the hobby since '95
There are many reasons people pursue excellence and perfection. The fact that we do it in relation to A) Cool machines that B) Produce pleasurable music is just icing on the cake. Perseverating on RFI, ground loops and SET versus MOSFET keeps our minds from straying to more distressing thoughts (like what am I doing with my life ETC.) I like this neurosis. Very theraputic.

-Karl
Welcome Karl! I am also in the medical profession but not at your level.I have an extensive background in psychiatry, but for the life of me,I am unable to find any reference in my old,dusty books about Audiophile Neurosis.I know it must be considered a major disorder though,as all one has to do is spend some time here to see for ones self!!! Happy posting and be careful!
Greetings Karl and welcome to the fold. Cornfedboy in his inimitable way has said it all. I do indeed need to be healed, but not from my audiophilia nervosa though. May the banks be gentle on you, may your practice abound with rich clients and last not least, may your stereo florish.
Regards,
Welcome Karl!
You may enjoy this post to see that you are not the only one living with pets and audio.
http://audiogo5.iserver.net/cgi-bin/fr.pl?cspkr&995287611&read&3&4&
In case the link doesn't work - it's under speakers, thread is called Pet Stories (7/20 last post)
Enjoy and glad you're here!
AJ
karl (glad for the spellin' --inside joke): welcome to the 'gon. you are among other healers here, many who need to be healed and a few unfortunates who try to inflict pain. you can ignore the last group, help the middle and kvetch with the first. ;^] good listening. -kelly
Hello from Karl. I'm a 30 year old doctor paying off med school debt and trying to save for newer gear. I've been into hifi since CAL came out with its first tubed (cool) CD player.

I'm a former musician (bass) and into new rock and jazz in the experimental underground and on small record labels. You know, bands that you can actually see live for less than 10 bucks. Chicago has been a great place to hear live music. I guess I like older stuff too (Velvet Underground, Bowie, Stones, Nick Drake, Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman...) music that really shaped the sound of things to come. Although Micheal Fremmer put Tortoise on his heavy rotation list a couple a months ago, I feel like this music is largely ignored by audiophiles. Maybe I'm wrong.

I'm into hifi because it can be as exciting as going out to a good live show.

My dog uses my power amp (BAT VK 500) as a stand to look outside. Is drool good for capacitors?

I am lucky because my wife is as into music as I am and understands the magic of good hifi. I understand the whole WAF thing but I dislike the stereotype.

I recently moved to Ann Arbor (home of Audiogon?) and have a new stereo room that has been one of my best "upgrades" to date.

Finally, I would just like to thank all those people that buy new hifi equipment. Without the used marketplace, a guy like me would never be able to afford excellent equipment.

-Karl
Tommy,welcome! You are originally from Buffalo huh?? I live in Wyoming County (cow country) I lived in S.California in the mid 70's for a short time.I had to get out of there before I died due to my lack of control and over indulgence.I wish at times I was still there.Don't you miss our snow?? :)
hi,im tom, and im an audio addict. i cant help myself. i have 7k LPs, about 1kCDs, 100+ open reels, and who knows how many cassettes for the car.
ill be 57 in oct, from buffalo,ny, and have lived thru 2 of the most horrendous earthquakes (71+94) and still wanna live in so cal.
oh the used record scene here is AWESOME! i LOVE paying 50cents to a buk for used LPs.
i use an arc sp3c, adcom555II, fried model h sub/sat system, and my front end is vpi hw19III/smeIV/various carts/cd with a dac in the box, etc.
nothing wrong with adcom amps! the 555II, 5400, the 5500, and the 5800 are all verrrrrrry good. the 565 pre doesnt stnad in the same league with the arc! big surprise, eh?
been marreid twice, tow girls each marriage, 35, 27, 19, and 17.
one left at home, the 19 yr old. the good wife dies ten years ago, the other is still 'herself'. girlfriend, nothihg serious.
nuclear med tech, still licensed as xray tech too, none of that for about 15yrs.
mistakenly logged in here not as hifitommy as i am on AA and AR. will get aroung to changing that someday.
used to have a 340 duster, i loved that car. lions drag strip went away too long ago, i really enjoyed going there. guess ill try palmdale one day.
i claim to hear diffs in wire so take a lot of flack from the chihuahuas at AR.
i listen to KLON (88.1) almost exclusively, a jazz/bllues station from long beachste univ (KLON.org-listen on line). yeah, rock but since kmet died on the vine, only klos comes close. then theres kcrw 89.9, and kxlu 88.9 (very little compression etc) and little else.
TTS=vpihw19III/smeIV/sumiko virtuoso dti vdh/mit w/wbt plugs.
cd=amc cd8/audio alchemy dac in the box. philips cdr too. kimber 8tc/fried H sub/sat, and so on.
so far thats too much info, right?
oh, theres much more but you need your sleep.
me too.
.........regards........tr
Johnny7 You have a great dream list in mind.Your choice of amp,CD player and cables is right on! May I suggest a Rogue Audio 66 or 99 preamp and the Paradigm 40's, 60's or 80's
Johnny7, have fun in your quest, and don'y forget to watch out for the PLANNED emergencies!
I am a 44 year old single male who has the audiophile bug.
After 10 years of dreaming I decided to invest in a
real audio system.However,it seems that every unplanned
emergency has come up and I am pissed!
I am now on a mission!
Aragon power amp,Conrad -Johnson or Rogue tube preamp,Rega cd player,Nordost Red Dawn cables,Paradigm Studio 40 or Meadowlark speakers.
johnny7
Yes , Greg, those cleaner-scooters are indeed an intelligent solution, the Parisians would have never adopted the Swiss plastic bag do it yourself penitent way. They don't have that guilt complex about being "untidy", like my compatriots. Remember that medical student song: "Je suis homme d'nature....etc...."
Detlof, you untidy! My, you've crushed my vision! But then, you UNtidy is probably identical to my tidy. Those pavement washing machines are great: ever since they brought little cleaner-scooters in Paris you can finally walk on the pavement without keeping your head down!
Well, we have machines for that now, but the custom of course continues. In spite of the machines, anybody who leaves his dog's droppings on the sidewalk, will be tarred and feathered by the enraged neighbourhood, if not lynched straight on the spot. The municipality supplies little plastic bags for that purpose. The dog tax is about $60 a year. You have to - no joke - train your dogs not to pick up food lying around or accept it from strangers, because it not infrequently happens, that those truly obsessed with cleanliness, will try to poison your pet......
Detlof, Albert P....when I was about 7 years old my father took me to Holland & Belgium for an Esperanto conference...and one morning I stood aghast at the sight of a shopkeeper SCRUBBING THE SIDEWALK on her hands and knees! My dad asked the lady about it and she told us that this was de rigeur practice EVERY morning before store opening! Try that in N.Y.C. or L.A. and they'll probably kick your bucket over and steal your brush...ah!...the good old days............
Albert,
I am an ex Jekke naturalised Swiss, I'm not particularly tidy, don't have that in my genes, but often you tend to think that a certain amount of "compulsion neurosis" is part of the Swiss national characer, if a thing like that exists. And Yes Greg, the internet started de chez nous.
Cheers
Gregm, speaking of Swiss efficiency. During our vacation in Geneva, my wife and I accidentally boarded a commercial ( freight ) elevator in a building.

The USA version of these elevators is usually padded with ugly covers hung from eyelets along the walls. There is graffiti, and one should NEVER look up, as there are nasty things hanging from the ceiling, provided the ceiling is still attached.

The Swiss elevator looked so good, that we thought we were on the passenger version. When it started it's ascent, the door did not close, it was substituted with a safety rail. Our view of the inside of the elevator is what amazed me. The entire internal structure was covered in fine ceramic tiles, and better workmanship than my kitchen. The motors and cables were spotless, and the walls were unmarked.

(Detlof), It is embarrassing for the inside of your elevators to be nicer than the front steps of many of the building in our city. Are you guys all so tidy?
Congratulations David. A great thread, and I think my favorite-- hope it keeps going. Is 200 posts a record? Cheers. Craig
Ofcourse, Detlof! As a bonus, you get a lake, polished streets, swiss clockwork efficiency -- that makes me feel SO inadequate by comparison, I have to take an aspirin and go to bed!

Also, isn't that where the internet actually started out?

David, have we safely cracked the 200 by now?
WOW! 200 posts! Who would have thought? Craig,nice idea!
All you audiophiles who are shy, dont be.Tell us who you are.Dont be afraid to make an ass of yourself.I do it all the time and still sleep like a baby.Well,except for last night!Welcome back Dug! CHEERS EVERYONE! THE DRINKS ARE ON DUG!
Kubla, how about a sript based on Albert Porter's party? Or is that too sick an idea?
What traumatic experience is hiding behind Kubla's quest for Atmasphere? Is it an individual or a socially induced phenomenon? Not least: where does his powerful mastery of language derive from (what about body language...)?
Deep waters!
Detlof, would CERN be interested in his case?