into the last month of this year, then. a year that i trust, look you see, has been more good than bad for you, as and when you balance your reflections of it. but still, though, we have a few more days to go.
as the year draws to a close there is some sadness for me. my dearly beloved walkman has ceased to work. not really a surprise development, to be sure, for it has served me for somewhere north of 20 years. i cannot give you a precise age, but i suspect closer to 22 years than 21.
making this less of a surprise is the fact that the walkman had been worked quite hard of late. i've been using it, to be sure, for verk purposes. with that being the case as something of a necessity i needed to replace it. and so i did.
in an instance of having an itch which wanted to be scratched straight away, off i went to Tesco. the time was somewhat late in the evening, but of an hour that saw Tesco remaining open. a consultation with that thing called "the internet" said that they had cassette decks in stock; ones which would theoretically do all that i asked.
under the various guidelines and stipulations of laws concerning trademarks and so forth one, alas, must be quite careful in using the term "walkman". strictly speaking the only walkman you can call such is ones what are made by Sony, for they coined and registered the term. any such device what gone done does the same job should not, according to lawyer types, be called this. it's a bit like calling any old vacuum cleaner a "hoover", i suppose.
yes, there it is, or correctly there they are on the shelf at Tesco.it says on the box that it is a "groove e" personal cassette player and recorder, with a radio thrown in for some reason.i have no interest in that latter element, or for that matter segments of the former. i really, really just need something what can play tapes free of the distortion associated with mains powered players.
cost of this device? neither north nor south of £20, but that figure with precision. this seems to be the new way down at Tesco; the removal of the ubiquitous and commonly accepted psychological trick of pricing produce with a ".99" or ".95" in terms of pence of coins on pricing. so in order to obtain this "groove e" device, one must pay exactly two thousand one pence coins, and further coins struck with presumably regal pride by those responsible for minting the monies of our realm.
no, i did not pay with two thousand one pence coins. instead i felt it best, maybe prudent, to pay with bank notes which represent this figure. would Tesco have been of an appreciative mind if i had arrived with a bag or sack containing two thousand one pence pieces in order to pay for this item? you would really like to think so, as it would make a terrific story for them to speak of on social media accounts.
the biggest question at this stage would be, i guess, what did i play on it first? well, usually it would have been something off of The Stranglers. not anything, actually. with only one exception, when i played Black Grape on a new stereo one Christmas, since around 1987 every new bit of audio equipment what i have got has been christened with Waltzinblack by The Stranglers. this is all sort of a tribute or a way of thinking about a very dear friend.
rather unfortunate and unpleasant incidents from the course of this year, however, gave every suggestion that, in a perhaps pathetic attempt to appease critics, i should change this approach.
yes, indeed i did. after a barrage of abusive accusations of me "not being a proper fan" of it, i elected to confirm my commitment to Intergalactic by the Beastie Boys by playing the cassette single of this song on the deck first.
for more information of the sickening abuse i have experienced about supposedly "not being a proper fan", you can click here, here and here. no, i have absolutely no idea why this particular stick has been drawn to beat me with, but there you go. in my heart i know that i am a proper fan, which is enough for me.
above you should see a small video clip of Intergalactic playing on the deck for the first time. this would depend entirely on you using a device and browser combination what allows for such video to be played. if not then in all likelihood you have a fairly large blank area to look at instead. oh.
would i say that i am happy with this groove e, or groove, or groove>>e, player? not at all. it is utter, utter, utter rubbish. cr@p, if you like, although to say it is a pile of sh!t is probably the most accurate description. the flimsy design means that the cassettes don't sit in it properly. it is hard work to persuade it to accept batteries.
should you get through all of that then there is the playback. for a few moments, as depicted in the video above, it plays OK. then, however, it goes on some "variable speed" mission, so you get a horrible, wobbly sound.
for some reason you might have a wish to see a picture of me, wearing 50% of the items what made up my slightly popular "fashion statement" blog post last month, as i went off to purchase this device. to end off this post, more or less, then, here you go.
just slightly north of twelve hours passed when i was back in Tesco, equipped with the miscreant cassette deck and receipt. the refund, i can tell you, was no questions asked, swift and efficient. yes, a picture of me in my other t-shirt off the celebrated 'Fashion Statement' post last month, or whenever it was, shall feature. as indeed will a look at the replacement for the replacement of the walkman that works no more.
perhaps one day i shall be able to get a Sony walkman that is an actual walkman again. they seem to be both rare and quite hard to find. for now, though, let me see how i get on with the other sort of cassette player i purchased after securing the refund out of Tesco.
anyhow, let me progress or plod on with things.
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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