Yes, Virginia. I can get the two subjects in the same post.
Because the price of petro isn't going to drop considerably in my lifetime, I try to limit my activities to one part of St. Louis on any particular day, or during one outing. This past weekend, I chose to attend several estate sales and one garage sale in North County, St. Louis (Florissant, MO). I viewed the listings on the following pages, and made the determination that these 3 sales had items that I find of interest, and that I would have time enough in my morning to get to them, do my shopping, and get home before Mark gets off work at 10:00 AM, when he has to work a Saturday morning. It is not that I am trying to hide my shopping habits from him. There are better ways to do that, if hiding anything was my intent. I merely want to get some early morning 'running' done, and get home before he gets off work, so we can attend one of the many venues in this area together.
The pages that I find estate and garage sales:
http://gsalr.com/garage-sales-st-louis-mo.html
(Although the items in any one given sale are not limited to just those that are in the listing, one easy way to find a particular item that you are interested in is to type the name of the item in the search box at the top, and it will return any sales with that item listed..)
The other page that I use on a weekly basis:
http://www.estatesales.net/estate-sales/MO/St.+Louis.aspx
I was using the first page listed here, and I searched "organ". One sale listed a "Hammond organ". Even though that is exactly what I was looking for, I also search "yarn", "music" (for sheet music and other musically related items), and "piano".
Even though it is a help that I do appreciate, there is a few problems that can be associated with a seller listing a "Hammond organ".
1) This item may (or may not!) actually be a Hammond organ. This runs along the same train of thought that some people think that every tissue is a Kleenex or that all transparent tape is Scotch Tape, some people think that all organs are Hammond organs, etc. I have arrived at sales that listed a "Hammond organ", and I was confronted with an entry-level Kimball Fun Machine from the early 1980's, which is an entirely different horse of another color.
2) If it IS,. in fact, a Hammond organ, this means the seller usually takes the time to accurately determine the brand of the machine he is pedaling, then it will usually be priced accordingly (elevated price because they 'know what they have'. They have 'silver', not 'gold', and sometimes it is 'gold plated', if you know what I mean - and they are asking a selling price of 'solid gold!"
3) If they go as far as listing a CORRECT model number, (Hammond A-100, Hammond L-100, etc), that information is extremely helpful, but then the seller(s) have done a little more research, and once again, they are pedaling silver, but think it's worth gold, if you will.
Back to the sale in question:
The ad read, "Hammond organ". I was armed with the above knowledge, and I was the first to walk in the door. I was standing in front of a beautiful Hammond E-133. The cabinet on this instrument was nearly flawless. I cleared the bench of sale items, and flipped the off / on switch. I didn't hear the tell-tale purr of the tonewheel generator coming up to speed. To the uninitiated (or the uninterested!), in my mind's eye, this sound is as if the instrument is taking a deep breath, or sighing while waking up. In all actuality, it is the entire generator reaching the required speed necessary to produce sound when the keys are played.
This poor old girl was silent. No breath. The off / on pilot light was on, indicating that the organ was plugged in, and the amps were working, producing power. The cymbal / brush effect worked on the pedals the the lower manual (keyboard), but the generator that is responsible for producing organ-like tones in this machine was deathly quiet.
The woman that owned this instrument passed away the previous year, and her daughter and son-in-law were selling the contents of the home. The sale was on Saturday, and the house had to be empty by Monday morning.
I currently own 3 Hammond organs, myself, and one of the 2 that I own is the same model (Hammond E-100) that I own. Actually, the organ in front of me was a Hammond E-133, and the one in my great room is a Hammond E-182. They differ only in 'furniture style', and the particular finish that is on each organ. They are the same instrument, however. While this model is not one of the highly-sought-after models, such as the Hammond B3, C3, A-100, etc (and I have one of those, too), the Model E-10 is not a 'junk organ', and deserves a better life than to be carted off to a landfill on Monday morning!
The problem with this organ isn't difficult to repair. "She" needed to find herself in capable hands, rather than desperate hands that are all too willing to toss her out.
I had several dilemmas before me:
A) Even though 'rescue syndrome' was pounding on my heart's door, I didn't need another Hammond.
B) I am a small, official Gimp, and shouldn't be moving 400 lb. organs.
C) I HATE to see a fixable, playable, classic instrument go to the dump! Even though Hammond organs are currently being produced, tube-amped, tonewheel organs have not been manufactured since the mid-1070's. This 'species' is nearing the endangered / threatened list, and some day will, in fact, become 'extinct'.
I know I was in tears when I left that house. I promised the lady that I 'had some contacts', and that I would get the message out there, and maybe somebody would rescue this beautiful instrument before Doomsday.
Since 1992, I have been a member of 2 on-line Hammond Technical mailing lists (forums). If you knew of some of the politics that happen on one of those lists, you would not be proud of me at this moment for tolerating that crap, but I have a story to tell a story. (I know - No surprise there!)
The story goes:
If you know the late-great Jazz organist, Mr. Jimmy Smith, you would know that his reputation of being a genuine prick well preceded him. Personally, I believe his attitude came from several sources, and a couple of those 'seeds' might have been a very twisted sense of humor, and being bored, in general, with "the scene". There were times that he was a major ass to anybody around him. So, you ask: "Why tolerate being treated like that?" My answer is, "If you want to listen to good, jazz organ that is being played by the King of Jazz Organ, you will have to deal with the crap he spews." In other words, if you want the good stuff that comes out of him, you have to put up with the bad stuff, too. The choice is yours, and neither choice is wrong.
The same example may be applied to at least one of the Hammond Technical lists. There are two lists: HAM Tech and HAMster. One list is relatively moderated, and the other list is privately owned, and the politics tend to lean towards the side of those who own and operate the list, rather than for the benefit of the entire group. But - I digress. Once again, you ask: "Why do you put up with being treated like that?" My answer is nearly the same, "If you want the knowledge that comes out of those people pertaining to repairing, maintaining and playing a very specific instrument, then you have to deal with the crap that leaks out of their pores. You can leave the list(s), and leave the knowledge base, or you can deal with the crap being flung your way, and stick around for the knowledge and wisdom from - honestly - the best Hammond technicians on the planet. These people have maintained and repaired (and still do) instruments for every one of the most famous musicians and singers on the planet, and in every musical genre, including rock, country, jazz, soul,, and everything inbetween. Some of the personalities that these organs are maintained for are: Paul Schaffer from the David Letterman Show, Tina Turner, Hootie and the Blowfish, Trisha Yearwood, Faith Hill, Greg Allman, and literally thousands of other famous and semi-famous names. Yes. I will stick around for their knowledge. Unfortunately, I can't get the knowledge without having to clean the crap off my sunglasses, but that, as they say, "Is the way it goes."
ANYWHO....
(Did I mention the $8,000 full-side Yamaha Grand piano that I was for sale at the next estate sale that I went to after the one with the Hammond?)
When I got home from shopping my sales, as I promised the lady, I posted the sale of this Hammond-in-need on both Hammond Technical lists, and on FaceBook.
Now, I would like to say, "THANK YOU, JERRY, in LESLIE, MO!" Thank you, thank you, thank you! You have made me happier than a pig in...well....mud! To fill the rest of you in, Jerry saw my posting on one of the Hammond lists, and he drove the 70 miles yesterday (Sunday) and picked up this Hammond E-100! YES! Please keep in mind that the membership on these Hammond Technical lists is fro all over the world. Only a couple members are actually local to my area - the rest are all over the planet! I was lucky that one member who was close has an interest in caring for this beautiful instrument.
This instrument lives on, and will soon play again! That, my friends, is better than a classic instrument going to the dump because nobody cares!
Much in the same manner as a (good!) mother hearing about the demise of another child rushes home, and gives her own kids an extra hug and kiss, immediately after I posted the message on the Hammond Technical lists, I went to our great room, and fired up **MY** 1969 Hammond E-182 / Leslie 122, and played for a few minutes. After I finished playing, I looked at Mark, and he said, "I know...I know...!"
And that, my friends, is how we arrive at the "Babies left in hot cars....." portion of this show!
I love Oprah! God knows I do! In the immortal words of Sophia ("The Color Purple"):
"I luz Harpo, God knows I do. But I'll kill 'im dead 'fo I let him beat me.!"
But...but... Did anybody see the show this past week that had the woman that left her baby in a hot car? I think it goes without saying that the baby died as a result of this gross negligence.
When the lady was asked for tips on how to prevent this tragedy from occurring in the future, the lady said, "Put your purse or your house keys in the back seat with the baby. You won't forget those!" Can I just share with you that Oprah agreed with her? HUH? A huge W-T-F????
Somebody please correct me if necessary, but shouldn't the baby trump in importance the keys or the purse???? Am I off track by saying, "I guess procreation isn't for everybody!"
An innocent child that is helpless and defenseless, and is strapped into a TRAP in the back seat should be the of utmost importance to **ANYBODY**, and there should be no need to leave keys or any other object in the back seat in order for you to remember a valuable soul whose safety you are entrusted to! What about this innocent child? If keys or a purse is more important to you than firstly and foremostly remembering a precious, defenseless soul, than I don't need you as a mother / father, **EITHER!!!**
I care not that the woman that made this statement is a grieving mother. SHE was the one that caused her loss, and SHE is the one that said, "Put your purse or house keys in the back seat with the baby. That way, you won't forget the baby!" This is **AFTER** she killed her own baby. If I was sitting in Oprah's chair, I would have stopped and corrected that lady before she said another word, much less agreed with her, as Oprah did.
Am I alone here, or should the lady not have made this statement, and Oprah should not have agreed with here? I would have been the first person to tell this lady, "If you have to leave keys or a purse in the back seat to remember a child - YOUR child - in the back seat, then it should be no mystery to you as to why your own child is now dead, because it is that lack of consideration and general well being that killed her in the first place!" Tears or no tears, those words would have left my mouth as if I was spitting nails with deadly accuracy, and in her direction. As I said earlier, this reason - and many more - are enough evidence that a lot of people shouldn't procreate!
- Michael
Because the price of petro isn't going to drop considerably in my lifetime, I try to limit my activities to one part of St. Louis on any particular day, or during one outing. This past weekend, I chose to attend several estate sales and one garage sale in North County, St. Louis (Florissant, MO). I viewed the listings on the following pages, and made the determination that these 3 sales had items that I find of interest, and that I would have time enough in my morning to get to them, do my shopping, and get home before Mark gets off work at 10:00 AM, when he has to work a Saturday morning. It is not that I am trying to hide my shopping habits from him. There are better ways to do that, if hiding anything was my intent. I merely want to get some early morning 'running' done, and get home before he gets off work, so we can attend one of the many venues in this area together.
The pages that I find estate and garage sales:
http://gsalr.com/garage-sales-st-louis-mo.html
(Although the items in any one given sale are not limited to just those that are in the listing, one easy way to find a particular item that you are interested in is to type the name of the item in the search box at the top, and it will return any sales with that item listed..)
The other page that I use on a weekly basis:
http://www.estatesales.net/estate-sales/MO/St.+Louis.aspx
I was using the first page listed here, and I searched "organ". One sale listed a "Hammond organ". Even though that is exactly what I was looking for, I also search "yarn", "music" (for sheet music and other musically related items), and "piano".
Even though it is a help that I do appreciate, there is a few problems that can be associated with a seller listing a "Hammond organ".
1) This item may (or may not!) actually be a Hammond organ. This runs along the same train of thought that some people think that every tissue is a Kleenex or that all transparent tape is Scotch Tape, some people think that all organs are Hammond organs, etc. I have arrived at sales that listed a "Hammond organ", and I was confronted with an entry-level Kimball Fun Machine from the early 1980's, which is an entirely different horse of another color.
2) If it IS,. in fact, a Hammond organ, this means the seller usually takes the time to accurately determine the brand of the machine he is pedaling, then it will usually be priced accordingly (elevated price because they 'know what they have'. They have 'silver', not 'gold', and sometimes it is 'gold plated', if you know what I mean - and they are asking a selling price of 'solid gold!"
3) If they go as far as listing a CORRECT model number, (Hammond A-100, Hammond L-100, etc), that information is extremely helpful, but then the seller(s) have done a little more research, and once again, they are pedaling silver, but think it's worth gold, if you will.
Back to the sale in question:
The ad read, "Hammond organ". I was armed with the above knowledge, and I was the first to walk in the door. I was standing in front of a beautiful Hammond E-133. The cabinet on this instrument was nearly flawless. I cleared the bench of sale items, and flipped the off / on switch. I didn't hear the tell-tale purr of the tonewheel generator coming up to speed. To the uninitiated (or the uninterested!), in my mind's eye, this sound is as if the instrument is taking a deep breath, or sighing while waking up. In all actuality, it is the entire generator reaching the required speed necessary to produce sound when the keys are played.
This poor old girl was silent. No breath. The off / on pilot light was on, indicating that the organ was plugged in, and the amps were working, producing power. The cymbal / brush effect worked on the pedals the the lower manual (keyboard), but the generator that is responsible for producing organ-like tones in this machine was deathly quiet.
The woman that owned this instrument passed away the previous year, and her daughter and son-in-law were selling the contents of the home. The sale was on Saturday, and the house had to be empty by Monday morning.
I currently own 3 Hammond organs, myself, and one of the 2 that I own is the same model (Hammond E-100) that I own. Actually, the organ in front of me was a Hammond E-133, and the one in my great room is a Hammond E-182. They differ only in 'furniture style', and the particular finish that is on each organ. They are the same instrument, however. While this model is not one of the highly-sought-after models, such as the Hammond B3, C3, A-100, etc (and I have one of those, too), the Model E-10 is not a 'junk organ', and deserves a better life than to be carted off to a landfill on Monday morning!
The problem with this organ isn't difficult to repair. "She" needed to find herself in capable hands, rather than desperate hands that are all too willing to toss her out.
I had several dilemmas before me:
A) Even though 'rescue syndrome' was pounding on my heart's door, I didn't need another Hammond.
B) I am a small, official Gimp, and shouldn't be moving 400 lb. organs.
C) I HATE to see a fixable, playable, classic instrument go to the dump! Even though Hammond organs are currently being produced, tube-amped, tonewheel organs have not been manufactured since the mid-1070's. This 'species' is nearing the endangered / threatened list, and some day will, in fact, become 'extinct'.
I know I was in tears when I left that house. I promised the lady that I 'had some contacts', and that I would get the message out there, and maybe somebody would rescue this beautiful instrument before Doomsday.
Since 1992, I have been a member of 2 on-line Hammond Technical mailing lists (forums). If you knew of some of the politics that happen on one of those lists, you would not be proud of me at this moment for tolerating that crap, but I have a story to tell a story. (I know - No surprise there!)
The story goes:
If you know the late-great Jazz organist, Mr. Jimmy Smith, you would know that his reputation of being a genuine prick well preceded him. Personally, I believe his attitude came from several sources, and a couple of those 'seeds' might have been a very twisted sense of humor, and being bored, in general, with "the scene". There were times that he was a major ass to anybody around him. So, you ask: "Why tolerate being treated like that?" My answer is, "If you want to listen to good, jazz organ that is being played by the King of Jazz Organ, you will have to deal with the crap he spews." In other words, if you want the good stuff that comes out of him, you have to put up with the bad stuff, too. The choice is yours, and neither choice is wrong.
The same example may be applied to at least one of the Hammond Technical lists. There are two lists: HAM Tech and HAMster. One list is relatively moderated, and the other list is privately owned, and the politics tend to lean towards the side of those who own and operate the list, rather than for the benefit of the entire group. But - I digress. Once again, you ask: "Why do you put up with being treated like that?" My answer is nearly the same, "If you want the knowledge that comes out of those people pertaining to repairing, maintaining and playing a very specific instrument, then you have to deal with the crap that leaks out of their pores. You can leave the list(s), and leave the knowledge base, or you can deal with the crap being flung your way, and stick around for the knowledge and wisdom from - honestly - the best Hammond technicians on the planet. These people have maintained and repaired (and still do) instruments for every one of the most famous musicians and singers on the planet, and in every musical genre, including rock, country, jazz, soul,, and everything inbetween. Some of the personalities that these organs are maintained for are: Paul Schaffer from the David Letterman Show, Tina Turner, Hootie and the Blowfish, Trisha Yearwood, Faith Hill, Greg Allman, and literally thousands of other famous and semi-famous names. Yes. I will stick around for their knowledge. Unfortunately, I can't get the knowledge without having to clean the crap off my sunglasses, but that, as they say, "Is the way it goes."
ANYWHO....
(Did I mention the $8,000 full-side Yamaha Grand piano that I was for sale at the next estate sale that I went to after the one with the Hammond?)
When I got home from shopping my sales, as I promised the lady, I posted the sale of this Hammond-in-need on both Hammond Technical lists, and on FaceBook.
Now, I would like to say, "THANK YOU, JERRY, in LESLIE, MO!" Thank you, thank you, thank you! You have made me happier than a pig in...well....mud! To fill the rest of you in, Jerry saw my posting on one of the Hammond lists, and he drove the 70 miles yesterday (Sunday) and picked up this Hammond E-100! YES! Please keep in mind that the membership on these Hammond Technical lists is fro all over the world. Only a couple members are actually local to my area - the rest are all over the planet! I was lucky that one member who was close has an interest in caring for this beautiful instrument.
This instrument lives on, and will soon play again! That, my friends, is better than a classic instrument going to the dump because nobody cares!
Much in the same manner as a (good!) mother hearing about the demise of another child rushes home, and gives her own kids an extra hug and kiss, immediately after I posted the message on the Hammond Technical lists, I went to our great room, and fired up **MY** 1969 Hammond E-182 / Leslie 122, and played for a few minutes. After I finished playing, I looked at Mark, and he said, "I know...I know...!"
And that, my friends, is how we arrive at the "Babies left in hot cars....." portion of this show!
I love Oprah! God knows I do! In the immortal words of Sophia ("The Color Purple"):
"I luz Harpo, God knows I do. But I'll kill 'im dead 'fo I let him beat me.!"
But...but... Did anybody see the show this past week that had the woman that left her baby in a hot car? I think it goes without saying that the baby died as a result of this gross negligence.
When the lady was asked for tips on how to prevent this tragedy from occurring in the future, the lady said, "Put your purse or your house keys in the back seat with the baby. You won't forget those!" Can I just share with you that Oprah agreed with her? HUH? A huge W-T-F????
Somebody please correct me if necessary, but shouldn't the baby trump in importance the keys or the purse???? Am I off track by saying, "I guess procreation isn't for everybody!"
An innocent child that is helpless and defenseless, and is strapped into a TRAP in the back seat should be the of utmost importance to **ANYBODY**, and there should be no need to leave keys or any other object in the back seat in order for you to remember a valuable soul whose safety you are entrusted to! What about this innocent child? If keys or a purse is more important to you than firstly and foremostly remembering a precious, defenseless soul, than I don't need you as a mother / father, **EITHER!!!**
I care not that the woman that made this statement is a grieving mother. SHE was the one that caused her loss, and SHE is the one that said, "Put your purse or house keys in the back seat with the baby. That way, you won't forget the baby!" This is **AFTER** she killed her own baby. If I was sitting in Oprah's chair, I would have stopped and corrected that lady before she said another word, much less agreed with her, as Oprah did.
Am I alone here, or should the lady not have made this statement, and Oprah should not have agreed with here? I would have been the first person to tell this lady, "If you have to leave keys or a purse in the back seat to remember a child - YOUR child - in the back seat, then it should be no mystery to you as to why your own child is now dead, because it is that lack of consideration and general well being that killed her in the first place!" Tears or no tears, those words would have left my mouth as if I was spitting nails with deadly accuracy, and in her direction. As I said earlier, this reason - and many more - are enough evidence that a lot of people shouldn't procreate!
- Michael
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