Craigslist: Strange Tradings

The guitar market is like any other market.  When it's a "Buyer's Market" there are tons of great guitars for great prices.  However, no one actually has any money to buy them.  When it's a "Seller's Market," everyone is doing okay financially, but everything is overpriced.  Then you have what we have now.  It's a "Buyer's Market," that has gone stale.  In other words, every one has something they want to sell, but no one is buying it, and it has been for sale for months with no takers.

I recently put four guitars up for sale on Craigslist.  I haven't really had any bites on them for people wanting to buy them, but I have had quite a number of offers for trades.  In fact, just last month I wrote a blog called "Awesome Guitar Weekend."  It's about how I bought a guitar for less than 40% of what it costs new.  I also traded a guitar I had for another guitar.  Here it is:
http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2014/02/awesome-guitar-weekend.html

What was weird is that, in the deal I traded a $400 guitar (new cost) for a $500 guitar (new cost) plus a hardshell case ($100 new.)  Take note of this weird fact.  The guy didn't even plug it in.  I must look trustworthy or something?

So I have four guitars up, and I get a trade offer up for one of them.  He wants to trade me a Jackson guitar for it.  I am in the middle of writing an e-mail to him saying, "no thanks," when I look at his e-mail a bit closer.  He says this is a "Made in Japan" Jackson Dinky DK2M.  I had to think that all the Jacksons I ever played were Korean or Chinese made and not really great guitars.  In all my years, I had never played a real Japanese Jackson.  I looked the price up on Musician's Friend, and was surprised to see that the new ones where going for around $800, give or take, depending upon the options.  So I called him up and decided to take a chance on it.

Here's what I traded him:  A 2008 MIM Fender Standard Stratocaster.

They run $500 new, $280 - $300 on the used market.  I was selling her completely stock.

So this is the guitar he traded me:  A 1997 (I think that's the correct year) Jackson Dinky DK2M.  It's a very metal guitar in that, it's all black, has a Seymour Duncan Jazz/JB set, and a Floyd Rose Tremolo on it.

I am a member of the Dean Guitars forum, and will ask the forum members there about this guitar.  Since a lot of them are metalheads, they know a great deal about metal guitars like this one.  The new models run $850 new, but I wonder what this one, being older, runs used.  The guy was honest, and said that he figured I could get at least $350 used for it. 

He was running into the same problem I was.  It was tough for him to sell.  And since he was in Spring Hill no one would come to look at it.  So he wanted a Stratocaster, and it was easier for him to trade, maybe lose a few bucks, than to actually complete a sale, then try to find a Strat he liked on Craigslist. 

And remember, what I said about the one guy not even plugging in the guitar.  Well, this guy completely trusted me too.  He wouldn't have plugged it in, if I hadn't of already fired up the amp, and started playing the Strat.  He was more than fine with it.  I guess I just look trustworthy.

So I got around to playing the Jackson, and it was perfect.  I couldn't do anything to it.  The action was perfect.  The intonation was perfect.  I thought about changing the strings, but they still have some life left in them.  The only thing I did was lower the bridge pickup because it was hitting the strings when I pulled back on the whammy bar.  After lowering it just the height of the side of a nickel, the whammy bar worked fine without any problems.

Now comes the question, what am I going to do with it?  I mean, it's not my style.  I've never owned a Jackson before.  I might try to trade it on the Dean Forum.  It's kind of funny, but I am trying to get some money, and the market is just not swinging that way.  Once I get some feedback from the Forum I'll decide what to do. 

Adrian: Amateur Gardener: Part 3

To catch up on this ongoing story, read these blogs first.

Adrian: Amateur Gardener
http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2013/03/adrian-amateur-gardener.html
Part 2.  Adrian: Amateur Gardener, Part 2
http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2013/03/adrian-amateur-gardener-part-2.html
Adrian: Amateur Handyman
http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2013/04/adrian-amateur-handyman.html


In part one of this ongoing series I laid out the ideas I had for putting in a garden.  In part two, I laid down the timbers, mulch, and bromeliads.  In the Handyman blog, I did a lot, but as far as gardening, I planted some coleus and vinkas. 

So now I want to update how the plants are doing.  This is kind of my first time planting a garden, so I wanted to be very careful.  Namely, I looked very closely at plants that could happily live in mostly shade.  Those happened to be coleus, vinkas, and bromeliads.  So how are they doing?  Lets look!

The coleus is actually blooming!  Once it got planted, and had a little bit of rain fall on it, all of them just started taking off.

All the vinkas started blooming really nicely as well.

The bromeliad's roots have really taken hold, and are doing really well.

 

 

And here's a shot of the bed on the left. 

I'm sure there will be another installment of the "Amateur Gardener" series.  I have a feeling I will be building two raised garden beds in the back.  Stay tuned. 

I am a ..... Sloppy Painter?

To understand this blog post better, read the following blogs first.

Part 1.  I am a terrible painter
http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2012/03/i-am-terrible-painter.html

Part 2.  I am a terrible painter, part 2
http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2012/04/i-am-terrible-painter-part-2.html

With the help of friends and family I have come to the understanding that I am not a terrible painter/ artist.  I am just different.  Art can be so subjective, and no one sees things the same way.  It actually surprised me when I learned that many of the impressionist painters have very bad eyesight, and that's why they painted that way.  As a person with really bad eyesight, I can sympathize.  I can also take my glasses off, and see another way to view the world.  And when I do that I feel like my art can be defined as something other than terrible.  It actually does have a place in the art world.

I have also been told that what I lack in technique, I make up for in style.  As in, my own painting style.  I've known many painters that can copy other people's techniques, and can draw things very exact, but they lack their own sense of style.  I am kind of the other way.  I have limited techniques that I use on every painting, but they are my own.  If you look at one of my paintings you will know that I painted them due to my style, and not someone else. 

I admit, I do like to paint coral reefs.  I think they give me a great excuse to go crazy with the paints.  When people look at coral reef paintings they expect lots of color and energy, and I'm more than glad to give them that. 

Here's some that I have painted recently.

"Lost Anchor"

It started out as a painting called, "Goth Night at the Coral Reef."  I called it that due to the very abstract colors I choose for it.  I had painted the background, and was really happy about it, and then nothing.  I couldn't decide on what I wanted to do with it.  I then put it away for 6 months.  After a while I decided it needed a rusty anchor in it.  Most paintings in the impressionist style are best seen at a distance of 10 or more feet.  So posting a picture of it on the internet makes it kind of hard to view.  It does look a little odd when you are 2 feet from the image on your screen, but in real life this looks pretty good.

The next painting I did was called, "My Brain Corral is Smarter Than Your Brain Coral."

This picture was taken after I added the background.

 

 

This next picture is after I added the coral.

 

And here is the finished painting.

I do have to give credit to my Girlfriend.  She painted the Angelfish.  I wanted something nice and neat to contrast with the sloppy painting.

And by that, I mean I think I have found my niche.  I am not a terrible artist.  I am a sloppy artist.  And I don't mean that in a bad way.  I mean that when I paint sloppily and don't think much about what I'm doing, it turns out great.  When I try to be precise, it turns out horrible.  So by slinging paint and being sloppy, I am actually being a better artist.  I am okay with that. 

I will say this, I think my techniques are getting more refined so I can take what's in my head, and put it on the canvas a little better.  I feel really excited about my next painting.  I think it will turn out pretty good. 



Hunting Season 2012: Story 3, The Mystery at Spur 4

Here are the previous stories about Hunting Season 2012:

Story 1, The Gator:
http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2012/12/hunting-season-2012-story-1-gator.html

Story 2, Hoggin It Up:
http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2012/12/hunting-season-2012-story-2-hoggin-it-up.html

Imagine if you will, a mystery.  A mystery where we park the truck out at hunting at Spur 4 (that's the name of the road.)  Here is the scene.

First we notice a bad smell.  It is the smell of death.  That's when we notice the skin of a hog.  Apparently, someone has skinned a hog right here.  That's when we notice a bunch of of large palm fronds cut down, and laid out on the ground.  They are laid down in a pattern to cover the ground.

We then notice two T-shirts lying on the ground about 60 yards apart.  This is disconcerting, but not as disconcerting as the ripped up underwear lying on the ground in between them.

We thought that was as bad as it could get until we notice the used tampon lying in the middle of the road.  Things had already become weird, but this just solidified the weirdness.

Sidenote:  I know a lot of people are not really believing what I am saying right now.  I usually take pictures to back up my stories.  However, I thought that this crossed the line.  It went right by the boundaries of good taste.  So I didn't take any pictures.

So as we walk back to the truck I take this picture of the creek/ditch at the corner of Spur 4 and the main road.

What you don't see is the hogs head lying in the creek being ate up by flies and other insects.  Yeah, it was pretty bad.

So basically, here's the mystery.

1.  Hog's head thrown in the river.
2.  Hog's skin in the road.
3.  Cut palm fronds on the road in the pattern of a blanket.
4.  2 old shirts 60 yards apart.
5.  Shredded undies.
6.  1 used feminine product lying in the middle of the road.

So if you were Scooby Doo and Mystery Inc. what would you like happened?

I guess is a Satanic ritual was held there sometime in the last few days.  That, and someone completely shit their pants.

Guitar Project #7, The Rosewood Telecaster, Part 3

For Part 1:  http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2012/05/guitar-project-7-rosewood-telecaster.html

For Part 2:  http://angjellockheart.blogspot.com/2012/05/guitar-project-7-rosewood-telecaster_26.html

So to make a long story short, I finally completed the Rosewood Telecaster.  I'll explain how I did it while posting pictures of my work.

First off, here's the body after routing and shaping.  I got it nice and sanded down.

Next I used Z-poxy to fill the grain.  This really helped one place on the back that had a hallow place in it.

Then I sanded down the Z-poxy.  Sidenote:  It really sands down nicely.

Then I put on the Tru Oil.

After sanding and buffing I had this:

Next, it was time to assemble the guitar. 

I had to use a different bridge pickup than I would have liked, but I will change this one out later.

Here's the shot of the back.

Overall not too bad.  There's a couple of places that I could have done better.  I am going to change the one pickup out when I have the chance/money.  Oh, I also need a strap as I have locking tuners.  So it's playable, but not completely done yet.  But I guess it's close enough for jazz.

The 80's Attack! Movie Review: The Adventures of Hercules 2

So here it is.  Late night on a Sunday.  Nothing good comes is on TV when it is technically Monday at 2:00 AM.  But then, I spot something on Showtime Family.  Something that came from the 80's.  My childhood reborn.  The Adventures of Hercules staring Lou Ferrigno.  (1985.)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089271/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Hercules

Here's the funny thing.  This is not the movie that I thought I remembered.  That was "Hercules."  Also staring Lou Ferrigno.  I'm not sure if I ever saw this one.  This one is much, much worse, and a lot cheesier.

Here's the highlights.

This would make a great drinking game.

Dude, was that a chick with a codpiece?

Hey, the actors lips don't line up with their mouths.

The sets look like they were designed by high school kids in their shop class.  The same goes for the costumes.  Maybe the 3rd shift in a Korean factory.

80's hair!

80's makeup!

80's boobs!!!!!  Big but natural.

The acting is worse than 70's porn, but better than 80's porn.

I know these "special effects" are cost tens of dollars back then..... but it's just hilarious today.  They are overusing the laser lights that TRON used.  Maybe they are borrowed laser effects from the 60's studio guys who did the original "Star Trek."

Seriously reduced budget from the first movie.  The guys from GWAR have better costumes.  (Honestly)

Seriously, I've got to get this on DVD, and then get a bottle of something.  This would be a great movie to drink to.  I wouldn't recommend LSD or pot because I don't believe in doing illegal drugs.  Only the legal ones.  Therefore, I would suggest some form of pain killer that you could only get from your doctor.  Then this movie would be really great.

Oh this is interesting.  Zeus, King of all Gods, is on the moon.  Yea Moon God!

They totally ripped off the "Clash of the Titans" Medusa scene.  It just wasn't as good, and that's a bit of an understatement.

So the main point of this movie is that four Gods have stolen seven lightning bolts from Zeus, and if he doesn't get them back the Moon will crash into the Earth.  Okay.

During the final fight, King Minos turns into a giant laser beam T-Rex.  Hercules turns into a giant laser beam gorilla.  Honestly, even I can't make this up.

Ooh, I can get both from Amazon for only $9.89.  I know what a bunch of people are getting me for my birthday.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00094ARU0?tag=coldfusionvideor&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=B00094ARU0&adid=1WP6VJ3Q59NTAFT3K9N1&&ref-refURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.coldfusionvideo.com%2Farchives%2Fadventures-of-hercules-the-1985%2F

Vacation Day: The Arts and Crafts Festival at Ripley, W.V., Part 3

Well, at this point at the Arts and Crafts I was feeling pretty good.  I got to act like a kid, and play with the baby goats at the petting zoo.  Next, I wandered around some more.

There was this nice woman selling jewelry. I didn't care so much about that, but I did care about this old chest she was displaying her items on.  I took lots of pictures of it in case I wanted to build one like it.  Seriously, it looked older than my two Grandmas put together.

Oh, that guy who won the ribbon for one of his dulcimers?  He has some more for sale.

There was this stone carver who was just awesome.  But so where his prices.  I should have faked being a Free-Mason to him.

They had some neat spinning things.  The video I took of it was pretty neat.  Well, neat for a windy day I guess.

Here's a cello that a local West Virginian artisan made.

The longest serving U.S. Senator in history is Robert Byrd.  He was also known for his fiddle playing.  Here's a picture of his album and his fiddle.

Speaking of music.  There was this great Appalachian band playing traditional mountain music.  Here they are playing, "Blue Moon of Kentucky."

So that's my trip.  I wish I could have taken more pictures, but the family was wanting me to hurry it up so they could go back to Grandma's house.  I wish it hadn't of rained.  A lot of the vendors packed up or didn't show because of the rain.  But overall, I'm glad I went.