It’s been a long time since I updated my blog — work has been keeping me very busy, and it will probably continue to do so for the forseeable future (which, when you think of it, beats the hell out of most of the alternatives).
But I’m going to try to get back into the blogging habit this year, if for no other reason than to have a place to write about interesting books, wines, and so forth.
So I’ll start by talking about the latest toy I picked up — XM Satellite Radio. Actually, three of them — two for the house and one for the office (and I hope to put one in my car some time, though I may wait for my next car, which I hope won’t be an imminent purchase). It’s much more pleasant than any of the local AM or FM stations — for two reasons so far: there’s a greater variety of music, and there isn’t a deluge of commercials (many of the channels I listen to are commercial-free, in fact).
There is, of course, an active fan site, and I’ve been spending time there; currently, they are encouraging listeners to take part in XM Bootcamp II, sampling all of the channels over the next few months. I’ve signed up and am currently listening to today’s offering, the 40’s on 4. And I’m enjoying it — mostly upbeat music, not so intrusive as to keep me from being able to work while listening. It’s not just one song after another — they also give occasional news reports from the 40’s, and other announcements to give you the feeling that you are listening to real radio from the 40’s. Fun!
I don’t expect to listen to every day’s choice (I have no interest in the Christian channels, for example, and some of the rap and rock channels are not suitable for an office environment), but so far, so good.