OnTheJourney

Even in February? I suppose so. It'd be one thing if we were staying at a resort, could slather on lotion, etc. and then do the float and back out to shower, and back to the room (to perhaps wash up even more if still feeling sticky). But, this takes place after a 12-hour-long excursion to Masada, then however long a bus ride back to Ashdod and the ship. I'll have to think on this...I'm sure it's a cool experience, but not sure all the hassle is worth it for the sake of 10 minutes in the water. Thanks so much...

roughly 10 times the salinity of the oceans, from what I read

Thanks...LOL on not shaving! Nothing like that 3-day old stubby growth... Not sure if I want to do the float or not. Definitely agree on not going in if any open sores or cuts. I'm thinking so as well.

To quote Scotty in one of the Star Trek movies, "the more they overthink the plumbing the easier it is to stop up the drain"! Being the owner of '95 and '97 vehicles, I know exactly what you're talking about.

Jimbo...thanks. I've seen other sites like the one you suggest, but am also hoping for some feedback from someone who has actually done it. It's quite sad to see what's happening with the sea level recession and the thousands of sinkholes that have opened up.

Question for Dani (or anyone else who perhaps has any advice). I have an opportunity on an upcoming cruise to float in the Dead Sea. It takes place after an excursion to Masada. I've just been reading about the various precautions regarding being in the water, things like: wear an old swimsuit that you probably don't want anymore, do not get water in the eyes, be aware of the very caustic nature of the water, wearing closed water shoes, not shaving (even a few days) before going in, etc. Any advice or thoughts? Surely one of those (likely for me anyway) once-in-a-lifetime chances, but after reading more about it I have some reservations. Thanks....

I'm planning on ordering a Sonata hybrid soon. Not certain if that one holds a spare or not. It appears that they got rid of the spare for the '23 model. I'm not a fan of the lack of a spare tire. Weight-saving measure to gain better fuel efficiency. Seems weird since we're only talking about 45-50 pounds (tire including lug wrench, etc.) out of the total 3,500 (roughly 1.5% of the overall weight).

Well, guess we all sort of wonder about that 'road not taken'. Maybe you DID stay in Boston in some parallel universe. Never know. And in yet another perhaps went to Eastman. 🤔 Funny part about my undergrad audition - which I had hoped would be on guitar. The college I went to didn't accept any guitar auditions since it was considered a sort of non-legitimate instrument. Seriously? In 1973? So I was a clarinet major. Strong Methodist affiliated school. Still is. But rather a parochial attitude about the guitar back then for sure, especially in the days of the jazz / rock fusion bands. Now, probably most college music programs offer a guitar major. Then the other kick in the pants was that I was accepted but the notation indicated "acceptance for music education major only", not performance. Nothing like being humbled before you even get started on the undergrad program! Turned out to be the best thing for me anyway, having gone into public school education.

Most interesting! Didn't realize it was that high - even more in an older car with drafty windows.

I forgot about your musical background, but now that you mention it, I recall past threads where I think you and I had a bit of music 'shop talk'. I know about those small practice rooms! Did that in my undergrad years. Berklee? Most impressive. I visited there but just felt, as a 17-yr. old, that Boston just seemed a bit too overwhelming for me! Wound up much closer to home.

Yikes! 80 dB reportedly will start to damage hearing after about 2 hours of exposure. Wish I could go back in time and turn down the volume on some of the amps in the bands I played with...or put away the headphones as described in an earlier post. Now, as a result of having been exposed to all that, I listen to a rather piercing high pitch frequency 24/7. Scary and quite annoying for the first few weeks, but sort of got used to it. Can't imagine, though, what experiencing total silence would be like anymore! So...be a tad cautious with that home theater volume...😉

Love it! I actually saw it right away before even reading your entire post! To do large screen tv, we'd have to get rid of the big entertainment center. Doable, but we've looked at quite a few and found the big problem with the newer centers is that they don't have the storage like the old ones. Mine is geared to being able to store hundreds of vinyl LPs, plus shelves for the (older) larger components. Don't see that configuration much anymore. As a result, we're still (very) retro. All this home theater talk is fascinating, though, since I'm completely out of the loop with regards to practically all of it. I have no interest in doing it (don't have the space for it anyway), but cool to hear some of the details. Newest piece of technology I've bought over the past many years is a new cartridge for my Pioneer turntable. Expected a huge difference in sound quality but really didn't find that to be the case. Probably my crappy hearing though, especially on the high end.

Huh....guess now I know why often the movie sound in a theatre is, for me anyway, way too loud! I already have significantly decreased hearing along with tinnitus from years of playing in rock bands, and also from using headphones while practicing on my Allen organ. The latter habit started from not wanting to disturb my daughter while doing schoolwork. I still occasionally use headphones to do my editing / mixing for my guitar recordings, but mostly just work with my '03 imac speakers, but never use headphones with the organ anymore. Way too much sound pressure across the full audible spectrum.

So...might as well throw out the albums also, unless you replaced the Kenwood with something newer so as to still be able to play them? Wish I would have kept my collection of 45s. They went along with lots of other stuff at auction when we sold my Mom's property. Quite honestly, I'd probably not play them if I had them, but it'd just be cool to have them to look at. Again, too overly sentimental about certain things.

Yeah, for sure. All this home theater talk is way over my head! Not sure how I'd do watching a huge tv screen all the time due to my meniere's disease. Certain types of perceived motion can be enough to induce a vertigo attack. No problem with a small screen or occasional movie in a theatre.

planned obsolescence perhaps - like in the case of computer software having increasingly greater system requirements thus necessitating upgrading hardware. Endless cycle.. Cheaper materials used in manufacturing also. We had our old Maytag washing machine for 40 years with only minor repairs along the way.

LOL...in our living room there are holes at various places (concealed under furniture) where, at one time or another, I drilled through and ran wires down through the floor, across the basement drop ceiling, and back up to speakers that were in different locations over the years. They're no longer at any of the locations I once used, so now I look back on having gone through the trouble. Oh well, it served its purpose at the time. Too preoccupied with retro I suppose. Up until about 2 years ago, our living room tv was still a big Panasonic CRT. Those old tvs are so heavy. It went to our local electronics recycling center. Replaced it with a 28" LG. Love it. Can't go any bigger since it won't fit in the entertainment cabinet. Big wall (or floor) tv would surely be nice I suppose, but just not really into it all that much and no idea where I'd go with it. Most of the time when the tv is on we're both reading and 'sort of' watching it, unless we put in a movie that we really want to watch with fairly undivided attention.

Yeah, just depends what it is. If you find the right buyer for just about anything, they're willing to pay. Other times, with a few of my eBay sales, you almost pay someone to take it off your hands depending on where it's being shipped! DW is always talking about cleaning out / even looking to downsize at some point. I totally get it, and we have unloaded some of the stuff unlikely to use anymore, but lots more could go.

You totally lost me! Not familiar with a single name that you mention with the exception of Mitsubishi, which I only identify with the automobile brand!

Yep...whatever "floats your boat", as the saying goes. Still have my vintage guitars too...just too sentimental to pass them along, although I'm seriously considering listing my 70s Epiphone 6-string acoustic on my eBay site. I think that, at least for many of us, we got caught up in our parents' depression-era mentality, being only one generation removed from it. My Dad was of the 'never get rid of most anything cause you never know when you might need it'. True enough, sometimes, but othertimes can be a curse. What we own can start to own us.

Yeah, I recognize some of those brochures, since they're so similar for different models. My BIC brochure does not include any mention of the Formula 7s, so I'm wondering if those were introduced after '76? Once I had my 6s and the rest of the components, I really didn't keep up with what else came along after, and never upgraded any of the components other than to add the cassette deck and various combo VHS/DVD players over the years. meaning...what exactly? Sounds like a pretty impressive setup for sure! I never went further than having what I bought back in '76. No home theatre, and no TV bigger than 28", no extra speakers / subwoofers, etc. At heart I'm more of a musician than an audiophile I suppose. The Kenwood has, for years, a buzzing sound when you turn it on until I jigger some of the potentiometer controls, and the turntable's speed is sometimes erratic so I've already had that apart and sprayed de-oxit on the pots. Hanging on to this old stuff, just like my '95 and '97 cars...long story on those. Have never owned a car manufactured in the 21st century, though getting closer to that point. Hey, if you're going to be a pack rat, at least being an organized one is the way to go. 😉 It's those disorganized ones that present some problems.

My brother had a pair of these - pretty sure he got them through an Army Px after being in 'Nam. https://audio-database.com/CORAL/speaker/bx-1200.html Great speakers also. This is what inspired me to buy a multi-speaker system. Of course, we're talking WAY before internet came along so I used to subscribe to "Stereo Review" magazine. Probably found out about the BICs that way. I remember ordering the Kenwood, speakers, and turntable through an outfit called Illinois Audio. Still have the boxes the BICs came in- they make great storage...to hold other boxes!

I'd probably list that stuff on eBay.

Well, yeah, I'm GOING to miss it once we don't have the Jeep any longer. The cassette player in my '95 Buick stopped working a few years ago already, but the one in the Jeep still works great.

Love it. What model Kenwood? Mine's KR-7600. 70 watts per channel (always thought it was 80 but just looked it up). I have BIC Formula 6s. I'm not that familiar with the 7s and actually forgot that they made that model. Always liked the BIC line. I had a set of Formula 1s for awhile in a college dorm room. For the size, those speakers impressed alot of people. I think I used a Sansui receiver with it. I didn't have all that stuff very long - sort of recall selling those components to another student before graduation.