To tell a vision...

So my TV finally died. Ish. Which is to say it was well on its way to an untimely death.

It has this power issue that I could try to explain poorly. Suffice it to say, the tube was going to go out, and until that point the picture would shrink and expand horizontally and there was a lot of digital noise all over. But only when there were bright colors on the screen.

Imagine trying to play Zelda with Link constantly getting fatter then skinnier.

Oddly enough, I had a five-year warranty on my four-year-old television. That’s akin to winning, I think.

Which brings up my next point. Warranty departments suck. And the warranty department at RC Willey’s excels at sucking.

It took more than two weeks from the day I called the store to find out if I had a warranty until the day they finally agree to give me an undervalued store credit.

Why?

Well, unfortunately for me, RC Willey is phasing out old-fashioned tube TVs. Also unfortunately for me, they wouldn’t simply give me an upgrade to the comparable model they had in stock because I had a 27” and that was a 30”. Oh and unfortunately for me the only “comparable” TV they did have was a piece of crap, $300 STANDARD DEFINITION TV. Also unfortunate for me, the subtle differences between HDTV and SDTV are lost on the RC Willey warranty department.

So after a few days of back and forth where I tell them that the $300 Toshiba isn’t the same as my TV, the service agent (who was nice, but powerless) tells me that I’ll just need to go and talk to a sales person at a store to find a TV that’s comparable.

Well I do. But RC Willey doesn’t carry that model anymore. And they agree to credit me the amount of that TV, but only at the clearance price: $450. (That TV is selling for $550 at BestBuy.)

What this blog post doesn’t get across is that all of this took hours and hours on the phone, on hold, and just waiting. All while my TV is dying and driving me crazy.

The conclusion: I took the $450 credit. Bought the 30” TV. Paid the $200 difference. And now I have it in my home. And I like it too.

And yes, I did spend the extra $100 to buy the 5 year warranty.

Yellow matter custard

My favorite new band discovery. Rogue Wave. A Sub Pop band I found because a few of their songs playing during Heroes (a.k.a. the best show on TV) episodes. They have a similar sound to many of the other Sub Pop bands I listen to. Slightly dreamy and intellectual, with a generally modest effusiveness (if there is such a thing).

I feel extremely happy having found both albums, which enjoyed a rare 30 consecutive days in my stereo. I highly recommend them to everyone.

My favorite albums from 2006, in no ranked order, are as follows:

Gnarls Barkley
“St. Elsewhere”

Somewhere between the “Crazy” back beats, the geek heavy lyrics and the overall smooth dreary style is one of the better albums I’ve heard in a long time. This album comes closest to the whimsy of Danger Mouse’s “The Grey Album.” (Something mostly lacking from the last Gorillaz album.)

I just hope Danger Mouse makes another Gnarls Barkley album

Jenny Lewis and The Watson Twins
“Rabbit Fur Coat”

A little Loretta Lynn, a little Indie Rock. Almost uncannily mixing a soft country or gospel style with Jenny Lewis’ trademark ironic sarcasm, there’s just something so interesting about a spiritual album about most likely not believing in God.

I love almost every song on this album.

The Beatles
“Love”

It isn’t really even their concept. And the actual band members, not surprisingly, were not directly involved.

Yet it’s amazing. Lush. Surprising. Fun. Reflective. And everything you’d expect from The Beatles. Except, if you’re a big fan, nothing is exactly “new.” Thing is, that’s part of the brilliance of “Love.” At it’s core, a remix album by George and Giles Martin. But there’s something mildly challenging about its construction. My complaint is that it doesn’t push the boundaries enough. I want more.