Wednesday, October 12, 2005

Hide the screwdrivers!

CJ Barry blogged about her adventures trying to replace her keyboard. She finally solved a problem by taking two that wouldn't work and replacing the broken part on one with a part from the other. This involved opening the keyboard and dealing with technology.

It reminded me of how stupid I am sometimes when it comes to fixing things. I remember once when I bought my first serious stereo system. It was a Yorx (okay, I was 18 and didn't have a lot of money, so $80 was a lot then). The system had a turntable, graphic equalizer, huge speakers, and....DUAL CASSETTES!! (cue horns).

The first week, I am really excited because there's a special interview with Wham! on that Saturday: music, info, George Michael actually speaking. (This was before he came out of the closet, though rumors abounded. Did I mention I was 18?)

So I pop in a cassette tape, ready to record his melodious voice so I can then play it all the time. (Did I mention that I was 18 and completly nuts about GM? I had his poster taped to the ceiling right above my bed, so when I woke, I could see him. Well, actually I couldn't 'see' him because I'm blind as a bat without glasses. But I KNEW he was up there. To the right is the picture that I had - GM in a muscle tee.)

Okay, so I have the tape in, the minutes are ticking down till the start of Rick Dee's interview, and I decide I had better do a test run - this is a high-priced piece of equipment, new to me. So, I push record, but I can't get the button to go down all the way. IT WON'T RECORD!!! Panic ensues. (Did I mention that I'm 18 and things like hearing GM sing "Different Corner" make me cry and long to be Mrs. GM? That when he came out with "Faith," and I would hear him sing 'Because I gotta have Faith, I gotta have Faith..." I would respond: "I'm changing my name to Faith"?)

So when faced with a mechanical failure of a high priced piece of technology, do I prudently wait and ask my father or brother? Do I take it to a stereo shop? No, I dig out my screwdriver and start poking around. In my GM intoxicated state, I somehow believe the gods of technology will guide my standard screwdriver into somehow jabbing at the right bit of molded plastic and thus fix the problem in time for me to record GM. (Did I mention I'm 18 and though I owned every piece of Wham! merchandise an Oklahoma girl could get her hands on - but of course not the merchandise I REALLY wanted - the thought of missing a static-filled radio interview by Rick Dees - of Disco Duck fame - was simply unthinkable).

I think it was Johnny Mercer who said "Something's gotta give..." - well it wasn't the screwdriver. Yep, I broke my brand new cassette deck. And the tragedy of it all (other than not getting to tape the GM interview) is that it wasn't broken at all. The cassette I was using had the safety tab popped off preventing someone from taping on it.

Duh.

Double Duh.

I still feel like an idiot 21 years later. Of course, that's nothing compared to being that last person to admit that GM is gay, and then only after the incident in that San Francisco bathroom came out.

I still have the poster I hung over my bed. And a scrapbook that documents my obsession with George Michael. I don't, though, have the stereo. Now I have a cute Dell DJ 30 iPod Nano (electric blue), and you can bet, I'm not letting a screwdriver come near that baby.

7 comments:

Michele said...

Just a quick check before I leave.
I'm glad I did.
Your post has me laughing with tears.
What a great way to start vacation!!!
My and My little sister loved WHAM!, I was so proud of them when they were allowed to go to China and perform. Couldn't understand what the hoopla was about that they weren't squeaky clean as first thought.
NOW, we know....*giggle*
Their secret service must have "found Georgie out" long before, you think/????
See ya Monday!!!!
attmr.whtenuster

Kelli McBride said...

I had the "Wham! in China" video/documentary. My family bought it for me for my 19th or 20th birthday. Watching George sing "I'm Just a Love Machine" - indescribable.

So, I popped the safety tab on that video (hmm, there's a theme here), so I could tape Wham! music videos on the end of the tape.

Several years ago, I wanted to watch it for nostalgic reasons. So I turned it on, but instead of George and Andrew, there was a Harrison Ford movie. My mom had taped over my Wham! in China tape. It must have been in the VCR and she recorded without checking what was in the recorder.

I can't tell you how upset I was - even years after my obsession was behind me.

I really need to get another copy of that. I'm sure I wouldn't have to spend the $30 it cost my folks in 1985-86.

Kelli McBride said...

George has nothing to fear now. I am quite over my obsession, so no legal action is needed. However, I do love to hear him sing.

Anonymous said...

The new template looks great, Kelli :)

Kelli McBride said...

Thanks! I try to change it periodically. I'm breaking down Blogger's template so I can design my own, or at least customize an existing template with my own images.

I think the green is a nice refreshing change from the black tropical neon I was using.

Anonymous said...

That's cool that you can customize your own :) And the green is soft and lovely.

Jaclyn Duvall said...

Nothing to fear, Kelli. Celebrity crushes are common and can be quite healthy... I, along with many, many other human females, have a sexually charged and fantastical obsesseion with Johnny Depp (a.k.a. "Sex on Legs"). Yummy!!! XP