I was listening to my iTunes today and came across a set of back to back songs by bands that hailed from here in Orlando. All are still around except one, okay 2. I miss that first one very much as I LOVED the only record they made. I’ll cover them first.
My Friend Steve
This band was awesome I felt. I saw them a few times, met Steve once, and loved his music. Last I heard he’s living in Pennsylvania selling insurance or something. Do a dig and go buy this record, I promise it won’t disappoint you. This first one might be the only song you know.
Charmed
From this band though, I feel this is one you need to know. This is a live cut but the studio is just as great. Pure awesomeness that if you ride in my car with me and it comes on, I will sing along with it loud and proud..
Ok, I may be a little biased to this band because I go way back with the lead singer Dan. Dan also writes most all the songs and has been at it long before he had his band. I played hockey with him in college and he was my hockey roomie and partner in crime when it came to playing pranks on the younger guys. I’ve not seem him perform live with his band thanks to kids and their schedules(ok, they usually come on stage past my bedtime but I will see you live soon, I promise Dan), but I have seen him play and sing in person. Check out their site via the link above and here’s some live videos. Follow him on Twitter @BigTenFour as well. I think their music is great and deserves bigger exposure to showcase all the talent contained within. Enjoy.
These guys had some success with their earlier stuff and then faded from the spotlight. Too bad because they still rock and their stuff is timeless. Everyone knows Cumbersome, but they have some other dandy selections to choose from. They’re still around and still touring so don’t miss them if they come near you.
Ok, no links to these guys site. You probably already go. Rob Thomas graduated high school around here and started this band under the name Tabitha’s Secret. We all now this band and performer. Here are some of my favorites. I can never get enough of the passion in this music. It always gets me going.
Bright Lights
Long Day & Disease
Mighty Joe Plum
I worked for many years and even called the lead guitarist my boss for a while. Still a friend even though he’s on the other coast now. This band is long defunct but this was their hit.
Honorable Mentions
Creed – You know you probably like one of their songs at one time or another.
Boy Bands – The trend was awful for me, but I cannot deny the talent and musical ability of Justin Timberlake.
A few days ago, I wrote a post about “cutting the crap” with my DirecTV service. It was a little rant about companies such as this one offering great incentives to subscribe to the services offered with programming deals not available to existing loyal customers. On 2 different occasions my wife called customer service asking for the same offer as a loyal customer of 10 years. On both occasions we were denied and told there was nothing they could do.
Today, after paying our bill this afternoon I decided to give it one more try. I remained calm and simply asked for the special that was being advertised as only one day remaining. I spoke with one person who merely took the information I already gave via the automated system and then passed me on to a nicer sounding voice. Again, I had to give my information plus a little more and I explained what I was looking for. She very politely also told me she did not have access to the offer because it was for new customers only. I asked if there was anyone over in that department I could speak to that might help. She obliged and sent me on to one last person who may or may not be able to help.
On came another polite young sounding female voice, who I also had to give my info, but she had a note from the previous person I spoke with. Odd who I am doesn’t travel with the note right? Anyway, this nice girl told me that I could not get the same offer, but she would see what she could do about getting as close as possible. Not feeling hopeful while holding, she told me thanks for being a loyal customer for such a long time and she was sympathetic to my complaint. So, what she said she would do for me was give me the NFL package for free, plus one of the other movie channels for free for 6 months, plus a small credit on my bill for 6 months. So yeah, it wasn’t the exact same deal being offered but in my opinion it was even better. I was a bit shocked and wondered why my wife didn’t get the same courtesy. Anyway, I told her thanks but wondered one last thing.
As you know the name of my blog is not “Footballmandad” and so I asked instead of getting the football TV package if I could have the hockey package. I was more than willing to buy this a week ago but was debating the TV version or the online version. Regardless, she was more than happy to oblige and switched it on for me straight away. Sure the NFL stuff was twice the cost of the NHL, but I care about watching hockey games a lot more than football. So everyone is happy in the end, well I am. I was happy to have such a pleasant conversation with each person I spoke with and received pleasant conversation in return. She even noticed that we had been having some signal issues at times. I mentioned some channels in the upper numbers do have problems with HD feeds and she suggested I request a re-alignment. We have protection on our service so she suggested we use it. She even asked about some other channels we pay for that we may not have used but it turned out we do. So after all that stuff in the beginning regarding the offer, she went above and beyond my initial request to ensure everything else was also fine while I was on the phone. I made sure to get her name and info to send a nice compliment her way.
Needless to say, my faith was restored in a service I have maintained for a decade. It was nice to feel like my loyalty was respected and regarded in a way it should be. I don’t think I was in the wrong for asking for such treatment as new customers get and I feel they did one better. To my friends who I have suggested use the service, I don’t know if you can get the same deal I got. I’ve been a customer a really long time. But you should call and see what they might be able to do for you. To those on the fence, I will continue to suggest this service for your TV needs. If you do switch for the Sunday Ticket deal, you need to do so tomorrow or else it will have passed. If you do, allow me to refer you and we both get a $50 credit I believe on our account.
Even though you left the living 3 years ago, I still feel the need to say happy birthday. You would be 65 today and probably joking from your wheelchair that you can finally retire. In ways I am glad I cannot hear you make such a joke because I know you would be in that chair permanently by now. I hated that damn disease for taking so much ability away from you probably just as much as you did. I watched bits of the telethon this year, Jerry is still doing some good but I think he needs to go. He’s losing his mind. Anyway, I’m glad to know you are no longer suffering from the effects of losing a little more of your physical self each day. In some weird way I find comfort in that. What I do miss though is communicating with you. I miss the connection and bond we were creating in my adult days. I was a rotten teenager but was really enjoying our new found bond. I especially miss chatting online with you during the day. As long as it took you to type and amidst all the typos, it was good conversation about the bizarre things only we found humorous. I noticed your names still in my buddy lists a few weeks ago and it really struck me hard. I have not looked for any possible chat logs yet, because I’m afraid I may read myself not fully appreciating the moments. The girls talk about you all the time and heaven and stuff. They like the thought of you bowling with the angels making the thunder but would prefer you not do it when they want to play outside. Although I get it, ever since I hung your ashes wind chime in the girls playroom you have been more intrusive of their outdoor play time. So happy birthday Dad. I miss you and we all love you very much.
