Wednesday, April 29, 2020

The Band's Pandemic Playlist

mark@marktreble.com


1. Vaccine, by Dolly Parton.
Vaccine, Vaccine, Vaccine, Vaccine!
I'm begging you please, don't take my job
Vaccine, Vaccine, Vaccine, Vaccine!
Please don't take it just because you could.
 
2. Quarantine and Distancing, by Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder
Quarantine and Distancing
Live together in perfect partnering
Side by side on my laptop keyboard, oh, lord, why can't we?
 
3. You've Lost that Hugging Feeling, by the Righteous Brothers
You never open your mask any more when I kiss your lips,
And there's no tenderness like before in your armored hips,
You're trying hard not to show it, baby
But baby, baby, I know it.
 
You've lost that hugging feeling.
 


Friday, April 24, 2020

COVID19 and Advertising Nonsense

mark@marktreble.com



I read advertising copy for several UV-C light air purifiers. I understand the science, but was still stunned.

In most cases the copy begins by describing how UV Light is dangerous to humans and can cause cancer and other panic-worthy conditions. It then describes how UV light can generate ozone, and overexposure to ozone is toxic and can be fatal. Several descriptions then described the fatality of Gamma and X Rays, and cautioned against human exposure to either. I expect a typical expert with graduate degrees from Google University headlines to be frightened.

Further down the page, following intervening text hyping the deadliness of UV, comes the real information. UV Light is short wave length, with separate bands labeled A, B and C. UV-A and UV-B cause sunburn and can cause skin cancer and eye damage, but UV-C does none of these things. It kills viruses and has been used for that for the past half-century. The cheaper and older the light source, the more likely it is to produce ozone. Modern UV-C light sources of even mediocre quality produce little ozone, certainly less than would harm a human. Better ones produce none.

I did learn something: Not all advertised UV-C light virus purifiers contain a UV-C light source. That is sold separately. 


Tuesday, April 14, 2020

It's Alive!

mark@marktreble.com

Did You Ever See A Leg Grow? is live on Amazon in the Kindle store.

E-mail me with a copy of your review, whether good or bad, and you'll get future short stories from members of the bands, and playlists of their favorite tunes.

 
Check out my web page, visit my Amazon Author Page.

Join the adventure.

Meet the Band Members: Danny

mark@marktreble.com


Daniel Sparks here, I go by Danny. My friend Neil asked if I wanted a summer job as a “roadie,” someone who went with a band to do all the non-music things that need done. I agreed. In 1969, I figured it would be an adventure of a lifetime. It was far more than that.

I’m a bit older than the rest of the guys by a couple of years. I studied business in college, and knew nothing about music. The rest of the guys studied music in college, and knew nothing about business. I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be just a roadie for long. Especially because the band had less than a month to establish itself or go out of existence.

I went along with the band and every member became my good friend for decades. I didn’t need to know much about music to realize these guys were way above the level of the competition before their first rehearsal. I also realized these guys had no idea of their potential, and were ripe for being victimized by an industry that exploited the talented but ignorant for its own benefit.

They signed a two-year contract with somebody they thought could help them; he could only limit them. They were being offered little money and none of the amenities standard among music event promoters. I didn’t need to know anything about how to make music, just about the industry. I did basic research and was off to the races.

I negotiated their agreements and got them hotel rooms, catering and a lot better money. I negotiated discounts, found them opportunities and got them financial security. I introduced processes that bypassed a lot of the Sturm und Drang around their industry. 

I made money, got a career redirection and learned an incredible amount about real tolerance and inclusivity. Mostly, I made great friends for the rest of my life.