GuitArcher

The most powerful kind of advertising is most definitely the kind that doesn't seem like advertising... Case in point: That Pedal Show. I'm a huge fan of Dan and Mick, and I have a hard time not watching their videos as soon as they are posted. They manage to walk that fine line of being laid back and affable while being structured and informative in their presentation. What I didn't realize was how much impact they were having on my GAS ( gear acquisition syndrome).  I mostly thought it was limited to focusing more on pedals generally, but my recent acquisition and love of the Blues Driver had me thinking about how my drive section was basically Dan's choice in the $300 pedal board challenge. It doesn't stop there though. I bought an Ibanez JEM Jr. awhile ago, having decided that I wanted to have a guitar that was a little more 80s, with a locking tremolo and a crazy color.  I was looking at Jacksons and Charvels initially, but when the Yellow Jem Jr. p...

If you've never owned a Boss Blues Driver, go buy one. Now. I'll wait. I came across one earlier in the week for $70, but in a place that was just a little bit too far out of the way for me to justify. What's more, while I haven't made any big purchase in awhile, I seem to be spending $80 here, there, and everywhere. The universe aligned though, and Saturday morning I asked if it was still available.  I assumed that at that price, the poster had just forgotten to take down the listing. Getting a "no" to the question "is this still available?" is a great cure for acute GAS. "Yes, it is available." Fack. Better than Amazon Delivery I asked for the seller's address, and immediately texted my father, who was heading to us that day, and would be (sort of) passing by the sellers house.  I felt a little guilty, but I had recently had success selling his motorcycle on Kijiji, so I felt like he was getting used to this type of...

After selling the Marshall DSL1-C, I was feeling pretty good about myself.  After all, I had managed to sell it for 10% more than I bought it for a few years back ($550 vs. $500), so I couldn't help but think that this was a pretty good deal for me over all. Better still, I had a pocket full of cash that was ready to be put towards the next great thing. Unfortunately, my GAS ( gear acquisition syndrome) went dormant, right around the same time real-life-big-boy-pants expenses appeared. They also involved gas, but honest to goodness natural gas rather than a made up medical condition, used to justify spending too much money on guitar stuff. You see, the brand new stove had finally arrived after a 6 month delay, unexpectedly on a Saturday, which meant they hauled away the loaner and we were left with a stove that wouldn't work unless it was hooked up.  Also, apparently that isn't like plugging in a lamp. A bunch of phone calls and $200 cash later, the stove was hooked u...