Audiobooking 8 March 24, 2023
Posted by Mike C. in Animation, Audiobooks, Basketball, Comedy, Film, Game Shows, Golf, History, Media, Music, News, Personal, Podcast, Politics, Radio, Rock, Sports, Technology, Theatre, TV, Video Games.add a comment

It’s time for the annual “audiobooking” post. Most are visible in the thumbnail, but here are all the audiobooks (with links) that I’ve listened to on Audible since post #7 last year:
- Thanks a Lot, Mr. Kibblewhite: My Story by Roger Daltrey
- All About Me! My Remarkable Life in Show Business by Mel Brooks
- The Kid Stays in the Picture by Robert Evans (1930-2019)
- Killing the Killers: The Secret War Against Terrorists by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard (read by Robert Petkoff)
- I Am C-3PO: The Inside Story by Anthony Daniels with J.J. Abrams (foreword written and read by J.J., otherwise read by Anthony; “th” pronounced like a “t”)
- Out of the Corner: A Memoir by Jennifer Grey
- Directed by James Burrows: Five Decades of Stories from the Legendary Director of Taxi, Cheers, Frasier, Friends, Will & Grace, and More; written by James Burrows with Eddy Friedfeld (foreword by Glen and Les Charles, read by Danny Campbell; otherwise read by Jimmy) – previously referenced on 9/14/22 Instrumental Invasion
- Yours Cruelly, Elvira: Memoirs of the Mistress of the Dark by Cassandra Peterson (“cassahndra”)
- Priceless Memories by Bob Barker with Digby Diehl (read by Bob; credits read by Robert Petkoff!) – I already have this as a CD set, but I wanted the Audible treatment
- Cheech is Not My Real Name…But Don’t Call Me Chong! by Cheech Marin
- May You Live in Interesting Times: A Memoir by Laraine Newman – previously referenced on 12/7/22 Instrumental Invasion
- Laugh Lines: My Life Helping Funny People Be Funnier by Alan Zweibel (foreword written and read by Billy Crystal, otherwise read by Alan)
- Hello, Molly! A Memoir by Molly Shannon with Sean Wilsey (read by Molly)
- I’m Still a 10-Year-Old Boy: Revised and Edited by Nancy Cartwright – includes audio clips, notably of voice over lessons with Daws Butler
- Wish It Lasted Forever: Life with the Larry Bird Celtics by Dan Shaughnessy – Dan did impressions of Bird and various players when reading their quotes. His Bill Walton impression inspired me to pick up…
- Back from the Dead: Searching for the Sound, Shining the Light, and Throwing It Down by Bill Walton
- Killing the Legends: The Lethal Danger of Celebrity by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard (read by Robert Petkoff) – chronicles the lives and final days of Elvis Presley, John Lennon, and Muhammad Ali
- Waxing On: The Karate Kid and Me by Ralph Macchio
- Where’s My Fortunate Cookie? My Psychic, Psurrealistic Pstory by The Firesign Theatre‘s Phil Proctor with Brad Schreiber (read by Phil) – includes clips from various Firesign recordings, updates exclusive to the audiobook via Phil’s podcast
- Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry
- I Must Say: My Humble Life as a Comedy Legend by Martin Short – includes Marty as his many characters, rendition of his Christmas party song with Marc Shaiman
- A Life in Parts by Brian Cranston
- The Gospel According to Luke by Steve Lukather with Paul Rees (read by Luke with exclusive ad-libs)
- Face the Music: A Life Exposed by Paul Stanley
- I got halfway through an audiobook by a New Jersey-based musician and actor who was part of a long-running HBO drama. Then, the author launched into a long political dissertation. I returned my credit and moved on to…
- Disrupting the Game: From the Bronx to the Top of Nintendo by Reggie Fils-Aimé (“feese-ah-may”) – main audiobook is followed by off-the-cuff conversion with video game journalist Geoff Keighley
- I only lasted five minutes or so on an audiobook about the media until it became clear this would mostly contain interview excerpts from the author’s podcast. So, I returned that credit.
- Straight Shooter: A Memoir of Second Chances and First Takes by Stephen A. Smith
- So Help Me Golf: Why We Love the Game by Rick Reilly – a collection of golf-themed essays
That’s a total of 27 audiobooks (two co-written by O’Reilly, one wholly by Reilly), plus two returns. Everything from I’m a Still a 10-Year-Old Boy through Face the Music was purchased in October while Audible steeply discounted their catalog. Since then, I only use Audible credits on audiobooks over $14.95, the monthly membership fee. Of course, if I buy three credits for $35.88, then I’ll buy anything over $11.96.
Next year’s “audiobooking” post will be the ninth overall, but the tenth anniversary. Until then, happy listening.
Instrumental Invasion, 11/2/22 November 3, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Animation, Audio, Film, History, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Politics, Radio, Sci-Fi, TV, Video.add a comment

The November 2 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded and mixed entirely on September 19, the first one-day record/mix since June 27 when I worked on all of the August 17 show and the first segment of August 24. I made a timing error when remixing the third segment, which I didn’t notice until September 20. An extra liner and a pickup were required to add five seconds so that “+:13” on the playlist below was true. Additional pickups were recorded on October 10 (after returning from Dutchess County) to correct a factual error about bassist Harvie S‘s “Pyramid” composition, and then to react to a shorter replacement liner.
The playlist was created on September 10 (a day after last week’s show) and annotated on the 14th (after completing last week’s annotations). The talk break script draft began on the 16th, but didn’t resume until the 18th once production was completed on the prior show.
“Incumbent Waltz” is the seventh Vince Guaraldi-composed music cue for a Peanuts special that I’ve played, and a timely one with the midterm elections next Tuesday. Here’s where you can buy those Glenn Cronkhite Custom Cases I referenced in the backsell.
Two songs that aired previously are listed below with the first air date (in parentheses) and the reason for playing again:
- “Creole” by The Crusaders (November 18, 2020) – tie-in with “Fish Grease” by Jazz Funk Soul
- “In Too Deep” by Pieces of a Dream (December 29, 2021) – current single
I originally had the 2011 version of “Altair and Vega” by Bob James and Keiko Matsui in mind last July 14, but a different timing error – miscalculating the song’s duration – required a replacement. I made up for that this week, complete with the story of Tanabata/Hoshimatsuri, a festival centered around the two titular stars. You can read the Wikipedia entry in the previous sentence, but I also recommend this short video by GTV Japan:
Coincidentally, the show last July had a Star Trek reference leading into the first song. This week’s first song, complete with my paraphrase of the opening spiel, was Maynard Ferguson’s cover of the “Theme from Star Trek.” I had no idea Larry King adopted it as his radio show theme.
Click here to download this week’s scoped aircheck or listen below:
Photos from Dutchess County trip, drive back home October 28, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Aviation, Baseball, Biking, Comedy, Film, Fire, Health, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Photography, Politics, Radio, Running, Sci-Fi, Sports, Technology, Travel, Video, Video Games, Weather.add a comment
In two of my Homecoming Weekend posts (live show, main post), I referenced a family trip to Dutchess County the prior weekend. This post is about that trip.
Back in the spring, my mom sprung the trip on me: a few of my relatives were going to run a race – The Fall Foliage Half Marathon and 5K – in Rhinebeck on the Sunday of Columbus Day Weekend and we would all be put up in a nearby AirBNB. I initially panicked, worried that it would conflict with Homecoming Weekend (henceforth, HCW), but one of my alumni friends assured me the LIU Sharks‘ Homecoming football game would likely be the following weekend. And in recent years, it has been held on the third Saturday of October. My conscience was clear and I was prepared for the trip.
I assumed the AirBNB would be in Rhinebeck and my parents, sister, and I would leave for there on the morning of Friday, October 7. Instead, we were to leave in the mid-afternoon and the house was in Staatsburg. I had an extra day to prepare since I decided not to go to New York Comic Con this year, or ever again, due to my disenchantment with the event and a need to save money for paying off my PC build. (And then, a week later, I went and bought a new camera and related equipment, which I’m still trying to get the hang of.)
I have a mixed record when it comes to time management. More often than not, I mismanage my time, and that’s what I did prior to departure on Friday afternoon. In the days leading up to the weekend, I tried to get as many radio shows recorded as possible to allow for a sizable buffer of weeks ahead. I only managed to produce and record the HCW prerecord and one regular show (November 16). I finished creating the playlist for the live HCW show with only an hour to spare before leaving the house.
Annotations for the live show and next regular show (November 23) were done from my laptop during downtime at the AirBNB. It was not an easy task with constant action at breakfast time or with babies occasionally crying indefinitely, all amplified by the hardwood floors on the main floor. Most of the regular show annotations were done on Sunday evening when I had the house to myself and then in my bedroom with white noise blaring in my earbuds.
Don’t chalk this up to disdain for the experience that weekend. Overall, I had a great time seeing the sights and catching up with relatives.
My parents and I left at 3:15 Friday afternoon and drove five minutes east to pick up my sister at her apartment. Four hours of traffic and spotty cell service later, we arrived at the AirBNB on Connelly Drive in Staatsburg.
For privacy’s sake, I won’t include photos of the house’s interior or of my family, but here are two exterior shots I took Saturday afternoon:
The rest of the post is dedicated to scenery photos taken from Saturday, October 8, to the ride home on Monday, October 10.
First, two more negatives:
- The Mets completed their unraveling by losing their National League Wild Card Series to the Padres. I found out about their game 1 loss Saturday morning, game 2 win Sunday morning, and game 3 loss seconds after it happened Sunday night. It was extremely demoralizing. I spent five months of my life believing this was the year the Mets would win their third World Series, allowing me not to care if they’d win a fourth in my lifetime. Five months of my life were wasted for nothing, including hours spent editing photos from the two games I attended. Obviously, I won’t make a slideshow of photos from that second game, which turned out to be the apex of the Mets’ season; all downhill from there. I hadn’t thrown away so many months expecting an outcome that didn’t happen since the 2012 presidential election. And I was away from home that night, too, at a family friend’s house in Rockville Centre, waiting for power to be restored back at my Wantagh home. (It was the next afternoon.) (11/1 UPDATE: Whoops, forgot to note power was lost during Sandy. I wrote about my experience here.) Incidentally, that family friend now lives an hour north of where we were and she met up with us Sunday in downtown(village) Rhinebeck.
- In another case of time mismanagement, I hurriedly and anxiously shaved my face and neck on Saturday and Sunday, making everyone wait before we could drive to wherever we were going. I cut myself in multiple places, and contemplated going back to an electric razor after nearly 20 years of a manual razor with five-blade cartridges. My dad generously bought one for me as an early birthday present on Monday morning. As of publication, I’m still mastering it. Most of my face is easy to shave, but I can’t get all the hairs off my neck, above my chin, or below my sideburns.
Now for the photos. Saturday morning, October 8, included a trip to the Kesicke Farm Fall Festival (more alliteration) in Rhinebeck. One day after warm and slightly humid conditions, conditions were sunny and breezy with temperatures in the 50s. I brought a winter hat and light gloves on the trip, but only needed the gloves.














































Returning to the AirBNB:




Sunday, October 9, brought us back to Rhinebeck. I packed my camcorder and tripod on Friday because I thought we’d be watching the end of the races Sunday. I thought wrong. I did use the camcorder Saturday afternoon to record soccer practice with my sister and our cousin. We did, however, walk up and down Market Street in Rhinebeck. That made me think of a song bearing that name by Yellowjackets from the Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home soundtrack. Of course, the film was based in San Francisco, not Rhinebeck, but Rhinebeck was the location of Spyro Gyra‘s last album of original music to date, The Rhinebeck Sessions.
A recent episode of Sound Sack included misheard lyrics Joe Redifer imagined for music in Tengai Makyō: Fuun Kabuki Den for PC Engine (making me laugh real hard) and Sega Rally 2 for Dreamcast. Misheard lyrics for a cue from Sega Rally 2 included “because your fear of Daryl’s pager.” It may have an extra R, but this clothing store on Market Street made me think of Joe’s lyric. For my dad, a Freeport firefighter, I photographed this firehouse. Notice the lens flare? I walked through the Rhinebeck Farmers’ Market with my mom, aunt, and their high school friend (the aforementioned family friend). The folk stylings of Eric Erickson A selfie (with the blemishes and shaving cuts edited out)
Another pair of road signs on the way back to Staatsburg:


While I was walking through Rhinebeck, my dad biked to and from the Ashokan Reservoir via the Ashokan Rail Trail. Those are the first two photos below. He took the third Sunday evening while everyone but me traveled to the Walkway Over the Hudson. (I stayed in Staatsburg.)



Monday morning, October 10, I spotted three wild turkeys walking through the AirBNB’s backyard. I went outside to take photos with my phone, and ended up following them several yards into the woods.





Trembling from excitement and anxiety (I wanted to go home), I shot this shaky video:
We left for Wantagh at around 10:30 AM. These photos were taken on the way to the Taconic State Parkway:






On the parkway:
“Lucky” by Ken Navarro was playing on SiriusXM’s Watercolors. A rest stop
I-84:
I-684 (briefly in Connecticut):
The Hutchinson River Parkway/I-678 (supplementing my photos from May 1):
Viewing Manhattan from the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge
The Cross Island Parkway:
And finally, the Grand Central Parkway/Northern State Parkway:
It took less than 2 1/2 hours to drive from Staatsburg to Wantagh. After a short treadmill run to compensate for Friday’s shortened run, I tried my best to unwind. I edited Saturday’s and Sunday’s photos at the AirBNB, but took care of Monday’s photos at my remote location on Tuesday and Wednesday (October 11 and 12). After uploading the scenery photos (and selfie) to WordPress and making a rough draft of this post with only the photos, I shifted my focus to HCW (Homecoming Weekend, if you forgot) and finally wrote a recap on the 24th, publishing today, the 28th. Thank you for reading it all and I hope you liked the photos.
Instrumental Invasion, 7/20/22 July 21, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Aviation, Internet, Jazz, Media, Military, Music, News, Personal, Politics, Radio, TV, Video.add a comment

The July 20 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP (120 on 7/20) was recorded from May 25 to 27: two segments on the 25th, three on the 26th, and one on the 27th.
The playlist was created on May 23 after completing production of the previous two shows, with annotations on the 24th and 25th, followed by the script draft.
I had to cut portions of the first and last talk breaks of the second hour to keep them from going over 18 minutes.
Incidentally, while recording the third segment of the first hour, which ends with “In the Sky Today” by Ken Navarro, the Navy Blue Angels were rehearsing for the upcoming weekend’s Bethpage Air Show at Jones Beach. They were too high up to see from my bedroom window as the skies clouded up, but I saw one plane flying low and slow as I walking back from a supermarket trip:

If I had my DSLR camera, the resolution would be higher, but my phone only has a 2x optical zoom and that’s all I had on me.
I did take DSLR photos during the Sunday air show:
Further incidentally, I played “In the Sky Today” 52 weeks after playing the title track to Ken Navarro’s All the Way album and “The Test of Time” by Shilts three months after playing the title track to his 2012 release, All Grown Up. It didn’t occur to me until annotating the playlist that Shilts and Bill Steinway incorporated Big Ben‘s “Westminster Quarters” into their composition.
My “bye-bye” after repeating the title of Gerald Albright‘s song – “By My Side” – was an homage to political commentator John McLaughlin‘s The McLaughlin Group sign-off. Here is a compilation I found of 18 bye-byes between 2007 and 2015:
Click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
Instrumental Invasion, 1/26/22 January 27, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Film, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Politics, Radio, TV.add a comment

The January 26 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded from December 7 to 9, 2021. The first segment was recorded at home on the 7th, four segments at the remote location on the 8th, and the last segment and pickups back at home on the 9th. More pickups were recorded at the remote location on the 14th as I shortened four segments. Starting next week, all segments will be 18 minutes long, bringing me full circle as that was the standard duration for the first seven months of Instrumental Invasion. (Going forward, I will not specify where segments are recorded; only when.)
The playlist was created on December 5 with annotations on the 6th. The talk break script was drafted on the 6th and 7th.
The stream cut out seven minutes into the show. Audio returned 39 minutes later, but uncompressed and initially fluctuating between channels. I will reuse the songs that didn’t air in future shows.
I played “Sundance” by Boney James because it was on the smooth jazz radio charts at the time of recording. I also wanted to work in the line “without Butch” in reference to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. You won’t hear that on Watercolors!
I didn’t realize “Legacy” by Kenny G – a “duet” with Stan Getz – was new to the charts. I chose it as the first of six tracks to play from New Standards because it was featured in Kenny’s episode of the HBO documentary series Music Box that aired on December 2, the day before the album’s release. Plus, I got to call back to the Return to Forever song at the top of the show (“Medieval Overture“) since Stan Getz collaborated with Chick Corea during the RTF era. Fun fact: Chick’s compositions “Captain Marvel” and “500 Miles High” were recorded with Stan before RTF, but Light as a Feather came out first.
And yes, it’s true. I once let slip my political views on air, as noted after Jeff Lorber‘s “Anthem for a New America.” These days, the less I know about politics and current events, the better, and I don’t want to clash with people. I want to be everyone’s friend, regardless of politics. Incidentally, this was the second week in a row where I played a song from Jeff’s He Had a Hat album.
Click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
The dead air portion was filled with segment file audio. The audio afterward was hard limited with the fluctuating portion converted to mono.
Instrumental Invasion, 11/24/21 November 25, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Animation, Audio, Comedy, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Politics, Radio, TV, Video Games.add a comment

The November 24 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded one hour per day on October 4 and 6. I chose not to record on the 5th due to insomnia the night before. Recording was done on my laptop at my secondary location, but with my spare Audio-Technica AT2020 mic connected to my Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 that I used at home before receiving a new mixer for Christmas. The mic stood on a boom for three years under the false hope of conducting an interview with a house guest. Accepting reality, I brought the mic and interface to the other location to use with my laptop. I’d finally achieved a universal sound with the same mic model in both locations. The only problem is I noticed a hum on my talk breaks, which I determined was from the fluorescent lights on the ceiling. Apparently, I had gotten used to the hum and forgot it existed. I know now to turn off the lights before recording.
Pickups were recorded from home on October 8 and 21. Segments were also remixed on the 21st down to 18:30 or close to it.
The playlist was created on October 1 and annotated on the 2nd. The script was drafted before recording on the 4th.
To accommodate all the new music I received, I replaced the 1984 and earlier segment with a third 2017 to present segment.
This was the first show with a new Dan Siegel liner in mind. Segments from the previous four shows featuring his music were retrofitted to include the liner.
In addition to new music by Dan, the show also marked the debut of the Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio after his music was sent my way for airplay consideration. I said the title of the song I played “Girly Face,” a la Arnold Schwarzenegger, in reference to his phrase “girlie men.” The phrase was co-opted from the Hans and Franz sketch on Saturday Night Live, in the same manner that “cheese-eatin[g] surrender monkeys” was co-opted from an episode of The Simpsons.
I averted an error when crafting the second segment of hour 1, but missed the one in hour 2’s second segment. Thinking I had 3:50 available rather than 2:50, I selected “Watch Your Step” by Chris Geith. I realized the error during the October 6 recording session, replacing it with “Nocturnal” by Lisa Hilton. You’ll hear Chris’s song next week.
I’ve been meaning to end a show with Gerald Albright‘s cover of “Crazy” for a while, but it never fit. There was finally time for it this week.
Little did I realize that the penultimate song of the night, “Looking Ahead” by Bill Heller, would get the music video treatment the day after I finished recording. Here it is, with all musicians except for the percussionist (Paula Atherton is featured in the thumbnail on flute):
I didn’t mention on the air, but it was my parents’ 44th wedding anniversary.
Click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
8:45 AM UPDATE: I made another mistake that I didn’t notice until listening to the aircheck. When drafting the script, I mistook the first “i” in Dan Feiszli for an “r,” leading me to call him “Dan Ferszli” while back-selling “Full Sail” by Lawson Rollins.
My experience at Day 1 of 2021 New York Comic Con October 9, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Animation, Art, Audio, Audiobooks, DVD, Health, History, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, News, Personal, Politics, Radio, Technology, Trains, Travel, TV, Video, War, Wrestling.2 comments
Other New York Comic Con recaps: 2012 Day 2, 2014 Day 1, 2017 Day 1, 2018 Day 1, 2019 Day 1
I returned to the Javits Center on Thursday for the first day of this year’s New York Comic Con, my sixth time at the event. It was also the first time I set foot in Manhattan since a failed trip to Lisa Hilton’s performance at Carnegie Hall, nearly two years ago.
The days and weeks leading up to my trip were filled with trepidation. I felt anxious about what to expect. Would there be a capacity limit? Would I get scolded by staff or security? Did I waste my money on a badge? Why did William Shatner have to go to space, leading his events to be moved to the evening?
The day turned out to be as exciting as it was my last time at NYCC in 2019.
Under the assumption that I’d be meeting Shatner, I tweeted him about my concerns:
Been going back/forth on replying, but here goes: I have Asperger Syndrome, & I’m going to day 1 of NY Comic Con on Oct 7. I’m worried about what to expect, including photo op w/you that I bought. I’m hoping staff are nice, not angry/scolding. Will wear mask, of course.
Mike Chimeri
He replied encouragingly. I was hoping to link to that reply, but it seems to have been taken down.
Regardless, that led to many more replies from fellow fans. One fan in the UK made this suggestion:
Hi Mike, not sure if you have the same in the States, but in the UK we have a scheme where people wear a lanyard with sunflowers on, this signifies that the person wearing the lanyard may perceive life differently and to be a bit more understanding around them.
Mark ELVIS Goddard, @GBsBestElvis
They are just a subtle way to let people know to be kind I work in the tourist industry & if a customer is wearing one we automatically know 2b kind & maybe a bit calmer around them, but they don’t have that awkward conversation of explaining why they don’t do lifts for example!
Mark ELVIS Goddard, @GBsBestElvis
So, I paid about $8 for a set of artificial sunflower heads. They shed like dog fur, but I proudly put one in my ticket holder above my badge.
My day began like any other Thursday since last April, in the days when the Javits Center was a field hospital for COVID patients: edit Wednesday’s Instrumental Invasion aircheck, make a scoped version for my blog, publish the blog post, and share the post on social media. That left me about 45 minutes to eat breakfast (a bowl of cereal), shower, and get dressed and packed.
An Uber driver picked me up around 9:00, dropping me off at Wantagh LIRR station within ten minutes. Once there, I bought my ticket and walked to my usual spot on the west end of the platform, above Wantagh Avenue. The train arrived at 9:28:
I was hoping for the new M9 railcar, but it was the old M7. Oh, well.
I listened to much of my aircheck on the platform and then on the train.
Penn Station has changed drastically since last January, as seen in these photos taken on the way back from Javits:
When I arrived at Javits, my Clear app vaccination voucher was scanned, then my badge, and I went through security. It was hassle-free, thankfully. I took the first photo at 10:42, snapping away until I reached the autographing area in hall 1E:
Knowing I’d be meeting Dee Bradley Baker, earlier in the week, I ordered a compilation DVD on Amazon of Phineas and Ferb episodes centered around Perry the Platypus, Dee’s character. Assuming I’d be seeing William Shatner’s panel at 11AM and getting a photo op at 12:10 PM, I bought a 1PM ticket for Dee. Thankfully, it was accepted at 11:00.
As I waited in line, I saw Dee and other celebrity guests assembling behind the curtain. I waved to Dee and he signaled back to me, pointing two fingers at his eyes and then toward me, as if to say “I’m watching you.” That was flattering. When I was next in line, I learned that photos were not allowed at the table; autographs only. I asked the representative if he had a photo op. Yes, at 3:40, an hour and 50 minutes before the rescheduled Shatner photo op would have been. I was fine with that.
Dee and I spoke briefly as he signed the DVD box art:

To Mike!
Dee Baker
Agent P (Perry’s code name in the O.W.C.A. [Organization Without a Cool Acronym])
Dee’s autograph
Then, he graced me with Perry’s signature vocal effect. We said our goodbyes and I proceeded to the sales table to buy my photo op.
It took half an hour because neither my credit nor debit cards worked and I had to withdraw cash from an ATM, then going on the line for cash payments.
I had 3 1/2 hours to spend until it was time to wait in the queue. What to do?
First, I bought lunch at the food court: chicken fingers with waffle fries and a Sprite. I ate as I finished listening to my aircheck. When I went to out my Bose SoundLink wireless headphones away, the ear cushion for the right channel came loose. I had to buy a replacement set from their website.
After that, I proceeded up to the show floor:
What?! Jerry “The King” Lawler and Jim “Good Ol’ J.R.” Ross?!
I was a big pro wrestling fan growing up, along with my sister Lauren and cousins Chris and Sam (Samantha). After another ATM trip, a dream of mine was fulfilled: an autographed photo…:

To Mike!
“King” Jerry Lawler (WWE) HOF 07
Jim Ross
WWE HOF ’07
Jerry and Jim’s autographs
…and a photo op with King and J.R.!:

As you can see, I wore my 2020 U.S. Open shirt, previously seen in my pretend Winged Foot photo.
Before the photo, I told King that I didn’t know he’d be there. True to form, he quipped that he didn’t, either, but found himself and J.R. there anyway, or words to that effect. Don’t quote me. All I know is my comeback was “yeah, that’s how it goes,” meaning that’s what happens. After the photo, I told J.R. how long I’d been a fan and that I really enjoyed his two books, Slobberknocker and Under the Black Hat, which I listened to on Audible. He thanked me. (I synopsized Under the Black Hat in my latest “audiobooking” post.)
I took some more photos on the show floor…:
…then went back to the food court for seltzer (sparkling water) and a cookie. I engaged in conversation with my table mates, then called a few friends, and texted Lauren and Chris with a photo of the photo:

There was still plenty of time, so I sought out room 1E01: the Quiet Room:

As the name suggests, it’s a place where you can silently contemplate. I used my time in the room to charge my phone and draft the post you’re reading now.
My plan to pass the time worked. 3:15 came and I walked to the queue:
I spent the next 20 minutes or so chatting with my fellow queue members, then it was time.
I handed a staff member my ticket, put my belongings on a shelf, and was reunited with Dee. Here is our photo:

I was looking straight ahead, so I didn’t know what expression he made. I love it: Jack Benny-esque.
I said goodbye again, grabbed my belongings, picked up my photo print, and left the Javits Center. I may not have seen and met William Shatner, but I made many lasting memories. I’m so happy with how the day turned out. I will definitely be back.
Incidentally, there are articles on Bill’s 6:45 panel – which I would have seen if it was still at 11AM – on CNN’s website and Mediaite. Mediaite’s article includes a YouTube video of the panel (by Gragon Productions):
I watched on Friday night. It was like I was there in person.
10/13 UPDATE: Bill’s space trip was this morning. I didn’t realize it would only be a few minutes, but those few minutes were literally awesome for him. Watch the Blue Origin webcast replay:
10/14 UPDATE: Then, watch the moment of apogee inside the capsule:
10/17 UPDATE: Blue Origin had one more video up their sleeve: a recap:
Back to October 7.
Here’s my photographic journey back to Penn Station:
I reached Penn at 4:05…:
…and took the 4:12 bound for Wantagh, which was another M7:

When I arrived in Wantagh at 5:02, my mom was waiting to drive me home. As it turns out, the Penn-bound train was an M9:
Back in my room, I took photos of all the day’s belongings:

POSTSCRIPT: While perusing the New York Comic Con site on Friday afternoon, I noticed George Takei, Bill’s Star Trek co-star, was in the Q&A portion of his panel. So, I watched, periodically taking screencaps. In addition to Star Trek, he fielded questions about the animated film Kubo and the Two Strings, the video game Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3, his political activism stemming from internment during World War II (I ached as he told his story), and fond memories of Leonard Nimoy, another Star Trek co-star. One anecdote in particular was about how George saw Leonard perform in the play Equus on Broadway and Leonard returned the favor when George performed in the L.A. production. After the last question, George stood up, thanked the fans in the hall, and gave them Spock’s Vulcan salute. Now, how about those screencaps?
Well, thank you for making it this far. My next task is to chronicle the return of WCWP Homecoming Weekend. Till then, so long.
Audiobooking 6 April 4, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Animation, Audio, Audiobooks, Baseball, Comedy, Commentary, Film, History, Media, Personal, Politics, Radio, Sports, TV, Video.add a comment
It’s been just over a year since the previous post. Instrumental Invasion has taken up most of my time, providing a necessary escape from the tumultuous reality.
I continue to listen to audiobooks on days where I workout and run, or even while editing photos. My source remains Audible, now as a paid member. When I’m billed at the end of each month, I use my credit on the next audiobook to listen to. As I type, I have a three-book backlog.
Here’s what I’ve been listened to since Andrea Barber’s memoir:
- Relentless: Unleashing a Life of Purpose, Grit, and Faith by John Tesh – Back and forth between life events and his cancer treatment and recovery
- Love, Lucy by Lucille Ball (read by Lucie Arnaz)
- The Facts of My Life by Charlotte Rae (1926-2018) and Larry Strauss (her son) (read by Charlotte) – Like me, Charlotte’s firstborn son (Larry’s older brother) Andy was on the autism spectrum – I felt deep empathy whenever Charlotte talked about him
- I, Rhoda: A Memoir by Valerie Harper (1939-2019) – As a compulsive overeater, I can relate to Valerie’s struggle
- Inside Out: A Memoir by Demi Moore – Came off as a downer at times
- Home Work: A Memoir of My Hollywood Years by Julie Andrews with Emma Walton Hamilton (her daughter) (read by Julie) – sequel to Home: A Memoir of My Early Years
- The Answer Is…: Reflections on My Life by Alex Trebek (1940-2020) (read mainly by Ken Jennings with a few chapters read by Alex) – Eugene Levy’s last name is pronounced “levvy,” Ken; not “leavy”
- Raised Eyebrows, Expanded Edition: My Years Inside Groucho’s House by Steve Stoliar, who also read Dick Cavett’s introduction in Dick’s voice – Very entertaining – Boo, Erin Fleming!
- The Plus: Self-Help for People Who Hate Self-Help by Greg Gutfeld – recorded in the early days of the pandemic, before a certain event tore the country apart – another one of those books catching me up on all the news I chose to avoid – Greg hates “at the end of the day” just as much as I do
- Riding the Elephant: A Memoir of Altercations, Humiliations, Hallucinations, and Observations by Craig Ferguson – At times, Craig came close to deriding religion and right-wing political figures
- The Day It Snowed in April: A Memoir by Devin Devasquez – Mostly about her relationship with Prince, but does chronicle her life – seemed to be read in one take, complete with pauses – “at the end of the day”
- Killing Crazy Horse: The Merciless Indian Wars in America by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard (introduction read by Bill, otherwise read by Robert Petkoff)
- Beastie Boys Book by Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz (read by Michael, Adam, and various celebrites, including Rachel Maddow) – Left-wing politics nearly marred my listening, but I hung in to the end – I’m sure it would have been worse if it came out around the time I listened in October
- All the Way: My Life in Four Quarters by Joe Namath with Sean Mortimer and Don Yaeger (read by Joe)
- Full Count: The Education of a Pitcher by David Cone and Jack Curry (read by David)
- As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes with Joe Layden (read by Cary) – Cary isn’t the only voice you’ll hear – we also hear accounts from Rob Reiner (who wrote the foreword), Andy Scheinman, Robin Wright, Christopher Guest, Chris Sarandon, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, and Carol Kane – Fred Savage, Mandy Patinkin, Norman Lear, and author/screenwriter William Goldman are portrayed by the same narrator, whose name I didn’t catch
- The Me Generation…by Me: Growin Up in the ’60s by Ken Levine (la-VYNE) – Left-wing political perspective, but for half-century-old events; didn’t bother me
- Simpsons Confidential: Jokes, Secrets, and Outright Lies from a Lifetime Writing for The Simpsons by Mike Reiss (“rees”) with Mathew Klickstein (read by Mike, including Judd Apatow’s foreword) – Left-wing political perspective on events from the last 20 years! – Religion bashing, southern state bashing, Bush bashing, Trump bashing, anger over Jonah Goldberg co-opting “cheese-eating surrender monkeys” – Add a misleading cheery voice, and you get a smiling character assassin from Bristol, Connecticut (whose youth predated ESPN, which wasn’t mentioned), verbally shooting down everyone he hates – At least I learned about his days on The Critic before I rage quit listening with an hour to go – Instagram post:
I was a big fan of “The Critic” and have been an on-and-off fan of “The Simpsons.” I heard the cheery voice of Mike Reiss (“rees”) in DVD commentaries for both shows. I thought I would like “Simpsons Confidential.” While it had its moments, the book was mostly a string of personal or locational attacks: Texas, South Carolina, Tim Allen, Republican politicians, etc. Never meet your heroes and don’t listen to their memoirs. I was previously let down in a similar fashion by Ron Perlman, Joely Fisher, Carrie Keagan, and Eric Idle. I was somehow able to tolerate the political asides of Billy Crystal, Carl Reiner, and Ken Levine (“laVYNE”) in their memoirs.
My Instagram post, 1/30/21; a screencap of Audible’s credit was the post photo
Thankfully, Audible refunded my credit for the book, even with only 55 minutes left to listen to. I used it to buy Jerry Seinfeld’s “Is This Anything?” I hope nothing makes me regret that purchase.
If you want to see Mike’s latest personal attacks on people he hates, he’s on Twitter at MikeReissWriter.
- All in All: An Actor’s Life On and Off the Stage by Stacy Keach (foreword by Alec Baldwin, read by voice actress whose name, again, I missed) – Only political in the ’60s and early ’70s – blessed relief after enduring Mike Reiss
- Is This Anything? by Jerry Seinfeld (chapter titles read by British voice actress) – Jerry’s jokes by decade, prefaced by synopses of his life in each decade
- Never Look at the Empty Seats: A Memoir by Charlie Daniels (1936-2020) – Nearly the opposite of Ken Levine and Mike Reiss politically – pleasant to my center-right ears – nice to learn about his full career besides “The Devil Went Down to Georgia”
- Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey – Except for acknowledging 2020 events at the end, enjoyable to listen to – “NOTE TO SELF! …”
- Under the Black Hat: My Life in the WWE and Beyond by Jim Ross with Paul O’Brien (read by JR) – Focuses on JR’s WWF/WWE career, beginning at Wrestlemania XV in 1999 (six years after his initial debut) – for a wider life story, I’ll need to check out Slobberknocker: My Life in Wrestling
There, all caught up.
Until next year’s “Audiobooking” post, happy listening.
Audiobooking 5 April 1, 2020
Posted by Mike C. in Animation, Audio, Audiobooks, Comedy, Commentary, Film, History, Media, Military, News, Personal, Politics, TV, Video.add a comment
In light of my practically apolitical audiobook streak since I impulsively quit the “Audiobooking” series, save for the right end of the spectrum, I chose to bring it back. Here’s what I’ve been listening to while exercising since September 2018:
- My Days: Happy and Otherwise by Marion Ross with David Laurell (read by Marion with David and guest voices; foreword written and read by Ron Howard)
- Killing the SS: The Hunt for the Worst War Criminals in History by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard (read by Bill, with periodic mispronunciations)
- #DoNotDisturb: How I Ghosted My Cell Phone to Take Back My Life by Jedediah Bila – Since listening to this, I’ve put my phone in airplane mode when I don’t want to be disturbed, typically at bedtime
- The Geraldo Show: A Memoir by Geraldo Rivera – This book mostly chronicles Geraldo’s war reporting in Afghanistan and Iraq
- Stay Hungry by Sebastian Maniscalco
- Live Long and…: What I Learned Along the Way by William Shatner with David Fisher (read by Bill)
- The Light Within Me: An Inspirational Memoir by Ainsley Earhardt
- Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography by Eric Idle – There was a brief political rant toward the end, using an airport employee as a strawman
- Grateful American: A Journey from Self to Service by Gary Sinise with Marcus Brotherton (read by Gary)
- A Polaroid Guy in a Snapchat World by David Spade (Audible original)
- The United States of Trump: How the President Really Sees America by Bill O’Reilly (read by Rick Adamson, with periodic mispronunciations [i.e. “mewler”]; beginning and end read by Bill)
- Never Play Dead: How the Truth Makes You Unstoppable by Tomi Lahren – A handful of “at the end of the day”
- The Way I Heard It by Mike Rowe
- Voice Lessons: How a Couple of Ninja Turtles, Pinky and an Animaniac Saved My Life by Rob Paulsen with Michael Fleeman (read by Rob; foreword written and read by his son Ash) – I read the paperback as I listened on Audible; I posted a review in November
- Vocal Recall: A Life in Radio and Voice Overs by Neil Ross
- 9 Rules of Engagement: A Military Brat’s Guide to Life and Success by Harris Faulkner – She said “at the end of the day” once
- Finding the Bright Side: The Art of Chasing What Matters by Shannon Bream
- Break Shot: My First 21 Years by James Taylor (Audible original) – Periodic song excerpts
- Goldie: A Lotus Grows in the Mud (abridged) by Goldie Hawn
- Full Circle: From Hollywood to Real Life and Back Again by Andrea Barber
2018 humbled me with the unexpected political turns in the memoirs I listened to, not to mention Kevin Hart’s endless tangents. It taught me to choose the audiobooks I buy carefully. If the author is politically active from the left on social media, chances are it will come up in their book. Eric Idle was the last mistake in that respect, which is why I haven’t bought John Cleese’s memoir. Thankfully, Neil Ross only had one political sentence in his book: deriding right-to-work states. I wonder what Goldie Hawn’s memoir, released in 2005, would have been like if it came out today. Never Play Dead and The United States of Trump weren’t exactly choir music, either. The books reminded me of the political stories I missed while avoiding current events. Nevertheless, they were worth listening to, as were the rest of the audiobooks listed above.
Whenever Andrea Barber mentioned her son Tate in Full Circle, I thought of a running gag on the Game Sack YouTube channel involving TATE Mode, the vertical screen orientation for arcade games. It’s generally pronounced “tah-tay,” but host Joe Redifer pronounces it phonetically, an acceptable alternate pronunciation. Whenever a game is featured with TATE Mode, he’ll get facetiously hyperbolic.
I have three more audiobooks to listen to in my Audible app after I finish Full Circle, and you’ll see what those were in the next “Audiobooking” post. Until then, happy listening.
Audiobooking 7 March 26, 2022
Posted by Mike C. in Animation, Audio, Audiobooks, Baseball, Books, Comedy, Commentary, Drama, Film, Football, Health, History, Internet, Media, Music, News, Personal, Politics, Radio, Rock, Sports, TV, Video, War, Wrestling.2 comments
Another year of audiobook listening is in the books. I’m still an Audible member and use each month’s credit on a new book, but throughout my membership, there will come a time where I pay $35.88 to buy three extra credits. I listened while exercising, running (or walking) errands, doing household tasks, and at bedtime.
I even listened to one book on YouTube rather than Audible. Find out which one as I list the audiobooks I listened to since last year’s Audiobooking post:
As I crafted this post, adding one book at a time, I had no idea how many books I had listened to: 34, plus three that I returned! That far exceeds the amount of books in earlier posts.
Until next year’s “Audiobooking” post, happy listening.