Norman Knight: Sometimes things fall apart

No light. I twisted the lamp switch a couple more times, of course, just to make sure, but the room stayed early morning dark. Thankfully, the light from the window was enough to help me negotiate the way out of the room and downstairs. Hmm. Looks like I need to add “light bulbs” to the list. Things fall apart. And in my world, they all seem to fall apart at the same time. That’s why I make lists.

The original plan at the beginning of the week was to replace our printer. I went to print out a Retro Brothers set list, and it began humming while simultaneously emitting strained clicks and crunches. It sounded like it really wanted to work but just couldn’t complete the task. “That can’t be good,” I said to myself exhibiting the technical savvy for which I am well known among my friends and family.

I then texted Retro Dan to print an extra copy so I would know the order of the songs we would be playing at the gig, but it is the end of the month so our home’s make-shift, steam-powered Internet service is slow. Eventually, though, my message zipped away into the air and back again with a positive response. Rumor has it a fiber optics line is just inches down the road from our house. We’ve even seen a truck in the area.

I still need to buy a couple of quarts of motor oil for my car so I can haul our equipment to the venue. The car I use for all things musical is 14 years old, a bit old by some people’s standards, I guess. But it still does the job—as long as the oil light doesn’t come on. “I probably need to put ‘buy oil’ at the top of the list,” I tell myself, again, confirming my expertise in the automobile arts.

I also need to be sure my auxiliary guitar is in decent shape. It is a good guitar and serves its purpose. During the last Retro gig, the strings felt a bit “off.” I probably need to do something about that. “I’ll put ‘strings’ on the list,” I think. My main guitar—a Martin I have convinced myself must have been constructed by angels in Heaven just for me—had an unfortunate encounter with a power surge after which the electronic gizmos stopped working. It is in the shop now. I guess when I stop by the music store, I could check to see if they have visiting hours.

I need to check the TV weather report before I leave. Where’s the remote? Oh, yeah, it stopped working the other night. It used to be so easy to manually turn a television on and off. Then again, it used to be easier to work on cars and tinker with mechanical doodads. So much used to be easier than it is now. I guess that is why we hire others to do it for us. Oh, well. It keeps the economy humming along, I suppose. I should look for a replacement remote as long as I am out. And batteries. I think we might need batteries.

I should probably get going. But first I need to unload the musical equipment from the car. Then make sure I have what I need. Let’s see: Keys, wallet, phone, sunglasses and the list. Good.

First stop, add motor oil. I should be able to do that.

Norman Knight, a retired Clark-Pleasant Middle School teacher, writes this weekly column for the Daily Journal. Send comments to [email protected].