Here’s a restoration of an early ’80s Ludwig Supraphonic. This was the snare that John Bonham of Led Zepplin used to get his classic “crack.” The Supra was made of seamless, spun metal. The vast majority of the time, that was aluminum, as it was cheap. But, Ludwig used whatever they could find, and whatever was cheap on the market that week. Brass Supras turn up, and they’re highly collectable. Sometimes, some steel would make it into the cauldron too. Most, though, were “Lud-Alloy,” i.e. aluminium. Bonham prefered the aluminum versions, and the 6.5″ depth. I’ve owned plenty of Supras over the years, but all in the more common 5″ depth. This is the first at 6.5″.

Before.

After. After without the flash.

Janet says “This week, I took the first sentence in 6 of my favorite books…you fill them in…with the right words or even better, ones of your own.

1. “In a hole in the ground there lived Larry the lizard who liked lemonade, and spent his afternoons lounging.”

2. “Some folks call it a sling blade, but I call it a Kaiser blade, but that ain’t no matter.”

3. “After dark the rain began to fall again, the storm drains backed up. There’s only so much the sewer system could take.”

4. “He was an old Spanish fish from the hold of the Spanish galleon.”

5. “There was a hand in the darkness, and it was connected to the arm bone, and it was connected to the shoulder, and that was connected to the bank president’s mistress.”

6. “Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, and so do snipers.”

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to, well, nothing in particular, tomorrow my plans include serving at the church spaghetti supper, and Sunday, I want to resolve to have a better week than this one!

I dont think Ive mentioned lately how much I love my wife, amd how thankful I am God gave her to me. Its nights like tonight that remind me of that fact. Im a complete hosebag, and shes so wonderful. Thank you, Susan.

B

On Sunday afternoon, I needed to get some caulking compuound to re-caulk the bathtub. On a side note, what’s the deal with my caulking skills? I think this is the fourth or fifth time I’ve had to recaulk the tub. We’ve owned the house 12 years. I’m recaulking the tub like every two years! Anyway, the local store I like was closed, so I went to Lowes. Matthew came inside with me, while Susan and Nat waited in the car. (Julia was staying at my Mom’s house for the afternoon.) We paid for the caul, and Matt said he needed to use the bathroom. So we went inside, and he walked up to the little urinal. “What’s that little pink thing in there?” he asked, pointing to the little freshening hockey puck in the bottom. “That’s to make it smell nice,” I said. He proceeds to stuff his head deep into the urinal. He takes a big whiff, and says “Yup. Smells pretty!”

I think it’s been three weeks since I did an MI-5. One of those weeks I was the author! I hope to get those weeks done at some point. This week, though, I’m back on the bandwagon!

Lisa said: I’ve been shopping a lot this week, so this week’s 5 is inspired by several of the stores I have been to:

1. TJ MAXX – I have no idea what the “TJ” in TJ Maxx stands for. Do know of someone who goes by his/her initials, instead of his/her full name? What is their full name? Why do they prefer initials? Tell us a little bit about this person.

TJ Kierstead was a guy I went to high school with. He played bass in a band I was in. I also remember going to Massachusetts with him in a small U-Haul to pick up some things at his mother’s house. We listened to Johnny Winter, AC/DC, and Van Halen all the way down. If I recall, TJ was short for Thomas Justin. Many people called him “Teej.”

2. TARGET – Tell us a story about target practice, hunting, or some sort of “shooting” activity.

I love shooting. I really wish I had opportunity to do it more. You can see some photos of me at the range here and here. (My boss, JP, took some GREAT shots at that second link.)

3. DOLLAR TREE – What’s the best bargain going nowadays? Is there anything you buy that is really only $1.00 (or less)?

The dollar menu at McD’s is cheap musician eats when your on the road. I’d really prefer not to eat there, but cheap is king to me.

4. BIG LOTS – What would your perfect house lot look like? Would it be big? Smaller, with less lawn care? Water feature? Stone wall? Fenced in yard? Wooded?

It would need to be near the ocean. Right on some rocky coast would be nice. Some woods is good, but not too much. Definitely put me down for a stone wall. Love ‘em! And, I’d take an old graveyard on the property, too.

5. WENDY’S – When you have an “all-day” excursion planned, do you prefer to sit down and eat a meal at a restaurant, or do you prefer a drive-through type experience in order to save more time for other activities?

As per #3, I’d prefer not to eat at a fast food place. I’d rather go to a restaurant we don’t have around home. Since the kids are probably with us, it would probably be a chain restaurant like Bugaboo Creek, Macaroni Grill, or something like that. That way, the kids can get their chicken strips, but I can have something that doesn’t come in a box, or something I don’t have to unwrap. Hurray for plates!