Secret Santa - Whaddya Get Post?

[RuSsMaN]

My secret santa got to work EARLY. Package arrived, I actually had my wife 'screen' all incoming packages - so I have no idea where or who it came from.

Sitting here looking at it - I want to tear into it REAL BAD. I'm going to wait for Christmas morning, but it's not going to be easy - that's for sure. There is even a CARD, how neat!

Flip side - I finally have my SS (Secret Santa - not Solid State) audio ducks in a row, and will ship my gift out tomorrow morning. So if you haven't gotten 'yours' yet - don't fret - it's on it's way.

Cheers,
Russ

[WhiteSE]

Shiat!!!! I havent shipped mine out either,,,,
I wish for a Zerostat...LOL!!!! :-)

[jerrymrc]

My package is ready to ship. Goes out tomorrow.

[Wardsweb]

I think mine arrived today. At least, I got a nice gift wrapped something.

[dsk]

I think mine is going out today (I'm doing the drop ship gig).

[WhiteSE]

I ordered mine today,,,it will get to the recipient well ahead of xmas time.....
I did get mine today!!!:-))

[jerrymrc]

My gift should be there on the 14th. It is not very secret since UPS would not ship without my name on it. I racked my brain after going thru 100s of posts trying to learn what this person might like. Not a single post had any personal info that I could find. :scratch2:

In the end I punted and went with one of my standbys. I hope they like it. :)

[dsk]

I know what you mean. I went with something I would like. Maybe it'll show up in members for sale/wanted!

[piece-it pete]

Ditto here. Maybe next year we should all give hints?

Pete

[grumpy]

It can be tricky when you get someone you know little about. Thats when you just take a wild stab at it :yes:

[dsk]

Here's my hint: 1980.

[mhardy6647]

Received my SS package moments ago @ work... big heavy box, said "open now". I opened it... mmmmmm! Lots (LOTS!) of highly ingestible looking comestibles, and a beautiful calendar as well.

Thanks, Santa! :-)

And thanks to AK/Tim for organizing such a community event!

Happy holidays to all...

[piece-it pete]

It can be tricky when you get someone you know little about. Thats when you just take a wild stab at it :yes:

Fruitcake?

:D

[jerrymrc]

Im glad you liked it Mark. I racked my brain with 2 things. 1. What do you get a man for $30 or so that has a 6 figure income? 2. What do you get a man that very tactfuly has NO personal information in ANY of his posts?

I do not know if that cheese travels to the east coast but it is unique. I grew up with it since I am from Oregon. Only been the last 10 years or so that I could get it in CO.

Sorry that this has not been so secret.

Next year I want THOR. A set of spark plugs, A bottle of wax, And a case of beer and he's set!

[Kamakiri]

Dammit that does it. I'm opening mine now!

[grumpy]

oops forgot to send mine. Been to busy shipping everyone else gear out. Just gonna have to 3 day it to make sure it gets there on time.

[mhardy6647]

Tim:

Hey, mine said to open now ('cause it was perishable)! You silly. :-)

I do know of that cheese, but not from here. Some of my wife's family is from WA (state) and we also lived in CA for a couple of years a while back.

As to whether there's any personal info in my (ulp) 1500+ posts... well, I am not too interesting OR too interested in stuff besides music and hifi. Well, I am pretty proud of my wife and kids, but they're REALLY hard to buy for. I do like biochemistry and biotechnology, but not looking for gifts in that vein :-)

BTW, I do believe the cheeses and sausage and the crackers will be the centerpiece for our holiday party!

[jerrymrc]

Thanks! :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana:

Your local friends are in for a treat! :thmbsp:

[MikE]

Shipped mine today, should arrive in 5 days. :banana: MikE

[veg-o-matic]

I got mine! I got mine! :D

Thank you Secret Santa--whoever you are! I'd never heard of Richard Thompson before. Now I have to go check out the rest of his stuff :banana:


And since I'm already here, my "outgoing" gift went, well, out . Hope you like it!

veg

[krimney]

Which one did you get? some of his stuff can be a little dark while other stuff is very rootsy.

Rumour and Sigh is one of my favorites. Vincent black lightning can make my hair stand on end if played on the right system.

[cabinover]

Those of you that received food items, I guess they should be opened and enjoyed before they start to smell funny. I got a present today but I'm gonna save it for the big day, or maybe the night before after the kids go to bed.
I can't rightfully open it early then tell my 10yr old that no longer believes in Santa that he can't have one of what's in the closet :no:

Thanks Secret Santa!!!! Bob

Now that I know how this game works, next year will be alot more fun! :yes:

[WhiteSE]

I got mine! I got mine! :D

Thank you Secret Santa--whoever you are! I'd never heard of Richard Thompson before. Now I have to go check out the rest of his stuff :banana:


And since I'm already here, my "outgoing" gift went, well, out . Hope you like it!

veg


Did you listen to that music yet?

[RuSsMaN]

Mine SHOULD have arrived at its destination by now - still haven't heard from the lucky recipient!

[luvvinvinyl]

Russman, did you track its progress to destination? I had fun doing that.

BTW, if your gift is going into Canada, :naughty: and you, or anyone else, sent it via USPS, be aware that the CanadaPost clerical workers are on strike! :wtf: I suppose this is the best time for that, at least, from their POV.

'Course, your recipient may be waiting till Christmas day to open their gift from you! :D

On a more personal note, still don't have mine. :worried:
Still waiting patiently. :no:
I hate waiting.

[dsk]

rut roh raggy....mine was coming from Canada to the US. Hmmmm

[luvvinvinyl]

rut roh raggy....mine was coming from Canada to the US. Hmmmm

Hope your sender sent it via a 'trackable' method. Then you/he can follow its progress.

[luvvinvinyl]

Just checked on a pkg I sent out to Alabama, on Wednesday. Canada Post, in its infinite incompetence, now has it sitting in Mississauga, up near Toronto! My pkg has spent the last two days moving in the opposite direction! :wtf:

You would think I would be accustomed to this, but, NO!

[grumpy]

My gift arrived and contrary to the instructions inside this fat ass didn't wait until the 25th to open it :)

Thanks to my secret santa who lives on 180 gram lane. LOL

[dsk]

I sent it. Don't know if I can track it, better check I guess

[luvvinvinyl]

rut roh raggy....mine was coming from Canada to the US. Hmmmm

???

[luvvinvinyl]

Seriously, if you have a tracking number, have at it.

[mech986]

For those who may be waiting, there are a few items still coming from Britain and the Far East which then must be repacked and sent on the secret santa recipients.

bart

[piece-it pete]

Got mine!

Much more nicely done than mine - jeez!! It says wait till Christmas so I will, begrudgingly, I must have more willpower (or more worried over the sender :) ) than a certain fat ass we know. :D

Pete

[reyneman]

I sent out some heavy metal to my recipient, hope he enjoys.

[reyneman]

Oh yeah- I don't need to open mine, already saw the pictures :thmbsp:

[luvvinvinyl]

Oh yeah- I don't need to open mine, already saw the pictures :thmbsp:

Are the rest of us going to suffer with 'cable envy'? :naughty:

[dsk]

Seems mine has been stuck in Ontario since Dec. 10th. If it does not get to its destination by Christmas Eve, I'll at least send an email pic of the item to my person. Has anybody had any luck getting Canada Post moving?

[luvvinvinyl]

dsk, if it is sitting in the GTA, it is probably waiting for customs clearance, and with the clerical people on strike...

Well, your guess is as good as mine for how long it will sit in the customs bonded warehouse, awaiting clearance.

My JD Xmas comp CD sat there for almost two weeks. It was a single CD, with virtually no value for customs purposes (JD: as opposed to the value I put on it! :thmbsp: ), and they were not yet on strike. :worried:

[jguzman21]

I got mine last week and was planning on waiting till X-mas but I couldn't control myself.

I got a couple of great CD's from one of our AK brothers up north. Thanks Ken :thmbsp: . The "Wiseass Crooner" CD is great.

john

[krimney]

John, glad you like it. I've also got his X-mas album and it's getting regular play around here this time of year.

Everyone else can check out his website at www.timtam.net

Can't wait for my SS gift....

[Crotalus]

Well I got mine, last week, and since there were no instructions on it.....darn it I couldn't wait. And all I can say is that my Secret Santa hit the nail on the head. A Shure force gauge. Perfect! Just what I needed and wanted. Now I can fine tune till my hearts content.

And since I'm pretty sure I know who it came from (buckeye state).....I give you permission to overlook the opening instructions and open yours whenever you want. :yes:

[asynchronousman]

Well I kinda had a small clue but Bob (Cabinover) did a great job and deserves my most humble thanks for sending me two gifts-the TEAC fully computerized dual cassette deck with Dolby B/C that I used to complete my GF's system for her present from me, and a Shure M92E convertible cartridge/stylus for my turntable project. Now I just have to get that TT to start up...it kinda went pop or something when I replaced the missing plug and tried to operate it last week or two back.

Now I hope the one I sent gets there by mid-week.

[opt80]

I got mine 11/2 weeks ago from California,Thanks,Carl

Alan

[veg-o-matic]

Did you listen to that music yet?


Yep, though I was at work at the time, so my speakers were pretty low. The music was good, but I didn't get a chance to really hear the lyrics.

Of course, someone has already borrowed it, so a close listen will have to wait a bit...

By the way, are youuuuuuuu my Secret Santa?

veg

[piece-it pete]

Well darn it I couldn't wait, though my ass is more like Hank Hills'.

(Sorry, I can't leave it be!!)

That plus certain permission from certain outside sources :D .

Wow this is GREAT! I got a 16oz bottle (the big one!) of Spin Clean cleaning solution (which I needed), a Silvertide cd, PLUS a John Fogerty DVD!

:banana: :banana: :banana:

I'm not familiar with Silvertide, but will be tonight! and the Fogertys' a no-brainer. Many thank yous!

Merry Christmas,
Pete

BTW, did I say this is GREAT?! We should do this in July too!

[Vintage TX]

Came home and found a package waiting on the porch from Santa. :banana:
Very tempting after reading "store in cool place" label, so unwrapped it. :D
Praline Pecan Pie made by Mary Puddin Hill :yes: :thmbsp:
I love anything with pecan, Thanks alot Jon ! :beerchug:

[THOR]

Uhhhh I don't think that was your Ak Secret Santa gift :confused: ;)

[Vintage TX]

Really ? :scratch2:
It was from Jon Jexxxxs, not sure what Jon's username is.

[THOR]

I'm fairly sure :yes:

Is this someone you know just sending you a gift?

[Vintage TX]

No you are right Thor, that's from a gentleman who contacted me about a reel to reel. :D
Grumpy know who that is. :thmbsp:
Sorry, my mistake, but I still love pecan :banana: :yes:

[grumpy]

Got a chance to spin my Secret Santa gift today. Good stuff. Also got some speaker wire that will got to some good use. Thanks Santa !

[THOR]

A little birdy says keep an eye out for the FedEx truck tommorow ;)

[Vintage TX]

Hmm, another Santa :yikes: :banana:

[asynchronousman]

They don't make pink FedEx trucks, do they?

Well. if they did, they'd look nice with a bumblebee stripe and a pewter skull hanging from the mirror, I'm sure.

[Vintage TX]

WOW, Fed Ex came by and a large package from Santa arrived. :banana:
12 bottles of Sea Dog, made in Maine + second package that I will save for Christmas. :D
Beer is in the frigde getting cool :boink: :yippy:
Tonight it's time to taste beer from Maine. :beer:

Thanks alot Thor :beerchug: :wave:

[THOR]

Wait till you see what's in the box, I guarantee you'll be the only one in Katy, Texas with one, hell mebbe in all of Texas ;)

Hope the beer pleases the pallet :thmbsp:

[TWantiques]

Mine arrived today...from Canada. :thmbsp: No opening instructions so I'll wait until Christmas day. All I have to do is remind myself:

I'll wait...
I'll wait...
I'll wait...

Terry

[dsk]

Wow, my gift arrived today (from some god-forsaken dust bowl called Katy Tx, hmmmm sounds familiar). Plus, the one I sent was delivered, so all that stress has melted away. Thanks Rolf! 3 reels of very nice RtR blank tape! No mare recording over GW finds! I can't wait to try it out. Happy Holidays!!

[Vintage TX]

You welcome David :thmbsp:
Glad the package arrived OK, some fresh tape is never wrong.
Use normal setting on the Sony. :yes:

Happy Holidays! :beerchug:

[jerrymrc]

Here I sit all broken hearted.... tried to ... :cry: :cry: :cry: One more day to go.........

[styler]

My Secret Santa did some damn good work!
1. Herb Alpert and the Tiajuana Brass - LP
2. Barbara Streisand - LP
3. Ray Coniff - LP

and....

4. DARK SIDE OF THE MOON 180G ANNIVERARY RE-ISSUE

THANKS SANTA,
Tyler

[2DualsNotEnough]

Got my Booty from Santy today.Got a nifty radio and the original mono single of "Magic Carpet Ride".Santy knew his/her stuff!I KNEW the single was a totally different rendition,even the phrasing is different from the album track.Muchas Gracias Santy!!!!! :banana: :banana: :banana:
Jimmy

[asynchronousman]

Here I sit all broken hearted.... tried to ... :cry: :cry: :cry: One more day to go.........

Jerry, my friend Alice said she got it mailed last week. I've been waiting for a money order myself that the sender hoped would arrive Monday, so I'm figuring USPS is getting bogged down. At any rate, I've been worried about it for a week and wanted it to be more of a surprise. If it doesn't get there by Friday, and it's only the 22nd today, please PM me. I've been running on vapors and a possible broken motor mount for daze scrambling about to put things together and finish paying people for this month, and I had this all bought the first week of the month but naught to send it. She says it's sent, and I put a big note on the box that had a bag of hamburger patties that said there were NO food commodities inside...but I doubt it was the deal. Two more daze and PM me if no show, and I'll go ask her again tomorrow. My mother didn't even get the money out in time to help me drive into Nampa for dinner (35 miles but I'm bone dry otherwise). The auction was Dave's money, and I didn't listen right and spent too much. I hope I don't feel like twice the bum soon.

But do watch. Thanks.

[ProAc_Fan]

Another stellar Secret Santa gift for moi. Josh Groban Live in Concert CD/DVD and a new Discwasher 4 record cleaning system. Very good choices if I don't say so myself.

Ho Ho Ho

Mike

[asynchronousman]

Another stellar Secret Santa gift for moi. Josh Groban Live in Concert CD/DVD and a new Discwasher 4 record cleaning system. Very good choices if I don't say so myself.

Ho Ho Ho

Mike

I do believe you managed to say so :D That Groban cat is PRIMO :thmbsp:

[krimney]

My SS package arrived yesterday, but I'm gonna be a good boy and wait to open it. The kids all get one gift to open Xmas eve so maybe I'll get one too :thmbsp:

Mailed Dec 8, arrived the 22. Sent air mail.

[outlawmws]

I opened mine! :yes:

Good choice, Secret Santa! I got a Skip Dr. CD scratch fixer! Already used it to fix a very annoying skip on our Charlie Brown Xmas CD on track 5. All gone now! :banana:

With well over 300 CD's (and 3 kids) in the house, its certain to see more use! :thmbsp:

:D

[THOR]

I got mine on Wednesday, but this is my first chance to get on AK in two days, been doing the xmas shopping stuff and been busy as a raped ape!

Kamakiri was my SS he got me some cool original 1990/91 (the year Miatas came out) Mazda Miata brochures and poster. He got me a neat little antique sign that tells my weekend guests that if I am drinking and invite them to stay till Monday I don't mean it ;) And he got me Rob Zombies greatest hits CD that includes a bonus DVD! Awesome stuff Kam thanks again!!!!!

[MikE]

:sigh: I haven't received mine but have been on vacation all week, so maybe it'll be there for me on Monday. I sure hope my SS gift arrived before X-Mass. MikE

[jerrymrc]

It got here! the BBT showed up about 2 hours ago. I want to thank asynchronousman for the ear muffs and the DVD's I will have to sit down and watch Run Silent, Run Deep. Been some time since I have seen it.

I know the "Gun Thing" brought the muffs but buried in my qualifications is that I am a Certified Hearing conservation tech and I do take my hearing to heart. I do not know how my ears escaped three nights of rush in a row. :yikes: and countless concerts but they did. At 46 I am 5-10 DB across the board. When I shoot I wear plugs and muffs.

Thanks Steven! P.S. Have to look you up on my way back home in the spring.
I was born and raised in portland and I know where Ontario is!

P.P.S. I know why it took so long. They tried to send it back to you! Look.


Dec 24, 2004
1:56 P.M.
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, US
DELIVERY
2:55 A.M. COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, US OUT FOR DELIVERY
2:00 A.M. COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, US ARRIVAL SCAN
Dec 23, 2004
7:18 P.M.
COMMERCE CITY, CO, US
DEPARTURE SCAN
2:48 A.M. COMMERCE CITY, CO, US ARRIVAL SCAN
Dec 22, 2004
5:23 P.M.
SALT LAKE CITY, UT, US
DEPARTURE SCAN
11:32 A.M. SALT LAKE CITY, UT, US ARRIVAL SCAN
2:40 A.M. BOISE, ID, US DEPARTURE SCAN
1:24 A.M. BOISE, ID, US ARRIVAL SCAN
Dec 21, 2004
9:18 P.M.
PAYETTE, ID, US
DEPARTURE SCAN
2:26 P.M. PAYETTE, ID, US ORIGIN SCAN
10:49 A.M. PAYETTE, ID, US AN INCORRECT ROUTING AT A UPS FACILITY CAUSED THIS DELAY;THE PACKAGE WAS MISSORTED AT THE HUB. IT HAS BEEN REROUTED TO THE CORRECT DESTINATION SITE
4:15 A.M. PAYETTE, ID, US ARRIVAL SCAN
3:00 A.M. BOISE, ID, US DEPARTURE SCAN
1:15 A.M. BOISE, ID, US ARRIVAL SCAN
Dec 20, 2004
9:18 P.M.
PAYETTE, ID, US
DEPARTURE SCAN
7:52 P.M. PAYETTE, ID, US ORIGIN SCAN
1:05 P.M. PAYETTE, ID, US PICKUP SCAN
7:16 A.M. US BILLING INFORMATION RECEIVED

[asynchronousman]

Well, alright! I thought she sent it USPS...

Actually, There was a model with a slightly better rating, but it was out of my range at the time. I thought a bit and realized that logarithmically it was still a pretty good suppression ratio for a decent shoulder arm. I hope it serves you well and I realize they probably do not last forever so I guessed you might need one.

If you come in summer, perhaps we can go to Meridian Speedway. I have not been there since I was young. I am not enthused a lot by hockey games.

Gee, I thought I got a Jimmy Stewart movie called Shanandoah? and The Guns Of Navarrone! I guess it's been a while. I put up karaoke slips and forget until I go up and sing or edit my slips (she lets me without questions as long as I tell her if the lead song changed).

See? I told ya hang in! :D

[jerrymrc]

If you come in summer, perhaps we can go to Meridian Speedway. I have not been there since I was young. I am not enthused a lot by hockey games.

My father won a Midget race there along time ago. I have been to the track.
I sent a PM. I may have been off. Let me know.

Jerry

[Kamakiri]

Thanks to my SS for the music and Fillmore T-shirt! :banana:

Can't wait to take a listen.....when I can get to it through all of the kids toys piled up arond here :eek:

[Wardsweb]

I got a Freud 10" saw blade. Now you may ask what's that got to do with audio. Well someone was paying attention and knows I just got a new table saw for making speakers. :D

[Andyman]

Sitting here spinning Norah Jones, "Come Away with Me" on 200g Quiex SV-P vinyl; sounds fantastic :yes: :thmbsp: :banana:

Thank you, Secret Santa!!

[luvvinvinyl]

Sitting here looking at it - I want to tear into it REAL BAD. I'm going to wait for Christmas morning, but it's not going to be easy - that's for sure. There is even a CARD, how neat!

Cheers,
Russ

Well, RuSsMaN, you started this thread, and it is now almost 2:30 p.m. on Christmas Day. So, what did ya get? Inquiring minds want to know!

(Living vicariously through everyone else's SS gifts. Got a message from an elf that my SS gift is still making its way to me, from halfway 'round the world! Too Cool! But I hate waiting!)

[cabinover]

I got to open mine today also. 4 new sealed LPs!!!!
Willie Nelson~The Best of Willie/ GREAT!!
The Who~Face Dances/ Haven't listened to yet.
Claude Bolling~Greatest Hits/ Different from anything I have, need to listen more.
MicroAcoustics~Test record with the usual tones but songs on the flip side/ Fantastic!!!!

Thanks to my SS TW, I really appreciate it. Can't remember the last time I had a B spankin N record. Now to get a hold of a static gun and I'll be set. Happy Holidays all, Bob

[TWantiques]

You are welcome Bob.

I love buying sealed LP's but have yet been able to talk myself into opening any of them. Glad to see you don't suffer from the same affliction. :thmbsp:

Merry Christmas! :)

Terry

[RuSsMaN]

SOMEONE paid attention.

PERFECT gift. 6BM8's seem to be in fairly short supply, new or used. SS sent me an NOS *MATCHED* Quad of Phillips ECL82 / 6BM8. The 6BM8 is essentially a 6BQ5 / EL84, but with half of a 12AX7 on top (notice the lack of driver tubes on the amp).

To say I'm absolutley THRILLED would be an understatement. These are in my Radii Audio MPP-M8 Stereo Amp. For those not familar, it is essentialy a pair of the sought after ASL Wave 8 monos on a single chassis.

A HUGE 'Thank you' to my Secret Santa - you knocked this one RIGHT out of the park. Now, I'm off to get my 8 watts of push-pull on, with my Univeristy Triax - you guys may never see me again.

Cheers,
Russ

[mech986]

Finally was able to open my gift after all the kids were done with theirs. Got a 2 CD Import set of John Lee Hooker's "Boom Boom". Highly regarded album done in 1993 done at the tender age of 75! Best Blues man according to most, if not all, in the business.

Since Blues is usually a very intimate sort of music (small group, close in mics, small venues) should be a nice listen with my LS3/5a's. Hopefully get a chance to listen to it soon - but first have to recover from 2 days of overindulging with both sides of the family.

Thanks Secret Santa, wherever you are, I appreciate your taste in music. :thmbsp:

Regards,

Bart

[dorokusai]

Color me "new" but can someone PM me some Secret Santa information? Or guide me to the source? It may be right in front of me, but I'm tired.

Actually, have you heard this from your wife, "Oh yea, the nieces(2) are coming down after Christmas, and are staying until Monday"

For the record, I don't recall that whole MONDAY thing, but at least they don't start fires, so I guess they are....hmmmm.....ok?

AK - Thank you, and it looks as tho' this site has again reached another level of beyond cool for me personally....and I thought us hardcore Polkies treated members right, this place is above and beyond.

I would like to ramp up for next years' Secret Santa.

[RuSsMaN]

We do Secret Santa every year (2yrs at least since I've been here). Simple sign up, supposed to be a $30 limit, or some such (sans shipping) - sign up, submit your addy, done.

You'll get an email after the sign up is 'closed', with your recipient. It's up to you to choose something to send your drawn member, and a good idea to research recent posts by said individual.

Mark, you'd be great at this, and have a lot a fun.

Cheers,
Russ

[CarlV]

I received a gift certificate for dinner at Pizza Rustica in Oakland. Santa covered his tracks well. Thanks!

Carl

[WhiteSE]

Yep, though I was at work at the time, so my speakers were pretty low. The music was good, but I didn't get a chance to really hear the lyrics.

Of course, someone has already borrowed it, so a close listen will have to wait a bit...

By the way, are youuuuuuuu my Secret Santa?

veg

I am fan of Richard Thompson.... :D (Mock Tudor is the next one you should listen to)

[luvvinvinyl]

Color me "new" but can someone PM me some Secret Santa information? Or guide me to the source? It may be right in front of me, but I'm tired.

Actually, have you heard this from your wife, "Oh yea, the nieces(2) are coming down after Christmas, and are staying until Monday"

For the record, I don't recall that whole MONDAY thing, but at least they don't start fires, so I guess they are....hmmmm.....ok?

AK - Thank you, and it looks as tho' this site has again reached another level of beyond cool for me personally....and I thought us hardcore Polkies treated members right, this place is above and beyond.

I would like to ramp up for next years' Secret Santa.

dorokusai, here is the thread for the sign-up that was held this year.
thread (http://65.219.61.150/forums/showthread.php?t=26187)

This year was my first SS. It was fun reading posts, and learning a little about a member that I didn't really know. Got the warm fuzzies reading about the reception my gift got. Mine is still in transit, but with my birthday coming soon, it will either be a late SS gift, or and early AK birthday present! :D

And you are right, AK definitely rocks! :banana:

Have a happy holiday, and enjoy the company of your two nieces.

[dorokusai]

Thanks guys, I will hop on board. :banana:

[luvvinvinyl]

SOMEONE paid attention.

PERFECT gift. 6BM8's seem to be in fairly short supply, new or used. SS sent me an NOS *MATCHED* Quad of Phillips ECL82 / 6BM8. The 6BM8 is essentially a 6BQ5 / EL84, but with half of a 12AX7 on top (notice the lack of driver tubes on the amp).

To say I'm absolutley THRILLED would be an understatement. These are in my Radii Audio MPP-M8 Stereo Amp. For those not familar, it is essentialy a pair of the sought after ASL Wave 8 monos on a single chassis.

A HUGE 'Thank you' to my Secret Santa - you knocked this one RIGHT out of the park. Now, I'm off to get my 8 watts of push-pull on, with my Univeristy Triax - you guys may never see me again.

Cheers,
Russ

WooHoo, RuSsMaN, you have been looking for those for a while. How do they sound? Or do they have to 'break in'? (toob noob, here)

Glad you had a great one.

[TWantiques]

Opened my SS gift yesterday.

In vinyl:
Diana Krall ~ The Girl in the Other Room :yes:

The one artist I most wanted who is only on new vinyl is...Diana Krall!
Listened to the two album set twice yesterday. Wonderful!

I think I know who my SS is but not 100% sure so I'll not guess but say:

Thank you...Thank you...Thank you.
Great job. :thmbsp: :thmbsp:

Terry

[MikE]

Mine was delivered on Wednesday but I just opened it today. Received a nice Ray Charles cd, some Telefunken tubes and a battery charger. :banana:

Thanks you Secret Santa! :thmbsp: MikE

[piece-it pete]

Gosh MikE, how'd they know to get you tubes? :D

I've got to tell everyone that VINYL LIVES!

I asked my 19 year old nephew if he knew of a group whose cd I got from my secret santa, he did, he also said "wow your group must be pretty close knit to have a secret santa! I said (best hank hill voice) yep.

Anyway, while talking to his dad lps came up, the nephew said, are you guys talking about vinyl?? It turns out that kids are into this stuff!, most of the groups he listens to release their new stuff on vinyl as well!!

Maybe not new news to some of yous. Anyway, had to pass it on.

Pete

[mech986]

Sheldon S. “Santa” Claus, esq., LLC.
10001 Artic Circle, Polar Ice Cap
Northern Hemisphere, 00001-0010

January 18, 2005

Dear Luvvinyl,

I am terribly sorry that I haven’t gotten back to you sooner. As you can well imagine, I have been extremely busy over the past few weeks. Even though I have been at this job for a long, long (some say too long) time, even I and my staff hit snags every so often. Although we pride ourselves on a job well done, even with our low fault rate of 0.001%, with a world population of over 6 billion, well you can see we had a lot of followup to do. I know FedEx, UPS, and other delivery services are still trying to catch up to us.

Also, since last year’s restructuring of my organization (having to oust my half-brother Kris Kringle from COO because he started a number of KK / Krispy Kreme outlets up here in violation of our non-commercial clause) we have had to reconsider much of the way we do things. One of those was trying to outsource some of our gift production and delivery. This turned into a rather protracted problem for us as many of our Far East shipments were significantly delayed for redelivery. I am glad to say that your gift finally made it to our southern warehouse (actually everything is southern when you live at the North Pole, isn’t it?) in the second week of January and has been repacked for shipment to you. I have also sent along a few additional items since you were so patient and you were mostly good during the last year (save for a couple of instances which we will just keep between ourselves, eh?) More about that in a minute.

I do apologize for having to use regular shipping means to get your package sent to Canada. As you know, our most recent labor agreements between the ELVES United Workers union and the Flying Reindeer 172nd Airborne Delivery group has them off for at least 2 months after January 1st and most of them are frolicing in the Bahamas and Seychelles at present. At least this was their itinerary as set up by their sister union, the Travelocity Roaming Gnomes Travel Agency. I can’t fault them for trying to get the most for their “bucks” (Heehee, I always like my funnies!) It’s very tough negotiating with those two unions given that the Elves run around kicking you in the ankles and the Reindeer just leave piles of “nuggets” in the conference room!! Luckily, my southern California warehouse was up to the task of repackaging your gift.

I have included some other items that I think will be of interest to you. Be aware that they came from my collection at my Tahiti getaway -after all, a man of my talents needs a nice tropical getaway from time to time (please don’t blab this to Mrs. Claus, she thinks it’s just a timeshare for Holiday Icons conventions!). In any event, some of them have not been used for a while so they may require some cleaning before use. I’m confident that once you have them in tip-top shape you will enjoy them like I have. After reviewing your profile in our database, I think you’ll like the variety and quality of the items being sent to you.

Your shipment departed on January 20 and should be due in no later than January 29th, give or take a day. This assumes no problems with Canadian Customs who has already caused me more problems this year than in the past 3 years combined. Oh well, it’s probably because they end up perennially on my Naughty list – bureaucrats you know.

I appreciate your considerable patience regarding your shipment. You might be interested in knowing we are in multiple talks with many Logistics companies (let just say blue and white, brown, yellow and red, Red-white and blue to mention a few) who have expressed an interest in handling our shipments. We still have not resolved the issue of why they can’t deliver fully wrapped presents with little or no lablelling but we are working on it. We also must require them to License our NORAD permit to fly at over Mach 10 – so far they only have a small number of aircraft with small payloads that can perform at that level. So, things may improve for the future.

Do let me know when you receive your shipment and let me know how you like your items. Feedback is always appreciated.

Now, I must get back to my Mai Tai and Hula Lessons :banana: :banana: :naughty: (no smirks now, at least I’m the one dancing with the hula girls, you’re in snow!!)

Sincerely,

Sheldon (Santa) Claus
Aboard the Diamond Princess Cruise ship
Off the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii

[mech986]

I guess I'll have to have a talk with Santa about next year's promotion.

Bart

[luvvinvinyl]

That letter was WORTH the wait! :lmao: :lmao: :lmao: :lmao: :lmao:

[luvvinvinyl]

Just had an unsettling image of Santa in a grass skirtand a lei! :yikes:

[luvvinvinyl]

WOO-WOO! :banana: :banana: :banana:

Just got my Secret Santa gift! Hooray!

A bee-yoo-tiful Marantz sign to hang over my 4300. Like nobody would know who made that gorgeous receiver! :D

Here is a pic from an eBay listing:


As well, Santa threw in 8, count ‘em, 8 LPs!
1. Shure trackability Test Record (Now I can do a head-to Head with the Micro Acoustics disc)
2. The Kenny Rankin Album (New to me, but was discussed on AK, looking forward to it)
3. Sinatra and Jobim (produced by Sonny Burke – have it on CD, now I get to REALLY hear it)
4. 1812 Overture – Mercury Liv. Pres, Antal Dorati, Conductor.
5. Now the list heats up! Best of Buddy Rich!
6. Double LP, Buddy Rich Big Band, 2-and-a-half sides, live, the rest some of my favourite studio cuts.
7. (see above)
8. The King James Version, Harry James and his Big Band! Sheffield Labs, Direct-to-Disc. (Trumpet was my first instrument, parents were big fans, cut my teeth on Harry James)

Thanks, so much, Santa! The LPs, alone, would have been a great gift. The sign is a great big, shiny cherry (blueberry?) on top of this fabulous package. Russman, you weren’t the only one who had one ‘hit out of the park’! :thmbsp:

Mech986, you must have gotten a giggle when that sign was discussed, and I worried about transit time from HK to here! :lmao:

(pics from eBay listing)

[luvvinvinyl]

Here is the whole sign, in its resting state: