The USB audio interface I was bitching about the other day worked tonight.

No clue.

Yup.  Rob’s a nerd.

I’m thinking that I might be a little more worked up about this whole kid moving to college thing than I thought.

I’ve mentioned here about a quadrillionzillion times that my brother and I spend our Friday evenings with my mother while my father does volunteer work.  This week is supposed to be my turn, but I’m not going to be around.  I’m going to be off doing college things.

Normally when a conflict comes up I talk to my brother and sister to see if one of them can cover for me.  In almost every case one of them has been able to take over.  Once in a great while none of us are available and my father stays home.

Last month when we went to Florida we were gone for one of my Fridays.  I spoke to my brother and sister and one of them covered.  I think my brother had a conflict too and I took one of his nights.  If you had asked me about it yesterday I would have sworn up and down and back and front that I also asked one of them to cover this week.

I did not.

I checked text messages and emails and I KNEW I had one that would prove me right, but I didn’t.  Nothing.  Friday happens to be my brother’s birthday so I didn’t want to ask him for help.  My sister was free and she will take care of things for me.

But I was positive, POSITIVE that I took care of this.

I asked Jen about it after I had everything straightened out and she said we talked about it while we were at my sister’s house for my nephew’s birthday.  She couldn’t remember if we resolved the question or not, but I least I’m not 100% nuts.  Just partly nuts.

Well, either I’m nuts or I am just distracted by something right now.  Something that is imminent and consuming more of my thoughts than I thought.

Lisa, thanks for covering.  John, thanks for reminding me that I needed to get someone to cover.

 

I’m not crying, you’re crying.

Okay. Lunch break is over. I’ve gotta stop for now. Clicking Publish…

We’re all in a weird place right now.  College is imminent.  Like, right outside the door.  It’s exciting and wonderful and painful and sad and stressful and more, all at the same time.  Last night I verified something we all suspected:  Ice cream helps.  College is in Vermont, and so is Ben and Jerry’s.  Perfect!

We’ve already decided that we are going to take our sweet time driving home after we drop the genius off at the University she is about to dominate.  Maybe we’ll go back to Woodstock.  After all, we are stardust, we are golden.  (note: not the same Woodstock)

 

There’s also Lake Champlain. We’ve been there a few times, and this weekend we’re going to be in the neighborhood again. Maybe we should stop by and catch up. Maybe we should ferry across to New York again. (actually, we’ve taken the ferry twice and both times it’s been FROM New York, not to New York.)

Mostly I’m just sitting at work on my lunch break being sad about how things are about to change, but also overjoyed at what lies ahead for Bellana.

I’m conflicted, man. Conflicted.

In closing, here’s the Quechee Gorge, which is in Vermont:

Here’s a covered bridge, which is in Vermont:

And here’s a short message to the universe that someone might have left in Vermont this one time in 2008.

Well we are almost there. My step daughter’s last weekend before leaving for college is behind us. By this time next week she’ll be in class doing great things.

I find myself repeatedly reminding people* that we are complex human beings who are capable of feeling complicated emotions. For example, we can simultaneously be thrilled for the opportunities awaiting a college freshman while still being miserable about her leaving. It’s okay to feel both things at once. In fact it would be more unsettling to feel one of those feelings without the other.

*when I say I am reminding people I mostly mean I’m reminding myself. That was clear, right?

She has a couple of days at her dad’s house and a couple of days at our house and then she’s off. We are all acting like she’s leaving for good, but that’s just an over reaction. She’s even coming home in a few weeks for a little family outing. Sheeesh, people (me) relax!

Yeah, I’m freaking out. You, dear readers, are just gonna have to deal with it for a while.

Enjoy.

Harry and I went to Boston and Harvard Square today.

Two microphones, two microphone cables.  Use an XLR to 1/4″ adapter and plug them into my guitar amplifier.  Everything works.

Plug each mic in turn into one of two Lexicon USB audio interfaces.  They don’t have an input level monitor but they do have peak lights so I max the input gain and tap the mic and see that the peak lights go on.  Signal successfully gets from the mic to the interface.

Plug both USB audio interfaces into my MacBook Pro in turn.  GarageBand recognizes both units and allows me to select them as audio inputs.  I can then open two new tracks and select the mic input as the input source.  GarageBand clearly recognizes both audio interfaces and everything works on that front.

I tap the end of the mic, which I know works, and it gets to the interface, which I know receives the audio, and it never gets to the track.  Two mics, two interfaces.  No signal getting to the computer.

Bring out my iPad and my little lightning cable audio interface.  Plug the mic into it.  No signal gets to the iPad.

What the ever loving fuck?

Literally every piece of this equation worked in February, the last time I tried to record anything.  Literally all of it.  Nothing has changed.  Why doesn’t any of it work now?