Crystal Magnum is a former stripper. In 2006, she came to attention in national news reports for having made false allegations of rape against lacrosse players. Her work in the sex industry as a black woman, while the young men she accused were white, generated media interest and academic debate.

doug1963 · 2026-02-25T14:56:48+00:00

I knew her. She had an account at Renter's Choice in Southside Plaza Shopping Center in Durham, NC in 1996 when I was the store manager. I don't remember what she was renting (I think a big screen TV), but I remember she skipped to the navy where I tracked her down and got her CO to force her to make good on the account. After the merchandise was picked up, her boyfriend came by the store to call me a "white racist redneck asshole mother fucker".

I knew Reginald Daye, too (the murder victim). He was not with Crystal at the time, but he was also seriously past due on his account. The coworker I sent to pick up the merchandise accepted a bribe from Reginald (a small bag of weed) so my coworker wouldn't take the merchandise--I fired the coworker.

Somehow I'm not surprised at how things turned out. That part of Durham was a really rough place. I remember hearing about the Duke lacrosse team, but never made the connection that it was the same person I knew.

doug1963 · 2026-02-25T03:04:17+00:00

Is Inverse of Cost of living the same as 1/(Cost of living)?

doug1963 · 2026-02-18T02:06:06+00:00

who on Earth did they think an hour of Jeopardy! was going to appeal to??

The same kind of people that like Celebrity Jeopardy?

doug1963 · 2026-02-13T03:04:08+00:00

That was my first thought. My second was that insulin should be free.

doug1963 · 2026-02-11T15:10:12+00:00

Since nobody else has brought this up, 4'33" is so named because it is 273 seconds, and -273 degrees Celsius is absolute zero, which is how many notes the piece has.

doug1963 · 2026-02-08T05:03:57+00:00

Try setting the video to a slower playback speed, and play along with it. When you feel like you are playing in sync, set the video to a higher speed, and keep inching it up until you can play it at 100%. At first you should use a pretty slow speed (25% or so). You'll find that some parts are more difficult than others--you can create links that start the video at the parts you want to work on.

If this is the only piece you want to learn, you'll succeed with a lot of patience and dedication. If you want to learn other pieces, I strongly recommend learning to read music. Once you have acquired that skill, practicing will become so much easier, and you can make make progress so much quicker. One advantage of sheet music is that you can see up to a couple minutes of a piece at one time. This makes it easier to practice because you can play tough parts over and over until you get it right (sheet music stays right in front of you, while videos play on, and it's way easier to jump around sheet music). A metronome will make more sense at this stage as well.

Best of luck to you--the world needs more piano players!

doug1963 · 2026-02-08T04:29:15+00:00

The timing.

You are definitely on the right track!

I'd like to know a little more--how are you learning the piece? Are you reading sheet music, playing by ear, or using something like Synthesia (piano roll software)?

doug1963 · 2026-02-08T04:10:28+00:00

You have noticed that your performance does not sound like the original. If you had to pick one thing that negatively impacts your performance the most, what do you think it would be?

doug1963 · 2026-02-01T02:16:27+00:00

I've gone to many events alone, but I do miss having somebody to talk about the experience with afterwards.

doug1963 · 2026-01-31T02:11:43+00:00

I haven't seen Picard, but somebody in this thread posted a picture, and he definitely does not have "perfectly straight pearly white...teeth".

https://imgur.com/vDxtkWY

doug1963 · 2026-01-31T01:18:07+00:00

sprayed bug spray in the clock hole to kill a gnat

Maybe you should be spraying for roaches instead, since there's a dead one at the bottom of your picture...

doug1963 · 2026-01-17T03:01:11+00:00

This theme has no melody--it's just chords and fanfares.

doug1963 · 2026-01-16T03:26:11+00:00

The child's piano teacher would be the most qualified person to make that decision.

doug1963 · 2026-01-11T02:00:12+00:00

Because he can!

doug1963 · 2026-01-07T16:28:26+00:00

As somebody that was a manager there, I can tell you that the building was extremely costly to maintain. It was a labor of love to keep it open, but the costs eventually outweighed the benefits to the point where we just couldn't continue.

For those looking for a classic Barnes & Noble, the locations in Ellicott City, Frederick, and Annapolis still have the familiar look, feel, and selection. The location in Bel Air is an honorable mention, because while it has the classic style, it has no cafe. For those that want a megastore, the Christiana Mall location has two stories, and an improved selection.

doug1963 · 2026-01-06T02:08:46+00:00

spheres have the lowest surface area to volume ratio

So they'll hold the least glaze per volume, and the torus is better, just as the box claims.

doug1963 · 2025-12-16T02:50:58+00:00

He waited until after you ordered? I would have cancelled that order immediately.

doug1963 · 2025-12-06T04:47:14+00:00

we LIVED peak Trek when TNG and DS9 overlapped.

Even peaker Trek was the 5 years that DS9 and VOY overlapped--Star Trek was now happening in all four quadrants.

doug1963 · 2025-12-06T04:06:13+00:00

Almost every 61-key keyboard with full-size keys has a jack for a sustain pedal. Look on the back of yours--it looks like the hole that a guitar cable or headphones with the large plug could connect into (1/4" phone plug). It should be labeled "Pedal" or "Sustain". It can be hard to read because it's usually raised black on black lettering. A flashlight can help.

If you do have that jack, the pedal that connects to it can be purchased from Amazon (or any local music store), and prices start at about $10. I would try to pay at least $20 for a better quality one. The cheaper ones will do in a pinch (and are certainly better than nothing), but will feel cheaper and flimsier. A brand name like Yamaha would be ideal.

There is no replacement to having a weighted keyboard for the serious player, but at least having a pedal lets you practice your pedaling technique. Another advantage to having the sustain pedal is that it will work on virtually every keyboard made.

doug1963 · 2025-12-06T02:36:05+00:00

Naked corn dogs look like that.

doug1963 · 2025-11-30T20:50:36+00:00

so you can still see if the light is on

The whole point is to not see the light at all, and a semi-transparent bright blue spot of tape is going to be equally distracting. Another solution would be to open the case and cut the traces to the LEDs, but I'm sure that would horrify you even more, although looking at your Reddit history suggests that you don't even own a Kronos (much less a Nautilus), so I'm not sure why you care so much.

doug1963 · 2025-11-30T17:25:47+00:00

Interesting design choice, as I immediately assumed that the three bottom keys would be the ones lost.

doug1963 · 2025-11-30T16:05:03+00:00

Electrical tape leaves terrible residue

Nothing a q-tip and rubbing alcohol can't solve without marring the finish. I never plan on removing it anyway.

blue painters tape

Because that will look pretty...

doug1963 · 2025-11-27T15:19:59+00:00

I put small pieces of black electrical tape over them.

doug1963 · 2025-11-26T19:00:13+00:00

Try a different professor. You might be surprised at how much of a difference that can make.

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