By Juan C. Ayllon As I ponder the hours creating and uploading documents, reformatting them, emailing and documenting electronically, I am reminded of John Naisbitt's 1983 book, High Tech, High Touch. Required reading for my bachelor's degree, it spoke to the pitfalls of lives dominated by technology, as well as an increased need for personal -- and even tactile -- connections.
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By Juan C. Ayllon As is my wont sometimes on Fridays, my mind wandered, and I wondered what a musician playing on the Moon might look like, so I plugged a few parameters into an Artificial Intelligence Imaging website and this is what I got!
Happy Friday! Editor's Note: After much thought, I reprinted this thought-provoking article with permission from Ms. Rose. Initially, I wrestled with its controversial nature and the potential threat to readership numbers. I am, after all, trying to build this website's presence on the web. However, in the end, some things are too important to ignore. -- JC Ayllon
Kate Cox and her husband were happy to learn they were pregnant with their third child—and then devastated to learn that the baby was diagnosed with Trisomy 18, a genetic disorder caused when a person has three copies of chromosome 18 instead of the usual two. By Juan C. Ayllon As winter approaches, there are changes afoot at Prairie Audio!
With a new job teaching English Language Learners this fall, ACCESS tests (standardized tests on ELL students' abilities in listening, reading, speaking, and writing) two weeks away, and a small collection of reviews winding down, I'm happily busy. By Juan C. Ayllon In light of the recent procession of earthquakes, fires, floods, and the latest tragedy in Israel and the Gaza Strip, it’s easy to become overwhelmed.
By Juan C. Ayllon This pair of Dan Clark Audio Stealth headphones is in for review, and while I was passing signal through it to help prepare it for its upcoming paces with the Pass Labs HPA-1 headphone amplifier, I thought I'd snap this snazzy pic. Enjoy!
By Juan C. Ayllon I've been reading this book, You Can't Screw This Up, by Adam Bornstein, a bestselling author, nutritional expert and consultant to stars like LeBron James, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Cindy Crawford as Belle and I prepared to fly south to Tampa, Florida on holiday. Arnold Schwarzenegger had recommended it in his newsletter, "Arnold's Pump Club." Unlike the Keto Diet, Atkins and several others, Bornstein's approach was more forgiving, accommodating restaurant takeout for example, so I decided to bring it along for encouragement as we sought to have a fun, but healthy break from our daily lives.
By Juan C. Ayllon Although it's been largely quiet on these pages lately, it's been far from inactive at Prairie Audio headquarters. Between work, audio commitments, and time with family and wee grandchildren, it's been a whirlwind! Yes, Belle and I have been spending time when we can with the kids and grandkids, who are growing up fast! But, coming up quickly, there will be a flourish of activity popping up at Prairie Audio Man Cave, as well.
By Juan C. Ayllon Transformers are massive, hypertrophied Sci-Fi action fighting robots that can morph into cars, and if they were real and played hockey, I could see them using Carbide Base Audio Isolation Feet for pucks. The Carbides are that big -- and speaking as someone who, though embarrassed, admits to watching several of their movies -- they are that space age cool. Marveling at their quality look, feel and finish fresh out of the box, I felt like a 12 year-old wanting to play with the latest Transformer toy. Only, instead of hoisting shiny Hasbro monstrosities and making whooshing noises from my lips, I am tucking Carbide footers under my Usher ML-802 loudspeakers and making marvelous music with their drivers.
By Juan C. Ayllon As an educator, I've been dutiful in getting vaccinated, boosted and re-boosted, and after remaining unscathed for roughly a year and a half through remote and hybrid teaching models, I caught a mild dose of COVID-19. I thought I was done.
Guess again. Last week following three rounds of antibiotics over a stretch of several months, I was seemingly at the tail end of a bad sinus infection -- and then it roared back with a vengeance. Coughing, sneezing, sore throat, and muscle aches. It felt like the flu, sans the nausea. I tested negative for COVID several times, but going into last weekend, I felt horrible. A visit to Urgent Care followed, along with more medication. Just to be on the safe side, Belle asked me to take another COVID test with a home kit. Surprise! I tested positive. We tested again to ensure it wasn't a false reading. Nope, I was positive. Of course, I contacted the Urgent Care center I'd visited, as well as several people I'd seen on Saturday. And, like that, I was relegated to remaining home in isolation for five days, |
Juan C. AyllonA writer, artist, educator and owner of Prairie Audio Man Cave, he lives with his wife, Isabel (AKA Belle), and their Goldendoodle, Liam, enjoys listening to high fidelity music and all things hi-fi at their home in the greater Chicagoland area.. Archives
March 2024
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