Late '90s weird (but cheap!) guitar, Yamaha AES-500
Getting this much personality in a guitar from the '90s for the price it sells for is a steal.
To start off with, the AE500 exists but that is a totally different guitar. The S makes all the difference here.
The Yamaha AES-500 was made for just three years, that being 1998, 1999 and 2000. That's it. This is a bolt-on guitar with a 22-fret neck that has a 12" fingerboard radius, which basically means Les-Paul-like.
And yes, they came from the factory with a weird shaped swooping pearloid pick guard. The guard is not an aftermarket thing. Yamaha released the guitar that way on purpose.
Not only is the pick guard pearloid, but the rear electronics cover and the truss rod cover all match the pick guard too. Same color and everything. The truss rod cover even "swoops" in shape to match the pick guard shape. Neat!
Fortunately, Yamaha designed this as an easy player. The body does have a "belly cut" on the rear. Electronics are two volume controls, one tone control - and supposedly this does have push-push for coil splitting. Also, yes there is a pickup blade selector switch. It's on the bottom of the pick guard and somewhat camouflaged by pearloid. If you look at the bridge side pickup and then look further down you'll see it there. The bridge is similar to what the PRS SE 245 uses with fixed saddle position. You never have to mess around with intonation on this guitar as a result. Like I said, this is designed to be an easy player.
Why does the AES-500 sell for so low?
My guess is probably because it had a short run, hardly anybody knows about it, and when it was made is a factor. People don't generally consider late-'90s/early-'00s electrics to be all that valuable - yet. They will be someday.
I should also mention that yes, there was a different model with a more "civilized" pick guard and more advanced features, the AES-800. That one has the bridge + single individually mounted bridge saddles. About the same price as the AES-500!
The AES-500 definitely has personality. I think what it suffered from more than anything else was right guitar, wrong time. This guitar looks totally fresh today.
However, if you don't want to deal with an old guitar (and I wouldn't blame you), the modern Yamaha Revstar is a nice alternative with some personality to it.
Schecter Demon S-II, the "longhorn SG"
A nice offering from Schecter...
...if you like black, because that is the only color this comes in - but it does carry the color very nicely.
The Demon S-II sells for a nice price, and what comes to mind immediately is that it does sort of look like that black Epiphone G-400 Tony Iommi SG from the mid-2010s with the cross inlay markers on the fretboard.
The S-II is, of course, the better player's guitar compared to that Epiphone. Thin neck with flat 14" radius and big 'ol X-Jumbo frets. That's a rock guitar configuration for sure. And it has two active humbuckers on top of that.
And while I know this is a little thing, I appreciate the control knobs are metal and knurled. Some guitar makers cheap out with the knobs, but Schecter doesn't. I also appreciate the brightwork is black chrome and not the shinier stuff. It adds a touch of class and also makes the guitar look mean.
Oh, and the best part - the longer top horn and strap button position means this guitar does not have neck dive.
If you like the SG shape but wish something existed that was "massaged" to cure the neck dive, still look cool, be an awesome player all around and actually be affordable, S-II Demon is it.
Garmin 2025.10 North America map update
Amazingly, Garmin released another map update.
Why is this amazing? They're the last man standing for standalone car navigation systems, that's why. It's very nice to see Garmin still releasing map updates.
I currently run a Garmin DriveSmart 66 as my daily driver in the car. It has worked very well.
I'm not going to go over the particulars with the DS66 because I've already done that previously. Instead, I'm going to talk about something else I think should exist.
As I said, Garmin is the last man standing when you want a standalone navigation system. You get a DS66, maybe optionally get a bean bag mount (so you don't have to stick it to the windshield), and that's pretty much it...
...unless you want a larger screen like the DS76 and DS86. But that's it. Garmin is your only option in America for one of these things new.
What I think should exist is an alternative standalone option. And no, that cheap stuff on AliExpress doesn't count and neither does the phone. I mean a standalone navigator as good as Garmin. That used to be TomTom, but they don't sell standalone models in the US anymore.
I don't have the business acumen nor the money to pull this off, but if I could, I'd love to develop a modern version of the Garmin nuvi 265. Yes, I'm talking about the 3.5" screen square version. A modern take would be something that uses OpenStreetMap data that could be updated whenever the user wants, uses a magnetic mount similar to how people mount phones in cars, and has huge concentration on two things: UI and heat resistance.
It is totally possible to develop a UI that's fun, easy and quick but powerful all at the same time.
And I would want this thing to handle whatever heat even the hottest summer could throw at it. Heat resistance is a really big deal.
Bigger screens are not what we need. It's the UI that needs to change. My old Garmin nuvi 40LM from 2011, a 4.3" version, is actually more legible than the 6" DriveSmart 66. Yeah, the DS66 is far more advanced, but still, that old 40 can be read far more easily.
There are other things I'd want this thing to do, but I'd want this to be a legible little powerhouse the size of a car gauge that could be mounted nearly anywhere in the car.
Garmin (and TomTom) actually had the really right idea with the 3.5" size. It totally worked, but then they got all widescreen crazy and it's been that way ever since.
Would something like this sell? I know it would, if for no other reason than from people seeing "Waiting for GPS..." on their phone navigation app over and over again, getting mega frustrated at that and thinking, "There has GOT to be something else I can use besides this crap!"
I would hope some developer and some investors would take interest in a new 3.5" standalone OpenStreetMap-based navigation system. And oh yeah, I'd be more than happy to talk with them about it.
For now, I'm glad to still see map updates and will continue using my DS66.
The brownest Fender brown
Let's talk about the brownest of Fender browns.
Take the Fender Mustang in Faded Mocha. This was a special edition color from around 2017. This is as brown as brown gets on a Fender.
Why is this the brownest of browns for an electric guitar?
Before I answer that, yes of course you always see brown with a traditional sunburst finish. As the sun "sets" towards the edge of the body, the brown is there.
However, to see all brown with no variation other than some wood grain... well, that's different.
An example of Mocha is the Fender American Vintage II 1973 Stratocaster...
...but when you look at that, notice that it doesn't commit to brown 100%. You do see some red in there. Yes, Mocha is a great color on the Am Vin II '73 Strat, no question, but still, it didn't go 100% in on the brown.
The Faded Mocha of the Fender Mustang however did go all-in on brown. There is barely any red in there (if any?) and it totally commits to "looks like a coffee table". And that is why it's the brownest of Fender browns.
Faded Mocha has no metal flake, no burst and nothing fancy about it other than a gloss finish (which in itself isn't fancy). It is a color that says, "I am brown. Wanna fight about it?"
For some people, this very specific brown is the perfect guitar color because it goes in the total complete opposite direction of fancy. The not-exciting look of it brings a sense of warmth and comfort just looking at it, and some find that very attractive.
If you're all about the brown, Faded Mocha is what you want. Expensive? No. Quite affordable.
Not into the Mustang? Pretty much all guitar makes have a brown of some kind, if that's your thing.
Foods I avoid to keep the weight off
I'm still slim, and a reason for that is because of foods I purposely don't buy.
A few years ago I lost a bunch of weight. Almost 60 pounds. In '23 I started falling off the wagon and put back on 15, but then got back on the wagon and dropped that weight again. I did what worked before, which is keep a daily food journal, exercise, and avoid temptation.
When I'm out and about, avoiding food temptation isn't a problem. I can go into a convenience store, see all the chips, chocolates, full-sugar sodas and at no point do I think, "Oh, I gotta have that." Giving that stuff a miss isn't an issue.
However, when the tempting stuff is directly where I live, that's where I give in. If the stuff is in my fridge, cupboard or pantry, yeah, I'll eat it.
This is some of the stuff I don't buy just because I love it too much:
A "family size" box of this stuff will not last past two to three days in my cupboard. I will eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner until that box is GONE.
This is my most favorite breakfast cereal of all time. And, of course, I would have to have it with full-fat milk, basically resulting in 400 to 500 Calories per bowl, given how much I wolf down in a single sitting.
Yes, this means I would consume upwards of 1,500 Calories per day of just Life cereal + full-fat milk. Stupid? Yes, and that's why I don't buy it.
I am one of those weirdos that likes the spiral shape, and I've no idea why. I just prefer the spirals, even though they taste exactly the same as the elbow shape.
I'm not particular to brand when it comes to mac and cheese. When I used to buy this stuff, I'd just get the cheapest crap available.
With this one I was somewhat restrained in that I'd only eat two boxes a day of this stuff. However, it's 400 Calories per box prepared, so two boxes would be 800 Calories per day - of just mac and cheese. Again, stupid.
If I start in on an 8oz bag of these, I won't stop until that bag is finished. Think I'll share? You thought wrong, because I won't.
That entire bag is about 1,600 Calories.
And oh yeah, when I'm done I'll have cheese dust all over my mouth and fingers. It would be just like I was 10 years old all over again. Cheesy and gross.
No chance of me buying these things. Not happening.
Tin of nuts (peanuts or cashews, specifically)
If I get an 8oz tin of cashews, it won't last the day. The damage on this one is about 1,300 Calories for the whole thing.
And wow would I be in trouble if I got a pound (16oz) of peanuts. That's about 2,750 Calories.
I actually don't know if I could eat that many peanuts in just one day... and I don't want to find out.
Oh, and speaking of which...
The damage on this is about 2,800 Calories for the jar.
Yeah, that bad.
It absolutely doesn't matter who makes it or how "natural" it is. Peanuts are super-dense with Calories and there's just no way around that. A jar of peanut butter is a total Calorie explosion.
A jar of this will last about three days for me or maybe four. Even if I were to make it last four days, that's 700 Calories per day of just peanut butter. Nope, not going there. I won't buy it even though I love the stuff.
I know the ice cream used in these things is total garbage but there's just something about that junk vanilla and soft chocolate that's oh-so good.
A box of these will last one to two days at most in my freezer. A regular sized box has 12 ice cream sandwiches, and that's near 2,400 Calories total. Spread across two days, that's 1,200 Calories/day of just ice cream sandwiches. Once again, stupid.
You'd think I'd have a problem with fast food temptation...
...but I don't.
I pass by fast food places regularly and never have a desire to eat anything they serve.
This doesn't have to do anything with price because fast food has been overpriced for a long time now. I just don't have any desire for the stuff anymore.
These days, anything I'd actually want to eat while out isn't made fast. If for example I go get Vietnamese or Thai food, I know of no place that makes that super-fast-quick, nor would I want them to. I'm more than willing to wait a little bit and get something that brings the flavor instead of some quick salt/sugar/cheese/maybe-meat mess.
The much larger food temptations happen with anything directly in my living space. If all it took was a walk to the kitchen to have a peanut butter sandwich and then chase with a big bowl of life cereal afterward, yeah I'd do it. But since that stuff isn't here, I'll just have a coffee instead or make some eggs.