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Happy 85th Birthday JK! :)

Happy Father's Day! :)

Maverick is Here! :)

Maverick - The Complete First Season, that is! :)

My 7-DVD set arrived today. I popped the second DVD into the player and was greeted with the menu, scored with the jaunty Maverick theme song.

Naturally, I selected the "Hostage!" episode (since it's the first one in which Jack Kelly appeared) and JK appeared on the screen. But, I couldn't hear him. 

Actually, I could sort of hear something, a bunch of faint "waa waa waa waa" noises that made everyone in the scene sound like Charlie Brown's unseen teacher on the Peanuts cartoons.

I wanted to see and hear JK. I couldn't figure out what was going on. The menu music played okay--why couldn't I hear the episode?

I tried the disc in my computer and the sound worked fine. So, I played with the DVD player set-up menu and discovered that the "waa waas" were coming from the sub-woofer (I've always wondered what that is). I simply had to change the sound from "stereo" to "mono". Voila! I could hear JK speak.

I'm not sure why the Maverick DVDs had this aural quirk. I have  several other classic TV shows on DVDs and none of them have acted like this. Well, I'm just glad I didn't have to return Maverick as defective. 


Aside from that little hiccup, I give this set a big thumb's up. The only real extra is a booklet--well, a pamphlet really--with some small pictures, episode details, and thumbnail plot descriptions. But, it's a thrill just to finally have the first season of Maverick on DVD. I may start spending the dinner hour with Bart and Bret again, just as I did when I began watching the show on the Encore Westerns channel back in 2009.  :)  

Happy Mother's Day From "TDS"! :)

Original print by Jacqueline Stanhope

Easter Joy to Everyone from "TDS" :)

Happy St. Patrick's Day From JK & "TDS"! :)

"Timely" Tips From Bart Maverick :)

Howdy Folks!

Usually in the wintertime, I end up driving to and from work with a white-knuckled grip on the Bartistamobile's steering wheel as the freeways freeze up.

Not so this year! Snow has mostly been a no-show here. And, I've had few weather worries on my daily commute. So, unless Mother Nature socks us with a belated blizzard, it looks like we're home free this year. The crocuses, hyacinths, and other springtime dazzlers are well on their way to blooming.

Another sign of the approaching spring is the adjustment to Daylight Saving Time. It's time for the clocks to spring forward, as our buddy Bart Maverick reminds us below:

Incidentally, losing an hour's sleep could do more than just induce yawns on Sunday, March 11. Studies have shown that the time change can actually affect a person for two or three days! So, be sure to get plenty of rest and eat right.

Getting extra sunshine can help re-set one's inner clock. Fresh air and exercise may also improve alertness. So, why not catch some rays and work out with a friend.

Finally, it may be wise to postpone difficult or risky tasks until after one has recovered from the time change.

These "timely" tips are presented as a public service by Bart Maverick and "TDS". ;-)

Jumpin' Jack! :)

Happy Valentine's Day From JK & "TDS"! :)

Happy New Year from La Bartista & "TDS"! :)

Thanks so much for reading TDS and for your comments and kind words during the past year. And, thanks most of all for being such a great group of Jack Kelly fans. I pray that you all have a blessed and safe 2012. :)

Free Vintage New Year's Clip Art