Sat. sidebar

I had a really good show this morning at WMTU. Everything just seemed to click — perhaps that’s how things go when I get more than 4.5 hours of sleep before the show.

Anyway, I was so revved I did a “mostly vinyl, mostly ’80s” hour at 9 a.m. Things were going well, but swapping and cueing records is a lot harder than slipping CDs in and out of the drives. I was literally on the edge of my seat because I wasn’t sure that I would get the records changed in time (and I didn’t once or twice).

So, here’s some random things on my mind today:

• One vexing thing about the studio is the addition of the tinest keyboard in the world. It’s a mini-keyboard that’s able to fit in front of the controls. However, the keys are so small and indistiguishable among each other, that I type everything wrong unless I’m paying total attention to typing. It’s a pain in the neck and I was tempted to bring my own keyboard in this morning …

• Throughout the morning, I was relaying the news that MTU President Curt Tompkins was fired. I think the news is signifigant — I did note only modest regret when I was talking to people around campus. Many of the seem very willing for some change and praised Interim President Glenn Mroz’s leadership abilities. I’m hoping for the best and I wish the best for Tompkins — he was always cordial during interviews.

• While it was the last day for Tompkins, it was also the last day for Managing Editor Bruce Heisel and News Editor Cathy Mason at The Daily Mining Gazette. It’s almost like a sign — someone joked around referring to the old myth that “things happen in threes.”

• Speaking of threes, I added three new Pepsi-iTunes codes. I really need to start figuring out what music I’m going to get with those credits.