12:14 p.m. - 2009-03-02
Rub Me
I was getting the groceries and browsing at Emirates Cooperative today. It's a brand new one and fairly well stocked with cheap, quality food (no pork though).
As I was leaving I noticed three massage chairs. I didn't sit down for one this particular day, but I like those things. A part of me would not mind having one instead of, say a recliner. I'm not saying I'd need the kind where the leg bits inflate but we like massage and Julie would really benefit from one.
I've always wondered about how to get them fixed when they break down. And I'm fairly positive that they aren't built like tanks. Can one buy the shop manuals? How often does one need to lubricate bearings for the shiatsu wheels? Are they just roller blade wheels? Can you replace the motor with a junk washing machine part? How much upholstery work is required? Where do you get the bits for when the programming 'brain' takes a big fat dump.
My dad would have just piled a bunch of cushions on it and used it like a regular chair. I figure if I'm spending a few thousand, I'd want something that'll last ten years, averaging two massages a day without ANY service calls needed.
I've been on a few of these over the years and they can massage kinks away and do it while working quietly enough to watch the telly. I'm not close to buying one, but when they sell one at Bilt-Rite that finishes with a happy ending, I'd be one of the first in line.
They're selling all sorts of new and exciting 'rides' at The Panasonic store. There's an exercise machine that Lyra likes where you ride it like a horse. I've had good luck with Panasonic products in the past.
I remember a Panasonic boom box that worked for five years, eight hours a day at full volume in a noisy machine shop I used to work at. It moved with me to two restaurants where it eventually was given a name by a kitchen porter. It fell into the exhaust plenum of a commercial convection oven, partially melted and kept right on working. The only maintenance I did on it was to clean the tape heads with over proof vodka. I think 'Old Silver' finally met it's demise when the place burned to the ground.
2 comments
