Sars, your advice to Chandra and Champ was dead right.DirectStop is a great product.It is actually more effective than mace or pepper spray, because when dogs are attacking, causing them physical pain makes them attack harder.Pain boosts adrenaline and adrenaline kicks “fight or flight” into overdrive…and the dog is already fighting.

I’ve been a dog trainer for 14 years now. I have read everything I can get my hands on about dog aggression and attended tons of seminars on the topic.DirectStop is the way to go.

Chandra may also want to consider getting her dog into some classes.Sometimes dogs give off a bad vibe to other dogs, just like the strange little kid in every grade school class who gets picked on by the other kids.Her greyhound may benefit from a bit of dog-to-dog communication skills and socialization in a controlled setting.

My breed’s the mini version (Italian Greyhounds) but I know plenty of the big guys.They are usually incredibly mellow, non-threatening dogs.Sometimes all it takes is a stare held just a little too long, though, to really tick off the neighborhood canine bully, and it wouldn’t hurt to get an expert opinion.

Mary Ellen

Dear Mary Ellen,

Thanks!A number of other readers also voted for DirectStop, and suggested behavioral evaluation and/or training, as well as:

Bitter Apple spray (eventually even the sound of the bottle is enough to stop them)
neutering, if you haven’t done it already
a sport water bottle instead of a water gun (filled with water or a vinegar mix)*
screaming and yelling*
Dog’s Trust (formerly the National Canine Defense League) for help and info: www.dogstrust.org.uk
carrying a few old toys or tennis balls to throw for/distract the off-leash dog
carrying an umbrella or broom handle for prying-apart purposes, just in case*
pulling their tails to separate them (recommended by a rescue worker)
pick a walking route where you know there aren’t usually dogs

I’m not sure about the tail-pulling thing; with cats, that’s almost a guarantee that you’re going to get bit, hard.

Dear Sars —

I’m a high school senior, but I don’t have any drama to ask you about.
It’s just that I have a thirty-minute drive to and from school each day;
I’m getting pretty bored of the same old CDs, and I was wondering if you
(or the readers) had any suggestions.

Right now, I’m listening to the new
Coldplay, but the CDs that get the most play are Ben Folds Five (and Ben
Folds solo), the Shins, the Postal Service, Death Cab for Cutie, Paul
Simon, Aimee Mann, Keane, and, incongruously, Gwen Stefani. I basically
like tuneful and interesting music from any genre but country; I do enjoy
indie music but sometimes find it a little self-conscious. I know nothing
about “classic” music beyond the Beatles and very little about current
good music — can you or your readers educate me?

Thanks so much,
A Lonely Listener

Dear LL,

Musical taste is so subjective…BSD and I like a lot of the same music, but then he likes the White Stripes and I don’t care about them, and I like Bob Wills and he’s like, “…Eh.”(Bob Wills is old-school country, by the way, so don’t bother with that.)

You and I have really similar tastes, from the sound of it, so I’ll suggest stuff from my own library and you can test it out on iTunes and see what you think…and the readers can fill in the gaps.I put the “classic” music in italics.

Air, “Moon Safari.” Dreamy driving music.If you like this album, try Bowery Electric’s “Beat.”
Beck, “Guero.”The Beck album for people who had given up on Beck.I was set to bail out after “Sea Change” but really liked this one.
“Girls in the Garage.”You might have to go to eBay for this one — girl garage bands of the ’60s, but not crappy Shaggs-y stuff.Come for the Beatlettes, stay for the song about the fatal catfight.
Ben Lee, “Breathing Tornados.”Like Coldplay, sort of, but with a smaller, denser sound.
The Desert Blue soundtrack.
Boards of Canada, “Music Has The Right To Children.” It’s trip-hop, I guess…wait, where’re you going?Heh.This album is, in my experience, like Sara Lee; nobody doesn’t like it.Metalheads, DJs, nerds like me who own every single Billy Joel record, there’s something for everyone.(See also: Fantastic Plastic Machine, “Luxury.”)
Bob Dylan, “Highway 61 Revisited” or “Blood on the Tracks.”If you’re not used to Dylan, it can take some time to get past the voice, but try it; do NOT start with “Desire,” which is a worthy album but really annoying in spots.
“The Very Best of Booker T. and the MGs.”You actually know a bunch of these songs already; you just don’t know you know them.
The Crooklyn soundtrack.A good range of old-school R&B.
The Clash, “Combat Rock.”Should I have marked that as a classic?Probably.Most of the readers are going to tell you to try “London Calling” instead, I bet, but I found that disc really tough to get into.
Cornershop, “Woman’s Gotta Have It.”I like this album better than “When I Was Born for the Seventh Time,” although it’s less polished.If you like this, AND you like the Beck, try Clinton’s “Disco and the Halfway to Discontent”; it’s two of the guys from the ‘shop.
The Donnas, “Spend the Night.””I Don’t Care” is probably my favorite song ever.Like the Darkness, but with girls and less Judas-Priesty drama.
Dubstar, “Goodbye.”
Elliott Smith, “XO.”
Everything But The Girl, “Amplified Heart.”This one is hard to explain; see what you think.This album had the big single back in the day, but the whole album is friendly and tells a nice story.
Glenn Miller.
Fountains of Wayne, “Welcome Interstate Managers.”Believe the hype.
The Hives, “Veni Vidi Vicious.”Like the Strokes, but less…I don’t know.Messy.I prefer Hives to Strokes.
Hole, “Live Through This.”Courtney’s on the genius side of the genius-madness line here, briefly, and it’s really good.
The Hollies, “The Hollies.”Basically showed the Stones how it was done with this album.Lots of different genres, good harmonies — old-school Brit R&B, but not as jangly as some stuff.
Ivy, “Apartment Life.”Dido-esque, but not as needy.Like Aimee in her less vein-opening moments.
Janis Joplin, “18 Essential Songs.”I know, I know.You hate “Bobby McGee.”Me too.”Get It While You Can” makes up for a lot.
Johnny Marr + the Healers, “Boomslang.”Marr, for you youngsters, was the guitarist for the Smiths, but you don’t have to have liked the Smiths to like this album.(If you don’t have any Smiths, try “The Queen Is Dead” to start out.For solo Morrissey, I’d recommend “Viva Hate.”And here’s where the readership collectively bellows, “Youuuuuu’d WHAAAAT?” and opens emails to me.Sigh.)
Joni Mitchell, “Court and Spark.”She’s a little much sometimes, but this is later stuff, easier to take.Madonna apparently loved this album as a kid, which…is weird.
Jude, “No One Is Really Beautiful.”If one guy’s self-esteem got split into two parts and put into two different guys, and one half were Elliott Smith?The other half would be Jude.That’s not really selling you on the album, probably.The sound is like…John Mayer, I guess?It’s good, don’t get me wrong; I’m just not going to date the guy.
Liz Phair.Oh, where to start.She caught a huge amount of flak for that last album, but I really really liked it; it’s called “Liz Phair.”If you’re not as familiar with her stuff, or tried “Exile in Guyville” and got impatient with it, try “Whip-Smart.”
Luna, “Close Cover Before Striking.”It’s not “vintage” Luna, but if you like this, dip a toe into “Bewitched.”
Luscious Jackson, “Electric Honey.”
Michael Penn, “MP4.”I like all his albums (and he’s married to Aimee, don’t you know), but this one’s probably the best if you’re new to his stuff.
Morphine, “Cure for Pain.”You’ll either love this one or hate it.(Warning: Title track will lodge in your head for days on end.)
The Motels, “All Four One.”This may be the kind of album where, if you didn’t grow up in the eighties and you aren’t accustomed to this kind of sound on, like, a DNA level, you might not like it.Certain bands, people under 25 are like, what’s with the sax, this blows, but this is how we lived then.See what you think.I had a blurb on the Cherry page once about how I thought the Motels were always underrated, and the guitarist emailed me all, “Oh, we did okay for ourselves.”Heh.Hi, Motels guy!
Peter Gabriel.Get older stuff, like “Moribund the Burgermeister” era.
PJ Harvey, “Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea.”I’m not a huge fan of her other stuff; this album is excellent.
The Police, “Synchronicity.”See my comments on the Motels.Creepy album, this one, but I still like it.
The Primitives, “Bombshell.”
The Queers, “Love Songs for the Retarded” or “Don’t Back Down.”Songs are funnier on the first one (“I Can’t Stop Farting”); songs are better musically on the second one.Jan and Dean, eaten by the Ramones.
…The Ramones.Any album is fine.”Mania” would do it.I feel that the Ramones are necessary for productive modern living, but you’ll do as you like.
Ray Charles.You’re probably sick to death of the guy, but there’s a reason he’s everywhere.”What’d I Say” is my favorite — more raunch than sugar — but it can be tough to find.Try to avoid greatest hits collections; they’re saccharine.
Richard Ashcroft, “Human Conditions.”
The Rolling Stones, “Let It Bleed.”
Rufus Wainwright, “Poses.”
St. Etienne, “Foxbase Alpha.””Tiger Bay” is good too.
Sinead.Oh, poor Sinead.She’s such a weirdo.”I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got” is a good album, though.It can be a little hostile at first; give it a few listens before you bail out.
The Soup Dragons, “Lovegod.”This is a weird little record but if you like the Shins and Aimee, you might dig it.
Squeeze.The “Singles 45 and Under” album is okay, but try to find the album…damn, what’s the name of it…”Argybargy.”I think you can only get it on an import label, which is weird, and a lot of people hate the B-sides on it, but I like it better, it’s less processed than some of their other stuff.
The Stills, “Logic Will Break Your Heart.”Excellent driving tunes.
The Stone Roses, “The Stone Roses [US].”
The Sundays, “Blind.”
Talking Heads, “Fear of Music.”Typical Heads, but not as cutesy as some of the later songs.
Tei Towa, “Future Listening.”Lounge-hop from the Deee-Lite DJ.(Note: Supa DJ Dmitry is the other Deee-Lite DJ but his stuff is much different, harder and more clubby.I like “Scream of Consciousness” a lot to clean the apartment by, but it’s miles away from Towa’s ultra-lounge sound.So, if you go to Tower Records and ask the for “the Deee-Lite guy,” be aware — there are two, and they aren’t the same.)
Teenage Fanclub, “Grand Prix.”
They Might Be Giants, “Flood.”
Thomas Dolby, “The Golden Age of Wireless.”See the Motels entry again.Very much a product of his time, but still worth a listen.
The Thrills, “So Much for the City.”

I tried to give you a good range, but this isn’t everything in my collection (I left out some of the crappier ’80s stuff, for obvious reasons).So, write back and tell me which of this stuff you’ve already tried and liked (or hated), and then we can narrow down your choices.

Readers: For now, hold off on recs until we see what LL has to say about this list.You may of course feel free to wail and gnash your teeth at my comments, but let’s wait on suggestions for the moment.

Sars,

“Instantaneously.”

Is that ok now? Or may I continue to slash it out of documents and speech
with vengence?

“Instantly” has fewer letters and syllables for pete’s sake!

Dear Pete,

…It’s “with a vengeance.”Y’all, before you fulminate at the usage errors of others, you need to proofread.

Garner’s note on “instantly”/”instantaneously”: “Instantly = at once, directly and immediately.Instantaneously = (1) (of two events that occur) so nearly simultaneously that any difference is imperceptible; or (2) done in an instant.”

There is a difference in meaning there; “instantaneously” suggests a much shorter interval of time, obviously.But I don’t see “instantanously” used for “instantly” nearly as often I see “instantly” used for “immediately” — which is to my mind a more jarring error.

But yes, you can keep correcting “instantaneously.”Just promise me you’ll spell-check.

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