Greg Budell

The Dead Budell Show!

"A true story from the Greg files"

Pardon me while I download my late parents.

Not a picture. Their voices. And Alexa will bring them to audio life!

You read that correctly. In a matter of form, Alexa will soon "bring back the dead".

IBM Selectric Typewriter

Internet. was even easier. I sold my Seletric for $40. For a mere $4,031 dollars in today’s money, I purchased my first HewlettPackard desk top computer (with a dot matrix printer!). It would be 6 years before I realized that same HP computer could connect me to this thing called the I’ve seen the adorable TV commercial featuring an elderly couple spinning gently on their living room dance floor. The old man says, “Alexa, play our favorite song”. The dark tower that is Alexa immediately begins playing “I Only Have Eyes For You” and the lovebirds resume dancing. It’s a well-produced spot that touches the heart and in fact, made my eyes sting. No sale, however. Why ask Alexa when I have Siri in the palm of my hand?

Here's where it gets dark.

Let me explain.

I have embraced much of today’s technology. In fact, my track record has been pretty good in that regard.

In the early 70s, I was the first kid on my block to own my own IBM Selectric typewriter! It cost me $600, an extravagant purchase for a radio newbie making little more than that per month. In today’s dollars that Selectric would run $4,051(or for me, about 4 good laptops or iPhone).

What was so special about the Selectric? It did away with typewriter keys! The letters were on a metal ball that danced like magic with every stroke. The nasty old typewriter ribbon was replaced by a cartridge that delivered a nice, consistent result on paper. With a little help from Liquid Paper, I could correct mistakes while producing ad copy and written radio bits quickly and neatly. I also remember wondering ‘how could it get any better than this?”.

I got my answer a couple years later when IBM introduced the Selectric II. It was basically the same machine, but it had a SELF-CORRECT function that did away with that tiny brush of Liquid Paper.

Eventually, with great resistance early on, I discovered that writing on a computer I’d reached that point in life where things were moving faster and faster. Too fast.

When I finally figured out AOL and realized I could send business and/or love letters to someone in an instant without paper or postage I again wondered, how can it get any better than this? According to a recent tech story, that same couple could one day soon, be dancing to their favorite song and then ask Alexa, “please have my dead Grandmother read 50 Shades of Grey (or is it “Gray”?). Artificial Intelligence, using a sample of the deceased’s voice will be able to replicate it, and command it to do anything (like reading the aforementioned, bestselling book).

In the late 80s, I was one of the first cell phone owners in Miami because a company advertising on my radio show gave me one. Calling anyone anywhere from anyplace? How can it get better than that? One glance at my iPhone 12 or 13 (not sure) and it’s laughable I ever wondered. As my dentist says, this is a bridgework too far.

Technology will soon exist that will “bring back the dead”.

I have refused, however, to have Alexa in my house. I spend 6 hours every weekday talking to people I can’t see. I don’t need to come home and talk to a high-tech toy which I really believe is a sinister datacollecting device sending my life to our government or China (take your pick). They’re both evil.

In the 80s, I recorded my parent’s voices with my modern Panasonic video recorder (while wondering how can it get any better than this ...lol?). I subsequently transferred those slowly decaying tapes to DVD (assuming again, how can Panasonic Recorder it ...). My parent’s voices now rest in peace somewhere in the Cloud. The Cloud is a digital cemetery for, well, anything! And that is where my folks will remain.

Oh, I thought about it.

Truth is, I have not been able to bring myself to watch those video moments in any of their various states of preservation at any time in any form. Mom, Dad their voices and mannerisms are stored in the cloud between my ears. It’s perfect there.

Using A.I. to synthesize my mother into a talented household appliance has zero appeal, even if she’s programmed to say only “everything is going to be OK Gregory Benjamin”. Likewise, the day Pops told me “I’m proud of you son” was so special. I can hear it in my ‘cloud’ any time I want. Nothing will ever replace the moment.

Greg's Cell Phone

my time comes (and to provide a small additional income to my grieving family), they use those stored broadcasts to run The Dead Budell Show for an hour late at night. It wouldn’t be too creepy. There are entire TV nostalgia networks featuring shows by people long gone. What’s an hour of radio after I croak?

I proposed this with one codicil. If they reject it, don’t make that decision until I am gone. I am SO sensitive.

I’m done. “Siri, finish this column for me”.

THE END

On the other hand, it’s possible you’ll never hear the end of me!

Once upon a time, a radio station music library required a large room to store all the vinyl records in use. Before I knew it, a single wall was all we needed to store the CDs in use. Today?

Every song you play fits in a single computer.

Thanks to digital radio storage, thousands of hours of my radio shows are preserved. I have suggested to Bluewater Broadcasting management that when

(If you have a comment on this column, email me at gregbudell@aol.com. It's still fun to hear from new people!)

Greg Budell lives in Montgomery with his wife, Roz, Stepson, Sho, and dogs Hershey and Briscoe. He’s been in radio since 1970, and has marked 16 years in the River Region. He hosts the Newstalk 93.1FM Morning Show with Rich Thomas, Jay Scott & Jessie Lynn, 6-9 AM Monday-Friday. He returns weekday afternoons from 3-6 PM for Happy Hour with sidekick Rosie Brock. Greg can be reached at gregbudell@aol.com.

Tell Your Friends

BOOM! Available

Here and 200 other locations!

Renfroe's Market_Adams Drugs_ Sommer's Place_Fresh Market_ Tomatino's_MCA Fitness_Vintage Cafe_Derk's_UPS Stores_Steak Out_ Steaks & Wine_The Vintage Olive_ Capital City-Ace Hardware_Orange Therapy_Down the Street Chappy's Deli_Health Wise Foods_ Eastbrook Flea Market_John Lee Paints_Home Care Assistance_ Doug's 2_Baumhower’s Restaurant_ Jan's Beach House_San Marcos_ Chris' Hot Dogs_Lek's_SaZas_Mexico Tipico_La Zona Rosa

Smart Health - Nature's Way - Tracy Bhalla Ease Digestive Discomfort

with Essential Oils

One of the first blends I made during my Certification training was a Digestive blend for my husband. He was regularly taking TUMS, pretty much every evening, so he actually asked me if I could help wean him off them onto a more natural path. Now having a medical Doctor ask me for help was pretty cool! So, I set to work trying a few different blends before settling on one that worked for him. I’m not going to lie, occasionally he still reaches for the TUMS, but it’s really a comfort thing now. Most times he uses the roll-on blend I gave him, and he has one in his travel pack as well. So, what is in it? Some of the oils I am going to talk about today, to be sure, but also some special additions just for him. LogHouse Aromatics Digestive blend:

- Peppermint (there’s a reason for those after dinner mints!), - Ginger (well known for it’s anti-nausea and digestive calming effects), - Fennel (in the same family as Anise/ aniseed, that you see in most Indian restaurants to chew on after your spicy food - Tarragon (anti-spasmodic and calming, nice herby fragrance).

I made this in a roll-on so he can carry it and use it anywhere. It easily slips into your pocket or handbag. You literally roll it onto your belly area after eating and let the oils do their work. I know that may seem a bit strange when you’re used to popping pills, but just trust me on this one.

Using essential oils for digestion is primarily about:

1) Calming muscle spasms 2) Relieving sensations of bloating – usually caused by gas 3) Easing a queasy belly

Fortunately, we have a number of options in our arsenal to apply to this kind of problem, so we can really offer people a very individualized solution. In my husband’s case, although he loves mint and ginger, he didn’t want to be smelling of them himself, so we added fennel and tarragon to counteract that as well as adding an even broader spectrum of calming and antispasmodic properties to the blend.

I would say that Anise, Ginger and Peppermint are my top go-to oils for digestive issues, and all are extremely well documented for centuries as having been used in this way. Anise is a powerful anti-spasmodic, helping calm a queasy tummy and dispel gas. Ginger is every pregnant woman’s go-to for nausea; it can also help soothe sore achy tissues. Peppermint can relax muscles fast and so can ease an upset stomach and help ease bloating. It also helps you feel refreshed as the scent is so uplifting.

Others that you may not be so familiar with are: Black Pepper – helps to calm muscles and ease feelings of bloatedness. Cardamom- awesome at easing belly spasms. Sweet orange – anti-spasmodic and uplifting Sweet marjoram – helps keep you regular and detox your system, particularly after an evening of rich food (and drink!)

Some of these oils are what we call

“hot” oils – black pepper, cardamom, ginger…what we mean by this is that they can be very “hot“ on your skin, so never use them undiluted and only then at very low dilution levels. They are all very potent; a little goes a very long way. If use on mucous membranes, in the mouth, nose, etc. they can even create a burning sensation, so please do not treat this lightly. Use these oils only under supervision of an aromatherapist or buy them already blended.

Having said that, you do not have to apply them to the skin at all in order for them to have an effect. You can diffuse them in the air and breathe in the molecules that way. This would ensure a much lower dilution level and is very effective at treating symptoms like nausea and queasiness.

And of course, you can also have a drink of peppermint tea or ginger tea to help calm your stomach after a large meal – that is also very effective.

email: nyrbhalla@gmail.com I web: us.nyrorganic.com/shop/tracybhalla I www. LogHouseAromatics.com

Tracy Bhalla, independent consultant with NYR Organics and founder of LogHouseAromatics.com; after 25 years of using homeopathic remedies, it was time to take charge and complete my Aromatherapy Certification, which I achieved April 2020 and since founded LogHouseAromatics.com as a source for useful essential oil and general natural health information and a place to purchase certain products. email: nyrbhalla@gmail.com I am here to answer any questions you may have. 60 BOOM! July 2022