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Old 07-09-2017, 09:29 PM   #367
xoxoxoBruce
The future is unwritten
 
Join Date: Oct 2002
Posts: 71,105
My strategy is you dress shabbily which is the easy because that's normal, and stop in without an appointment. This is the first time I've had to come back the next day, and that was Saturday half day and I got the last appointment. We discussed the problem I was having and he checked them both. One was kaput. Not surprised for 4 years old.
Looked in my ear to make sure it wasn't plugged and commented of how much empty space he could see in there. Even though I'd never seen this guy before, I'd like a nickel for every time he's used that joke.
He tells me mine could be repaired but that's expensive, and the new ones are 30% more powerful, yada-yada-yada yawn. Pitch finished, remember I've heard this since 1981.
He pulled out my file, sees I paid a grand last time, and beats it by $50. BUT, if I want a phone switch which used to be free, it's $100 more. Also when I bought a pair 4 years ago Medicare reimbursed me $500. They don't anymore because Obamacare fucked up everything, ruined the whole industry, destroyed the nation and will probably cause a zombie apocalypse, according to this guy... without a breath, too. There's been a lot of shady characters in this business and I guess Obamacare put the squeeze on them.

We fat guys sweat a lot and with sparse vegetation to divert it, tend to short out behind the ear types, so I use an in the ear which means taking a mold and sending it in to be copied... or matched to the closest stock size, damifino.

Yes, a mic, some mini-electronics, speaker and volume control. I asked for one that goes to 11 but nope. The biggest challenge is amplifying what you want to hear but not the ambient noise. Crowded restaurants or noisy places are a bear. They've come up with gimmicks like directional mikes and shit which look good in lab reports but in the real world suck.

I find I've been unknowingly reading lips more and listening for clues someone is addressing me. A year ago I was at a cookout at a friends in the NJ mountains. Nice quiet atmosphere, great. Her brother Bruce, his son Bruce, her neighbor Bruce, the dog Bruce, were also there. After a day of that, I was happy to come back and listen to UT wow the groupies.
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