Impulsion

Dub FX

June 28, 2009 – 11:34 pm

Wow, another artist found on the tube and Aurgasm… Vocalists amaze me sometimes. When you tear it all down, the human voice is extremely powerful on its own. When you push it to its limits, it can be mind-bogglingly spectacular.

    Sweet layering, dubtactular, eloquent lyrics… pretty damn cool.

Dub FX - his website.

Dub FX - Love Someone
Dub FX - Step on my Trip


    I think I see a pattern developing with my listening habits. Tear the music apart, simplify, extract all of the best from what you have, and excel. Perhaps the days of me listening to the sounds of a wall of distorted guitars and obscured, flanged vocals is over… well, maybe… enjoy the music!

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Selling the SV

May 4, 2009 – 11:10 pm

Well, I’ve finally decided that I need a bigger bike. The SV is agreat all-around bike, but not for a guy like me (big guy). So, anyone know someone who wants an SV?

More here: http://home.fuse.net/java146

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Flashbacks…

April 18, 2009 – 2:44 am

Although I am getting over a cold, I decided to ride into work today. The weather was beautiful today and I can finally see the light at the end of that cold and dreary Cincinnati weather tunnel.
      The SV650 has been behaving nice these past few months although, due to its torquey little v-twin, it still acts like a cranky bucking bronco at low RPMs. I am not sure I’ll ever get used to having my… umm… well, let’s say, “twig and berries”, rocket toward the damn gas tank every time my hand slips on the throttle. I’m getting too old for that crap.
      Anyway, the SV rested calmly in the parking garage as I had a relatively decent day at work. And, at 5 o’clock, when everyone was escaping the building to soak up the 70 degree day, I joined the exodus. I fired up the bike and headed east.
      I visited Lunken Airport and smiled from ear to ear as I saw numerous helicopters and small GA aircraft taking to the skies. Oh, I want to be in the air again. And, after reality set in, I headed north on route 32 and landed in Clermont County. I plugged in the famous home of Sporty’s pilot shop, “Clermont County Airport”, into the newly mounted GPS and wound the throttle open. It turns out that there wasn’t much happening up there, but the two Cessnas taxiing their way home brought good memories.
      It was on the trip home that I received the shock of the day. The lower end of route 32 spits you onto an east-west four lane bypass called, route 125, otherwise known as, “Beechmont Avenue”. This stretch of 125 borders Lunken airport to the north.
      When I made it onto 125 there were about 10 cars within ear shot. Two cars in front of me and three to my 10 o’clock in the lane to my left. All was going well until I spotted the car next to me creep ever closer to the car in front of them. Within in a matter of seconds I got a glimpse of the driver making a brief look in her rear-view mirror, quickly throw on her turn signal and, before I knew it, she was sliding into my lane. My thumb started searching for the button to my feeble little horn, “where is it?”, “what the he..”, … I couldn’t FIND IT! What’s wrong with me?
      Well, too late, I quickly matched her slide with a slide of my own, and skirted almost all the way into the shoulder. As I reached the end of my slide I managed to glimpse left only to see a man in the passenger seat wincing as if he was sure that he was about to hear the crunch of metal. I quickly rang out the throttle and that glorious thump of the v-twin shot me forward and back into the lane that I had once been bullied out of. I made some, albeit politically correct, gestures in the air and back at the driver and saw her fall back.
      After that I felt an eerie calm for some reason. For the next few miles all I could see were the few images that burned themselves to memory. The female driver getting antsy in her seat; the turn signal light blinking once; the male passengers hands folding up to his face in a defensive posture; her hood as I escaped back into the car-free lane; and that very car in my mirror finally giving me the space I deserved.
      Now I am stuck with those images and a wonder of what I should have done differently or what I should do if this were to happen again. Should I chop the throttle and hope that I don’t get rear ended when the SV nose dives? Would it have worked or was there no time for that? How can I instinctively throw my fist into the steering wheel of a car to blow the horn but I can’t seem to move my thumb 1/2 inch inwards while on a bike when a 2 ton vehicle is about to eat me for dinner?
      I can’t say that this is the cager versus the motorcyclist. There were definitely mistakes I made that I wouldn’t even make in my car. It’s time for some reflection.

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The Legend - Bob Hoover

March 16, 2009 – 2:26 am

His career is vast: fighter pilot, test pilot, X1 Mach 1 chase plane pilot, aerobatic pilot… the list goes on and on. He is a legend in aviation.

Check out his book his auto-biography, down to the right, in my recent books section. It is probably one of the most interesting books I have ever read.

You could check out the Wikipedia page, here.

This video does not do him justice. It is a only a single video detailing one of his most famous aerobatic maneuvers. His book tells the other 99% percent.

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Flickr account…

January 25, 2009 – 1:39 am

Yep, so many people have them so I thought I would jump on the bandwagon. The picture on the right is from my Flickr account. Click on it, it will probably get you there.

I recently picked up a used Nikon DSLR off of Ebay and I have been using it as an excuse to get away from the mundane tasks of the day to day grind. I’ve found the solitude of my home far too enjoyable lately and, due to the endless cold weather, exploring the outside world on my bike is no longer an option until Spring. I am hoping the camera gives me an excuse to brave the cold and get out of the house.

I have been trolling the photography sites on the net, Flickr and TMBO included, so I am certainly not going to run short of good inspiration. Now I just have to remember to make time to head out to take shots and learn more.

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New Motorcycle Safety Foundation Final Exam

January 7, 2009 – 2:50 am

Not really… but they are riding instructors in Japan… Impressive!

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Choosing the right helmet…

November 2, 2008 – 3:46 am

I found this video embedded into a post over here: Keep the Rubber Side Down

… Since it is great video, I thought I would also post it here… It has to do with how to fit a helmet and the basics behind helmet design. The MSF basic rider course also covers many of these details. All of which, I think, are very important to know.

I would hate to see any of my friends go down while riding and do irrecoverable damage.

CLOSING THOUGHT: 192 MILES PER HOUR! 9 IMPACTS! CONSCIOUS (holy crap)
WEAR A HELMET!

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“One cannot know what is not true.”

October 24, 2008 – 8:07 pm

Due to a company initiative, probably to make the financials look a littttle better, no employee can carry over personal time off into the new year.     Well, this would be OK, but I will have accrued over 180 hours of PTO (4.5 weeks) by the end of the year (this year and carried over from years past).    I like my job and I already have used my PTO to see my relatives so… I’m taking some days, and weeks, off here and there.      When the weather cooperates, I am on the bike having a blast, but when it doesn’t I am stuck at home.

What’s a wierdo like me to do during this down time?   Philosophy!    Ok, I have never touched the subject of philosophy without a teacher shoving it down my throat, but I have this weird desire to learn a little more (… and stir up the brain cells).   So, I found a couple of books - ya’know those things without eye blurring backlit pixels? - and I have begun to dive in.     So far it has been interesting to see the human thought process torn apart.

The title of this blog entry is a quote from a book called, “Philosophy”, by Stephen Law.    It is in a chapter describing the theory of knowledge.   The sentence just caught me by surprise.   Knowledge is said to be beliefs with reliable supporting evidence.   So, what we know is what we have good reason to believe is true.  You cannot know of something without it being true.     The book goes on to discuss the various ways, and theories, of questioning this.   I’m only 60 pages in, so there is much more.

Trust me, its a mind freak in itself to me but, so far, its been interesting.

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Been a little busy/preoccupied…

September 24, 2008 – 2:48 pm

I’ve been a little busy and preoccupied lately, as well as dealing with a pulled oblique muscle, so I though I would post up an artist I have been listening to for a while now.    He is, by far, my favorite musician that I have come across online.     The depth of the songs, the harmonies that come to life, and the melodies that weave through are just utterly amazing to me.

His name is Antoine Dufour and, for anyone that has trolled the vast murky depths of YouTube like I have looking for artists, he may look familiar.   He is a talented finger pick guitar player from Quebec, Canada.    He is currently signed to CandyRat records and has three albums of his own out available to purchase everywhere. (I’ve got ‘em - they are awesome)

Below is a video from YouTube. Below that are some links to check out more of him or more of other great artists in the same genre.

Antoine Dufour - “Scratch”

Antoine Dufour(MySpace)(Tons of vids and info)
CandyRat Records

Antoine Dufour - “Spiritual Groove” (YouTube)
Antoine Dufour - “Drac & Friends I” (by Don Ross) (YouTube)
Antoine Dufour - “Development” (YouTube)

Other Great Guitarists:
Don Ross - “Afraid to Dance” (YouTube)
Don Ross - “Michael, Michael, Michael” (YouTube)
Craig D’Andrea - “Canada Sad” (YouTube)
Tommy Gauthier and Antoine Dufour - “Naissance” (YouTube)
Andy Mckee - “Drifting” (YouTube)

… I could go on… but I think you got the point. I’ll let you find the rest.

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Oh the memories…

September 8, 2008 – 12:45 am

… some good and some bad…

80’s Music Videos

… interesting nonetheless.

(My favorite songs listed: Violent Femmes - Blister in the Sun, The Police - Every Breath You Take, and Aldo Nova - Fantasy (Although, if I knew just how CHEEEESY the music video was, I might have thought otherwise when I was growing up.))

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