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3 November, 2003
My New Ukulele
Inspired by our recent trip to Hawaii, I ordered a ukulele last week. It was pretty much an impulse purchase that I made after browsing a few sites. It arrived on Friday, and I've barely been able to put it down.
It's a Lanikai concert-size uke, made by Hohner. It's made of laminated Koa, with a rosewood neck. It's an inexpensive beginner's instrument, but it looks and sounds good to me. I ordered it from Ukulele World, a site run by Roy T. Cone. Roy seems like a great guy, and he has been referred to as a saint.
Recently I have had a couple of e-mails referring to me as being described as "Saintly" on somebody's bulletin board..... well, I certainly admit to being an "old coot"..... and I admit that I have been wrestling around with throat cancer.... with the radiation ordeal. I am certainly flattered when being though of as "Saintly" because I try behave properly (most of the time, that is...) ..... BUT I AIN'T LEFT THIS WORLD YET!
As I understand it.... departure from this life is a pre-requisite for being a Saint. And I might be short a miracle or two... Secondly, thinking about it..... the ukulele may not be the preferred musical instrument in the here-after.
I've also been spending a lot of time at Gary Peare's Ukulelia site, which is actually an infrequently-updated blog. I've visited ukulele sites in the past, but I could never relate to the near maniacal devotion to the instrument -- until now.
As a guitar player, I was able to pick it up and make music immediately. The tuning intervals are the same as the top four strings on a guitar (but the fourth string is an octave higher). Everyone always refers to uke playing as fun. And let me tell you, it is fun. I like its diminutive size and its bass-less tone. That one string that's an octave higher is simply fascinating to me.
I also bought two ukulele CDs from Dollar CD Shop (Ukulele Juke Box, Volumes One and Two). These should be interesting. And here's a nicely-done uke chord finder (with sound).
So if you're looking for a new pastime, buy a ukulele. And if you already play guitar, there's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't also play a uke.
Now I'm eyeing this one.
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Historic Recordings
Lots of very old sound recordings From the Library of Congress.
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Burning Man In 3D
Pseudo 3D images of the Burning Man event.
This method of presenting stereo images uses animated .gifs to rapidly switch between left and right images. For most of us the brain will impose a crude sense of dimensionality on a wildly wiggling scene.
Posted on 3 November, 2003
For The Conspiracy Theorists
Two articles about the 9-11 terrorist attacks:
Yesterday on Canadian national TV, a documentary linking Sep 11th to the elite members of this current murderous administration was aired for the very first time in North America. Hopefully this will give this growing movement a significant push to seriously investigate the true architects of Sep11th.Here is one of the most startling documentaries you will ever see.
Flight 777 - Pentagon Event - 3D Test
Steve Patterson, 43, said he was watching television reports of the World Trade Center being hit when he saw a silver commuter jet fly past the window of his 14th-floor apartment in Pentagon City. The plane was about 150 yards away, approaching from the west about 20 feet off the ground, Patterson said.
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Bitrex
You probably have some Bitrex in your home. What is Bitrex?
Bitrex is the brand
name of the most bitter substance yet discovered. It is inert and odourless, but
only tiny amounts are needed to make products taste unpalatable.
Children are particularly sensitive to bitter tastes, making Bitrex a powerful deterrent to accidental swallowing.
Bitrex was discovered in 1958 by Macfarlan Smith Ltd. First used in denaturing alcohol - making it legally unfit for consumption - it is now added to a wide range of household cleaners, pesticides, and DIY and automotive products.
(via Everlasting Blort)
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Old Candy
Pages from a 1949 Candy Salesman Book. Go ahead, take a whiz... It's the "best nickel candy there is."
(via Tom McMahon)
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Embarrassed Dogs
Two links to sites that show photos of dogs who are obviously embarrassed:
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Archaic Occupations
A lengthy list of occupations that aren't too popular anymore. Well, many of the occupations still exist, but they go by a different name.
For example do you know what a knocker-up does for a living? He's a man paid to wake up northern mill and factory workers on early shifts
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Symantec And Product Activation
I just love stories like this. From ZDNet: Product activation glitch hits Symantec.
Some of the 1.2 million customers that have installed software maker Symantec's latest Norton PC security package have been unable to use the software because of new antipiracy technology, the company confirmed Thursday.
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Cover The Earth?
Here's the logo for the Sherwin-Williams paint company. I think they could have chosen a color other than blood-red.
(via Fuddmain)
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Bingo For Parents
If you have one or more babies, try this game of parenting bingo.
Print this page and cross off the boxes you encounter during your day. Play by yourself, against your spouse, or against other parents. When you get five in a row, scream "Bingo!" at the top of your lungs.
If you win, you're probably having a fairly lousy day, so park the kids in front of the TV and have a cocktail. Hell, have two.
(via The Presurfer)
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Book Recommendation
Looking for something a bit different to read? Try The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger.
This is from a review at the Denver Post:
Like Kurt
Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five," Audrey Niffenegger's first novel, "The Time
Traveler's Wife," concerns a character, Henry, whose fate is controlled by his
own instability in the flow of time. But unlike Vonnegut's Billy Pilgrim, Henry
has met, fallen in love with and married the woman of his dreams - Clare. The
problem, of course, is that Henry can be whisked away - backward or forward - in
time at some inopportune moments, such as when he and Clare are getting ready to
kiss on New Year's Eve; or ... well, you get the idea.
Henry DeTamble is a swarthy librarian working at the prestigious Newberry Library in Chicago. He also suffers from a "genetic" disorder that causes him to travel through time, always arriving naked. The strange events are triggered during times of stress, and Henry is always "drawn" to times of great importance in his own life.
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Famous Freaks
A list of famous freaks. Shown here is Zip.
Born
William Henry Johnson in a small town in New Jersey in the 1840's, he was hired
by Barnum into the American Museum in 1860. The introduction of Zip on stage
came three months after the publishing of Darwin's Origin of the Species.
Barnum quickly displayed the pinhead as the "missing link", asking people, "What is it?", mentioning that "it" could be a lower form of man or a higher form of ape.
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Laser Turntable
With the ELP Laser Turntable, you can play records without a needle.
This technological marvel plays vinyl records with CD quality sound, and is perfect for record collectors, archivists and vinyl enthusiasts alike.
Prices start at $10,500.
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Death Probabilities
A handy table from the National Safety Council: What are the odds of dying?
The table has four columns. The first column gives the manner of injury such as motor-vehicle crash, fall, fire, etc. The second column gives the total number of deaths nationwide due to the manner of injury in 2000 (the latest year for which data are available). The third column gives the odds of dying in one year due to the manner of injury. The fourth column gives the lifetime odds of dying from the manner of injury.
Posted on 3 November, 2003
Art And Mathematics
The art of Bathsheba Brossman.
I'm an artist exploring the region between art and mathematics, and this is my gallery and storefront. My work is about life in three dimensions: symmetry and difference, zero and infinity, rotation and reflection... everything to do with the beautiful subject of geometry.
Shown here is a lasercut steel sculpture called Little Star.
Posted on 3 November, 2003