Something to consider

The CDIC claims that they will insure your saving for up to $100, 000. That's all fine and dandy, but consider what happens if the CDIC goes bankrupt; how on earth can they honor this claim if there's major bank failure? Even if they're not bankrupt, what will likely happen is that when there is a bank failure, the dollar will only be worth about 5% of its normal value so in essence, you're only going to get about $2000 dollars on your $100, 000 dollar savings.

Downloading music -- The tides have turned

Download music like there's no tomorrow; fuck 'em! This mp3 downloading thing is the cats ass and is a nice bit of retribution for all the the years the music industry has shamelessly ripped off the public. Continue to take advantage of your ability to use the internet freely because it's only a matter of time before Stephen Harper and his minions succumb to US pressure and bill-61 is used to suppress you.

"Downloading is illegal" - not in Canada...nyuk, nyuk, nyuk. "But it's immoral" -cool. "The artists don't get paid" - that's true, if they're stupid enough to sign a contract with you. These are all whiny little tactics of the RIAA and CRIA to try and guilt you into giving them your money. Don't fall for these bargain basement histrionics; listening to music - which is essentially all you're doing - does not make you a bad person.

Ok, let's clear the air here a little. For the most part, people are downloading music that they would never have purchased in the first place. By that, I mean that people download a one hit wonder or nostalgic song so that it can be heard once again, or, they never had any intention of buying any music, but since it's free, hey, why not; the fact is, nobody is out any money. What's ultimately happening here is that people are being exposed to the music -- a good thing! Yes, there are people downloading music with the sole intent of bucking the system and not having to pay. There are however, larger numbers of people downloading and discovering new and old music that they'd never have been exposed to had it not been for the wonders of the internet. I contend that the trade-off here is actually in favour of the record companies.

One thing the RIAA and CRIA never like to discuss is how downloadable mp3 music has actually revived the careers of musical acts that would long be into musical oblivion. Because of the internet and downloadable mp3's, old acts that had long been forgotten and certainly of no relevance to younger listeners, are now flourishing as new and old audiences are checking out dinosaurish bands concerts and tours ... *cough..Nazareth...cough*.

Another thing to consider is that people in general have a certain amount of their income that they'll use for entertainment. If they didn't spend $20 dollars on a CD, then that's $20 dollars more they have to spend on concert tickets of t-shirts. If bands are smart and have things together, they'll ultimately find ways of generating income, using the CD more as a marketing tool than as a product.

In you're an artist and you sign a contract with a major label, you're pretty much signing a form that states "I'm a complete fucking clod", because chances are (and huge ones at that) you're going to wind up broke...really broke.....in fact, most likely bankrupt. The best thing you can do is stay an Indie artist and finance yourself privately. Your costs will be less and fans might actually buy your music since you're not in cahoots with "the man". If you're good, fans will at least spend their money at your concerts so you can recover expenses that way. Very few artists have ever made any real money on CD and album sales anyways; only the thugs who own the record companies along with their RIAA lapdogs have ever truly profited.

Download the music; if you like it, then consider buying the CD if you have the spare cash. If you haven't got the spare cash, download the music anyways; nobody is getting harmed or losing money. Think about this for a second -- the RIAA wants you to feel guilty for downloading music; now ain't that rich!

It's Only Obvious -- Part 1

It's only obvious that:

The US government was involved in 9-11 and the destruction of the World Trade Center buildings, The Pentagon and the downing of Flight 93. I won't go into the details of how I know this because there are literally hundreds of websites and blogs that can explain it much better than me. I will say that there is no possible way that a fire was somehow - miraculously, to be exact - able to cause the collapse of WTC building 7. That was a controlled demolition all the way.

Unless you're someone like Bill Gates or Warren Buffet and you have somehow stumbled upon this blog, there is no law written with the intent of protecting your well-being. All laws were written by the rich and powerful with the sole intent of protecting the rich and powerful. The only reason you or I receive any form of protection from the law is to ensure we're not harmed and able to continue our slave duties on a daily basis.

If you're losing money from your retirement investments, a major contributing cause is the fact that the American government decided to go off of the gold standard and are now printing money based on absolutely nothing; trillions and trillions of dollars, to be exact. To make matters worse, the government, big business, the banks and organized crime (to name just a few) are all going on a looting spree - in the form of this thing called a "stimulus package" - which you'll be paying for out the ying yang, really soon.

FREE BEER!

Ok, not quite free beer, but about as close as you can get to having free beer without doing something that Julian, Ricky and Bubbles would be proud of. The deal is -- you're going to make your own beer. By doing so, you're actually going to reduce your carbon footprint, save a little cash, and impress the ladies. And if you're a woman wanting to brew her own, then you'll REALLY impress the men; trust me on this one!

Making your own beer is a ridiculously simple process. I could explain how to do it, but I'm inherently lazy so I'll just give out a link to the easiest recipe for beer I've ever seen: Easy fricken beer. The only thing I deviate from on that recipe is that I add a 500 millillitre bottle (about two cups) of corn syrup to the mix. Also, you don't need a hydrometer. I just let the beer sit for 5-6 days in a warm room. I've used this recipe about a dozen times and I've never had a problem. Although it's best to let the beer age for at least 2 weeks, I've opened up a bottle or two after only 4 days and it was certainly drinkable.

This is not beer that's going to win any beer making contests, however, it certainly is drinkable beer. For about 15 bucks, you'll have yourself around 50-60 beers. The alcohol content will be slightly higher than your standard 5% that liquor store beers have; probably around the 7% range. You're still here? Get brewin' you unlettered philistine!

Me, the guitarist

Because of Focal Dystonia in my right hand, I'm learning to play the guitar left-handed. I'm still able to play a lot of things right handed, but finger-style guitar is almost impossible to facilitate. I've been trying to play left-handed now for almost 3 months and I have to admit that so far, the venture has been reasonably successful. I've re-strung my Charvel so that it plays left handed, eventually I'm going to buy a proper left-handed guitar; a Telecaster perhaps? My left hand is fairly accurate and reasonably fast as far as plucking and arpeggiating; using a pick is still an adventure, though. Most of the time, I'm a solo jazz guitarist, although I do once in a while play accompanied by other instruments.

Here's an example of what I sound like as a solo jazz guitarist, reharmonizing Galveston -- the 1969 Glen Campbell hit:

• Galvestan

Here's an example of a very ethereal piece I did about 10 years ago with guitar and synths:

• Standing Between Galaxies
  

My setup is quite simple, to say the least. Here's a list of my main gear:

• Washburn J9 hollowbody guitar
• Charvel Model 6 guitar
  
• Marshall Park Series amp
• Seymour Duncan 84-40 tube amp
• Line-6 guitar pod
• M-audio Delta soundcard (recording)
  

I usually use .12 gauge flat wound strings when available and a big fat honking pick.

Campbell River Wave Soccer

Back in the 70's and 80's, Campbell River was home to a somewhat infamous soccer team known as The Campbell River Wave. This group of players (or collection of characters) could probably best have been described as "all over the map", both politically and socially. The team roster featured: school teachers, welfarians, government workers, hippies, rednecks, car salesmen, bible thumpers, heathens, carpenters, loggers, punk rockers, fishermen, and even a hobo or two. Despite its overwhelming "unique situation", the Wave did have a very good run for a while, perhaps the highlight being when they managed to beat the then Canadian amateur soccer champions -- Victoria West, on their home turf.

The team started out in the Vancouver Island Soccer League's (VISL) 4th division around 1976 and by 1982, had managed to reach the pinnacle of Vancouver Island soccer -- the 1st division. From the moment the team was promoted to the 1st division, it was pretty much all downhill from there unfortunately, and were never able to regain anything close to the form displayed during the halcyon days. The team eventually disbanded in the fall of 1988.

The overall antics of the club were at times, well, diabolical to say the least; notorious for (but not limited to):

• About half the team smoking pot before games
• About half the team being hung-over during games
  
• Hot-boxing the team bus
• Stopping to urinate on the same oyster farm in Union Bay on the way home from road games, this in turn causing the farms curmudgeonly owners to freak right out
  
• The occasional player or two high on LSD
• The occasional player or two high on MDA
• The occasional player or two snorting back a pre-game line
  
• Rookie players receiving brutal "shreddies"
• Drive by moonings and fingerings
  
• Beer enemas being administered to the unwitting
• Occassionally looking like the class of the league
• Occassionally looking like something you had to flush twice

The Campbell River Wave really was a testament to another era; it's highly doubtful that high level soccer will ever see the likes of this type of team again.

My Electric Scooter

About a year ago, I purchased an E-cycle Velocity electric scooter here in Campbell River. Although originally, I had intended making a dedicated blog specifically about electric scooters, I've decided I'll compromise a tad here and just post my thoughts about them on this blog. So, here ya go....


The Good:

• Even after a year of solid use, the battery is still in pretty good shape.
• The daily cost of running this scooter is about 20 cents (CDN) per day.
• I don't have any insurance or gas costs; after one year, this baby has paid for itself.

The Bad:

• The dealership here in town - - Campbell River Electric Wheels, is run by clowns.
• All parts are manufactured in China; replacement parts are hard to come by.
• Unlike the back tire, the front tire isn't tubeless and is more prone to flats.
  

The Ugly:

• Some of the parts are REALLY junky.
  
• The tires are basically "slicks" and if you aren't careful when breaking, you'll wipe out if the streets are a little wet or even just a touch icy.
  
• The braking sucks in gravel and sandy conditions.
  

Despite some of it's obvious shortcomings, I still do like my E-cycle Velocity; the $1700 dollar investment really has served me well. With virtually no noise or pollution, an electric scooter offers the perfect way to travel around town. Although the battery is rated for about 50 km's per charge, with the hills in town, you'll get about half of that. After one year, my battery is starting to breakdown and the charging capacity has noticeably diminished, but considering all the use I've got, and the fact that it's only about $200 to replace the battery, I think one year for all the savings in gas isn't too bad. Because the dealership here in Campbell River lacks competency (and I'm actually being nice here), it wouldn't be a bad idea to check out the dealers both on Quadra Island and in Courtenay.