all the news that isn't

The old folding bike pedals:

And the new, removable bike pedals:

One of the middle bearings on the old folding pedals was giving out to the point that the pedal part literally coming loose, so it was time for an upgrade.

Went to one of my normal ATMs this morning to deposit some money and make a withdrawal. When it asked me how much money I wanted to take out, the minimum was multiples of $50. Perhaps they think $20 doesn’t buy so much any more? And maybe they’re right?

Since I’m sharing crappy cell phone pictures, here comes another one…

Many years ago while living in Wichita I decided to go to the airshow (it’s an aviation town, plus I wanted to get some cool photos (like this one and this one)). But to get in the gate, I had to give up my Swiss Army Tinker knife.

Man, that was a sad day. I can’t even say I remember my decision process. I think parking was such a hassle that I really didn’t want to go back to the car. Who knows, it’s a fog now. I liked the Tinker – nice feature set, though part of me wanted to upgrade to the Tinker Deluxe for the pliers. So there I was without a pocket knife. I’ve always had a pocket knife since that fateful day I bought one at The Alamo. (Which a quick reference to the vacation journal puts me at 8 years old at the time.) I felt incomplete!

I think it was just a couple months later Mom and Dad came down to visit around my birthday. We went to what was for me, a fancy restaurant. It was fancy but not too fancy. On the West side. The sort of place I imagined becoming a regular visit kind of place once I got older. (I just spend a minute at google maps and deduced/remembered it was LeMonde cafe.) I had the talapia and steamed veggies. We went to Kohl’s afterwards and as a birthday present I got a slow cooker (I could finally make italian beef!). And I think Dad gave me a Leatherman Juice – think a big leatherman, but pocketable. A very nice replacement for the missing Tinker. In fact, I would come to regard the Leatherman a much superior replacement.

(As I type this I start to question whether I got the Leatherman for my birthday or Christmas, but I’ve already taken the time to type that fading memory out, so it stays!)

The leatherman has served me VERY well throughout the years. So flash forward to a couple weeks ago when I started all this nonsense with a new bathroom ceiling and then I need a new fan and then I need to work on the electrical. (Parts one and two are done now, at least!) There I am in the hot attic crawlspace with my leatherman (and other tools, yes), trying to get things done. At some point I put the leatherman on the rafter, and I think it must have fallen into the loose insulation. Because next time I think to look for it to use it, gone. After a while I diligently finger through all the insulation where I think it could be. Nothing. I wonder if I left it somewhere else, so I give it a couple weeks to turn up. But what does that leave me? Again feeling sad and incomplete!

So I couldn’t deal with it anymore, I really think I’m addicted to the utility of the tool and being able to have it so near. I spent some time considering if I should upgrade or side-grade to a different model, but ended up figuring the CS4 really is the perfect tool for me. So Amazon, send me another!

I’m looking forward to many years of use (in it’s first night its philips and straight drivers have already helped fix Adrienne’s umbrella, made by another Portland-based company); I’ll try not to lose you!

Not Dudley, either. Years ago, I think when I was living in Wichita, sister Andrea gave me a piggy bank with my name on it. I think it was sourced from the Madison Farmer’s Market. Since then, I’ve been putting all my spare pennies in it. I *think* this is the first time I’ve emptied it. It was quite heavy, but still only about 2/3-full. I thought it might make sense to empty it now, before moving – one less heavy thing to lift. So I toted a large ziplock full of pennies to the Coinstar machine at the grocery store. And I walked away with an Amazon gift certificate for $20.07 – including two dimes I missed. The machine also rejected a small handful of pennies, so the process begins anew.

I’m left-eyed.

Or at least I think I’m left-eye dominant. Or whatever the medical phrase is.

Up until today, I’ve been looking through the viewfinder with my right eye. And often I will try to keep my left eye open as well, because keeping it closed it tiring. But doing so makes it very hard to see the frame clearly. However, if I switch eyes – look through the viewfinder with my left eye but keep the right open, the frame in the viewfinder is quite clear, i.e it’s easy to focus on just what I’m seeing in my left eye.

This may not make much sense, but try it, I bet you’ll better understand!

Looking for advice from all you males that use an electric razor. My mid-level Norelco just died. I’m reading through all the reviews, thinking this might be an opportunity to switch camps, but I’m not seeing any consensus re: if the foil-type (Braun) is really better than the triple-head (Norelco). Sure, the $200+ Braun is supposed to be really nice, but c’mon… In general I was happy with my Norelco, other than the effort always needed to make sure all nooks and crannies on my neck were taken care of. But I guess I kind of expect that. The Brauns claim the closer shave (not a biggie for me), but they also require constant investment in the cleaning solution. The Norelco heads are pricey, but I feel with judicious cleaning I can go 2 years before replacing. I’m typing myself into thinking Norelco is the way to go. Anyone want to talk me out of it?

You may remember David’s post that included a picture similar to this one. This picture was taken the morning after the Novemeber ’08 election as I was on my way out of town for a work trip. David and I (unknowingly) took pictures of the same sign–although different sides of the sign.

Now that Obama has been sworn in, I thought I’d post the picture I took. Unsurprisingly, the angle I captured includes a bit more commentary than David’s picture. While I don’t believe the world has magically changed with our new president, I do think this is a really important moment for the country, and I hope he’s able to take us in a more productive direction. I also hope that people’s unrealistic expectations of Obama don’t doom him to failure…

In downtown Newark there’s a big monolith of a building, mostly glass with a little bit of steel. As the window washers were working the other day, the before/after difference was particularly striking.

I’m going to defy my Midwestern/Lutheran upbringing and venture to speak of anything controversial with this editorial pic I took this morning on my way to work:

Some people may think the next four years will be just one big poop sandwich, but no matter which way you lean (be careful, because too far and you’ll fall over!), this is a pretty amazing moment. Thanks to my day (and night…) gig, I’m lucky enough to play a little more active role the whole thing, and it’s nights like these that remind me why radio and the bare human voice can be such a powerful thing.

I was walking home Friday night when I turned the corner on my block and saw this:

A practice run for the annual Tribute in Light. I was still in college, working in the Large Ensemble Office when I first heard the news. All classes were cancelled for the rest of the day, but I do remember having to go home and get my Jazz Ensemble uniform, because we would still take pictures that day. It feels so long ago. I suppose it was.