When I was 14 and first learning how to play music, guitar magazines were my #1 lesson books. I would get Guitar for the Practicing Musician and Guitar Player every month and spend hours upon hours up in my room learning the tips and tricks (and whole transcribed songs) in those pages.
I'd devour the articles where my favorite guitarists would talk about their playing, their influences, and how they made the guitar do mind-blowing things I couldn't even hum, much less play along to! (My main men were guys like Jake E. Lee, coincidentally, another West Virginian; Randy Rhoads; Tony Iommi; Warren DiMartini; and, of course, the man who started it all for me, Ace Frehley, "lead guitar!")
For an obsessed kid like me in small town USA, those magazines were my connection to the best teachers rock guitar could offer, and it's no stretch to say that I learned how to play guitar well by studying those magazines every night (to my grades' detriment). Getting encouragement from my favorite players and hearing them in interviews tell me to keep practicing and learn more gave me the confidence to keep going and say "I can do this!"
Now it's my turn to help the next generation of guitarists by writing those very articles. Turns out that Guitar Player is owned by my former company, CMP, and before I left California, I pitched them on an article about home amplifier building, a new hobby of mine. Long story short, they took the bait, and my first article was published in the October edition of Guitar Player (see photo). Click here to read the article (you'll need to scroll down once you get to the Web page).
Since this first article, I've written two interviews for the upcoming premiere issue of FRETS magazine, the new acoustic counterpart to Guitar Player, and I just interviewed the Reverend Horton Heat yesterday for an upcoming issue of GP. The fact that I get paid to do this is icing on the cake.
I just hope that somewhere there's a kid in West Virginia who has just picked up his first guitar who reads my article and says to himself (or herself), "I can do this!"
10/07/2004
10/06/2004
Journalism at its most disturbing
According to this article on ABCNews.com, Cheney dominated the debate by a 43% to 35% margin of victory.
Wow. I thought it looked closer than that....but wait! Let's check out the fine print:
Methodology: This survey was conducted by telephone Tuesday night among a random-sample panel of 509 registered voters who watched the vice presidential debate. The results have a 4.5-point error margin. Sampling, data collection and tabulation were done by TNS of Horsham, Pa.
509 registered voters? Criminy! I ask more than 509 people for advice on what to wear to work in the morning! Seriously, I'm sorry, 509 people IS NOT a true representation of the entire 291 million people in the U.S.
This shows you what crap these polls are. They are really just headline tools, but unfortunately, a lot of the time they turn into self-fulfilling prophecy....let's hope this one is viewed as the shit is truly is.
Wow. I thought it looked closer than that....but wait! Let's check out the fine print:
Methodology: This survey was conducted by telephone Tuesday night among a random-sample panel of 509 registered voters who watched the vice presidential debate. The results have a 4.5-point error margin. Sampling, data collection and tabulation were done by TNS of Horsham, Pa.
509 registered voters? Criminy! I ask more than 509 people for advice on what to wear to work in the morning! Seriously, I'm sorry, 509 people IS NOT a true representation of the entire 291 million people in the U.S.
This shows you what crap these polls are. They are really just headline tools, but unfortunately, a lot of the time they turn into self-fulfilling prophecy....let's hope this one is viewed as the shit is truly is.
Dick Cheney lives up to his first name
First, let me qualify my post by saying up front that I hate Dick Cheney. He is a ruthless, immoral, devious, cheating, lying, stealing, skulking lump of pure, 100% unadulterated evil, as far as I'm concerned. To me, he is the embodiment of everything that is wrong with our government today. He stands for giant corporate interests above the health and welfare of the common folk, he got into "public service" by boot-licking and using underhanded tactics and ethically bankrupt business connections, and on top of that, he's a classless prick.
Some of his lowlights as VP: Telling a U.S. Senator to "go fuck yourself" on the Senate floor? Really classy, Dick. Taking money from your former employer while making sure its billion-dollar no-bid contract goes through? Conflict of interest much? Having a gay daughter, yet "supporting the President" in an attempt to amend the Constitution to forbid gay marraige? Hypocracy of the highest order.
Of course, he's a fricking liar, too. (Thanks for the heads-up on the link, Gabe.) But you knew that, right?
We learned some new goodies about him last night: Voting against plastic guns and head start? Good call...not.
That said, I think he carried himself well during the debate and came off looking a little better than Edwards, which I found very disappointing. He successfully put Edwards on the defensive about his senatorial career, and stated blatent lies convincingly (to the masses at least) as indisputable fact.
Edwards didn't totally blow it, though. He brought up the Halliburton record, and plainly stated again and again that Hussein had NO connection to 9-11, which can never be said enough.
Overall, though, I thought the debate was a tossup at best, and that's scary, since I'm a rabid Democrat. One can only imagine what the "undecideds" made of things.
Some of his lowlights as VP: Telling a U.S. Senator to "go fuck yourself" on the Senate floor? Really classy, Dick. Taking money from your former employer while making sure its billion-dollar no-bid contract goes through? Conflict of interest much? Having a gay daughter, yet "supporting the President" in an attempt to amend the Constitution to forbid gay marraige? Hypocracy of the highest order.
Of course, he's a fricking liar, too. (Thanks for the heads-up on the link, Gabe.) But you knew that, right?
We learned some new goodies about him last night: Voting against plastic guns and head start? Good call...not.
That said, I think he carried himself well during the debate and came off looking a little better than Edwards, which I found very disappointing. He successfully put Edwards on the defensive about his senatorial career, and stated blatent lies convincingly (to the masses at least) as indisputable fact.
Edwards didn't totally blow it, though. He brought up the Halliburton record, and plainly stated again and again that Hussein had NO connection to 9-11, which can never be said enough.
Overall, though, I thought the debate was a tossup at best, and that's scary, since I'm a rabid Democrat. One can only imagine what the "undecideds" made of things.
10/05/2004
Fear the Reaper
You may be reminded of Joe's rugged good looks by the hard-core, scythe wielding tough guy in this photo. That's due to family resemblance.
You see, dear reader, this Old Country badass is none other than my great-great-grandfather, José G.
He emigrated from Castrillón, Asturies (in northern Spain) to work as a foreman in a zinc smelter in Clarksburg, West Virginia. He dragged his wife, daughter (my great-grandmother Tomasa G A de V), and other kids along for the ride, and that's where my great-grandparents met. The rest, as they say, is history.
After getting his fill of the U.S.A., he and Dionesia, my great-great grandmother, returned to Spain, bought a farm in Lluanco, Asturies, and lived out the rest of their days. Obviously, my great-grandmother Tomasa stayed in the U.S.
The moral of this story: whenever you think your work sucks, remember that your lazy ass could be melting in a giant metallurgy works instead of surfing this blog. Thank your stars that your ancestors did the dirty work so you don't have to....
You see, dear reader, this Old Country badass is none other than my great-great-grandfather, José G.
He emigrated from Castrillón, Asturies (in northern Spain) to work as a foreman in a zinc smelter in Clarksburg, West Virginia. He dragged his wife, daughter (my great-grandmother Tomasa G A de V), and other kids along for the ride, and that's where my great-grandparents met. The rest, as they say, is history.
After getting his fill of the U.S.A., he and Dionesia, my great-great grandmother, returned to Spain, bought a farm in Lluanco, Asturies, and lived out the rest of their days. Obviously, my great-grandmother Tomasa stayed in the U.S.
The moral of this story: whenever you think your work sucks, remember that your lazy ass could be melting in a giant metallurgy works instead of surfing this blog. Thank your stars that your ancestors did the dirty work so you don't have to....
10/04/2004
It's official: God is a Democrat
My Uncle Bob sent me this great graphical representation that proves beyond any resonable doubt that God is, indeed, a Democrat. You'd better think twice before November, Florida!
[Booming God voice] And West Virginia voters reading Jenny and Joe's blog, take heed! You wouldn't want several billion locusts to come to Thanksgiving dinner....would you? [/Booming God voice]
[Booming God voice] And West Virginia voters reading Jenny and Joe's blog, take heed! You wouldn't want several billion locusts to come to Thanksgiving dinner....would you? [/Booming God voice]
10/03/2004
Finally! Photos!
I think I've finally found a way to upload photos to the blog, which has been requested by many folks so far. Here's a photo from our Labor Day trip to the lake in MD. The program I'm using is called Flickr, and it seems to work like a charm, so far.
Viking Fun with Millionaire Finns
One of the officers at Jenny's company hosted a party at his schweet four-storey townhouse just south of Dupont Circle on Friday. He's Finnish, so every year he puts on the "Viking Party," and invites the entire D.C. office, complete with s.o.'s. The couples are seated a different tables from each other to encourage mingling, and never-ending glasses of ice cold Finlandia vodka keep the conversation flowing. The food was also plentiful (I gorged on what turned out to be the opening course of a four-course meal, yet still managed to throw down on some meat and smoked fish in subsequent courses), and seriously, they must have spent five grand on liquor alone.
Our friends Jordan and Kristin spent the night on our Aerobed in the living room since they live way out in Frederick, MD. We all went to breakfast on Saturday morning and had good eggs and good conversation.
I went to play soccer later that morning, and while I still haven't scored a goal in D.C., I did notch another assist and had two other passes that led to goals. I'll take it.
Saturday night and Sunday we didn't do jack or shit, and it was very nice to just have a day or so to relax. Actually, Jenny did a little organizing, but nothing too crazy.
Our friends Jordan and Kristin spent the night on our Aerobed in the living room since they live way out in Frederick, MD. We all went to breakfast on Saturday morning and had good eggs and good conversation.
I went to play soccer later that morning, and while I still haven't scored a goal in D.C., I did notch another assist and had two other passes that led to goals. I'll take it.
Saturday night and Sunday we didn't do jack or shit, and it was very nice to just have a day or so to relax. Actually, Jenny did a little organizing, but nothing too crazy.
10/01/2004
Pres. Eisenhower's Son will vote Kerry in Nov.
Add Ike's son to the list of former Republican presidents' children who have come out against the current Republican nominee (Reagan's son did the same thing, although to be fair, he's always been a Democrat). Eisenhower's switch is more telling, as he has always been a staunch Republican, and now feels that his party has abandoned him...and the middle class.
In his own words: "The Republicans used to be deeply concerned for the middle class and small business. Today’s Republican leadership, while not solely accountable for the loss of American jobs, encourages it with its tax code and heads us in the direction of a society of very rich and very poor."
Of course, he's right.
Read the whole article here.
In his own words: "The Republicans used to be deeply concerned for the middle class and small business. Today’s Republican leadership, while not solely accountable for the loss of American jobs, encourages it with its tax code and heads us in the direction of a society of very rich and very poor."
Of course, he's right.
Read the whole article here.
Debate #1: Kerry's problem, Bush's idiocy on display
The bar where I watched the debate, Millie and Als in Adams Morgan, erupted in laughter and applause last night when Bush yet again mixed up Sadaam Hussein with Osama bin Laden. Granted, the crowd was pretty much 99% pro-Kerry (with the obligitory lone Bush wack-o screaming "you voted for it!!!" at the screen whenever Kerry brought up Iraq), but all bias aside, the consensus was that Kerry won this round easily.
Bush often had that "we just got attacked but I'm reading to school kids" look of dumbfounded uncertainty whenever he was forced to make an unscripted response to one of Kerry's assertions. The answer he came up with, time and time again, was the one Karl "Evil Personified" Rove scribbled down for him to say whenever he didn't know what to say: "Mixed signals. Wrong war, wrong time." Bush obviously cannot think on his feet (some would say or anywhere else, for that matter), and when he tries to, it makes you wonder what the hell anyone who votes for this moron is thinking.
But then he gets onto one of his prepared speeches, and you find out how he gets all the yokels to vote for him. He turns on the "good ol' boy" factor. Leaning over the podium and delivering his lines with a smart-ass tone that basically implies "Jesus, this is so obvious, how can my opponent, THAT ELITE LIBERAL, not understand us?" The "us," of course, being the under-educated, over-religioned masses that buy into his bullshit hook, line, and sinker. He succeeds in portraying himself as a down-home, regular guy, which is no small feat considering that he was born a millionaire, never had to work a day in his life, went to Yale, is a member of an elite fraternity, and didn't have the guts to show up to his military service.
And that's Kerry's problem, in a nutshell. He's obviously head-and-shoulders above Bush in intelligence, intellect, and honor, but while Bush can cover up his priviliged past with a bullshit "country" persona, Kerry just comes across as richer, smarter, and more inside the Beltway than you or me. Not good when you're trying to get the Joe Schmoe vote. (Actually, Schmoe is a Jewish name, so Kerry's probably got his vote....er, maybe the Billie-Bob Adkins vote? Whatever, you get the picture.)
That said, I hope Billie-Bob and all his buddies come to the correct conclusion that the reason they lost their good job at the call center and have no income or health insurance is due in large part to Bush's economic policies before November. Hope against hope, I know.
Best Kerry line of the night: "We could've caught bin Laden at Tora Bora if we'd have used U.S. troops, but Bush outsourced that job too."
Bush often had that "we just got attacked but I'm reading to school kids" look of dumbfounded uncertainty whenever he was forced to make an unscripted response to one of Kerry's assertions. The answer he came up with, time and time again, was the one Karl "Evil Personified" Rove scribbled down for him to say whenever he didn't know what to say: "Mixed signals. Wrong war, wrong time." Bush obviously cannot think on his feet (some would say or anywhere else, for that matter), and when he tries to, it makes you wonder what the hell anyone who votes for this moron is thinking.
But then he gets onto one of his prepared speeches, and you find out how he gets all the yokels to vote for him. He turns on the "good ol' boy" factor. Leaning over the podium and delivering his lines with a smart-ass tone that basically implies "Jesus, this is so obvious, how can my opponent, THAT ELITE LIBERAL, not understand us?" The "us," of course, being the under-educated, over-religioned masses that buy into his bullshit hook, line, and sinker. He succeeds in portraying himself as a down-home, regular guy, which is no small feat considering that he was born a millionaire, never had to work a day in his life, went to Yale, is a member of an elite fraternity, and didn't have the guts to show up to his military service.
And that's Kerry's problem, in a nutshell. He's obviously head-and-shoulders above Bush in intelligence, intellect, and honor, but while Bush can cover up his priviliged past with a bullshit "country" persona, Kerry just comes across as richer, smarter, and more inside the Beltway than you or me. Not good when you're trying to get the Joe Schmoe vote. (Actually, Schmoe is a Jewish name, so Kerry's probably got his vote....er, maybe the Billie-Bob Adkins vote? Whatever, you get the picture.)
That said, I hope Billie-Bob and all his buddies come to the correct conclusion that the reason they lost their good job at the call center and have no income or health insurance is due in large part to Bush's economic policies before November. Hope against hope, I know.
Best Kerry line of the night: "We could've caught bin Laden at Tora Bora if we'd have used U.S. troops, but Bush outsourced that job too."
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