Camp Concussion

Daily writing prompt
Have you ever been camping?
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Back in the early 80’s I was a Boy Scout. You bet your sweet ass I’ve been camping.

I don’t think I was ever very good at it, if that’s even a thing. I always enjoyed the little trips. Tents, cabins, whatever. Tents in the winter time are a pretty sucky experience. Warm cabins? Now we’re talking. Except for that one time.

It was the dead of winter. The weather was super cold but the cabin was warm. The lake was frozen and we were going to try ice fishing. First we tried sledding down the steep, icy hill that had the path from the cabin to the lake. I wasn’t the first to go. The adventurous, athletic types lined up to go first. I was the awkward fat kid and I stayed near the back of the line.

All of the other guys were laying down on the sled and going head first. They were flying down that hill at crazy speeds. I was too chicken for that. I sat upright with my ass toward the back. My first run down the hill was awesome, at first. Then gravity combined with a really low coefficient of friction conspired to do their thing. The weight was at the back of the sled and wouldn’t you know it, the sucker spun around. I was now flying down the hill at a million miles an hour (estimated) backwards. It was exhilarating. Until the tree, at least.

I hit a tree while traveling at about Warp 8.5. Slam. Crash. My head slammed into the tree, very hard. I didn’t pass out, but it knocked me for a loop, I tells ya. Ouch town, population me, Bro. The adults packed me into someone’s car and drove me to a doctor. I had a concussion. I was a tad loopy for a day or two. I slept well, at least.

I don’t remember if that was my last Scout camping trip or not. It might have been. It would probably make a better story if it were. I quit the Boy Scouts when I was in the eighth grade. I gave it another try about a year later, but I didn’t last long enough to go on any camping trips. I am pretty sure that this concussion was my second and last. I was six when I had the first one and that was ice-related too, but I’ll share that story another day.

I guess the follow up question here is would I ever want to go camping again. The answer is never say never, but it’s a safe bet I have packed my last tent. Done and done.

Music Night

I wanted to go to sleep around 10:00pm tonight. Instead at just about exactly that time I started working on MIDI tracks for a song that I want to re-record for Quarantine Tunes Volume Eight. The Great 2015 Re-Recording Project continues (at this rate it might continue for eternity, world without end and all that stuff).

Let’s see if I can sneak some guitar tracking in before work tomorrow. Volume eight now has two songs in progress. One is ready for lead guitars and the other is ready for rhythm guitars. Let’s do this!

Jetpack on iOS

Are any other wordpress.com users who use the iOS version of the Jetpack app for their mobile blogging needs having troubles with the app?

My notifications are always weird. They don’t match up with what I see on the web app. Things that I see in the browser don’t show up on the app for some unknown amount of time, and things that I clear off in the app don’t go away and are back the next time I look. As a total stats/analysis nerd, these issues are frustrating, but they are nothing compared to the new problem I’m seeing.

For the last three days or so I have not been able to upload an image from my iPhone’s Photo Album. It tries, but it hangs almost immediately and it never finishes the upload. 99% of the time I pull images out of Flickr rather than upload them directly, but on the few times I try and fail it pisses me off like crazy.

Anyone else having troubles like this? Is it time for us to start a revolt? Should I start designing “Down with Jetpack!” signs to bring to the protest marches, or what?

The Best Time of Day

Daily writing prompt
When do you feel most productive?
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I’ve actually thought about this topic quite a bit in recent years. I may have even written a post or two before. The answer is, simply, that I used to know the answer but I don’t anymore.

In my younger days I was 100% a night person. Through high school and college (all the different times) and even into the start of my career in programming I did my best work at night. When we got to 8:00, 9:00, or even later, my brain would clear up in some weird way and everything became noticeably easier for me. Writing, working on math, reading comprehension and retention, analysis, writing music, playing music, it all worked better later at night. That was my time to do my best work. It was clear and obvious and it always worked for me.

Today? I still can do good work later at night, but is that when I am most productive? I think now it might be early in the morning. I had to change my daily routine after the gastric bypass surgery. I needed to start exercising every day and I needed to make sure I had breakfast, where for decades prior to surgery I rarely if ever ate breakfast, and that lead to my days starting earlier and earlier. Now I find that very early in the morning, we are talking sunrise early, I am able to get a lot done. First it was exercise, then it was exercise and just random things around the house, then I added guitar playing and writing and recording, and now I even sometimes will log into work a few hours early and get some things done.

It is a really odd feeling for me. I had about 50 years worth of feeling like a vegetable early in the morning and now I’m suddenly full of piss and vinegar* at the start of the day and I don’t know what to think of it. It also means I need to go to bed earlier in order to not be comatose by lunch time, which by extension means much of my usual best time of day is spent sleeping! What the hell is up with that, Robert?

So the answer to the question of the day is an honest I don’t know. Can a person have two most productive times of day? Or is it possible that my best time is slowly transitioning from the traditional time to a new time? I don’t know. If I ever figure it out, I’ll share the news with you all.

*I am pretty sure I have never used the phrase, “piss and vinegar” before. I don’t think I have ever spoken it or written it or really even thought it… and somehow using it here makes me feel like more of a senior citizen than I have ever felt prior. I am 10 days away from my 53rd birthday… is it possible that on some subconscious level I am totally buying into the idea of being a crusty, grumpy, old man? It very well could be!

3-0 After Two Periods

The Bruins are up 3-0 after two periods in Toronto. I’ve only managed to watch a few minutes of the game, but I saw the first goal.

It’s game four of the first round best of seven series. The Bruins lead the series two games to one. It sure would be nice to hold on to this lead and then wrap up the series at home on Tuesday.

Wait, Tuesday? Yes, there is a second two day break between games. A second consecutive two day break. Ugh.

Go Bruins!

The Red Sox Win

Yesterday I wrote a post about how the Red Sox can’t seem to win at home this year.

Today, one day later, they beat the Cubbies at Fenway Park 17-0.

Do I have a baseball super power? Did I make today’s win happen? I think I might have. You’re welcome, Red Sox Nation. You’re so very welcome.

On an unrelated note, Jen and I cooked a Dinnerly.com meal for dinner. One of the side dishes was rice. Jen put salt in the water the rice boiled in. In truth, she put a bit too much salt. I dished out a little for myself, as I can only eat a little of anything in these post-gastric bypass days. I had no idea that overly salted rice was a freakin’ DELICACY! Oh my goodness it was so freakin’ delicious! What a culinary revelation! Granted I had to stop eating after 3-4 forks full because the saltiness started bothering me, but before that happened? Holy shit! I am putting extra salt in the rice water forever now! WOW!