Bumbershoot tips

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A re-post from last year — some rambling from me on how best to approach this upcoming weekend’s Bumbershoot festival (which, unfortunately, I’ll only be hitting two days of this year, due to my workplace not closing down for Labor Day).

Some general tips and approaches I use for getting through the weekend:

I carry as little as possible, so I don’t wear myself down with a big bag or anything. Camera, wallet, a book to scribble down what I’m doing and seeing so the pictures make sense, and that’s about it.

The Bumbershoot guides published in the Seattle Weekly and the Stranger are godsends. Before each day starts, I browse through to find anything that sounds like it might be interesting, whether or not I’ve heard of the artist, and mark it on the schedule (last year I found that the Seattle Weekly’s guide had better rundowns on the acts, but the Stranger’s single-sheet 4-page schedule was easier to keep in my pocket). Then, when I’m wandering around, I just see what I’ve marked off, and randomly choose one for whatever time it is to check out. If I like them, great, if they don’t quite hold my interest, then there’s plenty of other choices.

Don’t be afraid to deviate from your plan, though. There’s so much good stuff out there that it’s impossible to see it all, so you shouldn’t stress about missing an act — and there’s likely to be something worth seeing that you wouldn’t have picked up on just from reading about it. Not being a big reggae fan, I never would have planned to stop by Jumbalassy last year, but hearing them as I walked by sucked me right in.

Take the time to just wander around and explore all the nooks and crannies. I almost completely missed the Jazz stage last year — it’s up some stairs, kind of tucked away in a corner. I keep forgetting how big Seattle Center is, and how easy it is to lose bits and pieces of it when you’re focusing on getting from a specific point A to point B. Follow your nose. :)

Don’t forget to peoplewatch! This goes beyond just trying to navigate through the crowds — see who all is around you, pay attention to them, keep an ear out on what they’re saying. I’ve discovered some good shows that I might have missed just by hearing some random stranger get all excited about whatever band they’re heading off to see. A small crowd of people gathered somewhere might be nothing more than a momentary traffic jam, but it might also be a street performer worth watching — I discovered one of my favorite local artists this way the first year I was at Bumbershoot. Saw a crowd and decided to see what was up, ended up picking up a couple CDs and have been a fan ever since.

And most importantly — have fun! Enjoy the music and the sun, browse through the craft booths, go play in the fountain, or wade in the pool. We’re blessed with a huge festival with a ton of things to do on a gorgeous weekend — don’t let it go to waste!

iTunes: “Peach (Cut.Rate.Box)” by Beborn Beton from the album Tales From Another World (1999, 4:43).

Kids’ ideas about sex

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Sex columnist Dan Savage recently asked his readers to submit letters detailing their childhood misconceptions about sex. The resulting two columns are hilarious…

Part one — the boys:

I was about 10 or 11 when we visited my Aunt Edie. I’d already had “the talk,” and I had a fairly good idea of what “adult” meant. Adult movies. Adult videos. Adult magazines. I was told that my Aunt Edie now lived in an “adult community.” Now, my aunt was a good 80 years old by this point, and I’d met her wrinkly ass at a few family gatherings, so when we got to the (clearly labeled) adult community, I got really creeped out. I asked my parents if they were really supposed to bring a kid in here, and upon more questioning explained my reasoning. After laughing so hard my dad had to stop the car, they cleared everything up.

Part two — the girls:

I went with my dad to visit his best friend, who bred Saint Bernards. While there, I saw this large wooden contraption and asked Dad what it was for. Turns out it was a breeding support, so the dog (who is usually well over 150 pounds) doesn’t hurt the bitch. My dad explained what a mommy dog and a daddy dog do to make puppies. He explained as accurately as a 4-year-old could understand, and I seemed to get what he was talking about. Later that day, we came home and I ran up to my mother. “Mom! Guess what I learned today!” I then proceeded to give a fairly detailed description of what a mommy dog and a daddy dog do to make puppies, followed by the exclamation, “You and Dad should do that!” You see, I wanted a puppy.

(via MeFi)

iTunes: “Dreams” by Cranberries, The from the album Alterno-Daze: 90’s Natural Selection (1995, 4:33).

What a deal!

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Y’know, it’s really a shame I don’t go to Florida State University. Turns out that they’re working on setting up a special deal with Apple…

In an effort to prevent illegal file sharing on campus, Florida State University is on the verge of finalizing a deal with Apple Computer, Inc. — a deal that would provide free iTunes software to students and allow them to download music for 99 cents per song.

I’ve gotta say, that’s one hell of a deal. iTunes for free — and individual songs for just 99 cents!?! Amazing!

\</sarcasm>

iTunes: “Come With Me” by Information Society from the album Hack (1990, 4:22).

Two digits, thousands of votes

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Diebold’s voting machines scare me more and more every time I read about them. The latest bombshell? It’s not bad enough that the individual voting machines aren’t as secure as they should be, but the tabulation machines that tally all the votes from the individual machines can be manipulated by entering two digits.

Issue: Manipulation technique found in the Diebold central tabulator — 1,000 of these systems are in place, and they count up to two million votes at a time.

By entering a 2-digit code in a hidden location, a second set of votes is created. This set of votes can be changed, so that it no longer matches the correct votes. The voting system will then read the totals from the bogus vote set. It takes only seconds to change the votes, and to date not a single location in the U.S. has implemented security measures to fully mitigate the risks.

This program is not “stupidity” or sloppiness. It was designed and tested over a series of a dozen version adjustments.

[…]

The central tabulator is far more vulnerable than the touch screen terminals. Think about it: If you were going to tamper with an election, would you rather tamper with 4,500 individual voting machines, or with just one machine, the central tabulator which receives votes from all the machines? Of course, the central tabulator is the most desirable target.

With voting systems like this installed in key states, it’s frighteningly possible that it won’t matter who anybody votes for.

(via MeFi)

Kevin and Noah

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Kevin and Noah Hanscom

My little brother and my one-month old nephew.

iTunes: “My Dream” by ATB from the album Movin’ Melodies (1999, 7:05).

I’m everywhere!

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With the addition of the new Mac OS X release of Skype, there are now a veritable plethora of ways to get ahold of me online, should anyone be so inclined.

  • Email:
    1. —@speakeasy.net]{.citation cites=”speakeasy.net”}: This address I’ve only given out to family and close friends, in an attempt to keep at least one e-mail account relatively spam-free.
    2. djwudi@myrealbox.com: These days, primarily a spamcatcher, though I’ve still got a few mailing lists going here.
    3. djwudi@mac.com: A general-purpose, publicly available inbox.
    4. michael.hanscom@gmail.com: Just set this up. I’ve sent myself a message, and that’s the most use it’s seen so far.
    5. michael@michaelhanscom.com: These days, my primary public e-mail, and my first choice for most correspondence. If you don’t have another address for me in your inbox already (and want one, for some reason), this is the one to use.
  • Instant Messaging:
    1. iChat: djwudi: My preferred IM client. Supports audio and video in addition to text chat since I’ve got an iSight.
    2. AIM: djwudi@mac.com: iChat co-operates with the AIM network, so AIM users can find me here. In theory, recent versions of AIM support video chat also.
    3. AIM: djwudi: An actual AIM account that I got ages ago, and just started using again recently when one friend for some reason couldn’t see the djwudi@mac.com iChat/AIM account.
    4. Yahoo IM: djwudi or dj_wumlautudi: Mostly used with friends in Alaska that I met during the days when I hung out in the Yahoo chat rooms.
    5. Skype: djwudi: This one, I’ve just signed up for, and haven’t actually done anything with yet. While it works as an IM program, its primary purpose is VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) — essentially, computer-based telephone service. It should allow high-quality voice conversations with other Skype users, and if I give them a little money, than I should be able to place calls to any telephone from my computer. Sounds nifty, and I’m interested in trying it out once I either find other Skype users or pony up the cash to try the computer-to-telephone function.

I think that’s it. Did I miss any?

iTunes: “Inquisition” by Skinny Puppy from the album Nettwerk Decadence (1992, 4:26).

G5 iMac

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The new G5-based iMac is up on Apple’s site. Haven’t spent a ton of time on the site, yet, but first impressions are that it’s a damn impressive piece of engineering, packing all that into such a tiny little space.

But it’s not nearly as cute as the last generation.

More thoughts later on, most likely.

Update: Actually, no update. No further thoughts. Nice new iMac, not as pretty as the last one. That’s about all I’ve got for this one. Just wanted to say something, since I’d expected I’d have more to say.

iTunes: “Hey Jupiter” by Amos, Tori from the album Boys for Pele (1996, 5:11).

New glasses are on the way

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So I’ve got new eyeglasses on the way. With any luck, they should be here in a little less than two weeks, and I’ll have them in time for my vacation. They look similar to this pair — rimless, fairly small and rectangular, with very thin silver bows, and they come with a set of clip-on shades that match the shape of the lenses exactly. Prairie assures me that they look incredibly good and nearly disappear from my face, not nearly as dominating as my current pair.

Most interesting about the eye exam is that my new pair will actually be a slightly weaker prescription than my current pair — one diopter less (whatever that is) — as my eyesight is actually slightly improving as I age. I had no idea this could happen, so it was a very pleasant surprise. Apparently, my eyes are learning to relax, gradually increasing my near-vision depth of field. According to the optometrist, while I’ll always need glasses for distance vision, I’ll never need reading glasses, and may eventually be more comfortable reading or working on a computer either without glasses, or with bifocals that have little to no adjustment in the lower, near-vision area of the lens. Pretty cool, I’d say.

So now it’s just the waiting game as the glasses are made. Since I’ve got my vacation in two weeks, the clinic is seeing if they can put a rush on the order to ensure that they arrive before I have to leave. It may not happen, but if it does, I’ll be in good shape.

Oh, and should any Seattle-area people be in the need for new glasses, I’d certainly recommend the clinic I went to (Jackson Vision Clinic, 225 12th Ave. South Suite 103, Seattle, WA, 98144, 206.322.6915). I picked them simply because they were just over in the International District within fairly easy walking distance of my apartment, they were open on Saturdays, and they took the insurance I get through work. They were quite nice to work with, though — Dr. Hoang and his staff were quite friendly. While the clinic was pretty slow on Saturday, when I went in a couple weeks ago to make my appointment, they were quite busy, and I had the rather amusing experience of being the only Caucasian and (I believe) only native English speaker in a room full of Vietnamese people. Not an entirely normal thing in my general day-to-day activities, but rather fun, actually — there were a couple families in getting glasses for their kids that day, and kids are kids and fun to watch, no matter what language they speak.

Anyway, a good clinic, good people, and I’ve got some good glasses coming my way. Pics, of course, will be posted as soon as I get the glasses in.

iTunes: “Get A Good Thing” by Jesus Jones from the album Perverse (1993, 3:23).

Rent

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As mentioned briefly last week, Saturday’s evening entertainment was wandering down a couple blocks to the Paramount Theatre to see Rent.

Prairie has been a fan of Rent for a while, and had tried to introduce me to the music a while ago, but I just hadn’t been able to get a good feel for what was going on simply by listening to the soundtrack album. Thinking about it on the way home after the show, I realized that part of that may have been because every other major musical that I’ve seen (Cats, Les Misérables, Phantom of the Opera, Jesus Christ Superstar, Tommy, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat), I knew the story before picking up the soundtrack album, either through reading the source material or because I’d learned it while singing the songs back when I was in the Alaska Children’s Choir. With Rent, I had no real idea of what the plot was and what was happening, and I couldn’t quite pick it up just by listening to the album.

Now that I’ve seen the show, though, suddenly it all falls into place. “La Vie Boheme” and “Tango: Maureen” were by far my favorite songs, though the entire soundtrack is a blast. I can certainly see why it’s such a popular show.

Our particular performance was quite good, though not perfect. The sound technician was sometimes a little late when activating people’s microphones, so we’d occasionally lose the first couple words of someone’s lines when they appeared. A couple of the performers didn’t have quite as strong a voice as they probably should have (most notably Tallia Brinson as Mimi — while she wasn’t bad by any means, she didn’t quite have the raw power that songs like “Out Tonight” require).

I was also confused for a while about Angel’s character — I knew that the character was supposed to be a drag queen from when Prairie had first tried to introduce me to the music, but Damien DeShaun Smith had such an incredibly feminine voice that I really wasn’t sure if it was a male or female playing Angel until I checked the program during intermission. It made for a slightly confusing first act (as a female Angel would greatly change the dynamic of the relationship with Tom Collins)…of course, on the bright side, if Damien really is a drag queen (off-stage, that is), he’s sure to do a spectacular job! ;)

All in all, though, while not a perfect performance, it was extremely good, and I’ve got a new musical to eventually commit to memory.

iTunes: “La Vie Boheme” by Original Broadway Cast from the album Rent (1996, 8:00).