A good friend recently sent me this article about a new technology built for "aspiring musicians" -- and I think its great.

The basic premise is that a band is worn around the forearm, which tickles specific nerves with electro-impulses in musical sequence -- as needed for guitar plucking, or piano playing, or whatever the instrument may be.  In other words, the impulses are mapped to the notes of the music, as played by specific fingers, and the impulses trigger the dexterity of those fingers in specific sequence.

I've seen this done with actual implants before -- there were these British researchers who created a similar system in which electrified pins were actually inserted into the wrist, but of course, this new method is far less invasive.

What do I think about this?  Cheating?  Hell no..... I think any form of dexterity programing and any method of musical advancement with the aide of technology is wonderful.  Sign me up.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21028186.100-handhacking-lets-you-pluck-strings-like-a-musical-pro.html

How do you know when you've hit the top?  

...When your name is in print next to LeVar Burton.

I've been to all of the Standard hotel locations now.  They are all charming in their own little kinda-boutique-but-over-the-top-glitzy-glam-pop way.  The Standard NYC has the best rooms, hands down.  I wanted to take this whole room home with me.

There is this company, Zoosh, who has built a pretty clever electronic payment and fund transfer system based on acoustic technologies.  As I watch the NFC space blasting its way from concept to application, I'm happy to see this alternative entrant to the market.  But, I'm hesitant when I hear the words "acoustic" and "money" in the same sentence -- not in the starving cafe singer/songwriter sense -- but in the "redbox" sense.

Of course, I haven't read enough information about Zoosh to have a complete understanding of the technology, nor the security.  Acoustics, both sub (infra) and ultrasonic are areas that fascinate me, and the world has seen remarkable things done with these variants of audio [frequency] manipulation.  Clearly these guys are doing something pretty cool here.

When I was a kid, I used to make Redboxes. I remember calling my dad from middle school off a payphone that had just accepted my "phreaks".... When the call went through, I felt like I had just conquered the Roman Empire.

Again -- without knowing more, I'm concerned that the audio signals will be too easy to copy or manipulate, thus turning a great and convenient way to pay for groceries at the store, into a nightmare of fraud.  But, I could just be paranoid.

I can comfortably say that refurbishing and refinishing very old structural beams is something that I have no intentions of ever repeating.  I can also comfortably say that in no way/shape/form would I ever recommend anyone else ever do this.

Too strong?  maybe.  But the simple truth is, what seemed like this very cool, hip, green idea, was in fact a complete nightmare.  We have just finished the entire "reclamation" process of these antique beams, and it was so time consuming, so frustrating, so expensive.

If any of the readers/viewers are interested in how to do this "correctly", I am happy to share my experiences with you -- as I already did it "incorrectly" the first time... and then had to re-do it for the final product you see here:

Are they beautiful?  Really, kind of a silly question.... they even look good in the photos, and i can tell you that the photos do them Zero justice.

PS:  Thanks Uncle Ron -- for all your help and guidance.

This was pretty cool.  I was just locking up the cabin for the evening when I heard a rustle from outside.  I walked out on the deck, and I saw this deer eating berries on the water's edge.  He/She didn't really like me taking photos, so I wasn't able to capture great shots... but it was pretty amazing to see this beast tromping through the water. 

(Actually -- I'm pretty sure this was a girl.  Like... like a Doe.

We needed to build a new shed for the water well.  I wanted something different, so i built a Silo.  Kinda like a grain silo.  But a water silo.  No... its not a functional silo.... just a shed.  You know.. for looks.