The Occasional Odd Thought

nprmusic: poptech: laughingsquid: Teenage Girl Nonchalantly...

Wed, 22 May 2013 13:28:47 -0700

poptech:

laughingsquid:

Teenage Girl Nonchalantly Plays Van Halen’s ‘Eruption’ Guitar Solo

Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?

No big deal, just shreddin’.

You won’t find a lot of music on my blog, but holy cow, this is amazing.

markcoatney: todaysdocument: Midshipmen Wrong and Right are...

Wed, 22 May 2013 13:20:46 -0700

"Doors afford a continued supply of chances to make an impression on your companion. Don't pass one up, it's always good for a laugh and an opportunity to show off your leadership qualities…"

"No, you don't grab her arm. You offer assistance…Yes, doors do offer an excellent chance to make a good impression. It's a way to show your respect for ladies…it's the way to succeed with brunettes"

How to succeed in business, or with brunettes, or with blondes. They're all important missions wouldn't you agree? Well, here's one way to tackle the brunette problem. See what you think…

"When you get to your table sit down immediately; shows you're relaxed. Help with her coat? Well, you helped her on with it. Besides it's her coat, she should have checked it…"

"Ladies first…She'll expect you to help her off with her coat and arrange it over the back of her chair…No, she shouldn't have checked it…There, she has an excellent view of the room. Good thinking."

markcoatney:

todaysdocument:

Midshipmen Wrong and Right are back for another vintage installment of the U.S. Navy’s Dating Dos and Don’ts training film: How to Succeed with Brunettes.

(See if you can guess which one is Midshipman “Wrong.”)

Oh, honestly, Netflix could make a killing out of the exclusive rights to this.

Hey, isn’t that Megan Draper?

theoccasionaloddcrop: The visitors set their craft down on the...

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:33:49 -0700

theoccasionaloddcrop:

The visitors set their craft down on the road

Alabama Hills, near Lone Pine, California; May 2013

“Star Trek” episodes were filmed in the neighborhood, so when I saw the silvery umbrella, my mind naturally went to aliens.

travelingcolors: Iceland (by Sverrir Thorolfsson) Iceland, I...

Tue, 21 May 2013 21:15:58 -0700

travelingcolors:

Iceland (by Sverrir Thorolfsson)

Iceland, I cannot resist your landscapes.

robot-heart: DSCF5273 (by ce28nn)

Tue, 21 May 2013 21:14:26 -0700

robot-heart:

DSCF5273 (by ce28nn)

caille: lapetitecole: Photo by Vivian Maier Tennessee...

Tue, 21 May 2013 21:12:42 -0700

caille:

lapetitecole:

Photo by Vivian Maier

Tennessee Williams, where are you? Come and get your girls!

Photo

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:30:02 -0700

Well, LinkedIn, I already have a pretty great way to stay in...

Thu, 09 May 2013 10:44:33 -0700

Well, LinkedIn, I already have a pretty great way to stay in touch with Dani, what with our living in the same house and being married and stuff. But thanks!

Bikeless I gave away my bike the other day. Just walked it,...

Wed, 08 May 2013 09:28:00 -0700

Bikeless

I gave away my bike the other day.

Just walked it, along with my wife’s bike, a few blocks down the street to Goodwill, and that was that. For the first time in more than 40 years, I don’t own a bicycle.

My burgundy Cannondale road bike had been with me for nearly a quarter century, since I bought it from a friend for $300 in 1989. It carried me on that year’s Cycle Oregon tour, two more weeklong Cycle Oregons, a two-day ride from Seattle to Portland, a couple more century rides, and thousands of miles of roads large and small, all along the West Coast.

The rims, like my right arm, bear the scars of a 30 mph crash where the road descending from the Astoria Column turns 90 degrees left and changes from smooth tarmac into an alligator’s back, and where I picked the wrong time to let my mind drift for a second.

That wreck didn’t keep me off my bike. Neither did my slower-speed crash decades later, when some idiot opened the door of his Cadillac right in front of me a couple of blocks from my house in San Diego.

“I just didn’t see you,” he said as he stood over me.

“Clearly,” I said as I lay there shaking and bleeding.

The crashes were bookends to a few scary close calls, a thrilling 50 mph descent near Thousand Oaks, a feeling of accomplishment after the seven-mile climb to the Greensprings summit in Southern Oregon, a magical stretch during Seattle to Portland when a couple of friends and I covered 36 miles in 90 minutes, and hours of sweaty fun as I explored back roads and city streets wherever I happened to live.

But I hadn’t ridden for more than a year. I’d finally come to realize that, rather than helping my chronic back problem the way other exercise does, cycling made it worse. On top of that, we moved to Los Angeles last year, and I don’t think I’d feel safe riding around here.

So I gave away my bike. It was the right decision, but it feels strange. It’s not so much that I don’t have my Cannondale anymore; it’s more that I’m no longer a guy who needs or wants a bicycle. For reasons I can’t explain, that’s weird.

I didn’t take a picture of my bike before I dropped it off at Goodwill. I did, however, photograph the cycling shoes I bought around the time I picked up my Cannondale. They’re the only bike shoes I’ve ever owned, and shortly after I shot the photo at the top of this post, they went into the trash.

But I kept my helmet. After all, it’s nearly new, and you never know.

theoccasionaloddcrop: Capitol Records Vine and not quite...

Thu, 02 May 2013 19:05:43 -0700

theoccasionaloddcrop:

Capitol Records

Vine and not quite Hollywood, Los Angeles; March 2013

For what it’s worth, this is a color photo.

shrbr: daybreak by ~sth22art

Wed, 01 May 2013 13:36:55 -0700

shrbr:

daybreak by ~sth22art

Matilda is an #albino #Doberman who stopped by at #ArtWalk...

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 14:32:17 -0700

Matilda is an #albino #Doberman who stopped by at #ArtWalk #SanDiego. I’d never seen one before. Isn’t she a stunner? #dogs #beautiful #blueeyes #latergram (at Dani Dodge’s tent at ArtWalk)

View from our room in #downtown #SanDiego. We’re in town...

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 06:51:59 -0700

View from our room in #downtown #SanDiego. We’re in town for ArtWalk; my wife, Dani Dodge, has a tent near Beech and India. You should stop by and say hi. #blackandwhite #aerial (at Best Western Bayside Inn)

"We can only imagine what a heartbreaking and exhausting week it’s been for you and your city. But do..."

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 12:11:30 -0700

“

We can only imagine what a heartbreaking and exhausting week it’s been for you and your city. But do know your newsroom colleagues here in Chicago and across the country stand in awe of your tenacious coverage. You make us all proud to be journalists.

We can’t buy you lost sleep, so at least let us pick up lunch.

”

- A letter, accompanying several boxes of pizza, sent by staffers at the CHICAGO TRIBUNE to their friends at the Boston Globe.

As the folks at the Globe said, classy to the core.

(via Romenesko)

Pizza, the universal language of journalism. Nice work, Trib.

theoccasionaloddcrop: Radiance Near Pershing Square, downtown...

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 19:30:37 -0700

theoccasionaloddcrop:

Radiance

Near Pershing Square, downtown Los Angeles; March 2013

theoccasionaloddcrop: Black Dog is watching La Brea Avenue near...

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 07:34:58 -0700

theoccasionaloddcrop:

Black Dog is watching

La Brea Avenue near Willoughby Avenue, Los Angeles; March 2013

theoccasionaloddcrop: Raised fist Pershing Square Metro...

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 22:16:06 -0700

theoccasionaloddcrop:

Raised fist

Pershing Square Metro station, downtown Los Angeles; March 2013

I don’t usually do this, but I used a couple of selective curves layers in Photoshop to de-emphasize the two other guys in this photo. Makes for a stronger image, I think.

inothernews: Terrible Movie Sequel Titles Created By...

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 16:15:42 -0700

inothernews:

Terrible Movie Sequel Titles Created By Happenstance Juxtaposition, Vol. 1: Iron Man 3: Ready For Love.

mpdrolet: Alessio Bolzoni

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 09:32:45 -0700

mpdrolet:

Alessio Bolzoni

theoccasionaloddcrop: Looking up in downtown L.A. Someone in a...

Mon, 01 Apr 2013 09:44:45 -0700

theoccasionaloddcrop:

Looking up in downtown L.A.

Someone in a Google+ photography community suggested that a cityscape photo could be improved by waiting for a bird to fly past before tripping the shutter. I remembered that the other morning as I watched the clouds and fog play around the top of the U.S. Bank tower in downtown Los Angeles. A pigeon flew by, and you can see the result.