A Tattoo After Riding My Motorcycle Through 49 States

At 10:16 on August 27, 2013 I crossed the Connecticut River into Vermont.  This completed my multi-year quest to ride my motorcycle through the 49 states accessible by land.  It was early in a long slog of a day, so there was only a short stop to take a few pictures before continuing west for the day.  Realization of the goal built over the rest of the days ride and I was elated by the time I stopped for the night in Western New York.

Completing this meant something to me.  But, to say this was remarkable would be misleading.  Lots of people have done this quicker, in one or two trips.  Lots of people have done it and spent more time in all the states.  A few of my forays into passing states have lasted little more than a couple hours.  Lots of people have made the trip on bikes that could be considered more challenging.  I have respect for people who have toured extensively on a Harley Davidson Sportster or on a Honda CBR1000RR.  I have unapologetically and thoroughly enjoyed my touring bikes.

I’m just an average guy and this was my adventure.  Many memories of the states are burned into the long-term storage or my brain and I can always recall some of the experiences vividly.  There are an equal number of roads that are forever gone to the ether.  

Most my my more recent trips are preserved in perpetuity by writing and blogging on a near-daily time schedule while on the road.  This has allowed a more honest preservation of the true nature of motorcycle travel; the good and the bad.  In retrospect, it is almost all good.  Many states were surprisingly interesting.  A few states seem to go out of their way to ensure they have little in the way of redeeming qualities.

In many circles, tattoos and motorcycles go together like, well, tattoos and motorcycles.  A casual stroll around Daytona Bike week or anywhere in the Black Hills region near the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally would demonstrate this.  I’m not sure the same correlation exists within the average Goldwing Crowd, although it may within a few subcircles.  

Since forming the idea that it may be possible for me to ride a motorcycle through all land-connected states, I’ve also tossed around the idea that once completed, a tattoo would properly commemorate the event.  

Surprising even myself, I’ve followed through on this.  I had several ideas on how to properly show this in ink form.  I’ve seen people who have a map tattoo and filled in states they have been to, but that wasn’t quite right.  I thought about a tattooed road with all the states in order crossed as an option, but since  I’ve concentrated travel on some of my favorite areas, it didn’t seem the right option. Another idea of the outline of the US with the number 49 inside or below was just too boring.

One of the great things about motorcycle travel is the seemingly infinite amount of time for thought and my thoughts continued to stray to what the tattoo might look like as I rolled down the road.  I kept coming back to the idea, that the shape of the united states can almost be a motorcycle shape.  Or, more specifically, allowing for a little discretion on what the shape of a motorcycle should be plus discretion on the exact shape of the country, the two could be melded together.  Florida obviously looks like front forks, Maine makes a great headlight, the bulk of the country makes a faired body, Alaska almost looks like a helmet.  In my mind, this worked.

The States-Motorcycle would need a rider.  It couldn’t be me, nobody should be immortalized while still alive - not even me.  There is always a chance, no matter how small that living people can do unexpected things and sully an otherwise good name.  People like Tiger Woods (golfer turned publicized sex fiend) and Jerry Springer (Cincinnati Mayer turned smut-show host) being two well-publicized examples.

I’m a dog person and more specifically a beagle person.  Since 1993, I’ve had at least two beagles and at times as many as 4.  A beagle riding the States-Motorcycle would work well.

Once back at home after the August 27 border crossing, I started shopping around for a tattoo shop.  I found this terribly intimidating.  

First, some of these places are not too friendly.  I can only assume that the full-body tattoo and piercing crowd is where they make their money.  In fairness, I’m sure there are a lot of people who chicken out so there is a reluctance to spend time and energy on someone who will never become a paying client.

Second, a tattoo is nearly permanent.  If it is wrong, it may be able to be fixed, but once inked, the commitment is real.

Third, there is a health aspect.  I’m pretty convinced that most tattoo shops operate safely, but infection (or worse) is not an impossibility.

One place stuck out.  Or rather, the tattoo artist Steve stuck out.  He understood what I was after and had a pretty realistic no BS attitude.  On my first visit to his shop, he was working with two inebriated college students who were impaired to a point of annoyance.  But, he suggested coming back and trying to draw something up together.

On a subsequent visit, we set to making some drawings, but it was impossible to go from what I saw in my brain to what he could draw with his hand.  Some of Steve’s artwork on the wall is impressive, but going from my brain to his talent was probably asking too much.

I have no artistic ability, but I could envision what I wanted.  My answer was a considerable amount of time spent on my computer. By mixing tools available in PowerPoint and Photo Pos Pro along with clip art and images pilfered through Google Images searches, I was able to put together a pretty good facsimile of what I was after.  Using clip art in tattoo design is pretty awful, but it was a very powerful enabler to ensure the final design would actually work.  To the best of my knowledge no images used had any stated copyright issues.

Many iterations later, I had what I thought I wanted in a final design.  It looked like I had imagined in my head.  A few things were needed to make it work.  First, the US is too “tall” and I had to squish the country in the north-south direction to keep the “motorcycle” from looking too much like a scooter.  Second, while Alaska as a helmet has merit, I couldn’t make it work without looking like the dog had a salad on his head; Alaska became a sissy bar with luggage flying off it.

Emailing the image to Steve, his response was, “I think we can make this work!”

Two important changes were needed.  First, the design was not cohesive and it needed to be more cartoon-like.  I was obviously not going for some sinister looking biker-dude tattoo (maybe the next one).

Second, while I originally liked the multi-colors of the states, Steve suggested this would look very busy and be near impossible in the smaller New England states I had just been through.  Steve suggested some shading (and he was right) while the dog should retain its coloring.

When it came time to actually get the tattoo, I was on freak-out level 7.  My brain wouldn’t shut up - is this the right thing to do?  Will it look good in the end?  Will the states actually look like the US?  Will I get hepatitis?  Will it actually look like a motorcycle?  And, doing a Google Images search on “Bad Tattoos” a few hours before leaving was probably a mistake.

Once the actual tattoo process started, I quickly felt calm about the whole thing.  I could easily see the shape coming together well.  Getting tattooed didn’t feel good, but it really didn't hurt either. What was odd was that in some spots I really didn’t feel anything.  In other spots very nearby there was some pain.  I’m not sure I would want to do an all-day tattoo job, but the actual tattoo process was very tolerable.

As the design came together I really started to like the way it looked.  Steve was right on the colors and the shading adds a lot.  With the overall shape, two wheels, handlebar and dog position, the motorcycle is evident.  With the overall shape, and the state outlines, the map is obvious.  Mission accomplished and I couldn’t be happier.

I’m not sure what is next.  

Motorcycle-wise, I’ve got enough travel ideas to last five lifetimes.  My life is (statistically) half over so I guess I just need more vacation.  One family member suggested I could now slow down and spend more than a night or two in one spot.  That is probably not going to happen (and no I do not see a trailer in my future).  Needless to say, completing the goal of riding through 49 states does not mean an end to two-wheeled travel.  I may have to find room on my leg for Hawaii - although probably a rental.

I don’t think I’ll become the next tattooed monster, but having gone through the process and seeing the results, I understand why people who have tattoos, often have more than one.  I’m not sure the next tattoo will be for something quite so momentous, but I’ll also not commit to saying my dog-states-motorcycle tattoo will be my only one.

Motorola Moto X Phone

It was time for a new phone.  I often think it appears that to younger people today, phones are what cars were to me and my friends.  I still see a phone as a tool to do a job.  Since I am not a fan of talking on the phone, I see it more as a very handy mobile computer that can make the rare call.

My Motorola Atrix 4G had been faithfully serving me for over two years.  But, with the prevalence of LTE network, I wanted a faster phone.  I live in the sticks so often my phone is my internet connection (there is no DSL or Cable where I live).

Several phones looked intriguing, but the three that interested me the most where the HTC One Mini, the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini and the Motorola Moto X.  I was mostly interested in the two mini phones due to the size, not the slightly reduced cost.  The much larger phones with five-inch screens etc. are just too large.

As it turned out, the HTC One Mini became available first.  AT&T has the best coverage in my area and I was happy to stay with them.  When I looked at the HTC Mini, I thought it should not be called the Mini.  It really should be called the HTC One Still-Very-Large as this phone is only barely smaller than the HTC One.  This was fine, of the three phones, the HTC seemed to have the least going for it.

Samsung has been building very good phones, but the S4 Mini was ruled out by default.  First, Samsung's bloatware is too much.  Some of the extra features may be nice, but a lot of them are just extra bulk.  Second, there seems to be some resistance to selling the S4 Mini in the US.  It was available on Amazon and a few reputable Ebay places, but not from AT&T.  I would love to see an S4 Mini Google Play Edition.  That would be a dynamite combination of pure Android, small size, etc.  I have heard no rumors saying this was eminent.

This left the Motorola Moto X.  I can't say I'm disappointed with this.  As details leaked about the phone, many features seemed at least as if thought went into them.  I received emails from both Motorola and AT&T while on vacation saying the Moto X was available.  Once back at home, I headed to the AT&T Store.
As an aside, I may appear kind of crazy for going with the Motorola as my Atrix had a few peculiarities.  Notably, when I used the mobile hotspot, the battery drain was acceptably high due to the second radio, etc.  However, once the hotspot was turned off, the battery drain remained high until rebooted.  Sometimes the battery drain increased after turning off the hotspot until the reboot.  Also, the phone liked to sleep in and once in a while it would not automatically restart data after going in sleep mode for the night.  Data started immediately after any action on the phone.  I strongly suspect this second issue was due to a SIM card which was not behaving normally and may not be due to the phone at all.
These two issues where minor grievances and had my Atrix been an LTE phone, I would not even think of getting rid of it.
I had the choice of buying the Moto X in black or white and getting the instant gratification of going home with it.  Or, I could buy a small card, and order my "customized" phone on Motorola's web site.  I use that term lightly since the customization is largely cosmetic.  I wasn't really that interested in the customization, but decided since I wasn't in a hurry, that was the route I would go.

Once back at home, I logged on the Motorola's website and made my phone.  I opted for a blue back, silver accent, black front.  I didn't care about the wallpaper since it was going to be changed anyway.  I also opted not to have the message when I turned it on.  I wished I had it say, "Hey Dude" every time it goes on.  Oh well.
Surprisingly, Motorola said it was going to take almost a week to get the phone (it was a holiday weekend which no doubt contributed).  This is definitely not instant gratification.  As a happy surprise, the phone was shipped FedEx the next day and I received it the day after.
The phone looked just like I ordered it and it came with a free Skip, which is an NFC Tag that can be used to unlock the phone without hitting buttons.  I haven't found usefulness for this yet, but will probably set it up at some point in the future;  who knows, maybe it has utility.

After navigating around the much newer version of Android (Jelly Bean), I got the phone set up the way I like it.  I took this as an opportunity to not install many apps that I didn't use or weren't that useful on the Atrix.  There were a few glitches along the way, the built-in email program kept loosing sync which was frustrating so I installed MailDroid (this is a fantastic mail program - I'm not sure why I didn't just install it right away).

The phone has many nice features.  First, even though I wasn't too enamored with the customization, it was nice being able to pick my own colors.  The screen is large and bright and everything runs smoothly.  There has been some criticism that the phone is "only" 720p.  I'm not sure I'll believe that the most eagle-eyed person out there can tell the difference between 720 and 1080 on a 5 inch screen.  The real difference is barely detectable on anything smaller than the larger flatscreen TVs.  The touchscreen is very responsive without being too touchy.
One of the things I like the most about the phone is the Active Notifications.  I thought I would miss the blinky light of my old phones, but all I have to do is lift the phone to look at it and I can see not only if I have a notification, but how many of what kind.  And, I can preview them as well.  This is a really nice feature.
I haven't used the camera too much yet, but the camera takes pictures that are as good as should be expected from a cell phone.  The quick access to the phone by twisting the camera as if using a screwdriver works well, but I'm not sure it is really that much faster since I have a shortcut to the camera on the first desktop anyway.  This can also leave the camera on if not careful.
Battery life of the new phone is really good.  So far, I can easily get a full day of use without recharging.  To illustrate, last night I forgot to plug in my phone after being on for well over a day.  It was down to less than 10% this morning, but still functioning showing that 36 hours is possible.

My SO got the Samsung Galaxy S4 Active near the same time I got the Moto X and this allows for a pretty fair comparison.  Between the two, the S4 comes with more functionality, but it doesn't seem as well thought out and much of the extra functions can be overcome with free apps if desired.  Perhaps more importantly, the performance of the two phones is different.  Since I live in the sticks, my reception can be spotty at times.  The Atrix got reasonably good HSPA+ signal.  I was worried the Moto X wouldn't be as good..  However, the Moto X got better reception than the Atrix, and even gets a reasonably good LTE signal most of the time.  The S4 Active got an OK signal in the right spots, but the performance was not nearly as good as the Moto X.  For friends who have IPhones, however their radios suck and are stuck with weak HSPA+ signals or (gulp) Edge.

There are a few things I'm not to enamored with on the Moto X.
I still think the phone is too large.  I actually like the size of the 4-inch screened Atrix better.  The Atrix fits easily in the pocket and unobtrusive in the Seidio holster.  The Moto X is slightly larger but can still fit OK in the pocket.  I'm working around this by not getting a case for it - at least for now.  I'm hoping a silicone bikini skin may be available in the future.
The other thing that I have to work around is the shape.  The curved shape of the phone fits in the hand great.  I'm surprised what a difference the subtle changes makes for the ergonomics.  But, the curved bottom makes it wobbly on a flat surface.  I often keep my phone on the kitchen counter.  When I get a notification and check it, the wobbliness is a bit annoying.

I've only had the phone for about a week, but am very happy with it so far.  It gets great reception, looks good, and feels good in the hand.
Speed of the phone is noticeably better than my older Atrix and better than the S4 Active in the house.
Also, with the Motorola trade-up program, Motorola will buy back my Atrix for $100.  And the Moto X is made in the USA.
Good things all around.

A belated edit, after the September 10, 2013 Apple Announcements:
Not to beat on Apple too hard, but they just announced the iPhone 5S and 5C.  Let see...
5S main features include a fingerprint scanner - my Atrix had this functionality and it worked well (but wasn't my choice for unlocking) so a bit of a ho hum.
The A7 processor to do many functions like monitor motion, etc. with less battery power - sounds a lot like the processors built into the Moto X that allows Active Notifications and automatically turning on driving mode if desired.
More built-in Apps - read bloatware (and Apple is less friendly about turning off some of this crap).
The 64-bit processor is a pretty big deal, if a bit unsung.  I'll have to wait until someone I know gets one of these to see if there are real improvements to the radio in areas with weaker LTE signals.  I'll put money on this being a more fundamental issue.

And the 5C:  New colors.  OK, neat - not sure if that is a major selling point.
Cheaper:  Apple is very confused on the definition of cheaper.

Again, not to beat on Apple too much, but the features on this version of the iPhone really aren't that new.  And in this case, the Fruit Company is not quite the trend setter it was several years ago.

Hitting a Deer with my Motorcycle

I hit a deer a few days ago.  This was the third time it has happened in the last 10 years.  I know people who have hit two deer in one day so I guess I should count myself lucky.

The first deer strike was the worst.  A bit more to the horror, in 1997 I bought a brand new Harley Davidson Sportster Sport.  I loved it; tearing around the county, loud pipes and all.  But, it was not the most comfortable motorcycle, especially for 2-up riding.  I was pretty sure I wanted to start touring and while setting up the Sportster Sport for touring would be possible, it would be expensive and change the bike into something that it wasn't.

I had a small issue with an almost-new front tire on the Sportster so I went to the dealership to have them take a quick look at it.  On their showroom floor was a new Superglide T-Sport.  This was an un-Harley Harley.  It had textile quick-detachable bags, a small fiberglass fairing and adjustable windshield.  It was intriguing, but after talking with the dealership owner about it I didn't give it much thought.
By the time I got home however, my brain was screaming, "You need this motorcycle, you can still tear around the county and use it for touring!"  I called them the next day and a day or two after that, my Sportster was gone, replaced with the Harley Davidson Superglide T-Sport.

Six days later, with 261 miles on the clock, I was on my way to work on a very cool morning.  It was still dark out and as I was going past a wooded area, I saw a flash out of the corner of my eye, then the image of a deer in my peripheral vision.
WOP!
I relived that wop many, many times over the ensuing months.
I kept the bike up initially, but I think what happened is I ended up going over the deer after the initial impact and pushing her forward.  I recall looking to my left and seeing my 6-day-old bike sliding down the road with sparks flying off of it.  I put my hand down to get up and that was when I realized I was also sliding down the road.  After ensuring my slide down the road was done, I got up a few seconds later.  My leg hurt a lot and my pants were shredded; my leg was bleeding, but not too bad.  I walked over to my bike, unsure of what to do next.
A minute or so later the first vehicle on the scene was a school bus filled with little kids, all staring at this motorcycle guy standing next to a dead bloody deer and a wrecked bike.  I don't know why, but I told the bus driver to just go on, don't bother calling the cops.  The couple cars behind the bus didn't stop (thanks), but the first car headed south was a volunteer fireman.  He made sure I wasn't dying and helped me right the bike before driving me a mile down the road to the firehouse.  An ambulance came and checked me out.  I didn't think I was too bad so they put bandages on my leg and were off again.
It took forever for the police to show up as I live in a remote part of the county with little road patrol.  When he did show up, I asked if I could come back later in the day and shoot the dead deer out of spite.  The tow truck was the same guy who had recently towed a car due to a brake problem.  I told him I never wanted to see him again (jokingly) and he relayed that was why he sometimes hates his job.

A few hours later, my leg had swollen to nearly twice its normal size.  I drove myself to the Emergency Room where about $4000 later, the only thing broken on me was my big toe on my left foot.  There was significant strain/sprain in my left leg which was the more significant problem.  Oddly, the damage to my Superglide was almost exactly the same in dollar amount - including cleaning all the deer blood off of it.  The only good outcome was that I wasn't too fond of the "Diamond Ice" color (aka, generic silver).  Since every colored part was destroyed except the rear fender, I bought a factory painted fender and changed the color to a dark blue.  The dark blue against the black wrinkle finish on much of the bikes accessories looked ten times better.

Several years later, I hit a second (yes, 2) deer on my motorcycle.  The situation was very similar, about 10 miles away from the location of the first strike.  This time I was on my Honda ST1300.  I was on my way to work again, and a deer ran across the road, followed closely by a second.  I grabbed all the brake I could and got the bike slowed down some.
WOPARUNCH!
This time the outcome was different.  I kept the bike up but assumed that the front end was trashed.  The deer had died much like her sister a few years earlier after a flying twist across the road.  I turned around and headed the short distance back home and pulled into the pole barn.  There was a lot of hair and blood on the bike, but the only actual damage was a small crack on the windshield which remains there to this day.  My truck was incapacitated at the time due to a perforated transmission cooling line so I got back on the bike and rode to work, blood, hair and all.

The damage was negligeable to my truck on this most recent incident.  Both the deer and I got out of it with little more than a real scare.  I popped my fog light back into the bumper of my Tacoma and the deer ran away.  Apparently he didn't learn his lesson as I saw him two days later on the side of the road dead, about 100 yards away from where I hit him.  His large growing rack in full velvet was beautiful.  I was going to stop and take the antlers, but it was gone the next day.

When my crazy motorcycle guy personality collides with my gentleman farmer lifestyle, bad things can happen.  I'll count my blessings on all three of these incidences.

Book Review: Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lowry

"A classic book is something that everybody wants to have read and nobody wants to read." - Mark Twain (attributed)

I have a loosely held "rule" that if I see a few prominent references to a book, and it meets other criteria (length, language, etc.) I must read it.  So I found myself a while ago reading Malcolm Lowry's Under the Volcano.  I love reading, but this book ended up on the very short list of books with very little redeeming qualities.  For perspective, The Catcher in the Rye is also on that list although the reasons are completely different.

When my older sister got married, a group of us were looking through the DJ's list of music for the reception.  The list looked woefully incomplete until I noticed that all the songs that started with the words "A" or "The" were alphabetically listed by A and T respectively.  I found this quite funny.

The synopsis of Under the Volcano can be effectively reduced to a few sentences, or paragraphs if being generous.

The main character is a Counsel in Mexico.  He may be retired, but definitely doesn't work.
He can be cordially considered a raving alcoholic.  He drinks incessantly through the book, passing out a few times.  He is enabled by the other main characters who frequently suggest a stop for refreshments.  To be fair, enablement is a more modern construct.  His (possibly ex) wife has come to visit him and try to patch things up.  The Counsel is too drunk to function, on any level.  The wife seems more upset about the state of the garden than the booze and the fact that he can't even bath himself.
The Counsel's brother Hugh comes into the picture to be filled with angst about his career as a journalist which he finds offensive.  The three of them go to Jacques' house to drink more.  Jacques is a French dude who used to work in film, before also being lost to alcohol in Mexico.  The three of them take a bus to a bullfight.  En route, they see a dog and a peasant killed in the street; the dog is treated with more sympathy.
At some point it is alluded to that Yvonne (the Counsel's wife) has had affairs with Hugh, Jacques and possibly others.  Pernod doesn't start to look so bad.
There is more drinking at and after the bullfight.  They end up in a bar frequented by somewhat corrupt Mexican officials.  Hugh and Yvonne get separated from the Counsel and start looking for him.  At this point in the book, Jacques disappears.  It rains.  The Counsel ends up getting shot by the Mexican officials over some nuance related to letters between himself and Yvonne.  Perhaps she had an affair with that official (The Elephant?) as well.  The Counsel's body is unceremoniously dumped in a ditch - with possible allegory to the dead peasant.  I think the book ends with Hugh and Yvonne looking for the Counsel down a main path after the path splits en route home from the bull fighting festival.

The story line has some potential.  Alcohol, cheating wives, corrupt officials, dead peasants, horses, thunder and all in a dingy Mexican city near two volcanoes.  What's not to love.
The unfortunate part is that the writing is so obtuse.  There are pages and pages of vague descriptions and alliterations where nothing happens.  It is at times hard to tell when something might be happening.
Often how something is written is as important as what is written.  In high school I recall struggling to read Hemingway.  Even The Old Man and the Sea was difficult as short as it was.  But having (re)read several works by Hemingway a few years ago, I've recognized a rhythm to his language.  At times it almost seems he creates a flaw in the words to force passages to be repeated.  Vonnegut, while more contemporary is always a good read.

After finishing Under the Volcano and not understanding how the book could have possibly made it to #11 of Modern Library's 100 Best English Language Novels, I rented the movie to see if I had missed something major hidden between the pages of Lowry's effluvium.  Actually, I didn't rent it.  I checked it out from the library - which says something about the title.
The movie was just as bad as the book.  This is also true of Breakfast at Tiffany's but Truman Capote at least had some redeeming qualities.  I've never understood if Holly Golightly was supposed to be a prostitute or not?  An internet search suggests this was an interminable question.  The book In Cold Blood was good; the movie was a bit of a letdown.

One interesting difference in the movie version of Under the Volcano is at the end while looking for the Counsel, Yvonne is killed by a riderless horse which is terrified by a storm.  I  think  there is significance that she is killed simultaneous to when the Counsel is shot.  Wikipedia suggests this may have been part of an earlier draft of Lowry's manuscript.  To the best of my comprehension, this was not part of the version of the book I read, nor was it alluded to.

Malcom Lowry died at the relatively young age of 48.  Life imitates art and he was a heavy drinker, which contributed either directly or indirectly to his death.

Perhaps the most critical question of the book is the title.  One of the only clear pictures in the entire book is the description of the volcanoes.  Plural, there are two.  Why is the title not  Under the Volcanoes?

Three Years

"While adults might gently argue – there is no monster in the closet, mommy is not going anywhere – we do not yank their blankie away.  Maybe we should.  We should take their comfort objects and destroy them, burn teddy in front of their eyes.  Because that is what happens when you grow up.  They take it away, your source of greatest comfort, and leave you...clawing at the smooth sealed box of an impenetrable mystery." – Neil Steinberg

Three years have passed now.

Early in education we learn through timelines.  These are usually represented in one dimension showing events in relation to when they occurred.

This one-dimensional view, of course, does not even come close to representing reality.  It represents at the most basic history, as Voltaire defined, "The lie agreed on."
This does represent how I saw myself when young.  Time progresses and things happen.

In order to denote progress, a second dimension is often added.  This dimension is designed to show progress in addition to merely the passing of time.  This approach may work for oversimplifying business or scientific change, but is also a limited approximation.  It also often has an agenda.
As I got older, this is how I saw the world.  Time progresses, I get older; things change in the process.

Looking back, neither one of these is remotely close to being correct.  The reality is far too complex, there is not one, two, or four dimensions to what has happened.  There are hundreds of dimensions and the timeline zigs and zags progressing and regressing.
Looking back, there is only one labyrinth path to now.  This means every decision I've made to get here, whether momentous or trivial is responsible for now.  Every decision I've made, I had to make - there was never any choice.
Looking back, I can see a fog through where I've been and how I thought I could have done something different.  But, I didn't and I can't.  I can look through the tunnel of fog and try to imagine how now might be different, but it doesn't represent reality given the inability to visualize what else would be different in all those loosely connected dimensions.  The farther back I look, the foggier it is.  It doesn't take too far back for the fog to become a completely opaque window; I am now, here.

What I can say is stopping drinking three years ago was a choice I had to make which led to where I am now.  It was only one of many choices though.  From many narratives I've read about the personal use of alcohol, three years is a time when it is not unusual for people to begin again, under the assumption that occasional drinking can return without issue.  The result is almost universally disastrous.

Other recent filial events have reinforced the notion of how terrible and unpredictable people and the future can be.

It is very tempting to put myself in the center of the universe.  Everything that happens near me affects me.
There are about 2500 people living in my township, 370,000 in my county, 11.5 million in my state, 310 million in the US.  There are a little over 7 billion people in the world.
It is never about me.

"Action Cameras" and Cell Phones

"He who buys what he does not need, steals from himself." - Unknown

For the last several weeks, I've been reading on and researching "Action Cameras."  In the simplest form, these are small battery powered camcorders that have some weather resistance.  Elaborate features go up from there.
When I first joined the company I continue to work for, my first office (a desk really) was adjacent to Ron's office.  As a Mac user, he was forced to standardize to the windows platform at some point in corporate IT history.  This was during the end of the Windows3.1 era and the beginning of Windows95.  Being a glutton for punishment, Ron hated the forced 8.3 naming convention of Windows3.1 and installed Windows95 which was not actively supported.  This led Ron to be brought into the pilot use of Windows95 - and its own  corporate IT support line.  With one problem after another, Ron was on the special help line one day for an extended period of time.  At some point he was disconnected (which would have brought him to the back of the help-line when he called back) to which he responded by screaming something unintelligible and smashing his phone onto the office floor; he left in a huff.  Minutes later he returned, picked up the phone on the desk next to me and calmly asked site services to get him a new phone as his was broken.
On of my time-lapse cameras BROKE recently and the idea of an Action Cam as a replacement seemed appealing.  These cameras all have time lapse capabilities as well as being able to mounted outside for weather resistant use.  I'd love to time lapse a cross country trip, or film my next motorcycle trip through Lolo.

Being in vogue, Action Cameras are easy to research online as long as one keeps in mind that negative feedback is much more pervasive than positive.  Many professional, semi-professional and blog-type reviews are available to compare and contrast Action Cameras.  Amazon makes a great platform for getting real world reviews and prices in one place.

"What consumerism really is, at its worst is getting people to buy things that don't actually improve their lives." - Jeff Bezos

The GoPro is the most common camera but is also very expensive (probably due to the copious advertising that accompanies it - it is everywhere).  Sony's AS15 gets very good reviews, especially in professional web-site reviews.  Being a camera company first, and a manufacturer of helmets cams second, this unit appears to be the best optically, but I'm not sure that is the point for an Action Camera.  Both of these cameras require a hard plastic waterproof case to function in a weather resistant environment.  The cameras themselves are rather fragile in order to remain lightweight.  To paraphrase one review - they seem rather like a turtle outside of the shell.

The Contour Camera and the Drift Ghost get around this by being natively waterproof.  The Drift Ghost also has the feature of a preview screen.  This brings up an interesting point - most of these Action Cameras do NOT have preview screens.  This leads to the potential for a situation where minutes, hours or longer may have poorly aimed images or smudges on the lens.  Very likely in a waterproof turtle-shell case.  Many of the cameras have started to get around this by offering "features" like streaming to a cell phone.  This adds much in the way cost to the camera and complexity, and cost, and cost.  So without a preview screen, we're expected to stream our waterproof camera to our more fragile and non-waterproof smart-phone to compose the shot and hope it stays that way I guess.  This functionality seems to cost hundreds of dollars.  Some cameras come with a preview screen as an add-on option, creating the option of a bulky, more fragile camera that costs even more.

On the subject of cell phones, I need a new one of these as well.  I'm perfectly happy with my Motorola Atrix, but I'd like an LTE phone soon.  My phone is my internet connection (I'm using it to connect as this is written) and while I may not get an LTE connection at home, I might.  There are other times when I know I would have an LTE connection that it would be worth it.  However, newer cell phones (at least those available at AT&T) are HUGE.  These might be usable as a handset if I had Andre the Giant hands and pockets, but I don't.  Phones such as the HTC One and the Samsung Galaxy S4 are around 40% larger than my Atrix in square inches.  I'm currently of the belief that there is very limited individual thought in the cell phone industry so it is assumed everyone wants to carry a small TV around in their pocket.  I don't need massive octocore processing power in a cell phone either.  Remember the Toshiba Libretto?
I'm more interested in the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini which should be available soon.  Or, I've read that a version of the fabled Motorola X-phone may have a smaller version.  At this point small and functional would be nice.

“The assumption that everyone else is like you. That you are the world. The disease of consumer capitalism. The complacent solipsism.” - Davis Foster Wallace

I narrowed my camera choices down to two.  The Wingman HD looks very promising as it has a native preview screen.  I'm not fond that it requires a turtle shell to be water resistant.  The price is right at less than $150 but Delkin isn't known as a great camera company, while they do make adequate power strips.
The Drift Innovations Drift Ghost was the other camera that made the cut.  It has a preview screen and is waterproof without a turtle shell.  It also has replaceable lenses.  Both of these cameras have standard 1/4-20 mounting which allows for lots of options.  Unfortunately, the Drift Ghost has all the bells and whistles including cell-phone streaming.  Not sure of the benefit of cell-phone streaming when it has a preview screen?  And, the cost is commensurate with the bells and whistles of $400.  There is also the Drift HD at less than $200, which is "water resistant" without a case.  I note it has an "optional" waterproof case.
I had some Amazon Gift Cards ready to purchase and decided to sleep on the decision about which to get.

The decision?
Neither.

I recently read an article on how much money it takes to be happy - a topic I'm always interested in.  Predictably, there wasn't an answer; there is enough money in 95+% of American households to make the question moot.  My take-away from the article was one nugget which suggested research had shown people who made $50,000 with friends who made $25,000 where happier than people who made $100,000 if their friend's made $200,000.  This likely true, if also sad.  Very sad.

There is a great liberation in not purchasing.  There is no major hole in my life to filled by the purchase of an Action Camera or a new cell phone.  At least for now...

Replacing XM15 Fixed Stock with a Six Position Telescoping Stock

I bought my Bushmaster semi-automatic magazine-fed rifle around 2001.  Since Assault Rifles were illegal during that era of the Clinton Gun Ban, it is not an Assault Rifle (yet?).
I like the rifle.  Once an initial bolt tightness was alleviated after a break-in period, the rifle has been rock solid reliable and digests even really cheap low power reloads consistently.  I equally enjoy using the rifle for target shooting, hunting coyotes and occasionally plinking.
One thing I did not like about the rifle was the Reno-Era fixed stock.  It is a flat-top rifle and I shoot it with both the carry handle sights and a large 10x fixed-power scope.  Since the scope is large, fitting eye-relief to both it and the carry handle can be awkward.  And, to be perfectly honest, the fixed stock does not look right on a rifle with a carbine-length barrel and Bushmaster Dissipator front end.

Luckily, Bushmaster makes and sells their factory-fit six position stock as a direct replacement.  It comes with everything needed for the swap and is a bargain at a bit over 100 clams.  I originally tried to buy the stock from a large Midwestern company that sells shooting supplies, but in today's political climate, keeping these in stock was apparently not possible; my purchase was cancelled by the vendor after a considerable back-order dealy.  I ended up purchasing it directly from Bushmaster, part number F1000360.

As mentioned, the kit comes with everything needed for the swap, sans instructions.  While it isn't needed, an AR15 combo wrench is a handy thing to have.

We start with ensuring the rifle is not loaded and the gun secured in a vice.

I've heard horror stories about how hard the stock can be to get off of a factory Bushmaster rifle.  I do not have copious upper body strength and so I was prepared for the worst, ready to use an impact driver if needed (or possibly even cut off the old stock).  However, a twist with a large screwdriver easily removed the upper screw on the stock; the factory nylon locking material only marginally resists turning the screw.  Once the screw is out, the fixed stock slides off of the existing buffer tube.

The lower receiver can then be removed from the rest of the rifle per factory manual.  Once the two halves are separated, the existing buffer can be removed from the buffer tube by pushing down on the buffer retaining plunger and pulling out the buffer.  Then push down on the buffer retaining plunger and unscrew the buffer tube.  This will be snug, but shouldn't be too tight.  An AR15 combo wrench or standard 5/8 wrench is used to remove the buffer tube.  Once unscrewed, be careful not to lose the buffer retaining plunger or the rear take-down pin spring.

The rear take down pin detent spring is held on by the fixed stock.  In this picture, the spring is put back in place prior to reassembly.

Install the included castle nut on the new buffer tube, then slide the buffer plate on the buffer tube as shown in the picture.  With the new stock, the buffer plate holds the take-down pin spring in place.

Install the buffer plunger and hold the plunger down while screwing in the buffer tube until the plunger is appropriately held in place by the cut-out in the tube.  This is where buying factory parts is nice as the buffer tube has a small cut-out which perfectly holds the buffer plunger in place while also allowing it to retain the buffer.  Some after-market parts may require a bit of fitting.

Hold the plate against the rear of the receiver and tighten the castle nut against the plate.  Use an AR15 wrench to tighten the castle nut securing the new stock, plate and receiver all together.  The castle nut needs to be tight, but not threadstripping tight.  It does not need locktite, nor does it need to be "staked."  Channel Locks or the like can be used to tighten the castle nut, but that is gorilla gunsmithing.  The AR15 wrench is really nice here.

The new stock can now be pushed onto the buffer tube by pulling down on the pin that holds the stock in position.  To install, it needs to be pulled down farther than can be accomplished with the stock adjustment lever.  Once installed, the adjustment lever can be used to slide the stock for and aft.

Push down on the buffer plunger and install the new buffer spring and new buffer.  Once released, the buffer plunger should securely hold the buffer and spring in the buffer tube.

The stock is now installed on the existing receiver.  This entire operation should be doable within about 30 minutes.  It is a good time to clean the rifle since it is apart anyway, stretching the time only marginally.

Finished, the adjustable stock is functional.

And, with a ridiculously large fixed 10x scope (which is almost as long as the barrel), it is ready to make some noise.