Here’s something I’ve been wondering recently: how was the bass line in “The Thin Wall” by Ultravox done? (A Google search will reveal links to the video and other ways you can listen to it. I sprang $0.99 at Amazon to get an MP3 of the remastered album version which has the cool cello stuff near the end. Unfortunately I think I sold my CD of Rage in Eden long ago.) We’re talking about 1981 sequencer technology here. Notice that it changes in subtle ways as it goes along. Is it just someone dinking with a CV sequencer? Maybe it’s just a gate programmed in the drum machine (a Linn, I think), which obviously has plenty of free voices since there’s nothing else coming out of it besides a kick and snare? Anyone? Anyone? Beuller? Anyone? (Wow, two 80s references in one post. Am I showing my age?)
Darn, Missed It
10:10 on 10/10/10 just slipped by 5 minutes ago without my observation. I guess I’ll have to set a reminder in Outlook for 11:11 on 11/11/11.
Finally, Some Fall Weather
(This is one of those weather-related posts that I’m writing largely for my own future reference.) Today is the first day that we’ve had weather in October that’s appropriate to the month. Until today it’s been hot and dry, but today it’s overcast with a forecasted high temperature of 66F. We had next to no rain in September and have not yet had sub-freezing temperatures. I’ve finally gotten over my habit of saying that it usually snows by the end of September; that pattern has been firmly relegated to the past, it seems.
Household Hack: Sealing Plastic Bags
This came by way of Tracie’s sister-in-law. I haven’t actually tried this yet, but it seems clever. Whether or not it would work would depend on the thickness and strength of the bottle, I’d think. Here are the photos from the email; I rewrote the instructions because my inner tech writer couldn’t deal with the grammar in the original text.
Cut off the neck and part of the top of a water bottle:
Insert the top of the bag through the neck of the bottle, fold it down over the threads, and close it by screwing on the bottle cap:
Weapon of Choice
I finished my x0xb0x today. Yes, it sounds like a 303.
Altogether it’s a pretty easy kit to build, although it does have a lot of parts. Building it reminded me how much more labor-intensive working with through-hole parts is compared to building something with SMT. I did make one change: I bought some longer LED standoffs because the 0.25″ standoffs that come with the kit position the LEDs almost flush with the panel, and I personally don’t like the way that looks. I also bought some nicer-looking knobs but they turned out to not work because their D-shaft orientation is opposite that of the x0xb0x’s pots. (Is there a convention for such things? One would think so.)
Synthesizer Modules for Sale
I’m running out of cabinet space and want to build some new stuff, so I have a few things I’d like to sell. Prices are based on recent sales of similar items on the Yahoo-groups MOTM list, but I’m open to haggling if I’m wildly off base.
SynthTech Modules, assembled by me:
MOTM-310 uVCO – $290
MOTM-510 WaveWarper – $320
SynthTech MOTM-700 Dual VC Router Kit – possibly the last unassembled MOTM kit on the planet? 🙂 $175. I believe that’s what I paid for it. It’s in the same condition as the day I received it several years ago; never got around to building it.
Maddy Likes Peas
Yep, you read that correctly: Madeline likes to eat peas:
One might think that it’s butter that she actually likes, but these peas have no butter on them–no butter, no salt, they’re just frozen peas cooked in the microwave. She loves ’em. She’ll eat them frozen if given the opportunity.
Not a Career Possibility for Me
Nice video here shot from someone’s helmet as they climb to the top of a 1768-foot-tall transmission tower. I’m not particularly fond of ladders; I don’t think you could pay me enough to get me to make that climb.
UPDATE: the video was taken down. See the comments.
The Fire is Winding Down
The current statement from the Office of Emergency Management is that the fire is 87% contained, and may be fully contained by the end of the day. I think that this means that the residents of Boulder, particularly those on the west side of town, can collectively breath a sigh of relief.
No New Trouble Overnight
The fire didn’t spread last night (much, anyway–if I’m following the figures correctly it grew either yesterday or last night, relative to its size reported on the day before yesterday) and no new evacuations were ordered. I woke up this morning and thought, “well, I don’t smell smoke, and the morning light doesn’t have that weird red-orange color that smoke gives it, and I don’t hear any unusual noises from outside, so I guess we’re okay,” and managed to doze for a bit longer. Hurrah for life’s simple pleasures.