Career Autobiography - Part 1: Prologue

I thought that it might be interesting to reflect a bit on my career path after High School.

The History Guy

I recently discovered a cool YouTube channel called "The History Guy".  This guy does brief videos about snippets of mostly-forgotten historical events that ought not to be forgotten.  Oddly enough, he even did one on my ship's original namesake, USS Barb (SS-220) during World War II. 

Pretty cool!

Sorry to say, our Cold War record was no match for that!  Also we aren't supposed to talk about it.

Boiler Drum Level Control

I've been working on this post about level control in steam boilers for a while now.  It looks like today is the day I'll finally manage to get that done.

Technical posts in the works

Yes, I've been working on some posts that are more interesting than what I listened to while driving to work.  They take a little time and research (and MS Paint work).  Thanks for your patience!

Music on the way to work

The random play feature on the MP3 player in the car never stops giving!  Today it seemed to be focused on oldies.

The Stylistics - Rockin Roll Baby (1973).  These guys have the classic Philadelphia Sound.

Although the tune below didn't play on the way into work, it is one of the premiere examples of a  song with the Philadelphia Sound.  This is great soul music that incorporated elements of funk, and set the stage for the disco era, although it was pre-disco.  The musicians were absolutely amazing.

The Ramones - The KKK Took My Baby Away (1981).  The Ramones are kinda cool because they don't follow the usual formula.  They don't do much of a chorus, and usually just play the same thing all the way through a song.  Four chords and a fast tempo!

Queen - Fat Bottomed Girls (1978).  This is probably my favorite Queen song, due to the great vocal harmonies and the rich guitar chordings. 

The Motels - Mission of Mercy.  Not one of the Motel's more popular songs - they were better known for the ballads "Only the Lonely" and "Suddenly Last Summer".  However I much prefer the beat and the lead/rhythm guitar work in this song.  Percussion is great, and Martha Davis kills the vocals too.

James Solberg - I'm Going Home (2000).  This guy is seriously under-rated.  This song has badass rocking blues with a gospel choir backup!

And in really really awesome news, Tool has released a new CD, "Fear Inoculum", which can be heard in its entirety HERE:

Furthermore, Volbeat has released a new CD entitled "Rewind, Replay, Rebound", which can be heard in its entirety HERE:

Yes, both of these are on my Christmas wish list.

That time of the year again: Preparing for winter

Yeah, that time of year.  Time to wrap up the normal activities that involve warm weather and prepare for those that involve cold weather!