new year's resolution

I'm a procrastinator. I hate myself for it. Typically, if I can avoid working on something tomorrow, why work on it today? It's as if the wicked me is sabotaging the innocent, unsuspecting me to reign undue pressure and stress upon myself at the midnight hour. The sad thing though is that I'm not even a good procrastinator. While I forestall the inevitability of my tasks, I fret about them. Like the drip, drip, drip of Chinese water torture or the incessant ticking of a clock, my psyche is slowly and steadily building to a fever pitch of a silent scream. (I'm old enough to remember when people would put their watches to their ears to confirm they were still working, at least the ones without second hands. In today's electronic age you hear nothing. But I digress . . .)

As we are approaching the conclusion of yet another year, my resolution will be to work on my procrastination tendencies and to subsequently reduce the stress that I can only blame upon myself. I am too often my own worst enemy. Why contribute to the dark and evil forces that are already at play conspiring against me?

So there you have it.

My new year's resolution: to stop procrastinating. Oh, and as always, to lose weight too. And oh yeah, to teach myself how to play the harmonica. The cool kind of harmonica, not the dorky kind.

the amazing curta calculator

Once again, I have to reiterate my uncanny ability to find new and wonderful things to spend money on. Please be forewarned, I do not ALWAYS purchase the items I've blogged about with such lust. The most recent example of this is the $18,000 portable remote controlled helicopter that can serve as a platform for your digital camera. I did NOT buy one, although I did buy the recumbent trike . . . (right, Stacie?)

My latest find in my ever growing wish list of coveted playthings is the amazing Curta Calculator. Briefly, prior to the advent of inexpensive digital calculators, the Curta Calculator was a mechanical handheld device that could add, subtract, multiply and divide (and perform other calculations like squaring, determining standard deviations, etc.) to 11 places! It was produced and sold from 1947 to around 1973. The cost at the time of its final production run was around $125. Approximately 140,000 units were produced over the years. Units now sell between $300 and $5000 (and up).

Curt Herzstark of Austria, was the proud inventor of this remarkable instrument. According to many articles, Herzstark was a prisoner in Buchenwald. His Nazi captors were fully aware of his work and encouraged it, with the intent of having him produce one of his calculators as a victory gift to be given to Hitler upon the close of World War II. Well, we all know that didn't happen. However, Herzstark did go on to realize his dream and ultimately his Curta Calculator went into production.

The Curta is a beautiful example of mechanical engineering and construction. It exemplifies the finest work of its time. Even now, some of the items produced in that time period still amaze me. (I still marvel at the Minox camera, the miniature spy camera featured in so many old-time thrillers. That camera was tiny, yet sported a built-in light meter and exposure controls including full aperture and shutter speed settings.) I remember seeing these devices advertised in Scientific America magazine (yes, I know that sounds very geeky, but I didn't read them THAT much). I only wish at the time I would have made the purchase. Other items like the Haverhills pocket microscope/telescope inspired me to place my order (with no regrets. It is STILL a cool little item!). Sadly, I did not. Check it out though. The Curta Calculator. I think you will agree that it is a neat little thing of a bygone era.

http://www.vcalc.net/cu.htm

christmas came early this year

This weekend, I drove to Cedar Hills to inspect and test-drive a TerraTrike Sport that appeared in the KSL on-line classified ads a few days ago. Since I had been contemplating the purchase of a TerraTrike as my Christmas present, it seemed to make sense to consider purchasing a used one. The Sport is a better model than the Cruiser I had been contemplating. It sports an aluminum frame versus the chro-moly frame of the Cruiser, making it 4 pounds lighter. In addition, the shifting components are of a higher quality and more durable nature. In brief, I purchased the Sport for less than the cost of the Cruiser and have been riding this baby joyously for two days now. I intend to eventually ride it to and from work for my daily exercise in addition to simply enjoying it for pure recreational fun. I'll keep you posted, but I can already tell you that it has become evident that I am sorely out of shape. And yes, it is sparkle orange as shown in the original KSL ad photo above. I actually have taken a shining to it.

introspection and technology

I've been following the blog of Don Saito, a laid-off individual, who took the opportunity of his unemployment to traverse the United States in a recumbent ICE trike.

http://cycleamerica2009.blogspot.com/

At the time of this writing, he has successfully traveled from San Francisco, cross-country to Florida, to Maine, etc. and is currently somewhere around Seattle, heading home.

Don chronicles his experience in his blog whenever possible and I have been following his progress daily. I've of course been inspired by his undertaking and his blog is largely responsible for my new passion for recumbent trikes. I've considered the ramifications of such a journey in physical and psychological terms and concluded that the experience in the venue of a blog might be altered in a way that detracts from its full potential benefits however.

Undertaking a journey alone suggests that there would be many solitary hours to experience one's surroundings and reflect upon one's life. With today's technology, I'm not sure Don is feeling the isolation that would normally provoke such introspection. Each day as he finds camp he chronicles his progress in his laptop (I imagine), to post at a later time when Wi-Fi becomes available to him. I wonder if this process, writing with an audience in mind, doesn't change his "voice" to one that externalizes his experience. Knowing there are people out there who are following his trip seems to change the fundamental nature of a solo adventure. It seems akin to spending time at a monastery and taking along your television and iPod. I think perhaps writing about the experience afterwards might have allowed Don a deeper and richer journey. While technology is a wonderful thing, I'm not convinced it is always such a wonderful thing.

recumbent trike

I had the opportunity to drive to Payson this weekend to test drive the three recumbent trikes I had decided upon based on "value" (another term for the best I can afford). One of the premier dealers in the country is Utah Trikes. Nice that they are located nearby (sort of).

It was a blast! I couldn't stop grinning! The recumbent trike has been compared to a sports car in the family of bicycles and I could easily see why. You sit very low in a recumbent, so even standing (that is, sitting) still, you feel like you're already moving fast. The recumbent position also provides a high degree of comfort with a totally different pedal feel. While you cannot stand on the pedals as you do in a conventional bike when going uphill, I understand you become accustomed to pedaling in such a way that you still have the capability of going up steep ascents with the added bonus of simply stopping and resting when you become overtaxed. You just apply the brakes and remain seated while you catch your breath.

This means little to those who have no interest in this sort of thing, but the three models I tested were the KMX Typhoon, the Catrike Trail and the TerraTrike Cruiser. Of the three, the Typhoon is really in a different class from the other two. It is really targeted at teens and younger bikers who are looking for a fun ride at a low price ($1099) and seemed more like a BMX version of a recumbent trike. The Catrike was nice (at $1749), but did not have an adjustable seat, which is an important consideration to me, especially if I ride long distances. The Catrike was the lightest of the three bikes however, and felt very nice although I did experience some pedal steer (meaning the bike sways from side to side as you pedal - something practice can help rectify, but interestingly, I did not experience it in the other two models). The TerraTrike Cruiser ($1499) proved to be the best of the three in my opinion, possessing a nice degree of comfort, no pedal steer and marvelous handling (indirect steering, which is again something of no interest to the unitiated. I think direct steering might be preferable, but for my money, the indirect steering was smoother). Santa (aka my wife) suggested that the Cruiser might be my Christmas present if I've been good this year. So, like the children you see in old movies, I may be out there in the snow on Christmas Day tooling around the neighborhood on my new trike. I've already begun planning my route to work and back and have carefully studied the bike path maps for SLC and Salt Lake County . . .

inner teenaged boys and their toys

I’m always looking for unique ways of spending money I don’t have. As an example, I recently posted a link to the ultimate camera accessory, a remote-controlled, highly maneuverable helicopter that starts at about $16,000 (see http://www.draganfly.com/uav-helicopter/draganflyer-x6/gallery/videos/). Never mind the fact that I will never purchase one, it’s just plain cool and fun to imagine.

Well, my latest dalliance into the fantasy world of acquisition is the Ice Trice Q (http://www.ice.hpv.co.uk/trikes/q.htm). This is a recumbent tricycle (yes, I said tricycle), with two wheels in the front for stability, and the third wheel rearward. This configuration is known as a “tadpole” design in the vernacular of three-wheeled vehicles. The more traditional tricycle design with one wheel in the front is referred to as a “delta.” While the word “delta” sounds much cooler than “tadpole,” I’m afraid I would have to defer to the design advantages of the tadpole if I were ever to make such a purchase, namely, speed, stability, drive train simplicity and touring comfort. These babies go for a starting price of about $2,800 and increase as you begin to add more sophisticated components and accessories. In deference to safety considerations, I would most certainly purchase a flag to increase my visibility to others (I know, I know, this seems like “Big Wheels” for grown-ups), a rear-view mirror and several strategically placed bicycle lights at a minimum.

I’m not sure what it is that appeals to me about these trikes, but they do offer the promise of comfort, freedom, health and adventure. One individual, a 52 year-old gentleman of Japanese descent who was recently laid off from his job (talk about a doppelganger), took the opportunity of his circumstances to ride across the United States in his Ice Trice Q. He began his journey in March and is still on the road. See his blog at http://cycleamerica2009.blogspot.com/.

So the question now becomes, how can I get my hands on $2800+ of disposable money?

blueberry soda

During our recent visit to Maine, I discovered a local culinary favorite, Moxie Soda. According to the travel guides, Moxie Soda, like Dr. Pepper and Coca-Cola originated as an elixir claimed to cure many ailments. Naturally, after the formation of the Food and Drug Administration, such claims were quickly abandoned. Moxie Soda, however, remains one of the oldest sodas on the market even though it has not moved beyond the region where it originated. Sadly, it had an odd taste (which may account for the reason it has not moved BEYOND the region where it originated). As a friend commented, it tastes like a poor imitation of root beer. Locals like to drink it mixed with their whiskey, although some say that they like it undiluted. Most admit it is an "acquired" taste. In any event, it is not for me. I will not be ordering Moxie Soda via the internet anytime soon.

I DID however, discover Blueberry Soda during my travels in Maine. This was a delightful surprise. Initially I was skeptical, but found the taste of blueberries, blended with carbonation, to be the perfect balance of flavor, sweetness and "texture" (not to mention its beautiful color). Today, I decided to order a shipment of Blueberry Soda via the internet, but during my search, stumbled upon a recipe! I share it here with you, but advise you to wait until I have had time to test it before your proceed. I have high hopes however and will let you know how it tastes shortly. I figure worst case I can always order the manufactured stuff. Following is the recipe attributed to Alton Brown:

Ingredients

• 20 ounces fresh blueberries, approximately 4 cups, rinsed and drained
• 2 cups water
• 7 ounces sugar
• 1 lime, juiced
• Carbonated water

Directions

Place the blueberries and the water into a medium saucepan, set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and pour the mixture into a colander lined with cheesecloth that is set in a large bowl. Allow to cool for 15 minutes. Gather up the edges of the cheesecloth and squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible. Discard the skin and pulp. Return the blueberry juice to the saucepan along with the sugar and lime juice. Place over medium high heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to a heatproof glass container and place in the refrigerator, uncovered, until completely cooled.

To Serve: Combine 1/4 cup of the liquid with 8-ounces of carbonated water and serve over ice.

mercedes sosa

Mercedes Sosa died today at the age of 74. Mercedes was an Argentine singer with a beautiful contralto voice. She was very charismatic and sang many songs that championed social justice in the face of government repression in her home land. At one point, she was banned from Argentina's radio and television stations for her political views. She fled to exile to Europe for several years during that period, unable to earn a living. She eventually returned when the dictatorship collapsed to find a loyal following and dramatically increased popularity. She went on to win numerous Latin Grammy Awards. Mercedes performed in the United States several times and received a 10-minute standing ovation at Carnegie Hall. According to Joan Baez, she was so moved by Mercedes Sosa's voice at a performance that she (Joan) fell to her knees to kiss Mercedes' feet. One of my favorite songs is "Unicornia." I played a CD of a collection of some her favorites from the past 20 years today in her honor. If you have the opportunity, I hope you will give her a listen sometime.