Furthermore, I’m taking that break from music I’ve been pondering. Can’t say how long, but a few weeks anyway. I did a couple calculations on how much I’ve made per hour over my lifetime with music, and you don’t want to know. While out west it was mildly respectable, in Florida it is embarrassing. Since May 2009, I’ve spent more time practicing than performing. I’ve also re-evaluated what is selling on the local circuit. My conclusion is that I must become a solo artist. I’ve only toyed with the idea, I have not invested anything or developed a strategy. My guitar playing is weak, so it would mean backing tracks. I won’t be a star, just a hack musician, since I doubt I’ll ever be able to shine on any instrument except electric bass. I’ll keep looking for a duo situation. I predict at least another year of practice after I get back into the life. For now, I need that break. Any idea of a recording device is out of the picture for now.
You know I’ve said it before, that the Broward bus system is okay to ride unless you need to go somewhere or be on time. Except for the coastline, there is very little to see in Florida. The bus, the nice clean bus, goes along the main routes and is near most schools and museums. So today, I finally went to Ft. Lauderdale (on the scooter) and got my discount bus pass. It’s 85 cents one way, or $3 for an all day pass.
Couple this with last month’s news of the $10.65 Tri-Rail (commuter train) increase, and I may just take the trouble to learn how to use the fold-down bus bike rack after all. For now, I’ve always been curious about Mizner Park where the Route 1 line turns around. Maybe tomorrow if it isn’t raining. Check back to see how I, er, fare. Don’t hit me.
Trivia. The average American perceives the Internet to be worth $3,000 per year, but actually spends less than $500 on it including access fees. I pay $36 per year, all for access (included in my rent) and that is all they get. I spend $0 on e-commerce. I also don’t care for the fact that the people watching what you buy are sneaky and secretive, and don’t want you to know what they are looking for or why. They don’t even want you to know they are doing it. One has to be pretty naive not to suspect the motives of such operators.
You know who else I’ve become suspicious of? Remember that I have been near (but not in) the database development industry since the early 1980s. That means I not only recognize the change in behavior, I can even gauge the progress by how aggressive they get over fleshing out their records. Mark my words, especially those people who ignored my warnings about identity theft way back in 1995, the US Postal Service is up to no good.
Call me what you want, but when a business suddenly begins to deny you service if you don’t give them personal information, your privacy is going down the tubes. Ker-floosh. I have never seen a database that was not abused, so do get suspicious when people who got by knowing your age suddenly demand to know your birth date.
Did I say I can gauge the progress? Yes, techies and newbies read on. Except for the simplest, few databases are designed right the first time. When it comes time to populate the records, inconsistencies rear up. Administration begins to calve new fields and develop an ornery preference for fixed formats. That’s why they ask for your phone number first, not your address. I guarantee you a mature database is being abused when they absolutely need to know whether you live on 5th or on Fifth.
