This is a mockup of the final product (this is a fitting, the panels are not yet attached), but here are the panels on the roof. There will be a protective mesh over the tops. See the strip of rubber to waterproof the toolbox hinge. The caulking, shown here as the white seams, will be painted black on Monday. Starting to look sharp. I found a company selling a fiberglass model similar to my design for $4,000. And it isn’t even solar powered. Those units will wreck your motorcycle battery. And it weighs the same—290 pounds. I’ve decided to install the extra set of brake lights. I got had to drive at night twice on the Colorado trip and I felt it wasn’t as safe as it should be.
While novelty is a good way to attract attention, you must pay attention to the scope and degree. Too much doesn’t impress people. I have always said the new band would make an impressive rhythm section, decidedly like the Atlanta Rhythm Section (the band that plays “Spooky”.) I’m not a fan of big bands and their exponentially greater logistics. I am slow to make decisions in such situations, though it would be wrong to think I said I was indecisive. Nope, never said that.
Which is why I am concerned, if not over-concerned about the new band now becoming a five-piece group. There are very few places to play, particularly now that the cruise lines have out-paced the on-shore lounge operators. I think there are maybe five or six lounges in the entire area, most of which I’ve only driven past. On the other hand, if this band gets in with an established circuit, we would have a great following.
Foremost, the new singer. She hit the jackpot. A band of all-male professionals who can play anything she wants. I assure you, this lady is impressive and has an elegant look to her. That never hurts. She has a strong voice, similar to my ex and stands around five-nine. Stage dynamite if you ask me. She picked up instantly that bands like this are hard to find, meaning a band that has done its homework and has an opening for a singer.
My history in part is that I’ve never played in a five-piece before. My gut feeling is that the larger the band, the less distinctive each player. I concede that this band is different that way because you can instantly hear the decisive contribution of each musician. And now you get three and four part harmonies. It would be five if they’d let me sing, and that might transpire as they all have high voices, where mine is low-mid range.
The newer music itself suits me better because the band formerly chose English rock classics, another brand I never played much. The drummer has done a good job of selecting tunes where the lady, Stephie, fits well by harmonizing, but new tunes are being brought in that, while I never played those either, they suit my style. Man, that was one long sentence. But you know what I mean.
These are punchier, newer music that I call jukebox tunes. Big band showy numbers that, to me at least, stereotype modern “chick” music. My favorite? Raitt’s “Something To Talk About”. If nothing else, these changes make it apparent this type of music is better suited to the band than old Chuck Berry. It creates a huge challenge for me for two reasons. One, jukebox material for me was always listening music, not playing music. Two, a lot of this music has studio bass lines often played by finger-pickers, a style I don’t do. I don’t even like the way it looks.
Personality? Stephie and I definitely don’t clash, if that means anything. We get along more than fine, but bear in mind she really wants into this band. It isn’t quite official yet and she is seeking allies. (And unless someone is a totally obnoxious axxhole, I am very easy to get along with.) Plus, we are mostly alike. Yet one obvious difference must be our backgrounds. I don’t have a voice coach or a spa membership.
I see my rule book says I must tell you this next topic. I trapped another little mouse. Had to, he/she ruined my bag of rice and was fouling my cupboard. I have an aversion to killing mammals of any kind. But this little guy had to go.
ADDENDUM
I’m having second thoughts about driving. It is close to winter and that freak blizzard in the Dakotas shook my confidence. I’m looking at alternatives, if only to see what is affordable. Rule out airplanes except as a last resort. That last time I took a thousand mile trip by train was in the early 80s. And I had a great time except for, if I recall, a severe headache I developed crossing the Rockies. I am not prone to headaches, so they cause me a lot of worry.
Half the train ride was at night, meaning I missed a lot of scenery. All told, I enjoyed that trip. I’ve told before how you see a lot of the country not accessible any other way. And you get the extended view as you are a good ten or twelve feet higher than riding in a car. But keep in mind, there are huge factors that I do not like about tran travel, including the need to show ID. One should be able to buy the ticket and that is enough. True, it is no big deal, but it is a move toward principles I do not agree with.
Speaking of principles, consider this. I do not use Google nor have any Google feeds or alerts set up. Google took over my blog years after it was established, but by then I already suspected Google was up to no good. Thus, I have never given them any information whatsoever, including my personal e-mail. (There is a completely different e-mail set up for use with the blog, one of a selection of e-mails I created anonymously back in the 90’s with no connection to anything else.) Today, I received a message from Google in my personal e-mail. They must necessarily be guessing, but they guessed right.)
The tentacles are spreading.
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