I am developing a kitchen knife buying problem.

About to be closing out my final Alaska to Seattle drive. Gonna be moving a bunch of shit into the new house tomorrow. Gotta bunch of potential recording stuff lined up as well, gonna really try to make a substantial bit of income out of that deal in addition to my actual job. Also, Alex will be down here the 27th.

I will have to share pictures of our abode soon, it is a very, very sweet little setup for a bunch of weird musician kids.

That sounds awesome Cam.

Give me your life.

Looks like I'm going to Amsterdam for my birthday in November this year then when I get home I'm going to see Mastodon in Birmingham and getting exceptionally fucked up. Probably going to see Jamie T live in dam as well, and maybe Slash.

Just acquired meself the Bogner Uberschall preamp pedal thanks to MF's Stupid Deal Of The Day. For what they're asking, it's flippable if I hate the thing- which is doubtful. From clips, it actually seems quite versatile for lower and mid-gain sounds and what the EQ can do.

Just had a 30 mile road ride on the back of an absolutely searing hangover. I'm not sure how I survived but it made me feel so much better and I somehow got my fastest ever average speed. Proof that alcohol makes you strong like bear.

Well, from a nutritional standpoint, alcohol is basically just sugar, so there's some validity to that. And beer, if that's yer beverage, is liquid bread...

I've taken a page from our Mr. Chris and picked up a suit at H&M that fits surprisingly well for stupidly cheap. Second thoroughly decent new suit I've acquired in as many days for less than I paid for a distortion pedal.

Speaking of gear, I snagged a Duncan Custom 5 for the bridge of my black Strat along with the suit. Though not from H&M, obviously. I've realized I have one use for a Strat bridge single: faking Tele clean tones when I'm not playing a Tele. So the thing basically never gets used, where if I had a decent rock riffing 'bucker in there, it would be played all the damn time. So, Custom 5 it is.

When I was in high school I got ripped on rum and ran all night. My buddies were all on bikes and I just ran with them. It was the night of the huge blackout, in '05. I'm not a fit person, but booze power gave me strength.

Any day where I get to say "arse" in an academic paper can't be all bad.

My fellowship application is submitted
5 years of funding to do my own independent research if I'm successful!

That is badass, good sir. May you be successful in your sciencing endeavors.

This would be a postdoctoral phellowship, and you've completed your Ph.D.? I should probably remember this, but I don't.

Went out with a load of paramedic students last night. They're a fun and incredibly odd bunch I became IV needle practice for some of them at like 4am when everyone was hammered, in hindsight it was a terrible idea haha, my arm is bruised to fuck at the minute.

It's slightly different in the UK to the US. After a PhD in the UK you'd normally work as postdoctoral research associate (PDRA) which is basically cheap intellectual labour attached to a specific project i.e. the principle investigator (PI) of the grant will request funds for so many PDRAs to get the work done. Basically academic heavy lifting at the data/research level for the PI who is busy coordinating the work at higher levels. A fellow in UK academia is someone who sits in between being a PI and a PDRA in so much that they are the PI of their own work (and get paid a good chunk more than PDRA ) and they are responsible (and accountable ) for the proposed deliverables materialising at the end of the project but they wont have any PDRAs to do the work for them so they have to get their hands dirty. It's kind of a trial by fire to see if you're cut out to be a higher level academic as it involves a lot more research vision and management skills than being a PDRA. I might get to co-supervise a PhD student with my current boss if it come off which will be pretty awesome. I got my PhD in 2008 and I have worked here for 10 years as of about a week ago. Ye gods I am old

Innerestin'. I have friends here in The States who hold Ph.D.s in the sciences, but I can't speak for the organizational structure of their postdoc research work. I gather "fellow" is somewhat more exalted in the UK, where here it's more equivalent to your PDRA? Would I be correct in saying across the pond higher academia is more research-based (not to mention hella better funded) and generally does not come with attached teaching positions like it does stateside? Now, for the sciences, this is probably preferable as there's a good many who could give a damn about teaching undergrads and foist that off to grad student TAs anyhow. They'd rather just do their research and can't be arsed. There's also a glut of Ph.D.s in chemistry and biology here, with tenure-track positions very thin on the ground.

Now, this is all very different from my field of study where it's assumed anyone with a graduate degree is going to teach- why the hell else would you get a graduate degree in history if you weren't? -and I know at least two people who got tenure-track positions while ABD, which would never happen in the sciences, like, ever.

And yes, you are an ancient bastage, having scienced in the same location for a decade now.

Just scored me a Sansamp VT Bass DI off the 'bay. I suppose my dirtguitar and dirtbass preamp needs are covered, now.

Start a new job on Monday, this is my last day at the present job. Kind of a rough move, I've been here since you guys have known me.

That is crazy, T, i didna know you were switching? What's the new job going to be? Same deal, tech/network stuff?

Yeah network admin/engineer. I was the big fish in a big bowl at the other place but looks like they are falling on hard times. No raises in 6 years... That is rough. My commute there was and hour each way at least. The new place I will be the only IT guy there and commute will be about 15-20 minutes. So much better, but I don't know if they can keep me that busy. I need to be busy. I will still work part time as needed at the old place and they are devastated I am leaving and are not hiring another guy hoping I hate the new place and will come back.

Problem is I am going broke. No raise in years and actually 2 years ago we have a 6% pay cut to help stay afloat so that has not helped. Then I switched insurance to have a high deductible which would have been fine except I ended up in the hospital with the triple fracture. Completely fucked myself this year.


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Yarr, that is some kind of bullshit. But so, for sure, is not getting a raise in that long. Fractures and shit happen when you are a ninja, they should have known this and paid you more to cover such potential ninja-related issues. Unless they don't know you are a ninja? I guess keeping quiet about such things is a good idea, you know, just in case you need at some point to assassinate someone. "Tor? no, he is just a mild mannered, polite sysadmin! Wouldn't harm a fly, i am sure of it!"

Yeah I keep quiet about the ninja thing, but I think they were suspecting. They weren't buying the ninja mask was prescription glasses. I of course would have had to kill them if I was sure they knew.


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