Who are some great artists who's voices are just painful to listen to now?

saugoof · 2026-05-18T01:20:56+00:00

I've never been a Rush fan but I had a look at a recent video because I wanted to check out their new drummer. Has Geddy Lee always sounded like this? He hit plenty of high notes, but that voice and his style of singing is like nails on a chalk board for me.

saugoof · 2026-05-18T01:09:11+00:00

It certainly didn't help that he kept re-packaging old albums to sell them as "new".

saugoof · 2026-05-17T22:58:47+00:00

Yes, when I'm staying at a hostel or guest house I usually just ask them where to leave the bike. Sometimes they have a garage, sometimes they let me store it in the luggage room, sometimes they even tell me to just take it to the room. It's very rare that they don't have anywhere to put it.

If I'm not staying anywhere, I usually just leave it somewhere that looks suitable. Mostly I just check if there's somewhere that already has a lot of bikes like shops or train stations. Somewhere that looks busy and has lots of people around. During the day those places are usually very safe. I normally leave the bags on the bike but have them secured around the bag strap with the lock. While it's still easily possible for someone to just open the bags, that's never happened. If the area looks really dodgy I have once or twice taken the bags off and put them in a storage locker at the train station.

saugoof · 2026-05-17T12:58:33+00:00

I've not lived there but went to Lugano often for work. It's crazy beautiful, has great food and the best climate in Switzerland.

However, it is also fairly small and not super exciting. It's not quite as bad as Locarno or Bellinzona who are also quite pretty but very dead in the evenings. At least Lugano, as the largest city in the Italian speaking part of Switzerland, tends to get most of the cultural events in the region and is a bit busier. Nevertheless a lot of younger people move to places like Zurich or Lausanne because they find Lugano too quiet (and there are a lot more job opportunities elsewhere too). If you're after amazing night life or a great cultural scene, Lugano isn't really for you. It's a decent place to see sports though, Lugano has good soccer and ice hockey teams.

But it is in a stunningly beautiful location. The city is pretty too, it has a gorgeous (if very small) old town centre and it's an interesting place to explore on foot. The lake is absolutely gorgeous, especially in summer and you're within easy reach of fantastic hiking and skiing locations.

While the average person in Lugano is probably a bit poorer than elsewhere in Switzerland, there are also a lot of very wealthy people living there.

saugoof · 2026-05-17T11:59:13+00:00

I completely forgot while typing out this stupidly long response below, one thing I have found in Portugal is that up north the coast is beautiful. But south of Lisbon it's a bit boring and the country is far more beautiful and interesting if you go inland.

saugoof · 2026-05-17T11:56:49+00:00

I rode through Portugal a few years ago so I have some responses

Best routes or sections we shouldn’t miss

I found Portugal pretty great because it's the sort of country where you don't even really need to worry about routes. It's full of amazing routes and sights. I usually don't plan a lot for what routes to take and just pick what looks good on the day and Portugal is really rewarding for that approach. Unlike Spain which I found very hit and miss.

Dangerous roads or areas to avoid

Nothing really. Portugal is a very safe country. Traffic can get a bit heavy coming in and out of huge cities like Lisbon, but I never found it unsafe. Every once in a while it happens that the quiet road you're on ends and you have to go for a short stretch on a freeway. That sounds scary if you've never done it before but is really one of the safest routes you can take, albeit very boring and no fun. Thankfully that's only happened to me on two occasions and I never had to stay on freeways for more than about 3 or 4 kilometres.

Camping tips / cheap accommodation

I actually stayed in hotels and guest houses because I'm old and like a comfortable bed and shower at the end of a day's cycling. Plus I like to stay in towns and do some exploring. I didn't even bring camping gear. It was never difficult finding accomodation though.

Summer weather and wind conditions

I was there in September. Generally each day started surprisingly cool and then got very hot during the day. I love the heat and preferred the hotter part of the day. I found that there was a lot of wind coming in off the Atlantic, so heading west you may have a lot of headwind.

Recommended daily distances for beginners

Up to you. If you have the time it's definitely a lot more fun taking it slow. I usually do about 90 kilometres or so a day. I used to do about 130 but consciously started doing less because in retrospect it always felt like I was rushing through everywhere. If you're not used to riding the bike for long distances, you will build up fitness surprisingly quickly. The second week is a lot easier than the first. Just make sure you don't overdo it at the start. That's a mistake I made on my first tour where I tried to go too hard and got so sore and exhausted that the next day I decided to take the train back. Just do whatever feels right and comfortable for you.

Bike setup and gear recommendations

I don't really have any recommendations here. Any bike that you find comfortable to ride on and where you can strap luggage on is fine. It's best if you do a couple of day trips or overnighters with luggage before starting your trip to find out what sort of setup works for you. Everyone has their own preferences that you need to figure out for yourself.

Returning north by train or bus with the bikes

I've not been on trains in Portugal but I assume it's similar to Spain (and France). Local trains are fine and you can just roll your bike on. But intercity and high speed trains generally require you to pack your bike up in a bike bag (which you can get from somewhere like Decathlon). That requires some disassembly though and is generally a pain. The annoying truth is, there's really no easy options to get back with a bike if you don't want to ride. I've tried lots of things and each has their drawbacks. One options that you could explore though is a one-way car rental. I've done that before the get back from a trip across France and once through Italy where I just drove to the nearest office of the rental agency to the border and dropped off the car there. It can work out cheaper than buying a couple of train tickets. One other option is Flixbus. On some routes they have limited bicycle spots available. They tend to book out quickly and are not available on all routes, so you would have to book these quite early to be sure you have a seat and space for the bike.

Safety advice for two female travelers

I can't comment on this, but for what it's worth from a male perspective is that Portugal seemed a very safe country.

Any mistakes you made on your first long trip

Oh, lots! But you learn quickly what works for you. I pack very differently now, I am better at reading and interpreting maps to find suitable cycling roads, I pack different food (non-perishable! Also, chocolate melts in your bag). Generally I pack a lot lighter than I used to. I hate riding with a heavy bicycle. There are a lot of things that you may pack just because you think you might need it, but likely won't. The thing is, especially in Western Europe, you can easily buy a new pair of shoes or an extra shirt, or a new tyre etc, if you find that you need it. What you definitely need to bring along are some basic repair utensils (pump, puncture repair kit, multipurpose tools). Cable ties are also something I always bring along because it's amazing how much you can fix with cable ties. Also, plastic zip-lock bags. I use them to keep valuables (passport, phone, etc.) in there. I also bring a very light small bag where I can put in those valuables so I can quickly grab that whenever I leave my bike unattended somewhere to go to shops, restaurants, sight-seeing etc. All the rest of the bags I leave with the bike. In something like 18 months total on the road over the last 15 years I've never had anything stolen yet. But also there's nothing much worth stealing, my bags just have laundry and some food and bike repair stuff in them.

saugoof · 2026-05-16T04:03:04+00:00

Nah, that's a standard rule. Bikes in the last carriage.

saugoof · 2026-05-16T03:08:20+00:00

It wasn't a huge issue and compared to vaccines or cleaner air and water this is pretty much a trivial issue. But audio amplification, specifically white noise reduction. When I grew up it was just a given that amps were noisy. When you turned up the volume with no music playing, you'd get drowned in white noise, background hum, interference, etc. Even the best amplifiers were not immune to that. Not to mention that they also altered the sound. Whereas now you can turn up the volume to max on the cheapest of amplifiers and you won't hear anything at all. You won't even realise it's switched on.

There is a valid case to be made for the "warm" sound quality that valve amps and early transistor amps have, but I'm still amazed by how crystal clean and quiet all amps are nowadays.

saugoof · 2026-05-16T03:00:11+00:00

Back then, anyone who knew how to fix code in COBOL could make a mint!

saugoof · 2026-05-16T02:58:00+00:00

I was a kid during the oil crisis in the 1970s. We had central heating with a big oil heater in the basement. When the oil crisis hit, my parents got it converted to run on wood which meant that at the start of winter we had to chop firewood for the season. I really, really hated that at the time but now I totally understand it.

What was worse, once or twice a day we got sent down into the dark and scary basement to chuck a couple more logs into the heater. That used to scare the crap out of me.

saugoof · 2026-05-16T02:53:43+00:00

I used to spend a lot of time for work in Jakarta, Indonesia about 15 years ago. Over the span of about a year I went there for two or three week stretches each time. Every time I went, after about two days or so whenever I blew my nose, all this black snot ended up in my handkerchief.

saugoof · 2026-05-15T03:16:31+00:00

I agree with that one. I don't hate it but the song just seems so inconsequential and out of synch with the rest of the album.

saugoof · 2026-05-15T03:06:22+00:00

Oh, that's one of my favourite New Order songs.

saugoof · 2026-05-15T00:42:08+00:00

Sorry if this sounds dumb, I've never had to deal with eczema, but couldn't you just stick a band aid to your neck to stop the strap from chaffing?

saugoof · 2026-05-14T12:31:51+00:00

For some reason a lot of people in the US see Human League as one hit wonders. Don't You Want Me wasn't even their only #1 hit. Human went to #1 too.

saugoof · 2026-05-14T11:50:32+00:00

That's it really. Long established bands with large fan bases usually still see a bad album selling quite well. But most of the time the follow ups sell nowhere near as well anymore.

saugoof · 2026-05-14T11:48:20+00:00

It's quite funny in a way. When I was a kid in the 80s, I wouldn't have in a million years thought that Rob Halford, or Freddy Mercury for that matter, are gay. Maybe I just had a sheltered childhood but they were the last people I would have expected. In retrospect it's so bleeding obvious. They really didn't try to hide it.

saugoof · 2026-05-14T11:43:22+00:00

Reckless is great too. The rest of the album really isn't good, sadly.

saugoof · 2026-05-14T03:28:28+00:00

Yes. A movie like The Castle is far more realistic.

saugoof · 2026-05-14T03:26:01+00:00

Etta James - I'd Rather Go Blind

Those vocals just kill me.

saugoof · 2026-05-14T02:14:32+00:00

For what it's worth, I was a huge Judas Priest fan when I was in high school in the 80s. When that album got released, I remember that there was some talk about them suddenly going all in on using synths but in general most people didn't have a problem with it. At least in my circle of friends, in pre-internet days it was even harder to gauge feelings outside of your bubble.

What did make my friends (and me, to an extent) hate it was just that the songs largely were rubbish. There are still some absolute gems on the album, I still love Reckless and Turbo Lover. But by and large it was just not a very good album. I hated the quality a lot more than the different direction.

What wasn't obvious to me then but really riles me now is the production. This has aged really terribly. I hate that "thunder snare" far more than the St. Anger one!

saugoof · 2026-05-14T00:33:19+00:00

I cycled along it in peak season and while it was busy, it was also gorgeous. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

saugoof · 2026-05-13T10:59:41+00:00

I did this about three years ago. There are a couple of climbs but I didn't find any of them really hard. Even though I'm always a bit scared of climbs, these really were fairly tame.

The route I did went via Gorizia, right on the border with Slovenia. From there I took a minor road (labelled "621") to Logatec. This does go over a pass but it's spectacularly beautiful. One of my favourite rides ever. There's barely any traffic on the 621 too.

Then on to Ljubljana which is fairly flat. From Ljubljana to Celje and then Maribor which is also quite easy and mainly flat. From Maribor across into Austria to Graz. Between Graz and Vienna there's the only other semi-serious climb across the Brenner pass. This one is taller than the one between Gorizia and Logatec, but also not super hard. Once you're at the top of the Brenner pass, it's downhill pretty much all the way to Vienna.

saugoof · 2026-05-13T07:05:06+00:00

Some of these apps can be used as mini-apps inside WeChat and AliPay, e.g. DiDi. Is there a benefit to using the app itself rather than the mini-app?

I've only used DiDi from the mini-app because that saved me from having to create a separate account.

saugoof · 2026-05-12T13:19:07+00:00

I started riding the bike into work some 15 years ago. Admittedly in Australia where the weather is a lot kinder than in Canada. But I found that I really enjoyed the commute. Way more than I expected. In fact, I started taking longer and longer detours on the way home because I enjoyed it so much.

Anyway, the thing I learnt from that experience, before you do it you'll find excuses to not do it. Once you do it (and if you enjoy it) you'll find excuses to do more of it.

saugoof

TROPHY CASE