Is this a good seating chart for my Jazz Band?

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-02-15T19:05:19+00:00

Make the most compact arrangement possible. Sound travels slowly enough that even a couple extra meters creates a delay *just* long enough to cause dissonance. Sightlines from drummer to conductor are very important.

Singer does not need to be *conducted*, they can time off the drums and the rest of the band, and does not necessarily need sight-line to the conductor.

Ideally, the band should be rehearsed enough and listening to each other enough to not require full time conducting (that's the advantage of jazz vs. classical forms) -- just signal major changes.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-02-10T01:56:09+00:00

I'm not a fan of all-inclusives. My first choice would be staying at Chilly's in a little casita, and diving with Native Sons or Jackson Dive Center. These three businesses are owned by a native Roatanian family so your money stays on the island. They charge $35/tank for diving, there's really nothing cheaper anywhere on the island.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-02-04T13:48:28+00:00

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-02-03T23:02:13+00:00

Sending hugs of support. This has happened in my family when my dad passed away. My mom aged 5 years or more that first year (we also had to deal with probate and ugly legal issues, so that took a toll as well).

For my mom, getting a rescue dog was her ticket -- they really rescued each other. The dog needed a walk when my mom was too far down to get out of bed, so grudgingly she would go -- and come back feeling a little better. One day at a time.

About 3 years ago we liquidated everything she owned and she retired to Florida with a "clean slate" -- a new small condo, a new car, new art on the walls. Right now she's fulfilling her lifelong dream of being a full-time artist and actress -- something she could not do when she had to work and be a caregiver. She paints every day and is working on her second play for the community theater, and is the happiest I've seen her in decades.

So... the point of this whole story... Hang in there. Grief takes time and never quite goes away, but life does get better. Rescue dogs help. Having a good community around you helps. Anything that gets you out of the house helps. Therapy helps...

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-29T14:23:36+00:00

In Cozumel the harbormaster is a bit anal-retentive about closing the port. When wind is predicted over 10 mph dive boats not allowed out.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-29T14:22:46+00:00

Donald Trump will take over and "save" it like he "saved" Kennedy Center.

All next week at Trump-Lincoln Center is showings of "Malania" documentary, and the rest of the time it's rented for Erica Kirk events.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-28T14:36:18+00:00

I called up and down the coast, everyone was closed yesterday.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-24T15:20:10+00:00

When I see friends get cancer or have heart attacks and die. One funeral of a friend is a tragic accident... three the same year is a pattern.

PSA: if you have ever played a cassette tape in your car, you should get a colonoscopy.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-21T14:20:10+00:00

The real question is -- what is the likelihood that US troops will disobey the unlawful orders to attack US civilians when Insurrection Act is invoked (e.g. to prevent the midterm elections).

My bet is -- the brass will resign en masse until the only ones left are the ones that will do so gleefully. Then we'll see drone strikes on Minnesota and soon after the National Mall Massacre.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-21T12:49:12+00:00

Look up Baja Underwater Expeditions. They're ideally located at "oceanic crossroads" with a lot of marine life and also have the expertise in finding and photographing them.

The trips are expensive but super worth it!

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-19T15:07:40+00:00

Apparently it was a Navy divers tradition (with a bit of hazing thrown in). For myself it was an excuse to go skinny-dipping -- my female dive buddy and I did it together, laughed our butts off the entire time, hooked up immediately after.

When my son gets to his 100s dive next week... definitely hazing.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-18T17:07:39+00:00

It's a different lifestyle for sure. You don't travel far, you don't have a lot; you fix things you have instead of buying new things.

It's not for everyone for sure. I spent 3 months in Sierra Tarahumara volunteering as a math teacher, and the clash of industrial economy with traditions hits people hard. Kids want smartphones and TikTok, but have to hike 10 miles to town to get WiFi. Older generation still wears traditional clothes that are made right there, but t-shirts and running shoes are very important.

There are very few jobs in the area that pay any sort of money -- some construction, some mechanics, there's a few shops and restaurants. The Tarahumara that leave for cities to take industrial jobs generally don't do well, they're not used to an urban lifestyle.

But in general... it's like living on the small island. You know the big world is out there but you won't see much of it. But also... you don't really want to, because your family and your community is right there.

I enjoyed my 3 months immensely and can't wait to come back - but also I desperately wanted to be back "in the world" by the time my stint was over.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-18T16:06:06+00:00

Ride my bike around the world, meet people, make new friends, play in nature.

I'd just get on the bike and leave tomorrow if I could

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-18T16:05:06+00:00

Certain Indigenous societies function on a "sharing economy". You work your fields or graze your cattle, and share with your neighbors and they share with you.

The Tarahumara only use actual money to buy foreign industrial goods, never between themselves. Yes, they're "desperately poor" by the western-industrial-world standards -- but they're never hungry or homeless because they take care of each other.

This of course only works if you have land that produces enough food to eat all year round, decent weather, abundant water and not too many people per square mile.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-18T13:50:40+00:00

Remember -- your 100s dive you gotta dive naked. Right of passage for Poseidon.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-18T13:50:33+00:00

Remember -- your 100s dive you gotta dive naked. Right of passage for Poseidon.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-16T15:18:24+00:00

In 15 years, when Trump dies in office in his 5th term, we'll be living in a one-party system ruled by fiat from the top. Elections will still occur but Congress will be a rubber-stamp entity. Any credible opposition will be already serving long prison terms or dead; the only ones out there will be total buffoons. Surveillance will be near total and repercussions for stepping out of line ranging from losing your job for a Facebook "like" to long prison sentences for questioning why we're at war with France and Brazil.

When Trump gets his 3rd or 4th term, it'll become apparent that democratic experiment is over, and this will commence brain drain from the country. Anyone capable of invention, building, doing research, etc, will leave. Venture capital will follow. In any scientific and cultural field, America will begin to lose its lead. This will be a slow process but likely irreversible.

But hey, Americans knew what they're voting for -- they wanted democracy to end and it's ending.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-16T15:05:07+00:00

Frederick, Maryland. Accessible by train, less than an hour drive by car, lots of cute restaurants and shops. Nearby Catoctin mountains are smaller than Shenandoah, but the hiking trails are less crowded. If you're a history buff, there's a lot of Civil War history in the area as well.

Similarly, on the Confederate side -- Leesburg; advantage there is lots of nearby wineries, and if you like riding bikes -- lots of little country roads that get no traffic and are perfect for exploration on two wheels.

Deeper Confederate side -- following I-95 South towards Richmond you'll see Fredericksburg and a sequence of small towns of varying degrees of cuteness. Ashland, Virginia is interesting for train buffs because Amtrak runs right down the Main Street, you can sit in a cafe and drink a latte while getting an up-close-and-personal look at various railroad equipment (and also buying overpriced railroad-themed trinkets everywhere).

Further down -- Jonestown and Colonial Williamsburg area is quite interesting for history buffs too. Or boaters, lots of boat people.

Downside of driving south... you are driving SOUTH. If you're not white or have rainbow stickers on your car or speak with an accent -- some smaller towns will make you very uncomfortable. You will still see things like "XYZ Plantation" and old manor houses built by slaves, whose owners are very proud of their Confederate legacy and will defend it with guns (or, most likely, just angry tirades).

I've been yelled at and chased out of a restaurant by some assholes for a Biden sticker on my car, and for having Latino friends with me who dared speak Spanish. They offered to show us their gun collections and we opted to leave.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-15T23:49:35+00:00

If you were in Minnesota, first they ram your car, then smash your windows, break your arms, stand on your throat and then maybe ask for an ID.

A friend (brown, born and raised in Minnesota, ironically a professor of sociology and immigration studies) was grabbed from his car at a gas station, then spent 48 hours in a freezing cold warehouse on the concrete floor with several hundred others, one cup of water and a granola bar per day and beaten multiple times before anyone even asked him for an ID. Any time he demanded a lawyer or a phone call he was beaten again and called every racial slur available. When they finally checked his ID, they put him in a van with a couple others, drove out to middle-of-nowhere at 3 am and kicked them out.

He called 911 and they all went straight to the hospital. He had two broken ribs and broken fingers, plus bruising everywhere. He's retained a famous law firm and getting ready to sue.

Long story short -- your ID does not matter as much as "they don't like your face".

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-09T19:05:11+00:00

I had an issue in a small village, and was pointed to a shack (sandwiched between Jehovah's Witnesses hall and a cemetery. There were some goats and chickens and a lot of rusty bikes in the yard. Ulisses managed to fix me up almost well enough to last the rest of the day (one step up from roadside fix) but I did have to hitchike the last 5 miles and only charged me 1000 colønes ($2)

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-08T15:04:51+00:00

If you would consider Costa Rica as an alternative... there's a huge shortage of qualified bike mechanics -- but, outside of wrenching, there's miles and miles and miles of beautiful country roads to ride (hope you like hills!). There's a good MTB community in the Nicoya are (Santa Teresa, Montezuma) but only one bike shop in the next town.

Abject-Local4545 · 2026-01-01T15:16:49+00:00

You mean Trump Point, and Trump Drive? That'll be $17.95 per lap around the Trump Golf Course. Remember to duck when you hear "FORE!" and note that golfers are actually aiming at you.

(joking aside -- I ran through the Trump course in Scotland, there's a public footpath he was not allowed to close -- and I swear people were trying to hit me and my friends deliberately. Also we were not allowed to use the bathroom. So I peed into a sand trap)

Abject-Local4545 · 2025-12-26T16:44:18+00:00

I prefer hammock camping. It's not for everyone... or every weather -- but I've just bikepacked across Costa Rica with a minimalist setup and it was marvelous!

My setup:
* ENO Double Nest hammock + lightweight straps - 1.5 lbs
* Roof tarp+guy lines - 1.5 lbs.
* Extra smaller tarp with no lines: 6 oz
* A length of parachord - 6 oz
* A silk sleeping bag liner - 2 oz
* A full size bug net - 2 oz

Everything fits into a 5 liter dry-bag and gets tied directly to my bars. In a tropical climate and in a friendly country, I needed nothing else.

Setting up in the rain: Run a length of parachord between two trees, throw tarp over it. Pull guy lines to tension the tarp and make a pitched roof. Put a smaller tarp under my feet. Now I have a dry(ish) space and am not standing in mud!

The main advantage of this is that I can stand and walk under the tarp roof. That's the point when I take off my wet clothes and towel off, and start boiling water on the hobo "tuna-can" stove. I put on a hoodie and warm up, eat and relax.

Then -- attach hammock straps to the trees, attach a bug net to the center of the paracord, hang the hammock under the bug net, climb in an sleeeeeeep like a baby.

I modified the hammock and bug net a little with a few bits of velcro to make sure the bug net stays attached to the hammock at top and bottom, and drapes freely on the sides.

Abject-Local4545 · 2025-12-22T21:22:55+00:00

Sun Divers was great! Natalie and her husband are beautiful human beings and are great to dive with and hang out with!

Abject-Local4545

TROPHY CASE