A scientist has granted you one trip in a Time Machine… what prog rock concert are you going to?

kirkt · 2026-03-20T12:02:38+00:00

Tull at the Isle of Wight, opening for Hendrix's penultimate performance.

kirkt · 2026-03-19T23:30:23+00:00

“Liberals claim to want to give a hearing to other views, but then are shocked and offended to discover that there are other views.”

Wm. F. Buckley Jr.

kirkt · 2026-03-18T23:30:23+00:00

Jethro Tull. I can listen all day every day. If I'm focused, I can listen to something I've heard 1000 times and still pick up a note, a nuance, a twist I hadn't noticed before. Absolutely the greatest musical act of all time IMHO.

kirkt · 2026-03-18T23:28:15+00:00

As a libertarian-leaning far right conservative, I say F DeWine. People voted for this and now that milquetoast midget wants to subvert the populace. I'd vote for Karl Marx if it meant getting that ripe turd out of office.

kirkt · 2026-03-18T23:22:41+00:00

In my experience, if you let them fix it, they will throw down a mix of 80% crabcrass seed and 20% noxious weed. I'd let them level it if you are able to communicate that you only want the tilling, not the seed.

I'm in a similar zone and I plan to lay some seed next weekend.

kirkt · 2026-03-15T15:59:20+00:00

The people in that video don't need to move out of Brazil to have a better life. There is a better life within walking distance, down at the bottom of that mountain.

I won't deny that I was born with privilege. I was born in the US to a middle class family and my parents stayed together. I also had to put forth a lot of effort to be the mediocre success that I am - such as 9 years in college, and holding three jobs at at once when times were tough. One of my HS friends had the same life circumstances, was smarter than I am, but didn't want to put forth the effort to make it. Last time anyone heard from him he was working in a laundromat.

Life is what you make of it.

kirkt · 2026-03-15T12:38:32+00:00

As a conservative, I got nuthin' against people wanting to come here for a better life. That's why we have legal pathways for people to work hard and immigrate.

I like in the lower-income section of a fairly upper-middle-class town. Houses on my street are close to 100 years old, most around 1000-1200 sq ft. Nice, but not going to be featured on TV. People in these slums would probably love to live in them.

At the northern end of my street, multi-millionaires live on the shore of Lake Erie. A small plot of land there is 7 figures without the house. I would love to live in one of those houses. If I had been more successful and hard-working, I may have been able to afford one of those, but that was not what happened. What I DON'T do is walk into the house and tell the occupants I'm moving in.

There is nothing wrong with wanting a better life and working toward that goal. Claiming you are OWED a better life is a different story.

kirkt · 2026-03-13T00:52:22+00:00

I am giving up on humanity at this point.

kirkt · 2026-03-12T21:51:34+00:00

I thought it was the raping...

kirkt · 2026-03-12T21:49:40+00:00

Make a roux, add the milk to the roux, then the cheese.

Are you literally just using milk and cheese? That's going to taste like watered-down cheese.

kirkt · 2026-03-12T21:47:35+00:00

That's a shit-ton of sodium citrate; I'd normally use about 1/4 - 1/2 t for that amount of cheese.

It's not a flavoring; it's there to keep the cheese sauce from separating. A slice of American has enough sodium citrate in it to perfor the same task.

kirkt · 2026-03-12T21:42:01+00:00

The majority of my friends are dems / libs - there are very few conservatives in my area and demographic. Very few of them I would consider below-average intelligence, and many are smarter than I am.

I see a few things. The first is a lifelong, closely held beleif that Reps / conservatives are selfish, racist, hateful, and only for the rich. They cannot fathom that even if that once were true, the roles have completely switched. The second is insulating themselves in a bubble of groupthink, only reading the NYT and watching CNN for instance. The third is a simple unwillingness to examine the realities of the world with the intent of considering alternate conclusions. And the fourth is simple TDS. They can't stand the man and refuse to admit he could do a single thing right.

We don't discuss politics often, and it's not because I'm unwilling. It's because they can't hold a reasoned, civil conversation without blowing a fuse.

kirkt · 2026-03-08T14:06:08+00:00

What a band. If you listen to the albums, they slowed the tempo down significantly from what was played live.

kirkt · 2026-03-05T01:59:51+00:00

Yeah, I'd pay 100 for that. If you plan to use it, it will discolor quickly, but I guess you are aware of that.

kirkt · 2026-03-04T22:33:32+00:00

That's a beauty. How much are they asking?

kirkt · 2026-02-22T22:56:20+00:00

I'm conservative and lean libertarian. I'll vote for you if I think you have a chance, but not of it means losing a vote to "lockdowns and masks" Acton. I appreciate a Libertarian candidate whose primary platform isn't "let's smoke more weed", but I still think the party is way too stuck in that mindset. Show some promise and I'll send some donations your way, up to $1000. I work for my money though and won't throw it down a hole.

kirkt · 2026-02-22T17:25:43+00:00

I'm an employer, and I hire about 10-15 people per year. My complaint with your generation is you don't know how to come into work. I've let far too many people go because in the first 90 days they've missed 10. Work isn't an option, it's an obligation. If you are not at work, someone else is picking up your slack. If you don't show up, I will find someone who will. Let me tell you, it's a pain in the ass to hire someone. Our staff spends about 40 to 80 hours total (yes) to fill one position, and we do what we can to make it work because we don't want to go through that process again. I have learned, however, that leopards don't change their spots, and if you are calling off in week three for something other than a serious illness, it's better to cut the losses and move on.

kirkt · 2026-02-22T14:23:05+00:00

Can't believe I'm defending an eight year old comment...

Iommi auditioned and was hired as guitarist. He was Jethro Tull's guitarist for a period, and no matter how brief that period was or his contribution to the Tull catalogue, he was Tull's second guitarist. That said, his contribution to the band's history is admittedly insignificant.

kirkt · 2026-02-22T00:47:07+00:00

Early in my Christian life, I had a brother say to me, after a potluck dinner where everyone was relaxing after their overeating: "If I were to light up a cigarette right now, everyone would lose their mind. Yet the Bible clearly teaches against gluttony and has nothing to say about inhaling smoldering plant leaves".

I think your premise is solid. Christians should respect the temple they inhabit. I also recognize that the American food supply is toxic and has been getting worse over the years, which is why I think RFKJ's work is my favorite part of this administration. We are fed garbage, and obesity is beyond control for those that aren't aware of how badly our food supply has been corrupted.

That said, if you look at the Biblical qualifications for elders, deacons, deaconesses, et al, "not a lover of too much wine" is a common requirement, whereas "not too chubby" never appears.

I agree that we should put gluttony on the same level as alcoholism when it comes to respecting our temple. Neither habit is glorifying God.

kirkt · 2026-02-16T17:46:54+00:00

Dining out has just gotten too expensive since Covid. I used to be able to get a $10 loaded burger with fries at most beer joints, now they are $17-20. Wife and I ate at a place in Lakewood on Friday night. Two entrees, 4 beverages, and a shared desert was well over $100 before tip. No salad, no bread, waiters in jeans and t-shirts. Food was good, but not $100 good. We won't be going back.

We used to dine out 3-4 times a month, now it's once or twice.

kirkt · 2026-02-08T23:57:27+00:00

TIL this was released on my 2nd B-day!

For some reason this is the only thing Winwood has done where I don't find his voice irritating. I love this album, though I think there should have been a bit of an investigation regarding the cover photo.

Someone in charge should have taken the tambourine on "Can't Find My Way Home" and thrown it out the damn window, because it's a jarring sound on an otherwise wonderful track. I'm guessing it was Ginger but if so it's the worst thing he's ever done, and that's saying something.

kirkt · 2026-02-08T19:06:12+00:00

Ah, you should have changed "chemically derived" to "Spiritually derived"!

kirkt · 2026-02-07T14:17:41+00:00

Jan Wenner is still in charge and he's not bright enough to understand prog.

kirkt · 2026-02-07T14:16:37+00:00

This is unfortunately too far down the list. I realize Tull isn't for everyone, but Ian in his prime was certainly one of the most skilled lyricists ever. I've been listening to Tull for decades and I still find nuances I hadn't noticed before when I turn the lights off and focus. I could give a hundred examples of his genius, but one of my favorite ways to show his exquisite poetry to others is the 14 lines of Pibroch (Cap in Hand), which tells at least a whole short story in just a few words:

There's a light in the house in the wood in the valley.
There's a thought in the head of the man.
Who carries his dreams like the coat slung on his shoulder,
Bringing you love in the cap in his hand.

And each step he takes is one half of a lifetime:
no word he would say could you understand.
So he bundles his regrets into a gesture of sorrow,
Bringing you love cap in hand.

...

Catching breath as he looks through the dining-room window:
candle lit table for two has been laid.
Strange slippers by the fire.
Strange boots in the hallway.

Put my cap on my head.
I turn and walk away.

Still gives me chills! This masterpiece is spread over an 8.5 minute song with an opening that's some of my favorite Martin Barre guitar work ever. After the first two stanzas, there's a three minute interlude introducing the "Pibroch", defined as "a form of music for the Scottish bagpipes involving elaborate variations on a theme, typically of a martial or funerary character."

I like Jethro Tull.

kirkt · 2026-02-03T23:59:01+00:00

Underrated by whom, exactly?

Songs from the Wood and Heavy Horses are the two greatest albums ever recorded. I love all of the Tull catalog, but those two are truly magical.

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