The Electric Bonsai Band

Good gads, I was just on Twitter when Will Wheaton - yes, the kid in Star Trek: The Next Generation, who is a funny and sharp dude - made a comment about becoming his father. That blasted me back to seeing The Electric Bonsai Band - not electric, not a band - in, where? Portland, Oregon? so many years ago, maybe even the 80s. My god he was good. Fast, smart, scary smart, and just as funny as hell.

I am so happy to have found him (Andrew Ratshin) on Napster. Please go, listen. "I am My Dad" is so good - although it is much better live.

Ratshin also played in Uncle Bonsai.

NZ Trying to Avoid Huge Enviro Disaster

New Zealand is bracing for an environmental disaster amid fears that a container ship stranded off the North Island could break up and spill oil into the pristine Bay of Plenty, the environment minister has said. 

Nick Smith told local media on Friday that the accident "has the potential to be New Zealand's most significant maritime pollution disaster in decades". 

[...] 

Officials said the pollution would be far worse if the ship broke up on the Astrolabe Reef, releasing the 1,700 tonnes of heavy fuel oil on board into a marine environment that is home to whales, dolphins, seals and penguins.

Australian Crested Pigeon

We've had s regular vistor (along with the cockatoos) for the last couple weeks. We first got to know him (her?) by the sound of his flight: a buffeting whistle and hum, kind of like a partridge or quail, but louder and tighter.

If startled, this pigeon takes to the air with a characteristic whistling flight, and glides with down turned wings. The whistling sound is produced by the air passing over a modified primary feather on the wing.

Before long we saw him on the veranda, poking around for leftover seeds or whatever else he could find.

Cute fella, huh? It's a Crested Pigeon, native to Australia.

He's been back almost every day since. Very comfortable, will poke around right next to the much larger cockies, let's us walk out and talk to him.

Here he is doing a fluff-up:

I'll try to get some audio of the wing sound:

If startled, this pigeon takes to the air with a characteristic whistling flight, and glides with down turned wings. The whistling sound is produced by the air passing over a modified primary feather on the wing.

You get a little better look at the wonderful wing colors here:

Aussie Wins First Nobel in Physics Since 1915

AN AUSTRALIAN who found that the universe is accelerating and will end with a whimper rather than a bang has won the Nobel prize in physics. Brian Schmidt's research suggests an invisible force known as dark energy is pushing the cosmos ever faster apart.

I see that and I go - An Aussie won the Nobel in physics in 1915? Get out!

* I had to go look. It's actually an interesting story. Not only does William Lawrence Bragg remain the youngest Nobel Laureate in history,  he's the only one to share the prize with his father. (He's also the first Aussie known to have x-rays used on him for surgical purposes.)

Watching My Old Open Mike in Oregon Right Now!

This is too cool. I'm actually looking at the bar in Oregon where I ran an Open Mike for going on ten years. My old buddy Dave Hampton, who took over, is setting up right now, and has it streaming on the web. How freaking cool.

You obviously have to sign up with Veetle, and with Google Chrome (I did, anyway) to do it. It took me abouot two minutes total.

Rick Perry's "Niggerhead" Hunting Camp

Just saw this story:

Paint creek, tex. — In the early years of his political career, Rick Perry began hosting fellow lawmakers, friends and supporters at his family’s secluded West Texas hunting camp, a place known by the name painted in block letters across a large, flat rock standing upright at its gated entrance. 

“Niggerhead,” it read.

Lovely.

That reminded me of when I worked on a purse seiner (fishing boat) in Alaska. Every seiner has a winch drum - a large, hydraulic-powered, rotatable drum (you can see it clearly at 2:19 of the video I linked) - around which you could throw a line to winch something, like the net, into the boat. I was told it was called the "niggerhead." Because you throw a rope around it. (Get it? Get it? Funny, huh?) Pretty sure they're still called that on all or most seiners up there.

Maybe it relates somehow to the source for the name of Perry's camp? Maybe it was a logging or oil term, too? I dont know. Just occurred to me.

Update: More on the word.

National Rugby League Grand Final Tonight! [Manly Wins]

I moved to Australia and immediately caused my local team to make it to the Grand Final. You're welcome!

Bonus: "My" team is the most hated team in the league, by everyone's estimate:

LEAGUE fans across NSW will today become passionate Warriors supporters for just one reason: they can't bear to see Manly, the most hated club in the NRL, winning another grand final.

Ha! Hate on! We will crush the warriors and ride to victory oh whatever. I don't care that much.

But we will have pork chops and beer tonight for the game. That's always good.

Update: Brutal bloody brilliant game, the Sea Eagles won - and I even understood some of it!