kramarama

Monkeytown...

2010-03-09T17:48:00.004-05:00

Of course you knew somewhere there was a place called "Monkeytown", and no, you're not surprised it's in West Virginia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monkeytown%2C_West_Virginia

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=monkeytown&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=41.95363,84.726562&ie=UTF8&hq=Monkeytown&hnear=Monkeytown&ll=38.705372,-79.432483&spn=0.010131,0.020685&t=h&z=16

Google Maps Street View - right up to the Beaufort Sea!

2010-02-15T18:53:00.009-05:00

Wow - Google has mapped a street view path all the way up to Dead Horse, Alaska - near the Arctic Ocean. The drive from Key West is 5,529 miles one-way.

I envy the people who got to photograph this drive! The scenery is amazing. Here's an example (click on the link for 360 degree street view):

Dalton Hwy, Koyukuk-Middle Yukon, AK

Welcome Home NJ Weedman!

2010-01-11T20:06:00.008-05:00

New Jersey approves medical marijuana:
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/01/nj_lawmakers_approve_bill_lega.html

Welcome home NJ Weedman!
http://www.njweedman.com/10/html/aboutme.html

You may recall Ed Forchion... Here was a dude passionate about two things he loved: weed and New Jersey. Ed was arrested and incarcerated multiple times while campaigning to change New Jersey marijuana laws, even making a run for governor. He tried to change his legal name to NJWeedman, but was not permitted.

Eventually he gave up and moved to California where medical marijuana was legalized early on, and set-up a thriving business selling, you guessed it - marijuana.

Now that the legislation passed, will NJWeedman return to NJ?

Broadcast Digital TV...

2009-10-07T01:20:00.003-04:00

... blows (sucks, whatever's worse).

It always cuts out, and the screen goes black and silent.

At least with analog TV, a poor signal still gave you sound and fuzzy video. What good is a "pristine" image if you repeatedly lose 15 second chunks of your story? Until the technology or signals improve, we're stuck with a bill of goods that doesn't deliver on the promise. Plus I haven't seen WPVI channel 6 in months, it simply doesn't come into Center City Philadelphia... Thanks NAB & FCC!

Hooray! One of My Favorite Roads...

2009-04-20T18:09:00.008-04:00

... is now available on Google Maps Street View!

It's the switchback down the plateau on the way from Flagstaff to Sedona, AZ on 89-A.

At the top, it's pines, cedars and scrub brush. At the bottom, it's cottonwoods, ferns and water . It's a drop of about 1,100 feet in less than 8 minutes of driving from 6,500 ft to 5,400 ft into Sterling Canyon alongside Oak Creek.

By the time you hit Sedona, you've gone down to 4,200 feet, so there's a marked difference in temperature and weather (like from snow to balmy sunshine in the winter) - all in 45 minutes travel time.

Be sure to click the forward arrows and stop to look around as you go along... Enjoy:

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=35.032043,-111.73409&spn=0,359.988627&t=h&z=17&layer=c&cbll=35.032154,-111.734114&panoid=uYJHweDSMleC5zdwFpq_Ew&cbp=12,173.29986467016332,,0,5

Still a favorite...

2009-04-17T17:32:00.002-04:00

Even though it's no longer listed on their site, the Random Yahoo Link continues to be a favorite source of, well, randomness. Where else would you even think to find Alpacas for sale? (And who knew baby Alpacas were so cute?)

Go ahead, try it:

http://random.yahoo.com/bin/ryl

A new experience every time you click.

MSNBC's Teabagging Coverage...

2009-04-16T18:11:00.005-04:00

OK, yesterday there were April 15th Tax Day protests that supposedly took their inspiration from the Boston Tea Party.

(American Revolution, 1773, remember? See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_tea_party)

But instead instead of throwing tea into the Boston Harbor, these grass-roots events involve throwing / sending used teabags to/at politicians (especially Democrats).

The "media" took the opportunity to refer to yesterday's event as the "Teabagging Protest".

If you are unfamiliar with the term "teabagging", I won't describe it here - but you can look it up in the Urban Dictionary... see:

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=teabagging&defid=1608058

Now that you know what that means, enjoy this clip from MSNBC's David Schuster...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELy61zkZHO0

Rockin' Bones

2009-02-05T13:11:00.003-05:00

Oh no, say it ain't so! Lux Interior of the Cramps passed away yesterday of a pre-existing heart condition.

While saddened to hear this, I think the best tribute comes directly from a Cramps song:

Roll On! Rock On! Raw Bones!
There's still a lot of rhythm in these Rockin' Bones

I wanna leave a happy memory when I go
I wanna leave something to let the whole world know
That the Rock 'n Roll daddy has a done passed on
But my bones will keep a rockin' long after I've gone

Roll On! Rock On! Raw Bones!
Well, There's still a lot of rhythm in these Rockin' Bones

Well, when I die don't you bury me at all
Just nail my bones up on the wall
Beneath these bones let these words be seen
"This is the bloody gears of a Boppin' Machine"

Roll On! Rock On! Yeah, Raw Bones!
Well, There's still a lot of rhythm in these Rockin' Bones

I ain't a worried about tomorrow, just a thinkin' about tonight
My bones are getting restless and I do it up right
A few more times around a hardwood floor
Before we turn out the lights and close the door

Roll On! Rock On! Raw Bones!
Well, There's still a lot of rhythm in these Rockin' Bones

Still, what a surprise...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqH9o0cCFgc

Still Stupid...

2009-01-04T15:40:00.005-05:00

There's a guy named madshackle who has a YouTube site with all kinds of cool Rock'n'Roll video on it... and he graciously pointed out to me that he's got some Still Stupid video there (THANKS DAVE!).

For lack of digitized material, I've never really been able to represent Still Stupid here... But now, I can!

Presenting for your enjoyment:

When I Get That Feeling
Why (Do You Look at Me)?
Infection
Blowfly

For reference, this show was at JC Dobbs in Philadelphia (somewhere around 1991), and we were: Jim Canfield (vocals, clarinet - currently in Bleeding, Sweating, Crying), David Otwell (guitar - currently in DeSoto Rust), Ken Kramar (skinny, non-bald guy w/ white guitar - hah!), Doug Lester (hat & bass), Pat Ward (drums).

A Little Something for the Holidays...

2008-12-30T01:04:00.011-05:00

In the spirit of the season, I offer something new: a little ditty that was originally a Trained Attack Dogs song, which has only appeared on the live Lotsa Fun release... I thought it was worth a re-visit, so this is a slight reworking of the tune with both acoustic and electric guitars.

Series of Events

By the way, I've always admired John Manhardt's upbeat lyrics:

When you say what you mean,
People doubt what you meant.
And No one, no one,
no one will ever believe you...

And when you know where to go,
People doubt where you've been.
And No one, no one,
no one will ever believe you...

And when you do what you say,
it doesn't matter anyway,
'Cause No one, no one,
no one will ever believe you.

Out of Business, Back in Business...

2008-12-13T13:17:00.002-05:00

Apparently, my web hosting service of many years, xrackhosting.com, just up and disappeared last month. Their main site disappeared, as did my site and other sites hosted there. I tried contacting them for weeks but no luck. (Maybe it was the economy, I don't want to bad-mouth them since they did give me years of good service... but an email would have been appreciated.)

So, now I've had to move to another web hosting service, and I have to retool my pages to work with the new host... so things may be a little wonky here for a little bit. I'll be getting the music back on-line as soon as I have the spare time.

Anyway, I'm back!

Tucker & Django

2008-11-11T12:29:00.002-05:00

So it's come to this... I'm now posting pet photos on my blog.

Actually this is a good photo of Django (the Pomeranian) and his buddy Tucker. They hang out, they wrestle, they like each other.

I'm also testing how images post to my blog using an iPhone, but that's not nearly as interesting.

Blogging by iPhone

2008-11-06T00:47:00.003-05:00

I think I finally figured out how to blog to kramarama from my iPhone. If this posts, we'll know for sure.

Maverick™...

2008-10-02T22:23:00.002-04:00

Is it Maverick™ or Maverick® ?

TAD at NoLibs Spring Music Fest

2008-05-12T21:00:00.005-04:00

That's right... yet again, Trained Attack Dogs will be playing a show where we dress neat and play sloppy! And this time, we're sort of out of practice, so expect us to look really snappy.

Ultimately, the day will be saved by our friends Tracy Stanton and Kurt Wunder of the 700 Club, backing our asses up with saxophone and trumpet (actually, we're really excited about them joining in)!

So, come on out Saturday, May 31st, to Liberty Lands Park (N. 3rd & Poplar Streets) for a day of music & fun at the Northern Liberties Spring Music Fest... stick around until 9pm, when we close the place down to the amusement - or horror - of the crowd (with any luck, both!)

Awesome...

2008-04-16T07:53:00.000-04:00

Actor Tim Robbins gave the Keynote presentation at the NAB Show (National Association of Broadcasters), addressing journalists and media executives.

Initially he stated he would not give his planned speech, as it was apparently too controversial and at odds with the NAB Show planners. He then changed his mind and gave the speech, at which point NAB ordered all cameras turned off.

But they forgot the audio recorders...

You can hear the last six minutes of his speech here:

http://adage.com/article?article_id=126431

Essentially, he asks the broadcast media to grow a pair.

Trained Attack Dogs @ The North Star Bar this Saturday

2008-03-24T12:30:00.002-04:00

It's a Benefit show, Saturday March 29th, at the North Star Bar (27th and Poplar Streets, Phila PA) for
Andrea Collins-Smith (http://www.punkrockmommy.org).

The line-up is:

• Deadspot
• Trained Attack Dogs
• Throttle
• Dominance
• The Heels (ex-Pagan Babies)

Tickets are $10, and I'm told there will even be door prizes!

We might even play something from the Nazis Ate Grannys Gladiolas tape... (see last post)

Oh My Freakin' Gosh!

2008-02-22T17:57:00.012-05:00

Maybe you saw our sticker on the side of a SEPTA bus, and went and bought your copy for $3 from Zipperhead, or Chaos Records, or The Record Exchange on South Street...

Or maybe you bought it from us at a show for $2... or maybe you worked at a radio station or a fanzine or club where we sent you a copy and it ended up in your collection... Maybe you "borrowed" a copy from your friend or brother or sister... Maybe we just liked you and gave you one.

Somehow, there were hundreds and hundreds of this little demo cassette floating around in 1987.

Well, we still like you.

You asked for it, and you got it: Here, for the first time in 20 years is Trained Attack Dogs' original demo tape, Nazis Ate Grannys Gladiolas, for your free downloading pleasure. And this time, it's even cheaper than the first time you bought it.

Alpha Plan Z
White Castle
Religious Experience / TV Poison
Psychotic Surfers of La Mirada
Rock n' Roll Baby
Town With No Name

Of course, in true punk-rock fashion, the original master tape is missing... so I tracked down the best cassette I could find, and that's what's presented here. IF I ever find the original mixdown I'll repost better versions - but for now, enjoy!

Note: Todd Yoder was the performing drummer for Trained Attack Dogs at the time of this release, however the actual drummer for this recording is Bob Nichol.

Who is visiting me?

2008-02-19T20:13:00.001-05:00

我的网站收到许多来访的中国人民。我不知道这种情况的原因。如果你是一个中国人，请你解释一下吗？你是否会觉得我的网站有意思吗？我将使用" Google "的翻译，你的回答。谢谢。

我的網站收到許多來訪的中國人民。我不知道這種情況的原因。如果你是一個中國人，請你解釋一下嗎？你是否會覺得我的網站有意思嗎？我將使用" Google "的翻譯，你的回答。謝謝。

내 웹사이트를받습니다 중국 인민으로부터 많은 사람들이 방문합니다. 이유는 잘 모르겠지만 이것합니다. 중국의 경우에는 사람, 설명해 주시겠습니까? 너 내 사이트를 찾는 재미? 나는 사용됩니다 "구글"을 번역에 대답을합니다. 감사합니다.

自分のウェブサイトからの訪問数多くの中国の人々を受け取る。私は、この理由を知っているのだ。中国の人の場合は、説明していただけますか？ご自分のサイトを見つける面白いですか？私が使って" google "との回答を翻訳しています。ありがとうございます。

24 Years Behind Schedule...

2008-02-04T16:39:00.000-05:00

... the police state is finally getting off the ground.

Your birthmark is not your birthmark, it's a government identifier for tracking your activity.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/02/04/fbi.biometrics/index.html

Nobody should find any of this creepy or intrusive, right?

If you're not guilty of anything, you shouldn't be concerned right?

And your data will never ever be confused with somebody else's, right?

Here's your assignment: Watch Brazil - have a little chuckle, then mull it over for a few days.

Just in! Entertainment News

2007-09-25T23:33:00.000-04:00

Britney! Paris! Lindsay! Justin! OJ! All News! All the Time!

Drunken Astronauts...

2007-07-31T19:11:00.000-04:00

... a recent new story covers the emerging scandal of "drunken astronauts" flying into space. Apparently over the years, some NASA astronauts had consumed alcohol within 12 hours of their launch time.

Of note, none of the stories detail what the blood alcohol content of the astronauts were, what NASA considers to be a high or inappropriate BAC for an astronaut in flight, or if the incidents involved any of those piloting the craft.

Firstly, let me say that anybody who is either brave or crazy enough to strap their butt to a 10-story tall, 535,000 gallon liquid hydrogen bomb in the midst of a controlled explosion deserves a drink the night before. Note well, these people are not truck drivers or even airline pilots - they are ASTRONAUTS with highly specialized training. There are 6,600,000,000 people on earth, only 460 have ever gone into space - that is less than a billionth of 1%.

Secondly, while routine, space travel is not safe, let me repeat, not safe - it truly falls into the category of risky behavior. Aside from "tippin' the bottle", an even greater risk is posed by dropping foam panels, birds, space debris, computer failure, mechanical failure, etc. Again, when your heiney is plastered into the back of your seat while going 7 miles a second (that's 25,000 mph to you and me), there's not much anyone can do that hasn't already been programmed by Mission Control until they reach orbit.

So, c'mon News Media... lighten up! Aside from the OMG factor, there are bigger fish to fry than Astronauts who had a drink the night before they flew. Iraq may be getting old, but it still qualifies as much more news worthy.

I sort of feel obliged...

2007-07-17T21:05:00.000-04:00

... to demonstrate I'm still alive. So, here you go.

By the way, I just turned 45 last week - a limpy greying geezer to some my friends, a veritable baby to others. Nancy, her sister Barbara, and our friends George and Zeb went out to Marigold Kitchen (at the corner of 45th & Larchwood) to celebrate - we had a good time and a dee-lish dinner. Marigold is the crew from the adventurous & short-lived Salt Restaurant (which we never got a chance to visit), so the food was very eclectic and tasty.

The other cool thing about Marigold Kitchen is that I used to live a few yards away on Larchwood Avenue. The address numbers that I drew on the front of my old house with Prismacolor pencils in 1987 are still there and as bright as ever. Being in the restaurant was nostalgic since I'd dined there back when it was a meatloaf and mashed potatoes place (yes - people tell the wait staff that all the time, with EXACTLY those words) - and it also had the same layout of my old house... those West Philly Victorians are really grand.

Anyway, a good time was had by all - I received brandy snifters and single malt scotch (Glenfiddich) as presents, so I made out well!

Again, In Case You Ever Wondered...

2007-06-15T16:33:00.000-04:00

Live from the North Pole

http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/gallery_np.html

No, really, NOAA sets up a webcam each year at the North Pole.

They have to do it yearly because the North Pole is in the middle of the Arctic Ocean, and the ice moves over time - so there can never be a permanent marker installed.

I got to thinking about this when a friend from Thailand was talking about the difference between taking a cheaper flight (with a lay-over in Japan), versus a non-stop flight to visit her parents. She said the non-stop flight few over the North Pole! (The pilots even pointed out the blinking red light there).

I fired up Google Earth and sure enough going over the North Pole is the most direct route.

I had always assumed you would fly from NY to Los Angeles, to Japan, to Thailand. Maybe that was the Cold-War route, back when American craft couldn't fly over Russia.

The blinking red light at the pole must be the yearly NOAA installation. Not that any of this is earth-shaking... again, just interesting, in case you ever wondered.

In Case You Ever Wondered...

2007-04-25T17:59:00.000-04:00

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Wild-Animals-705/animal-fights.htm

I was originally curious about a pit bull vs. a wolf, but the idea of a rhino vs. a hippo is apparently quite thought provoking.