DJ-LX: The Voice of Harold

Putting together a perfect playlist of REM songs is a daunting task. The first issue I ran into is many of their albums are burnt into memory via side A/side B order. To grab a song here or there and dump them into a pile just feels wrong. Yet, Spotify makes wrong easy. It still takes some time to assemble. After piling all of my selections into the playlist, it adds up to exactly three hours. Over the last few days, I’ve been giving the list a test run on walks, drives, and garage puttering. I set the list to alphabetical order, which feels random enough.

How did I select the songs? Most of my favorites are based on places, road-trips, and the people who surrounded me at the time, especially during the 1980’s. Their music is a memory-jogging, timestamped imprint in my mind.  REM is/was the quintessential college rock band and rose to fame while I was in college (sooo long ago) - so it is interesting how fresh the memories are when I listen to this playlist.

Spotify Playlist Link

REM albums by release date:
Chronic Town (1981)
Murmur (1983)
Reckoning (1984)
Fables of the Reconstruction (1985)
Lifes Rich Pageant (1986)
Document (1987)
Dead Letter Office (1987)
Green (1988)
Out of Time (1991)
Automatic for the People (1992)
Monster (1994)
New Adventures in Hi-Fi (1996)
Up (1998)
Reveal (2001)
Around the Sun (2004)
Accelerate (2008)
Collapse into Now (2011)  - nothing from this album made the list

DJ-LX - The Precursor

I’ve decided it is time to work on an all-time favorite REM song playlist. I’m not sure where to start, except I know this song will be on the list somewhere.

I’m not sure how the list will turn out, but you can bet the genius skill of Mike Mills will be as obvious as this one song teaser.

DJ-LX - The Pearl Jam Playlist

Even though I lived in Seattle in the early 90’s, it wasn’t until later that I dug deep into Pearl Jam. When Backspacer was released in 2009, the CD had codes for free downloads of concerts from iTunes. I chose the Grand Rapids and Halifax concerts.  I can’t recall why. Over the next few years, as I started traveling via motorcycle (with ear buds connected to my trusty iPod Nano), I came to appreciate the quality of the live performances and would buy the CDs that I hadn’t previously owned. Alone in my helmet, many miles were accumulated with Pearl Jam as the accompanying soundtrack. You may have even spotted my helmet in the corner of the photo above. Extra credit to anyone who knows the location.

The other day I had the random thought - I should put together my own Pearl Jam playlist. Spotify doesn’t allow sections/chapters, so I’ll show those here. In the playlist, the order is the same. Some PJ songs mean more than others to me, either lyrically or just from a life timing standpoint. Regardless of the when or why, maybe you’ll stumble across a song that resonates.

Playlist
Link to the Spotify Playlist

Man Trilogy
Man of the Hour
Betterman
Leatherman
Nothingman

Surfer Eddie
In My Tree
Unthought Known
Given To Fly
Low Light
Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town
Amongst The Waves
Love Boat Captain

Deep Thoughts
Gone
Parting Ways
Sad
Undone
Thumbing My Way
I Am Mine
Faithful

Composed
Inside Job
Off He Goes
Around The Bend
In Hiding
Immortality
All Those Yesterdays
Hard To Imagine
Nothing As It Seems
Of The Girl
Sleight of Hand
Army Reserve
Crown of Thorns  

Indispensable
Down
Present Tense
Daughter
Rearview Mirror
Alive

Man & Machine

When I picked out this van, the one feature it did not have was a pre-installed hitch. That is one of the factory options that is a better deal than the aftermarket. So I am contemplating whether to add a hitch so that I could pull a motorcycle trailer. Or, maybe switch to a much smaller trail bike that could come along on trips on a bumper rack. Or what about just a hitch-mounted bike rack. Pedal-power works, too. So many options…which I think can wait until 2025. Plenty of time to over-research the options this Winter.

Answering the Unanswerable

Question of the day: If I have new pressure treated lumber (for a fence or deck), how long should I wait before I stain or paint it? An excellent question, with a wildly unsatisfactory answer to anyone trying to finish a project. Of course everyone knows the answer is 1…2…3…crunch!

Ask Google or AI or a neighbor who paints things for a living. Or ask the paint guy at Home Depot. The correct answer is “not today”. That is the answer the person with the paint brush in their hand does not want to hear. The correct answer is actually a few months to a year, depending on where you live. It takes awhile for the Chromated-copper arsenate (CCA) or similar chemicals to dry. Some lumber yards ship and store the boards outdoors, so they are also wet. It is surprising how much weight variability is found in a stack of boards.

I went with the advice of a professional painter as I installed a fence in July 2023. I was thinking at the time that I’d wait a month. He said, “Next year.” And that was today.

Install date: July 5, 2023

Finally got around to painting: August 4, 2024. Should look nice enough to anyone rolling by at 25 mph.

2 Years in Midland

While in the hardware store today, I decided to pick up a bottle of the 30 Second Deck Cleaner. My front deck was ready. The composite deck has just enough texture to catch some dirt. The last time I cleaned the deck, I had used Elbow Grease. Due to changes in EPA regulations, that is no longer available.

I have to admit, the deck cleaner product, which I mixed 50/50 with water in my pump sprayer, worked really well. I sprayed it on, waited about 5 minutes, they hosed off the deck. I had a bit left over, so I sprayed the house and a few spots on the deck again, then hoses the deck off a second time. No scrubbing, no effort. And two years after construction, the composite deck looks as nice as when it was installed.

FLASHBACK: July 2022

I spent a decent part of the first summer in Midland excavating the perimeter of the house.

The finish line is in sight! Of all the changes I’ve made to my little house, the front deck has been the most worthwhile and most used. Especially this time of year, this is where I hang out.

My Coffee Crisis

The most important meal of the day (for me) is the first cup of coffee in the morning. For the last year, I’ve been brewing the Kirkland coffee shown in the photo. I noticed my local Costco started easing the product into a smaller and smaller space on the shelf. Then poof!, it was gone from the store and online.

I figured that might happen, so I had snagged a few bags while it was available. Now I am down to my last 2 pound bag. What to do? I’m a big fan of single source whole bean coffee, but am not trying to break the bank. For years I purchased the Volcanica brand, but their one pound bags crested the $20 mark during the pandemic. Good coffee, but not that good.

My first attempt at a replacement will be Copper Moon Costa Rican Blend. I found it on the Costco website. Two 2 pound bags for $26.99, shipped for free. $6.75 per pound is pretty cheap. The regular price is $34.99, or $8.75 a pound. Hopefully it tastes OK. I’ll test it soon. I think finding a good single source bean for about $10 to $12 per pound is more realistic.