Solitude Flies - great descriptions that help the angler understand what is on the end of the line. Hot Creek Ranch is the home stream for this team.

Pavement 'Terror Twilight' [via]

Camping Gear for Fly fisherman.

X&Y - streamed [via]

Bloc Party - "The Answer" & "Tulips" & "Banquet (Phone Disco Edit)" - I'm loving the original Banquet today: co-workers are wondering why I'm drumming on my knees.

Corner Shop - I heard "Heavy Soup", but their site has "TopKnot" and "Natch." I had no idea about the heavy Punjabi influences. Heavy Soup sounds like New Orleans funk.

Dj Yoda - "Annie Mac Mini Mix" [via]

M83 - "Teen Angst (luciano rmx)"

God is punishing Viagra users

cliptip

"The only way I could [achieve fame] is by getting into some kind of trouble. It could only be infamy." What about Keith Richards? "Massive drug habit." Jimmy Page? "Witchcraft." The Edge? "Mustache."

i got my daily dose today. also learned of a good cheap digital 5mp camera, as well as a fun little toy.

Pollyn [via]

'Why I've loved Pavement'

for you today who visit the site

shred trends

youll never know --

you feel it, you do it

theres no gain inmind

nike doesnt want you to know $$$$$$

wideman kennedy doesnt want y9ou to know$$$$

SEE THROUGH IT Kant style be smart avoid the stash

and once and for all fuck the tiny awt syndicate with a sour stick. so weak it makes me want to be a jock

swinesearly
vincent van GO to see the world AZITIS

penned by Steve Malkmus

Rollin', rollin', rollin', get that blog a rollin'

God's gift to the ignorant

$80 & $140 travel rods.

Lost scene on GMA - scroll down, click "free" and wait.

fishing concepts
loop transparent reels

good luck getting a transparent reel, there seems to be some upheavel going on at Loop. The founder has spun off his own brand, and so to has another former Loop employee

Field & Stream reel guide

orvis convertible....for dad?

Bare Waders [via]

Creek Company ODC 850 JetPack Outdoor Discovery Craft - "fits into its own BACKPACK!"

step by step fly tying instructions

-Acceleration: 23 mph / 37 kmph. Hogs (larger fish) can get in an extra one or two mph.
-Distance required: One foot.
-Average Speed of line pull: 33 feet per second.
-Vertical Leap: 3 to 4 Times its length (for a human that's 18 - 24 feet).
-Strength: Large trout are known to break leaders two times their body weight (for a human that's a piece of mono 350 lbs).
-Sensory input: 500 to 800 times more acute than the sensory input received by a fisherman.

Yellow Breeches Prep

Cheap wader boots, well-equiped vest by BW, & a good cuffed rain coat NOW WITH Quiet Hood, Simms Guide vest on sale, fly fish america 2005 gear guide issue, the depot, Yellow Breeches report, more recent reports, a brief stream run-down, map of the breeches, fly patterns , a fly index, and a real Creel deal.

Uncommongoods - dig the old bike parts. I've seen the record bowls before. And this is completely impractical, and yet it still has an appeal.

This is the second time this week that places i've been to have re-surfaced....I need to get a blog roll up in here.

100 Best Fly Fishing Sites...by clicks

#76 Aries Tackle - very informative, including tips on when, where, and how to fish certain flies. I'm bringing my worms to Roscoe.

fishing gear

When the bats are swooping all around and you want to try that woolybugger, the swiveling bulb mini head lamp, TALS hat light, LEDHedz or the sportsman's deluxe 'life time' flex-light. For those 'not so fresh' moments on the water - vest pocket tree branch hook system. In between stream trips calls for a Magnetic Rod Rack, and for the anal retentive fisherman - rod guard. Top of the line line. A testament to the green beader. Pistol Pete Flies. Good Deal on a nice neoprene-cuffed Wading Jacket. Shortie vest. Hump-bak midge. And for the truly lazy or beginner, just fill out the form.

The weather might look like shit, but I can't help but be excited. Roscoe, NY here I come.

Rock'n Flip [via]

Hans Blix was a hack. Now this guy too? Either the IAEA can't elect a decent director, or petty vendettas, not lofty principles, are behind U.S. opposition to Mohammed ElBaradei.

I don't have much of a choice whether or not to check out a band named after my own fashion sense. [via]

...with gravy, please!

recipe for killer mash : start with the freshest produce. choose herbs and spices carefully and sparingly. blend with the utmost care. [via]

super fantastic flash light.

Dun vs. Spinner

Solar Powered GPS - just makes sense to have a tool you might need while lost that doesn't require a charging stand.

Big ups to Linquistador for forwarding The Hype Machine.

SHHH!!!!!

I've got a secret for you. I was sold by the first bent note into the double bass thump of "Sad And Lonely." Light your joint. "Nowhere Again" is solid, but better the second listen. Ditto for "Road Leads Where Its Led." "Pharoah's Daughter" oozes low and high. "You Are Chains" picks up right where the previous song leaves you: great album arrangement. You have to wait with the song, but its worth it. "Now Here is Nowhere" kicks. I dig the groove of "First Wave Intact" ; simple yet effective and I bet it translates really well live; a rump-shaker, so to speak. Yeah, that first song is a winner, and a bit Oasis-esque.

I never really new the 'genre' existed, but its possible I like stoner music.

Coldplay cookies.

Aqueduct. Intriguing. "Hardcore Days and Softcore Nights" is...don't ask. Ooh, nice drum break down. I like. "The Suggestion Box" has a nice, rolling piano riff. Same with "Heart Design", but with a nod to Mr.Folds. More please.

It's Ryan Adams time at glide.

Kinski kicking it. Yum, instrumental. [via]

Innaway's Rise sort of sinks, except for the good part.

and I guess this contraption is making inroads in the new world. Back when the decks were spinning more frequently, I saw its forefather and I drooled over the thought of scratching YOUR own wax...and I'm still salivating.

Tadpole & Slap

Yamikma mounts on sale:: Q towers fit my ride.

spector gets medieval on the League's ass -

More awesome analysis from the hockey ghost. I wish I could just link to specific pieces, but I can't, so this copy/paste thing will have to do::: archived 05/17/05 :::

Read the following yesterday in the Calgary Herald, courtesy of the insightful Bruce Dowbiggin:

Unless the league and the NHL Players' Association get a miracle settlement before June 1, all unsigned 2003 picks such as (Jeff)Carter/ (Mike)Richards and 2004 draftees without a bona fide offer could
find themselves free agents by summer. The same will happen a month later for a cavalcade of established stars, unless teams make qualifying offers to players under contract.

OK, nothing odd about this, yet another speculative article about RFAs and unsigned draft picks becoming unrestricted free agents. I've covered that possibility, as have other pundits and bloggers. Perhaps the best take on this was TSN's Bob McKenzie when he wrote:

The truth is the fate of all these players, from Crosby to Carter to Richards to any of the restricted free agents to any player who had a contract this season, will be determined as part of the CBA negotiations. For lack of a better term, it's called transition. It will be a significant element of the negotiations above and beyond the NHL and Players' Association agreeing on a new economic system.

McKenzie further explained:

For argument's sake, let's declare the Philadelphia Flyers' unsigned draftee duo of Carter and Richards as unrestricted free agents. They can sign with any team in any league in the world.

Well, maybe not. The NHL is in the midst of a lockout. Individual NHL clubs are not permitted to conduct business as usual. NHL teams cannot sign players right now. If they did, they can't register the contract with the league. Could a renegade team break ranks and sign Carter or Richards, mount a legal challenge against the NHL?

It's possible, I suppose, but if that happens, we've got a much bigger story than the fate of Carter and Richards. A renegade act of that magnitude during the lockout might well spell the end of the lockout. I'm not holding my breath on that one.

Made sense to me. Even if Richards, Carter, other unsigned draft picks or NHL restricted free agents win the right to shop themselves as UFAs, no NHL clubs could sign them until a new CBA is in place. Most importantly, no NHL team will "break ranks" to sign them and put the league into a position of weakness. No NHL owner will risk becoming a pariah amongst his fellow owners at this state of the game. But Dowbiggin, who's been covering the NHL labour follies for years for the Herald and CBC television, as well as published two important books on the subject, reports of an interesting twist:

(I)f the powerful International Management Group has its way, that free agency would not be affected by any CBA reached at a later date, leaving their clients free to sign where they wish whenever the NHL rises from the dead. For Calgary's management, so loyal to (NHL Commissioner Gary) Bettman's strategy, that result could well mean ta-ta to Jarome Iginla, Miikka Kiprusoff and Kris Chucko, its 2004 first-round pick. In short, the league would be turned upside down. That's certainly the implied threat that is being delivered to the league this week by IMG -- which represents (among others) super prospects Sidney Crosby and Gilbert Brule, as well as NHL stars Joe Thornton, Mats Sundin, Robyn Regehr, Sergei Fedorov and the Sedin twins. IMG is in the process of sending a letter to the NHL, reserving its rights to have a number of its clients declared unrestricted free agents no later than July 1 of this year.

"Due to the current labour situation and the actions of the NHL," writes
Terrence Prince of IMG, "it is not 'business as usual' and, accordingly, it
is inappropriate for the parties to act as if it is 'business as usual.' "

The NHL's bind has to do with its obligations under the previous CBA for
signing or re-signing players.

According to IMG, "all unsigned players who were drafted in 2003 and 2004 will be free of all current NHL team restraints unless they are either signed by June 1, 2005 (in the case of the 2003-drafted players) or receive a bona fide offer by June 1, 2005 (in the case of the 2004-drafted players)."

Group 2 players such as Iginla, Thornton, Rick Nash, Dany Heatley and Ilya Kovalchuk must receive a qualifying offer by June 30 to see their rights retained by current clubs. But Bettman has forbidden teams to negotiate with any locked-out players. There will be no contracts or qualifying offers; IMG will argue that makes them free agents without restraint.

IMG is indeed a very powerful agency representing some very important NHL and prospective NHL players. When they speak about the status of their clients, other hockey people, including other player agents, sit up and take note. So what, you ask? IMG can rattle the cage all they want, but that still doesn't matter since no NHL team can sign their players even if they manage to legally win for those RFA and unsigned prospect clients the right to declare UFA status. After all, and Dowbiggin points this out, the NHL has already stated that the status of those players would be "grandfathered" into the next CBA to prevent teams from poaching off each other.

But as Dowbiggin notes:

It is less clear, however, how the league will stop any legal findings in the absence of a new collective agreement. What's to stop Thornton from signing with an American Hockey League team as a free agent in the absence of a new CBA, then choosing his favourite NHL club later when play resumes?

Again, critics will claim that the new CBA will determine that. But not if those players have been legally declared unrestricted free agents prior to the signing of the next CBA.

To underscore the seriousness of its position on free agents and unsigned draftees, IMG has retained the services of high-priced labour expert, lawyer Jim Quinn of Weil, Gotshal & Manges in New York. While the NHL could challenge the authority of agents on this issue, it knows Quinn is a power-play expert on sports labour issues. (Oh good, more lawyers.)
"The NHL is taking the position that our players' contract years expire, but clubs can keep their rights over players indefinitely," says IMG's
Calgary-based J.P. Barry. "The NHL cancels the draft, but still decides to
have a combine for undrafted amateurs. These are patently inconsistent
positions, so we decided to retain a specialist in this area to provide us
with some deeper specialized analysis.''

And there's that interesting twist I noted earlier.

If IMG mounts a successful legal challange against the NHL on this, and wins the right for current RFA players and unsigned prospects to become unrestricted free agents before a new CBA is implemented, there probably won't be anything the league could do to prevent this from happening. The league wouldn't be able to legally "grandfather" those players rights back to their former clubs under a new CBA. You can beat NHLPA director Bob Goodenow won't be stumping to have that clause included. After all, he successfully fought for unrestricted free agency for his players in the 1994-95 lockout. That has become a sacred cow to the players. It won't bother Goodenow or his constituents if IMG wins the right for their clients to become UFAs prior to the signing of the new CBA, and should they become successful, it'll mean RFA players and unsigned prospects of other player agents/agencies could also win the right to be declared UFAs.

It would be then up to those players to decide if they want to re-sign with their former clubs or test the UFA waters for a better deal. As Dowbiggin noted in his column, this would have the potential to turn the NHL upside-down. Imagine the horror for the Philadelphia Flyers if Richards and Carter are allowed to skate away with no deal and then end up signing elsewhere. Worse, imagine the jolt to the Bruins if Joe Thornton, their franchise players who is in the prime of his career, was lost as an unrestricted free agent. How about the nightmare scenario for the Atlanta Thrashers in losing one or possibly both of their young franchise players, Kovalchuk and Heatley.

Or the kick to the gut of Flames fans to see 2004 playoff heroes Iginla, Kiprusoff and Regehr vanish only to reappear playing somewhere else. Now of course, that's assuming IMG can legally win UFA status for their players. If not, then nothing changes, fans in those aforementioned cities breathe easier, and everything stays pretty much the same. Yes, it's speculation, and could perhaps have little or no bearing on the current labor talks. But then, why would IMG take this route if there was little or nothing to gain?

Let's face if, if IMG does seek legal recourse in this matter, it'll provide the NHLPA with a key bit of leverage to use against the league in negotiations. If IMG's challenge becomes reality, if there's a possibility RFAs and unsigned prospects could be cut loose before a CBA is in place, it would result, once a new CBA is in place, in a free agent signing frenzy the like of which we've never seen. Such a feeding frenzy would sorely test the limits of the new CBA, particularly the supposedly "hard cap". If there were a loophole to be exploited, you know a general manager or a player agent would find it, and then, whoooo-doggie, the floodgates open.

Just how much "restraint" do you think big market clubs would have, knowing that UFAs in their prime like Thornton, Iginla and Kovalchuk were on the open market? Or promising young prospects like Carter and Richards Still, this could be little more than an empty threat by IMG, merely a pressure tactic to be used by the PA against the league and the team owners. It's uncertain how quickly the wheels would turn for the player agency in their pursuit of this objectivity, indeed, it could take months, by which time, a new CBA could be in place and this becomes a moot point. Bettman and the team owners had better hope this is nothing but an empty threat by IMG, because if it isn't...Uh-oooh!

Loose record - I like the preview feature.

[via]

Sufficiently funky, but what's with the dancing Mask/Joker hybrid? [via]

i can't quite put my finger on it, but something is very appealing about Down Under.

Nu Gorillaz "Demon Days" streamed - 'Every Planet We Reach is Dead' is the banger.

What i should've been doing Saturday night.

Thanks to the McGovernator, I won't be making a common mistake this weekend.

Just about every animal I can think of will take the path of least resistance when being pursued (chukar defy logic). Deer will run downhill, doves will fly downwind, and fish will swim downstream. Almost all streamer anglers violate this behavior by stripping their imitations upstream

stoner wins, and then loses medal. (no, he didn't forget where he put it)

Humanzee is fucking creepee

"secret asian hulk"

Xbox 360 deets

more cheeba - 'Wonders Never Cease'

...More than meets the eye... [via]

Palau Finale - Sunday @ 8

dj bc

The Damnwells - 'Assholes' off "Bastards of the Beat"

ethics? sports? journalism? One of these things is not like the others.

spliff splaff

geek fantasies

unsignedmusicmag [via]

w00t!. not so w00t!

Life is full of irony, especially personal and hidden ironies. Being a music snob is one of those ironies. How can someone so into music be so close-minded about what that someone loves? I once was a full-on music snob, even rejecting radio music simply because of the medium it spread on. How ignorant is that? Loving music isn't about technological bias, or sociological prejudice, its about learning to listen and letting the music affect you. and that's it.

(Aside: i was thinking about MediaMax, and how the music industry is uniquely protected from fan backlash by the simple fact that the product affects the consumer emotionally and therefore physically, given its good, and that allows the industry to pull this type of bullshit. peeps need their fix, yo!)

Hopefully I've shed most of the traits of my snobbery, but sometimes in the prescence of another music snob remnants spring into action. I'm trying, I really am. I liken this affliction to art critics who miss the point because they are so into the scene. Sadly, thus is the way of the Arts throughout history; the scene dictates. And since overcoming a consistent historical trend is beyond this individual, joining the scene is necessitated. Enter "The Rock Snob's Dictionary."

The Adam Brown - what is it about Montreal that feeds the cool? Ari mentions Ryan Adams, but I'm hearing more Pete Yorn. listen to 'Hungry Thirsty For You' & 'Give Back My Heart'

QOTSA - "Lullabies to Paralyze" - 'Someones In The Wolf' 'In My Head' 'Medication' 'Skin On Skin' 'Long Slow Goodbye' [via]

2 Ortofon Concord replacements please

Where they've been

another birthday for a music blogger i enjoy. this time its chromewaves, representin' the north side, and well I might add. well, the good wishes led me to 2 new blogs, 'for the records' & 'the big ticket'. The former highlights the upcoming Morcheeba album, "The Antidote." Russian Futurists get a mention as well, but not the attention they get from the latter. 'Paul Simon' 'Still Life'.

I can't wait to get my hands on the rusky library.

....and i miss my college roommate's Bourbon Tabernacle Choir disc.

he knew 'em way back in the day. [via]

get into your jammys, and i'm not talking sleepwear.

"...Melodic pop music as lofty as Pavement and as grounded as Neil Young", Sam Champion, no, the other Sam Champion sounds promising.

"Atleast my video games aren't locked out" [via / via]

Athlete - "Tourist" - 'Half Light', 'If I Found Out', 'Modern Mafia' get the stamp of approval. athlete.mu is their flash site.

While on tour, these might come in handy.

bean curd blog roll

Ricco Rocks

"I probably have to do the spa thing...but I would rather fish."

Leaders of the Environment Counter-Revolution (and why they are demons sent from the infernal depths to seal our doomed fate, or maybe not) [via]

A swear word?! Call in the Nincompoop Guard.

Another Monday Night Geekfest

An ebbing Lake Chad. Infected West Indies coral. Asthma epidemic in Trinidad. Declining Caribou population. One degree of interconnectivity.

After the Gold Rush :: With the dream of the 60s dying, music makers turned inward on the music itself, focusing on the beauty of music, and forgetting the trappings of rockstardom...until the Eagles, that is. Highlights include: The Band. CSN. &Y. America. The Grateful Dead. Bill Withers. Paul Simon.

I've got to get my hands on more Bill Withers. The guy takes folk to a soulful level that is truly unique...or was, until Ben Harper.

Firefox ads

mp3shits.com

akin to the Madden NFL cover curse, the Curse of the iPod

Steve is tugging at my heart strings over at puckupdate.

Hockey is migrating south to China

no excuses - The Eels - tonight 12:30 a.m.

Weezer's 'Make Believe'

FatBoySlim - 'Look Both Ways' [via]

A side wins - Sloans hits

Sufjan Stevens: "Chicago" [via]

Oh, and call Don

the real deal

Spooky - "the story of how freedom would build better science and art."

History of Sampling [via/via]

glide archives

'Blue Orchid' [via]

Lightsaber FAQ

boblebe.e amphibious dorsal tote

- obscure

- Decemberist @ NPR

[via]

"When the President Talks to God"

Fake reporter torn a new one, but fires back decent one-liner.

Ol'skool Springfield, yo. Holla at ya boy, Homer.

nu streems

Store Wars - from the Creators of 'The Meatrix'

"...it is the frequency at which this event occurs that makes the difference, say researchers. Also key seems to be the protein and enzyme count in the semen, but researchers are again waiting for more test data."

RWD : browse by genre and rate tracks

skratchworx

Numark CDX

British Sea Power - "Fear of Drowning" made it onto an 'UNCUT' monthly compilation....not the greatest tune. Chromewaves digs the new album, 'Open Season'. Perhaps I'll come to the same, new conclusion.

Ryan Adams - "Time (the revelator)"

16 days 'til Roscoe

Hendricksons , Quill Gordons, Blue Quills, Red Quills, Caddis, Streamers

$0.50 (or s0) flies

Fishing Streamers - "the spin fishing of fly fishing"

Cut off your normal tippet and tie on 3X tippet or a leader tapering down to 2X or 3X. Stick with a 5-, 6- or 7-weight outfit because the extra weight will overpower a lesser weight rod. Keep your leaders short, four to seven feet long, nine feet at the most.

Casting: Start by slowing down your delivery, pace your stroke, open up a bit

"toss out your big fly in a general area, let it sink a second, then strip in the big fly in varying degrees of speed and delays. The keys are finding the right depth and getting the optimum retrieval speed."

Some think you should always fish streamers downstream while others believe that doing so spooks the fish. Others believe anglers should always plop streamers across and upstream to get the best drift. Which is best? Both work.

There is some legitimacy to the idea that downstream fishing leads to pulling the hook out of the fish's mouth but not often enough to make me worry about it. I have caught plenty of fish, trout and smallmouth, by casting straight across from me, slightly downstream, then swinging the fly through the pool.

You will need a reel or spool loaded with a sink-tip or sinking line. I like a 7-weight or even an 8-weight with sinking lines.

When to Fish Streamers: You probably know the standard situations when streamers work best: In the spring, during high water, if you see no rises, and in the absence of hatches. But there are many other situations ideal for fishing streamers. Here are a few:
When temperatures are cold
When fishing deep pools, dropoffs and ledges
When fishing undercut banks
When covering a lot of water quickly
When searching a lake
When you are after big fish
When you need to get down to fish holding deep
When you need to reach fish holding under limbs
and other obstructions
When you are fishing runs, riffles and trenches
When you have long stretches of pocket water
with lots of boulders
When fish are feeding but on bottom nymphing
On overcast days, rainy days, early and late,
in dirty water and right after rain

Tips and Strategies: Mix things up from time to time by keeping your rod tip high or varying it by keeping your rod tip lower, angling off to the side. Vary your retrieve speed. Vary the amount of line you strip in on each retrieve. Mend the line from time to time and the streamer will hesitate, stop. Most of the time you want the fly to sink so wait a few seconds; but every now and again, if things are slow, strip it in once it hits the water. When you cast with bigger flies or more weight (split shot), remember to open your cast a little bit so you don't hook yourself in the head. A roll cast is effective to get the fly back out to the lie. Sometimes you will see a fish follow the fly. Leave it out there, pick up your rod tip and let it back down. Strip short at the end but leave it out there and then pick it up quickly and cast it right back in front of the fish.

hopper chopper

Sufjan Stevens - check out 'Seven Swans'

exhibit A
exhibit B

watched PBS again last night. 'Strange Days on Planet Earth' was cool, focusing on effects alien species can have on ecosystems/planets/etc, how this alien invasion has increased exponentially due to the transportation explosion of the past 40 years, and how what may have been considered a 'freak occurence' in the past are now being seen together as possibly interconnected symptoms of a larger problem. but what really piqued my interest was the documentary about rock n' roll evolving into an art form, beginning with the beach boys (pet sounds), then the beatles , then the kinks and the animals (the invasion), then came the rotating pebbles....but Burt Bacharach....I can't even begin to praise this guy enough. I had no idea he wrote so many songs with his lyrcist, Hal David. Dionne Warwick ("Walk On By"), the Supremes, Four Tops. You name it.

Bacharach did much more than merely write pop in the sixties, he defined it. In fact, it was his absolute dominance of the genre then, that mistakenly leads the casual observer today, into thinking that his output has since tapered off

I definitely have overlooked this prosperous branch of musical knowledge and pleasure, and it definitely calls for further investigation. Burt Bacharach's greatest hits anyone?

bbc2 song library

UEFA Champions League
Liverpool vs. Chelsea FC - to help ease the pain (re: cost) of car repairs, I'll be treating myself to an afternoon of soccer.

the eels - i keep meaning to check these guys out.

bands worthy of note since this music odyssey began a few months back : the russian futurists, blue VAN, bloc party, black lipstick, candidate....

if i think of any others, i'll be back.

filter-mini & digitalmusicnews

fluxblog

Aggregaitors

the hype machine - "Useful tool, or content theft overboard?" Who cares, its my kinda technology.

Also, elbo.ns

"Like eating cereal in a corn field, but for sushi"

free photo hosting

iPod => computer

Moebius Rex

Artist Currently known as Prince

January in May - "Someone" & "Eyes All Mine"