SaggyBalls

m-audio makes some of the special audio interfaces for digidesign. That's how most people afford using Pro Tools.

(still though, get your pickup fixed)

You need the m.audio/digidesign hardware to run it on PC properly, but it can definitely be done. Get the toys to use it...otherwise, I'd say you're just as far ahead using anything else.

I hear that, Dr. Mouse. It's less-than-ideal when teachers and administration don't approach running the system to move us all collectively forward, but it's not really like anyone could be CULPABLE. Really, approaching teaching/learning as such is next to impossible for most of the professionals involved unless those involved work together to make something bigger than education... ...which has taken me a few days to be able to really put my finger on, as it's so easy to read around and see what's less than jake instead of ramping up examples of how people are using the system...which aren't as easy to find when I need them. the 'something more' theme is pretty thread-appropriate. I find it wholly unfortunate that my experiences with school have left a fairly sour almost bitter taste in my mouth.

*DING DING DING*

Bouche - that shark thing I lent you... Has a bunch of bases covered aside from EQ and reverb/chorus - It has a compressor, feedback killer, and preamp. It has line or instrument in/out switches, so no need for a DI with this little sucker. The only thing is that it's digital so if you're an analog purist...you'll want to learn how to set it up and save your money while you have some time to figure out what preamp/eq/di unit would be best for you.** I suggest online gearhead forums for techy research and finding super deals based on practical and experiential advice (and testing) done at OFC and Lauzon (and to a lesser extent Steve's and L&M). FWIW, I thought I'd found a great deal on gear in the USA and after all was said and done (warranty/shipping issues) I'd have been about as far ahead to buy local. Really though, you might just wind up getting another one of these sharks, an EQ,and a nice acoustic amp. **I would really just be using the thing for a subsonic filter - my bass has 5 strings, tuned low, but there can be artifacts in the low end (anything under 31hz I'd cut out of my line) that could otherwise help focus my amp or FX chain. Until I get a pickup for my acoustic, I think you could actually make use of it - especially since I don't have any room on my pedalboard.

+1 to the EXTERNAL preamp. Keep your guitar pickup working and electronics out of your guitar. Less to break, less to have to send it away for. It's also easier to upgrade your preamp that way and USE IT WITH OTHER INSTRUMENTS... ...the Economics of Versatility, my man.

Aah yes, our Prussian Education. Perhaps it's been gearing us up for modernity, but it was invented for societal control. It's really not an option for most people to homeschool as owning a home requires massive debt and usually 2 incomes...but I can still be a dreamer about it...precisely the reason I mention the tax money alotted for each child. Sad though how our system of compulsory education is so often lacking. It would be great if kids had a chance to actually broaden their horizons from an early age and not just if they continue learning past highschool.

Every once in a while, huh?

Hope you've been able to do everything that you want to do. Here's to big hugs from the fam!

oh yeah...and when you do that, remember that taking tone away with an EQ and turning up the volume sounds better and works gear better than leaving it the same volume and turning up the bass/mids/treble to 'accentuate' something. crank it then take out what's harsh/muddy/awful. You'll probably find that your tone 'opens up' a lot more. Have Fun!

Why not find ways to adequately homeschool? The province doesn't like to circulate details about how parents can get their child's alotted grant money to help parents afford homeschooling their children so they can actually LEARN something, and have that something be useful and worthwhile. How hard would it really be to find a small group of parents to share teaching duties and make field trips easy to pull off? Guest lectures, community events, crafts, creative approaches to science experiemnts, art projects, libraries, museums, parks...all of these things are incredibly informative, and without a ministry-imposed class schedule, homeschool teachers can actually follow-up on outings and remind the kids how their trip was relevant and not just a vacation. Sure my trips to Upper Canada Village as a kid were filled with tangible examples of how the world was harder and what pioneers went through, but I remember other things a lot more than what I was there to learn. With the right approach, homeshooling has the potential to be FAR superior to our public school system, especially when one takes into account the learning styles of their children and the poor parenting skills of many parents that rub off on their little fucktard kids. yeah they're little miracles...but a lot of them are just as cunty (or moreso) as everyone you've ever wanted to throttle or stab. I'd want those assholes kept away from any kids I'd have but we can't really ensure that happens at school. Maybe from one persoective it seems like that's a great way to 'shelter' kids, but considering that I have a few friends whose children have been emotionally scarred or imprinted by a bunch of kids that - though they 'don't know better' (when they really do know better(or else they're sociopaths, since people really know right from wrong from very early on)) - are at fault for the ensuing poor behaviour that a parent has to get their kid to 'unlearn', finding ways to properly homeshool kids would have been a great way to both avoid that and provide a child with the right educational enrichment. It's also a great way to find time to take little trips with one's family that would otherwise be skipped... ...like to all the churches, mosques, and temples to get a sense of other peoples' experiences rather than sharing the impersonal ones that come with fluorescently-lit classrooms and flu-seasons filled with snot-nosed brats that whine about how your salmon sandwich reeks.

Save your money and get a fairly nice external preamp. Many of them have DI's built in which makes recording and playing out/on a PA (or good acoustic amp) much easier as you'd be fully prepared. Also, try to find that feedback killer/compressor I never grabbed back from you. you'll probably be able to clean up a lot of your tone with that, as you'd be able to actually turn your gear up and make it work optimally...(I'm a fan of cranked gear)

BTW, that's a fabulous picture.

"Effect A 2006 experimental study at the University of Missouri on 235 female undergraduates found that those subjected to a single viewing of a pro-ana site created by the study designers reported lower self-esteem and were more likely to become preoccupied with exercise and weight loss, as compared to control groups. A greater likelihood to exercise and a reduced likelihood to overeat or self-induce vomiting was also reported by the group viewing the pro-ana site.[35]" Too bad it didn't make me want to exercise. I also don't want to eat 3 pizzas...maybe one, but I can certainly handle that. Though grossly unhealthy and unwise, it is a lifestyle choice that needs to be pulled out of the closet. Considering that many of the 'facts' about nutrition promoted by the Government (more specifically about servings of grains, how to balance one's diet, and saturated fats) are bordering on false and negligent, people need to have any tools to live healthily that they can. ...And while it can be argued that proper fasting is one of the healthiest things a person can do, Ana and Mia are stupid bitches. now where's that pizza...

Casual Fridays: They're A-OK.

And what a story it seems to be.

I think I'm the only one that finds it laughable that people think the USA and Russia didn't become the fourth reich. We're not really on the side of the 'good guys' anymore we're in it for ourselves.

I wonder if they take agnostics or just atheists... Just cause somebody doesn't believe in organized religion doesn't mean that person doesn't believe in or experience the divine.

incredible potential with pixar. too bad they'll be too gummed up with comic book movies to make great pixar flicks.

I suppose it could be seen as a bit demanding to expect a government to be much past approval stage for infrastructure projects, but I don't think it's overly demanding. I do like his stand on Arctic Soveriegnty, but it shouldn't be hard to see that we're not all that much farther ahead than last year at the same time on almost every front. They campaigned on results. I see none. Perhaps I'm expecting too much in too short a time.

Can you people please stop calling him a cyclist and a bike courier? He was NOT a bike courier (recently quit his job as one) and he was NOT a cyclist when he got off his bike and grabbed onto the car. Technically he was a pedestrian, but he was also not walking - he was a clinging person, not walking or having to dodge/get out of the way of a moving car...only trees and mailboxes. Perhaps in the same situation I wouldn't have crossed traffic and ran the guy into a bunch of trees and mailboxes... ...but had I hung onto somebody's car I probably would have let go before being driven into a city mailbox. Though neither party seems to be innocent and a person lost his life...and that life would not had been lost if the driver of the car had not rammed the deceased into a bunch of trees and a city mailbox, my condolences only go out to the friends and family of the deceased, and not the deceased himself. Darwinism at its finest. YHWH must be glad that guy's not spreading his seed around anymore. Perhaps it's a bit harsh to suggest that the guy deserved it, but the reaction of Michael Bryant was entirely understandable. Had he left his car, he may have been injured (bike couriers, even those recently unemployed as such spend their days working out after all) or his car may have been damaged. Self Defense is certainly arguable and should be considered before being dismissed as merely an explanation of convenience. I understand that a man lost his life where it could have been avoided, but intent must be proven before the culpable can realistically be villainized.

It's far too sad that this next election will have at it the major ridiculous and inessential plastic issue of 'Canadians didn't want an election' bullshit that doesn't fucking matter. That's right, all you whiners - your 'I didn't want an election' commentary is horseshit. y'know why? Cause Iggy's doing his job precisely as he is supposed to. He's the Leader of the OPPOSITION. It's his job to lead his party to oppose, find fault, and topple the Government. For months he was actually doing his job worse than Jack Layton - who would have shone as opposition Leader but for some reason we didn't vote the NDP in... Though I was secretly rooting (not anymore i guess) for Layton, I always admired Iggy for giving the Conservatives some time to get their act together - which they NEVER DID. They had months to extend some hard work and effort to this great nation but it never happened. Do I think we NEED an election? No. Would we Benefit from a change of power? Entirely. For those that would argue 'But Canada is sitting best in this world Economic Downturn'...Just look at who's suggesting this: The World Bank. Not to get too hard into it, but not only are we not poised on financial ruin, but we were never really at a place that we were ever about to explode with growth and prosperity. Our wealth is resource-based. Manufacturing is going decidedly abroad and leaving well paying jobs in the dust in the name of our new Global Economy and we're coming to a time that our entire economy/society will have to regroup and reinvent itself. This next election we're going to have to demand more from our leaders and push for the society that we only thought possible in our dreams. I had so much hope for the Conservatives to actually do a good job in office. They merely failed to make horrendous errors. They Failed to stimulate this country's potential and latent abilities as well as our apparent ones. You just watch the next few months - you'll rarely get a straight, detailed answer about things they actually did...instead you'll get figures and potential initiatives that they 'couldn't get going' even though it's on the backs of our Civil Servants to do all the actual work in getting these projects moving and keeping them going. "perhaps im just too jaded to recall, but can someone provide an example of an elected federal government that promised something quite different from it opponents and then acted on that promise?" (PT) Well, Phishtaper - the Conservatives have. They worded themselves so as to assure us that they weren't going to really do anything, make any sort of necessary change that would challenge our sensibilities and be any sort of a risk. They did that. So I suppose they were an immense success, even though they're likely going to be voted out of office...for coming through and doing exactly what they promised.

Though you may have some idea, you don't even know, KK. UGH!