Strangers Have Left On Longer Trains Before - Ghost of Hope by the Residents ~ a Review... sort of

Well, the superintendents of the subterranean have done it again. Ghost of Hope, the latest release by the Residents, delivers everything fans have come to expect from the masters of storytelling... and more.

If you're reading this, then you probably already know about the Residents, therefore I'll forego an introduction here, but if you need more background, cheque out this link - The Residents or What Does Salt Smell Like?

Life is a Lonely Train

I waited a long time for this release and was so excited when my special order from Psychofon Records finally arrived. It was special because I received two different, limited edition pressings of the Ghost of Hope; the Die Hard Lenticular Set and the Collector Edition. The latter being black and red speckled over white vinyl. The Collector Edition is limited to 250 numbered pressings and includes a six postcard set. 

Photo credit N Ritchie

The Die Hard Edition is limited to 100 pressings. This package includes two one-sided clear discs with a distinctive red spot in the center. 

I collect medical X-rays and have a snazzy light screen for viewing them. When I noticed that the cover art on the Die Hard Edition is translucent and resembles X-ray prints, I couldn't resist taking a look. 

The label image is lenticular, meaning that it appears differently depending on viewer perspective. 

 3D images of lenticular label

Also included in the Die Hard edition is a 7" one-sided glow in the dark 45 rpm record featuring the song,Train vs Elephant

Photo credit Don Fickles

And, as if that wasn't enough, the Die Hard Edition also includes a 10" x 10" lenticular print of the album cover.

3D representation of 10"x10" lenticular print

Another limited edition version of Ghost of Hope was released a few weeks later. The Red Splatter version is limited to 100 pressings and may be the most striking visual of any of the versions.

 bright background

I'm not even going to mention the music on Ghost of Hope except to say that this record was produced by and features Eric Drew Feldman of Captain Beefheart, Snakefinger and Gong fame. Nolan Cook is credited for his contributions on guitar. Also noteworthy is the fact that this will be the last Residents record to feature the original Residents since Charles Bobuck recently announced his departure from the band. 

numbers 22

Good luck finding one

Santa Rant 2015

I can remember exactly where I was standing when Bonnie Gang convinced me that there was no Santa Claus. 

Bonnie is someone I had known since my first day of kindergarten and had been a trusted peer for about four years. One day, around Christmastime, she seemed to have a message of deliverance that she wanted to share with me in private.

 We were standing in the West Elementary library, where the top of the stairway meets the long wavy wall that divides the upper and lower library. Bonnie had always been smart, and that gave her message credibility. No one else seemed to be there as I pondered the evidence and came to conclusion that she was telling the truth and that Santa is a Big Fat Lie. 

Time stood still as a deluge of emotion washed over me. Initially, I was embarrassed that I had so faithfully believed the lie, but most of all, I couldn't understand why the lie in the first place? 

The lie was elaborate too, and everyone was in on it; parents teachers, siblings. I remember lying in bed on Christmas Eve, listening to the Santa's sleigh update on KCPX AM radio, that supposedly tracked the magickal giftsman on radar. Even the media was in on the deception.

Is it good for children to be deceived on such a grand scale?

   

HELLFIRE XX 2015 - in 3D

Hundreds of home-made model rockets took flight this weekend at the Bonneville Salt Flats.

Perfect weather conditions contributed to a successful gathering for the Utah Rocket Club's annual Hellfire model rocket launch event. 

 

3d image of someone's display

Every summer, Rocketeer hobbyists bring their rockets of all sizes from around the country to participate in this unique launch event. 

 

3D image of another display

Many of the rockets exceed ten feet in length and ascend to an elevation of more than 20,000'. Therefore, FAA approval had to be granted and airspace closed to aircraft for the event. 

 

3D image adding perspective

Some of the rockets were made from kits while others where self-designed and made from scratch. Some of the participants brought scale models of iconic rockets such as the German V2 and Friendship 7.

 

3D image of a German V2 - the first weaponized missile known for the destruction and terror it inflicted on London during WWII

 

3D image of Friendship 7 - the Redstone Rocket that launched John Glen on the first US orbital flight. There was even a little astronaut in the capsule.  

More than a hundred rockets were expected to launch over the four day event.

 

3d image of a launch

Some of the rockets exhibited exotic sparkle effects as fiery engine-thrust particles blasted from their engines.

The rocket below was one of my favorites at the event and it performed wonderfully, except for a bumpy landing on someone's car. No damage done.

 

3D image B4 launch

 

Launch

 

Parachute

 

Crashdown

At the end of the day, everyone gathered together for a group photo with their rockets. 

 

3d image - group photo

 

3d Image - group disbursement 

See ya again next year UROC HELLFIRE XXI!!

Great Salt Lake in 3D Part 6 Surveying the Stansbury Mountains

In 1981, I temporarily worked for the United States Geological Survey as part of a project to update the map of the Stansbury Mountain Range and part of the valleys on each side. I spent the entire summer locating and documenting old survey monuments, mines, roads, structures and etc. 

One of the most memorable aspects of the job was the day we carried building materials to the top of one of the mountain peaks on the north end of the Stansbury Range. 

There, at an elevation of 5570' above sea level, we constructed a large sighting target directly over an official USGS triangulation Station.* The 10' tall target could be viewed from numerous other locations throughout our vast project area. 

Now, thirty-three years later I climbed to the top of the Stansbury Mountains and returned to the triangulation station. This is something I've planned for some time. I pored over maps and aerial photos to determine the best route up the rugged mountain. There are no trails, and the closest road ends at the base of the mountain.

3D photo of the peaks on the north end of the Stansbury Mountain Range looking NW across the north end of Skull Valley. Black Mountain is visible in the distance. 

I began my ascent early in the morning while it was still dark. When the sun finally peeked over the Oquirrh Mountains, on the other side of the Tooele Valley, I took refuge out of the cold wind in a rocky nook where I soaked in the solar warmth and ate my pre-prepared meal of bison. The view was spectacular.

When I reached the the triangulation station, I found the target broken and laying on the ground. A broken cross-section was still in place and the pile of rocks that we used to secure the wooden ten-foot tall 2x4 were still there but somewhat displaced. 

Over time, the guy wire we had used to secure the target had rusted and failed. Rust stains have become a permanent part of a large anchor that still had some thirty three year old guy wire wrapped around it. 

3D photo of dilapidated triangulation target looking west across Skull Valley.

I took the liberty of standing the old dilapidated target up by wedging the ten foot long 2x4 betwixt some large rocks. It isn't anchored with guy wire this time and probably won't last through the winter, but for now it can be seen from many miles away.

3D photo from top of Stansbury Mountains looking NW toward Stansbury Island on the Great Salt Lake.

The Stansbury Mountains are named for their original surveyor, Major Howard Stansbury, (1806-1863). 

US Interstate 80 crossing the alkali flats of the south shore of the Great Salt Lake, a few miles north of Grantsville.

Stansbury, and his party of surveyors, are credited with the first official survey of the Great Salt Lake from 1849 to 1851. He was the first person to determine that the Great Salt Lake is actually a remnant of a greater ancient lake that he called Lake Bonneville.

3D photo of Lone Rock in Skull Valley looking west from the top of the Stansbury Mountains.

Lone Rock** in Skull Valley, another important triangulation point, is an interesting and unusual rock formation that has become a popular destination for outdoor enthusiasts. 

Salt plant on the south shore of the Great Salt Lake where State Highway 196/Skull Valley Rd intersects US Interstate 80. Black Mountain in the distance.

Salt production is an obvious industry on the shore of the Great Salt Lake. There are also billions of Sea Monkeys out there. 

Other important resources are extracted from the mineral-rich lake including magnesium at US Mag and even nutritional supplements in the form of trace minerals at Trace Minerals Research.

3D photo from the top of the Stansbury Mountains looking west across Skull Valley.

3D photo of 3D camera apparatus.

Major Stansbury's legacy lives on in the island and mountains that claim his name, and the monuments that he erected on mountain peaks and valleys around the Great Salt Lake.

* The Triangulation Station is located at approximately 

40° 43' 39.30" N

112° 37' 53.80" W

These coordinates are not official USGS coordinates, but are accurate within seconds. 

** Lone Rock Coordinates 

40° 42' 32" N

112° 41' 04" W