MusicThis
is the most rewarding and yet transient of my interests. I will go
for months, even years not listening with any regularity, then
suddenly I just can't get enough. My CD and Vinyl (yes, there is
still Vinyl) collection reflects this trend. I still haven't decided
whether to dislike or truly despise the new MP3 format. Anyone
looking for quality should shy away from this juggernaut. But, then
I fully supported Vinyl and the now defunct but higher quality Beta
format in video.
Audio & Home Theater A
true passion. The search for the perfect reproduction of sound (and
with the advent of acceptable quality sources like Laserdisk and DVD,
picture) is a never ending quest which sometimes becomes more
important than the goal (just read any copy of Audiophile
magazine... to which I still subscribe). In my middle age I have
learned (intellectually at least) to quell the want and identify the
point of diminishing returns.
ComputingI
spent several summers during High School at the ASU Computer
Sciences building in total awe of the behemoth Sperry-Univac's and
IBM's. I
had one of the first Apple II's in Arizona, along with an Altair.
They were later
replaced by an IBM PC clone when they became available (the true
IBM's were too expensive for anyone except the most affluent). Those
were the days when everything was new and exciting, inadequate yet
with unforeseen potential. Being young, I had unlimited time to
discover the next new thing. Nowadays new technologies are appearing
so fast that no-one can keep up. Now I have to learn to deal with
limited time and unlimited resources. I never could learn to
specialize.
PhotographyIn a
previous life, I dabbled in photography from 35mm to 4x5 large
format.. It was my mid-twenty's black hole of money and time. I don't have any time for
it now, but the medium is changing so rapidly my computer interests
seem to be headed for an inevitable collision with photography sooner
than I ever imagined.
Space Exploration
I grew up during what I think was one of the most defining periods
of this country's history. The US was recovering from WWII and
becoming comfortable with conservatism and prosperity when the
radical sixties hit and took most adults by surprise. There were a
lot of good and bad things that occurred during this period, but
there was one thing that made an indelible impression on me. The
Space Program and President Kennedy's goal of sending a man to the
moon and bringing him home safely by the end of the decade. I
understand there was a good deal of paranoia driving this policy.
The Cold War, competition with Russia, the greed and pride of
claiming the moon as US property, and the moon's potential strategic
value in light of the nuclear arms race. However, I recall as an
optimistic teenager that this was the only time, outside of
wartime, when I felt the country came together on a goal and
followed through with glorious results.. The dynamic of the Space
Race was amplified by the pessimistic attitudes being spouted by
my peers. The noise of the radical's philosophical rambling supplied
marked contrast to the remarkable accomplishments taking place
before our eyes. The world and I would never be the same. I had read
every science fiction book I could get my hands on while growing up,
but this was better. We were doing it. We learned we could do
whatever we put our minds and hearts to. We should continue the
effort regardless of arguments to the contrary. The benefits are not
only tangible and unpredictable, but can provide a replenishment of
our optimism and a confirmation of our potential.
