Month: October 2018

Apart from dropping Abi off at the airport, and Fiona at school, I didn’t get out of the house today. So today’s pictober photo is from my stash of emergency interior shot ideas.

Daily self-care checklist:

• Sleep: ugh
• Walk: nope
• Bass: nope
• Photography: not really
• Snacks: finished the banana bread

I did finally get up the nerve to open and try the packet of Oatly oat milk I bought on Saturday. It’s actually good! And not in a “if I’m not going to drink milk, then is as close as I can get” sense (see: coconut milk), but in a “I would actually seek this out and drink it on its own terms” sense. It nails the mouthfeel of cow milk, and when drunk cold it tastes like whole milk that has been left to steep in a bowl of sugary oatmeal. I’ll try it in some cereal tomorrow.

Alex and I went to this, and we were both not quite sure what to make of it. The band’s idea behind the Decomposition Theory project is to fuse algorithmically generated music with a live performance (“custom-made procedural audio processes, generative music programs, and live-coded noise”). The first two tracks they played were promising, featuring heavy beats that moved the crowd, but after that it moved much more into…bleep-bloops and noise. Alex and I both came out of it quite confused. What parts were algorithmically generated, and what parts were being performed at the time? How much of the performance was algorthmically generated before the performance, as opposed to being randomly generated live on stage each night? How much of the music was a deliberately curated statement of human art, and how much did they let the machines get the better of them?

I enjoy experimental and generated music, but there was so much here that I didn’t appreciate because I didn’t understand it. Up on stage Paul Wolinski, Rob Jones, and Simon Wright (Joe Shrewsbury wasn’t present) were banging along on synths, guitars, and noise generators, and really getting into it. In the crowd, fans were swaying along to beats I couldn’t follow. I wish they had a booklet to go with the show, because I feel like I was missing something.

(So was the guy who kept shouting out “Radio Protector!” after the band finished each piece. I hope he hadn’t been expecting a “best of” concert.)

Had Philip and Hilary round for pancakes in the afternoon, and in the evening Alex and I went to Tolhuistuin to see 65daysofstatic perform their new work, “Decomposition Theory”.

Daily self-care checklist:

• Sleep: excellent
• Walk: no, but I did cycle to NDSM and back
• Photography: some nice pics at NDSM, and some at the 65dos gig
• Bass: no
• Snacks: banana bread

Drove to De Meern today to have a look at Velux windows. Afterwards, I went for a walk through the Mauritspark and Meentpark, where the magpies made fun of my futile attempts to photograph them. This evening Alex and I watched a bunch of episodes of Community (season 1).

Daily self-care checklist:

• Sleep: medium. Woke up just after 04:00 and had trouble dozing off again
• Walk: about 5km around the parks
• Photography: leaves, berries, and lots of blurry birds
• Bass: no
• Snacks: banana bread

This afternoon Abi and I drove to the Zaandam side of the Hembrug area, had a wee rummage at the second-hand shop, and took the ferry across the canal to take some pictures at the Kissing Couple XXXL statue. It went up last year, and I’ve wanted to see it up close for a while. Pictober was the perfect opportunity!

Daily self-care checklist:

• Sleep: good, but interrupted a few times early in the night by having to pee. The only negative side effect of paroxetine for me seems to be bladder-related.
• Walk: well, I got out of the house. Let’s say that counts.
• Photography: yes
• Bass: about to do some now.
• Snacks: I made banana bread with some browning bananas from our fruit bowl. Then I ate some banana bread.

A quiet day. I bought a GorillaPod flexible tripod last week. I used it a bit yesterday evening while I was taking pictures at Zaanse Schans, but I discovered that one of the ball joints was floppy. Depending on the angle, it didn’t have enough resistance to hold the camera in position. When I got it home I noticed that there was a tiny crack in the housing for that joint. So this morning after dropping Fiona off at school, I dropped the GorillaPod at the camera store where I’d bought it for a warranty repair. Having a good camera store so close to Fiona’s school is convenient, but may prove a source of awful temptation.

Daily self-care checklist:

• Sleep: surprisingly good. I had been fretting about certain things as I lay down to go to sleep last night, and I’m surprised my mind was able to let go of the worries and drop off so quickly.
• Walk: no
• Photography: I spent a bunch of time selecting and editing the photos from the Emma Blackery concert the other night. I’m pleased with how they came out! I didn’t spend much time on new daily Pictober shots. Just a few selfies.
• Bass: yes, playing roots on some basic chords
• Snacks: Finished the bag of kruidnoten.