Some Other Things...
I've reserved this part of the site for posting various things that make me happy. We've already covered computer programming and music in the first couple sections of the site, so now I would just like to briefly mention:
Motorcycles
What's not to be said about the joy of riding a motorcycle? There's nothing quite like the feeling of the wind rushing over your body. Or the roar of a parallel-twin engine. The new intimacy you share with the flora and fauna living on the side of the road. Getting to wave at other motorcyclists! And the bugs which seem to aim themselves to collide directly with the few small areas of skin you've left exposed...
This bike was actually my graduation present to myself. Although it cost having a bit of
my brain fried, I managed to pay my way through university with cash and graduate
completely debt free. I managed to do this by taking a year off after high school to
work 50-60 hour weeks as a shift manager at Burger King. The overtime money eventually
accumulated into enough dough to pay for my last two and a half years of class. I left
Burger King shortly after hitting this mark with the intention of focusing solely on
school, but ended up getting two more jobs after deciding to move out of my parents house
and into an apartment with my girlfriend. I worked at the music store K&S Music 15-20 hours
a week part time, and simultaneously found a full-time position in the deli at Walmart. Our apartment was situated
above an event hall in Kulpmont PA, so rent was cheap. At the same time though, Kulpmont was about
a 45 minute drive from campus in Bloomsburg.
Needless to say, my work life balance wasn't great, but I also never fell into debt. If I ever had
the choice to do it all over again, I don't think I would change anything. Jeez was I tired during
those four years though.
With the bit of money I had leftover, I purchased a Triumph at the
recommendation of my bass player, Paul. After learning to ride it with some help from my Dad
(who was actually just getting back into riding himself after about 25 years) I got to spend most
of my summer traveling around by motorcycle. It's been a really great experience so far and very fun
to learn something new. I would recommend it to anybody who thinks they may be interested. The PA MSF
course is free to anybody with a motorcycle learners permit, and a permit only cost $10.00 or so. I guess
I'll finish this section off with some photos I was able to take while riding through the farmland
behind my home town.
Vintage Stereo Equipment
Another one of my hobbies is collecting and restoring old stereo equipment. I guess I discovered my affinity for this type of work as a teenager, after tearing apart an old, non-functioning BSR record player at my grandparents house. I eventually got the thing to work by having a belt bypass the mechanism for selecting playback speed, as all of the moving parts within that assembly had become glued together by the decaying lubricant that had been applied to them in the 70s. A couple years later I bought a pioneer turntable and Denon AM-FM Multiplex Solid State receiver from a Pawn Shop. The turntable worked after minor fidgeting. The Denon receiver required some DeOxit on all of the pots and electrical contacts, as well as a pretty massive cleaning on the exterior. The pioneer turntable has since been retired, but the Denon runs as my workstation's audio amplifier to this day.
From what I can remember, I acquired the setup I have now through Ebay and Craigslist. I run a Pl-510A turntable and CT-F750 Cassette Deck through an SA-6800 Integrated Amp. The tuner I have connected is actually the TX-7800, a level above the 6800 series. The whole setup is connected to a DT-400 Digital Timer as well. The DT-400 isn't particularly useful to me, but it does look cool. The speakers I use with this setup are actually custom builds within repurposed cabinets I bought from a man I met on Craigslist.
Cats
My last notable hobby would have to be my cats. There isn't much to be said about them that hasn't been said about other cats, so I'll just leave their pictures here. Behold, my boys:
And that's that, I suppose. If you've read this far, I'm honestly surprised I was able
to keep you interested this long. As always, feel free to reach out to me any time using
the contact info on this site if you have any questions or comments, or even just want to chat.
I hope that life is treating you well, and that many good things come your way.
~ Leo :^)
