Dave Rat - Roadies in the Midst

One of the most enjoyable parts of traveling as we all agree is without a doubt the fun we have at the airport. Especially enjoyable are the lines we get to stand in and meet new people with the common goal of making it through security. Another fun part is checking bags. Notice below roadie Daniel's excitement at having the opportunity to delicately repack his belonging neatly in the traveling enclosure with the assistance of roadie Lyssa. It is my understanding that the airline employee had informed him that his other bag was over weight. The other roadies in line had much compassion that we expressed by laughing at his plight before several other roadies had to do the exact same thing.

As painful as it is to see the cycle of life in action and compassion for the fallen lives that were lost in the hunt brings tears to our eyes, we must face the realities of natural selection and survival of the fittest. Look, there, just as you have seen on the discovery channel when lions feast upon a fallen zebra, I have spotted three roadies that consuming three burgers that were not fit enough to escape their captors:

**** Roadies in the Midst 101 ****

If you were struggling with the mid term finals, do not fret, you can boost your grade by signing up for winter school and performing one or more of the following extra credit exercises:

1) Do considerable 'sound research' by listening to music. For the advanced listener should you choose to partake, there are many perspectives one can take while listening. Typically the most pleasure is derived from 'immersed,' where you become lost in the flow. Other perspectives are objective, analytical, technical, comparative and on and on. One way of taking an analytical view is to have a set of things that you will listen for, perhaps: kick, snare, cymbals, bass, guitar, vocals in that order, would be a good start. Then as the song progresses, you mentally cycle through them doing a level and tonality check. How loud is the kick in relation to the other instruments? Picture the tone. Is is complementary of conflicting with other tones? Keep in mind that for this exercise, no judgment or musical preference is made. Purely neutral and tonal and volume. How do the results from the cycle of listening differ from pop to reggae to heavy metal to punk? Which typically has the loudest kick drum? Which has the loudest bass? How do the vocal levels compare?

2) Practice your 'meet a roadie' skills on random humans by introducing yourself randomly to new people. Feel free to do this naked if you are so inclined.

3) Avoid stepping in poo.

Complete any or all of the above and you will receive an A+ for semester1 of 'Roadies in the Midst 101'

**** End First Semester of Roadies in the Midst 101 ****

The rarely bored,

Dave Rat