Category: Aspiration

Living by Joe WilcoxApr 13, 20169:50 pm

On The Road Again

I took my Guerciotti bicycle out on the road today—perhaps the first time in over a year. That’s a bad habit I must cure.

I bought the roadster from a shop in San Diego’s North Park municipality that sells older road warriors. Near as my limited research reveals, and please someone correct me, this is a mid-1980s Sprint built around an Alan-made Aluminum frame (Corsa 487 tubing). She’s light—I’d guess not much more than 9 kilos (20 pounds) as rigged. Major components are Campagnolo-made, including the rims.

Society by Joe WilcoxDec 19, 201510:15 am

My New Friend

The 2015 holiday Android Collectible is Bingle Bear. U.S. Postal Service delivered him about 40 hours ago—in two days, despite the holiday rush, and shipped immediately, too. Thank you Andrew Bell and Dead Zebra. His […]

Living by Joe WilcoxNov 25, 20156:07 pm

Virtual Reality in a cardboard box?

Today the New York Times spammed my inbox: “We’ve just launched an innovative virtual reality platform that will transform the way you experience stories. As one of our most loyal digital subscribers, you are entitled to a complimentary Google Cardboard virtual reality viewer for an enhanced viewing experience”.

I took advantage of the freebie, thinking that this thing, which literally is a cardboard box, should be an April Fool’s hoax. I kinda heard about it before but ignored. Cardboard boxes are for Amazon packages and cat play after they arrive. High-tech gadgetry, c`mon? What? Is this the newest thing in recyclable tech?

Living by Joe WilcoxNov 17, 20153:25 pm

‘Paris, I Love You’

I haven’t quite abandoned Tidal, despite bassy boom when using my new Sennheiser Momentum 2 headphones. Lossless listening is otherwise enjoyable; the problem starts with the cans and ends with the music streaming service not providing a graphic equalizer. I understand there being no EQ, if the point is high-fidelity that fairly accurately represents the original recording. That said, I really need to throttle back bass, or my ears ache. Aging sucks.

Tidal’s playlists are consistently fresh and superbly curated. Today’s delight: “Paris Je T’aime“, or “Paris, I Love You”, which timing isn’t coincidental, following Friday the 13th terrorist attacks that killed 129 around the city. “Memoria”, by Indochine, is the 22-track playlist’s standout.

Society by Joe WilcoxNov 14, 201510:24 am

SDCC 2016 Preregistration Success!

At 9:35 a.m., I completed buying a full pass to Comic-Con 2016, four minutes after moving from the Waiting Room to the purchase queue. The pulp-media cultural event costs more every year. I paid $220 this year and $245 for next, which works out to $40 each for Preview Night and Sunday (Family Day) and $55 apiece for the others.

SDCC 2016 is the second year I pay to attend. Comic-Con International did not recertify my press status for 2015. I have submitted fresh verification documentation but took advantage of preregistration rather than wait. My concern is not attending rather than paying. Press certification’s major benefit is assured attendance. But there’s no guarantee that my media status will be approved.

Society by Joe WilcoxNov 14, 201512:47 am

Wow, the Amazon Home Page

Solidarité is right, and nothing for sale visible above the fold. Americans are often too oblivious to tragedy overseas, even among Western allies. If someone didn’t see the news, and shops Amazon, they have to wonder what the page refers to.

My wife and I watched live coverage for hours from CBS and Sky news services, streamed, since we’re cord-cutters again. To recap: Coordinated terrorist attacks left more than 120 dead in Paris, late last night (local time there). The city is in lock down.

Living by Joe WilcoxOct 26, 20158:04 pm

#OptOutside is Brilliant Marketing

Well, Hell, I just spotted an email sent by REI three hours ago, and I am having a “Miracle on 34th Street” moment. It’s like Macy’s Santa sending customers to Gimbels. The outdoor clothier and gear retailer will close for the biggest shopping day of the year. While other sellers countdown to sales, REI ticks time until doors closed.

Marketing tagline: #OptOutside. And there is a website, to socially share and join the community going outdoors rather than inside the concrete jungle of rabid, frothing sales seekers. You know the breed. They’ll attack anyone and anything—no prey is too large—to save two bits on a dollar. They roam in vast herds of destruction across the retail prairies the day after Thanksgiving. They are vicious, vindictive creatures. REI is right to free employees from serving them, or customers encountering these beasts drawn to discounts like they were pheromones of heat.

Photo by Joe WilcoxOct 22, 201510:21 pm

Bump Art

Sometimes I am shocked to find myself out of touch with popular culture—and that’s a terrible admission living in Southern California, where pronounced body art can be seen everywhere. Yet, not until yesterday’s Flickr Blog post “Belly Paining” and link to small gallery of photos had I ever seen such a thing.

Yeah, my wife and I are middle-aged parents with a daughter in college—removed from immediate contact with expectant-mother lifestyle. Nevertheless, how in the land of tattoos could I miss something so interesting, creative, and personally expressive? What a wonderful way to celebrate the joys (and hardships) of pregnancy.

Photo by Joe WilcoxOct 16, 20156:38 am

Flickr a Day 289: ‘Neglected’

Okay, camera geeks, this one is for you. “My beloved Yashica Mat 124G”, Vu Bui describes, “that I have completely neglected”. Hence the self-title. He used one of my fav mirrorless digicams, the Fujifilm X100, […]

Critters by Joe WilcoxOct 15, 20156:01 am

Eight Years Later

On this day in 2007, the small Wilcox clan relocated to San Diego—to be closer to my father-in-law, who turns 94 in about two months. We sacrificed much, and gained some, too, by leaving the Washington, D.C area. Daisy, as seen in one of her last romps in our backyard, is among the many things precious we left behind. I still miss that rabbit, which surely has exhausted her lifespan by now.

If I could redo any part of my life, we would stay somewhere around Washington and never move out West. The community left there, we never really regained here. My daughter’s burgeoning ice skating career collapsed with the loss of coach and friends. While she found other mates at San Diego High School and San Diego State University, she left behind more—as did my wife Annie and I.

Society by Joe WilcoxOct 5, 20159:15 pm

Where No Values Have Gone Before

For more than two weeks I have kept open in a browser tab essay “How Star Trek Explains the Decline of Liberalism” by Timothy Sandefur. Someone shared the story in one of my social feeds in mid-September—and apologies for not recalling whom. I don’t agree with the title, set against the writing, but I do largely agree with the analysis about Star Trek’s reflection of our society over the course of 50 years.

I loved the original series, which aired in 1966. Much as I liked, and even imitated Spock, Kirk’s bravado and moralism rapt my attention. He acted rather than hesitated. Meanwhile, series creator Gene Roddenberry and his producers, directors, and writers used the storytelling as metaphors and allegories commenting on American society and its values. I aspired to be like James Tiberius Kirk: Do the right thing, for the greater good of all, regardless the risk.

Living by Joe WilcoxAug 23, 20153:55 pm

Freedom on a Train

As someone who relishes the idea of a more nomadic lifestyle, I totally get Leonie Müller’s taking up residence on trains. Right, she lives on the rails rather than pays rent. She writes about her experiences, […]