Dr_Flash_Amazing

Maybe. Coming from a small and fairly hip town, they were all peace punks with Crass patches. Whatever; the concept of "punk" has gotten so diluted and scattered, it's pretty meaningless now. Skate punk, peace punk, hardcore punk, gutter punk, skinhead, SHARP, rude boy, mod, new school, old school, sellout. Fuckit; bring the rawk.

Since when is punk rock about being a tough guy, tough guy? As far as tough guys mouthing off behind monitors, DFA hasn't exactly been threatening to kick the ass of any and all who disagree with and/or upset him, unlike other individuals on the board. And don't think the Doctor didn't talk plenty of shit as a youth, either. Being a skinny smartass teaches you how to run pretty damn fast.

We need that sleeping guy graemlin back, too. *yawn*

That's pretty much DFA's opinion. Although, after being totally floored by a $20k system at the local audio store (an excellent joint staffed by folks just as happy to sell you a $300 CD player as a $3,000 interconnect -- but never pushing you to buy anything: www.stereotypesaudio.com), the Doctor was considering trading in his car on the spot and spending the rest of his days sitting on the couch spinning CDs. One of the fellows at Stereotypes is a rep for Plinius, who makes rather pricey gear as well, and apparently he was dealing with some dude who'd retired from Microsoft who bought five $8,000 power amps, one for each channel of his home theatre system. Total madness right there; money to burn in full effect.

Zoinks! That is pricey merchandise. It's a kick reading the reviews at stereophile.com for the high-end shit. There was one for a Boulder Amps phono stage that was something like 17,000 clams. That was just the phono stage, mind you; you still need the preamp that they also reviewed, which was another $23,000. Seems just a tad excessive; but then again, the reviewer was practically babbling nonstop superlatives. Just sell the house, and you'd have a hell of a hi-fi system to rock your cardboard box!

Hmm ... so they don't only carry crap. And who knew they carried turntables? When the Doctor was getting a car alarm and car CD player there, he perused their home audio, and it was pretty ho-hum. Obviously not the same merch at every store, but this one was in outer SE Portland, so what can one expect?

Eat ass, eyeballs. Or however it goes.

Magnolia Hi-Fi, shit. If you're looking for some mass-produced, overpriced box with a bunch of flashing lights on the front and ho-hum sound quality, maybe. That there is the new Classic line from Naim Audio, which is sure to bring the rock with previously unheard-of quality.

That's why all of Greg's kids wear lifejackets at home!

How 'bout some of these beauties?

What, is she trying to lose weight by constantly vomiting?

Eh? You left off "Trask's Daddy," fucktard, of course DFA didn't vote yet!

Oh, Trask, your stalker-like preoccupation with the Doctor's sexual persuasion and personal hygeine habits is so adorable. Nice job on the poll, too. Keep up the good work, slugger!

Gee, Sisu, does this mean we can't hang out anymore? Why don't you and Caveman go kick the shit out of each other, or whatever you do to get your rocks off? Later, hater.

As far as good books for adults (assuming here that you don't mean "adult books"), try: Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser The Tortilla Curtain by TC Boyle The Lord of the Rings box set (there's gotta be one) by JRR Tolkien Stupid White Men by Michael Moore is supposed to be good, although DFA hasn't read it yet For the kids, how about some new handguns or rifles? Draft them into your own private home-protection army, so to speak?

P-) Yarr, matey! Ya smell like a dead fish <*){{{>< laddie! You're right, Iain! What great fun!

:that laughing face we used to have:

Iain, don't forget the ever-popular "piece of string" and "stick." Big playtime hits throughout the ages!

Chuck, how'd you get him to show up? Typing :yellaf: doesn't seem to do it anymore.

Greenieweenie ! Anyone who disagrees can get and eat the !

DFA was strapped with a completely unfounded fear of leading for quite a while, which proved very difficult to get over. Since you have gotten hurt falling, perhaps the first step would be to identify how or why you got hurt. Were the falls long or in dangerous places like swinging into a corner or hitting a ledge? Did they hurt because of your falling technique? Were you short-roped and took a hard fall, or did you get tangled in loops of slack? Identifying why the falls hurt you would be a logical first step, so you can avoid similar situations in the future, and ensure that your falls will be safe. People pitch off routes constantly, and it's pretty rare that they get hurt, so keeping this in mind might help. Then, of course, it's time to practice actually falling, and either the gym or a well-protected route outside is ideal. Find something moderately overhanging for starters, so you won't smack into something, get a trustworthy and competent belayer, and start falling. Take it slow and be sure you're comfortable, start small, and work your way up to bigger falls as you get more comfortable with it. You're unlikely to wind up with a bolt much lower than at your toes at most sport crags, so you don't need to be taking huge screamers to prepare yourself. If you don't want to start fall practice on the sharp end, try toproping with a little slack out and falling that way. You could also work on leading routes that are well within your ability and focus on staying calm, and focusing on the climbing, not the potential falls. This is a big difference between people who are scared of falling and people who aren't. Invariably, the people who aren't worried about falling are more focused on the actual climbing, and consequently wind up falling less. Toproping with some slack out is also a good way to help staying focused. You know you're on TR and it's safe, so just keep reminding yourself of that, and focus on the climbing. Talk to yourself if you need to in order to stay focused. DFA has found it helpful to verbally (either in your head or out loud) remind himself to breathe, focus, bear down, stick holds when dynoing, use good footwork, etc. Pretty much any time you catch yourself doing something you shouldn't or if you need to do something specific on a route, it's helpful to remind yourself verbally. It might seem a little silly, but hell, so is rock climbing.

Fair enough, Muffage. True the Doctor oughtn't be so quick to label. And don't worry, DFA knows he's not that "punk." Just another loser ex-skater with a smart-ass attitude, leftist politix, and and affinity for loud, fast, real muzak. Capt. Caveman sounds like he'd make a better skinhead than a punk (which is not to say that he's either, of course). He's already got the lust for violence and the rabid blind nationalism; all he needs is the haircut, the boots, and twenty other like-minded thugs to hang out with. Oi! Oi! Oi!

DFA has found plenty of friendly climbers at Smith Rock, Red Rocks, Maple Canyon, American Fork, Joe's Valley, The Happy Boulders, The Buttermilks, the Portland Rock Gym, Stone Gardens, and assorted other small crags and gyms here and there. The number of arrogant, obnoxious, or disruptive meatheads has been close to nil, although DFA hasn't run into Capt. Caveman at the crags yet ...

Climbing with stronger/better climbers is a great way to improve, and training helps too. Doing some cardio shtuff like running is helpful for building endurance, too, and is often overlooked. DFA found himself climbing much better after a few months of running, and climbing laps on the lead wall at the gym. Doing laps in the gym is helpful, as you can give yourself something moderate to work out on, adjusting difficulty as needed. It's a great way to focus on getting mental control over being pumped, which can be a huge way to advance. Think about it; how many times have you fallen off moves you can do after a rest because you were too pumped? Or blown an onsight because you let the pump take over? There is a huge mental component to being pumped, as it's your brain essentially trying to stop you from doing whatever's flooding your muscles with lactic acid, in this case climbing. So you start getting tense or scared, you feel like you can't keep going, you get gripped, and you're outta there. You'll find your technique getting sloppy, which makes you more gripped -- the phrase "pumped stupid" is actually pretty accurate. Teaching yourself to recognize this and overcome it is key. When you feel yourself starting to get pumped, remind yourself that you're totally safe, everything's cool, and you don't need to be pumped. Focus on controlling your breathing, taking deep breaths, and getting relaxed, and remind yourself that you're in control. Remind yourself to maintain good technique, keep focusing on your footwork, don't rush, etc. Sounds hokey as hell, but it's remarkably effective and helpful. Training your weaknesses is also handy. If you can't crimp for shit or you wither at the thought of dynoing, or if fear of falling paralyzes you, you're not going to advance until you overcome that weakness. Try to analyze your climbing or ask your partners where they think you could improve, and put in some time every time you're at the gym or the crag and work on whichever areas you need improvement. You'll likely break through your barrier, and you'll be a better-rounded climber as a result.