That's Mister GothFvck to you!

Favourite Brand: G & L

2026-04-04T05:55:56Z

Is anyone else aligned with a certain brand?

I root for G & L because it was Leo Fender's and George Fullerton's last venture; last incarnation. Leo kept iterating and improving on guitar technology his entire life. Whenever someone brings up, or brings out, a Fender. I always mention G & L.

First was Fender, which was sold to CBS and is now Fender Music Instrument Company. That's where he came out with the classics. Stratocaster. Telecaster. Jazz bass. Percussion bass. Then, he was with Music Man. Which borned the Stringray -> Kiloton. Then finally G & L which was eventually left to his wife who left it with their lifelong friends that continue the legacy.

Back in 1999 I started playing with a Made in Mexico Fender: Jazz bass. It was pretty good. At some point I got to try out a Squire: Percussion bass. I didn't like that one as much. It sounded flat; dull. In the early 00's I bought a 5-string Ibanez: Soundgear 305DX. That one was pretty cool but, it wasn't really my thing. Ultimately, I sold both of those then when I needed a bass for my old band to get back together for a one off show, I decided it was appropriate to find a good jazz bass again.

It didn't take very long for me to find the G & L: MJ-4. Lucky me, I found one of the USA models on sale at a small shoppe. This bass blows my old one out of the water. The feel. Tuning stability. Sustain. Sound with hum canceling pickups and preamp that boosts the low mids just right. They put the bass and treble in good spots, too. It's as if they know how bass is supposed to sit in a mix with a full band. lol.

Check out the Fallout bass as well if you're curious about short scales. Especially if you don't want one that looks or feels like a tiny toy of a bass. Engage that OMG Mode and you'll effectively get a phat low end boost.

If you're looking for one end all, be all bass that isn't a boutique custom made instrument... Or something to try out different sounds with, definitely look into the L-2500. Two humbuckers that can be coil split for a pseudo J-bass sound, run in parallel, or in series. You can modify it to add a capacitor to give it an OMG Mode that pushes less highs through one half of the pickups. If you're a serious beginner or a pro, I recommend this.

The MFD -- magnetic field design -- pickups are really cool. They have a large magnet on the bottom. They've got the highest output of any passive pickup and sound great. Huge, bold, aggressive-when-you-want-it tone. Now they've got MFD jazz pups. Still waiting for those to be sold separately. I may replace a few of my others with those. Or maybe not and I'll just learn how to make pickups myself with the specs & features I want. MFD's are available in guitars as well.

Why I'm writing this is partially because I truly believe they are better than the mass produced stuff the big corporation that uses his last name is pumping out. I was to support what seems to me like an underdog. This is something I believe to be unfair. Not to mention that the instruments are very reasonably priced considering they're made in the US. Even the Tribute line only has bodies & necks manufactured overseas. The electronics & QC are done in Fullerton, CA.

No, I am not (at the time of this writing) endorsed by them. Though, I am not by any means against it. However, they'd have to make 8 (10) and 12 (15)-string multi-course basses and basses with 7-strings (extended range two below + one above) if they don't want me using anyone else's on stage. :P

X-posted: musicianships

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Productivity App

2025-11-16T11:59:00Z

One of my buddies recently got me into using this... how you call it? self-care app. I mostly use it as my task manager. It's set up so I can be passively nagged about all the things I want done every day.

Which is:
• write a microblog post
• write a post here (on DW)
• exercise (push-ups, walk, etc)
• stretch
• take vitamin D + calcium at night
• listen/watch to a netcast
• read/listen to a book/story
• practice playing music

Some of those are shared with certain people. We can easily encourage each other.

There's an option to set things as weekly. It's pretty flexible. I haven't fully integrated all that, yet.

What I have done is game the system. I've found a way to get tens of thousands of in-game currency every day. lol. I've turned this into a collect-them-all game. The only in-game purchasable items are clothing, furniture, and dyes. I did also pay for the app for myself and a few loved ones. That gives a little bit extra, nothing huge.

I have to say that it's really helped me so far and, despite the grinding I've chosen to do, it's fun!

Tap this link or use my friend code QBZVH6899P6 for a special reward!

https://finch.go.link/7IMmu?adj_label=TWsrj

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kids these days

2025-10-22T04:23:43Z

Where do I begin? These younger generations don't seem to know how to behave, communicate, nor handle...well anything really.

Over the last few years I've attempted stepping outside my old circles and reach out to get to know new people. Some only a little younger than I. Others, just a little younger than those. I think some of it has to do with people spending too much time on mainstream social media and other toxic places on the net.

That's not all of it though. I wish I could simply blame the platforms and AlGoreRhythms. People just have crippling anxiety these days. I used to know a woman, my age, who was also this way. That was years ago.

Something in the world happened, besides the SARS CO-V 2 pandemic. Although, it was roughly around the same time. I'm seriously starting to wonder if there really is "something in the water". lol.

One of my exes came back. We spoke a few times and things went well. She said she needed time and that's why it was so long between conversations. Basically, she couldn't handle talking to me without being with me romantically. She returned at a bad time when I was so not ready for another relationship. I haven't heard from her in months. It's sad because I really enjoy talking to her on the phone. Who knows if we could work back up to that point.

There's a few other instances of seemingly getting pretty close then the girls just ghost. So rude and disrespectful. No explanations. No discussing any thoughts or feelings. No closure.

I want to be a good friend. I attempt to reach out, open up. I do my best to communicate my thoughts, feelings, and reasonings. I am blunt and straight forward. I expect others to be the same. Honesty. No lame excuses. If you present to me what seems to be a problem then I will work around it and provide a solution.

So, if you're gonna not committe, you'd better have some good reasons otherwise I'd like to figure things out so we can enjoy our time together. My friends are important to me. I make the time and put in the effort. 🌵 you if you don't. I don't have the time nor the energy for childish nonsense and games. That said, none of us is perfect.

That's probably enough for tonight. I'll find something else to write about tomorrow!

I want to end this with stating how grateful I am to have the friends I've had for the last approx. 10-20 years. 💞💞💞

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HELP!

2025-10-07T18:41:49Z

Ugh... soo.. I've been putting this off for too long. The last several months have been terrible and I need money to get out of debt and not get thrown out of the apartment.

You don't have to read it all to donate! You can also buy stuff from my old band.
https://ko-fi.com/gothfvck
https://buymeacoffee.com/gothfvck

It's not me, it's the world.

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June 2025 Listening Report

2025-07-02T08:31:55Z

What music have you been listening to?
I got back into Internet radio via Radiodroid when I'm not listening to CDs.
Some of my favourite stations are:
Death.FM -- celebrating twenty years!
Chronix Radio
Nightride.FM

Albums (in no particular order):

( Nearly complete list of albums listened to )

X-posted:
My microblog
TFC Monthly Recap

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CD Player + Headphones in 2025

2025-06-25T09:45:09Z

Yup. A few weeks ago I bought a new portable CD player. It's got some pretty good features and sounds pretty good. Maybe it doesn't have a trendy audiophile DAC and the anti-skip protection brings CDs to lossy quality but, it does have BT5.1 and two 3.5mm headphone outputs w/ FM radio and even will read MP3s from a 64GB microSD card. For the price, it's a good value.

It's great walking around town or even the house with a CD player in my pocket or in it's case hanging from my belt loop. Generally, I've always got the wire connected.

I wish it had BT5.4 because improvements for audio quality and distance were implemented. HW manufacturers should be required to ship with the latest spec with the next batch of parts they order, when it comes to things like this.

Using it to rip CDs is not quick, easy, nor good quality. It's one track at a time and the files don't have any indicator about where they came from.

Next time I go to a show, I can buy an album from a band and listen to it on the way back! When I go out, I can bring a few MP3 CDs. Typically I go for opus files but, I guess I could transcode from FLAC to both. opus for my digital music player and MP3 specifically for this then delete those wretched, obsolete things. lol. That format seriously needs to die already.

There are a few other options out there currently or coming soon. However, they all disappoint me. I'll likely pick up a fiio DM13 when I can afford it as it also offers a good function to cost ratio. What good features they are! Not to mention this one supports multiple output jacks, BT with various codecs, actual lossless quality for listening & ripping. Among others for ~$150 US.

I plan on grabbing a fiio BTR17 as soon as possible, too. It's a portable BT DAC, amp, and EQ. There aren't many EQs out there. I'm not sure why.

I wish it had an option to switch between the digital presets and a parametric w/ low & high shelves for the bass and treble, plus low mid, mid, and high mid all on dials that can lock into place easily. I want something tangible where I can reach into my pocket to adjust the volume as well as the sound.

The app is fairly robust. Certainly is enough to set equalizer presets for a portable listening experience but, it's not open source. At any time they could cease development or push firmware with a breaking change or regressions.

Kind of like a Logitech gaming keyboard I used to have. The settings used to stay on the kb itself. I updated and that no longer was true. This was the main selling point at the time as far as available mechanical gaming keyboards with macropads went. It initially had good GNU+Linux support.

Other CD player contenders:
Lenco CD 500BK - This is a good inexpensive one but, it doesn't appear to have a clear top to see the disc, lol. Another issue is that it has a non-replaceable batter. (So does the Klim. Boooo)
Lenco CD 300 - This is similar to the above. Main differences are this one does Not do FM radio but, it does use 2x AA batteries. These both appear to have a 24mo warranty! Relatively speaking, that's great. What I'd like to see is 10yr+ be the standard.
Dunu Concept R - They want $750 for it. lol. They can go spin. If it had i/o and multi-channel support of SACDs then I'd consider it because it would replace a living room surround sound CD player. It sure looks cool.

For that price and considering it has one dial, I want more dials for the EQ. May as well drop in an SBC and let it look up CD metadata as well as ability to read CD-TEXT and properly fill out FLAC tags. The sheer audacity they have asking so much. The sheer stupidity people have to actually pay this! To top things of, the thing isn't even going to be manufactured in N. Am.

Nice first attempt. I'll hold my breath for v2 to live up to everything in the CD, SACD, and HDCD specs, and all that a portable and LR stereo could offer.

It sounds like I just need to get rich and buy out some of these companies so they start doing the right thing and live up to my standards. XD

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My First Pluck

2025-06-16T20:03:58Z

Waaaayyyy back around the turn of the century when people were fretting about Y2k, I was told that we were moving and he was going to start jamming with his friend, Garrett. I was handed a 90's Fender* Jazz bass (made in Mexico) and a book or two and shown some basic technique. All within a 2min period.

A few weeks after we did, I was told to go downstairs and play along. I was shown a few riffs and tried to keep up using this pathetic 50watt practice amp. The drummer was always very loud and the guitarist had a proper 2x 4x12 set up with a 100+ watt Crate amp head. Which has since fried and replaced with something that I forget but, it also sounded good with the band during our final practice.

Fast forward a year or so and we've got an album's worth of songs. Those two alternated between vocals and people I went to school with, along with their older siblings, regularly attended practice. After trying out this one pipsqueek we got someone who could handle the position of primary vokillist.

It only took a few months before he learned all the songs and we began recording the first album, entitled Step Down. Oh, the name of the band, after much brain storming and lame ideas -- none of which I remember, was Curb Jaw.

More and more people were coming to band practice every Saturday. They'd bring money, whoever could afford to, and we'd order pizza for everyone. We also practiced Tuesday nights for a long time. Our first show was in somebody else's basement with a bunch of other bands. We scared them because we were actually good and heavy thus, our set got cut short. lol.

We were the first local band to draw a huge crowd at Looney Tunes in West Babylon, NY. We played open mic night at The Downtown in Farmingdale (RIP). That's where we met Mike with El Diablo Productions who gave us some good shows. Eventually In The Pit Productions was born.

Circling back.
I really only wrote a few songs, musically or lyrically. My mother wrote most of the first album and contributed to some degree on the other(s). However, over time everything I played changed from what the guitarist played and naturally found it's own, proper place, between the guitar(s) and drums.

I don't have any idea what my first amp was. After we started playing out, I was given -- I think I went to the store to check out a few, an Ampeg BA115. 100watts. Which, still wasn't enough. lol. We tweaked the settings a bit and found some decent sounding stuff. Usually, it was just set to whatever sounded the loudest. Oh, sorry, I should use the buzz phrase "cut through the mix".

Later on I bought a 5-string Ibanez Soundgear 305x from one of my buddies. I didn't know what to do other than have an extra string on top that I didn't use but, it was silver and looked cool.

Another guy, years later, sold me a 1983-ish Peavy Mark IV, I believe it was. A huge solid state amp + speaker cabinet. The thing weighed more than I did and usually took two people to bring it up and down the stairs.

Neither of these were ever used on any albums. You can find more information on CJ over at my Listography or buy some tracks or simply tip me to support my current and future endeavors such as re-visioning and re-recording all the old stuff!

What's really neat is a long time ago someone put me on the Encyclopaedia Metallum

P.S. My icon is my signature and yes, it has signed cleavage.

Feel free to ask me questions here. I will probably use them to create new posts.

X-posted at musicianships.

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Still Here

2025-06-08T21:16:11Z

Hails!

I'm still undead. I've just been busy dealing with life. Most of my posts have been short and on my microblog. Maybe I'll get to updating here more often. Still trying to get my office space set up properly.

follow me in the Fediverse:
https://metalhead.club/@GothFvck

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Short Rant On Dynamic Range

2023-08-23T04:11:30Z

As if this hasn't been said a thousand times before, let me weigh in on why anything above 16-bit music is not only unnecessary but, undesirable.

https://www.whippedcreamsounds.com/32-bit-floating/

"OMG those 16-bit CDs are, like, such low quality."
🙄

Take aways:

"the total maximum dynamic range of a 16-bit WAV file, which is 96.3dB."
Assuming even the quiest audible bit in a song is above 0dB, the loudest would then make ones head serevely hurt.

"the maximum dynamic range of our 24-Bit WAV file is 144.5 dB."
More than enough.

32-bit
"Nobody needs 770 dB of loudness. The largest volume disparity of anything on earth is around 210 dB, so the massive 1528 dB of dynamic range, is comically over-the-top, and as a result extremely useful when you don't want clipping."

AKA will kill people.

Sometimes useful while recording, pure marketing for a finished, master export file (Bluray or FLAC).
also, noted that I've seen plenty of effects pedals listed as 24-bit so, there's a potential chokepoint somewhere in the middle.

Bear in mind that dynamic range means, you might be listening at a comfortable 60dB but, that might still be on the low end of the full range the song is at which means at any milisecond it could be well over 100dB.
Loud noises can cause severe damage or even kill someone.
Sound waves have been used as non-leathal force.

All this is to say that you don't actually want more than 16-bit music.

If you want a realistic movie with whisper quiet parts you struggle to hear then loud booms, either 16-bit or 24-bit will suffice. Bluray discs and DVDs have enough space for 24-bit but, that's too large of a file for CDs.

I also want to note that some instrument effects pedals send 24-bit audio (although, they may process at 32-bit floating. 👍🏽)

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Bands I've Played With

2021-12-12T17:42:25Z

AKA More Name Droppin'

Curb Jaw
Genre: Hardcore with some more metal-esque tracks.
Did: Bass, some lyrics
The band I learned to play bass with when I was 12!

xUntilxDeathx
Genre: Hardcore
Did: Bass
Straightedge new skool HC band in the same vein as Earth Crisis, xRepresentx, and xTyrantx. The guitarists and vocalists swapped positions midway through each set.
The full length album was ~80% recorded but never finished. Quite certain the raw takes are long gone.

Negative Reaction
Genre: Stoner/Sludge Doom Metal
Did: Rhythm guitar and some bass.
Recorded a few tracks on what must've been Frequencies from Montauk. Originally (neither myself nor) the bassist I replaced were going to get credit. Unsure what the physical album lists. Ken E. was saying it'd be "All music written and preformed by Negative Reaction".
My terrible day job as a supervisor in some food joint got in the way. And I had no interest in dealing with the TSA frisking me if we were to tour overseas.

Brush Hallow
Genre: Metal
Did: Guitar, bass, wrote most of the music while Pheonix arranged it to her lyrics and her friends played it.

Shallow Burial
Genre: Metal
Did: Bass
Just some side project with a couple friends where we jammed in the basement a few times.

Beyond Shadows
Genre: Death Metal
Did: Rhythm guitar
I don't recall if we played any shows together but I went to band practice with them for a while when I was in high school. They already were established and had an album out at the time, I believe.

---
There's been a couple bands I spontaneously jumped on stage with during their set and filled in for their bassist. That was great fun! Exit 53 and some death metal band I'd never heard of before. lol

---
I've also DJ'd a couple nights here and there outside the regular shows I was running sound for.

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Whom I've Worked With

2021-12-12T16:53:11Z

AKA Name Droppin'!

The following are all people / organizations I've run sound for, promoted, and recruited or booked bands with.

In The Pit Productions
Started off with them as I was their kid. lol. ITPP was around for roughly a decade and I helped out for a few years. Had to babysit my little sister for the first chapter!
This project started off from my old band, Curb Jaw and another band. Some of the guys were hanging out and began talking about how they could do it themselves. So, we did and it grew until In The Pit had multiple shows per week at several locations over the years and booked countless touring bands to headline.
RIP Mama Pit. Actually my mother.

Cat-1 Booking
This took off when In The Pit was slowing down a little. For me, it was at the same weekly location but with a different person at the helm. The bands got a little lighter. More emocore type stuff.
RIP Chris. Unfortunately the money from shows went up his nose until he was no more.

Howie Fightback
This guy was renowned for punk shows and has worked with many big thrash and speed metal bands too. Also infamous for the annual Punk Rock BBQ which regularly has over a dozen bands and huge amounts of freshly made food.

Jesse Omega; NYDM
You like death metal and such? New York Death Militia is the group to look out for. They've got local chapters worldwide.

El Diablo Productions
These are the folks that found my old band during an open mic night.

---
And others whom I forget at the moment but, the above are my buddies and the ones I've worked with the most!

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Nothing to see here.

2020-06-17T08:28:39Z

You probably don't want to read this. I haven't posted here in several years and should probably make whatever's public, friends-only. 😳

However, what's probably of interest are the following communities: (and they need your help!)

thefreaksclub - for all sorts of outcasts
First Nation Freaks - for NDNs, by NDNs (all who are interested in indigenous cultures)
beyondthepit - community for the soon-to-be music co-operative

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Hello World

2015-06-30T04:30:07Z

Does anybody actually still read this? Please let me know!

Any requests for material? Anything you enjoy reading or dislike? Other suggestions?

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Environmental & Animal Rights Activism Web Sites

2013-07-30T11:08:00Z

Here's a list of websites filled with petitions, news and other such things. Sign up on their mailing lists for frequent updates to take armchair action!

Idle No More

Friends of the Earth International

Center for Biological Diversity

National Resources Defense Council

Curbing Global Warming and Creating the Clean Energy Future
Reviving the World's Oceans
Defending Endangered Wildlife and Wild Places
Protecting Our Health by Preventing Pollution
Ensuring Safe and Sufficient Water
Fostering Sustainable Communities

NRDC Save BioGems

The Pew Charitable Trusts

Environment New York

Conservation International

World Society for the Protection of Animals

helping people understand the critical importance of good animal welfare
encouraging nations to commit to animal-friendly practices
building the scientific case for the better treatment of animals.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals

American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

Anti-Slavery Society

to relieve suffering of;
to free or rescue; and
the social reintegration of —

Care2

38 Degrees

Avaaz

Change.org

Global Justice Ecology Project

Summaries of each are copied from their websites at the time of posting and are their words that belong to them, not I.

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Idle No More Call to Action 1/28

2013-01-25T22:55:23Z

IDLE NO MORE

PRESS RELEASE: JANUARY 10, 2013

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Idle No More grassroots Founders and Organizers from across Canada, in Solidarity with Common Causes - a new initiative bringing together social justice, environmental, labour and other Activist Groups…

- UNITED we are planning IDLE NO MORE WORLD DAY OF ACTION on January 28th, 2013 #J28.

This day of action will peacefully protest attacks on Democracy, Indigenous Sovereignty, Human Rights and Environmental Protections when Canadian MPs return to the House of Commons on January 28th. As a grassroots movement, clearly no political organization speaks for Idle No More. This movement is of the people… For The People! #IDLENOMOREFTP

The Vision of IDLE NO MORE revolves around Indigenous Ways of Knowing rooted in Indigenous Sovereignty to protect water, air, land and all creation for future generations.

The Conservative government bills beginning with Bill C-45 threaten Treaties and this Indigenous Vision of Sovereignty.

The Goal of the movement is education and the revitalization of Indigenous peoples through Awareness and Empowerment. IDLE NO MORE has successfully encouraged knowledge sharing of Indigenous Sovereignty and Environmental Protections.

This message has been heard around the world and the world is watching how Canada responds to the message sent by many INM Supporters.

INM urges the government of Canada to repeal all legislation; which violates Treaties, Indigenous Sovereignty and subsequently Environmental Protections of land and water.

INM is grateful to many leaders who have supported this vision and the movement of the grassroots people. “The Treaties are the last line of defense to protect water and lands from destruction,” stated Oren Lyons, Faithkeeper Turtle Clan, Onondaga Nation Council of Chiefs.

IDLE NO MORE IS THE PEOPLE…FOR THE PEOPLE!

#IDLENOMORE #IDLNOMOREFTP #J28

Fight Spam! Click Here!

Founder’s Contact:

Sheelah McLean – mcleanshe@hotmail.com

Sylvia McAdam – smcadam03@yahoo.ca

Jess Gordon – jessicagordonconsulting@gmail.com

Nina Wilson – creethunder@yahoo.ca

EVENT: http://idlenomore.ca/index.php/inm-events/search-events/viewevent/88-inm-world-day-of-action-j28

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About Diaspora*

2012-12-29T02:53:32Z

Diaspora*

Copied from Diaspora Project.org:
"Diaspora is an open-source and distributed community of social networks run by users that enables you to own your own personal data, control with whom you share, and discover cool stuff throughout the Web."

This is a non-profit, distributed and decentralized open source social networking site. They (all the developers) put privacy and security first. There will never be any big corporate buy out, no advertisements and nobody to buy your data and personal information. They allow pseudonyms so you don't have to give out your real name. You don't even have to upload a real picture of yourself and there's no tagging facial recognition to be paranoid about.

I should mention that the source code is available and anybody can and is encouraged to start their own "Pod" to host a Diaspora* network. This means you can contribute code and help with the community effort.

The pods are supported by donations from it's users and according to this blog post of theirs they are incorporated as a for-profit C corporation.

Another interesting feature is the "Stream" where you update your "Status" and can share other information even including pictures and even videos. When posting links if you add an extra slash ( / ) in the address. For example https:///duckduckgo.com/?q=diaspora* would automatically get shortened using their in-house URL shortener. If your curious that turned out to be http://dia.so/2Sj. In light grey text next to the URL it'll say what it is when it's expanded. This feature is great when posting really long links such as directions from Google Maps or something.**

Also in the Stream are #hashtags which you can follow. I actually find this way more useful and interesting than I originally thought. It's like micro-blogging but there's no limit that I can see as far as length goes.

Of course this all applies with public posts. There's these things called "Aspects" which I've actually been trying to convince :vfVampireFreaks to steal the idea of and modify the lists on VF. You can post to multiple Aspects and even have people in more than one of them. They won't see your post multiple times. The greatness of this is if you've got family or co-workers or casual acquaintances that you really don't know connected on D* and you want to share something with only a select group of people. This makes it so much easier because there's a checklist of Aspects rather than just a List of which you can only select one group with as is currently with VF.

You can connect to other networks such as Twatter, Faceboo, and Fumblr and there are plenty of other features that I have neglected to mention so check out Diasora Foundation and find out for yourself.

D* always uses HTTPS so you're always connecting to the site with SSL (secure socket layer) encryption.
It's also not trying to be a one-in-all site with music, pictures, videos, games and everything else to bloat it up with certain other websites. There are much better sites for those specific things. It usually doesn't work out too well if one site tries to be everything. D* is simple and a great way to keep in contact with people.

Oh, and I suggest you join Diasp.org or check this list and the links provided.

**I don't condone using anything from Google however I have to admit that their Maps are the best because they even show you directions by foot, bicycle and public transportation and notify you of toll roads.

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Columbus Day

2012-10-09T12:11:12Z

Firstly I want to say Happy Indigenous People's Day & Native American Day to any other natives that might be reading this.

For anyone that has never heard of that day I'll give you a briefing. It started as a counter to Columbus Day and to promote awareness that well, hey there were people here when he arrived. Millions of them and they were doing great until then so he really didn't discover anything.

I don't know about you but I'd rather not celebrate full out genocide. I don't believe Germany has a Hitler Day so why should we have a Columbus Day? As you see the system they brought over is failing and the land here is destroyed and "The New World" is in horrible shape so I'd say he really didn't do much good bringing the culture over either. Things would have been invented at some point somewhere anyway and we'd still have our precious Internet. Well, Europe would but you'd be over there most likely so you're fine. :)

Indigenous People's Day is celebrated on different days in different areas in different ways. Same with Native American Day. Each is only officially recognized in a couple states.
There's also International Day of the World's Indigenous People which is celebrated on August 9th and declared by the United Nations to promote the freedoms of First Peoples.

Read more:
http://www.nativeamericanday.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_People%27s_Day
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Day_of_the_World%27s_Indigenous_People

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XMPP

2012-10-04T12:26:13Z

XMPP which stands for eXtensible Messaging and Presence Protocol is another protocol to use for instant messaging (IMing). It is also known as Jabber. You've probably used it before in some form and not even known it because popular services make use of it such as Facebook, Google with Gtalk, and LiveJournal.

If you have an account with any one of these you can sign right in and start using a dedicated jabber client immediately. However, I strongly advice you to create a new account on another network because at least two out of the three listed don't value your privacy and log all your conversations forever. I suggest going with an independent host that isn't some big international corporation such as chatme.im, jabber.org, jabber.at or another one you may know of. Some e-mail providers give you a XMPP account but it's up to you if you want to give out your e-mail address to everybody. I'd suggest only using that account for close friends that you can trust or those you exchange e-mails with.

Creating an account is easy, you just open up any application that supports XMPP, go through the application's menu and add an account when check the box that says "create account" and type in whatever username you wish along with a password, preferably a password you don't use every/anywhere else. Some of the jabber service providers allow account creation from their website but this is unnecessary and some times is handled via Flash and personally, I hate Flash, especially for communication.

From here you can set it up to connect to many of the other protocols you may be using such as AIM, Y!, MSN/Windows Live/.NET messaging-whatever-it's-called, MySpace and others. Just go to "discover services" and find what you need. Note that not all support all that they possibly can so check the website beforehand and make sure they support the gateway you need. Once you do this you can connect to your new XMPP account and in turn connect to all your other networks and from one program talk to your lame buddies still using AIM.

Another great feature of XMPP is the presence part, the ability to set a resource. What this means is that you're able to sign in at multiple locations and/or multiple clients and set a priority and status for each one. By default, whichever has the highest priority will get an incoming message unless the sender specifies to send to a different resource. This is very handy when you've got a desktop, laptop and handheld (read as Android) computer or if you are able to sign in at work, school, or elsewhere and at the place you sleep. If you sleep at work then... well, at least you've still got that job but make sure you really wash up in the bathroom and wash your clothes in the sink! Not that not all clients can send to a specific resource but most, if not all, XMPP-capable clients can at least read different status messages and will show you the resource they're coming from.

What's great about using XMPP is that it's decentralized. There's no one company that's reading, censoring and logging all your conversations which is something all the major networks do weather they admit it or not, I've seen it happen. You don't have to worry about them making some weird proprietary changes making it impossible to do something or them going out of business/someone buying them out and changing privacy policies & terms of service agreements (and possibly you won't even know prior to it happening). It's open source and uses open standards. Most servers value privacy and security as much as you or I do (and that's quite a bit on my end). There probably won't be any advertisements and your information won't be sold. Of course, find these things out for yourself before you create and start using an account because you may find the one that doesn't follow these rules!

One more note: make sure you enable any encryption plugins available such as off-the-record (OTR) and talk all your friends into using encryption to make sure everything's kept private and each of you gets all the messages intended untempered with. Remember your Miranda Rights, everything you said can and will be used against you. Just because you aren't doing or talking about anything that's illegal (today) doesn't mean that you don't need or shouldn't use encryption. Privacy is one of our basic rights and we should keep things that way because if we don't bother to fight for our rights they will all disappear.

Suggested clients:
Gajim - Great for Jabber as it allows choosing which resource to message the person at if they're signed in multiple places. GTK
Pidgin - Also supports IRC and every IM network. GTK
Jitsi - Good support for A/V conferencing.
Psi - Another cross-platform client. QT
Kopete - The KDE instant messanger. Multi-protocol. QT
Xabber for Android.
ChatSecure for iOS devices.

Check out the long but incomplete list of servers over at http://xmpp.net/

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Totems

2012-09-17T08:15:55Z

Totems. Maybe you've heard of them while talking about Native Americans and their totem polls, perhaps you've even seen one in the movie. This is how I first heard of them and I thought it was just some fancy wood for decoration or something. I didn't understand until fairly recently that the totem poll is about the animal and the power of the animal and totems are more than just polls, they can be anything, any type of fetish or representation. But, hey, I was little so give me a break. :P Now that I am older I can share the information I have gathered throughout the years.

Maybe you or someone you know plays World of Warcraft and you've seen the shaman class drop a few totems. These, again, are shown as wooden polls. This time they're short and stylized for the particular race the shaman is i.e. orcs have axe blades while tauren are more traditional.
Perhaps this is because of the long history of wood carving in native culture which never included plastic and wood is a fine resource.

Maybe you went to a powwow nearby that a local tribe hosted or a local magick shoppe and you saw some totem stones that possibly looked like ordinary rocks but with animals or other symbols painted on them.

What are these things though? What is their purpose?

As described by Ted Andrews in his book "Animal Speak", "a totem is any natural object, animal, or being to whose phenomena and energy you feel closely associated with during your life."

A totem is an animal or representation of an animal that, usually, chooses us who's power/qualities/medicine we can benefit from. They may only be for a short period of time or come and go as needed or they may be around forever. Your pet house cat isn't necessarily your totem animal but it could be or it might be a weaker version for a wild feline and once you learn to recognize and harness their powers then you may get to meet the stronger version. Remember it is better to become skilled in mouse medicine than sloppy with bear medicine.

Each type of animal has different qualities, different strengths and weakness that can represent something to you in your life. For example,all birds, in general, have very good vision. "They can help us to see more clearly that which is at a distance; thus they are wonderful tools for developing higher forms of intuitive descrimination." **

** Page 76 of "Animal Speak" by Ted Andrews
ISBN 13: 9780875420288 ISBN 10: 0875420281
Buy it at The Book Depository or the audio book from Spirituality and Practice / Sounds True.

I also used this as my main reference. I found it at my local library and if you want to know more then find your own copy to start with. This is a very in depth field and I cannot possibly list everything in the book and the book can't cover everything on the subject. Especially because I'm still learning. ;)

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Mumble How To

2012-08-13T07:40:10Z

Firstly do not try to connect to the Mumble server from the Ventrillo client. It will not work.

Secondly, go to mumble.sourceforge.com or mumble.com and download the appropiate version for your OS. Install it.

When you open it, it should automatically open another window to connect to a server. If not then in the main window go to Sever and Connect or hit Ctrl+O and it'll bring up this box. Just click the arrow next to the Public Internet and forget about it if you want. Click "Add New" and start filling out the details.
Label: "Whatever The Frak You Want" It doesn't matter so long as you know what you're getting into when you hit connect.
Address: your.server.com
Port: 012345
Username: Usually your main character's name or a nickname that everyone knows you by or your real name but if you're name is "John Smith" or "Bob Saget" or something really common I strongly suggest not using this because nobody will know who your are plus most of us don't know people by their real names and I'm always a little wary of giving out my IRL name, you should be too.

Hit Okay.
Hit Connect.
Now is when you enter the password and you will only have to do this once.
Next you'll probably want to go to Configure and uncheck Text-To-Speech. However this is great if somebody sends you a written message as it'll read it to you and it'll tell you who enters or leaves the channel but it can be irritating and distracting especially if an actual person is talking.

Now it's time to make sure everything works and do some fine tuning.
Go to Configure again and go through the Audio Wizard and it'll walk you through everything. Play around and adjust things to your liking and make sure everything works. Check your main volume controls and make sure things are turned up and everything's plugged in. I know this sounds stupid to check but it's often the simple things that are the problem and they often get over looked because they so obviously shouldn't be a problem but when trouble shooting always start with the basics and work up.

You're almost done!
I beseech you to to talk to the Certificate Wizard and create a new one and use that certificate every time you sign on if you, for whatever reason, log onto our server from another computer. The Wizard (queue up some Sabbath) will walk you through everything and you should be fine with all the default selections.

Optionally you can set a cool avatar for yourself. Set a comment if you go to AFK or something just so people don't talk to you if you're not there or if you don't wish to be disturbed or maybe if you don't have a mic.

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What is a "GothFvck" anyway?

2012-04-09T11:40:16Z

Many people have asked me what the name "GothFvck" means and how I came about using it. I feel this is a good way to start off this journal.

"Goth" Well, after all these years I'm still not sure exactly what goth is and I don't believe anybody else can say with certainty. Most will say "mysterious", "macabre" and things along those lines but anything can be gothic just about. Okay, maybe not anything.

"Fvck" or "fuck" One of those words that you don't actually hear on the radio usually. This word can be used in any way and in place of so many others. I'm not writing an entire post about this one or the word above though.

Onto the actual story behind my name.
Back when I was a teenager I was either loading the van with band equipment or heading to a show, not sure which, but as I was walking to the van my buddy who's over 6" jumped on my back. He's not obese but not exactly light as a bird. I couldn't get him off so finally I decided to bite him. I bit hard. So hard in fact that he had a bruise for several weeks, it was huge and dark. I'm not sure if he's got a scar now-a-days. When I did this the only thing he could utter was "OW! YOU BIT ME YOU FUCKING GOTH FUCK!". And so ever since then that name has stuck.

George Carlin - 7 Dirty Words

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