I got some new music, and I almost blew up (unrelated)

Our new foreign exchange student from Germany (Theresa) emerged from her jet lagged nap tonight after I texted/guilted her into it. And I started to ask her about everything in an attempt to figure out what she’s into. The answer, it turns out, is soccer and parties. Sweet.

When I started asking her about what music she likes (“um… anything I guess”) she remembered that she brought me a CD from Germany. I was super excited! The CD is a punk/alternative band called Beatsteaks, and the CD is their newest studio release. They are quite good and a little bit like Tiger Army. Here is a picture of the album cover:

I looked them up on Amazon to see if they were actually popular in the States and I was just oblivious. Nope! The cheapest Amazon had the CD for was 30 buckaroonies due to import costs. Anyways I am currently giving them a thorough listening to, and I suggest you use any of the various available means to procure this album! From what I understand, Theresa doesn’t much care for them haha! I am assuming she is a Black Eyed Peas fan though, because they have 2 top 10 hits in Germany right now. I looked!

Oh yeah! Here is my favorite song on the album, please enjoy before the RIAA decides to wave the Ban Hammer.

As for almost dying, I found out that my dad’s old external flash for the Canon would fit on my new Soviet Smena 8m! I hadn’t yet played with the flash, so I dug it out and cracked open the battery compartment, only to find 4 exploded AA batteries. I removed them, and applied vinegar to the contacts to loosen some of the green oxidation. I loaded 4 new batteries and thumbed through the original manual. It explained that the flash was controlled by a 330 volt solid state capacitor.

For those of you who don’t know, in the electrical world, things don’t get much riskier than a 25 year old 330v capacitor. I really wanted a flash though, so I hit the switch and waited. I listened for the high pitched charging noise… there it is SQEEAAALLLOOOOEEEPBLEEeeedodo gone. The smart thing to do would be to discharge the capacitor, but instead I plugged in the 25 year old AC adapter and attempted to get a charge that way. Nothing. Then I got paranoid, so i used the leg of the tripod to press the flash button. Nothing!

I guess I will have to pony up and buy a flash someday, for now, I will just shoot in the day light. Also, I didn’t die. Hurray!

One more thing I must say is that I really really really miss my girlfriend right now. Please wake up and talk to me! I get to see her in less than 2 days which makes me lucky 🙂