Joshua Klein on the intelligence of crows
Steven Levitt analyzes crack economics
How to fit an upright bass in a VW Jetta
One of our readers Sam C asked me a very interesting question today:
This may be sort of an odd question, but I have to move an upright bass soon and only have a jetta sedan available to move it. I noticed on your blog you had the same issue. Does it work, did it fit? With the back seat folded down I assume? Could you fit a passenger in there w/ the bass too
Great question, Sam. It will fit with much patience. I have a 3/4 size in a soft gig-bag, your mileage may vary if you have a bigger bass or hard-shell case.
I obviously put down the back seats as flat as I can get them. But then I’ve found that two crucial things are to 1) pull and tilt the driver and passenger seats all the way forward 2) (very important) take off the headrests on the driver and passenger seat. Again, taking off the headrests has been really important for me. I always think that I can make it fit without doing that and it doesn’t really work.
From there I open up the door behind the driver and I tilt the bass and put it in head first. The head of the bass rests where the passenger headrest used to be. Once its in I put the driver’s side headrest back on for safety’s sake.
You may be able to fit a passenger with some finagling. If you can they won’t be particularly comfortable but I believe they will be able to fit. That said, if its your first time moving this particular bass you may want to go it alone just to be safe.
Hope this helps!
Nate
Mortar Board = Tearjerker
Nate and I were reminiscing about some weird things that happened to me during pregnancy. One of those things was that I became particularly emotional about graduation ceremonies. I watched several movies/ tv shows that contained graduation scenes, and without fail I would find myself crying hysterically over them. The Cosby show when Theo graduated from college was one, and also Gilmore Girls when Rory graduated from Yale. One variant was Anne of Green Gables, when Anne tied Gilbert for the Avery Scholarship - that one was a doosie. Of all the things in that movie to make me cry - a scholarship?! I had to pause the movie because I was crying so hard I couldn’t see the TV through my tears. Pregnancy hormones are a mysterious thing. I got Jacob out of the deal, so I guess it was all worth it, but now I’m wondering if commencement exercises are still going to have the same effect on me. Master’s Seminary graduation is right around the corner, so if you see a sobbing red-head in the G-Com courtyard on the 10th of May, that’s me and I’m ok. The robes, the degree announcing, the diplomas… it’s hard for some people.
a smile and a platypus
Cute boy, smiling at mama.
railroad engineer
We’ve uploaded a few more pic’s of Jacob for you to enjoy. Just click on the above photo.
Their Turn
IMG_2113.JPG, originally uploaded by Nate Murray.
I was looking through our pics of last year and saw this one of Niki and Julie at my baby shower. It made me so happy to think that this year they get to be the pregnant ones in the heat of the summer. I love you both, but I’m ok with it being your turn.
Jacob’s First Album Cover
Jacob’s First Album Cover, originally uploaded by Nate Murray.
Here’s a fun set of a pictures of Jacob from Feb. 09.
Misc. Update
I finished up my grapefruits with time to spare. I even bought a few more that I found on sale at Whole Foods. I was slightly surprised that the ones from Costco were much more flavorful than the ones from Whole Foods. I’m currently out of grapefruits and am going through citrus withdrawals. I’m been taking hits of orange juice to get me through.
I’ve started watching Law and Order. I’ve been watching the original episodes from the early 90’s and like them a lot. Today I started watching Law and Order: Criminal Intent. Liking it too.
Also, I love that it’s supposed to rain this weekend. It’s one of my favorite things.
Grapefruit-a-thon
This week I am participating in my own little grapefruit-a-thon. I bought a 15lb. bag of grapefruits at Costco on Monday and I’m determined to eat them all before any of them go bad. I’m about half way through the bag and still enjoying it. I think if I eat two a day I should be ok. I’ll let you know.
Jacob’s first cereal
Here is the video of Jacob’s first taste of solid food.
Jacob’s first cereal from Nate Murray on Vimeo.
More pictures
Not much to say this time, just a few more pics of Jacob.
