African cichlid fish

I wrote about guitar-related newsletter I got in my Inbox the other day. I also got newsletters from my Alma Mater, University of Texas at Austin. I found the ones from the college of natural sciences particularly interesting. As a trained scientist, I gotta admit I wasn't in touch with science as much as I did when I was a kid but this newsletter keeps me closer. I especially enjoyed this article on African cichlid fish: only one male fish in the group (called a school of fish) gets to be the colorful one and have strong reproductive system. Other male fish with grey color could challenge and if it wins, it becomes colorful and reproductive while the loser loses the color and its reproductive system gets weaken! Well, that kinda reminds me of the scene at UT back then: guys fight for gals (metaphorically) The winner got in good mood and sometimes dressed himself up too, while the loser became less active and might just withdraw from the social circle. 

Sports highlights: Supercross, F1, IndyCar, NASCAR

I have followed a few seasons of Supercross (motorcycle racing) but I think I have just watched the most enjoyable race so far: the Toronto race in which 2-time champ James Stewart came from behind to earn his 49th victory of his long career. And he was not the only highlight! Defending champ Ryan Villopoto was injured earlier in the day but he hang on to qualify for the main event and had a good finish. It showed how much heart and will to win he had.

The 2nd race of the F1 season was held in Malaysia last Sunday. The folks were quite heavy hearted there because of the MH370 disaster. I read the attendance number was rather low. The entertainment value was just so-so: Lewis Hamilton was on the pole and won the race. Vettel did that many times last few season and made the races BORING! He was actually on the front row but slipped to the third. That's the surprise of the race and I guess it was worthwhile to stay up 'til 3am.

And it was the first Verizon IndyCar race of the season later in the day. That's a street-course race in which the polesitter couldn't lead 'til the end of the race. The winner was a familiar name though: #12 Will Power, the Verizon sponsored driver. The other Verizon driver, Juan Pablo Montoya, did just so-so on his first race back to IndyCar after a long time away.

Also, it's the MLB opening night (in US) on Sunday. I knew it's inevitable that I caught the name of the winner of the NASCAR race at Martinsville before watching it taped, as much as I tried to avoid reading the scrolling news ticker on the bottom of the screen. I was glad I saw it though 'coz it was a surprise: Kurt Busch, who has not won a race in years (which was understandable as he spent his last 2 seasons with 2nd or 3rd-tier teams after he ruined his relationship with Team Penske) I would have turned off the TV if I didn't knew the eventual winner because Jimmie Johnson did so well: no matter where he started after a re-start, he was able to get to the front during the green flag run, well, except the last one. And it's a strange feeling: I bet there were a lot of fans who dislike both Busch brothers. Being ousted from Team Penske was basically all Kurt's fault (bad temper and arrogance.) However, he got quite a bit of respects after bringing those 2nd/3rd-tier teams up a level or two. Seems like he got mature a bit, evident in this race: he got tangled with Brad Keselowski, who was so mad and kept retaliating but Kurt kinda kept his cool and avoided further damages.

It was a great weekend for racing fan :)

Epiphone artists interviewed

I received a ton of newsletters in my Inbox everyday. Other than the ones from online stores I shopped from, I also got a few from guitar or effect pedal manufacturer of which contests I entered (and I never won any free equipment :( ) I actually enjoy the ones from guitar maker Epiphone quite a lot. My first guitar was an Epiphone SG Junior (that I still play whenever I am with it) And I did "win" something from them back then: it's a promotion with guitar instruction video (yes, in VHS!) that they gave away gig bag ("official" one with the Epiphone logo!) So you may say I'm partial to the brand. Their newsletters usually feature interviews of musicians who play Epiphone guitar. You might be surprised by the big names (not playing the "big brother" brand Gibson instead!) Jazz/blues master Robben Ford is one of them. Jeff Waters of Canadian thrash metal legend Annihilator is another. The part I found especially interesting was when he talked about running into musicians influenced by him. Personally I have run into a guy who listened to my band before without knowing I was the one in the YouTube clip. And I have also found a cover-version of our song on the internet before! And Robben Ford's interview got me really interested in the 1966 Epiphone Rivera he plays. He actually recorded an entire album, "Bringing it Back Home", with just this guitar, hoping to capture that one sound.