It' been a long time coming.....The Rick is Here!

I did get a deal.

Ready to take home.

Yea Yea I know you thought I forgot about this blog. Maybe I did. 2014 has been a strange year for me. It started out excellent. I went to Reds Fantasy Camp. The this past spring it was announced at work my operations group was going to be laid off. That sucked the big hairy one to be sure. So this summer has been dubbed the "Summer of Discontent" or The Summer of Suck". But all was not lost during the Summer of Suck. After my time with CBT was done, I did obtain a nice severance for all my time and trouble there. Hence, "The Severance Fairy" came to visit the Cave. Via Sam Ash, The cave welcomes a New 2014 Rickenbacker 4003 Midnight Blue Bass Guitar. My "dream" bass. I found this gem over a week ago, up at Sam Ash in Springdale. I've always dreamed of owning this bass. Ever since I saw Yes and Chris Squire play one years ago.

The Fish

The Fish?

A Nice addition to the "Rock Wall"

What to expect from this here blog.

     Greetings. First off I want to say to all of you , that I'm a man with various interests and hobbies. They include in no particular order, sports (both following and participation) Music (both playing myself and obviously listening..duh.) Astronomy/Astro photography. Much of the content of this blog will be about said hobbies/interests. Actually my basement/"Man Cave" in itself is a hobby. I'm constantly adding items/tweaking things in it here and there. Items in the "cave" are a eclectic collection of crap I sometimes say when I describe it. My wife told me many years ago, "It's your basement, do whatever." So I have. Here are a few photos.

My Favorite Bourbon

Christmas "Drinking" buddies

As you can obvious see. I'm a huge Cincinnati Reds fan. A Cincinnati sports fan in general. The "Rock Wall" as I call it shows my Music tastes. Mainly "classic rock" as I am on the tail end of the baby boomer generation. You can also see my "axes" My 1994 Fender "Stu Hamm Urge" bass is one of my prized possessions. I also have an 1996 Fender Stratocaster. I play the bass mainly. I'm not in a band. I do jam with some folks from time to time though. You and also sort of see my telescope.It's hidden under that black fedora (dust cover) It's Celestron  NexStar 4SE Computerized Telescope.

     Reason for the "Man Cave"? I'm the only male in my household. My wife and I have two lovely daughters. Actually the above statement isn't totally honest. Well it was until about this time a year ago. That's when we got this guy.

My little Buddy Toby

Toby is male 1 year old Shih Tzu. When we decided to get a pup I insisted on getting a male one. I desperately needed someone on my side!
     The basement has always been "mine". Oh sure the girls when they were younger had a ball playing down there all the time. When we finished it 11 years ago. (basically did all the work on it myself with some family help). I always envisioned it as my space. As the girls got older the less time they spent down there. Don't get me wrong the family still goes down there. Family movie night is always held there or when we watch our "viewed as a family TV shows." But basically it's mine now. No one complains. Everybody needs ones space.

Definition of Man Cave?

     The Urban Dictionary entry for "Man Cave" goes as follows :

A room, space, corner or area of a dwelling that is specifically reserved for a male person to be in a solitary condition, away from the rest of the household in order to work, play, involve himself in certain hobbies, activities without interruption. This area is usually decorated by the male that uses it without interference from any female influence. 

 

     The Wikipedia Page for "Man Cave" Purpose sections is as follows:

 

 Man caves have multiple purposes: they are a place to be alone, to be away from women and from female sensibilities, to indulge in hobbies, and to hang out with male friends. It is, loosely, a male-only space to retreat to watch sports matches, or play video games. According to psychiatrist and author Scott Haltzman, it is important for a man to have a place to call his own, referring to a male area to which to retreat. Some psychologists claim that a man cave can provide refuge from stressful surroundings and be beneficial to marriage. Rules are relaxed; it is a place where other people's sensibilities about standards of cleanliness are not necessarily observed; as one man said, "You spill a beer there or leave a hamburger overnight, who cares?^"
In a sense, for married men, it is a way to recreate some of the space and freedom of their bachelor days since it was like a "pad" similar in feeling to a frat house game room or a college dorm room where people could come and go "as if they owned the place." It is where a man doesn't have to be on his best behavior, where no women are around, and where "no one is going to make you watch your p's and q's" and "no one is going to ask you to explain yourself". Writer and handyman Sam Martin explained:

Men have had an identity problem since the women's movement. They have tried to figure out who they're supposed to be. For a while women wanted them to be more sensitive, so they were more sensitive. Then women wanted them to be more manly. One of the things I discovered is when men have their own manspace, what they put inside of it is really an expression of who they are. Manspace is about establishing an identity for a man. Our premise is that women have control of the look and the feel of the house and that left guys wanting more. Anybody who has a specific interest or hobby or work or collection is going to want a space to indulge that.

—Sam Martin, in the Chicago Tribune, 2007

Martin thinks that any space in the house will do, even a lounge chair and a set of headphones, provided there's an agreement with one's wife or girlfriend that the space is under the control of the man. The advantages of a self-contained room are that male-oriented design choices, such as "tacky lamps" and "beer-can sculptures", are out of sight of women, but in a way that doesn't disturb female sensibilities since visitors generally don't visit the man cave. It's like a firehouse lounge room, but in the home.