Wednesday February 2nd 2005 09:40 AM PST
thanks to Steve-O for reminding me.
looks like 6 more weeks of winter acording to Phil.
Wednesday February 2nd 2005 04:42 PM PST
Thursday February 3rd 2005 05:01 PM PST
I drive down the 110 freeway and exit on Exposition. There's a building under construction on the corner of Exposition and Fig,
right across the street from USC and the Museums. There's a huge walkway cover during the construction and its covered in
wild posting. Usually all the garbage just blends together. All the posters are equally bad, so nothing stands out. But not
today. I pulled up to the stop light and out of the corner of my eye, one single poster popped out from all the rest. With the
repetition of posters, this single one was the only one that really could be seen from a block away. A simple black and white
Nine Inch Nails logo. I immediately started smiling. Wild posting has a definite time-frame before the release of a movie or
album. The first sign of the release made me happy. It finally became real. The new album is FINALLY being relased. 2005/
05/03. With Teeth.
Friday February 4th 2005 03:05 PM PST
So wired has a good article about
microwave attacks on car chases. I do recall seeing something similar a few years back, but nothing
ever came of it. There is ONE huge liability that law enforcement will be reluctant take on. The microwave
unit toasts microchips, and as a result the microchips in the car stop functioning, and the car comes to a stop. So lets just say
there is somebody in the car with a pacemaker. Not only will the car grind to a halt, so will the pacemaker, and the heart its
controlling. There is a significant market for an item like this microwave unit. It will just be interesting to see how law
enforcement deals with the possibility that it may kill someone when they use it.
Sunday February 6th 2005 02:59 PM PST
lakers came back from 16 points down, only to lose by 1 to the rockets. depressing. Well whats the point of watching any other game today?
Monday February 7th 2005 03:32 PM PST
Somebody at work had not seen this...
http://www.planettribes.com/allyourbase/AYB2.swf
Tuesday February 8th 2005 04:21 PM PST
There is a force that i can not explain. It must be something of a black hole. I have a feeling it might be closely related to the
sock zone. (the place that one sock out of every wash cycle goes mysteriously to never return again) Every chair that has
been abandon in the office i work, finds it way to a table directly next to me. There are currently 9 abandon chairs now orbiting
the table. Some are actually in pieces, but their pieces have all manages to make the journey together. I noticed this not
because of the chairs, but because of the growing gravity that the chairs are creating. There is such a force now that the
chairs have just today started to attract abandon monitors too.
Thursday February 10th 2005 10:03 AM PST
Just wanted to inform you that you missed the space by just a touch.
Thursday February 10th 2005 10:19 AM PST
spilled Mountain Dew all over my keyboard.
Thursday February 10th 2005 05:39 PM PST
Friday February 11th 2005 08:37 PM PST
So the drive was not as much of a nightmare as i thought it would be. I figured 4 or 5 hours in the rain, but North Hollywood was the only problem. GPS has moved WEST beyond all new territory. Its fuckin beautiful here. You forget that sometimes. That places can be this beautiful. Sunset alone was unbelieveable. Jen and I were just in the parking lot of a grocery store and we were amazed by the clouds. As soon as we walked into the store we laughed at a sign for Sanford. "as seen in Sideways" So we bought a bottle. We've always loved sanford since we first went there a few years ago. We had a 2001 bottle for dinner and are now very happy. The system that i'm on right now is actually a solid state (flash memory, NT box) system. .... Jen is cutting me off in my rant. I have been informed that i am to now make a fire in the fireplace and go to bed. :)
Tomorrow we're going on the breakfast ride and we're just going to have a great time all around. Here's hoping that it doesn't rain that much.
Pictures will come soon, when i can get home and get on a system that actually has a USB port.
Saturday February 12th 2005 11:14 AM PST
We checked the weather report before we came, and it said that it would be raining all weekend long. Also, it said that we would be in clouds for all the time after that. When Jen and I woke up today, the sun was out and there were no clouds in the sky. So much for the weather report. We went on the morning breakfast ride, and now we're just going to be lazy. We're planning on heading to a couple wineries later today, but we're so stuffed from breakfast we can't even think about drinking and eating anything more right now.
Sunday February 13th 2005 01:19 PM PST
At the end of the day yesterday Jen and I went out to do a little wine tasting. We headed out to Sanford, which is featured in Sideways (which we still have not seen). We've been to Sanford before and we actually drink the wine all the time. So the move had no effect on our need to go there. We were already planning on it.
The last time we went, it was empty. Jen actually thought we were on a road going the wrong way. You pass a few trailers and there is just a little shack. But this time... it was fuckin packed. They have a beautiful little tasting room, but its REALLY small. Yesterday there were about 30 people packed into the little room. We had to wait forever, but honestly we didn't care at all. Its fun to just hang out there and have a good time. So after sanford we headed to Lafonde just up the road. We hung out there for awhile and came back to Alisal for dinner.
Today we both woke up early and headed to breakfast. Last night we had heard a few people say, "waterfall" and "hike", but we had missed the rest of the conversation. Today after breakfast we asked the girl at the front desk about it. At this point we found out that there is a park a couple miles up the road and a little hike leads to a waterfall. So thats where we headed. The hike was a nice little 10 minute walk, and then we saw a 100 foot waterfall at the end.
After the waterfall we headed up Foxen Canyon and out to Zaca Mesa. We did the tasting at Zaca Mesa (which has some VERY nice wines now) and then headed to Fess Parker. While at Fesss, we were filmed by a camera crew from CBS thats working on a small bit for Sunday Morning. (we saw the crew at breakfast today. They're staying at alisal) So just my luck, Jen and I will show up on TV drinking wine, in a documentary that's talking about the flood of people that are coming to the wine country beacuse of a movie that we've not seen. :)
Oh, and i forgot to say. It was suppost to rain ALL WEEKEND LONG. Its been the most beautiful weather imaginable.
Sunday February 13th 2005 01:20 PM PST
Sorry Angelo, no split pea soup for me.
Sunday February 13th 2005 09:05 PM PST
We're not the only people left, but its very close. There were only a couple items on the menu tonight at the ranch house, but i didn't complain. Jen and I both had a great filet tonight for dinner and now were off to make a fire and play chess.
I was really suprised by the wines at Zaca Mesa. In the past few years their wines have been decent, but nothing that i've really liked. Today at the tastings, Jen and I both like a good number of the wines we tried. We ended up buying 6 bottles, and we're really going to enjoy all of them.
Next time we come up here we need to remember that there are picnic areas right around Zaca Mesa. We walked around after the tasting and got up to a ridge overlooking a beautiful view.
Tomorrow morning we've signed up for a morning horseback ride, and i think we're just going to relax and sit by the pool the rest of the day. The ranch room is close tomorrow, so we've got to go to dinner at a little place down the road. Valentine's should be interesting around here. We'll be the only people around.
Sunday February 13th 2005 09:12 PM PST
We crossed the bridge just north of here today, and there was a father and son walking their dog. Jen didn't notice much other than the dog, but i was picking up a few more details. The son was on a BMX bike, but had a wet suit and a helmet on. The father was holding onto the dog's leash, but had a boogie board slung over his back. So i started to look down at the rievr we were crossing. I realized that they must have been swell surfing in the river. Just funny cause it must have been FREEZING!
Last note....
Jen and I went to the Hans Christian Anderson park today in Solvang. I saw it on a map a couple days ago, and i was wanting to see what was there. So we drove in, and realized that it was the soon to be Hans Christian Anderson SKATE PARK. They're working on a HUGE pool skate area with a bunch of great rails. All the steel frame for the pool is up, and now they just need to pour the concrete.
so that's that. off to play chess.
Monday February 14th 2005 09:38 PM PST
Jen and I had a greak breakfast today. We got ourselves up really early , and were the first people in the dining room. For a short time we had the entire place to ourselves. We finsihed breakfast and headed out on a morning horseback ride. Jen rode a horse named "Nacho" and I was on "Lance". Lance was a HUGE horse, and well... he needed to be. I'm a fat fuck and you need something huge to carry me. So Lance was not really too fast at all. I think he was protesting my weight. But the ride was beautiful. We headed out to a couple great spots around the ranch, and had a great time riding around.
after the ride we headed out to a couple more wineries. Buttonwood was the best spot we've hit so far. The guy working there today was college age, and spinning Vinyl. I was a little suprised when i walked in, but then again, it was really nice to hear good music and taste great wines.
We headed to Gainey just down the road, just after Buttonwood. Gainey has a beautiful view and their tasting room is right in the middle of their grape vines. Then we headed back into town and stopped at a little deli that we had passed on the way out. We took lunch to the pool at Alisal, and just had a good time sitting around. We spent a little time swiming later in the afternoon. WE ARE THE ONLY ONES HERE. So the entire pool was ours.
The ranch room, where we usually have dinner, was closed tonight, so we went down to the River Grill for dinner. We'd thought that it too would be empty, but instead we found it jam packed. We had to wait almost 45 minutes to be seated even though we had a 7PM reservation. But after the wait, the food was well worth it.
Jen and I just got back to the library, and now we're off to the room and to bed.
tomorrow, another lazy day, but with a little drive back into the city.
Tuesday February 15th 2005 02:25 PM PST
Tuesday February 15th 2005 08:15 PM PST
We got up early today. I don't know why. Jen went running, and i headed for the pool. jumped in the water just after 7AM and almost killed myself in 10 minutes. I tried to jump right back into a workout i had not done since highschool. Thinking back, I must have been close to 100 pounds lighter. So i ended up doing about 20 laps and almost dropped dead. Now i remember why i stopped swimming and started diving. Its a lot less work to fall off a board.
So we headed for breakfast and had the place to ourselves. Last night jen and I were 2 of 6 people staying at Alisal. The place almost shuts down during the week. So we finished breakfast and packed up the car. We got on the road at around 10 and i was actually amazed at traffic. Everything moved until Universal City, and then there was just a short jam because of an accident. So we got home at about 12:30 and have just been sitting around today trying to figure out why the fuck we have to go back to our jobs.
I didn't want to go out to dinner tonight, so we ended up cooking dinner here and sitting in front of the TV. just a lazy night to finish off a great vacation.
Wednesday February 16th 2005 12:13 PM PST
So if you live in the United States, it looks like our "leaders" don't really give a fuck about the Kyoto Protocol. I've not done a
whole lot of research, but every poll that i've seen has shown over half of the people polled in the United States do care about
global pollution, and global warming. So out leaders don't seem to care about that group of people. They're not leading.
I worked on one project for a client awhile back. Its purpose was to determine the amount of pollution avoided per dollar spent
on a new automobile. It was an educational project with a group of alternative fuels. When everything was said and done, the
fuels that really seemed to come out on top were reformulated gasoline and gas-electric hybrid. These fuel efficiency solutions
gave a slightly higher price, but they produced less pollution.
So the environmental question comes in play. Do i spend more money to produce less pollution? The environmental
responsible person could easily answer this question "yes". But the funny thing is, in many cases, the environmentally
responsible answer actually costs LESS money. Less fuel used simply means you spend less money at the pump. In cases of
gas-electric hybrid cars, you see that the engine actually runs at a designed RPM. The stable RPM usually means that the wear
and tear on the car is not as severe. You'll not necessarily be pushing the gasoline engine hard when you hit the throttle.
ok ok ok... so I would spend more money to avoid pollution. This would mean that i consume less fuel annually. This is
NOT rocket science. Who would suffer as a result of this smaller consumption of fuel?
Simply put, people who buy fuel efficient cars, pay less gas tax, so the state gets less money for roads and the oil companies
get less money all around. So now the state of California is proposing a tax that would be based on how far you drive. So if i
were to drive a honda civic hybrid 100 miles, i would be taxed for driving those 100 miles. If i were to drive a Yukon 100 miles,
i would still be taxed for those 100 miles. So here's the question... Which automobile causes more road wear? 100 miles of
driving a Yukon would cause more road wear, burn more fuel, and cause more pollution. So if the intention of the new tax is to
raise money for road maintenance, then why not make the tax a little more intelligent. The tax should have a distance
component to it. A person who drives 10 miles a month should not have to pay as much as someone who drives 2000 miles a
month. But at the same time, a person who drives a 1000 pound civic, should not have to pay as much as someone who
drives a 8000 pound H2. The final component is the environmental component. The amount of fuel you use.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY SHOULD BE REWARDED. So the equation should be something like this.
((Distance Traveled + (Weight of Vehicle x .1) + (Fuel Consumed x 20)) / 3 )/ California Gas Tax Constant.
So the California Gas Tax Constant will be exactly like the sale tax in every state in the US. The state sets up a rate and then
the rate can be changed if necessary with proper legislation etc. I'll propose a California Gas Tax Constant of 40 at this point.
I'll experiment with the number and see what happens.
So heres the example, and i'll keep the math simple.
this would be AROUND average for my Standard Gasoline Honda Civic.
215 miles +
2300 lbs x .1 +
9 gallons x 20
= 625
625/3 = 208.33333
208.33333 / 40 = $5.20
So this is just an idea off the top of my head, so i think there might be problems with the way the items are weighted. But i
think the basis of the idea is right. So here's the other hypothetical piece.
215 miles +
8000 lbs x .1 +
20 gallons x 20
= 1415
1415/3 = 471.6667
471.6667/ 40 = $11.79
So bigger car, less fuel efficient, larger tax.
Thursday February 17th 2005 09:45 AM PST
on a scion driving in LA.
Thursday February 17th 2005 09:46 AM PST
Downtown from the Broadway Street Bridge.
Thursday February 17th 2005 09:48 AM PST
Like i said before. There is a gravity that is drawing all abandon office materials to a table right next to my desk. First it was
chairs. Then it was a few monitors. Now about 40 binders filled with old reports of unknown origins. I think i might read one
during lunch for fun.
Friday February 18th 2005 10:25 AM PST
So here's the map i made from GPS data from the 5 days in Solvang. I marked all the major places we stopped.
Sunday February 20th 2005 09:03 PM PST
Happy Birthday Steve!
Tuesday February 22nd 2005 10:36 AM PST
I avoid Fair Oaks in South Pasadena, and make my way over to Orange Grove. I get on the Pasadena Freeway, and it almost
immediatly stops. Get off the Freeway at York, and head over to Fig. Down Fig to Pasadena Ave. Then do the little side street
shuffle to get me a couple blocks down and back onto Pasadena Ave. Stopped. I sit on Pasadena Ave, right at the 5 freeway
and don't move for about 5 lights. So i have the 5 onramp north right next to me. I know that the next exit it Stadium Way,
and that might take some time. I go for it. There is no way this is going to move anyway. So i head up the 5 and get off at
Stadium way. Well its really riverside drive, but it heads north and south. I head north to Stadium Way.... SHIT... Stadium
way is blocked off by CalTrans and LAPD. Looks like the side of the mountain has come down or something. So i keep heading
north on Riverside. Now i'm WAY OUT of my way. I take a left on Allesondro, and then start heading parallel to the 2. I am
following a car that seems to know EXACTLY where he is going, so i take a chance and start to follow him. He takes a left on a
tiny side street and heads straight up the hill, and i'm right behind him. left right left right and all are on narow winding
streets. Then the street we're on narrows to one lane cause the other lane has half of somebody's front yard in it. HUGE
landslide and their house is now hanging over the edge of a cliff. But as soon as i turn back to look at the guy i'm following,
he's gone. I realize that i'm now over the top of the hill and the road opens up and he's taken off QUICK. I'm at the top of a
large street and its a clear shot down to Sunset and Glendale. So once i get down to Sunset its just about normal from that
point on. Back onto Fig until it goes one way. Get back on the 110 til exposition, take that all the way across til it turns into
Rodeo and then La Cienega, Slauson, the 90 and to work. All in all with the delays and round about ways, it was still only
about an hour and 10 minutes. not too bad, and a whole lot of fun to find a new route.
Tuesday February 22nd 2005 12:55 PM PST
got the picture off the camera
Wednesday February 23rd 2005 05:37 PM PST
I went over to the Sony Lot for a meeting today, and we had to park in the HUGE parking lot next to the Overland Entrance. The view was incredible. Its been raining for the last 5 days and it cleared off today so we could see all the way out to Mt. Wilson. The view of downtown was great. Too bad my camera sucks.
Friday February 25th 2005 09:47 AM PST
But an ASSCLOWN OF THE DAY has already been chosen!
Driving down exposition. Three lanes going Westbound. I'm in the left lane. There are people turning in front of me at the
next signal up (about 200 feet away) so i look over my shoulder, see its clear, signal, make a lane change and keep moving.
The guy who was about 30 feet behind me didn't seem to like this. He's now behind me, hits the gas as hard as he can,
changes lanes to the right lane and gets next to me, but everything is slowing down because of the light. So now he signals
left directly into me. I see there is a bus in front of him, i check the left lane, and it actually looks like there is nobody turning
anymore, so i signal left and move over to let him get around the bus. What i don't understand at this moment is that the nice
signal means, "i want to move over all three lanes". I'm now in the left lane again, and as soon as he starts to change lanes
from the right he doesn't stop. He's directly next to me and just pushes straight in. I don't really want to get into an accident,
so i let the assclown over. Problem is, he doesn't turn off his signal. The meaning now has changed to "Sorry i cut you off,
but now i'm going to make you wait behind me". Camera comes out in the waiting, and i catch him giving me the finger as i
finally pass him.
Yup, thats his finger.
Friday February 25th 2005 04:59 PM PST
A bunch of us went to BC last night to get together for a Steve-O/Me birthday dinner. I mentioned going to BC without
thinking of the thursday night ramifications. So we pull in at about 8 and i see the musicians set up in the courtyard. I
immediately remember that they have belly dancing on Thursday night. Damn, it was my idea to eat there, and i had
unintentionally shot myself in the foot. I knew that by the nights end, i would have to look like a fool attempting to belly
dance. I quickly sat down and ordered a pitcher of Guinness. I figured it would make the impending doom less painful.
Unfortunately for me, the first wave of belly dancing came only half way through my first pint. BUT, at that time, only half of
our party had shown up, so i got up like the uncoordinated fool that i am.
Everybody else showed up and we dug into a whole lot of food. All in all we had about 15 people there. So the seconds round
of belly dancing comes and Steve-O gets pulled up. I have had a little more to drink at this point, so my second performance is
a little better (or at least in MY mind its better). We all ended up having a great time. Jen actually was up way past her
bedtime, but had a lot of fun talking to Becky (bob's wife). Then out of the blue, Bob just picks up the check for the entire
party. THANKS BOB. He's gotta get himself and his wife home cause they are both dead tired. So they leave for their drive to
long beach. Everybody else hangs out for a little while longer just drinking and talking.
I get home after and just pass out without turning on my alarm. doesn't matter. for some reason i pop out of bed at 6:30 and
i can't get back to sleep. I should have had at least another hour before i had to get up.
Monday February 28th 2005 09:36 AM PST
Sat around and did almost nothing this weekend. Just the way it should be. We ended up walking to Ai Saturday night for
dinner. The place was packed and there was at least a 30 minute wait, but there was nobody at the sushi bar. So Jen and I
took a seat and proceeded to stuff ourselves. They had a Avocado and Unagi special that we tried out and were very pleased.
Most of the people at the bar ended up ordering something different, then recommending it to everybody else. So it ended up
that just about everybody there had the same thing eventually.
Sunday we went to lunch at the Lobster with Bob and David. Its really nice this time of year at the beach when it clears off.
Sunday was beautiful. Then last night we just sat around again. We ended up watchin the Bill Gates speech on CSPAN. Not exactly the most charismatic
person in the world, but he's right about high school.
anyway, back to the grind
