I Have a Strange Job, Or: Digging Ditches in Texas

I have a very strange job. Sometimes I find myself in a clean room, sometimes on a construction site, sometimes locked in my office coding.
This job actually involved my using a Pic-Axe in Texas at noon.


P.S. This pix was taking downtown Fort Worth, and I was the only one who found the scene out of the ordinary.

Four Surfaces

It is true that I am not a very good machinist. But I am getting better.

Old Frend

This Sunday's was a very pleasant ride around Santa Cruz (up, down, up, down, up,...) with an old high school friend that I manage to see about once a year.
24.7 mi
2h, 4min, 57s
Max 41.5 mph
Av 11.9 mph

Were Baby Robots Come From

These images are from our first design session:

First layout what the area available is and how big the motors are


Now add the "Wheels" and "Transmisson"


There are 4 of them


The frame members have to mount to the keg, and mount the transmission in place


Figuring out where the weapon and electronics go.


Batterys (wood), wepons system (if we have the weight), electronics, (calculator), wheels (tape), motors (tubing), and trasmission (plate)

Niki Point

On Sunday I went for a ride up to the old Nike Missile Silos above Berkeley. Then I took a picture. Well, 13 pictures.

I Feel Like I Have Been in a FIght

Today was the Yongmudo tournament. The scoring software I wrote for it went just fine. It feels good to do something like that. I also fought it it, though I was not prepared to at all. I am still totally worked from the bike race last Sunday. But they needed more fighters, so I sined up (such a good boy I am). I lost by 1 point. I am starting to think I am self handycaping, cuz for the past 2 years I keep losing fights by rediculusly small margens (19-20 this time) and not wining any.

Oh well, I did have fun with it.

A Complicated Beverage

Hard to open, difficult to drink. But at least it did not taste very good.

Role Reversal

A couple of years out of high school my beloved Triumph Spitfire died a horrible death. The engine actually rusted from the inside. The car did have a few parts that were worth something though, the biggest prize was the detachable hard top. I traded this to a guy named Richard who made his living restoring trashed bikes. In return for the hard top I got a 10 year old Bridgestone 300 racing frame with whatever components he dug up. (Or rather I think it was the 300, it may have been the 400, or the 200). I loved that bike. I would ride it to my minimum wage job, and to the school I was failing out of. I would go on long rides to nowhere. I would duck in and out of traffic, beating the cars for mile stretches of road.

But my very favorite thing to do was to completely annihilate yuppies.
There I would be on my way to work in a pair of tattered jeans, with a cigarette in my mouth and waist coat flapping behind me blowing by the yuppies in there brand new fancy bikes wearing spandex trying to buy speed.
Oh, how I loved it then, and oh, how it hurts now that I am the yuppie getting toasted by the punk. But I will still lift off the seat and try to keep up. And if you are the punk, please know that under the expression on my face of pain and humiliation, I am actually smiling at your triumph and remembering mine.

I am Thinking of Taking out an Ad:

Wanted, somebody to call when I get to the hotel on business trips (May be late) and when I get back home (3-10 times a year). I would also like to call after I complete athletic endeavors (4 or 5 times a year). In return I will bring back small gifts, trinkets for you, as well as randomly give you some tasty treat or other. This would be the entirety of our relationship, no less, no more.

God Help me, I just not that Bright

Tomorrows ride is a race.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Finished in 1:18:42.7 (8.23 mph). The fastest finisher did it in 0:43:33.3 (15.7 mph) which smashed the record
547th out of 885 overall (62nd Percentile)
132 out of 192 M 30-39 (69th Percentile)

P.S.
Pix of me passing somebody, and mugging for the camera.

Know What Bugs Me?

Speaking of my Job

Sometimes I get to work on some cool ass shit!

That is one of these:

Blast Site

So, as a part of my job, I monitor explosions at a particular site every month to 3 months or so. Near the blast site is a nice nut orchard that changes very dramatically from season to season. So, from now on (if I remember) I will take a picture every time I go out.