Range time with the 22/45

Not too difficult aiming through the video. Might have to try it with the .45 next.

The past 4 months

Wow it's been a while. Longest hiatus since I started this back in 2010. This wasn't intentional, just kept getting put on the back burner. A lot has happened since the last post.

I've visited New Bern and my wonderful girlfriend, and her work place. We played with her dog, and made some waffles. These are her waffles, mine was just loaded with butter.

A few weekends later, joined her family in Myrtle Beach. Got some saltwater taffy, walked around barefoot landing and Broadway at the beach, and took it easy. Even got the camera turned on me! Actually, I only took one of the pictures below...which is it?

The next trip was down to New Bern. There was an air show! Got to see the Blue Angels, some Harriers, and some V-22's. Took a lot of pictures here, and have a photo book on the way (next week!). 

Then, I went to Germany for a week (for work unfortunately, and not with the person I really want to go with). Got to walk around some, at least...and have some dunkel weissen (dark wheat beer)!

Despite a near last minute change of plans, plans came to fruition, and my favorite person met me at the airport when I got back to the states. Took it easy, watched some F1, and went to Ben and Jerry's factory in Vermont. Couldn't think of a better way to recover from jet lag. Ice cream samples too!

Then was June 5th, or 3/4ths, as it was known by a couple people this year. Unfortunately I didn't have company for celebration, but did get to see Venus pass in front of the sun. Made a home made solar filter for my telephoto lens so I wouldn't go blind. Here was the result. Puts things in perspective, and really drives the vastness of the universe home...all by watching a little black dot move in front of the sun. Look, sun spots too!

Formula 1 in Montreal! A great vacation. Couldn't have been better. Well maybe if Senna or Alonso won the race, but we weren't so lucky. Between the race and the evenings, we took 1191 pictures! This trip could have several posts to itself, but here are a few pictures.

Good times the past four months. Clearly some themes...travel and my awesome girlfriend. More to come! Looking forward to 5/6ths and a week of vacation around the 4th of July.

Introversion

Every now and then, a TED talk comes around that I really enjoy. A few in particular come to mind by Hans Rosling, Brian Cox, and Jill Tarter. They explain things in a great way, and while I may have understood their subjects before, they present them in a way that's new; fresh. Then there are ones that are new; ones that I can relate to; ones that help me understand something better, and in this case, help me describe myself. I am an introvert, I am quiet, and I am contemplative.

Susan Cain is an introvert. She describes her life of trying to fit in in a world of extroverts. It is interesting to hear about her experiences, and see how they relate to my own. She goes on to describe historical figures that were introverts. Abraham Lincoln, Steve Wozniak, Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss), Darwin, the list goes on. I like hearing about the importance of solitude; how it can be a crucial ingredient to creativity, and how it allows some people to thrive. I like everything about this talk, it is nice to hear me described so accurately...and it doesn't sound abnormal, bizarre, or weird. As she suggests at the end of her talk, maybe this blog has been me opening up my suitcase. Now...I might have found a new book to read.

What's that on your nose?

The 2012 F1 season is rapidly approaching. The cars have been unveiled, and testing has begun. These cars look strange. There is a new rule this year that specifies that the nose of the car must be lower. This is said to improve safety by keeping the nose from entering another drivers cockpit in the event of a side impact. With this new rule change, as expected, there are some intersting design differences between the cars. Looks like there are two schools of thought; stepped or non-stepped. Stepped, where there is a strange looking step in the nose of the car is the most common. Very few teams 1 or 2 have a non-stepped design.

Well, what's the difference? Why would one be better than the other? Marussia, formerly Virgin, has been quoted as saying there is no difference. I suspect they are mistaken. It all comes back to downforce vs. drag. Downforce good, drag bad. Unfortunately, many things that increase downforce, also increase drag. With the step in the front of the car, I predict many teams are seeing some level of front-end downforce increase, with some level of drag increase. It will be interesting to see how these designs evolve thoughout the season.

The most interesting design is on the Mercedes. It is very streamlined. It looks much more organic than any other car this year.

Looking forward to the first race of the year where we'll see the pecking order. Testing times are deceptive, generally; and this year, hopefully. Ferrari only topped the times one day this year, so far. Although they were top of the charts often last year, we all know how that turned out.

Now, how can I post a picture here and not get Bernie knocking on my door?

Credit: Mark Thompson/Getty Images     

Date: February 23, 2012

Perfection

...It's the goal. Why would the goal be anything less? A: Because sometimes it takes way to long. I tend to be a perfectionist. One reason I haven't posted much here. I spend too much time trying to make posts perfect, that I just don't write anything at all. I'm hoping to change that now, so I write more here, but as I type this, I realize I am scrutinizing the wording, punctuation, everything. That should have been a semi-colon, a comma, or a period? Was that a run on sentence? These are the things I waste too much time on. That's right, that sentence ended with a preposition. I'm not rephrasing it. Ok. Here's to imperfect, more frequent posts. ::sips glass of wine from a box:: That's right. Classy.

Time flies

Looking back to posts this a year ago (wow, I've been doing this over a year!) I notice that I also didn't post much around this time. Maybe something with Thanksgiving, Christmas, work, travel, etc....doesn't matter.

Finally got some new tires for my car, and the difference is amazing. Such a quiet ride now, compared to the truck w/ mud tires sound I was enjoying. While I won't start driving like a granny, hopefully I don't break it anytime soon. Not wanting a car payment.

What other randomness can I write? :) page now, which is awesome, and gets updated more times than I post. Along those same lines, look at this, snow on October 29th!

Learning to cook - take 2

I've mentioned cooking before (here), albeit it briefly. I've now started to attempt cooking again, with some teaching and extra motivation. The problem area for me before was the 'Does it taste good' decision box. What I cooked was good usually, but 'Kinda'. I would always have the leftovers in the fridge for way too long, or eat the same thing for a week straight. This all led to me avoiding cooking.

Now, I'm starting to enjoy and appreciate cooking, just. I've been shown how to do some things, and that is much easier for me to follow than a recipe. I'm getting to the point where I understand a few basics, which helps me to experiment with new, but still similar things. I never thought I would say it, but it is actually fun. I'm not good at it, but I'm not discouraged either. Can only get better from here. Still a lot to learn, and I will try the okra again (it was from scratch!). Hooray learning!

Tasted better than it looks (well, except for the okra. It looks better than it tasted)

Breakfast for dinner! French toast, eggs and bacon. All really good!

Bicycles and computers

"A computer is the most remarkable tool that we've ever come up with. It's a bicycle for our minds." ~Steve Jobs

This is a great metaphor by a great man. They were both limited in the distance they could transport until a few decades ago, when the internet started gaining popularity. Since then, the internet has become an integral part of the every day lives of most of the people in the United States, and is used by more than a quarter of all human beings.

In the past decade, with the popularization of social media, the internet has become not only about connecting people to new places and ideas, but also about connecting people. Or, more to the point of this post, reconnecting people. Ten years ago, I made a new friend in high school band when she joined as a freshman, and I was a junior. We talked some, but 2 years was a big difference in high school. After I graduated, we didn't talk again until earlier this year after I was persuaded by a friend to rejoin Facebook. To my surprise, on a post about the Tour de France, I heard from her (for the first time in at least 9 years!). We talked throughout the event, and it was fun. After another few months of not talking, we started again. But this time, to learn about each other. We've talked every day since and it's been better than I could have hoped. To list our similarities would be no easy feat, as there are A LOT. And, not only are there those that could be listed, but also ones that would just be challenging to put to words. For the sake of brevity, my girlfriend is an amazing woman and an amazing person.

Last weekend, when home for a long time friend's wedding, I got to see her for the first time since high school. This was a great weekend. One goal for the weekend was to find my old yearbook. I couldn't have been happier with what I found. The picture says it all. I just smile, literally every time I see it. A pre-Facebook message from over a decade ago!

Computers are wonderful tools and, in our case, bicycles a catalyst. 700 miles would be difficult to overcome on a bike. Less difficult with a computer.

Learning new things

I can't agree with Ayrton Senna more when he said:

‎"There is a, a great desire on me on improving; getting better. That makes me happy. And everytime that I feel I am slowing down my learning process, my learning curve is getting flatter or whatever, then it doesn't make me very happy. That applies not only as a profession, as a racing driver, but also as a man."

A few weeks ago, I started getting into guns. I took a 10 hour class on handgun safety, and I plan to take more to continue to improve. The next one will likely be personal protection inside the home. I really hope I never have to use what I'm learning, but it's fun to learn, and I like preparing myself as best as possible for unpredictable circumstances.

I don't like being limited by the equipment I use. This applies to all my hobbies. I want to be the limiting factor. I like having a lot of room for self improvement. This makes for a steep learning curve where, often times, the quality of my things is not proportional to my skill. This is challenging. Challenging is fun.

This is my 1911 (chambered, as the original, for the .45 ACP cartridge). The design was standardized 100 years ago during WWI. It was the standard issue side arm for the US armed forces from 1911 to 1985. The parts from 100 years ago are identical to the parts of today. Literally, exactly the same design. It's simple, and it's easy to see the singular function of each component. I am able to disassemble and reassemble with no tools, in about 5 minutes (but haven't timed myself, yet). It is fun to shoot, and has quite a kick. Having joined the local gun club and range, I'm enjoying improving. It will be a long time before I'm equipment limited. I'm certainly the limiting factor, and that is fun.

On happiness and optimism

On this day 10 years ago, I was in German 4 when our high school principle came over the intercom and told teachers to turn on the TV. It could be that I was overly naive, or just couldn't imagine how terrible it must have been to be affected directly by the days events; but I did not fully understand the significance of the days events. One thing was for sure, it happened, and it will be in the history books forever. We will not forget. However, our remembrance should not be in sadness or hatred, but in optimism and hope. We learned of the foolishness of intolerance. This is a two way street. We must try and understand each other and accept that we are all different. If a book written millennia ago says we should be intolerant of certain groups, does that make it right?

A lot can change in 10 years. Education, travel, and time can help provide worldwide context to events of this nature. These three things will help individually, but I believe their true power is only manifest when coupled with the unique power of the human mind to make sense of multiple, seemingly unrelated facts. This does not require belief, only facts and effort. Even if the facts are difficult to find, we must try. If we can't find the facts, we can speculate and hypothesize. Speculation and hypothesis do not equate to fact; and this must always be remembered. If forgotten, it is challenging not to fool yourself. The effort required is not reduced once we find a fact. We must think, attempt to find context, and use it to construct our view of the world. A fact may be proven wrong or inaccurate, and at that time it is important to reconsider how that changes your world view. When building your world view, a fact can not be disregarded, especially if it is an uncomfortable one. New facts can be uncomfortable, and difficult to accept. Just because they can be hard to accept, that doesn't change the fact itself. It is important to look forward and determine the best possible course of action.

"We can find a resonance, a harmony between the way we think, and the way the world works. When he found that his long cherished beliefs did not agree with the most precise observations, he accepted the uncomfortable facts. He preferred the hard truth to his dearest illusions. That..is the heart of science."
~Carl Sagan on Johannas Kepler and his acceptance of his failed theory

A lot can change in 3 weeks. On my way to work on a Tuesday morning, I got a call from my mom. She goes on to tell me that doctors have found that she has cancer. A second opinion since has confirmed the diagnosis. Talk about a difficult fact to accept, but nothing changes it. We can be optimistic and look on the bright side; they found it early. They found it using new, very sensitive equipment. Using equipment from just a few years ago would not have found it. There is reason to be optimistic. The day after I learned this, my dad went into the hospital for a scheduled knee replacement. He is working through rehabilitation now, and is doing very well. We can be happy about his progress, and optimistic for his full recovery. It's not possible to find happiness in all situations, but that doesn't mean we can't be optimistic and hopeful. Let's understand the situation and make the best decision for moving forward.

"Worrying is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it doesn't get you anywhere."
~Van Wilder (movie)

A lot can change in 6 days. Happiness has been easy to find this week...smiling and laughing a lot. Funny how just reading text can do that. I over analyze everything and am always trying to predict things. For this, I blame engineering...but it has also taught me to realize that predictions are just that, and can be wrong. I don't like being wrong, but regardless, with engineering it is easy because there (so far) has never a possibility of someone getting hurt. This is completely different. I didn't learn this in school. I'm trying to learn. Learning is fun. :)

"You just have to put yourself out there and hope they like you back! This isn't a game! This is my life."
~Just Friends (movie) 

It's so easy

Once again, the cover of a song in a car commercial turns out to be better than the original song! Here's an Audi R18 commercial, with what the comments and related videos suggest is a song originally by Ted Lucas, covered by Erica Bjuremark. I love the lyrics too..."It's so easy when you know what you're doing." Especially as the commercial is alluding to aerodynamics (or more broadly, engineering)! Good stuff.



...Which reminds me of this commercial that I first saw probably about 3 years ago. The original song, Space Oddity by David Bowie covered by Cat Power. It almost makes me want to buy a Lincoln....almost.

The development race

Here is Alonso discussing his 4th place qualifying at the German GP. This is why F1 is so awesome!

“We’re still improving the car, the new parts we brought here are also very positive, the car feels better and better every time. It’s not that our competitors are looking at the TV in the 15 days between the two races; everyone is improving. We know McLaren brought here a big aero package, Red Bull as well. It’s a competition also outside the races which team is quicker in developing the car as well.”

And a picture to make this post interesting. Here's Alonso doing some testing of a new rear wing in Canada. Some pressure sensitive paint and a few sensors on the rear wing. Not sure what he's looking at though :)

Been there!

This weekend is the German GP at the Nurburgring. The one place they always highlight during this weekend is the castle at the top of the mountain. They always have nice helicopter shots of it. Here's a view from the top, overlooking the Nurburgring GP course. The GP course is in the upper right of the image. Even part of the Nordschleife is in the left of the shot. I wish they would still race on that, but there is no way...much too dangerous for the speeds of these cars today! I loved that place, and hope to go back one day!

Hooray for keeping up with these posts on a regular* schedule.

*open to interpretation :)

The picture taker and the picture

Here's a cool thing that happened in my recent trip to see the F1 race in Montreal. As I was taking a picture, I was having a picture taken of me. And the picture taken of me was broadcast into hundreds of millions of homes. Sweet! So, here it is, the picture of me taking a picture, and the picture that resulted.

A picture of me taking a picture (look near the center of the frame, I have a red hat and big lens!)

The picture! Well done, Jenson. He had an incredible drive. I didn't mind seeing him win!

Hotel room - Montreal

Here we go with the continuation of one of my most pointless series of posts. Haha, I started the trend, and now I just want to continue with it for the sake of continuing with it. Oddly enough, it's kind of fun! So without further adieu, here's the hotel room from Montreal.

And because the view out the window in that picture is completely blown out, here's a shot out the window at night. I like this picture much more. :) 

Stunt planes and no speed limits

Video of me riding in a stunt plane from the summer of 2005. Found it while cleaning and figured it deserved an upload :). Good times! Doing work on that piece of gum!



Here's the second video of me driving on the Autobahn. More good stuff! This time, it's a proper highway.

Arachnophobia

Rather, Arachno-teamwork!

Went for a hike, had the spectacular 105mm macro with me, and came across this spider and web stretching across the trail. (It was actually quite an impressive web!). Luckily, I had a swarm of black flies around me. Lunch time for the spider! While these images are creepy to stare at, I encourage you to try, because some of the detail you can see is just amazing!

In this picture, you can see: 

-Hair on the spider's leg (not the black spiky things, look closer at the white part of the spider's leg close to it's body)

-The spider has already wrapped up one black fly and is in the midst of wrapping up another. You can see the silk it's wrapping around the second fly! Look how it's using it's front legs to assist in spinning the web.

In this picture, you can see:

-The spider has wrapped up one fly, and is on to the next. It was incredible to see how fast the spider responded to vibrations in the web. Evolution is an incredible thing.

-Look how it's 'holding on' to the web with it's left rear leg while the others are in motion. Amazing! Looking back, I wonder if a faster shutter speed would have been better, but I think not. Anyone have opinions about this?

-The spider may be a bit embarrassed that I've shown this picture, it's web there in the center is a little deranged. Look at the clump of silk...let's try to be neater next web spider. Ok? Thanks. But maybe his web was messed up from the wrapping of that black fly...then it's cool, function over form, I get it man...good work!

In this picture, you can see:

-You can see the spider excreting silk from it's abdomen, (is that what it's called? I'm not sure). Ass, we'll say. Look at him excreting silk from his ass while wrapping the black fly. :)

And here's our guy, or girl, up close (I don't know which, I'm not a spider expert). Thanks to the swarm of black flies I had surrounding me, he/she now has food for a while. You're welcome. And thanks to my 100% deet, the black flies were just interested, but couldn't commit to biting me. Well done, deet!

Here's a shot of the web, as I continued my hike. I apologize for not using a larger aperture, I'll correct that next time. This was f/10. Should have dialed in F/2.8. Next time I see a spider's web crossing a trail, while I have my D90 with the 105mm f/2.8 macro, and a swarm of black flies following me...I'll take this shot at f/2.8. Yep, this shot will be better next time. ;)

Hotel room - Rochester, NY

And so I continue with the pointless habit of taking (and sharing) pictures of the hotel rooms I stay in. Here's the one from Rochester, NY, and it was kind of a dump. There was duct tape to seal the window, and the toilet never stopped running. Anyway, it was a place to sleep for the week I was there, and that's really all I need.

The next hotel I stay in will be niiiiice :)

Half a century ago

Alan Shepard went to space and back, being the first American to enter space. Here's a replica of the capsule he rode in (from my visit to the space center in Florida). That thing is tiny!! Must have been a rush to ride.

I wish I was around for the space race, must have been an awesome thing for an engineer to witness. Hopefully we'll have something like that in my lifetime.

A train ride through Germany

I took a video on the train through Germany. I decided to play some piano in the background. Enjoy the scenery!