HSF Concours 2008

An car show to support a small public school system? Oh, yeah! Some amazing cars, including a Niki Lauda F1 Ferrari, a couple of gorgeous Delahayes, some Cords (which I love), a hydrogen powered BMW 7-series, a bunch of fun Alfas and FIats, two matching dark grey 300SL Gullwings, and this mind-blowing "Bumblebee" 212 Inter Ferrari!

click for slideshow

Opening Day in Oakland

Last night, the Red Sox and A's opened their North American season at McAfee Coliseum, after two games in Tokyo. Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched masterfully for the World Champs (6 2/3 in, 1 ER, 9 K). It was a close, well-played game, with a couple of controversial calls: Suzuki misses Youkilis with a sweep tag at the plate, and Varitek misses a home run on a called Ground Rule Double. We had a clear view of the Varitek shot, which clearly bounced off the top of the grey scoreboard roof, never coming close to the yellow "in play" line; a very bad call.

Was very happy to be able to use the occasion of Opening Day to celebrate our re-location from Boston to the East Bay. And I was extra happy to share the event with so of my many friends and family that made the move possible. Particularly fun was seeing my nephew Matthew and his friend Ronnie laughing, hanging on the railing, and moaning "Yoo-ooo-ook" out the suite window; Matthew in his Big Papi jersey, and Ronnie in his Derek Jeter jersey. The red "34" and the white-on-blue "2" looking back at us seemed almost irreconcilable, with Ronnie's Dad describing the scene as something like, "a sign that world peace is possible".

Felt really bad for my nephew David, who flew from DC to San Fran to see the game. I may not have this exactly right, but somehow his flight got delayed then stuck in Charlotte. He got on another plane to Philly, and onto another flight to SFO, but that plane didn't have enough fuel to make it from coast to coast (?), so he landed in KC to refuel. After about eight hours of delays, he arrived at McAfee at the end of the 6th inning, and the usher could not direct him to our box. We did not see him until the game was over. How does that happen?

However, I must say that the venue was otherwise pretty darned acceptable. Going to watch a baseball game in a facility that is also used for football gave me dark memories of going to Three Rivers in Pittsburgh; never liked that place. From the outside, you certainly get that feeling of "concrete monstrosity", but on the inside, the seating and the views were pretty good, if a little distant. Foul territory was expansive (like having two more outfields), and I never liked having the bullpens "in the field of play".

The As fans were enthusiastic, if nearly overwhelmed by the Red Sox crowd. Chants of "Let's Go Red Sox" mashed into an unintelligible static of "Let's Go Oak-Sox", "Let's Go Red-land", each side trying to shout down the other. The Opening Day ceremonies were brief but appropriate, with a sort of mini-fireworks display set up in the outfield and a fly-over by the Blue Angels. Sometime in the fifth or sixth inning, the Scoreboard lit up with Tarzan movie clips in an apparent attempt to get the crowd to make enough "jungle yelling" noise that the elephant mascot Stomper (?) would appear. It felt strangely like a minor league promotion, and I never did see the elephant.

Unconsciously Green

I filled the TT's tank with gas yesterday; for the first time that I can recall, it cost me more than $50. But, I hadn't bought gas since December 1st - three full months. I used the gas to visit my brother in the South Bay. He just bought a house and was going to rent it out, so I was going to help him clean it up. But when I got there, the new tenants were already moving in! The tenants had just moved from England, and needed a new (left-drive) car. They bought a BMW M6 convertible; EPA says 11 miles per gallon city, 17 highway. Damn.

When I was living in suburban Boston, I filled the tank once every other week, almost without fail. Now, living in Berkeley, I've now driven a total of 1,000 miles since moving in June. When Donna and I moved, I know we had hoped to reduce our carbon footprint, and I think it has been a tremendous success. What's great is that we really don't think about it, or even go out of our way to be "green". Our life style is simply more green, mostly because it asks less of the world: we need less heat, we need less gas, much more of our food is locally grown, and my commute is a two minute walk.

In all the recent talk about climate change and alternative energy, I still don't feel like there's been a strong call for conservation. Maybe cause I remember the days of Jimmy Carter and gas lines there just doesn't seem to be any kind of public urgency. Though there has been talk of CFL bulbs and hybrid cars, I still don't think there has not been a big and specific call for energy conservation. One big reason, I suppose, is that the "economic climate" has taken the headlines, and forced a kind of built-in conservation; when people save money, they save energy. But, I also have a hard time imagining pulling out a this economic recession tail-spin without spending our way out.

But I still have this big fear that there are those who believe we can spend our way out of this climate crisis, rather than save our way out. In other words: drive a more efficient car, not fewer miles; change your hardware not your software. And while I agree that we need to have more efficient "life accessories" (houses, cars, big appliances), ultimately, we need to change the way we approach life.

We did recently rent a Prius Hybrid, and I am convinced that these hybrid drives are not the answer. Perhaps because we drive so little now, that we barely felt the "upgrade" from 25 to 40 mpg. But the car felt cheap, and it drove like a bus; it did not have the feel of a better product. And I know that the petroleum "investment" in this product has got to be significantly higher than in other products because there is more in it: batteries, rotors, control systems, etc. Whereas the car we have does not require very much more investment in the product itself, other than, perhaps, getting new tires and filters. From every angle, I think our best economic and climatic choice is to keep our cars, keep them in good shape, make them as efficient as possible, and drive them less.

We may have arrived at these "tipping points" simultaneously, creating a situation in which good decision-making is much harder. My conclusion is that this is truly a fork in the road: our economic activity imperils our planet's health and we may have to choose one or the other. We cannot have both, and my concern is that at this point, we are all going to choose the selfish, "short-term gain" path of economic growth. If this is the case, I believe that conservation is going to be even more important down the road - but we need to be talking about it now.

2007 Year in Review

Today, had a good lightsaber workout with Matthew. The force is strong with him, but, as you can see, he knows the power of the dark side:



As this year comes to a close, we can finally consider the tremendous change it has brought.That we got through it at all is a testament to the tremendous support of family and friends, our own organizational skills (mostly donna's), and a whole lotta luck.

We started 2007 with our Phil and Lois, and our friends in Walpole (MA), playing parlor games and enjoying their teriffic company. Tony came and stayed a weekend in late January, with Matthew, and we watched the Patriots lose (the Pats lose?) to the Colts. Ouch. Sorry bout that, Matthew, but it has gotten a little better for the Pats since. Changes in my professional life are, by tradition, connected to visits with my brother, so I began my new job search in February. In March, I had my interview at Bentley, and got the job offer and the housing offer that same weekend - could hardly believe it.

We made a return trip in April to tie up some loose ends and check out the (new) house, and then we got ready to put our old house on the market. We had our open house on May 6th, and sold the house the next day - could hardly believe that, too (thanks Dottie!).

Donna finished her certificate program on June 5th. We had our Big Good Bye Blow Out on June 9th; we were so happy to see so many people before leaving! I finished up at Rivers the next week. The moving truck came on June 22nd. Then we moved out, closed on the house, and flew west on June 25h. We spent July 4th unpacking; and a few weeks later, my Mom and Dad came to stay a while in Berkeley, and we experienced our first California earthquake. That didn't take long, either.

August was about settling into our new place, setting up the new Computer Lab, and starting my new job. By September, we were old hands, and October brought a Red Sox World Series Championship. Looking back it hardly seems possible that all these things lined up, happened, and/or got done. I hope we don't have to move again too soon.

And so the sun sets on 2007 - for us, it has truly been an amazing year. Thank you and Happy New Year, everybody.

California Xmas No 1

click here to play

School has been on December Holiday now for about a week; I've been out playing golf and walking the Berkeley Hills. While the eastern half of the country has seen some early weather, we've been in the mid-50s. Folks here complain abut how cold the mornings are out on the fairways, and I remind them that they are playing golf a week before Christmas.

Went to Tony and Kris' in Hillsborough for an early Xmas gathering. Matthew is at that age where the excitement of the holiday is really peaking, and it's just fun to watch the kids enjoy the gifts and the general spirit of the occasion. This year, Matthew discovered Star Wars, as evidenced by the Darth Vader helmet and the lightsabers. Sophia immediately fell in love with her wooden blocks and wagon set. She climbed right up on the table to inspect her new toy. And several times during the evening, Matthew mentioned that he was "shaking", he was so excited.

The lightsabers were a particularly memorable gift. These are made by Master Replicas, and are amazing in their details and function. There is some kind of gyroscope inside that can tell if the blade is being swung or struck, and respnds with the appropriate sound effect: red (Darth Maul), green (Yoda), and blue (Luke Skywalker) - beautiful holidays lights. Nothing says Merry Chrsitmas like the power of the Force.

Back at home, I got a little potted Monterey Pine, and installed some twinkle lights in the frieze that runs at the edge of the ceiling, around the living room, dining room, and kitchen. You can see the lights of Berkeley and San Francisco in the windows beyond. Happy holidays everyone!

Breaking News - Situation Normal

I got into the habit of checking the MSM websites because when I worked for a big company (SSRM/MetLife), the "higher-ups" got their tech news from these sites. So I was in CYA mode. Plus, new computers tend to come with MSM links preloaded, and I am a bit lazy on the housekeeping. In any case, I opened up CNN this morn to see the headline above: "Innocent people going about their daily lives" and thought I had mistakenly clicked the link for The Onion. Obviously, when I checked the story, I understood the headline, but I was still in this kind of fake news, truthiness place.

Last night, on Nightline, the big story was a profile of the mall shooter in Omaha - these incessant cries of "why did he do that" echoing the (media-generated) fear in all those cries of "why do the terrorist hate us" from six years ago. People gotta get a grip: in Baghdad, a day when only eight people get shot is a sign that our War Against Extreme Fundamentalism is "succeeding" [end airquotes]. Which side of the MSM's mouthes do we want to listen to? Do we really need an explanation for the shooting or the terror act? Was there ever a time we cold have prevented the death of innocents? Is it important that we measure someone's the guilt or innocence?

Or do we need some unbelievable and intensely immediate news item to help sell ED drugs?

Though the headline above might suggest otherwise, it sure seems like we should have passed the tipping point where these acts become the norm, or maybe the expected, and we are just living, if not in Baghdad, in The Onion World.

Or maybe we just want so much that the world not be the way we've made it, that the expected becomes the news.

How Long for the PS3 Version?

This is not a an image from a new video game, or the next sci-fi movie prop, this is the headgear being designed by the Royal Air Force to work with the new Joint Strike Fighter jet ...



from the "Switched" blog:

" New Pilot Helmet Allows Terminator Like X-Ray Vision

The British military is testing a new helmet that allows fighter pilots to see through their planes.

The system is actually very elegant in its simplicity. A series of camera are placed on the outside of the plane. The images from the cameras are fed back to the cockpit where they are projected inside the specially designed helmet, allowing the pilot to see 360 degrees around him/her. It will look to the pilot as if there is no plane at all... which, now that we think about it, sounds kinda creepy.

The cameras will even have infrared sensors, allowing pilots to look down, through the cockpit floor, in the dead of night, and identify targets."

Particularly interesting is that this visioning technology is being used on a jet with stealth technology to allow pilots to be able to see "as if the plane was not there". In other words, the plane is invisible to both the folks on the ground and the pilot!

One wonders at what point we'll even need to have pilots in the plane, and this really does become a video game.