Mean machine

Whenever I get an idea in my head I really like to follow it through and see what I can find. So since I got my car I sensed a rekindle in my interest for cars, supercars to be specific.

Well I finally got a hold of a really nice metal model of a Lamborghini Murcielago (1:18). It’s sitting in my work desk right in its protecting case.

Something like this ;)

Vital Stats

Price: $274,000
Miles Per Gallon: 12/18 mpg
Curb Weight: 3740 lbs
Layout: Mid-Engine/AWD
Transmission: 5-Speed Manual

Engine
Type: V12
Displacement: 5992 cc
Horsepower: 550 bhp @ 7100 rpm
Torque: 457 lb-ft @ 5500 rpm
Redline: 7500 rpm

Performance
0-60 mph: 3.6 sec
0-100 mph: 8.8 sec
Quarter Mile: 12 sec @ 122 mph
Skidpad: .97g
Top Speed: 205 mph
Braking, 60-0 mph: 109 ft
Slalom Speed: 70 mph

Make my day (follow up)

Ok, this is overreacting:

http://www.ajc.com/news/content/metro/stories/2008/02/27/motorcyclist_0227.html?cxntlid=homepage_tab_newstab

New scenario: your daughters are being stalked by a guy in a motorcycle, they call you, you ready your weapon and shoot the guy after he drives away. Now you face murder charges.

The stalker was a creepy bastard all right but I don't think he deserved to die for that. This is just over the top gun-totting madness.

Make my day

Interesting news article today:

http://www.wsoctv.com/news/15414372/detail.html

So a thief threatens your wife, you come to her rescue with a gun, catch the guy with your truck and run over him a few times for good measure. And now they want to charge you with homicide!

In all seriousness I think it’s your sacred right to defend your wife just as it is your sacred right to defend your private property. That’s the reason they passed the make my day law. I’m not advocating for violence here, and the guy definitely got a little too enthusiastic on his thief chase; ‘defending’ must be a very clear term and the regulation of such should be strict.

The detractors of this kind of law state that the use of firearms for self-defense is fruitless, and that more people hurt themselves in accidents with said arms. The detractors also claim that gun control rules are lax, and the background checks are not as extensive as they should.

All this leaves plenty of room for discussion, which should be sustained by interpreted crime data (which is obviously lacking).

I have no pity for the thief, live by the weapon die by the weapon (or truck).

Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.

!

Happy birthday bro, don't go sour on me.

Cars

Ah the cult of cars, a.k.a man’s other porn.

Who can gaze upon them and not feel elated. Their wondrous moving lines, kilowatts trampling from a rev-out engine, their wicked evil eyes, sweet angel eyes... pretty cars are a wonder, pretty cars fascinating(8).

We should believe in Audi even if we don’t care about their cars: truth in engineering. But well, after the new Audi R8 you’ll believe in Audi either way. May the providence shine on the Germans and may their cars shine under the sun.

Portal

This was a triumph. Playing it is a delight from start to finish. Interesting puzzles and new ways of thinking, dark clever comedy, cognitive and reflexes tests in a first person shooter that has no violence per se, no real physical enemies. Just you, your trusty portal gun, and the oh so friendly GladOS.

Last night I finished the game for the second time, surprisingly it was still rewarding and I was still stranded for a little while in a couple of final puzzles. Even after beating the game once I couldn’t remember all the solutions. My so-called eidetic memory is as much of a sham as the proverbial cake.

After finishing the game I tried the advanced levels again, these I could remember easily (too much time stuck in some of them the first time hehe), even the crazy last level which made me a vanilla crazy cake. On a related note, my girlfriend got to lvl14 in her first attempt, and she has never played a FPS before, the game is just that intuitive; and well, she’s smart too. I’m gladly waiting for portal 2 now.

This little gem is hidden, waiting for you inside the orange box, it is more than hype now: it is endless intertubes memes.

Watchmen

Quite possibly the best graphic novel* of our time. Masterfully created, crafted and told from many different angles, one can only wonder what goes inside the mind of Alan Moore when he designs such a complex tale. It is also of note the groundbreaking work of drawer Dave Gibbons, his style in this book is homage to golden age comic books without some of the cheesy resources (speed lines, onomatopoeias, and the like).

I find the most interesting character to be Adrian Veidt, the humanist. He wants to inspire us to a higher level of understanding, an illuminated man in a modern world; he is reaching for a simple goal against all of us: saving earth, saving us. The rest of the cast is fleshed out complete with an interesting psychological profile but Adrian is definitely a ground shaker.

One can learn a lot from reading this masterpiece, noting the finer details here and there, reserved for that second or third read when you already know the story and are actually taking your time. This book is a heavy draught and must be taken accordingly; long swigs will leave you perplexed.

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

*Apparently Alan Moore and the comic book community despise this term; to them it sounds like an attempt to disguise a comic book with a mature made up name.

Coffee

Emoticón actual: Deluded

I felt extremely drowsy today, so much that I had to actually serve myself a cup of delicious office-crap-coffee. The secret ingredient it's crap.
Now I feel revitalized, makes me wonder if I can actually develop an addiction to this compound. I have tried enough tobacco without any lasting effects or cravings to consider myself immune to certain drugs. Clearly I'm deluded.

Anyway I'm in my second cup and ready to get some work done. Open social here we go.

Free lunch

Today I told a lie. I was warned all right, then again, a low for a high. There is no free lunch.