Author Archive > andrei

Relatively speaking

15 October 2003 » In Other » 1 Comment

I had to fix up the link to the pictures in the previous entry: convert it from a relative to an absolute one. Someone has syndicated my feed on LiveJournal, and the relative URLs embedded in the entry text ended up pointing to the LJ server. I don’t like using absolute URLs unless I must, for a variety of reasons. Shouldn’t the syndication software take care of normalizing the links or do I need to pre-process my feed somehow?

Paddling time

14 October 2003 » In Bay Area » 3 Comments

So, as mentioned in the previous entry, I went kayaking with a few people on Sunday. We chose Kayak Connection in Moss Landing (Elkhorn Slough), which is about 20 miles from Santa Cruz. The cost was only $30 for up to 4 hours, and you get full gear (paddling jacket, life jacket, spray skirt, etc) with the rental. I kayaked only once before, on the Charles River in Boston, and this was more interesting due to larger waves and more open territory. We also arranged to have our lunch on the water. All in all, a great experience and I hope to repeat it again some time soon. Pictures here.

No more Basic Quality

13 October 2003 » In Me » 3 Comments

Over the weekend – in between helping Rasmus move to a new house and going on a kayaking trip – I upgraded my TiVo Series2 to have more recording capacity. Drive A is now a 160 GB Samsung and Drive B is the original WD 40 GB one. The process was fairly painless (at least for TiVo itself, since I managed to cut myself on sharp edges of the box twice), if a tad long – I wanted to preserve the recordings which involved mirroring the drive.
Still there were a couple of close calls: at one point I thought that mfsadd has corrupted the partitions, and the other one was getting a Green Screen of Death after assembling everything and turning it on. But now I have 195 hours of storage at Basic Quality level.. wait! no more Basic Quality! From now on, all the shows I record will be in High or Best quality, show content notwithstanding.

He's back!

08 October 2003 » In Bay Area » No Comments

I, for one, welcome our new Terminator overlords from the distant future. [tongue in cheek, lest I be crucified by the vocal minority]

Macrocephalic Society

05 October 2003 » In Rants » 1 Comment

JR, brother, I can relate to your lament. I’ve had exact same problem for as long as I can remember. Just recently I went to get a new bike helmet, knowing in advance that it would most likely be an exercise in futility, and wouldn’t you know, the cheapest helmet that did not squeeze my cranium in vice grip was around $140. Maybe we big-headed people could unite and petition manufacturers to produce larger head gear, and if they don’t, sue them for discrimination?

Sangrilicious

03 October 2003 » In Food » 3 Comments

Having enjoyed the pleasures of sangria during my trip to Europe this summer, I wanted to try and make it at home. The recipe below is probably the best one I have found so far. Since this was a trial run, I simply bought a jug of Gallo Cabernet Sauvignon, but you can and perhaps should substitute somewhat better wine. I also replaced the lemon with a ripe nectarine, and resulting beverage ended up quite tasty.
Ingredients
1.5L Dry Red Wine (Cabernet Sauvignon)
1 cup Sugar
3-4 oz plain Brandy
1 large Lemon, sliced
1 large Orange, sliced
1 large Apple, cut into thin sections.
Mixing instructions
Mix these altogether in a large container, stir, and let sit for 18-24 hours. Yes, I know that’s a LONG time, but it’s well worth the wait. A much more delightful sangria is produced when the fruit juice blends with the wine by osmosis than by stirring. (By the way, you should let it sit in the refridgerator during this long interim). When you are ready to drink it 18-24 hours later, stir it up again, and add sugar or brandy to taste, it should be fairly strong and fairly sweet, almost syrupy. Then, cut the mixture with some sort of bubbly water, orange or lemon flavored if possibly, but plain bubbly water is fine, until it seems to have a thinner, more wine like consistency. Drink and enjoy.

21st century President

01 October 2003 » In Opinion » 5 Comments

With a swift move, presidential hopeful Wesley Clark secured support of the entire population of Sci Fi fans (all 50,000 of them I guess). I can only ask the higher powers that be to guide him to victory – unless a much better candidate emerges – because having Clark in the office will ensure a high-tech boom that will make the Internet one pale in comparison. Nanotechnology, faster-than-light travel, space elevators, high-energy physics, antigravity, and a cure for common cold. We’ll be living on the Moon and flying in our jetmobiles to work! Maybe we’ll even get.. khm-khm.. cold fusion brewing. Plus, Clark just seems entertaining. A quality that is sadly lacking in present day politics. Go Wesley!
P.S. Tune up your sarcasm filters if having trouble with the above paragraph.

It blew my breath away!

30 September 2003 » In Funny » No Comments

Ah, the wonderful idioms of the English language..I have to admit that sometimes I catch myself saying one and then thinking, “Was that right? Is it really jumping at the bit?” In fact, that’s how I found the referenced page, by searching for an idiom that I butchered mercilessly. Oh well, no skin off my teeth.
Now reading: Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle and a posthumous collection of Douglas Adam’s writings Salmon of Doubt.

Fashion Item RIP

22 September 2003 » In Rants » No Comments

Some “fashion” trends are sure to pass me by completely. Good riddance. But I’ve got a vintage pair of coveralls for any interested hipsters.. Comes pre-covered in paint stains. Bidding to start soon.

Updating my pad

20 September 2003 » In Me » No Comments

I came to conclusion that my bookshelf and entertainment center, made of black metal and bought cheaply a few years ago, served their purpose and I needed something better. It took me a while to look through miriad offerings out there and settle on something that was functional and pleasant to look at: a bookcase from Scandinavian Designs and a TV bench/audio tower combo from Bell’O. I enjoy putting together furniture, and this kept me busy for a couple of days, but now I have this and this. Maybe I could do this furniture-assembling as a side job?
Next step is the update of the home theatre system.