More Links

I've added two links to blogs that I like to read. Both of these have been up for a very long time. I think both are very funny at times.

The first is Pulp Racing, which since 1997 or so has been a diary of an ex-Microsoft employee and his racing antics. He has recently had a baby so lately the blog has been slow, but posts from the early and middle years are great reads. Also, those posts have some of the better racing videos available online.

The second link is to Don't Shake the Baby, and well, I'm not really sure how to describe it, but it's also a nice read. More armchair philosophical than Pulp Racing, but just as good.

In other news, I know you've all been on the edge of your seats checking here for F1 news, so here goes. Michael Schumacher won the San Marino GP in Italy today. Ferrari has always been good at that track, as it is essentially their home turf. But they are still way behind in points. So they are not much of a threat, unless they can maintain genuine performance in the next few races. Most people don't think that will be the case. Ferrari brought back their old school tactics for the race, qualifying both cars in the front row, and using Felipe Massa's weak skills in the 2nd car to block Alonso from chasing down Schumacher during the race.

Also interesting about Schumacher is the fact that his contract at Ferrari is up for 2007. Because the 6X World Champion can find a seat at essentially any team on the planet, any other driver whose contract is up after this year has to wait until Schumacher announces his contract to begin settling their own contracts. So as you can imagine, the mind games, rumor mills, and absurdity are in full swing.

I don't know why, but I find it enjoyable to watch guys who earn millions of dollars a year doing nothing but driving the fastest cars on the planet squirm about in uncertainty of their future. And they say there is more to humor than the misfortune of others.

In a completely unrelated development, I've got tests all this week.

The Fog of War and some other news and a rant

I recently saw Fog of War for I think might have been a 2nd time. For some reason I can't remember. It has really good production values. For example, Philip Glass composed an original score for the documentary. The film itself is a political autobiography of sorts by Robert McNamara. I don't know too much about the Vietnam war, but it was still interesting to see a historical figure give his side to a story. Go see it, although I think many of you probably already have.

I just got a new Nintendo DS Lite. It is nice as all hell. It's just a bit bigger than a cigarette box, and does the same thing as a huge 80's era TV and a large SNES console. I'm big on compactibility. Anyway, it turns out I suck at Super Mario Brothers 2 all over again.

It has basically reverted my mindset to a SNES-era state, so that is why my sentence structure has apparently similarly regressed. Or maybe I just haven't posted in a while.

I imported the sucker at a rationalizable cost, but that just means I get to gloat to everyone for the next month until it is released in the states, and 2 months until supply equals demand. I'd take pictures if I had a connectable camera, but I don't.

I imagine this will be the final nail in the coffin that is "Joe having a life." At least until I get a PS3.

Anyway, the DS is pretty sweet. The games are still memory cartridges, but they're cheap to manufacture so per game costs are lower than the PSP. The game selection outnumbers the PSP as well, although graphics are simpler. I chose not to get the PSP simply because I don't want to have to deal with Sony ever again. Their research and design is always excellent, but their insistence on chokingly strict proprietary measures means that consumers and the industry at large suffer as a result. An example you might understand and agree with is the UMD, or the media used by the PSP. Who has the money, time, or desire to buy movies for the PSP that cost as much or more than a DVD? How is this product better? Load times for games are worse than the DS, and are bulkier as well.

This seems pretty irrelevant to me now, but the principle applies to the vast majority of their products, except the PS3, which I'm hoping will be a better buy than the 360. I'll wait and see though.

Three Tenously Related Items

First off, the Australian Grand Prix took place Saturday night. It was by all accounts one of the most randomly crash and incident-laden races in recent years. But I haven't seen it yet. Don't go spoiling it for me, now.

Secondly, after a little under a year, I finally got around to starting Freakonomics, by Steven Levitt, written by someone else. The first chapter spends most of the time praising Steven Levitt. So right off the bat I know I've struck gold. The introduction seems to also spend much time on discussing the infallibility of numbers and data. However, I'm a few chapters past the intro, and there is very little in the way of numbers. So, so far, the book seems best described as interesting though unsubstantiated social commentary.

Lastly, I've discovered that earplugs are simply one of the greatest feats of technology ever devised by mankind. They are this month's recommended product for consumption(although they may not be safe, judging from vague warnings on the packaging and even more vague memories of anecdotes. I haven't yet figured out the exact reasons why).

But 33db average noise reduction can do wonders for minimizing distractions like dishwashers, industrial strength computer fans, air conditioners, cats in the dryer, etc. I can finally hear myself not think. I can hear how tense my neck muscles are. Earplugs are sensory deprivation at its finest. It's enough to make me want to take a chainsaw to very tall trees.

That is all.