Stop chump.

I should probably get a better shot of this when conditions improve.

Rainy day music.

Secondary choice. Can't embed.

I found out where all the people were.

I was going to go take pictures of Lego villages today. I figured it would be something I could breeze through, and get some content for the blog.

We arrived at 2:00. In epic rain. Only to find out there was a two hour line to get in, and they'd shut the line down. I assume, because the thing closed at 4:00. So the last people in line would get in, just as the event was closing up.

I was not going to wait in a two hour line with everyones kids to get in.

I have a feeling all summer long things are going to be like this. 5 bucks to get in. You can't take your kids anywhere for that price. Must remember to take that into account.

But, where are the bums suppose to go?

On the Sunol grade.



This whole thing happened really randomly. Traffic was completely backed up. We were sure there was an accident somewhere. We came upon what looked like a accident, but not the one that was clogging the road.

We were in the slow lane. Because that is the only way to get around the Bay Area fast. (Seriously. The slow lane always goes much faster than the fast lanes.) I was rubber necking the accident which looked like a little fender bender - when I saw a guy with a high end video camera on the hill with about ten people. Then I saw the billboard.

Me - Mr S., Pull over. Pull over. Pull over.

Luckily there was an off ramp right there. I walk back about a hundred feet so I can get a clean shot. This is also exactly where the fender bender is. By this time Mr S. has caught up with me. The twentysomething guys who were in the accident all of a sudden turn to us and say "What's this about?".

Mr S. - It's about voting people out of congress.

Other guy - Oooh. I thought it was about bums. I was wondering where they were going to put the bums? I thought it was a little mean. I'm not against giving them change now and then, but sheesh.

Me - No - it's just about the election.

As a side note - this week when the Tea Party announced they put together a federation to dispel the rumors they were disorganised. The only thing I could think of was "rumors". That is a fact. I constantly try to find these guys events, and if you aren't on the right mailing list or twitter feed you can't find crap. Sometimes even if you are, they don't even show. Or if they do, it's like 5 people. I thought they wanted publicity. And seriously, I don't want to have to be on your mailing list. But I will come and take pictures.

Every day I see this - it means something different to me.

Your mileage may vary.

I probably won't have much this weekend. But who knows. When I think I will have something great - it turns out to be shit. And when I think I have nothing - something funny happens. It's called being flexible People.

Mostly I'm going to get my taxes finished. And thankfully - it doesn't look like my state will be going bankrupt before I get my refund. Figures I would have a refund when things get all crazy. I try to make sure that never happens. A refund I mean. Last year was crazy though. What can I say.

Then bunny spa. For the bunnies. With possible bun-gina cleanings. Thankfully that doesn't need to happen very often. I always console myself that at least I don't have to drain a dogs ass. Bunny scent glands are a breeze compared to that.

Then garden crap. My toms are at the point where they want to be put in the ground. I'm going all technicolor this year. Pink,black,green and normal red ones. Honestly, I have a crazy kink for purple vegi's. Though not eggplant. I'm putting in purple soy beans this year. Onions I've been putting in for a week or two. Oh yeah. For all the bitching about hating mother earth - I go all organic and crap. Yep. That's me. Hypocrite! The difference is - I don't care if you put agent orange on whatever you grow. Your choice.

Which brings me to comment on soybean farmers. Oh! Those guys have an effing job. I swear to you - when I plant them, I have to go out with the flash light at night for weeks trying to keep the pill bugs from eating them. A completely crazy act, and I'm sure the neighbors think I'm completely insane. But, what are you going to do?

By the end of the weekend though - I do hope I'll get something interesting for you. Becuase I know the only reason you come here is to be entertained.

Crazy creeps in.

I don't talk about my relationships much here. I don't need to share everything with the world. Yet, there is one bit of dysfunction in my life that is worth talking about. I can't seem to rid myself of it. Normally I try to cut those people out like a cancer. I grew up in dysfunction - so, my tolerance is low.

It's my renter. Oh yeah. That guy.

Last month, things had gotten as bad as they could be. And, I've wanted to evict that guy a million times. A million! In a stronger market, that guy would have been gone so quick his head would spin.

I mean, things were bad enough that I told him I thought he was a chronic liar. He and I have known each other for maybe 6,7 years. So, it wasn't just like telling someone you didn't know they were a liar. Obviously I would have cut him out of my circle much sooner if I had this opinion years earlier.

Still, until he stops paying rent altogether - I can't serve him.

This month, he pays on time. For him. I'm just super happy I don't have to spend all month being pissed. I go on with my life.

This morning he texts me asking how we are doing. Normally I might have just texted him back. But since I'd basically laid him bare last month I decided to call. And, he just wants to shoot the shit. Like old times.

On one hand I think this is the perfect example of how guys are. You can tell them they are skeeby liars one day, and you are having a beer the next. Chicks don't get that kind of shit.

Now sure, he isn't going to get just anyone on the planet to let him pay whenever the fuck he wants. Yet, he doesn't really have to put out any effort for that. He knows the laws of California are as much as I do.

So the whole thing just makes my brain hurt. I just don't know why he always has to take the hard road. All he has to say is - dude, things are rough this month I need a little extra time. Yet he won't. He has to make it into this whole big drama.

Speechless.

I just want to refer back to this post I made in March about her douchebaggery. Still, even I didn't expect her to be more liberal than governor moonbeam.

I know you can replace me. You have the whole internet!

I really am trying to find you interesting stuff to see, or read. I was up in the city yesterday, and there wasn't even one thing I found interesting. In the whole city!

Oh! Unless you think metal palm trees are interesting. I think this guy is trying to supplement his income. It started out with one tree a few months back, and now he has a bunch of them in the front yard. Occasionally I see him holding a yard sale. Which I'm guessing is a way to get out of being an actual business. Yet, I find the whole thing a little weird, because he knows we have real palm trees on every block. Right? In the summer time, they don't look much different than these metal ones.

As a matter of a fact, there was a small one at my house when I moved in a couple of years ago. I never got around to taking it out because it was so small. Now it's become all invasive. Sending out shoots everywhere. Now I have to put the clampdown in it.

I've got nothin. You've got a statue.

Easter.

As much fun as riding a train in India.

Maybe you were sitting home today thinking - damn, instead of cramming my face with chocolate Easter bunnies - I should have made it up to wondercon in San Fransisco. This handy three minute video will save you all the guilt. My voice is the one who says "I'm screwed. Totally screwed". It was so packed you could barely see anything. I finally had to bail without even walking a quarter of the show space. I don't really think anyone was having much fun. Any time you would mutter how ridiculous it was - you'd get people chiming in. Mr S. recounted that just saying the word "man" in an exasperated way would get commiseration.

The cult of Steve.

To be sure - it is nice to see this again.

I'm pretty ambivalent on the iPad. The only thing I really feel about it is - that it will be awkward to hold. If the maniacal incessant touch capabilities on your cell phone don't make you want to smash it to death - by all means. I'm sure the IPad will be great.

Here - look at this article. Fuck! I brushed the touch feature. Let me get that page back.

Then again....people never thought the Kindle would be adopted. Even me, early on.

Who even cares. It's new.

Oh - the light bulbs are just starting to go off?

Hands down, what is going on in L.A. is one of the most fascinating life lessons. I think it falls under that category of - no shit Sherlock.

Remember I've been talking to you about how the L.A. Department of Water and Power are locked in this battle to raise electricity rates from 9-28%? Well, rate payers finally found a clue, and started freaking out about how much it will cost them. Duh.

This made the city council attempt a compromise by voting in a 4.5% increase. DWP basically said "hell no!". The increase needs to be at least 5.7% or we aren't going to give you the 73 million we owe you. You know - the money you claim you need to prevent the city from going bankrupt.

On the DWP side, they are sort of locked into these new air quality standards. So they need to start getting these boondoggles of green energy projects they installed with reckless abandon up and running. And, they need to start getting people to pay for them. I'm sure somehow they just thought they'd find some way to pay for it eventually.

Except the inconveniences of life got in the way. Namely a crushing recession. Now they can't hide the ways they would normally pay for these types of things. Like shuffling money around from account to account so people don't really notice where the money is coming from. Or that the projects are far from cost effective.

Now the public doesn't want to pay a 25% increase. Oddly, President Money Bags told us that was going to happen. "Prices would necessarily skyrocket". Isn't that what he said? I think 25% hits that mark.

It will be really interesting to see how this turns out. You can read about it here.

Aargh!

I was going to have a different post for you - but blogger ate it. Which hasn't happened in a while. Yet still sucks.

It should be simple.

I can't even believe I'm going to talk about this here. I guess it is sort of a step.

The think I thing most people can agree on with me is - I'm a fairly guarded personality. I know the reasons why. I don't need to be analysed. Maybe eventually I will share it with you.

Some days it bothers me more than others. It doesn't always mean you can easily change it.

In one case - it has started bothering me quite a bit though. With my oldest girlfriend.

I've never been the type of person who says "I love you" casually. I know a lot of people do. I just don't. This thing started kinda gradually. A few years ago occationally she would tell me she loved me when our conversations ended. I didn't expect it. I mean, we never said it all the years we were growing up. We never said it later. All of a sudden she just started saying it. So, it caught me off guard. Sometimes I would hazard a quick "I love you too". But, a lot of times we'd already said out goodbyes and it seems awkward.

Lately though, she's been saying it every time.

A while back I was talking to Mr S. about it, and said - I should really just say it. Because, I really do love her. It just seems so hard to say now. I mean, I feel it in my stomach style hard.

I mean, I enjoy people. I can hug them easily. Yet, these three words seem really hard to say. Although, it does take me a really long time to love people. I'm not going to lie.

I know what the right thing to do is. I'm just surprised at what a physical response I get from it. Even though I do really mean it.

That is all.

More of the same.

It's been a busy couple of days. So, I'm going to spit out a couple more of these car pics to keep you entertained.

Yes. Cars are going to keep you entertained. Because really, I only feed you the most interesting stuff. I mean... who's seen this before?



Lambo door fail. I guess they don't work as well when you put them on a four door. They bump into each other.





This bike thing seems to be a new trend.



If flat wasn't awesome enough for you?! Flat textured! Oh yes. It's the first time I've seen it.

How to tell if your contractor is overcharging you.

He rolls up in this beast. Note - I'm not doing an upshoot. I am fully standing taking this shot.



The first thing. If he modest enough to call this thing "kinda big" - what does he call his peen?

Second thing - look at the size of the backup camera. It is that box sitting above the handle. Just think of all the money he saves in ladders though.

There is just something heartwarming that someone in California has the balls to make a machine that most likely burns a gallon of gas - just starting the thing up. And seriously - you would shit your pants if you saw this thing rolling up on you. I'm not even playing around with the camera angles. This truck had to be 10 feet tall.

I told you I could make you like it - if I just found the right color.

Flat purple! I had to get a tight shot, because of course - this one was right next to the porto potties.

For everyone just tuning into this post - pretty much everyone one of my readers hates the flat paint on these cars. I like it because it's unusual.

It's sort of funny how this flat paint trend has been slowly bubbling up. It seems like you can almost get any color in flat now.

Previous flat paint job pictures I've taken. White. Red. Bad ass Mercedes in Black.

What is a pirate doing there? Who cares. It's a pirate!

I have a lens flare in the middle of my shot. Which sucks.

The past.

Did your unicorns just run into a wood chipper?

Maybe it is just a blip - but if I had adjustable rate interest, I would start feeling a little nervous.

Interest rates surge after weaker Treasury auction

Even more fantastic - California has a big Build America bond sale today. Kind of inconvenient for people all of a sudden to want higher interest rates for treasuries.

Does Atlas have to shrug for the world to get better?

I have to admit, I spend more of my time these days trying to find ways to limit my productivity, than trying to make extra money. If I don't get to keep it - why bother. People are kind of funny that way. This is usually the reason tax increases are not very successful.

I think most people work under a fairness doctrine. When they feel things aren't fair - they just change their behaviour.

The reason I bring this up is because a couple of epic things are going on right now. Remember a few days ago I talked about how L.A. wanted to raise their electricity rates 28% for residential, and 21% for businesses? Well, apparently (they claim) if the city doesn't get those increases - it will go bankrupt.

Well, maybe things went a little more like "don't tell people we are going bankrupt - you are scaring them. And anyway - running out of cash doesn't equal bankruptcy".

Oh yes, that last part they actually said. You should watch the video at the bottom.

I don't know if the bonds for all those "green projects" are coming due or what. The whole thing is really perplexing for a city the size of L.A. to be 73 million away from going bust. At any rate - I doubt businesses are going to put up with that kind of increase. They will disappear. They will do what I'm doing. Putting in only enough effort to not get penalised. Where ever they raise taxes - I avoid. For the moment, I think I can hold out longer than they can.

Mr S. pointed out last night that what is happening is exactly like what happened in the book Atlas Shrugged. He doesn't see any way to get past this mess without bankruptcy. I was always sure we could fix it without that. Now I think I am finally starting to accept the idea - that is really what needs to happen.

All I know is that it's a really awkward time for President Money Bags's agenda when so many cities are that close to the edge. It's perplexing how he thinks he can keep this up.

In my second unofficial poll of the day.

Update: Content added in the middle.

Oh yes. I will ask everyone I know who owns a business about this health care thing.

The second business - the guy, I have known a pretty long time. 6-7-8 years. Something along those lines. I try to phrase my questions in a way not to influence the person. I walk into see him and say:

Me - Okay. The health care bill. For it - or against it?

Now, I'm of the mind that the initial reaction is the more honest reaction.

Him - Oh, I think it will be good for businesses.

Me - Really!?

I go onto tell him that I pay cash for medical stuff a lot of the time. The doctors always slash their prices in half. It is a benefit to them because they don't have to do any paperwork. I go on to say that when I had my breast reduction - despite being able to prove severe back problems my whole adult life - I couldn't get the doctor and the insurance company on the same page to have it approved.

I might never have gotten it approved. I was afraid that when I got old, my back problems might cripple me. Your spine doesn't get stronger when you get old. It only gets weaker. When I found out how much it cost - I paid for it out of pocket. In that same situation people can hold bake sales, or do anything to gather the funds.

Under the new system it forces everyone into the insurance system. Who might not even approve the operation.

A side note. This was not said in this conversation. The doctor that I was going to use through insurance wanted me to spend the day in the hospital and insert a pain machine for the surgery. It turned out - I didn't need any of that stuff. While the first day home I was pretty frightened - I was completely fine without a hospital stay. Vicone worked just fine for the pain. Still when a doctor tells you that you need to stay in the hospital for a surgery, it makes you freaked out if you don't do it. I actually wasn't doing it to be cheap. I just didn't want to stay in the hospital. I have issues. Update: Every place where I say day - should read night. I didn't want to spend the night in a hospital. I also should clarify that my second surgeon said her patients never experienced much pain. And she was right. After the first couple of hours you'd be surprised at how manageable a surgery like that is.

These two items would have added several thousand dollars to the cost of my surgery.

Back to the conversation with my business friend.

Him - Well, we don't know if it will become illegal to take cash payments. If that happens we are out of business.

He is actually in the medical field. What he does would be considered "elective". A lot of customers do not use insurance. When I use the term cash payment I mean it as not "through insurance". Not "off the books".

He eventually said he didn't know how it would affect them. And that they wouldn't know until they started experiencing it.

Me - Then, the damage is already done. Right?

Him - Yeah.

With my unofficial polling though, I'm guessing most businesses are giddy that this will help them.

Why pay for something yourself, when you can get your neighbor to do it?

I'm telling you - no one could have predicted this at all. No one!

Today I'm out at subway. I go to this one fairly regularly. So I feel comfortable probing them about the new health care bill. The place is dead empty for 12:00. Once the one customer in front of me leaves I say:

Me - Kinda slow today, right?

Them - Yeah, maybe they will come later.

Me - So, is the new health care bill going to affect you?

Them - He laughs. I don't know. I'm going to cancel my health insurance right away.

I am actually shocked at this response. No, seriously.

Me - You are going to go on the government plan?

Him - yeah.

Me - Well, isn't that going to cost you more? Someone has to pay for it.

Him - Yeah, but everyone is paying for it.

Me - Yeah, but won't you have to pay more as a business owner? Isn't it going to make things more expensive for everyone to pay for it?

Him - Well, it is suppose to bring premiums down. The government pays.

Me - Well, that money comes from you. A business person. Right?

Now, I am flat out irritated that no one - anywhere - seems to understand that "the government" doesn't have money. The people give them money. Additionally, this program to "help the poor needy people"? Is really helping the decidedly wealthy.

This is the same business I was praising in this post about how the American dream was so great. The one where I was marveling that a subway owner could own a 93 thousand dollar Mercedes.

This isn't your average Mercedes. It is the equivalent of a Saleen Mustang. It's a Mercedes that someone put a sports package in and tarded it up.

Those people are going on the government plan.

Now class, what do you suppose happens when everyone does that? Maybe they can tax the wealthy more. It has shown to be so sucessful. Oh right. Not so successful. No matter.

Google it.

I really wasn't going to post today. What can really be said on a day that national heath care passes? Not one single state can control their budgets, and yet this heath care bill is suppose to save us money. It is truly, unbelievable.

I just wanted to document this moment. In the future - I will want to look back and remember the exact day I stopped caring about people loosing their jobs. The precise moment that I stopped caring about people complaining how they couldn't make ends meet because things are so expensive. I wanted to remember why I stopped feeling compassion and only felt indifference. This is what they chose - I will say.

Then, those useful idiots over on wall street. Don't get me wrong - I love a good day on WS. I knew the market would be up today. They love a good socialist agenda. Each and every time it looked as though health care would pass the market spiked. Still, you can only vacuum up money from the economy so long, before there isn't anything there to replace it. I hope it will be worth it for them.

Marketing from Toyota almost no one will notice.

I was going to go to San Fransisco today. When I woke up I realised I turned the heat off in the house because it was so warm yesterday, and had forgotten to turn it back on. So, it took me an hour to get out of bed. No San Fransisco.

We decided to go to lunch and do some stuff around the house. On the way to lunch - I spotted this in San Jose.

I wouldn't have noticed it at all, but I used to work in the building directly to the left of this picture. It has nice architecture - so when I drive by it, it always catches my eye. And, I'd read about Toyota doing this adopt a highway thing last week. Though, I thought they were doing them in Marin. Not down here in San Jose.

When I drove by I knew immediately what is was and tried to find a good vantage point to take a picture. From the freeway, you really don't notice what it is.



Now I'm of two minds about this. I'm super happy the city is finally letting people clean up the freeway. Remember last year when I was bitching about how much trash was on the freeway?

If I were a shareholder, I might not be so happy. These people obviously do not know the California climate. This stuff will be dead in a month flat. So if anyone notices it at all, it will be a very short term marketing benefit.

This is the tiny sign they let them put up for adopting the highway. So that really isn't going to be a help either.

Bad ass cars are back out.

I can already feel the influence.

Today I might have officially become a "blogger".

Normally when I go to tech events - I pay my own way. I want to be free to say what ever I want to. Sometimes I don't think the event is worth commenting on at all. I like the freedom of doing that as well.

Yet, there is an emerging technology called Augmented Reality that I'm sort of hot on. I've talked about it a couple of times on the blog.

While they have been working on it for a long time, it's still in infancy. It's hard to tell which form might take on. I think there are at least 3 directions it could take. One might be augmented reality business cards.

Anyway. The event is really pretty spendy. So I applied for a blogger pass. And, they granted it. Luckily, in the beginning of an emerging technology everything is new and fantastic. Later on down the years, I start getting surly it hasn't moved past where I expected it to be.

So, now I feel I have to walk this line between being true to my blog, and not making it so I'm not invited to anything else.

People trying to be splats.

This morning I was driving in the downtown area. I was driving in traffic with about 20 cars. I was towards the back of the pack. There were probably three or four cars behind me. The rest in front.

I see this girl standing on the curb to my left. I'm about 30 feet from her and she starts to walk into the road. I start to slow down. She stops. I'm still rolling but I maneuver to make sure I give her extra space, because she is now in the street.

She starts to walk again. At this point I verbally and demonstratively say - really!

I'm close enough now that I can hear her say "pedestrians have the right of way!".

I look behind me. See the cars still behind me and think "that bitch".

Pedestrians now think they can just walk into moving traffic and force a line of cars to stop. She wasn't even in a crosswalk anyway.

I honestly couldn't effing believe it. Though it does make sense now why peds refuse to speed up at all when they cross the street. They behave as if cars don't even exist.

Darwin is really going to have to start working overtime on these people.

It is all about - job creation people!

When you read about stuff like this - you can only shake your head, and know things are going to get very, very painful. Can you imagine what a 21% increase for a business would look like?

That kind of increase would send my bill up about 150 bucks. At my residence. While I do use a lot of power, I'm not running the kind of power a business would be.

And people wonder why, still - no one is hiring.

Daily News Wire Services
Updated: 03/19/2010 09:20:58 AM PDT

Los Angeles residents may be paying more for their power. The board of the Department of Water and Power voted Thursday to raise the cost of electricity by 0.8 of a cent per kilowatt hour.

The hike takes effect April 1 unless the City Council intervenes.

It's the first of four increases planned through the next year that could hike residential rates up to 28 percent, adding about $2.50 a month to the average customer's bill.

Businesses would see hikes of about 21 percent.

The nation's largest city utility says it needs to shore up finances to prevent Wall Street from lowering its bond rating.

The hikes include a carbon reduction surcharge to help pay for renewable energy such as solar and wind power.