OK. So I'm back. Yesh, yesh, I realize it's been a while. I've actually been at my new job for quite a while, almost 3 months. But I haven't posted yet. No laptop. And relaxing with a beer and the laptop was my primary method of journal entry. Waiting on Apple to release the new one.
News:
Job: Qualcomm. Yes, a stable company with lots of money, PROFIT, and 6000 employees. Kinda big, but it's cool because they're a geeky company. My team is pretty great. But it looks like a lot of work ahead of me.
Tracy: Still dating, she rocks. 1 year pretty soon.
Car: Ooh yeah. I got the RX-8. Traded in the Honda (sniff sniff). I had the first one in SoCal by a few days. It's red with red leather. It was such a cool experience. Neil went up with me to the dealer after work one day. We arrived, the car was being guarded by 2 employees in lawn chairs. I almost exploded when I saw it. 2 years. I finally have it. Now, the driving. Oh shit, it is fast. It drives like my RX-7. The driving position, the rotary's smooth accelleration...just like the old twin turbo 7. Wow. And it'll outhandle the 7 with some suspension tweaks. Very sweet. The suicide mini-doors are rad as hell. And the stereo rocks. I'm a superstar with this thing. If I didn't have a girl I'd probably be getting laid because of it. hehe. I love it. Yay.
Computers: Moved the server home, ordered 768k dsl. May run UML linux on the bitch, see how i like it. Laptop arriving soon (hurry up apple!)
Fiat: After a lot of work I actually got the thing running. Took it on it's first highway test drive. It died so I let it cool, turned around and drove it home. Except I didn't make it home. It died on the side of the road and this time wouldn't start. I broke the starter. I have deduced that the reason it didn't start is because the new ignition computer I installed was in a bad location and overheating. An easy fix. But not the starter. So it has sat for a month at least. The RX-8 has taken priority. But I got out today to air up the tires and 'debug' it a little more. I'm going to get to work on it this week. Rebuild the carb, get the starter working again, etc, etc.
Monterey Historics: Rad trip. Arne and Karl were the only 2 besides me this year. Eddy couldn't make it. We took Thursday and did the HWY 1 up to San Simeon, where we stayed in a hotel that night. Went to the Concorsio Italiano that morning. Pretty cool except I bonked my head pretty fucking hard on this Lancia with it's boot up. I dunno what it did but I was pretty zonked out after that. Didn't really take pics for 2 days. We went to the Historics Saturday and Sunday, but I still had a massive headache and little enthusiasm. My feet were killing me and I utilized the handicapped services once. They even picked up Karl and Arne too..but the little buggy could barely make it up the hill to the camp. Camp showers were really nice this year. I took 2 a day, it was sweet.
Umm. Anything else?
I can see the neighbors getting dressed in the window. I'm not peeping, they just have the fuckin lights on and the movement drew my eyes. I should hoot at them.
Trying to get UML to work. They didn't tell you that /proc/mm needs to be turned on. Now it's working.
Till next time.
Current Mood: hungryhungry
Current Music: Server hard disks whirring
So, what has happened in the last few weeks. Hmm. Been going to that class provided by MP3 for 'job transition'. Sucks ass to get up at 8am, but it ends this Thursday. Worked on my resume for a full week. Lots of time spent, but now it really rocks. Tracy has been studying for exams so it's worked out so far.
I have been working the interview bit pretty hard. Hit up K-Force and did the quick interview with them to get me in the system and get my resume out to Sony and others. Went to Musicmatch. Pretty cool place, I'd like to work there if it weren't a music company.
Turned in the laptop. That sucked...sat outside the gate waiting like a criminal and finally sneaked in when some sales jerk left. Then I sat inside waiting for security for 20 minutes. Which I guess was good because it gave me time to rm -rf my files. Finally had to go behind the security desk, use the computer to look up the security number on the corporate intranet and have them meet me. Then I left for LA.
Met up with David for about 30 minutes while I ate my quick burger. Wish I could have stayed for a while. But I have to get on over to Matt's place. Very generous of him to put me up for the night...staying with David would have meant drive from hell the next morning from UCLA to Pasadena. I can't believe how lost I got. Probably took me an hour and a half to do a 30 min drive. Driving directions I printed were backwards and my GPS can't hold all of LA so I was kinda stuck. Finally got there about 11:15. I was suprized that he had a spare bed...I was expecting the couch. Very cool. Overture...ugg. Asked me a bunch of syntax memorization questions. Good grief. What is this, 5 years ago? Sounds to me like they've already got plenty of the syntax memorizer sysadmin's, they need innovators like me, which they weren't interviewing for. Plus, I'm not willing to move. Impressive looking NOC ('looking' being the key word). But I must say, if a Carlsbad office were to pop up and I could work with cool people from MP3, I'd be so there. Ate lunch with Marco...cool guy. Left for home right after that and got stuck in LA traffic. Took me 3.5 hours to do a 2 hour drive. Yuck. I really hate LA.
Looking forward to Sony interview this week and possibly Copper Mountain.
Went to Neil's thing for his daughter. Pretty cool. Lots of co-workers there. It's really good to see my friends. I miss em a lot...will have to do lunch this week or something.
Worked on my fiat web page. Guess that's about it. Till next time.
Current Mood: anxiousanxious
Current Music: !k7-studio - Terrence Parker - Play-ah Hater
I'm wrapping things up at work since I am taking off tomorrow and Friday to do San Diego stuff with Tracy. Yay. We're actually going to go up to Disneyland, since neither of us have been, probably go to balboa park, then the beach. Should be nice. Guess I'll know soon. Oops, don't want to forget to look up Disneyland park times/etc.
Need to make reservations for the flight home for Molly's wedding, or not. I do want to go, but at the same time, I don't. Aaah, parents and family, so much fun. hehe.
Started the Fiat yesterday...leaked some oil from the exhaust manifold. Talked to Carlos at ITAL and he said it could be a stud that's loose. So I'll check that out later.
Ran into Jason R. today. He's a cool guy. Ate lunch with him at UTC mall.
Not much else, it's a nice day.
Current Mood: contemplative
Current Music: dave's festering gob
So I saw another Fiat on the road last week. Turned around, followed and exchanged contact info. He sent me an e-mail with some info about his local mechanic and places to get parts. Turns out there is a local Fiat specialist guys, Carlos at ITAL Automotive. Sweet, so I called him up, and ordered a steering box. I went down to pay for it and he says 'what day was your car manufactured, because the steering boxes changed in 1973'. Shit, I dunno. So I went back the next day with the old box in hand, orderd the new one. Got it the next day, Friday for $200. Not bad. Installed it on Saturday, and on Sunday, I put the whole thing back together. Clutch cable, intake manifold, carb and various other hoses and cables. Started it up last night at 10:59. Yay. Gonna go home today and test drive it, park it, and do all the fluids. Happy!
Tracy and I are taking a little vacation this next week. I am taking Thursday and Friday off and we're gonna go to Disneyland, etc. Maybe the beach, probably Balboa park Museums, etc. Should be fun. I'm excited.
Forgot to take care of my ticket for no plates and illegal race tires. Gotta do that today. :(
Current Mood: accomplished
Current Music: the silence of a keyboard clattering
Friday night, Eddy and I drove up to Laguna Nigel in his new truck. We picked up the SL600, he payed the former owner for the truck and picked up the bed and a few other things. I got to drive the SL600 back down to Escondido. What a nice car. Whew. On the way bak down to San Diego ,we stopped in that same little town where Karl and I stopped for coffee on the way back from the LA Car Show. We had some pizza in an Italian joint with really cute waitresses. I burnt the roof of my mouth on the first bite of pizza. hehe. I actually got home about 10 min after Tracy which was quite abnormal. Hehe.
Saturday, when Tracy got back from class, we went down to Balboa Park and walked around in the cactus gardens. Took a few cool photo's and tried to stay out of the shadows. It got cold all of a sudden. Someone had dumped some soap in the fountain and it was spewing foam. Jerk offs. That night we had some italian food and watched Sweet Home Alabama. It was a kinda lame flick.
Sunday, we were just lazy, hung around home. While Tracy studied for her exam, I went out and started the Fiat, drove it around for a while in the parking lot across from the apartment. I am kind of bummed at all the things that this car needs to have done to it. Steering, suspension, brakes, ignition, electrical, dash replacement, paint, new wheels/tires, coolant hoses and probably a tranny rebuild. Makes me want something else, something in a little bit better condition. So I spent a portion of the day looking at 240z's and other cars that fit the bill. Went out to eat steak that night. Good stuff. Good weekend. I like the lazy ones.
Today on the way to work, I made a lane change that was immediately followed by some person in a Mitsubishi coming over in my lane. She would have hit me if I hadn't swerved into the left lane and cut off this guy in a truck. Then the guy in the truck follows me and bitches me out. Jeez. It wasn't my fault. Good morning to you too a**hole.
Neil sends me a pics of a few NSX's that showed up at his BMW meet this weekend. Badness. I still love that car.
Current Mood: aggravated
Current Music: Groove Salad: a nicely chilled plate of ambient beats and grooves. [SomaFM]