Stories of Wonder and Amazement

Some peeves

2009-10-27T14:21:00.001-07:00

Don't move files that aren't yours without asking!

When I email you a file 3 times in a month, don't send me an email
asking if I forgot to send it

if you need something prepared for a meeting, I prefer more than 30
minutes notice.

That is all (for now)

How did economists get it so wrong?

2009-09-09T15:09:00.001-07:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/06/magazine/06Economic-t.html?_r=2

Another good map

2009-06-08T15:33:00.001-07:00

Mean Population Center for the US - 1790 to 2000

http://strangemaps.wordpress.com/2009/06/08/389-americas-mean-streak/

Children of the Mountains - Link

2009-05-18T21:57:00.000-07:00

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=6885766

Good special on life in coal country/appalachia

Holy Crap

2009-05-14T15:41:00.001-07:00

Pretty darn good NY Times article. Proof of the arrogance/ignorance that allows even people who write about economics and finance every day to take out loans they'll never be able to repay.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/17/magazine/17foreclosure-t.html

In the news....Are we running out of people to unemploy?

2009-05-07T08:46:00.001-07:00

Weekly new unemployment drops again, looks as though 4 week rolling average of unemployment claims may have peaked, which often signals the end of the recession.

However, continued claims are still at a record high and the possibility of another "jobless recovery" is definitely out there. We could definitely see a Japan-like scenario for the next five years where interest rates stay crazy low and housing doesn't appreciate at all.

For those of us in the PNW the news is even a little worse. We were about 12-18 months behind the rest of the nation as most drank the "Can't happen here" kool-aid. Often in these cases an area does a bit of jogging to try to catch up, but never quite makes it. So I am going to put my amateur economic forecaster hat on here and make a few predictions.

1) 4 week unemployment average peaked 1-2 weeks ago. We will go ahead and say the nation is beginning it's recovery now. If we "jog to catch up" we likely are still 8-12 months behind the nation. which means

2) PNW recovery will begin early 2010 somewhere between December 2009 and March 2010.

Feel free to make your own prediction below, it will probably be every bit as accurate as half the economists' predictions out there.

Mapping the Seven Deadly Sins

2009-05-01T11:05:00.001-07:00

Not looking so good for the West coast.

http://www.mcwetboy.net/maproom/2009/04/mapping_the_sev.php

Well, there's three ways to reduce housing inventory...

2009-05-01T07:34:00.001-07:00

1 - Stop building or at least slow down home building

2 - Cut prices or even give away houses

3 - Bulldoze those bitches!

I guess they chose 3.

Book Review: Watchmen

2009-04-28T21:29:00.001-07:00

As a new feature to the Chino and friends world, I decided that I would start reviewing books that I have read. This should serve at least 2 purposes, if not more.

First, it will be a way for me to keep track of books that I have read and liked. A lot of the time I trade/sell/give away books that I have read and when I think back to remember what books I've read over the past 6 months, it can be difficult to recall every book.

Second, maybe I can somehow inform someone on whether or not to buy a certain book. But, take my reviews with a grain of salt, as I have somehow turned into an optimist at some point while drinking my way through my undergraduate education. I just avoid most books I know that I will hate, or else I never finish them. Maybe I will find a book to write a hateful review on though, just for the sake of balance.

Anyhow. On to the review. I read most of this graphic novel on a plane, which I think was kind of weird because certain illustrations are, well, a touch graphic (and not in a novel sense). I kept feeling guilty that a child behind me would be trying to read the "comic book" over my shoulder. This never actually happened though and mostly just proved that I am getting old.

I can see how this gets a rep as being the best graphic novel of all time, it would be hard to give the same reading experience with a plain text novel, it just wouldn't match up. The characters are very well developed, though some never really flesh out until the very end. The heroes are very much fallible characters with personality flaws beyond that of the X-men.

There isn't really a lot else I can say without given away some key plot points of the book, but suffice it to say that it's worth picking up for the right price. I found a copy at Costco for $11, but apparently retail on this sucker is $20. I have a hard time justifying anything for $20 so either hit up amazon or your local library once all the movie fervor dies down a bit. It's an easy read and one of the more unique reading experiences you will ever have.

The only downside to this novel is that it just sort of ends and felt rather unfulfilled, like eating junk food I suppose. No real feelings one way or another, more just impressed at the novelty of the whole thing.

Final Rating: 8/10

Emotional Mapping (not quite what you'd think)

2009-04-28T15:27:00.001-07:00

http://www.sf.biomapping.net/

So this fellow made a device that measured your level of emotional "arousal" (not too sure on the specifics) but he then invited people to take walks with the device attached to their finger. The device collected locational and "emotional" data, which they then mapped. Participants annotated parts of their walks with notes, which are then overlaid on the maps as text.

Interesting stuff, lots of reactions to views of the city and houses, which I think is interesting.

As if you needed another reason to dislike California

2009-04-28T08:49:00.001-07:00

This is from the LA Times in 1886 (no joke, 1886)

"We Californians have learned something. And that is that home prices can't just go up forever—they have to be supported by something. Never again will Californians make this mistake."

If you are feeling particularly pessimistic...

2009-04-24T14:10:00.001-07:00

Then I have a particularly good website for you to check out. No, it won't cheer you up, but it will join you in your pessimism. After the Crash is a blog devoted to envisioning a future after "TSHTF" otherwise known as "The shit hits the fan". There you can find theoretical future fiction of a post apocalyptic McMansion wasteland as well as tales of people eating their neighbor's dogs. Because different people post on the blog sometimes it is pretty disorganized so you have to devote a little attention to figuring out who is posting what and if/how it is all connected. Still, worth a read, especially if you like speculative future sci-fi.

Oh, and also 1 bank and 1 credit union have failed so far today. Boo-ya banking system!

McMansion developments - the next slums?

2009-04-23T11:20:00.001-07:00

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200803/subprime

I'm over a year late in find this article but it is still worth reading.

Over email I was thinking about the future of the McMansion as I semi-seriously contemplating moving into one with other economically depressed folks. There are few left who can afford the notes on these monstrosities, and fewer still who would want to live in them. There will likely be a future in cutting these up into duplexes and triplexes just like was done in San Francisco and the east coast to the large houses of the early 20th century when their wealthy inhabitants left to the suburbs.

Moustache May

2009-04-22T19:04:00.001-07:00

So - May is soon to be upon us, any top choices for moustache styles? Include pictures if possible.

A roadmap to love?

2009-04-20T15:21:00.000-07:00

Perhaps it can be found in the various maps showing disparities between the numbers of single men and women in major cities. Of course there isn't a built in correction for the sexual preference of those singles.

http://www.mcwetboy.net/maproom/2008/04/the_singles_map.php

Perhaps the most banal editorial I have ever read

2009-04-17T08:02:00.001-07:00

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2009071716_opinc17will.html

Seriously, how much can a guy write about how he dislikes the upper middle class wearing denim.

Wheee! Unemployment maps

2009-04-03T15:53:00.001-07:00

Two things are love are dire news and mapping. Often, these two are combined, as is the case in these interactive unemployment maps! Enjoy!

Picturing the Recession - From the NY Times

2009-04-02T11:17:00.001-07:00

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/04/02/business/economy/economy-user-photos.html

Since I love posting on depressing news, here are some depressing pictures of the perhaps impending - depression?

LA Times on "Jim the Realtor"

2009-04-02T08:17:00.001-07:00

Definitely work taking a look at. Guy is a little nuts, but probably one of the more honest realtors out there. Here's the link If nothing else you have to appreciate a guy who doesn't just parrot out "It's a great time to buy!"

Mr. B - the worst substitute ever?

2009-03-30T11:33:00.001-07:00

"Well, it looks like Tarzan sure isn't getting off the vine this hour"

This is probably the best quote from perhaps the worst substitute teacher I ever had the pleasure of experiencing in my life.

I say pleasure, because it was an experience in some ways, so surreal that I might not have ever had it anywhere else. But so unproductive academically that this fellow was never allowed back in the school district.

It's an easy task to measure the qualities of a good substitute teacher, they follow lesson plans, keep students on task and some might even be so helpful as to grade papers. But what makes a truly horrible sub? This is the question we shall explore with Mr. B.

Now, growing up an in area that was in constant shortage of substitute teachers, I have experienced some true gems. One who showed a tape of Saturday Night Live instead of doing the planned spanish lesson, another kicked out a third of my biology class for insubordination, while also arguing with us about the races of the world (did you know that Mongloid is a race? I didn't - not until a certain woman came into my life one fateful morning).

But Mr. B, he took the cake. It wasn't his inability to stick to a lesson plan, his haggard appearance, lack of social graces or even his riveting relation of his cancer treatments. No, what truly completed the puzzle was his periodic retelling of how his wife was murdered in a foreign country. Apparently a distance runner, she had been walking alone in Italy as I recall when she was robbed and stabbed, bleeding to death in an alley. Periodically he would recount her beauty or how she was always cold because of her low body fat.

As a youth, I had witnessed my fair share of tragedy, but I had never come face to face with a man who truly had nothing left to live for, until I met Mr. B. With most tragic cases you witness, the victim still has something he clings to, for some, it's their love of drink or other substance, others, family, religion, etc.

This was not so with Mr. B. Unreligious (as my class and I learned together one afternoon in Junior level English), widowed, afflicted with cancer, but apparently sober. I gathered that he only substitute taught to keep a roof over his head. In small engines we fixed his 70's era toyota one day, just enough to keep it on the road so he could get to another school to enrich another day's worth of students.

A typical period with Mr. B would involve some retelling of how he barely got to school on time because he slept in past 8 thanks to his cancer treatment making him so tired. Then he would ask us what were supposed to be doing and then sit in the back making occasional comments or telling a story. We never actually did what were supposed to do and he never cared.

Eventually he was barred from teaching in our district because of an incident where he did nothing all day except sit at a desk and eat lollipops from a teacher's candy stash. Apparently this teacher's candy stash was kind of a big deal and they complained loud enough to finally get him off the sub list.

Mr. B, I have no idea if you are even still alive, but if you are, thanks for your insight into the depths of human despair and I hope you finally got all your shit together.

Everything you might want to know about unemployment calculations...

2009-03-26T14:53:00.001-07:00

...but didn't care enough to research for yourself.

The BLS has a pretty good explanation of all the various rates (u-1 through u-6), the PDF can be found here

If you want the very most recent data (Feb 09) you'll have to grab the table yourself on the BLS website. Nationwide U-6 was 16% in February.
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t12.htm is where the table can be found

Washington U-6 Unemployment, graph still coming

2009-03-26T12:50:00.001-07:00

Up to 14.8%. U-6 is the "old" measure of unemployment that includes
those unwillingly out of the labor market as well as discouraged job
seekers.

I am working on a lad's visual guide to first date restaurants. I
haven't forgotten about it, I promise. I'm just trying to get a
quality final product ready.

Economic Update: States with Unemployment > 10%

2009-03-25T08:51:00.001-07:00

This is U3 by the way, not U6.

California
Michigan
South Carolina
Rhode Island

Special Bonus Category
Territory with > 10% unemployment
Puerto Rico

South Carolina is forecasting a peak of 15% and a forecast from the University of the Pacific is estimating a peak of around 12% for California.

A request for reader input

2009-03-23T13:49:00.001-07:00

Alright, so in an attempt to provide a visual aid for a gentleman on a first date, I am attempting to compile an exhaustive list of eating establishments and their relative cost and class values. Cost I am estimating on a cost per date basis while class is on a scale of 1-20 where a taco van is a 1, McDonalds is a 2 and The Herbfarm/Canlis is a 20

For example

Taco Van

Cost $10 for 2

Class 1

McDonalds

Cost $10 for 2

Class 2

Subway

Cost $14 for 2

Class 2.5

Olive Garden (in many ways our control subject for this experiment)

Cost $30-40 for 2 (more with drinks)

Class 5?

Once I have enough compiled you will have a graph for the ages, I promise you

Olive Garden

2009-03-20T16:19:00.001-07:00

An infamous story to some who know me, this is one I love, especially because it doesn't require me to talk about myself. Plus, it does a pretty good job of describing some quirks of where I hail from.

A friend of mine, who I shall call Billy, had quit community college to work fulltime at Wal-Mart. I was home one break from college and we went out on the town to grab dinner and some drinks. On the way home he starts to tell me this story. Keep in mind that the entire time he's telling this story Billy is also chewing copenhagen and spitting into a cup about every 5 seconds or so. There is no way I could write this story with all the spit breaks included, but just keep that in the back of your mind.

To get on with the story, Billy and I are in the car, and he tells me "Dude, I have to ask you a question" "Okay..." I respond, not sure where this is going. "Well man" he says "I have kind of had this thing going on with this girl I work with you know, kinda flirtin' around and stuff"

"Right" I say. "Well, I told her, hey, I want to take you out, can I take you out to dinner and a movie?" "Well, she says yes, and I go pick her up, not dressed too nice, but not bad either, you know, nothing unusual"

"That sounds fine" I say, still having absolutely no idea where this is going. Though often these conversations with Billy go nowhere.

"Well, so yeah, so I pick her up and take her out to dinner, we go to the Olive Garden, you know, the one that just opened up, and we have a nice dinner you know and go to the movies, and nothing really happens, you know, I take her home, we kiss, that's about it"

"Alright, so that doesn't sound so bad, what was the question?"

"Man, so I go to call her the next day and she doesn't call me back, I call her again, and she doesn't call me back. Finally, I catch her at work and ask her why she hasn't returned my calls, you know what she tells me?"

"What?"

"Well She tells me "I know what you want, you're only trying to get in my fuckin' pants, taking me to Olive Garden on the first date!"

All that I can do is laugh for a minute until he says "So that's my question man, do you think Olive Garden means you want to fuck on the first date?"

"Dude, I have never thought that in my life"

Affordability Part 2 - Some Numbers

2009-03-18T17:30:00.000-07:00

Part 2 How to define affordability? Historically, there have been several definitions of affordabilty used by different groups. I'll include a Seattle area numbers example with each one. There is a lot of debate right now about whether someone with the median income should be able to afford a median priced house or not. This is argued a lot because it isn't realistic for the bottom 20% or so to own a dwelling. Some have shifted up the median income to the 60th or 70th percentile to compensate. I'm a populist at heart and bearish on housing so I won't be doing that. In this post I'll cover two methods of affordability calculation 1. 2.5x household income, somewhere along the line people shifted this to 3x household income, I'm not sure if that has to do with lower interest rates or expecting to pay more for a house. Pros: Simple, easy to remember Cons: Does not take interest rates into account - thus does not directly correspond with monthly payments, and we are, by and large a monthly payment society. Does not take into account property taxes or homeowners fees Example: Seattle median family income is $69,000 a year, approximately, using 3x rule they can afford a dwelling unit that costs $207,000 (If you are lucky you can grab a small condo for that price, though I'm not sure where the rest of your family will go). 2. 28% of gross household income devoted to monthly payment, not more than 35% debt to income ratio (DTI). The DTI number varies somewhat, but the 28% is generally pretty rock solid. This is a number that is generally used by reputable lenders to determine loan eligibility. The problem with this figure is when the 28% is calculated on the payment for the first 5 years of an ARM that will be reset to a much higher payment in 5 years time. We are seeing some of those effects now. Pros: Takes interest rates into account, works well for the monthly payment society. Usually the 28% includes property taxes and insurance, but not always Cons: Loan term often not taken into account, can allow pretty large debt load, as figure is calculated as % of gross, rather than net income. Example: The median Seattle family earns 69k a year or $5750 a month before taxes. That leaves them with $1610 to pay towards a dwelling unit and taxes. after taxes and insurance they would have around $1300 to $1400 to make their mortgage payment. Splitting the difference gives $1350, which at 5.25% apr means $245,500 of house for our average family. This will actually purchase a home in the suburban fringe or in a more 'exciting' neighborhood in a more central location.

House Values and Affordability: Intro (part 1)

2009-03-18T12:55:00.001-07:00

Throughout the bubble economy of 04-08 (approximately) there was a lot of talk about wealth creation through home price appreciation. However, the question always was, where is this money coming from in the first place? Barring an increase in the money supply itself, there is only a finite amount of currency in circulation at a given time. Increased expenditures on housing must mean decreased expenditures in another area for a given household. In this case I am referring to increased expenditures in monthly housing payments, rather than total house price, though that is another component as well.

One might point out in argument to the above point that there were also jobs being created, which increased flow of money to individuals, this is true. However, if one was to go back and analyze the type of jobs created in the last decade, the vast majority were in the service sector, as the US economy has shifted away from manufacturing and into service. This is all well and good as long as there is someone to service (no innuendo intended). The problem with all of this is that much of the consumption that drove the creation of these service sector jobs was being financed by assets that didn't really exist, i.e. home price appreciation that was unrealized (on paper only). Many were capitalizing on the tax benefits of the mortgage interest deduction and using home equity loans to finance consumer spending. This, arguably, is now acting as a multiplier on the downside of the slope, as people walk away from their houses and leave banks on the hook for not just the purchase price of the house, but also an Escalade and a few jet skis as well.

To veer back on topic, we can all now agree in hindsight that the runup in house prices was unsustainable and will have a lasting effect on the US economy. Most can also agree that in order to get things back on track we need a return to affordable housing. In many ways, this return will be unavoidable, as we are now overbuilt in the US of A. All of those who quoted Will Rogers' memorable "They aren't making any more land" line are now looking a bit foolish as well. Regardless, how do you judge what "affordable" means, in regard to housing? This, in my opinion is one of the toughest tasks ahead in predicting where we will end up after the economic crisis. Things will obviously sort themselves out as they do, but for many industries and in fact, our own government, forecasting will be necessary to gauge demand for services and markets.

What makes matters even more complicated is that housing demand is not as inelastic as many tend to think. During severe recesssions several things occur that reduce demand for housing. Note that I say housing in general, rather than the purchase of a home. I will get to this later.

-Households become more willing to take on renters (i.e. renting out a room)
-Singles become more willing to find roommates
-Multiple generations will move in together (ex: Jon and his wife lose their jobs and move in with Jon's parents)
-Larger homes that are vacant (McMansions!) become chopped up as duplexes and multiplexes. If you don't believe me, look at many of the houses in older urban areas. They were once larger victorian style homes that were converted at some point. A local example would be in the U-District, San Francisco also has many of these.
-Couples move in together sooner
-Students are more likely to stay close to home for college, more choose to live at home, others boomerang back to their parents house when done

As I am not a professional numbers guesser, I will not attempt to construct an elaborate demand curve for any of these items, but everyone shoudl be aware of these factors when looking at figures from a "professional".

For part 2 I will look at some differing definitions of affordability, and why affordable housing is a good thing. Stay tuned

Stay Tuned

2009-03-11T13:31:00.001-07:00

Planning a good post on housing affordability and what iit really means, historically and today. Plus, if I somehow get some time this weekend there might be a bonus story (since that was the original purpose of this blog and all).

Dawgs in the Pac-10 Tournament

2009-03-10T09:59:00.001-07:00

First, I am a bit upset that I missed watching Brockman and crew's last home game, but weddings do take priority over sporting events (I mean, let's all keep perspective here, we are just talking about dudes putting a ball through a hoop).

However, the huskies got their win and cut down the nets, and I was kept informed via text message while in a state that doesn't acknowledge the existance of the west coast. (Though I did see a story about the Huskies in the New York Times at the airport, who would have thought?).

Now they are onto the next leg of the journey to the national championship (dreaming big here), The conference tournament starts tomorrow and UW plays at 2:30 on Thursday, I'm still figuring out how to work my work schedule so I can watch the game, but if nothing else I'll bring my laptop so I can get updates from the gamecast online. I would just tape it and watch it later, but I think that people at work won't be able to keep quiet about it for long enough.

Back from the southland

2009-03-09T12:27:00.001-07:00

So, I went from a nice 70+ degree at the beach to mixed snow/rain in my journey back from South Carolina yesterday. Aside from the bugs, tropical disease and poverty, the south is a pretty darn nice place. I sent this picture to a few people already, but might as well post it up here as well. It doesn't really do the place justice, but keep in mind this is taken in March and on a camera phone to boot.

Hope everyone had a nice weekend.

Countdown to the dirty south

2009-03-03T10:51:00.001-08:00

37 hours and counting. Plus, UW - Seattle U tonight. Busy day and a half coming up.

Treasury stress test home price predictions

2009-02-25T13:30:00.001-08:00

Looks like the "Stress Test" that's been much talked about has had some of it's basic criteria released. You can find the criteria and table here. One of the most interesting aspect of the "stress test" that is being administered to these banks is that the two scenarios both have rather large house price declines built in, which tells me that whoever designed these tests is realistic about how much further home prices are going to fall, especially since their index of choice if the Case-Schiller Composite 10, which is based on the 10 largest housing markets in the US. This would include LA among others, which has fallen somewhere around 35 to 40% already. They are using a further 14% decline as their baseline for 2009 with the extreme scenario having a 22% decline.

I doubt the National Association of Realtors will appreciate this information, they keep telling everyone that now is a GREAT time to buy (if you say it enough you might start to believe it I guess).

The optimistic viewpoint of this data is that if interest rates rise (they can't go much lower for home loans) then house prices will have to go down, because everyone is shopping a monthly payment. The best time to buy is when interest rates are as high as they can go, because real prices are low, then later when interest rates inevitably go down, you can refinance.

I think there are a decent number of financially savvy individuals who are on the sidelines right now because interest rates have nowhere to go but up, which means that house prices will have nowhere to go but down. There is an inverse relationship between the two that isn't covered much in mainstream media. However, if you already have a house, this is perhaps the best opportunity you will ever have to refinance.

Seattle home prices back to 2005 where will the wheel stop?

2009-02-24T11:18:00.001-08:00

Seattle PI and many others report. Calculated Risk also has some informative graphs re: price to rent ratios and historical affordability indices, which can be bound here

Real unemployment vs reported unemployment

2009-02-06T10:11:00.001-08:00

So, numbers officially out today, 598k jobs lost in January, unemployment up to 7.6%. Gee, 7.6%, that sounds bad, but not THAT bad, right? Wrong. When you look at historical graphs of unemployment, it's not stated that how unemployment is measured has changed over time, you can mostly thank Ronald Reagan for this. Regardless, if you want to see a more realistic measure of true unemployment, check out table a-12 "alternate measures of unemployment" currently listed at 13.9%

How I spent my winter break

2009-01-01T21:26:00.001-08:00

Helping someone build this fence.

Housing crisis idea?

2008-12-23T15:17:00.001-08:00

Underwater house swap. Need to move for work but are underwater on your mortgage and can't sell? Maybe you can switch houses with someone else in a different area of the country who is underwater on their house as well? Everybody wins! It's like that vacation house swap, but permanent.

Obligatory Backyard Picture

2008-12-22T12:14:00.001-08:00

Waiting out the impending storm

2008-12-20T18:24:00.001-08:00

Just hanging out here at home, waiting for continuing action from "Winter Storm 2008". So far, nothing but a dusting of snow and occasional wind gusts. There's a chance I'll get called into work for an overnight shift mapping disaster, but for that to happen, I need some real disaster type stuff to map. I think the most unfortunate part about all this uncertainty over whether I have to go into work is that you don't get to partake in the traditional method of waiting out a storm - drinking, watching TV and waiting. Well, you can still watch TV and wait, but it isn't quite the same without the sauce.

The 4runner is getting around quite nicely in the snow and ice so far, and we have the wife's car chained up until further notice. Wishing you all luck.

Snow-pocalypse 2008

2008-12-18T13:41:00.001-08:00

Continuing the trend of forecasting snowstorms and having them happen a day later than planned, today is perhaps the snowiest day I have ever seen west of the cascades. Yesterday, the world laughed at us for our caution, well, who is laughing now? No one...damn.

This is the second day this week I've walked to work, looking like someone ready to take on Rainier instead of a 3 mile walk to work. At least I'm getting a lot of exercise, and avoiding idiots running into my car. Though I do worry about what I'll do when a car skids off the road right at me, I'm not the most mobile in my snowboarding pants and large backpack. I doubt I can outrun a skidding Land Rover.

Anyway, wife and dog are at home enjoying the snow, while I work away. Shit, the postman isn't even going to make it here to pick up the mail, but I have to come in? This just seems a bit silly. We've got to go to the airport tonight to pick up some guests who are coming in, that should be the real adventure. I put collision coverage on my car just for the occasion. Bon Voyage for now.

Be careful what you wish for

2008-12-05T09:08:00.001-08:00

...because you just might get it. Got word last night at the basketball game that Sarkisian is to be named to head coach, it's all over ESPN and the times. This guy was my second to last choice, Pat Hill being the guy I absolutely did not want. I can't believe we passed on the opportunity to get Mike Leach, unforgivable if Sarkisian doesn't work out. Boo!

Of course, I hope I have to eat my words as UW goes to a bowl game next year, but I'm just not feeling it.

Let's pick a coach already!!!!

2008-12-04T13:44:00.001-08:00

This is probably the most frustrating autumn I can remember, for a variety of reasons. The poor performance of the husky football team and their athletic department has contributed more than their fair share to my frustration. Just when I thought we had Mike Leach, he withdraws his name from consideration. I had done all my research on him before Halloween and he was my favorite of all the candidates.

As others dropped from consideration to take new jobs or get giant contract extensions, Leach stayed there, ready to navigate his pirate ship straight to Montlake. Then, at lunch today, we see that his reserve DB is distributing cocaine and he has withdrawn his name from consideration, partially for waiting too long for an answer (I think asking him back for a second interview didn't help our situation either). I had been dreaming of a spread offensive with Cody Bruns and Jake Locker, now those dreams are crushed. We don't have a single head coach left to consider, just coordinators.

This has turned into the same running joke that our athletic director search was. I am very disappointed.

I've never seen someone so upbeat

2008-12-02T10:54:00.001-08:00

...about shootings in their neighborhood

(Watch the video portion)

Apologies for the lack of updates, we are now back to our regularly scheduled program.

It's official

2008-12-02T10:48:00.001-08:00

As of January 1st, I will now be working 30 hours a week instead of 40. Thanks to the hour cut, extra spending money will be relatively scarce, but time will be abundant - 3 day weekends every week! (I am trying to be upbeat about this, even though it screws up my savings goals quite a bit).

poll by twiigs.com

I hope everyone enjoyed GIS Day

2008-11-20T08:42:00.001-08:00

For those not involved with the science of geographic information, you may not have realized that yesterday, November 19th, was GIS Day. If you are intrigued and want more information, you can visit www.gisday.com as you might notice, they have already determined that "GIS Day A Huge Success".

We hosted a batch of schoolkids in an attempt at early indoctrination. I would say we were only mildly successful at best. How was everyone else's GIS Day?

Happy Election Day!

2008-11-04T11:07:00.001-08:00

Everyone get out and vote, etc, etc. Here at my work lines and parking are crazy as people come in to vote. We're having a good time watching everyone try to park their giant high priced SUV's, if I were to graph, there is a direct correlation between cost of SUV and amount of time spent trying to fit into a parking space. I should note that these are normal parking spaces, not "Compact" sized ones.

Honda Civic Stereo Install

2008-10-27T14:21:00.000-07:00

Hey everybody! Back again, no nutritional smackdown yet, but it is in the works, I promise. In the meantime, I will present to you a pictorial tour of some things I have been doing during my time not spent blogging. First off, we are upgrading the stereo in the Missus' car. Thanks to her love of "rocking out" as the kids call it, 3 out of 4 speakers have been blown. Also, she wants to be able to listen to her ipod through her stereo. So, this means new speakers all around (components in front, 2 ways in the back) and a new head unit. Also, because I am both cheap and stubborn, I am doing all the work myself. I neglected to take pictures of the rear speaker install, but I have pictures of the rest of the process. First off, the head unit... I forgot to take pictures of the removal part, but here is what the dash looks like minus HVAC controls and the stock stereo. A closer view... The tools of the trade (yes, that is a rice spoon, I lost my trim panel tool for a while). Test fitting the new CD player A clean and well organized workspace is always important :) Connecting the factory wiring harness with an aftermarket adapter The finished product!

Ding Ding Ding! Round Two: Double Quarter Pounder (w/cheese) versus Whiskey River BBQ Chicken Sandwich

2008-10-14T14:36:00.001-07:00

Ladies and gentlemen, after the Double Quarter Pounder's victory of the Subway Footlong BMT, it goes on to face its next opponent. Red Robin's Whiskey River BBQ Chicken Sandwich. I know what you are saying - chicken sandwich? Are you kidding me, how can a McDonald's burger compare to a chicken sandwich, especially once that's grilled? Well my friends, that's what we are here to see. Let's go to the stats. Unfortunately, Red Robin's website is a bit sparse on the nutritional information, they only have calories, fat, carbs, dietary fiber and protein listed. No breakdowns on type of fat either. Right out of the gate, this hurts the Whiskey river bbq sandwich. However, because it has whiskey in it's name, I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt. Here we go.

	Double Quarter Pounder w/Cheese	Whiskey River BBQ
Calories	740	954
Fat (g)	42	51
Carbs (g)	40	72
Dietary Fiber (g)	3	4
Protein (g)	48	48

It looks like the Double Quarter Pounder w/Cheese (sweet lord, this sandwich might lose soon just because I am so tired of typing out the full name!) takes home another victory! Let's break down the categories

Calories

Winner: DQPw/C - See, I decided I would just abbreviate it, because I can't handle the typing anymore! With 214 fewer calories, the DQPw/C takes this category easily.

Fat

This one was darn close, DQPw/C edges out the Whiskey River, but only by 9 grams. if the robin gave us more info about the type of fat, Whiskey River might have had a chance to pull this one out, but that's the price you pay for limiting dietary informational disclosure (just ask Quizno's).

Carbs

DQPw/C leaves the Whiskey River back at the ranch on this one. No contest, as the whiskey river has almost twice the carbs.

Dietary Fiber

Frankly, I am a little disturbed with how the DQPw/C has 11 grams of dietary fiber, I'm not sure how that works, but however they get that fiber in there, gotta give the DQPw/C the edge yet again. EDIT: I apparently transposed the dietary fiber % with the amount of fiber in grams. Whiskey River takes this one by a gram!

Protein It almost seems like generosity at this point that the whiskey river takes home one category. I originally listed the Whiskey River as having 2 grams more protein, but upon looking at the figures it looks like they are tied. Result: Draw.

Conclusion

The Double Quarter Pounder w/CHEESE (for emphasis) walks away with this one. The combination of high sugar bbq sauce and high fat onion straws on the red robin sandwich doom it from the start. This is sad, because it's a favorite of mine, but something definitely best left for only occasional consumption. The sandwich itself is almost half the daily caloric intake for a middle aged male. That doesn't even include the bottomless streak fries that accompany it.

Be sure to tune back in to see who the Double Quarter Pounder w/Cheese will take on next. Can anyone stop it?

Nutritional Smackdown! The legacy continues

2008-10-13T10:05:00.001-07:00

Due to the popularity of the Footlong BMT vs Double Quarter Pounder w/Cheese tale of the tape. I have decided to write another in my series of nutritional comparisons. My thought is that now I am going to structure this as a sort of gauntlet of semi-unhealthy restaurant lunch foods. In order to keep this fair, I have laid out some ground rules for myself (not that anything is going to happen if I blatently violate them).

The item in question must be under $10 (this excludes things like giant meals from cheesecake factory and huge orders of ribs). Items over $10 may one day have their own series of articles. However, items from sit-down restaurants are okay if they are under the limit.
No "health food" unless the item in question is merely masquerading as a health food. Lean cuisine won't be making an appearance in the ring anytime soon.
No blatently in your face unhealthy food (this means no items from the heart attack grill, etc). If it's advertised as a food that doesn't give a shit about its own nutritional content, then I hope you aren't dumb enough to eat it if you are on a diet. If you are that dumb, nothing I write can help you.
You have to be able to actually find the food. I'm not going to review a sandwich from a diner that has 3 locations. Must be from at least a regional chain.

Reader suggestions for items to review are very much welcomed and will be addressed in order of entertainment value (in the unlikely event that I get more than one suggestion).

Tale of the tape #2 is in pre-production, even as we speak, or should I say, as I type.

Alright, gotta get a post up here

2008-10-08T11:55:00.001-07:00

Okay, so there has been a drought of blogging lately, which is totally not fun, I'm not sure how much entertainment value I can provide in this particular post, but I'll try to get everybody at least caught up on all events (kind of an ambitious goal eh?).

So, this past weekend took a trip down to the hometown for some fishing and entertainment, succeeded in finding entertainment, fishing was a slight bust however, wind pretty much killed our big trip out on the river about 3 hours in. We did salvage things a little bit with some pond fishing back at the ranch, but a 1lb bass can hardly compare to a 7' sturgeon.

I got to check back in on Yakima on my way back and believe it or not, still rather depressing down there. We stopped to get gas @ the 7-11 off the interstate and it was a scratch ticket bonanza. I'm not paid to be a social scientist, but I would say there is some correlation between scratch ticket sales and the 1st of the month, when all the government aid checks come rolling into town. To quote Trailer Park Boys "That's how the government gets its money back". So damn true.

So, weekend, fishing, was a semi-bust, but I got to see developments around the old stomping grounds. Oh, and the huskies got their asses handed to them again, as has been the case all season.

Also, in case you haven't heard, there is some sort of chew-gate going on re: sideline shots of Jake Locker apparently with a wad of chewing tobacco in. Since there isn't much point in discussing if UW might win a game anymore, the more rabid fans are now debating what exactly was in Jake Locker's mouth - chew vs gum vs sunflower seeds. Looked like chew to me, but what do I know, I'm just some dude on the internet, I think you need paid professionals for this type of serious analysis.

To wrap it all up, work is borderline crazy right now, especially when your hours are constrained and your workload isn't. I'm supposed to develop productivity tools to help decrease the time, but the catch 22 is that I don't have time to develop those tools. Hmm , what to do?

Oh, and finally, I launched a new blog, in face of the results from my post about CL scammers, you can check out amibeingscammed.blogspot.com to determine if you, in fact, are being scammed. Check it out.

Peace

I promise I haven't left

2008-10-02T11:18:00.001-07:00

Just been pretty busy and working on random stuff. Soon enough I'll be back with a post that has some actual substance to it.

New Rig

2008-09-26T09:25:00.001-07:00

$4700 later, I am now the owner of a 1998 4Runner SR5 5 Speed with 148k miles. Go Go gas prices, getting people who never use SUVs out of them, and into the hands of people like me who drive 4,000 miles a year, most of them with some purpose other than commuting.

Pics to come. Now I have to go pay my fatty excise tax to keep puget sound slightly less stuck in gridlock.

El rusto is gone

2008-09-23T21:12:00.001-07:00

It is with a heavy heart that I must announce the departure of el rusto from the chinoandfriends family. He went off to a new home tonight where his days will be full of fun times hauling manure and landscaping. At least his new home will be one where his mechanical needs can be taken care of. While I am happy to not have to deal with all the mechanical pains of getting him ready to pass emissions, it is also hard to sell something for so little that you have put so much sweat and blood (literally at times) into.

Feel free to share your own memories of vehicles departed in the comments below. I can think of many friends of mine who sold vehicles full of character; including betsy, queen of the 4x2's, as well as the sable of lust.

Now, the search must begin for a new ride, I leave you with a final quote from rusty's new owner: "Now I feel like a real American"

Don't we all.

That's right!

2008-09-22T13:35:00.001-07:00

Exactly what I was thinking. Whatever happened to corporate accountability?

What shall replace el rusto?

2008-09-22T09:26:00.001-07:00

Well, el rusto is up for sale, has been for a while in fact, but obviously the truck market is a bit soft right now (as is the market for anything except a hybrid or a honda civic). Regardless, we are proceding with this post as if the truck will be sold for more than a dollar. What vehicle can possibly replace el rusto? In an effort to answer this question, I have laid out several important factors to consider.

-Value - something the Toyota market seems to lack, I have a hard time paying $5000 for a truck with 240,000 miles. I want to get something that is only 10 to 15 years old with less than 150k miles for under $4000 (at absolute most).

-Size of aftermarket following (internet forums and parts) - This might seem like an odd one to have up here, but generally the better a car, the larger aftermarket following it has in the form of forums and aftermarket parts. This is important, because forums are a great source of walkthroughs and general tips and tricks relevant to a certain model. Its hard to find this sort of content elsewhere. So I give bonus points to the 4Runner and Jeep Cherokee, the two cars I would consider that have the best aftermarket following.

-Room - I need to fit wife, dog and possibly guinea pig in the vehicle, something el rusto cannot accomplish. Heck, even the guinea pig and I can't fit in el rusto at the same time. This basically means a minimum of an extended cab compact pickup all the way up to something as large as a Suburban.

-Fuel Economy - This is an extremely minor consideration, when you drive 4000 miles a year, it doesn't really matter what kind of mileage you get, as long as its above 15 or so. I've been getting 16.5 in the truck. My acceptable range is 15 and up, but if I get 15 I had better be able to tow something huge.

-Towing Capacity - Not the highest priority, but as mentioned above, if I get horrible gas mileage, I had better be able to tow the hell out of something. Slightly important because I might get a larger boat in the future that needs to be towed. Also useful to tow beater cars on car trailers for future projects.

-Reliability - Does it break down all the time? More importantly, are these breakdowns catastrophic - i.e. Do they keep you from getting where you need to go or are they minor, quality of life issues (power window gets stuck, finicky heater fan, etc) I would rather deal with niggling quality of life stuff rather than know I am due for spectacular engine failure at any moment due to a known rod bearing issue or an undercooled automatic transmission (I'm looking at you Nissan Pathfinder).

-Cargo Capacity - Can I fit lumber in the back or on top or in a trailer? Can I put my boat somewhere, can I load it up and go camping for a week.

So, here is a list of finalists I have considered so far and their plusses and minuses

Chevrolet Tahoe/GMC Yukon

+You can probably tow a mobile home

+Value is at its apex currently, with high gas prices and perception as a gas guzzler

-Is the size of a mobile home

-15mpg if you drive with a light foot

-probably has the shortest lifespan of any vehicle listed because of the popularity as a tow rig.

-Everyone will look at you like you just dumped a gallon of oil on a seal

Nissan Pathfinder

+Good used value due to the fact Nissan used the same body style for 11 years, making a 1995 model look like a 1984 model.

+Good cargo room, underrated offroad ability

-AT Issues

-Small aftermarket

Toyota 4Runner

+Good cargo room

-Offroad ability not as good

-Most come with 3.0 V6, one of the worst toyota engines still around

-Not much more tow capacity than a Subaru

-Bad gas mileage (15mpg from a 3.0 V6?)

-Expensive for a rig with high miles

Nissan Hardbody Ext Cab Pickup

+Lower cost than Toyota PU

-Fewer selections available

-Interior room is tight

Toyota Ext Cab Pickup

+Extremely reliable

+Great offroad capability

+Huge aftermarket

-Waaay overpriced

-Really hard to find extended cab version

Ford Ranger Ext Cab Pickup

+Lower cost than Toyota PU

-Fewer selections available

-Interior room is tight

Subaru Legacy Wagon

+Fuel Economy

-Towing Capacity

-Automatic transmission issues (potentially)

-High parts/repair cost

Jeep Cherokee

+4.0 Inline 6 is bullet proof

-Low ground clearance

+Huge aftermarket

-Unibody frame

-Relatively low cargo capacity

In today's news...

2008-09-19T15:58:00.001-07:00

Official US Policy: Privatize the profits, socialize the losses. To hell with the deficit, we must have short term growth.

Not my quote, but I damn well agree with it. I feel like we are all getting screwed bigtime in this government bailout plan.

Tale of the Tape - Subway Footlong BMT vs McDonalds Double Quarter Pounder w/Cheese

2008-09-18T13:08:00.001-07:00

Maybe this will be the first in an educational series, or maybe not, but I think I could spend quite a few articles just writing about dietary misconceptions that people have. In this inaugural episode we will take on the myth of Subway's healthy offerings. Many think that by association with Subway, a sandwich must be relatively healthy. This is false! As a former Subway employee who spent many hours computing sandwich calorie combinations, I can tell you that anything with lots of processed meat on it isn't going to the be healthiest thing around. Plus, a foot long sub is pretty darn big. Their nutritional website lists a foot long BMT as weighing almost a pound! Alright, enough of my incessant rambling, let's get to the main event!

	Footlong BMT w/Cheese, no mayo	Double Quarter Pounder w/Cheese
Calories	900	770
Calories from fat	380	430
Total Fat (g)	42	47
Saturated Fat (g)	16	20
Trans Fat (g)	0	?????
Cholestorol	110	165
Sodium (g)	3540	1440
Carbs (g)	94	39
Dietery Fiber	10	11
Sugars	16	10
Protein	46	46

As you can see, we are about neck in neck here. The BMT has more calories, but less fat and slightly less saturated fat. Also of note, the BMT has a shitton more sodium. Good god, that is a lot of sodium. (mostly thanks to pickles and pepperoncinis inclusion in the data, which is somewhat admirable, because one could claim those as optional sides and not include them in the nutritional analysis). Final Call - avoid both! Either will nearly max out your daily recommended saturated fat intake, instead go with a foot long turkey or a regular quarter pounder w/cheese (only 440 calories). Oh, and if you get the Quarter Pounder - lay off the fries, nothing but empty calories!

- As you can notice, my table is all jacked up, I will work on fixing this another time.

Shout out

2008-09-16T14:39:00.001-07:00

To Beater Review, man, as an aficionado of crappy cars and automotive humor, it doesn't get a lot better than this site. If you're a guy like me, a realist and someone who enjoys cars, but can't justify spending money on a depreciating asset. You're someone who appreciates cars that have done 90% of their depreciating already. These are the cars you'll see on Beater Review. It's not updated as frequently as it used to be, but the archives are still quite useful and will keep a man entertained for a work day, or at least until lunch.

I don't have to look up 10 year old issues of Car and Driver or Road & Track in the library anymore when I'm contemplating my next car purchase, nope, not since I've found Beater Review

Amidst the despair, comes a light

2008-09-15T16:03:00.000-07:00

Sure things are looking dark in the US of A, especially around my beloved puget sound. House prices are down, unemployment is up, our sports teams can't win a g-d game to save their lives, (I an instituting a cooling off period before I actually discuss any game events in a permanent format that could be used against me later).

But my friends - YOU can buy I <3 Jake Locker boxer shorts. I don't even get a cut of these things, but they brightened my day so much I had to link to them anyway. Poor Jake goes out there and takes a licking every single Saturday, never questioning (I hope) his wisdom in coming to the U of W, "Why does he do it?" many might ask, perhaps its the knowledge that somewhere, some devoted man is wearing his I Love Jake Locker boxer shorts.

Fun with scammers

2008-09-15T15:57:00.001-07:00

One of the joys of selling a vehicle on craigslist is getting inundated with emails from scammers. They all follow the same general formula - they email you to see if the vehicle is still available. If so, they then reply about how glad they are to hear that and that they are ready to arrange payment and shipping. Because I'm sure 1987 Toyota Pickups are such a rarity that one has to go thousands of miles away to get one in as rusty of a condition as mine. See below emails for comic relief.

Okay,
I am happy to read your email concerning the sale of your item,i'm highly intresting in purchasing it as soon as possible.I will handle the shipment myself via my private shipping company,They will come for pick up when you must have gotten your cash at hand from the bank.They will prepare all shipment papers and also bill of sales.it will also be insured by my company shippers.

This is due to the fact that my mode of payment will be Via Bank Certified Check which i will wait for your bank to verify and clear the check before we proceed with the shipping am not in rush,Once you are satisfied with my mode of payment you can proceed to delete the advert,because i don't want any interruption.,So email me your name and address not a P.O box and also with your phone number to recieved the check. The check will be mailed via UPS or Fedex air so 2nd day delivery.then you will proceed to have the check deposited at your bank so get back to me asap!....

Thanks .

Barb Roman

Rock Springs, WY

I emailed her back letting her know that my sales are locals only. I don't deal with people from Wyoming.

Here's another

hello, i got all your information about the item and am satisfied with it, i will be making your payment today, i need your full name and address and your valid phone number to make the payment today via certified check i will handle the shipment myself. The check will get to you in 2-5 days time and when you recived the check you can then get the check deposited at your Bank i will wait for you to confirm and clear the check.The payment will be in excess as i will want you to contact my shipper with the excess fund for him to pickup the item after you must have confirmed and cashed the check .i will wait for your bank to clear the Check so you can deduct your own funds and send the excess fund to my shipper via Money gram Money Transfer cos he needs the excess to pick up the item. You can IM on this ID or call me on 206-888-0471 for more information.Thanks and God Bless,you can get the posting deleted from craiglist get back to me asap!

If anyone wants to give that guy a call, feel free. He's very interested in rusty trucks and apparently needs them shipped, even though he has a local phone number.

These people are the scum of the earth.

late night entry on this one

2008-09-12T21:35:00.001-07:00

Just got back a bit ago from an unproductive (though enjoyable) after work trip to fish for some tasty salmon. It was nice to get out on the river and enjoy the natural scenery of the PNW, even if we had to go hungry (so to speak). UW - Oklahoma tomorrow...yikes, that's about all that I have to say. Let's hope for the best, or at least for UW to cover. I estimate chance of an upset at 10%, but that might even be generous. On the agenda for the weekend, try to sell truck, watch UW-Oklahoma, going away BBQ. Hopefully I'll find some time in this strenuous schedule to write something of substance. Food for thought: What is it that makes some people so much more motivated by money than others? It isn't to say that I would turn down legit money if it was handed to me, but I just don't have that desire to work my ass off for paper. I guess I just enjoy my life too much without spending lots of money. I never thought of myself as that sort of person, but maybe I am? In a way I never envisioned being successful, always planning for the worst, I'm pleasantly surprised with my current situation as it is, even if things basically stayed as they are for a long time. Maybe I'm just easy to please

Meet Bob

2008-09-11T09:28:00.001-07:00

Meet Bob*. This is a guy who has been my companion in various exploits from the time I was 15. The great thing about Bob is that he's always up for whatever comes along, as long as it isn't overly illegal and doesn't involve doing lines of blow or killing hookers. Other than that, he's a pretty down guy. The one thing you have to keep in mind about Bob though, is that, while he is not lacking in enthusiasm, he is definitely lacking in street experience. If I had been raised in the suburbs, I suppose I would call Bob a typical suburban white kid, I'm not sure what you call someone like that from a small town 50 miles or more from any medium sized towns. Well, we just call him Bob I guess.

The great thing about Bob (besides his enthusiasm) was that if he had any free time, it was pretty much yours for the taking. Since I had a lot of free time on my hands as a 15 year old, mostly due to a disdain for homework and lack of participation in anything related to school. Looking back, I think this is what led to Bob and I's initial friendship.

Bob was the kind of guy who didn't mind coming with me as I cruised a neighboring town for a guy to buy me beer (in a particularly memorable instance, a mexican man with 3 thumbs came to my aid) or a convenience store that wouldn't card me (plenty of these to be found). But regardless of all his accompaniment, he would never participate in the vice at hand (until he was of age), so we had to wait until he was 18 for his first cigar, but he got plenty of secondhand smoke in the intervening 3 years.

Hopefully this helps flesh out Bob, who might be a recurring character, depending on what stories I type up next. To finish out our intro, I'll share a story about Bob and his truck.

Bob had been given a truck, basically on loan from his parents when he turned 16. I think this was mostly so he could drive around his sister and pick up stuff from the store. Normally, in our town, driving a truck around was pretty normal, and kind of cool, being a farm town and all. Well, Bob had probably the dorkiest truck in the history of trucks. Imagine if you will, an '86 nissan hardbody, extended cab, with a bubble canopy (the kind that rise up in the back). With a "Life is Short, Pray Hard" sticker on the back. 2 wheel drive of course. This is the kind of truck you would expect your grandfather to have around for yardwork. This is what Bob drove to school everyday for 3 years. Let's just say that there was never any action going on in the back of this truck.

A friend of ours, Jeff*, worked at a car dealership and would get deals on stereos they pulled out of trade ins. One day he got a particularly crappy CD player for free, of course, the first thing that popped into our heads was that we HAD to put it into Bob's truck. This was a CD player from the first round of CD players that was available to purchase, probably circa 1991, it skipped over any speed bump, didn't show how much time was left on the CD, and could barely pick up radio stations. Pretty awesome stuff, and you wonder why it was free? We ghetto-rigged that thing in there like any small town kids would, and of course, Bob has got to bump that shit all the way through his housing development. Bob, in all his geeky glory, cruising his old man truck, bumping (if you could call it that with two 4.5" speakers) Nelly's "Country Grammer" (hot song at the time). Then turning it down at certain houses so no neighbors called his dad. Yep, that's our Bob. We remain friends to this day.

*Bob is not really Bob's name

*Jeff is not really Jeff's name

"I live in Sunnyside, yeah, I know, it smells"

2008-09-10T10:35:00.001-07:00

Here's a lovely story from the valley. Nothing like the seemingly weekly ritual of a shootout in Sunnyside. Only this time it's noteworthy because the shooting was done with a police officer's stolen gun. Maybe this will be the event that spurs some more police action down there.

When I was working at the winery (see previous posts) my "boss" during the second time I worked there (after my initial firing) was from Sunnyside. I say "boss" because he actual wasn't really in charge of anyone, but he was the only person in my crew who was directly employed by the winery and not a temp agency. In our first discussion about where we lived, his line was "I live in Sunnyside, yeah, I know, it smells". Seemed like he had been told that a few times before.

My other fun encounter was when 3 guys from S-side had just entered my initial crew, a crew whose tasks were devoted to fixing mistakes that machines made, but were too expensive to fix with machines. These guys were looking for steady employment as their main job as COKE DEALERS wasn't paying as much as they would like. First, how shitty do you have to be at selling coke to have to carpool 120 miles round trip in a Ford Contour? Second, if you are really going for that big time $8.75 an hour job, don't drink on the goddamn job, they got fired, blamed it on my friend and I, and then word got back to me via the grapevine they were going to put a hit out on us. Riight. I'll just be on the lookout for any Ford Contours. (Note, to date, no hit has been made on me).

Anyway, back to Sunnyside, at least now the city has shut down the feedlot that was really stinking up the place, now they just have to shut down the OK corral shootout atmosphere and maybe things will start to perk up (but I wouldn't hold my breath).

The future of WaMu

2008-09-09T07:55:00.001-07:00

Looks like more and more are piling on the WaMu going bankrupt bandwagon - Calculated Risk for one. $53 billion in adjustable rate mortgages isn't anything to sneeze at, especially when your whole banking model is predicated on making the bulk of your profits off of mortgages rather than traditional banking services like checking accounts and credit cards.

Quite a few have pointed out the high CD and money market account rates WM is offering as a sign they are desperate for liquid cash as well. All I can say is that I'm glad I sold my stock in WM when it was at $43. We have a pretty good amount of money in their bank because of the good savings account apr, and I'm not too worried about not being able to access my money for a weekend, we have plenty of backup sources and accounts. Banks always go under on Fridays, so by Monday most stuff is pretty well sorted out.

What I did this Saturday

2008-09-08T08:03:00.000-07:00

Channeled my anger at the husky loss to build bunks for the boat to ride in the truck bed.

Total Cost $15, plus I have 45 deck screws and 6' of 2"x4" left over.

Then on Sunday took the boat out and went for a 3 mile row.

Woop Woop

2008-09-06T11:37:00.001-07:00

Alright, t-minus 20 minutes to kickoff of UW - BYU. Let's all hope together for an improved game 2 out of the huskies. Hopefully Tim Lappano will open up the playbook to include runs to the outside and screen passes and the O-line will restrain the 25 year olds on the D-line. I would like for Jake Locker to look back and not regret his decision to be a Husky. Go Dawgs!!! In other news, I am $395 away from the commencement of project build a boat. Also, taking the head off the Toyota on Sunday so I can take it in for a valve job. That one won't be too cheap. Hopefully I'll remember to take some pictures so I can post some up here. I need to take some anyway so I can get that thing back together when the head comes back. Alright, game time, happy Saturday.

Potential Boats

2008-09-04T15:25:00.001-07:00

FL 12 ($480 to build, not including tools and trailer)

August/September Update

2008-09-04T10:30:00.001-07:00

whew! done with 3 months of travelling all over the place. 9 states (not counting my good ol' home state that is) and 1700 miles of driving had left yours truly pretty exhausted. Thankfully all of our travels are over the time being, as much as I enjoy seeing new places, it sure is nice to be home and enjoy the weekends.

This is especially true with the start of college football season (go dawgs!), however, with the excitement of every impending saturday, comes the knowledge that sunday will be very sad thanks to brilliant scheduling from the UW athletic department.

In other news, I'm contemplating the construction of a wooden boat. I have been collecting designs from all over the internet (free and pay) and will soon start posting a directory of them for my own personal use.

In truck news, did a valve adjustment over the weekend, went okay as far as the adjustment itself, but I think I have a vacuum leak somewhere now, I'm going to hit schucks today to get a bunch of hose and just start replacing anything that looks old or cracked.

Peace out for now

Canyonero

2008-05-22T14:56:00.001-07:00

5F10 Canyonero

Can you name the truck with four wheel drive,
smells like a steak and seats thirty-five..

Canyonero! Canyonero!

Well, it goes real slow with the hammer down,
It's the country-fried truck endorsed by a clown!

Canyonero! (Yah!) Canyonero!
[Krusty:] Hey Hey

The Federal Highway comission has ruled the
Canyonero unsafe for highway or city driving.

Canyonero!

12 yards long, 2 lanes wide,
65 tons of American Pride!

Canyonero! Canyonero!

Top of the line in utility sports,
Unexplained fires are a matter for the courts!

Canyonero! Canyonero! (Yah!)

She blinds everybody with her super high beams,
She's a squirrel crushing, deer smacking, driving machine!

Canyonero!-oh woah, Canyonero! (Yah!)

Drive Canyonero!

Woah Canyonero!

Woah!

This lovely revisitation of the Canyonero episode of the Simpsons is owed to the first emergence of $4.00 a gallon gas in the puget sound area. Coinciding nicely, Honda is in the news with its newly announced aim of affordable hybrids with only a $2,000 premium over a non-hybrid model of the same car.

Meanwhile, back in the United States of Slow Adaptation, Ford cuts its forecasts of potential profit in 2009 mostly because they can't seem to make a decent vehicle that isn't a truck. Plus, their core consumer market of contractors and construction workers who feel a desire for small penis compenstion via huge tires are feeling a bit of a pinch in the back pocket with rising fuel costs and a falling construction market.

Simultaneously, consumers who are trying to trade in their Canyoneros of all shapes and sizes are being offered pennies on the dollar for their costly to operate rides.

This brings is to the question/statement/Jerry Springer moment of the day - what shall we do with all of these SUVs? I believe that all of the excess trucks that were merely status symbols will be readily absorbed by small business owners, farmers, etc who actually have uses that justify the high operating costs, but what about the Tahoes, Lexus SUV's and others that have no practical purpose a minivan can't emulate? What to do with all this sheetmetal?

I am now a proud Hunter's Ed graduate

2008-03-07T09:48:00.001-08:00

Cue up the pomp and circumstance, after a grueling 10 hour (more like 8 hour really) course, I can now purchase a hunting license and shoot woodland creatures. Of course, everyone in my class, including kids aged 8 to 12) passed, so you can surmise that this is not the most intellectually intense challenge out there.

Highlights included a video entitled "Shoot, Don't Shoot" which details a variety of scenarios, all including a mustachioed woodsman about to shoot an animal. Right before the moment of truth, the video pauses and the class must chant out "Shoot" or "Don't Shoot" As you can imagine, only about 1/3rd of the scenarios were actually "Shoot" moments, but the audience voted to shoot about half the time. This includes some particularly obnoxious 12 year olds who I would have liked to take outside and beat (though not because they voted to "Shoot" every time, there were numerous other reasons for a solid beatdown).

Pat and I simulated getting in and out of a boat and crossing a fence together, it was a very precious moment that I wish all could have witnessed.

2008-03-05T21:12:00.000-08:00

Pudding apparently killed this melamine bowl, not sure why, just took it out of the fridge and it was shattered around the bottom.

Go Dawgs

2008-02-11T16:27:00.001-08:00

Go here and read about the most exciting game UW will probably play all season long.

Notes from the game

Either Artem Wallace is severaly underrated defensively (not too likely, since he got lit up for 30+ points 2 of the last 3 games) or Kevin Love is overrated offensively, because he played like garbage Sunday. I think any team considering drafting K-love has to go over this game film, if you can't handle Artem (no offense to Mr. Wallace, but not exactly 1st team Pac-10 material) bumping you in the post, then you are in no way better than any of the worthless big men the sonics drafted in the years before Kevin Durant. Even better, rather than just taking his lumps for a shitty game, he has the balls to say it's his teammates fault for not getting him the ball - ""I was looking for the ball. ... I felt I was open and my teammates didn't find me."
Where was this side of Justin Dentmon's game all year long? It's painful to think how good UW could have been if they had been firing on all cylinders for the whole season. Then again, I think everyone felt the same way last year.
Not too proud of the Tim Morris pass of Aboya's face, I'm hoping inside that it wasn't intentional, but if it was, then well, sometimes you just have to be aggressive I guess.
On the same note as Justin Dentmon, Pondexter, you turned into an animal for about 20 minutes, then kind of faded back to your normal self after the quick foul calls, bring back the animal, please. Maybe seeing your highlight on sportscenter will wake you up.
Pac-10 officiating is just about total garbage right now, what has happened?

Woof!

Interesting morning in Oly

2008-01-29T10:42:00.001-08:00

Down here for a training Monday and Tuesday. I checked out of my hotel this morning and I as I was putting my bags into the old rusty truck a nice old fellow stopped to ask where I was going. I told him "nowhere at the moment, just heading up the street for a training". Then he asked if I was in the service. Not so much I had to tell him, he seemed disappointed, particularly after I told him I was in town for a software training. Sorry old fella.

A summer at the winery

2007-10-29T13:17:00.001-07:00

When I tell most people that I spent almost 3 months working in a winery a look a jealousy begins to appear on their face and visions of mediterranean vineyards begin to form in their minds. Here's why they have no idea what the hell they would be getting themselves into.

--------------------------------------------------

Part 1

After I graduated high school I moved 200 miles away to go to University. I stayed in the dorms that year (and the next) and came back home for the first (and last) time to work after my freshman year. From my post below you can see that I used to work at a local ISP in my hometown. However, with 9/11 having occurred shortly before I started my first year of college, the employment situation in small town Eastern Washington wasn't exactly great, and by that, I mean it was absolutely g--damn horrible.

It had looked like I would be able to get my job back at the ISP up until a month before I moved back, but they barely had enough work for the people they currently had. I had anticipated just finding a service level job somewhere and passing my time making minimum wage until school started up again. This was easier said than done however. After a fruitless week of driving around looking for jobs with my friend Dan (not a lot of Internet job postings in small town America after all) we followed the advice of a friend who was working as a temp in a winery warehouse about 40 miles south of our town and applied at his temp agency. Of course, at this agency you don't specifically apply for a job anywhere, but it was understood you would end up at one of three places unless you were an expert welder of fruit picker. Your three options were

Steel Plant
Winery Warehouse
Cherry Processing Plant

As manly as it would be, the idea of working in a steel plant wasn't terribly appealing, plus, we didn't have steel toed boots, and the cherry plant jobs only lasted a month. Plus, we wanted to work with our friend, so we slanted our applications towards the warehouse. Ignorant college kids that we were, we spent a long time filling out the 'technical skills' section of our resumes with all of our office application suites and programming languages that we knew, only to turn in our forms and have our new 'boss' tell us that they "didn't really have a lot, or any" of those type of jobs to fill.

So, after our afternoon of filling out forms at the employment agency, we went back home and waited. We didn't hear anything for 2 days, our friend who worked at the warehouse told us he was trying to get his supervisor to hire us on, but that he hadn't heard anything yet.

First, a quick digression into the job that our friend had, he and an acquaintance of ours worked down there packaging products for display and special shipments, the name of their department was in fact "Special Projects". They had told us many times that all their day consisted of was shining bottles and folding cardboard boxes, mindless work they said. Sounded easy enough, and they made the kingly sum of $8.50 a hour, it would be the most I would have ever made in my life, if only I could get hired on. As another bonus, they worked 4-10's, which for those of you who aren't into work shift slang, means 4 10 hour days per work week, Fridays off, every week!

Finally, our patience was rewarded and we got a call on Monday afternoon, we were needed at the winery tomorrow, but not a 7am, no no, we were going to be making the big bucks and working swing shift, 5pm to 3:30am, this shift carries a $.25 an hour bonus! $8.75, this was the big time!

To be continued in episode 2...

Random Jobs

2007-10-23T15:40:00.001-07:00

Through my short working career, I'm perhaps close to (though not the record holder) having the most odd jobs of anyone with a Bachelor's degree.

Here's a list of them, in chronological order

Mailing Assistant/Catalog Sender for a small gourmet food company
Sandwich Artist
Service Station Attendant (pumping gas at the last full service station in the state)
Student Technician at a local ISP
Student Helpdesk Technican (answer dumb questions, make sure no one in masturbating in the labs)
Temporary Warehouse Worker (putting stickers on items)
Temporary Warehouse Worker (driving forklift and putting stickers on items, while also shrink wrapping pallets of random crap to send out to distributors)
GIS Analyst Intern (Making Maps)
Mapping Specialist (Making Maps, but now Map is in my title!)
Teaching Assistant (Teach dumb kids)
Research Assistant (Save the world through conference calls!)
Resource Foreman (I was head of a team of Moth Trappers - that's right, MOTH TRAPPERS, a team of them!)
Teaching Assistant (Teach dumb kids again, but now with experience!)
GIS Analyst (Make really fancy maps!)

That pretty much brings us up to date right there. That's a grand total of 14 positions in less than 10 years of work history, however to be fair, I counted working in 1 warehouse twice, mostly because I was fired and then re-hired at a later date after my name was cleared.

New Blog/Truck Excitement

2007-10-23T13:01:00.001-07:00

So - at the encouragement of a friend of mine, I am starting this blog as a way to share random stories of my supposedly less than normal life. However, in order for myself to get some personal use out of this thing, I'll also be posting non story related items for my personal reference and as a fun byproduct, your enjoyment, and if you don't enjoy it, that's really too bad.

As follows, here is a picture of my 'new to me' truck. Purchased about a week ago for the princely sum of $1400, I now have about $500 into it, not including registration. Sadly, right now $100 of parts are purchased, but installed due to a bunch of pain in the ass rusty bolts that are refusing to come out. As a result, I got to spend some $$$ on tools this weekend to try persuade those bolts to remove themselves. I'm out of commission this week while I wait for some stitches in my back to heal, but soon enough I'll be back to physical labor.

Periodically I plan on posting some how to's or walkthroughs of various repairs, partially for my reference and partially just because. For now, here is a lovely camera phone picture of ol' rusty.