Semaphore

Hunting...

2008-09-14T09:37:00.000-07:00

So one of my hobbies is collecting superhero action figures and trade paperback books. Mainly Marvel and DC stuff. Anyhow, since moving to California, it's been quite difficult to go action figure hunting at local stores because of traffic and scalpers. Because of that, I've resorted to ordering my stuff online which is convenient and it's great when brown santa rolls up with a box of loot.
Recently, however, I've had an itch to go hunting to see what I could score. I get these itches after browsing ebay and forums to see whats new and out. So this morning while at my girlfriends house I had an itch. I told her I was going to run out to 7 Eleven but instead I made a quick run to Target and Wally World around the corner. I bagged two Iron Man figs at Target and one at Wally World. Not bad for this area, but the fact that these figs have been out since the beginning of the summer and no longer coveted by scalpers helped me find them. I lied about what I was up to. Do I have an addiction?

Dodged a bullet

2008-09-02T14:25:00.002-07:00

Metaphorically... Last friday, I got a call from my manager while I was on vacation. A serious one. He tells me my job is safe, but they were getting rid of the position I hold at work. Some guys on the team were going to be given 30 days notice. As in, 30 days to look for a new job. Good news for a select few, bad news for most. I certainly hope the company can find a spot for the rest of the team.
One consequence of this round of layoffs is that it'll affect me in my personal life. I currently share a house and room with two other guys on the team. I know for certain one has lost his position, not certain about the other as he's still on vacation. I really don't feel like moving as the house is really nice and just I hope the best for all involved.

Hum Cycles, Electric Motorcycle!

2008-08-27T10:15:00.002-07:00

Damn... haven't had any updates since the beginning of May. Anyways, Hum Cycles.

The motogooglers arranged to have Forrest Deuth from Hum Cycles come to Google to show us their proof of concept electric motorcycle. Hum Cycles is a San Francisco start-up who are working on a premium electric motorcycle. The team at Hum comprise of folks with experience in battery management, vehicles (including the Tesla Roadster), manufacturing and robotics.

In addition to showing us their proof of concept bike and answering our questions, they offered a select group of us a chance to ride the bike. Luckily, I got a chance to ride the bike and here are my impressions. The proof of concept bike they had on campus was a totally gutted out Ducati supersport chassis (don't know which one?) with their drive train, electronics and batteries. Everything fit within the Ducati frame and bodywork. The chassis did have some modifications. Since there's no transmission, the gearing was unique. I believe Forrest said the counter sprocket was an 11t and the rear sprocket was a 70-something t. It made for one huge-looking sprocket.

The instrument panel consisted of the original Ducati speedo, a battery voltmeter in place of the tach and an add-on battery power gauge. Noticeably missing were the left side controls of the bike: clutch lever and shift lever. Starting the bike was a simple affair: put key in the ignition and turn to on position. No need to press a starter. Twist the throttle and there's a lot of available torque and the powerband is nice and linear throughout the twist of the throttle. When you left off the throttle abruptly, there's a noticeable compression braking. I took my test ride on a short hop on 101 to try and gauge it's top speed. Unfortunately, my test ride was right at the beginning of the evening rush hour so the best I could manage was 65mph before I had to slow down for traffic. Merging into traffic is NOT a problem with this bike. It just accelerates like a bat outta hell. The rest of my test ride was through the streets of Palo Alto and Mountain View. The bike handled pretty well for a sportbike, but then again, I don't have much riding on supersports only dirtbikes and dual sports. I thought the bike would be quiet, but it sounds like a louder electric RC car whine that gets progressively louder as you get on the throttle.

It charges in 6-8 hours on 120v and their targeted mileage is around 150+ miles. My memory sucks, but I think the weight was around 350-400lbs. They're final prototype will be using a chassis and body kit of their own design so I don't think they'll be offering conversion kits. If they get the weight down and get to their targeted mileage range of 150+ miles, I think they've got something.

Sorry, no pictures. They are trying to to stealth as they are still looking for investors

May Mustache Madness!

2008-05-02T09:17:00.002-07:00

HAH! The Googlers are having a Mustache growing contest. This is a pic of me clean shaven on May 1st. I haven't been seen in this state of facial nekkidness in a while.

oh, and I'll be moving into the new digs in a month!

Vehicle maintenance, Thanks Dad!

2008-03-19T15:25:00.003-07:00

I've been doing some vehicle maintenance recently. On the truck replacing a bad horn. On the motorcycle, upgrading the fork suspension, changing out the oil and adding farkles. I get a certain feeling of satisfaction doing all the work myself. More so when I work on my motorcycle. That's because if I took my bike to the dealer they would charge a flat shop service rate of $120/per hour. That's if they do anything. They do major work like checking valves, or something as simple as changing the oil. When I got my Race Tech parts to upgrade my front suspesion, I considered on taking my bike to Aftershocks, a local motorcycle suspension shop, to do the upgrade because I lacked a garage. They quoted me $300. That's almost double the cost of the parts. Luckily, my friend, Nick, allowed me the use of his garage (he lives in a house). I went and bought a motorcycle lift at Harbor Freight and tackled the job myself.
I thank my dad for showing me the ropes. He always did the basic maintenance on our cars when I grew up. Stuff like changing oil, a water pump, distributor, shocks, brakes. Disassembling stuff and putting it back together with new parts was fun and satisfying. Helping him out in the garage on weekends was fun and a great learning experience. It made me confident and willing to tackle the same jobs on my own.
Now I just wish I had my own garage to work in.

Highway Cow

2008-02-18T17:43:00.003-08:00

This morning I took my Dakar on a test ride to get a feel of the new Race Tech front suspension. I went north on 101 cut west on 84/Woodside then back down to Mt View via 280 south. Whilst riding south on 280, I noticed there was no traffic headed northbound. Weird, even taking into account that today was Presidents day. A couple miles in I noticed a black cow trotting in the middle of the northbound lanes of 280. I slowed down to 70mph from 80mph and stood up on the pegs to get a closer look.
Yep, a single black cow must've broke outta the fenceline and gotten loose on the highway. There was a police cruiser, a John Deer atv and several people trying to reign in the cow. About a mile and a half up the road, two police cruisers had completely stopped. I smiled and laughed under my helmet as a continued on my test ride.
The front end is much firmer and responds a lot better than stock. The fork dive on full panic braking is gone. Big bumps are no longer harsh and smaller bumps like highway lane reflectors are barely noticable. Now I'm hoping the weather next weekend holds up and doesn't rain. The offroad ride down to Hunter-Liggett will be a great venue to test out the offroad capability of the Race Tech upgrades.

Motorcycle DIY

2008-02-18T10:20:00.002-08:00

I'm not paying someone to do something I can do.
Yesterday I finished my motorcycle maintenance and fork upgrade. I started last weekend with an oil and filter change but when I started to tackle the fork upgrade, I noticed the springs Race Tech sent me were the wrong size. So with the correct springs in hand, I finished up the job. It was a pretty easy install.
I considered having a local suspension shop do the RaceTech emulator and spring install but when the gave me the $300 quote I was like, "Fuck that!!!" Off I went to Harbor Freight to buy a motorcycle lift and Lowes for some hand tools. I also asked my buddy, Nick if I can use his garage to which he obliged.
While I had the bike torn apart, I installed Touratech radiator guards and fork protectors. When I removed the original radiator "guards" I was surprised to find out how much they "guarded" the radiator. Basically, no protection except from the side. The radiator fins were out in the open. The new rad guards will protect the radiator much better. I don't know why BMW made the F650GS so lacking in what it needs to accomplish its dual purpose capability. Buy hey, it makes buying shit and installing it fun. Also personalizes my bike from others out there.
Now gotta save for some Jesse luggage and an Ohlins or Wilbers rear shock to match the new forks.

G2SF ride, 2 seconds & train track traps

2008-02-17T10:32:00.000-08:00

Today, Russ, Joe, Nick and myself went on a ride from Google to SF. We left under an overcast sky and a chill to the air, but the forecast said it was going to be a gorgeous day. We left the shop thirty minutes after our intended "wheels rolling" time. It was chilly at first but quickly warmed up after a mile or two, but my hands were chilled because I forgot to bring my full-fingered gloves.
Joe was asking where the taco trucks were since he apparently skipped brekkie and was hungry. By the time we got to Belmont, we stopped at the Burger King next to the small airport. Twenty minutes elasped before we got back onto the bikes headed toward our goal. We left the parking lot down the road, and had to make a left. Nick rolled through the stop sign just a a pickup truck came towards the intersection. I was going at a good clip, hit the brakes hard coming to a stop next to Joe. I was still clipped in and intended to clip my left foot out, but my ankle still not having the strength to clip outwards (as is my norm) I attempted to clip out by twisting my ankle inwards (which up til now worked great). I probably trackstanded for a good two seconds before keeling over to the left like a tree felled by a lumberjack. My shoulder took the brundt of the short fall so no harm done to me nor the borrowed bike. Not long afterwards, we hit the spot on our route that was a good long run which paralleled 101. Using the slight downhill, I ramped up my speed to just haul til the end of the bike trail which emptied out next to Postini, a recent acquisition of Google.
We continued on through Redwood Shores and at one intersection, Joe rolls up behind Russ and me and says, "Nick, I'm two seconds away from punching you in the back of the head". Joe was pissed that we (Nick and I at the time) we going along at a speed Joe couldn't keep. Joe didn't have clipless pedals and cycling shoes the rest of us had. He went on to complain that we were on a "group ride" and not a race. We left the intersection and reduced our speed to appease Joe. A couple miles later, Joe appoligized.
We quickly passed through Coyote Point and SFO. We again stopped at the McDonalds in SOuth City for a piss break. Joe complained about his wrist and shoulder which he injured during the holidays. As we passed Brisbane, approaching SF proper, we saw the first and only steep hill on our route. I made quick work of it with a minimum of effort. I dont know whether it's because of the gearing on the borrowed bike or better fitness since the last time I rode this route two months ago.
The rest of our ride towards downtown SF would be primarily downhill except for two moderate hills. We made it into the heart of downtown around 12:30pm and made straight for the SF Google office on Spear street. We stored our bikes at Google and headed to Palomino for a well deserved lunch. After lunch, we quickly headed to the Caltrain station on 3rd and King to catch the 3pm train back down to Mt View.
It was a great day for a ride. The company was great and entertaining as well as an exercise in group dynamics. I felt better this time than the same ride I did with Russ two months earlier.

Commuting by bike

2008-02-15T10:32:00.002-08:00

Since my truck gets horrible city gas mileage, my motorcycle is in pieces, the weather is nicer and the fact that work is only around 3 miles, I decided to ride my bike(bicycles) to work. I'm lucky in the fact that Stevens Creek Trail is right next to my apartment complex and runs right up to the commercial park that Google occupies. Almost all multi-use trail and a minimum of street to travel. Even then, there's designated bike lanes.
I love that fact that there are great bike lanes and trails in the Bay Area, didnt have the same in NC or VA. Plus the great weather makes for bearable year-round riding.

Gaahhh!!! Race Tech!

2008-02-12T12:22:00.000-08:00

So I worked on my motorcycle Saturday with mixed results. The oil and filter change went smoothly. First hiccup: Then I broke out the spray can of engine degreaser that I bought from Cycle Gear. Popped off the top and lo and behold... it was lacking a spray nozzle! I wanted to clean up the underside of the engine and around the front sprocket. I did my best to get the caked on stuff off.
I then tackled the removal of the front forks. I placed the motorcycle lift under the bike, removed the front wheel and loosened the triple clamps. Breakdown of the forks was easy. Pretty basic suspension looking at the guts of them. Reason I'm upgrading the forks by modding the dampner rods and adding a Race Tech Gold Valve Emulators and Springs. Using an el cheapo Black and Decker drill/drill bits makes slow work of the dampner rod mod. Enough so that I was only able to do one side. I had to go out and get a decent drill bit specifically made for metal. Next I studied the placement of all the bits to include the new. Emulators: check, new spacers: too short! I mis-measured the needed amount, 270-275mm. Then the new springs: too big!!! The overall diameter of the springs were 40mm. I needed 33mm. Faaack!!! I bought the Race Tech bits back in September during a F650.com group buy. Didn't get around to tackling the install because I was still and crutches. Install ground to a halt. It being a weekend, I had to wait till Monday to call Race Tech to work out an exchange. I hoping to get the part by Friday so I can knock out the bike this Sunday and ride.
I'm really looking forward to checking out the performance of the mod. Posts from other folks on F650.com seem pretty positive.

Motorcycle maintenance

2008-02-06T15:17:00.000-08:00

So I've put off doing an oil change on my motorscooter for a while, but now I've gotten off my ass and started to prepare. I've ordered a stainless steel oil filter, oil and some various o-rings and washers to get the job done. While I'm at it, I'll also install the Race Tech cartridge emulators that I got last year. I bought a motorcycle lift at Harbor Freight for $60 bucks. Should make this weekend and future wrenching on the bike easier. Since I cant work on my motorcycle in my assigned carport at my apartment complex, nor my truck for that matter, I'll be using my friends garage.

Germany???

2008-01-10T17:49:00.000-08:00

So this chick that used to work with me at Google, ims another colleague saying she's got an open position in Rammstein. I never had the opportunity to PCS to Germany when I was in the Army and I've always wanted to live and work in Europe, so it's really enticing. Enough so that I forwarded her an updated resume. Now I'm dreaming about Germany and visiting the rest of Europe

Happy New Year, bitches!!!

2008-01-05T12:48:00.000-08:00

New Year, new shit. Places to visit, new friends to make, old friends to reconnect with, new experiences... Last year was a bust, literally. I broke my leg while cycling and now I'm all primed to get back on my bikes and put in some serious miles. I've got some rides planned in my head to do on my moto. I'm ready for the new year!

Holiday vacation

2007-12-19T13:36:00.000-08:00

I must already be in vacation-mode. Not really feeling productive at work. I'm really looking forward to getting to Seattle and seeing my baby!

This shit is hot!!!

2007-12-12T09:12:00.000-08:00

When commercials come on while watching TV, I usually zone out, get a drink or a bite or whatever. Last nite, while I was watching something I TIVOd, a commercial came on for a product called Pancake Puff, Basically it's a specialized griddle pan than cooks these pancake balls or puffs.

All the different types of puffs you can create is fuckin mind-boggling. Well.... not really. But I was hungry with a sweet tooth and the shit they were showing on TV was looking damned delicious. Now I want one for Christmas.

Stairs

2007-12-11T15:49:00.000-08:00

Taking the stairs after recovering from a smashed lower leg and ankle is difficult at first. My left ankle doesn't move like it used to right now. But I have noticed that going down stairs quickly is becoming easier. It'll become easier as the days go by, going to physical therapy and just exercising my leg. I do notice that it's easier to walk with athletic shoes than it is with flat-soled street shoes.

*$

2007-12-07T11:28:00.000-08:00

Starbucks... they suck. Buncha corporate poseurs. Take your coffee fix to Rituals, Blue Bottle, heck, even Peets.

Rick James got nuthin' on me!

2007-12-05T14:34:00.001-08:00

Got my hair done up in cornrows. Bitch, dat shits hawt! I'm fuckin' ghetto fab my nizzle!

December

2007-12-03T11:21:00.000-08:00

The weather turns colder. Christmas trees start to show up on car roofs. The days are shorter. I've been at Google for two months now. I'm just not feeling in the "holiday spirit" mode... indifference? Just not into the commercialism of Christmas? I dunno...

Faaackk!!! a 5.6 earthquake!!!

2007-10-30T20:19:00.000-07:00

Holy shit! I just experienced my first earthquake in California tonite. That shit was a 5.6 on the Richter scale centered over Alum Rock here in the Bay Area. Fuckin' freaked me out!

I first thought the fuckin' neighbors were stomping up and down the stairs out in the hall way, then I noticed the whole fuckin' building was shaking.

Damn...

A warmed ass while poopin'

2007-10-24T14:48:00.001-07:00

I just experienced the best poopin' experience while at work. There are these hi-tech seats on the toilets that are heated, can wash your bum like a bidet and your front (I'm assuming for the gals), and a control pad mounted on the stall wall. Whoever came up with the idea of installing these in the throne rooms is a faackin' genius!

I may just have to take care of all my number 2s at work. Kinda makes my toilet at home jealous.

No more commute!

2007-10-09T21:34:00.000-07:00

First off... I'm not very consistent in keeping up with this blog. July. That was three months ago. A lot has passed since then. I returned back to work at Amgen, I'm on the final phase of my smashed leg recovery and I left Amgen to work at Google. That means I now do not have a 30 mile one-way commute. I'll save time - an hour each way (whether I take the train, drive or ride my moto) and I'll $$$ for gas or a Caltrain ticket. In addition, I'll save $$$ by eating free food, snacks and beverages at Google.

July Heat & Gimp Update

2007-07-06T13:38:00.000-07:00

Lately the weather has become warmer and warmer as the month progresses. Yesterday, it was 84 deg in Mt View. It'll be about the same today. Kinda sucks since my apartment and, as I've found here in CA, most housing have no air-conditioning. Guess they figure the weather here rarely gets hot enough to warrant A/C. But what do the expect to do when it does? Fuckin' suffer the heat? Open the windows and turn on the fans? I guess so, that's what I've done.

Gimp Update:
Saw Doctor Chou today, about a month since the surgery. The removed the cast, took x-rays, removed the staples/sutures and put my leg in a removable boot. Doc said the leg will be in the boot and still no weight bearing on the leg for another two months. Next doc visit in two months, Sept 5th. She also gave instructions for me to do some flexibility exercises for my toes and ankle. Additional good news: I CAN RETURN TO WORK!!! WooHoo!!! Thank God! I was going fuckin'crazy sitting on my ass at home with nothing to do. Damn, I'm happy 'bout that!!!

Damn, I'm Hungry

2007-06-27T12:32:00.000-07:00

Right now, I'm really jonesin' for some Hawaiian BBQ. Kalbi ribs in particular. It's probably been over two months since I've sunk my teeth into fresh hot grilled beef ribs from the Kauai BBQ on Dana St. Dat schit reminds me of the many summer BBQs I attended while I was a kid. Good times and good eats.

***FUCK! >>> Went online to get the phone number and menu to order and the restaurant website reports that Kauai BBQ Grill is closed. WTF!!! That place has really excellent food at great prices. Plus it was a nice "mom & pop" joint... eating there felt like I was eating at home or at an aunts house. Much better than the chain-type Hawaiian BBQ places.

Damn, that sucks. And I'm still hungry.

TP roll over

2007-06-26T12:56:00.000-07:00

While performing a #2, you tend to ponder about the simpler things in life. Well... either that or read a magazine or comic book. There are times when you drop your pants you find that you forgot to bring in reading material. During those inopportune moments, you have time to think about mundane things.

Today's random rambling: installing a new roll of toilet paper. IMHO, there's only one and proper way to do this >>> TP dispenses over, NOT under any circumstances, should it be installed to dispense under. No need to explain my reasoning because there's no need to explain. Common sense dictates that TP should be dispensed roll over. Nuff said!