May 31st, 2007 by Hiland

Becky Stromer paid me a visit over the week-end, and here are some photos, using Google’s embedded slide show:

May 29th, 2007 by Hiland

As I’ve mentioned here before, my good friend from high school, Ben Barrows, is in Jordan and frequently goes to Iraq on business (he’s helping rebuild the country through micro loans). Here’s the text of an IM he sent me this morning:

I just arrived in Iraq. The villa I usually stay in is unavailable, and the two good hotels with blast walls and decent security measures are full. I’m in the Chwar Chra hotel, which in Kurdish means “four lamps.” I’m on the ground floor, facing an unguarded back street. I am scared shitless about truck bombs. I think I might sleep on the floor by the door, so as to be farther away from the exterior wall. Then again, that might be paranoid, and being 12 feet farther away probably wouldn’t do much. If there was a bomb in the street I’d probably just never wake up, which isn’t such a bad way to go. The last bomb here, a few weeks ago, leveled a gov’t building and blew out windows for a kilometer radius! Yay iraq.

Yeah- I can deal with making spreadsheets in my comfy, air conditioned office, I think.

May 25th, 2007 by Hiland

This might be one of the funniest bits Conan has ever come up with.

I can’t stop watching it.

May 21st, 2007 by Shantastic

That’s right every Memorial day weekend a great thing happens. Our glorious Kinetic Sculpture race.  All sculptures are human powered (they mostly resmble the  recumbent bicycle idea) and can have up to four people.  If those same four people compete all weekend then they are an “Ace” team otherwise they’re still rad.  They bike from Arcata to Ferndale (a 45 min drive in the car) have to go in the bay and through the sand.  The sand course includes a huge drop called something like “dead man’s drop.”  I have never been out to see the sand day but the water race is really fun.  Of course some sculptures always sink, but that’s all part of the challenge.

Matt is no longer so excited about the race because Wing Inflatables has been making the tubes for the contraptions for years. With little returned love.   But I love it and think it is so cool.  People really come up with great ideas for it and I will be down on the plaze this Saturday taking photos of some wacky inventions.

May 17th, 2007 by Hiland

Check it out.