September 12, 2003
Friday the...12th?
I attempted to go to New Paltz today to visit my brother. The trip was a disaster. Note the word "attempted" in the previous sentence.
About 1.5 hours into the car ride, I had to stop for gas. I realized that I had forgotten my wallet. Not entirely at a loss, as I keep an extra $10 tucked away in a secret location in my car, just in case such an emergency arises. I managed to get $5 of gas (2.8 gallons at highway prices), keeping $5 to turn around and pay tolls with.
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| An hour later, things go from bad to worse |
Note a few details of the above photo. My velocity is what you would expect on the highway. My gas guage is reading well under the empty market. My brake and alternator warning lights are on. My thought process goes something like this, "Okay, today is a good day to die. I will die in one of three ways. Choose your own adventure: (A) Reid's car will run out of gas and he will get plowed down. (B) The battery will finally give give up the ghost and Reid will get plowed down. (C) The brakes will fail and Reid will fly off the exit ramp when he attempts to leave the Thruway.
Fortunately none of these things happened. I did check my alternator when I got back (my car was sputtering). The alternator is only putting out enough voltage to charge the battery at 4,000RPMs, so I need a new one. Cost: $250 (self-installed). The brakes are, I'm guessing, wearing down. No metal on metal yet, but the fluid level has dropped, which is a good indication that the pads are worn to the point that the calipers suck up extra fluid to keep the pads close to the disc surface. So there's that. Then there's the timing belt I still need.
It looks like another stipend check has just disappeared...
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Further back...
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Previous Trips...
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Hiking Mount Whitney, 2007 
Spring Break in West Virginia, 2005
New Year's in Paris, 2003-2004
Coming to America, 2003
Protesting in Berlin, 2003
Prague Bier-Tour, 2002
Dresden, 2002
Recent Reading
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Stealing the Network
I first bumped into the Stealing the Network series when reading the exploits of Joe Grand, one of the book's many hacker authors.
The 'Stealing the ...' series of books follows a rather disparate group of computer hackers as they help a former NSA spook (many of them unwittingly) gather the money he needs to retire.
The stories themselves are not fantastic fiction. The writing is uneven and choppy, the characters are stereotypical and not very well thought-out. What is fascinating about this book series is the technical accuracy of the exploits (at some points *too* accurate, with screen shots and step-by-step instructions).
It's a great series to read if you're a system administrator, or just getting into the wonderful field of computer security.
Rated 
by reid
on March 06, 2011
by reid
on March 06, 2011
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Close to the Machine
Ellen Ullman is one of those authors that somehow avoided my radar. Until now...
Close to the Machine is less a book than a collection of loosely related personal anecdotes from Ellen's time as a very rare thing -- a successful female bisexual independent computer programming consultant.
In the course of her work and relationship life, she learns hard lessons about programming, running a business, being lonely, and loving the wrong people. I found it particularly poignant being a crypto-nerd with difficult times in relationships and a more-or-less NDA'd, secret work life.
This book is a must-read for anyone into running their own business, programming, or anyone dating a person that is a business-a-holic or programmer.
Rated 
by reid
on November 23, 2009
by reid
on November 23, 2009
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The Long Trip Home
I had the joy of dining with the author in Florida. We went to a little Brazilian BBQ where he spoke with our waitstaff in (what I can only assume was) flawless Portugese.
Brian Wyllie spent 1969-1971 living in Brazil working for the Peace Corps. His recent book outlines his trip back to the United States via Bolivia, Peru, and the Carribean chain, by way of bus, train, and sailboat. The format comes spattered with observations from the modern day, and makes me think, "this must be what John McPhee's journal looks like."
The trip sounded like a fantastic one, but I was left wanting more detail...where did the gun (being snuck through customs in a variety of places, no doubt) come from? And how did Geneve's hair smell? Alas, we'll have to wait for another book to find the answers.
Rated by reid
on April 16, 2009
by reid
on April 16, 2009