I admit it.  I’m not a perfectionist.  I kinda do a half-assed job of most things, mainly because functional is more convenient than pretty. Early on in my programming life I tried my hand at graphical user interfaces.  I failed miserably.  After the program worked, I found it somewhat pointless to make it look pretty.  That’s probably the reason why I work on compilers and software tools– computer programs that will NEVER be seen by the naked eye, let alone by my friends and family.  Compilers are those things that you just pray to god works, because no one wants to take a look inside.  Somewhat like the master cylinder in your car brake system.
Continue reading Faking my way through life →

The northernmost bits of California are surreal.  They’re filled with so many trees and forests that they actually cut them down for money (and they keep growing back).  There’s more marijuana plants than people. *AND* the migrant workers are actually white (as are the McDonald’s and Taco Bell employees).

My friend Cory hooked me up with a friend of his in Eureka, and I had the privilege of hanging out with Brad for a handful of days.  This rock star of a guy not only works finding homeless veterans assistance, but sits on the board of non-profits just for fun, meanwhile able to run up-hill as fast as Anais, my former pet goat.
Continue reading Huge tracts of [marijuana] land →

My 20th birthday found me in a youth hostel in downtown Rome.  My 30th, crossing the Alps on a bike.  So I figured my 40th should be something special, albeit adapted to the life of a senile, mid-life man, who has expanded his vocabulary to include big words such as prostate and dysfunction.

So here I am.  My forties found me, having sold everything, moving into a motorhome, and touring the US and Canada, with two bikes and a dog in tow.

A friend of mine once told me that I was a collector of stories.  I think that aptly summarizes me– at least for a big chunk of the time. I love to live a good story and then retell it; to the point that sometimes I wonder whether I’m just experiencing life merely to tell a good tale.

I left a few weeks ago, searching for a tale– having installed solar panels to get my work fix, and carrying more laptops and gizmos than Inspector Gadget.
Continue reading Midlife crisis and a side of duck eggs →

Growing up in Michigan, I had an African-American friend who used to refer to those embarrassing cultural moments as nigger moments.  I know, I know… it’s not politically correct to say the N word, but I didn’t know any better, and I had a moment all to myself when I tried to use the same phrase, even among the same friend who had taught it to me earlier.  Apparently, only (some) African-Americans can use that word, and even so in selected circles.  Fair enough.  Lesson learned.

Lucky for me, I have a whole slew of other pejorative self deprecating words I can use instead that are both politically accepted and equally as funny.  There are trailer trash moments, as well as ghetto moments, but being a card holding member of the sovereign nation of Puerto Rico, I think I can use the jibaro moment card at will.  After all, I didn’t have a working phone until I was 15, and when I did we were restricted to 40 calls a month before the monthly rate doubled.
Continue reading N**g**/Jibaro moments on the way to Peru →

The infrequent times I train with pros (in any discipline) remind me of why I’m usually ensconced in the safety of a cubicle writing software.

Jason of Sager Sports came to visit for the holidays and the training mobile was back in action, although the RV was mostly a wall on which to lean bicycles and gear.  The weather was spectacular and the scenery breathtaking… the suffering, not so much.

Seeing that our paces are so disjoint, we each went our separate ways, only meeting back at the house for food and snacks.  Unfortunately, somewhere along the 4th day, Jason matter-of-factly said: “we’re going on a 100km” ride through the mountains.  I looked over my shoulder and seeing that no one else was around, I panicked.  On the select times when Jason graces me with his presence on a bike ride he has one of two things in mind: doling out humble pies or just taking it “easy” because he’s tired from his own training. Unfortunately easy for him, is 300W of pain for me.

6500 ft of elevation gain later, I was humbly back thinking how great it was to write software for a living, and ready to eat a supermarket’s worth of food.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and I’m plenty tired to merit some pictures instead of the usual barrage of nonsense.  So without further ado, here are some random before and after pictures. You’ll clearly see I got the new 2014 Racing Apparel kit this week. Yee haw!  Beautiful stuff!