The Amazing Nuvi

Reaching the conclusion of my mileage documentary, the results are quite anticlimactic. At 50,000 miles I pulled out of the extended-stay parking lot at Hartsfield-Jackson Int'l.



The cool thing about this picture is that although my Nuvi can't actually find the fastest way to my home, it apparently knows where the aisles are in the economy parking lot. That empty space was dead on and I didn't hit a single car on the way out.

Flying hazards

The Seattle Times reports on the problem of increased air traffic by both planes and 10-pound birds.

The dramatic landing of a US Airways passenger jet in New York City's Hudson River on Thursday has focused attention on potentially catastrophic bird-versus-plane collisions, said Sea-Tac biologist Steve Osmek. US Air Flight 1549 landed in the Hudson after Canada geese apparently were sucked into its engines, disabling both.

I'm uncertain how they ascertained the geese were disabled. That assumption aside, the man of the hour appears to have been preparing for this his entire life. Impressive and congratulatory. I predict this story turns into a bestseller.

Notably New in 2008

Few roller coasters have excitement and disappointment rivaling 2008. I confess that dusting off my post-graduate degree in Mountaineering and Hermitology was a temptation I resisted exactly seven times. The drops and dips are like children—uninteresting if they're not your own. So here are a few things that went very right in 2008.


Best Album born from an Uptight NYC University – Vampire Weekend

Dripping into the public consciousness with the release of their self-titled album, this group of Columbia-bred musicians mix so many ideas into their music that I feel I'm witnessing the creative process of a multi-possessed Paul Simon. My favorite from the album that is still in frequent rotation? Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa.




Most Maniacally Depressing Bad Guy of whom I Wish There Were More - The Joker

I caught Dark Knight on a weekday trip to SLC when I had a few too many canceled meetings in a single afternoon. Stuck in one spot with a three hour gap, my iPhone yelled that I could catch the movie at exactly that time. (God bless technology.) "No problem," I thought, "I'll just watch this flick to reset my frustration and show up to my next appointment ready to work." Apparently I hadn't seen the trailer.

Two hours later I stumbled out of the theatre physically shaking and astonished that I could love the involvement of darkness and myth. The genius of Mr. Ledger's performance isn't that he made The Joker sympathetic; rather he convinced me that The Joker was more intent toward his objective than any other villain I've seen.




Most Ignored Car that we will come to Wish We Hadn't - 2008 M3 Sedan

Despite a waiting list longer than ten long things for the coupe, BMW apparently couldn't move the four-door variety M3 fast enough to avoid offering ridiculously low financing to anyone with a pulse, à la Ford Motor Company. The 2008 M3 sedan will stick in BMW's memory as a classic told-you-so that we, the enthusiast, will regret for years to come.

You see, after the E36 sedan failed to sell in sufficient numbers BMW pulled the option for the E46 and we missed out on a generation of four-dour sleepers. For years, the Letters section of Roundel lit up with complaints about our gracious German overlords neglecting our tastes. Fences were mended, the M3 sedan returned, and we, the consumer, didn't max out our home equity lines at a sufficient pace to satisfy supply. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if the suits in Munich decline to give us another chance. Enjoy your E90; it may well be the last.




Most fun I've had on a Project This Year - TheEndOfRodneySmith.com

The combination of talent between Rodney Smith and David Meredith mean that I have a hard time saying, 'no.' To promote his new compendium, my little company built the very beautiful microsite at TheEndOfRodneySmith.com. My hat is off to Mister S and David, who handled the design.

Future Me Realizes His Dreams

When I was a teenager I dreamt of having my own radio station that would broadcast only music I liked. I could preset the playlist and then head out with nothing more than my credit card sized FM tuner. I would be set, for hours.

Years later the future arrived, conveniently brought to us by Apple. The iPod and then my iPhone let me carry days worth of music, video, podcasts, and audiobooks without any commercials. The playlist is completely tailored to me, that is, except for the times I want something that isn't on my iPhone, isn't on my computer at home, and only exists somewhere in the ether.*

This is when I love the iTunes Store for the iPhone, or at least one little part of it. On the iPhone, the iTunes Store accesses the same expansive library of songs as its desktop counterpart. Preview and purchase songs right on the iPhone. And now, with the latest software, you can browse and download podcasts as well.



There's a hidden feature here. Whereas music is limited to 30-second clips for copyright purposes, podcasts are all free; there is no limit on the preview length. So rather than waiting for a podcast to download (after tapping the FREE button), I just tap the title of the podcast and the entire program streams, even at Edge network speeds.

Now, my iPhone can hold a lot of podcasts. But it's nothing compared to the infinite expanse of the internet, which I can now stream, for free, anywhere I go. And if I get bored, I just go hunting among the other million podcasts.

*Yes, I know about Pandora, and I use it on occasion. However, Pandora doesn't let me skip around or play those 3 songs I like over and over.

Southern Sky

We've had two fantastic days of rain here in The Georgia. With clouds overhead, the temperature hasn't dropped. So when the rain stopped the air stayed a breezy 62-degrees. I walked out the back door of my office and snapped this picture of the clouds running from the fading light.



Outstanding colors; Mother Nature's palette wins again.

On the Dam

At mile 48102, I crossed the top of a dam by a still lake. Large enough to spend hours on, small enough to be private, and remote enough to have a road so narrow that you take turns crossing with cars headed the other direction.







Motor.

Woodsy

At 48101 miles the S finds itself lurking behind trees and carving twisty mountain roads laced with, er, potholes. Loads and loads of potholes. The scenery was great but I don't think I made it out of second gear.



The rain was more of a mist that has been hanging around for a couple of days. I love the temperature -- in the low-50s -- and with the sky overcast, the road looks damp and sharp. Although most prefer sunny and clear, a drizzly day calms my soul more than any other weather. It's as if I get a head start while everyone else hibernates, and indeed the road was only mine today.