September 21, 2013
F1 Quals: Singapore 2013
If the teams were smart, they'd all just start working on 2014's new spec of cars and concede the various championships to Red Bull now. I say this because of the results of today's Quals session for the 2013 Grand Prix of Singapore... let's take a look, shall we?
"So Vettel's on pole again," I hear you saying, "so what? What makes this time so much different?" I'm glad you asked! First, look at his time in Q2... he was, quite literally, nearly a full second faster than anybody else. "Yeah, but that's Q2... in Q3 he was only a tenth faster," you exclaim. Indeed, this is true... but Vettel set his time at the beginning of the final session, then parked his car and let everybody else shoot at him.
Think about that for a second. He was confident enough in the time he set that he never bothered to try and improve it... and nobody could catch him. Oh, and it should go without saying that his super-soft tires will be at least a few laps fresher than those of everybody else during the first stint of the race.
There are 61 laps scheduled for Sunday's race. While I don't think we'll see Vettel win by one second per lap, if he wanted to at this track, he probably could. I suspect it's going to be a loooooong race.
Unless it rains, like it's predicted to do... of course, it's ALWAYS been predicted to rain during the Singapore Grand Prix, and I don't think it ever has.
"So Vettel's on pole again," I hear you saying, "so what? What makes this time so much different?" I'm glad you asked! First, look at his time in Q2... he was, quite literally, nearly a full second faster than anybody else. "Yeah, but that's Q2... in Q3 he was only a tenth faster," you exclaim. Indeed, this is true... but Vettel set his time at the beginning of the final session, then parked his car and let everybody else shoot at him.
Think about that for a second. He was confident enough in the time he set that he never bothered to try and improve it... and nobody could catch him. Oh, and it should go without saying that his super-soft tires will be at least a few laps fresher than those of everybody else during the first stint of the race.
There are 61 laps scheduled for Sunday's race. While I don't think we'll see Vettel win by one second per lap, if he wanted to at this track, he probably could. I suspect it's going to be a loooooong race.
Unless it rains, like it's predicted to do... of course, it's ALWAYS been predicted to rain during the Singapore Grand Prix, and I don't think it ever has.
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September 20, 2013
The Good And The Bad
I interrupt what would normally be a look at F1 Practice from Singapore for a story. A story about how things can be happy one night, and sad the next. I come to tell you a story of Wonderduck's Thursday and Friday.
As those of my readers who have an unhealthy obsession with me may remember, my friend Vaucaunson's Duck makes his way back to Duckford once or twice a year. As is usual, we got together for sushi last week, along with his lovely and talented wife, Geese. As she is a busy executive-type-person at a major special effects company in San Francisco that you may have heard of, she returned there last weekend, but Vauc stayed behind. As he's my bestest friend (not-living-in-Duckford division), we planned to get together again for dinner.
In the bestest friend (Duckford-resident division) category, we find The Librarian. Long-term, not obsessed, readers will remember her as a fixture around these here parts for quite a while, and while we're not getting together as often as we used to (work work work work work), we still have an active and goofy friendship. We had plans to get together for dinner.
And then it hit me... my two bestest friends, who have never met but have heard much of the other from me, could actually get the chance to be in the same place at the same time! RAWK! WOO! And so, at a place called the Stone Eagle (so named for the concrete eagles scattered around the facility), a longtime wish of mine came true... The Librarian and Vaucaunson's Duck finally met each other, and a three hour long conversation, punctuated by flurries of eating (try the Reuben Spring Rolls!), took place. Fortunately for my sanity, the two of them were kind to my poor wretched self and DIDN'T haul out the truly embarrassing stories they could have. I'm fairly sure they actually liked each other... to the extent that two fairly dissimilar individuals can like each other on such short exposure, that is. For some reason, that was important to me. I mean, sure, if they didn't hit it off, they'd both still be MY friend, and in my tiny little Wonderduck-centric mind, that's all that matters, but... well. Y'know.
So that's the good... what's the bad?
Today, Friday, September 20th, marks four years since Momzerduck passed away. It still hurts to realize that she's never going to call at 7pm again, or never make chocolate chip cookies, or even just give me a hug again. I miss her every day.
Long four years. Four really long years.
As those of my readers who have an unhealthy obsession with me may remember, my friend Vaucaunson's Duck makes his way back to Duckford once or twice a year. As is usual, we got together for sushi last week, along with his lovely and talented wife, Geese. As she is a busy executive-type-person at a major special effects company in San Francisco that you may have heard of, she returned there last weekend, but Vauc stayed behind. As he's my bestest friend (not-living-in-Duckford division), we planned to get together again for dinner.
In the bestest friend (Duckford-resident division) category, we find The Librarian. Long-term, not obsessed, readers will remember her as a fixture around these here parts for quite a while, and while we're not getting together as often as we used to (work work work work work), we still have an active and goofy friendship. We had plans to get together for dinner.
And then it hit me... my two bestest friends, who have never met but have heard much of the other from me, could actually get the chance to be in the same place at the same time! RAWK! WOO! And so, at a place called the Stone Eagle (so named for the concrete eagles scattered around the facility), a longtime wish of mine came true... The Librarian and Vaucaunson's Duck finally met each other, and a three hour long conversation, punctuated by flurries of eating (try the Reuben Spring Rolls!), took place. Fortunately for my sanity, the two of them were kind to my poor wretched self and DIDN'T haul out the truly embarrassing stories they could have. I'm fairly sure they actually liked each other... to the extent that two fairly dissimilar individuals can like each other on such short exposure, that is. For some reason, that was important to me. I mean, sure, if they didn't hit it off, they'd both still be MY friend, and in my tiny little Wonderduck-centric mind, that's all that matters, but... well. Y'know.
So that's the good... what's the bad?
Today, Friday, September 20th, marks four years since Momzerduck passed away. It still hurts to realize that she's never going to call at 7pm again, or never make chocolate chip cookies, or even just give me a hug again. I miss her every day.
Long four years. Four really long years.
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September 18, 2013
Because Why Not?
The whole "AMV Hell" concept, where multiple creators make short AMVs (sometimes less than five seconds long!) and they're put together in one long video, seems to have maxed out somewhere between AH3 and AH4. AMV Hell 5 was, despite some laffs, pretty much a disappointment.
However, there was one clip that was so sublime, so perfect, so right, that even now, two years later, it makes me laugh out loud just thinking of it. I am proud to share it with you now.
Bravo, Person Who Came Up With This Idea, bravo.
The music, if you're unfamiliar with it, is the theme to the movie Koyaanisqatsi, which I loved the first time I saw it, despite the crippling handicap of being neither high nor stoned. Said theme was composed by Philip Glass, the master of taking a handful of musical nothing and making repetitive musical nothing out of it. When I was a student at Duck U., lo these many years ago, I had the opportunity to attend a speech-cum-music theory class-cum-concert featuring Mr Glass.
After the first fifteen minutes or so, I had never wanted to sneak out of something so badly in my life. Unfortunately, I was attending with my Music Appreciation (aka "Clapping For Credit") class, the event was in Madison, WI, and we all rode together in a van. I was trapped. All I remember was the incessant "tweedlytweedlytweedly" sounds coming from The Maestro's keyboard.
Despite this, the clip above is still hilarious to me. And, I hope, to you as well. Enjoy, won't you?
However, there was one clip that was so sublime, so perfect, so right, that even now, two years later, it makes me laugh out loud just thinking of it. I am proud to share it with you now.
Bravo, Person Who Came Up With This Idea, bravo.
The music, if you're unfamiliar with it, is the theme to the movie Koyaanisqatsi, which I loved the first time I saw it, despite the crippling handicap of being neither high nor stoned. Said theme was composed by Philip Glass, the master of taking a handful of musical nothing and making repetitive musical nothing out of it. When I was a student at Duck U., lo these many years ago, I had the opportunity to attend a speech-cum-music theory class-cum-concert featuring Mr Glass.
After the first fifteen minutes or so, I had never wanted to sneak out of something so badly in my life. Unfortunately, I was attending with my Music Appreciation (aka "Clapping For Credit") class, the event was in Madison, WI, and we all rode together in a van. I was trapped. All I remember was the incessant "tweedlytweedlytweedly" sounds coming from The Maestro's keyboard.
Despite this, the clip above is still hilarious to me. And, I hope, to you as well. Enjoy, won't you?
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September 17, 2013
F1 On NBCSN: Singapore 2013
Once upon a time, not that long ago, Singapore was an eagerly awaited destination for the F1 Circus. Imagine, the first ever Formula 1 race at night, under a multi-gazillion-watt lighting system that would make the cars look frickin' sweet! And they'd race over bridges, and under the seating area, and past the historic Raffles Hotel, and the course layout looked great, and all that jazz. Except, as we've learned, looks can be deceiving. It's not that great a track, the night racing is a gimmick (but it does look nice), you can't tell when they're on the bridges, yadda yadda yadda. There has been a change this year though... let's take a look at the track map for the 2013 Grand Prix of Singapore!
It was notorious as "the worst corner in Formula 1." Turn 10, aka "The Singapore Sling," used to be a quick left-right-left mini-chicane with high curbs that would launch unsuspecting cars into low-earth-orbit if you got too much of them. Nobody liked it, except for those amongst us who also enjoy watching NASCAR for "the Big One." Please note, this does include your humble scribe to a certain extent, and seeing a multi-million dollar F1 car catch air like a F-18 Super Hornet launched off the deck of an aircraft carrier was one of my guilty pleasures.
Well, no more. The FIA did away with The Launching Pad, and instead put a fast left-hand sweeper in it's place. Borrrrrrrrrinnnnnng. Safe, but boring. I exaggerate, but only for effect. Still, at least the turn had some cachet to it. Negative cachet, sure, but it was there.
So this is where we're treated to this weekend. I'd like to say that NBCSN is going to be all over it, but I can't seem to find any coverage of Quals until Midnight Sunday morning, so maybe not. Here's what I DO know:
FRIDAY:
Practice 2: 830a - 10a live
SUNDAY:
Grand Prix of Singapore: 630a - 9a live
We should be F1U!'g all over the place, so keep an eye out and we'll see ya then!
It was notorious as "the worst corner in Formula 1." Turn 10, aka "The Singapore Sling," used to be a quick left-right-left mini-chicane with high curbs that would launch unsuspecting cars into low-earth-orbit if you got too much of them. Nobody liked it, except for those amongst us who also enjoy watching NASCAR for "the Big One." Please note, this does include your humble scribe to a certain extent, and seeing a multi-million dollar F1 car catch air like a F-18 Super Hornet launched off the deck of an aircraft carrier was one of my guilty pleasures.
Well, no more. The FIA did away with The Launching Pad, and instead put a fast left-hand sweeper in it's place. Borrrrrrrrrinnnnnng. Safe, but boring. I exaggerate, but only for effect. Still, at least the turn had some cachet to it. Negative cachet, sure, but it was there.
So this is where we're treated to this weekend. I'd like to say that NBCSN is going to be all over it, but I can't seem to find any coverage of Quals until Midnight Sunday morning, so maybe not. Here's what I DO know:
FRIDAY:
Practice 2: 830a - 10a live
SUNDAY:
Grand Prix of Singapore: 630a - 9a live
We should be F1U!'g all over the place, so keep an eye out and we'll see ya then!
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September 15, 2013
Name This Mystery Ship XXIV
Usual rules and regulations apply... no image search, no cheating, yadda. Also no FDM or CXT for the first 24 hours. Winner gets a post on a topic of their choice (no pr0n, religion or politics).
Get t'gessin'!
UPDATE: It's open season, folks... everybody can play now!
Usual rules and regulations apply... no image search, no cheating, yadda. Also no FDM or CXT for the first 24 hours. Winner gets a post on a topic of their choice (no pr0n, religion or politics).
Get t'gessin'!
UPDATE: It's open season, folks... everybody can play now!
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September 13, 2013
WAFFO!
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September 11, 2013
Silly Season Goes Nuclear
The annual Formula 1 Driver Relocation Program, better known as "the silly season", had a very early start this year when Mark Webber announced his retirement from the sport. This led to rumors that Kimi Raikkonen would be leaving Lotus and moving to Red Bull... rumors that proved to be incorrect when the team announced that Daniel Ricciardo would become Hannibal Vettel's plaything teammate next year.
But things got really interesting a couple of days ago when Felipe Massa received the long-discussed axe from Ferrari. To be fair, the team has stuck by him through quite a few down years, years where a points-scoring teammate to HWMNBN might well have won the team a lot more in the Constructor's Championship. As it is, the only driver that's started more races for Ferrari in their history was Slappy Schumacher. No idea where Massa is going to end up, but he's already said that he won't be a pay driver and that he intends to be in F1 in 2014.
So now the question became, who would team with HWMNBN at Ferrari? Clearly, the driver would have to be one of two things: totally subservient and willing to be an obvious #2 driver ("Fernando is faster than you..."), or someone able to stand toe-to-toe with the Spaniard in driving ability.
Unlike Red Bull, Ferrari dealt with the matter quickly... and went the toe-to-toe route, announcing that Kimi Raikkonen would be leaving Lotus and rejoining the Red team in 2014, five years after his last stint with them. He's also the Scuderia's most recent Driver's Champion, oddly enough. It's obviously a great addition to the team, but one wonders just how HWMNBN will react. He was on record as wanting Massa to be resigned, and the last time he was teamed with a driver as skilled as himself, he went on to earn the nickname "HWMNBN" by throwing temper tantrums and leaking information to the FIA, leading to McLaren being slapped with a $100million fine.
One suspects that Ferrari won't let him play that game... and that their chances for a Constructor's Championship just went up exponentially.
But things got really interesting a couple of days ago when Felipe Massa received the long-discussed axe from Ferrari. To be fair, the team has stuck by him through quite a few down years, years where a points-scoring teammate to HWMNBN might well have won the team a lot more in the Constructor's Championship. As it is, the only driver that's started more races for Ferrari in their history was Slappy Schumacher. No idea where Massa is going to end up, but he's already said that he won't be a pay driver and that he intends to be in F1 in 2014.
So now the question became, who would team with HWMNBN at Ferrari? Clearly, the driver would have to be one of two things: totally subservient and willing to be an obvious #2 driver ("Fernando is faster than you..."), or someone able to stand toe-to-toe with the Spaniard in driving ability.
Unlike Red Bull, Ferrari dealt with the matter quickly... and went the toe-to-toe route, announcing that Kimi Raikkonen would be leaving Lotus and rejoining the Red team in 2014, five years after his last stint with them. He's also the Scuderia's most recent Driver's Champion, oddly enough. It's obviously a great addition to the team, but one wonders just how HWMNBN will react. He was on record as wanting Massa to be resigned, and the last time he was teamed with a driver as skilled as himself, he went on to earn the nickname "HWMNBN" by throwing temper tantrums and leaking information to the FIA, leading to McLaren being slapped with a $100million fine.
One suspects that Ferrari won't let him play that game... and that their chances for a Constructor's Championship just went up exponentially.
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September 09, 2013
Random Anime Picture #82: On A Horse
-Tari Tari, Ep11
I have no idea what's happened in this picture, since Tari Tari is about a group of friends who want to sing in a choir. I'm assuming it's a fantasy sequence. I hope. Otherwise, the series appears to have become Glee with horse archers.
Which doesn't sound like a bad idea, actually.
-Tari Tari, Ep11
I have no idea what's happened in this picture, since Tari Tari is about a group of friends who want to sing in a choir. I'm assuming it's a fantasy sequence. I hope. Otherwise, the series appears to have become Glee with horse archers.
Which doesn't sound like a bad idea, actually.
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September 08, 2013
(Mini) F1 Update!: Italy 2013
Rain. Rain is the great equalizer in F1. Rain will make contenders out of midpackers, garbage out of champions, and exciting races out of boring ones. As the field headed out to the grid a half-hour before the start of the 2013 Grand Prix of Italy, they were clad in Intermediate tires, courtesy of showers passing overhead.
*THE RACE: But when the cars rolled away for the recon lap, the track had dried completely and all were wearing slicks... and we here at F1U! were considering drinking heavily. When the lights went out and the entire Herd thundered down to the ridiculously tight first chicane, polesitter Hannibal Vettel fed us all a scrap of hope when he locked up his front-right tire, flatspotting it and imparting a serious vibration to the front of his car. As a result, Vettel stopped before the 2nd place Ferrari of HWMNBN. The Spaniard stayed on track for as long as he could, praying for the gray skies to open up and force everybody onto rain tires, but no luck. He pitted on Lap 27, giving first place back to Vettel in the process. And that's the way it stayed until late in the race, when both Vettel and teammate Mark Webber in third were warned about a serious gearbox problem. Instructions were issued to short-shift whenever possible, so better to protect the unhappy assembly. This killed any chance that Webber had to catch the Ferrari, and allowed Vettel's lead to drop from nearly 15 seconds to a meager five. But that's how the race ended as well, bringing an end to the European leg of the F1 season.
*WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?: It feels like the rest of the season is a fait accompli. Vettel could sit out the next two races and even if HWMNBN won them both, he'd still be leading the driver's championship. He could sit out the next three races before Shiv Hamilton would be in the picture. Red Bull has a lead of 104 points over Ferrari in the constructor's championship... and a maximum of 43 points can be earned by a team per race. Vettel has now won half of the races run this season, and it just seems impossible for him to be headed the rest of the way. The next race is at Singapore in two weeks, and there's probably no circuit on the calendar that would be a more prototypical "Red Bull Track." Yeesh.
*ON THE OTHER HAND: A Ferrari on the podium at Monza is reason enough for the tifosi to go insane. Here's a picture taken by HWMNBN after the trophy ceremony:
Just imagine what it would have been like if he had actually WON.
*FINALLY: McLaren Tooned 50 Ep04, just in time for Rush...
It's worth watching with the captions on...
*THE RACE: But when the cars rolled away for the recon lap, the track had dried completely and all were wearing slicks... and we here at F1U! were considering drinking heavily. When the lights went out and the entire Herd thundered down to the ridiculously tight first chicane, polesitter Hannibal Vettel fed us all a scrap of hope when he locked up his front-right tire, flatspotting it and imparting a serious vibration to the front of his car. As a result, Vettel stopped before the 2nd place Ferrari of HWMNBN. The Spaniard stayed on track for as long as he could, praying for the gray skies to open up and force everybody onto rain tires, but no luck. He pitted on Lap 27, giving first place back to Vettel in the process. And that's the way it stayed until late in the race, when both Vettel and teammate Mark Webber in third were warned about a serious gearbox problem. Instructions were issued to short-shift whenever possible, so better to protect the unhappy assembly. This killed any chance that Webber had to catch the Ferrari, and allowed Vettel's lead to drop from nearly 15 seconds to a meager five. But that's how the race ended as well, bringing an end to the European leg of the F1 season.
*WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?: It feels like the rest of the season is a fait accompli. Vettel could sit out the next two races and even if HWMNBN won them both, he'd still be leading the driver's championship. He could sit out the next three races before Shiv Hamilton would be in the picture. Red Bull has a lead of 104 points over Ferrari in the constructor's championship... and a maximum of 43 points can be earned by a team per race. Vettel has now won half of the races run this season, and it just seems impossible for him to be headed the rest of the way. The next race is at Singapore in two weeks, and there's probably no circuit on the calendar that would be a more prototypical "Red Bull Track." Yeesh.
*ON THE OTHER HAND: A Ferrari on the podium at Monza is reason enough for the tifosi to go insane. Here's a picture taken by HWMNBN after the trophy ceremony:
Just imagine what it would have been like if he had actually WON.
*FINALLY: McLaren Tooned 50 Ep04, just in time for Rush...
It's worth watching with the captions on...
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September 07, 2013
So, About That F1 Quals: Italy 2013 Post...
I've decided that Labor Day weekend is great when you're, y'know, labor. When you're management it just means you have four days to do what you normally do in five. Throw in some other things and I pulled another "week" of 13-hour days. I also went in on Labor Day for a couple of hours, not to mention today!
And that's where the F1 Quals post went: in to work. I've not watched Quals for Monza yet, but from what I've read, the grid looks like this:
Hamilton had two hot runs in Q2, from reports. The first ended when he slid off-track in Parabolica, and on the second he was impeded by Force India's Adrian F'n Sutil, who received a three-spot grid penalty and will start 17th. Cold comfort for the Mercedes man, though it's not like they like each other.
Speaking of Force India, I'm going to use them to illustrate the amount of downforce cars run at Monza. In this picture, please look at the rear wing.
As you can see, it's very shallow. This, of course, makes sense, as a shallow wing provides less downforce and thus less drag. Downforce is great when you're trying to turn: it pushes you onto the pavement, giving you more grip. But this is MONZA, where drag is the last thing you could possibly want, so you crank off as much wing as possible... resulting in the paper-thin beast you see here. When DRS is activated, it becomes even thinner. Having said that, Force India might have more wing than anybody this year: they were the slowest cars through the speed trap, some 7mph behind the fastest. By comparison, let's look at Force India's wing at Hungary:
Yeah, 'nuff said.
But why would FI be running wing at Monza? Because it's supposed to rain. Forecasts are calling for thunderstorms in the morning, and then again somewhere around race time. Interesting fact: it almost never rains at Monza. In fact, the last time it did was 2008, when some young kid won his first race. Before that? 1985.
See you tomorrow!
And that's where the F1 Quals post went: in to work. I've not watched Quals for Monza yet, but from what I've read, the grid looks like this:
Hamilton had two hot runs in Q2, from reports. The first ended when he slid off-track in Parabolica, and on the second he was impeded by Force India's Adrian F'n Sutil, who received a three-spot grid penalty and will start 17th. Cold comfort for the Mercedes man, though it's not like they like each other.
Speaking of Force India, I'm going to use them to illustrate the amount of downforce cars run at Monza. In this picture, please look at the rear wing.
As you can see, it's very shallow. This, of course, makes sense, as a shallow wing provides less downforce and thus less drag. Downforce is great when you're trying to turn: it pushes you onto the pavement, giving you more grip. But this is MONZA, where drag is the last thing you could possibly want, so you crank off as much wing as possible... resulting in the paper-thin beast you see here. When DRS is activated, it becomes even thinner. Having said that, Force India might have more wing than anybody this year: they were the slowest cars through the speed trap, some 7mph behind the fastest. By comparison, let's look at Force India's wing at Hungary:
Yeah, 'nuff said.
But why would FI be running wing at Monza? Because it's supposed to rain. Forecasts are calling for thunderstorms in the morning, and then again somewhere around race time. Interesting fact: it almost never rains at Monza. In fact, the last time it did was 2008, when some young kid won his first race. Before that? 1985.
See you tomorrow!
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September 04, 2013
The Evangelion Movies: 1.11 You Are (not) Alone, pt 4
In Part 3 of the epic writeup for the first of the epic new Evangelion movies, Our Hero Shinji got punched in the face by friends, then epically defeated Rio from Rio: Rainbow Gate! in an epic battle of epic proportions. There was all that stuff about him epically not crushing his friends, too... and by friends, I mean "people who punch Shinji in the face." But now, now we begin with the post-battle debriefing. And by debriefing, I mean...
...punching Shinji in the face. Misato's kinda upset that Our Hero disobeyed orders ("recover your friends and retreat") to kill Rio, and as she berates him, he just sits there going "yes." Until, in his Shinji-like way, he quietly points out that he won. At which point, she yanks him to his feet and prepares to jam his teeth down his throat... in friendship!
In anticipation of making a new friend, Our Hero smiles. Y'know what? Our boy Shinji here, he's a little tetched in the haid, he is. Maybe all that being punched in the face has permanently rattled his marbles, maybe he's just a masochist, or maybe he craves attention... any attention... and this movie is deeper than we all could have possibly thought. When Misato doesn't hit him, he walks away, boards a train, rides it until it doesn't go any farther, walks around for a while...
...then gets shanked in a dark alley and wrapped in a cardboard box. The Angels will now win, the Earth is doomed, and we'll all die screaming. Dammit, Misato, next time just hit the kid! The next day, he wanders around some more until he comes across some of his handiwork... a destroyed highway, probably caused when he tripped over it or something. He complains loudly that he wants to go back to NERV, and...
...the people who had been following him immediately spring into action. It's pretty clear he knew they were there. Maybe he wanted them to punch him in the face?
Back at NERV HQ, Our Hero complains that he doesn't have any freedom, but he'll pilot Unit-01 anyway because everybody wants him to. Misato says "pshaa, whatever, it's your thang, do whatchawannado," and leaves him sitting in the dark. 'Bout time someone stood up to his whining.
Meanwhile, Gendo Plushyferret sits in his office and chuckles conspiritorially. It's all going according to plan, a plan "written 14 years ago." The next step is to get Our Hero closer to Teh (hot blue-haired) Rei. OVER MY DEAD B... did I say that out loud? I did?
more...
...punching Shinji in the face. Misato's kinda upset that Our Hero disobeyed orders ("recover your friends and retreat") to kill Rio, and as she berates him, he just sits there going "yes." Until, in his Shinji-like way, he quietly points out that he won. At which point, she yanks him to his feet and prepares to jam his teeth down his throat... in friendship!
In anticipation of making a new friend, Our Hero smiles. Y'know what? Our boy Shinji here, he's a little tetched in the haid, he is. Maybe all that being punched in the face has permanently rattled his marbles, maybe he's just a masochist, or maybe he craves attention... any attention... and this movie is deeper than we all could have possibly thought. When Misato doesn't hit him, he walks away, boards a train, rides it until it doesn't go any farther, walks around for a while...
...then gets shanked in a dark alley and wrapped in a cardboard box. The Angels will now win, the Earth is doomed, and we'll all die screaming. Dammit, Misato, next time just hit the kid! The next day, he wanders around some more until he comes across some of his handiwork... a destroyed highway, probably caused when he tripped over it or something. He complains loudly that he wants to go back to NERV, and...
...the people who had been following him immediately spring into action. It's pretty clear he knew they were there. Maybe he wanted them to punch him in the face?
Back at NERV HQ, Our Hero complains that he doesn't have any freedom, but he'll pilot Unit-01 anyway because everybody wants him to. Misato says "pshaa, whatever, it's your thang, do whatchawannado," and leaves him sitting in the dark. 'Bout time someone stood up to his whining.
Meanwhile, Gendo Plushyferret sits in his office and chuckles conspiritorially. It's all going according to plan, a plan "written 14 years ago." The next step is to get Our Hero closer to Teh (hot blue-haired) Rei. OVER MY DEAD B... did I say that out loud? I did?
more...
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September 02, 2013
F1 On NBCSN: Italy 2013
Every Formula 1 track on the calendar is different from every other. That's something we don't see much of here in the US, to be honest. Oh, to be sure, the ovals that NASCAR races on have differences (only a EuroSnob would think that Pocono, Michigan, Indianapolis, Bristol and Daytona are the same), but having said that, there is something to the "go fast, turn left" cliche. Well, this week the F1 Circus comes to a legendary circuit that most NASCAR fans would identify with, for this week, we come to Monza.
Back in the day before the Chicane Blight hit F1, Monza was about nothing but speed. Speed, speed, speed. Handling barely mattered: with only five turns, why waste time thinking about anything but going fast? Now, though, cars actually need a small amount of grip to make it through the evil Variante del Rettifilo at the end of the front straight, or the three-way Variante Ascari halfway through the back. But having said all that, Monza is still about speed, in a way no other circuit on the calendar is. La Pista Magica is the closest F1 comes to the grunting, knuckle-dragging image of a NASCAR track mindless EuroSnobs have, and they don't realize it. However, it is the Italian fans that turn Monza into The Magic Track, particularly when the Red Cars are running well. The way the tifosi mob the circuit after the race is over is truly an experience unlike any other in F1. Why, it's almost... NASCAR-ish.
Of course, F1 can only DREAM of attendance like this...
Well, dream or not, our Legendary Announce Team will be bringing us all the usual coverage from Italy. Here's the lineup:
FRIDAY:
7a - 830a Practice 2 live
SATURDAY:
7a - 830a Quals live
SUNDAY:
630a - 9a 2013 Grand Prix of Italy live
I've just discovered that I can watch my television, reflected in the frontplate of my new computer. It's almost good enough to liveblog from it!
Almost.
See you this weekend!
Back in the day before the Chicane Blight hit F1, Monza was about nothing but speed. Speed, speed, speed. Handling barely mattered: with only five turns, why waste time thinking about anything but going fast? Now, though, cars actually need a small amount of grip to make it through the evil Variante del Rettifilo at the end of the front straight, or the three-way Variante Ascari halfway through the back. But having said all that, Monza is still about speed, in a way no other circuit on the calendar is. La Pista Magica is the closest F1 comes to the grunting, knuckle-dragging image of a NASCAR track mindless EuroSnobs have, and they don't realize it. However, it is the Italian fans that turn Monza into The Magic Track, particularly when the Red Cars are running well. The way the tifosi mob the circuit after the race is over is truly an experience unlike any other in F1. Why, it's almost... NASCAR-ish.
Of course, F1 can only DREAM of attendance like this...
Well, dream or not, our Legendary Announce Team will be bringing us all the usual coverage from Italy. Here's the lineup:
FRIDAY:
7a - 830a Practice 2 live
SATURDAY:
7a - 830a Quals live
SUNDAY:
630a - 9a 2013 Grand Prix of Italy live
I've just discovered that I can watch my television, reflected in the frontplate of my new computer. It's almost good enough to liveblog from it!
Almost.
See you this weekend!
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September 01, 2013
Here She Is!
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Pond Scum, allow me to introduce you to Nori, my new computer.
Nori is a HP ENVY 700-074. She's loaded with a 4th Generation quad-core i5 chip from Intel, running at 3.0GHz. There's 12GB of RAM, a 2TB hard drive, built-in wireless networking (which I'm not using), and a pretty case that attracts fingerprints like nobody's business. It also came with a wireless keyboard that I'm honestly not fond of (it's essentially a laptop keyboard) but I don't own any USB keyboards, a wireless mouse that I'm not using because the one from Logitech that I own is a lot better, and built-in graphics that... well, they aren't great. I've discovered that I am in love with USB 3.0, and am very glad that my external hard drive came equipped with it. The only problem is that two of the four USB3 ports are top-mounted behind a fairing, while all the USB2 ports are front-mounted, behind a drop-down panel that doesn't leave enough space to insert a wireless mouse thingy and still be able to close the panel. As a result, I've got the Logitech mouse thingy plugged into one of the USB3 on top, which is silly. I think I'll be able to survive, however.
It also comes with Windows 8. Fortunately, it also comes with HP's "Quick Start" program, which does most of what the missing START button does.
But that's dwelling on the negative. So far, I'm pleased as punch with Nori, and suspect she'll be with me for a good long time!
Nori is a HP ENVY 700-074. She's loaded with a 4th Generation quad-core i5 chip from Intel, running at 3.0GHz. There's 12GB of RAM, a 2TB hard drive, built-in wireless networking (which I'm not using), and a pretty case that attracts fingerprints like nobody's business. It also came with a wireless keyboard that I'm honestly not fond of (it's essentially a laptop keyboard) but I don't own any USB keyboards, a wireless mouse that I'm not using because the one from Logitech that I own is a lot better, and built-in graphics that... well, they aren't great. I've discovered that I am in love with USB 3.0, and am very glad that my external hard drive came equipped with it. The only problem is that two of the four USB3 ports are top-mounted behind a fairing, while all the USB2 ports are front-mounted, behind a drop-down panel that doesn't leave enough space to insert a wireless mouse thingy and still be able to close the panel. As a result, I've got the Logitech mouse thingy plugged into one of the USB3 on top, which is silly. I think I'll be able to survive, however.
It also comes with Windows 8. Fortunately, it also comes with HP's "Quick Start" program, which does most of what the missing START button does.
Click to see a better look at the QuickStart menu... and some of my music collection.
Setup
went the way it usually does, mostly waiting for Windows Update to
figure out that yes, I really DO want it to install the updates,
please. I'm a little afraid to add the graphics card... what I don't
need is a repeat of what happened LAST time. But that's dwelling on the negative. So far, I'm pleased as punch with Nori, and suspect she'll be with me for a good long time!
Nori's namesake, from Hidamari Sketch.
Say hi, everybody!
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August 31, 2013
The Deed Is Done
It has been a long time coming. The decision was not particularly hard to make, but it was difficult to pull the trigger on. Then finding the time and energy to actually do it, well, that was a feat in and of itself. But finally, finally, it was accomplished.
I have a new computer.
Unlike many, perhaps all, of you, though, I am not frantically hooking it up and getting it running. Believe me, I understand that urge, and as recently as a year or two ago, I would have been a whirlwind of activity, cables and widgets and dongles flying everywhichway in my haste and zeal to get the new gadget rockin'. No, I've still too much to get off Chiyo-chan and stored onto the external drive, and too many logins to recover from too many websites to hurry into this.
So tomorrow, the whirlwind will occur. And the world will finally meet the computer that will take over for Chiyo-chan.
I have a new computer.
Unlike many, perhaps all, of you, though, I am not frantically hooking it up and getting it running. Believe me, I understand that urge, and as recently as a year or two ago, I would have been a whirlwind of activity, cables and widgets and dongles flying everywhichway in my haste and zeal to get the new gadget rockin'. No, I've still too much to get off Chiyo-chan and stored onto the external drive, and too many logins to recover from too many websites to hurry into this.
So tomorrow, the whirlwind will occur. And the world will finally meet the computer that will take over for Chiyo-chan.
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August 29, 2013
Newest McLaren Tooned! 50
I wasn't wanting to post this right now, but repeated attempts to link it in comments has kinda forced my hand... wing... whatever.
Enjoy, won't you?
Enjoy, won't you?
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August 26, 2013
This Is The One Where Wonderduck Complains
Just giving you fair warning, is all. As far as complaining goes, it probably won't be too terrible... more like a quiet yet persistent whining sound, exactly like the one emanating from the empty apartment downstairs. Anyway. If you're not interested, here's a nice picture that has nothing to do with anything, and might I suggest choosing from a category on the sidebar?
Last week, as I'm sure you all realized, I broke the 60-hour mark with plenty of time to spare. The week before, I nearly did the same thing, though that was with six days. This week will probably be right around 60 hours... things are kinda slowing down, but there are things other than customers that take up my time, as well. As it is, I'm coming in early and staying late just to get stuff done... stuff that by rights I should be doing during the day.
Look, here's how wiped out I was. This past Saturday, I woke up at 645am, as usual, and by 11am, I had fallen asleep twice as I was browsing the web or reading a book. After waking up the second time, I gave up and went back to sleep. I woke up five hours later, watched the Quals for Belgium, did the writeup, then went back to bed. While I was intending to wake up around 1130pm to work on the next Eva 1.11 writeup (which I haven't touched for a couple of weeks), I blew through two different alarm clocks, only to wake up at 3am Sunday. After piddling about, I went back to bed and slept until 10am Sunday. And I'm still tired.
What I'm saying is, all this stuff at work may keep me away from blogginating for a bit longer. I know this is terrible news for all of you, and some may even feel depressed about it.
However, and this is big big big... a new computer will be coming into my life this week. Y'all will be introduced as soon as I actually, y'know, get it. Wish me luck the rest of the week.
Last week, as I'm sure you all realized, I broke the 60-hour mark with plenty of time to spare. The week before, I nearly did the same thing, though that was with six days. This week will probably be right around 60 hours... things are kinda slowing down, but there are things other than customers that take up my time, as well. As it is, I'm coming in early and staying late just to get stuff done... stuff that by rights I should be doing during the day.
Look, here's how wiped out I was. This past Saturday, I woke up at 645am, as usual, and by 11am, I had fallen asleep twice as I was browsing the web or reading a book. After waking up the second time, I gave up and went back to sleep. I woke up five hours later, watched the Quals for Belgium, did the writeup, then went back to bed. While I was intending to wake up around 1130pm to work on the next Eva 1.11 writeup (which I haven't touched for a couple of weeks), I blew through two different alarm clocks, only to wake up at 3am Sunday. After piddling about, I went back to bed and slept until 10am Sunday. And I'm still tired.
What I'm saying is, all this stuff at work may keep me away from blogginating for a bit longer. I know this is terrible news for all of you, and some may even feel depressed about it.
However, and this is big big big... a new computer will be coming into my life this week. Y'all will be introduced as soon as I actually, y'know, get it. Wish me luck the rest of the week.
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August 25, 2013
(Mini) F1 Update!: Belgium 2013
There were grey skies above Spa all race, but not once did it rain. That's a shame, because a bit of rain might have turned this into something of a race. THIS is your (Mini) F1Update! for the 2013 Grand Prix of Belgium!
*THE RACE: For roughly thirty seconds, it looked like we had a good race in stock. The lights went out, polesitter Shiv Hamilton made a good start and stayed in front of hard-charging Hannibal Vettel into La Source and through Eau Rouge. At the start of the Kemmel Straight, however, the Red Bull got a tow from the Mercedes, swept past, and never looked back. By the end of the first lap, even though he had to pass to take the lead and thus didn't have the entire lap to work with, Vettel had a 1.5 second lead. A few laps later, it was up to seven seconds, and it became clear that Red Bull had a ridiculously low downforce setup on the car. That's a safe gamble at, say, Monza, where it almost never rains, but at Spa? A single drop of rain would send the RB9 sliding into the Ardennes Forest.
But it didn't rain, and Vettel just ran away with the race. His tires lasted longer than anybody else, the lack of downforce didn't hurt him at all, and he had a 15 second lead at one point. It would have been bigger, but the team told him to dial it back, and for once, he listened. The final podium was Vettel, Ferrari's HWMNBN (who had a great race from 9th), and Hamilton.
*SO WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN?: Nothing good. Red Bull's weakness in the past has been the faster tracks. Their naturally high downforce levels have always meant they've been slower than most everybody in a straight line. If they can run with almost no rear wing and still have enough grip to survive in the fast sweeping turns of Spa, what are they going to be able to do at the next race at Monza?
*ALL THE REST: Kimi Raikkonen retired from the race today with brake failure. This was his first retirement since he returned to F1, some 38 races. It was also his first non-points-paying finish in 27 races. This dropped him to fourth in the Driver's Championship race, from second. He's now behind Hamilton in 3rd, and HWMNBN in 2nd. Mind you, that's 46 points behind in 2nd.
Greenpeace protested the SHELL sponsorship of the race and tried to disrupt the podium ceremony. They managed to trigger two small remote-control banners, one of which made it on-camera for a moment. If you're curious, there is footage on youtube of it; we won't link to it.
*FINALLY: We here at F1U! appreciate our readers' patience as we go through this most busy of times at work. We'll do better next time, two weeks from now at Monza! See ya then!
*THE RACE: For roughly thirty seconds, it looked like we had a good race in stock. The lights went out, polesitter Shiv Hamilton made a good start and stayed in front of hard-charging Hannibal Vettel into La Source and through Eau Rouge. At the start of the Kemmel Straight, however, the Red Bull got a tow from the Mercedes, swept past, and never looked back. By the end of the first lap, even though he had to pass to take the lead and thus didn't have the entire lap to work with, Vettel had a 1.5 second lead. A few laps later, it was up to seven seconds, and it became clear that Red Bull had a ridiculously low downforce setup on the car. That's a safe gamble at, say, Monza, where it almost never rains, but at Spa? A single drop of rain would send the RB9 sliding into the Ardennes Forest.
But it didn't rain, and Vettel just ran away with the race. His tires lasted longer than anybody else, the lack of downforce didn't hurt him at all, and he had a 15 second lead at one point. It would have been bigger, but the team told him to dial it back, and for once, he listened. The final podium was Vettel, Ferrari's HWMNBN (who had a great race from 9th), and Hamilton.
*SO WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN?: Nothing good. Red Bull's weakness in the past has been the faster tracks. Their naturally high downforce levels have always meant they've been slower than most everybody in a straight line. If they can run with almost no rear wing and still have enough grip to survive in the fast sweeping turns of Spa, what are they going to be able to do at the next race at Monza?
*ALL THE REST: Kimi Raikkonen retired from the race today with brake failure. This was his first retirement since he returned to F1, some 38 races. It was also his first non-points-paying finish in 27 races. This dropped him to fourth in the Driver's Championship race, from second. He's now behind Hamilton in 3rd, and HWMNBN in 2nd. Mind you, that's 46 points behind in 2nd.
Greenpeace protested the SHELL sponsorship of the race and tried to disrupt the podium ceremony. They managed to trigger two small remote-control banners, one of which made it on-camera for a moment. If you're curious, there is footage on youtube of it; we won't link to it.
*FINALLY: We here at F1U! appreciate our readers' patience as we go through this most busy of times at work. We'll do better next time, two weeks from now at Monza! See ya then!
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August 24, 2013
F1 Quals: Belgium 2013
The result is the same, but the gettin' there made it fun! Here's the provisional grid for the 2013 Grand Prix of Belgium:
Just as Q3 began, with nine cars on dry tires lined up at the Pit out light, it began to rain. The nine cars immediately leaped onto the track and tried to get around and complete a hot lap before the track became too wet for dry tires. They didn't succeed. It took them until roughly halfway around the four-mile-long circuit to realize it, but there was no way a flying lap on slicks was going to work. Quickly, the situation became one of pure survival as nine cars slipped, slid, fishtailed and twitched their way back to the pitlane.
Then there was Force India's Paul di Resta... the 10th car in Q3. He and FI waited for everybody else to start rolling out of the pitlane before they came out... on Inters. It was a gamble to be sure. If the track had stayed dry-ish, everybody else would set flying laps in much better conditions than he'd ever see. But if the rain kept coming, he'd be on Inters at the best possible time: that golden period where Inters were superior to slicks, but before the rain tires started to slow down a touch.
And that's exactly what happened. For nine minutes and 55 seconds of the 10 minute session, Paul di Resta sat on provisional pole. But the rain had stopped a couple of minutes earlier, and Nico Rosberg had managed somehow to pip di Resta just as time expired for the session. Disappointing, but it would still be a front-row start for Force India, nothing to sneeze at for a midpack team.
Except both Red Bulls and Shiv Hamilton had begun hot laps just before time ran out on Q3... and the track was drier still for them. Webber was in front of Vettel who was, in turn, in front of Hamilton on track. First Webber beat Rosberg's time for pole, then Vettel beat Webber's time... and then Hamilton took pole from Vettel. Suddenly, the great gamble taken by Force India and Paul di Resta, which looked like such a winner, was gone in an instant. But for a brief shining moment, Force India controlled the Formula 1 world.
A big cheer to Marussia, who for the first time ever got both of their cars into Q2! It was also the first time since 2010, when they were Virgin Racing, that one of their cars had made it out of the first round.
There's more rain predicted for Sunday's race, which means that anything could happen. If you're gonna watch one race this year, make it this one. It should be awesome... see ya then!
Just as Q3 began, with nine cars on dry tires lined up at the Pit out light, it began to rain. The nine cars immediately leaped onto the track and tried to get around and complete a hot lap before the track became too wet for dry tires. They didn't succeed. It took them until roughly halfway around the four-mile-long circuit to realize it, but there was no way a flying lap on slicks was going to work. Quickly, the situation became one of pure survival as nine cars slipped, slid, fishtailed and twitched their way back to the pitlane.
Then there was Force India's Paul di Resta... the 10th car in Q3. He and FI waited for everybody else to start rolling out of the pitlane before they came out... on Inters. It was a gamble to be sure. If the track had stayed dry-ish, everybody else would set flying laps in much better conditions than he'd ever see. But if the rain kept coming, he'd be on Inters at the best possible time: that golden period where Inters were superior to slicks, but before the rain tires started to slow down a touch.
And that's exactly what happened. For nine minutes and 55 seconds of the 10 minute session, Paul di Resta sat on provisional pole. But the rain had stopped a couple of minutes earlier, and Nico Rosberg had managed somehow to pip di Resta just as time expired for the session. Disappointing, but it would still be a front-row start for Force India, nothing to sneeze at for a midpack team.
Except both Red Bulls and Shiv Hamilton had begun hot laps just before time ran out on Q3... and the track was drier still for them. Webber was in front of Vettel who was, in turn, in front of Hamilton on track. First Webber beat Rosberg's time for pole, then Vettel beat Webber's time... and then Hamilton took pole from Vettel. Suddenly, the great gamble taken by Force India and Paul di Resta, which looked like such a winner, was gone in an instant. But for a brief shining moment, Force India controlled the Formula 1 world.
A big cheer to Marussia, who for the first time ever got both of their cars into Q2! It was also the first time since 2010, when they were Virgin Racing, that one of their cars had made it out of the first round.
There's more rain predicted for Sunday's race, which means that anything could happen. If you're gonna watch one race this year, make it this one. It should be awesome... see ya then!
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August 22, 2013
And Down The Stretch They Come...
Somewhere around 10 Thursday morning, I clocked my 40th hour in the Duck U Bookstore for the week. I didn't leave today until 8pm. You do the math.
If things break the right way, I might be able to get out on Friday in about 11 hours. That'd be the shortest day this week!
I'm so very, very tired.
If things break the right way, I might be able to get out on Friday in about 11 hours. That'd be the shortest day this week!
I'm so very, very tired.
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August 20, 2013
F1 On NBCSN: Belgium 2013
In the Walloon Region of Belgium, tucked away in a valley in the corner of the Ardennes Forest, there is a small village that has lent its name to a form of beauty salon, personal care resorts, or places devoted to overall well-being through a variety of professional
services that encourage the renewal of mind, body and spirit. That little town is also known for a very, very big racetrack. Of course, I speak of Spa, home of the Grand Prix of Belgium, which also encourages renewal of the mind, body and spirit through the heavy use of high RPMs and carbon fiber. Let's take a look at this most favorite of circuits, shall we?
Yup, still the same old Spa of the past years. I could gush over the wonder that is Eau Rouge, the daring that is Blanchimont, the glory of La Source, and in my older "F1 on SPEED!" posts, I have. Instead of regurgitating all the same things, I'm going to pause for a moment and pay tribute to the people that taught me how to be a fan of F1, then motorsports in general.
SPEED was where my adult fandom of Formula 1 began, back these... eight or nine years ago. They showed me the nuance and detail involved in a way that only baseball before it has hooked me. From F1, it was a small step to the two 24 Hours races they programmed, at Daytona and LeMans. From there, I learned about the brilliant V8Supercars series with the magnificent Mt Panorama circuit. Then onto the world of high-end car auctions, lesser Formula races, and even the NASCAR Truck Racing series, all of these were introduced to me via the Charlotte, NC-based channel. And while they never turned me into a fan of NASCAR, they sure gave it a good try.
SPEED is gone now, turned into something called "Fox Sports 1", but for me, they'll always be a part of my motorsports fandom. Thanks, guys. You'll be missed.
But now, F1 is on NBCSN, so here's the broadcast schedule for Belgium:
FRIDAY:
P2: 7a - 830a
SATURDAY:
Quals: 1130a - 1p
SUNDAY:
Grand Prix of Belgium: 630a - 9a
You'll note that Quals is out of normal time; that's because NBCSN believes that something called "Premiere League Football" is more important. I had no idea Adobe was sponsoring football teams!
At this point, I'd normally say something along the lines of "F1Update! will be all over all the coverage like a cheap suit on rice," or something like that. Not this time. There'll only be something for P2 if groundbreaking news occurs, like injuries to drivers or something like that. Hopefully, there won't be. Quals and the race should get normal coverage, though. See ya then!!!
Yup, still the same old Spa of the past years. I could gush over the wonder that is Eau Rouge, the daring that is Blanchimont, the glory of La Source, and in my older "F1 on SPEED!" posts, I have. Instead of regurgitating all the same things, I'm going to pause for a moment and pay tribute to the people that taught me how to be a fan of F1, then motorsports in general.
SPEED was where my adult fandom of Formula 1 began, back these... eight or nine years ago. They showed me the nuance and detail involved in a way that only baseball before it has hooked me. From F1, it was a small step to the two 24 Hours races they programmed, at Daytona and LeMans. From there, I learned about the brilliant V8Supercars series with the magnificent Mt Panorama circuit. Then onto the world of high-end car auctions, lesser Formula races, and even the NASCAR Truck Racing series, all of these were introduced to me via the Charlotte, NC-based channel. And while they never turned me into a fan of NASCAR, they sure gave it a good try.
SPEED is gone now, turned into something called "Fox Sports 1", but for me, they'll always be a part of my motorsports fandom. Thanks, guys. You'll be missed.
But now, F1 is on NBCSN, so here's the broadcast schedule for Belgium:
FRIDAY:
P2: 7a - 830a
SATURDAY:
Quals: 1130a - 1p
SUNDAY:
Grand Prix of Belgium: 630a - 9a
You'll note that Quals is out of normal time; that's because NBCSN believes that something called "Premiere League Football" is more important. I had no idea Adobe was sponsoring football teams!
At this point, I'd normally say something along the lines of "F1Update! will be all over all the coverage like a cheap suit on rice," or something like that. Not this time. There'll only be something for P2 if groundbreaking news occurs, like injuries to drivers or something like that. Hopefully, there won't be. Quals and the race should get normal coverage, though. See ya then!!!
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