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Attack of the Killer Bunny
Originally uploaded by DandyDanny


I uploaded new photos to my Flickr account. Check it out.

I recently braved long lines at the DMV to renew my driver's license. The lines were actually short.

I had the photo lady retake the picture after not being satisfied with the first one. She and her coworkers though me bringing a pocket mirror to check myself out was a good (and vainglorious) idea.

I think the new picture came out well, better than my Mohamed Atta-isque mugshot from five years ago.

Old and new photo provided here for your enjoyment:



For the coming few days I'll be studying for final exams. I won't be back for a while, but feel free to say hi. It helps to keep my sanity.

When I was doing my taxes in April, I counted all the expenses that are related to the car. While I was at it, I went crazy and performed an in depth analysis.

Some data:

Total distance driven: 12967.4 miles
Amount of fuel used: 470.45 gallons
(Total fuel consumed weighing in at 1312.88kg. The car itself weighed only 1021.5kg)

Car repair costs: $465.00 (damn jalopy)
Insurance: $713
Average fuel price per gallon: $2.789
Average fuel economy: 27.378 MPG
(for a car that weighed close to nothing, the fuel economy should really be higher)

Total fuel cost: $1306.45

Here we see the decline of fuel economy during midterm and finals, a high-stress time for me:


Here we see the price of fuel jump up during the year's most busy travel season:


At last, I've arrived at the cost per mile figure:

Fuel cost per mile: $0.095
Total cost per mile to operate car: $0.180
Total cost of ownership: $2484.21 (yikes!)

$2484.21, a handsome chunk of change that dragged me all over SoCal in 2006.

Also, cocks.

Over the break, it struck me that I have a Flickr account not being utilized. I picked some interesting photos from 2006 and 2007 and posted them there. Have a look see.

This particular person gave me a huge dose of 2004 flashback. Yes, pictured here is me posing next to William Hung (of the American Idol fame).



What's amazing is I ran into him at the PCC computer lab, of all places. Even more amazing is that he has managed to work himself into the American pop culture, and was spoofed and copied by many.

Very impressive, I thought.

Hello

First of all, I would like to assert to my loyal audience that I have not been murdered / abducted by extra-terrestrials / vanished into thin air / missing and had my mug shot printed on milk cartons, or otherwise incapacitated to write blog entries.

Instead, I was just lazy busy, with school and work and all.

To start out afresh, I shall talk about my current affairs. I’m rather excited about this spring semester, which started about a week ago. There are a couple of gripes, namely the parking fee increase, and the fact that I was not able to sign up for classes due to some transcript and prerequisite bull shit. However, the issues were resolved and I believe I’ve started out on the right track.

Please direct your attention to Exhibit A. In it, you can see my class schedule. There are three classes: physics, math, and a computer class, for a total of 14 units. Add my work schedule on Fridays and Saturdays, you’ll see why my eyes tend to be red and bloodshot.



While looking at my schedule, the shapes of the time blocks resembled the shape of a pistol found inside the game Night Stalkers for the Intellivision game console. A comparison can be found in Exhibit B.



There aren’t many things planned for the immediate future, but I will be having a swell time visiting Brett in March. Also, I’m working on a design for a fantabulous, kick-ass computerized jukebox. I’m also keeping an eye out for new employment opportunities.

As an endnote, it feels good to write nonsense blog entries; and as an author of an almost-abandoned blog, I thank you for wasting 3 minutes of your life reading this crap.

Toast to a prosperous and blog entry-filled year.

Ever since the loss of the Cabriolet, I have not done any major repair works on the cars I drive, instead of relegating the work to my trusty mechanic.

Last weekend the engine in the Civic was doing something funny; it hesitated under acceleration, and soon after the power dropped dramatically accompanied by sputtering and the foul smell of unburnt hydrocarbons. Knowing I need the car early next morning to attend class, I once again rolled up my sleeves to investigate the problem.

Turned out the spark plug in the number 4 cylinder has gradually unscrewed itself over time; the plug wire of that cylinder protruding from the top of the camshaft cover was almost an inch higher than the rest. I’ve never seen anything like it, and frankly I was quite amused. I drove the sputtering car, running on 3 cylinders, to the nearest Autozone, where the friendly guys loaned me a socket extension and enabled me to screw in the plug while in the parking lot. Car ran fine afterwards.



Also previously, I used to change the engine oil myself, but I find it faster (and oftentimes cheaper) if I just let my trusty mechanic do the job. I took it in a few days ago to have it done after realizing I’ve driven almost 5000 miles since the last oil change.

I also have them change the transmission fluid as my mental note tells me it’s overdue. If you’ve been a passenger in this car, you might have heard me complain about how shitty this particular 4-speed automatic transmission is: it upshifts too soon, it doesn’t downshift quickly, and the way it grinds into second gear and flares into third leaves a nasty impression. I’ve always thought a catastrophic transmission failure is imminent, so I never did look into the matter, instead quietly saving up my money for a replacement unit or a replacement car.



After the fluids were changed, I asked the trusty mechanic about the early upshift problem. He gave me a dirty smirk (as if I’m about to empty half of my savings into repairs, which would be true if the transmission does indeed go out), and propped the hood open. I asked where the throttle valve cable was, and he pointed me to an adjustable linkage, well hidden from view. The link was overly loose, and he asked me to slightly tighten the nut.

After the fluid change and linkage adjustment, the previously-shitty, grinding and slipping transmission seemed to have been given a new lease on life: the upshifts are firmer, more inline with the engine’s torque range, and wide-open-throttle downshifts are snappier. Best of all, the grinding and slipping symptoms are now completely gone.

The car doesn’t feel like an old cow anymore, and needless to say I’m quite happy about it. The transmission in the Honda still feels jerky and primitive compared to the silky-smooth GM Hydramatic 4T60 in the Caddy, but I suppose I can live with it for now, until the car explodes and forcing me to search for a replacement (with stick shift, of course).

I’m going to send out holiday greeting cards this year.

I have a small list of special people who will receive a real, bona fide flat piece of what used to be a tree (or whatever material I choose to make the card with, should I become adventurous and experiment with new materials).

If you read this, you are probably one of those special people, and I’d like to send you a card. Please give me your mailing address and I’ll do my best to mail them out on-time.

Simply notify me by the following methods:


Toodles!

I’m dressing up as Kim Jong-Il this Halloween.



This is the first time I put thought and efforts imitating someone else, and I seek to do it convincingly. To do this, I did some research on him (a horrible person, really) and collected various pictures of him.

Since Kim Jong-Il does not appear on public media here in the States, I’ll be imitating his many spoofs, particularly from Team America: World Police, with bits and pieces from Bobby Lee’s Mad TV skits.

I got the jacket and pants from Aaardvarks, a vintage clothing store in Pasadena for a handsome low price. To achieve that beer-belly look, I will stuff a pillow under the jacket. I borrowed the essential gold-framed sunglasses from Raymond to complete the package. He even offered to paint liver spots so I can pass more convincingly as a 60-something man.

There are two events where I’ll be appearing as Kim Jong-Il:

• The Halloween party at Art Center on Saturday, October 28


• West Hollywood Halloween Carnival on Tuesday, October 31 (supposedly the largest Halloween street party in the United States)

I will remember to take lots of pictures; can’t wait!