Today I was privy to a neat show. I’ll let the video speak for itself.
Saving money or just having fun?
March 28th, 2011Today I fired up the motorcycle to go for a ride. Why not, it’s only -1 outside and the roads are bare and dry, if not covered in sand and crap from all winter they could be considered pristine! My steed is a 1984 Honda Elite 150. Yup just like the ones from MTV in the 80′s 
The ugly side of bike ownership in Ottawa is that you have to pre-pay the insurance for the entire year yet they know you won’t be riding in January. This is why you’ll see nut jobs like me, riding in minus 1 in March! Read the rest of this entry »
Make your own kobo sleeve for free
March 24th, 2011I recently received a kobo as a gift from my wife for being the best husband evar. She thought it would be better to carry around a slim and excellent ebook reader than it would to carry the equivalent number of real books. I knew I married a smart one. Little did she know that I was the crafty one.
I didn’t like the thought of a $39 sleeve to protect the kobo unit, one made of non renewable plastics and just not befitting of the whole green movement. I knew there had to be something as good for much less money. I found it in the bag drawer at home. It was a bag given out at the local urban outfitters. The bag is made of a soft fabric, almost like that of an ebook sleeve liner.
Crash! Bang! Gone.
January 27th, 2011
I guess I was a bit cocky thinking that I could teach my daughter to drive to the highest possible standard. She did learn quickly and she did pass all of her tests. She handles a car with precision and doesn’t get lost as long as the GPS is powered. She went to driving school and passed as well but she didn’t look properly when she took a left turn on a solid green light.
The First 30 Seconds
December 7th, 2010I first published this article in January of 2008. I believe with the cold upon us again, it was fitting to re-post!
The majority of engine wear occurs during the start up phase while the oil has not had a chance to come up to pressure. This is one of the main reasons that cold engines are harder to start than warm ones (Everything is colder and “slower”) however there seems to be a myth propagating about leaving one’s car to “Warm Up” idling away in their driveway. Even worse are the horrors of remote car starters. You know how “convenient” they are, you simply press a button from within your warm home and your car magically comes to life. It will idle away and slowly begin to warm up in your driveway. It sounds like nirvana on the brochure but in reality I firmly believe remote starters to be one of the worst possible accessories any car can have installed. Think about this for a moment.
- An idling car gets 0 MPG (or for us Canadians that would be “Infinity”L/100KM)
- A modern car needs only 30 seconds or so of “warm up” time even in the coldest of temperatures if driven carefully for the first few kms.
- A car started remotely is often not monitored, could be damaging itself and even could be running down the road!
Watching your own airplane landing
December 6th, 2010I’d like to say this is a video of Rica’s first landing but it’s not. She was at the controls for the entire flight but our cheif flight instructor flew this landing. There was a strong crosswind but he nailed it!
Soon Rica will be the one flying the landings, she just doesn’t know it yet
