You know what’s happening right? I’m twittering too much. It’s why my pledge of a post / week has gone unrealized.
I’m spending all my time posting tweets and not forming complete blog posts.
Also it doesn’t help that I have zero time for Raishad. See, I have 3 weeks to implement a “smart” pedometer using SunSpots. It’s doable.
Only because I’m awesome.
Mostly.
What other College of Engineering would send you a birthday card in the mail?
UTA College of Engineering Birthday Card
Ike is all over the news. And in every article, the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 is mentioned. And in the reference, they all mention the same set of facts - Galveston was wealthy; the city was only 9ft above sea level at the highest; Isaac Cline tried to warn everyone, but they didn’t listen or it was too late. It’s boring. Like an encyclopedia entry. Wouldn’t it be exciting to read what the people in the 1900s would have to say about that hurricane?
Luckily, The Times has made their entire archive available online, from 1785-1985.
Things Learned
From July 22nd - August 1st I was on vacation. I took a plane and landed in Trinidad.
Honestly, I was a little scared. It’d been 12 years since I was last in Trinidad. I can say this with certainty because the last time I was in Trinidad, Joe’s Apartment came out. I wanted to see it. But by the time I got back, it wasn’t in theatres anymore. A similar thing happened this time as well with The X-Files 2. But luckily I caught that before it disappeared. So yea, 12 years. It’s a long time.
But you know, it was a pretty good trip.
On Wednesday, I went with my uncle to sell gas (LPG). I used to like going with him when I was tiny (<5yrs). Everyone in Trinidad uses gas for cooking. I didn’t see one electrical stove while I was there.
The next day I went to the Caura River for a dip. The water was cold. But that’s what you get when you go up in the mountains. Then in the evening, some relatives had a BBQ.
On Friday, I saw Hancock at MovieTown. MovieTown is an outdoor mall with the center piece being a movie theatre. It was sort of like Southlake, but not so big, and instead of the Apple Store, you get Ruby Tuesday, Long John Silvers, T.G.I.F, Burger King, and some local stores.
Saturday was slow. On Saturday Evening, I went to a prayers.
Sunday afternoon, we headed to the beach at Manzanilla. I really enjoyed Manzanilla. It was raining when we arrived, and the water was perfect. Also, I had a shark and bake (pronounced shark and bake). Long wouldn’t shut up about it since he was that Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern that focused on Trinidad. So I had to try it. It was pretty good.
Monday was spent visiting family.
Tuesday and Wednesday, we were back at the beach. This time it was Mayaro. If I were comparing beach to beach, I would pick Manzanilla. The current was too strong at Mayaro, and the ocean floor wasn’t nice. We stayed at a beach house that had A/C, which was refreshing. Not a lot of houses in Trindad have A/C. This is because the climate is tropical and mild. And usually you have a breeze. So, fans are big. Also at the beach house, I found out I’m pretty decent at the Trinidad variant of rummy.
On Thursday we went to Trincity Mall. This was to stock up on fudge and sugar cake. Friday was the flight back, and I had many orders to fulfill.
Looking back at it, taking it all in, I really enjoyed myself. It was just the right length. Not so long where I got bored of Trinidad/missed Texas, and not so short where I didn’t feel like I got to do anything. The doing nothing/doing stuff ratio was prefect. Plus, I didn’t use a computer at all. I didn’t drive either. But that was more a survival thing. I couldn’t drive in Trindad. They’re too aggressive, and the streets are too narrow.
I was in Trinidad for the past 2 weeks. I’ll probably do a post sometime about the actual trip, but for now here’s the grocery bill from the time I was at the beach house.
The exchange rate is about 1 USD = 6 TTD (1 USD = 6.00200 TTD)
My cousin said she could get a job in the mall starting with the minimum pay being at least 9 TTD / hr.
A Large Pizza from Mario’s Pizza will run you 80 TTD.
So the exchange rate holds for most goods, but you aren’t being paid by the same amount. So if you’re working minimum wage, it’ll take you 9 hours to buy that pizza.
Here’s a tip
At the intersection of I-20 & Great Southwest, gas is amazingly cheap. $3.87 cheap. I’m not sure how it’s possible. But it’s been that way for the past week. I suggest if you’re in the area, take advantage of the situation.
Speaking of gas, I found more evidence that the Toyota engineers’ who designed the RAV4 made a pact with the devil. A co-worker recently purchased a Lexus IS250. That comes with a 2.5L V6 making 204hp mated to a 6 speed transmission. For a car lacking a hatch, it’s very nice. The EPA gives the IS250 21/29. In real life, said co-worker mentions that she gets 24-27mpg. That’s what my RAV4 gets!
Let’s go to the tape
| RAV4 | IS250 | |
|---|---|---|
| Engine | 3.5L V6 | 2.5L V6 |
| HP | 269HP | 204HP |
| Transmission | 5sp | 6sp |
| Weight | 3549 lbs. | 3435 lbs. |
| Cargo Capacity | 73 cu. ft. | 13 cu. ft. |
| EPA MPG | 19/27 MPG | 21/29 MPG |
| Actual MPG | 24/27 MPG | 24/27 MPG |
Bigger Engine, More Power, Heavier, Holds More Crap - and stills gets comparable mileage.
It has to be magic!I would travel to to London on Sunday November 16 to see
Sun 16 November - TMWRNJ Reunion Special - Many of the cast of the cult BBC 2 show get together for the first time on stage for almost 10 years. Please be aware that most of these people will be doing their current acts rather than material or characters from the show - including Stewart Lee, Richard Thomas, Paul Putner, Emma Kennedy and Trevor Lock. Hopefully Kevin Eldon will also show up, though he hasn’t got back to me yet. The evening will be headlined by a short 10 minute set from defunct double act LEE AND HERRING. This is the kind of gig that only comes along once in a blue moon and will sell out first, so BOOK NOW!
As I’ve mentioned many times before, I love Stewart Lee and I love Richard Herring, and I especially love Lee and Herring together.
Twitter: raishad
