Mars in Jiggyvision. Also see my own “jiggyvision” GIF of Amy.
Cinematic Purgatory
Chicago to Hong Kong. 15 hour flight.
“Ladies and gentlemen, our next inflight movie will be Pirates of the Carribean.”
Six days later. Hong Kong to San Francisco. 12 hour flight.
“Ladies and gentlemen, our originally scheduled movie, Seabiscuit, is not available. Instead we will be showing Pirates of the Carribean.”
One day later. San Francisco to Washington, DC. 6 hour flight.
“Good afternoon. Today’s inflight movie will be Pirates of the Carribean.”
I think I have the script of the movie almost down pat, matey. But next time United Airlines tries to show me that movie, I will have to assert my right to parlay.
Spirit on Mars
Mars rover Spirit has touched down, bounced around, landed right side up, and should now be deflating its airbags. Live updates from mission control here. (Link via /.)
Beagle 2, on the other hand, remains incommunicado. High-tech action and adventure, just 10 light minutes away.
Update: Scientists are really happy about the landing site, and the first low-resolution grayscale photos sent back from the probe’s Navcam are awesome. Wait till the full-resolution Panoramic Camera kicks in: then we’ll be getting even better photos from the red planet, and the Microscopic Imager might just settle the life question once and for all. (Wouldn’t count on it, though. These are geological rovers, not biological labs.)
Why I Like Window Seats
Since I’m such a big fan of planes and air travel, I present you with my Views from Plane Windows. Note that in the photo above, the dark area rising from the horizon is not a cloud: it’s Earth’s own shadow. Also look for the contrails from another plane passing directly below.
Sicklepix
Weird distortion effects from a digital camera. (Link via Glenn Reynolds.) After sifting through the incredibly unnavigable discussion thread below the pictures, I concur with the assessment that this is the result of line scanning. I got a similar effect — though far less pronounced — with my Palm Zire71 on the way to Wisconsin. Note the photo of the tollbooth: as the camera took that split-second to generate an image from individually scanned lines, different parts of the scene had moved to the right, so that the finished image slants crazily, rather than blurring as a traditional photograph would.
Unseasonable
You don’t get many sunny 70°F days right in the middle of winter in DC, so when one does come, it’s a sin not to be outside. So, I went skating down the Mall, from the Capitol all the way to the Lincoln Memorial, then back. Whew. I suppose I should really get that photolog back up and running, because I intended it for days like this.
Meanwhile, the redesign continues in a secret, undisclosed location. I work better starting from a tabula rasa, and the marks are being scrawled onto it ever so carefully. Semantics and standards are such fun.
Drained
On an unusually warm January day in Washington, DC, the Reflecting Pool is dry, and people walk or skate freely across it.
Other photos from a skate around DC today:
Photo taken with a Palm Zire 71.
Psalm for a Bad Day
I’m having one of those days. Do you ever get those days, where everything seems to be spilling, leaking, staining, crashing, breaking, or getting stuck? I came home from the airport last night to cat poop in the bathtub, a houseplant mutilated by said cat, steam leaking from the radiator, a trash can crawling with fruit fly larvae, a blocked magenta ink nozzle in my printer, and a folded subway fare card which sticks in the turnstile card slots. All with fever and a stuffy head to top it off.
But I know that tomorrow will be better. “To this I will appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High.”
Happy 2004, everyone. Big site redesign coming soon.
Morning Congee
Hong Kong Airport again. I am eating pork-and-century-egg congee as I sit by the window at the terminal junction, watching planes on the tarmac and tapping into the wireless internet leaking out of the VIP lounge.
Off the Grid
Except for the occasional text message, I’ve been “off the grid” while travelling around the probinsya: Santa Cruz, Majayjay, Bay (“Ba-ee”), and Calamba. Making the most of my week here, reconnecting with the family, eating lots of daing and balut and sinigang and bagoong and McDo.
Right now I’m in Makati, about to check out the new Greenbelt Mall and buy some clothes. (Last time I was there, it was this.)
Flight back to DC tomorrow; another 24 hours in the air and at the airports. I may stay offline for a bit longer after that. Happy 2004 till then.