Author Archive for risu

Page 47 of 95

Back in the Saddle Again

Published on September 28, 2009 in bike by risu. Closed

Wow – it’s been a month-and-a-half since I last rode my bike! I got home in time for a quick after work ride today. It was a bit dark as Summer has given way to Autumn, but my health has been good since I got back from Kyoto, and the artwork for Monster Mash was turned in, so I was hankering for some riding time. I passed on a trail ride with Ckucke and Root yesterday since I was still feeling burnt out from working on my paintings from Friday night straight through Saturday afternoon. The wind was strong when I started out, but after almost an hour of riding, it had subsided. Riding is fun.

D = 12.05 km (7.49-miles), Vavr = 16.4 km/h (10.2-mph), Vmax = 35.6 km/h (22.1-mph), T = 44-minutes

Future Caveman

Published on September 28, 2009 in car, rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

The first generation Toyota Highlander hybrid had LED taillight clusters and incandescent bulbs in the high-mount brake light.  The non-hybrid was the opposite.  The current Tacoma pickup has the same LED/incandescent thing going on.  WTF?!

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H and h

Published on September 28, 2009 in car, rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

Saw a paper-plated Lexus HS-250h yesterday.  Based on the JDM Avensis platform like the Scion tC, this entry-luxury sedan is slightly larger than a Toyota Corolla, beating out the next nearest luxury competitor, the Civic-based Canadian-market-only Acura CSX.  I don’t have any gripes with the design (it looks great for a sedan), or the technology (Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive is the benchmark), or the market segment (this has been empty since the Infinity G20 disappeared): It’s the labeling.  The HS is a hybrid-only vehicle, hence the “H”.  Does it really need the “h” after the 250 to drum it into out heads that it  is a hybrid?  If they intended to keep the little h to make it fall in line with all the other hybrid models nomenclature wise, they should have chosen a different series name.

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Surf Box

Published on September 28, 2009 in car, rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

Saw the 2010 Toyota 4Runner today.  I guess it is possible to make it uglier than the previous generation!  It’s as unatractively boxy as the latest Honda Pilot.  They have carried through the very Korean-car-looking nameplate over the rear number plate like the new Highlander, and borrowed the “crab-eye” taillights from the FJ Cruiser.  This example was without a rear wiper – I guess that’s where they are cutting costs on the base models now, just like on the base Matrix.

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Lipstick on a Pig

Published on September 28, 2009 in car, rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

Finally saw a Hyundai Genesis sedan last week.  Up until now, I’ve only seen it on Korean dramas and in print ads.  Hyundai is trying to place this car amongst similarly sized upmarket rear-wheel-drive premium sedans, but after seeing a silver example of this vehicle, my impression is, “it’s big, but it’s still a Hyundai”.  The paint finish is not at the premium level, nor is the chrome trim.  Design-wise, there are a lot of unresolved lines and curves like where the rear windscreen meets the adjacent metal, and the edge of the boot lid and the associated panel lines.  I’m still waiting for the Federal Government to slap them with dumping for selling this car for $25K USD less than what it costs on the KDM.

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Of Course I’m Going Straight – I’m In the Left Lane, Right?

Published on September 24, 2009 in car, rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

Nice to see all the krappy drivers back in Hawaii.  On my way home on the day I got back from Japan, I was in the center-right lane of Alapai by the police station turning onto Beretania when a maroon Camry went speeding by in the center-left lane and went straight up Alapai!  Today, I was going down Lagoon in the second left lane to turn left onto Nimitz.  There was a big-ass Lexus tailgating me all the way down from Tripler, constantly poking her nose out into the turning lane so she could try seeing around me.  At the intersection when I got into the right of the two turning lanes, she went into the far left lane.  As I turned left onto Nimitz, I could see her flash by in back of me going straight down Lagoon Drive diagonally across two lanes!  Good job poeple!

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Back from Kamigata

Published on September 22, 2009 in Travel by risu. Closed

 Got back in just after 10 this morning.  Ckucke picked me up from the airport and gave me a lift in to work.  I did manage to sleep on the plane ride back from KIX since it was the same movies as on the outbound flight, and I had already watched everything interesting then.  There were lots of open seats on the way back, but not as much as on the way out – I had a row to myself as did almost everybody else!  The HNL-KIX food was the same “Kalua Pork Curry/Oyster (sauce) Chicken” that they have had catered in Hawaii for a while.  The KIX-HNL fare was better with an omurice and wonderful roll cake, but no other choice.  I only got offered the snack bag once on the outgoing flight, whereas they used to push the stuff like it was going out of style at every possible opportunity before.  I was unable to get Suntory Malts Premium either way, having to settle for Asahi outbound and Yebisu inbound.  The outbound snack is the same ham and cheese roll, but the inbound snack is now a sweet roll and a small anpan, which is superior to the weird Danish and hideous vegetable/fruit juice that they used to have.

Heian-Kyou he!

Published on September 15, 2009 in Culture and Travel by risu. Closed

I think the worst is over with the bronchitis after getting a different antibiotic.  That’s over a month I’ve been out of action and off the bike with this!  The lung tissues are still sensitive, so any minor irritation or reaction brings the cough back – I’m sure this will persist for a while like usual.  Tomorrow I’m headed to Kyoto for some historical exploration, so I hope I survive this trip without too much trouble…  It’s a short trip, so I’m not going to bother taking the laptop with me, and I don’t know if I’ll find a workstation at the hotel, so I’ll see y’all when I get back.

Bad Movies

Published on September 14, 2009 in rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

Cooped up at home working on artwork for an upcoming show, I was subjected to two bad “straight to TV” films shot at Kualoa Ranch on SyFy – Heatstroke with Danica McKellar and Aztec Rex (aka Tyrannosaurus Azteca) with Dichen Lachman. Both were bad digital dinosaur/monster films, the latter having the most laughable scenic props, including an Aztec sacrificial altar obviously made of plywood with rocks painted on!

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Mangle-Munch Punjis of Death

Published on September 3, 2009 in rant and SUAR by risu. Closed

The State has been using a tractor with a side-mounted arm with a PTO or hydraulically driven cutter to “groom” the sides of the Like Like Highway instead of using the normal compliment of workers with appropriate cutting tools. The result is a section from ground level up to about 3 meters that is covered with jagged, broken branches and splintered knee-high stumps. Anyone unlucky enough to encounter these would be instantly impaled. Good job!

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