Sis was here

My 5'11" baby sister was in town last week. -- I am obviously the smart one in the family. As usual when she shows up anywhere, it was raining cats and dogs. IMO, she actually caused the worst flooding in Las Vegas in the 20th century when she and I took a trip there in 1999. 

Great times were had, and she did drink less than the pictures suggest, but as a good German, 5 craft beers on the first night are about par for the course. 

The pics are from SF, Hwy 1, Carmel, Pebble Beach, Sacramento, and Placerville (the more PR name of Hangtown, CA) 

Here Be Hippies

Weird, up to now, I've never taken pictures in Bolinas, the self-proclaimed socially-acknowledged nature loving town. Yep, it's the original home town of the hippie surf bum. It's an amazingly beautiful place, though, and the vegetarian food is great.

Funnily, it's about a 50 foot channel away from a gated community on the spit in Stinson Beach, one of the most expensive places on the Pacific. 

Even the dogs are stoned.

God my life is boring

I am now rating TV shows. Anyway, the best shows currently on TV are:

1. Top Gear (see below). The show yesterday really put it over the top. Buy some $1000 cars from Miami drug dealers, write Man Love Rocks on them in pink and drive them through Alabama. -- 25 minutes into the show, the cameramen have to hide Iraq-style when the cars get stoned at a Alabama gas station. Oh, and they get sued by a woman who they donated the Camaro to.
2. Bizarre Foods. Nice travel show and the only one that made me throw up. Thanks for the live frog and the rank meat breakfast.
3. Bones. Not as good as last year, but still a hoot.
4. LA Ink--home of the most stoned and tatted chicks on tube. As well as quality dialog like: "Uh Dude, I was like "Uh Dude"." 
5. ANTM and Top Chef. I have to rank them together because I can't make it through a full episode of either, but since they are on at the same time, rapid flicking back and forth is highly entertaining. Tyra rulz as bitch from hell.

Two other shows I watch, but only when I happen upon them are Bionic Woman (purely for the involuntary comedic value, although it only misses so-bad-it's-good by a hair) and Weeds (I LOVE LOVE LOVE Marie-Louise Parker, but the writing has really taken a header off a cliff some time last year).

Please FCC, bring a-la-carte cable, I only need 5 channels.

Top Gear

If you have extended cable, watch it.

If you have a DVR, tape it.

If you can get to YouTube, watch the clips.

Seriously, it's the best show on television. If you only count shows where all protagonists are completely, utterly, certifiably bonkers, stone drunk, coked up to the eyeballs--and proud of it. Imagine The Young Ones hosting a car show.

Hi, I'm Lars and I love my iPhone

I don't think I am in need to join the IA yet, but the iPhone was the best tech buy this year (closely followed by the flat screen I bought for my birthday).

• It keeps me from getting bored--web browsing anywhere, any time
• It's the first gadget ever that had 20 people and counting walk up to ask me about it
• It got me a table and excellent service at Slanted Door (you have to live in SF to understand how impossible it is to even get a reservation)
• It makes me not mind going to a restaurant on my own--I can browse the web or do email while I wait
• Raomi is awesome, especially if you take a date home and open the door to a play list
• Munitime is awesomer (for the non-SF people, Muni has perfected the random schedule)
• Being able to check opening hours of a gold mine from a state park is awesomest. 
• Visual Voicemail is worth the price of admission alone: delete voicemails without having to listen ever
• It let me leech WiFi of the Australian Federal Police at Sydney International
• It let me survive the SFO-SYD-SFO flight with 10 episodes of Bones
• It let me Skype my family from any hotspot in Oz
• It takes war driving to a whole new level
• There are these two companies called Linksys and Default that offer free WiFi all over the place
• It shows me real time traffic on the 80s
• I can blog from the bleachers--and check all NCAA scores at Pyramid Ale
• "Hey, do you want to see 2000 vacation pictures?" gets rid of the most obnoxious opposite
• I only found one place in NorCal where I couldn't get to the web
• And last but not least, my company picks up the tab

Three wishes

1. Unlocked SIM (thanks hackers)
2. 3.5G
3. GPS

Cindy has too much time....

Anyway, to give her something to do while she visits a friend she hasn't seen in years. 

1. Do you have a tattoo?
2. How old are you?
3. Are you single or taken?
4. Fish?
5. Do you dream in color?
6. Ever seen a corpse?
7. Hipsters or Hillbillies?
8. How did we meet?
9. What’s your philosophy on life and death?
10. If you could do anything with me, and have no one know, what would it be?
11. Do you trust the police?
12. Do you like musicals?
13. What is your fondest memory of me?
14. If you could change anything about yourself what would it be?
15. Would you cheat?
16. What are you wearing?
17. Have you ever peed in a pool?
18. Would you hide evidence for me if I asked you to?
19. If I only had one day to live, what would we do together?
20. Which do you prefer - short or long hair?
21. What’s your favorite day of the week?
22. What’s your favorite color?
23. If you could bring back anyone that has passed, who would it be?
24. Tell me one interesting/odd fact about you?
25. What was your first impression of me?
26. Have you ever done drugs?
27. If we were locked in an elevator together, what would you want to discuss?
28. What is your favorite meal to have when you’re on a date?
29. If there is any habit you have that you could change - what is it?
30. Will you post this so I can fill it out for you?

P.S. My answers are here