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Lunch With George!
May 3, 2002 - Quizno's
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Agenda
Sailing Update
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| Alerion Express 28 |
Meanwhile, George decided to take a chance and contact the harbor manager where he and Toni took lessons on a J in San Francisco (read about it in the April 18th Lunch Notes). He inquired to see whether the boat they sailed on (the Blue J) was for sale. It turns out that it just might be! George hopes to hear back early next week.
George also sent me a photograph of his favorite boat ever (I thought the J/24 was his favorite-- but I guess it is the favorite one he could actually own), the Alerion Express 28. It sure is pretty!
Show And Tell
Since I gave away my only copy of Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air in the last LWG Contest, I visited Amazon to get another. To my surprise, there is an illustrated edition, called Into Thin Air, The Illustrated Edition. Naturally, I had to have it! It is out of print, but luckily Amazon has relationships with lots of booksellers who still have it. I got my copy from Powell Books (although I still bought it through Amazon).
For just a few dollars more, I got received a coffee table book loaded with over 250 black and white photos. They really make a difference! Most of the photos were taken by Krakauer during the 1996 expedition.
I was initially concerned about the black and white photographs, but George agrees that my fears were unfounded. The pictures do not disappoint! I guess black and white are about all you see up there, anyway.
George's show-and-tell items were his climbing gear! He has a great harness, climbing shoes (he says they hurt), several caribiners and a big ol' rope. He bought them from a friend after he bought new gear. I only wish I had taken a picture! I'll see about getting a photo of George's gear... while he's using it.
Climbing Update
Undaunted by the recent demise of the Arizona Climbing Center, I continued
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| The "Totem" at PRG |
It looks like a great opportunity to get started! They bought the building they're in about two years ago, and took several months to build the climbing walls from scratch. They're 30 feet high, and provide routes for every skill level.
It's not terribly expensive, either. For $15, you can climb! That includes a $10 day pass, $5 rental for harness and shoes, and first-time climbers must take a short class and receive hands-on training from an instructor.
According to their website, they also offer more in-depth courses for those who wish to enhance thier climbing skills. As soon as they finish building a special leading area, they plan to offer a course in leading (that means taking the "sharp end of the rope" and being the first one up a rock).
George and I have made the appointment-- we're going next Monday evening. If I survive, I'll have a detailed report next week!
George Borrows My XML Book
George is tackling some problems which seem to be a good application for XML, and as a result has been doing some research to learn more about it. When I still worked at Amex, I also needed to know about XML, so I bought a book aptly named for my situation: XML For Dummies! I learned quite a bit, all from reading this book. I hope it helps George as much as it did me.
RPR Test Drive
After borrowing George's RPR (Radio Program Recorder) for a couple of weeks, I've decided it's not for me. Why not? Well, most of the radio programming to which I listen is on FM-- usually NPR. Unfortunately, the small transistor radio that is part of the RPR has trouble getting a clear signal for KJZZ, at least in the North valley where I work. The first time I used the RPR, I thought I had made some mistake in its setup, since I just got a recording of what I call "audio snow," or static. After the second time, I realized it was just the poor signal.
I had no problem getting it to work for AM stations, but I don't really have a need to record AM and listen to it later. I could probably get a better FM signal elsewhere in town, but that wouldn't be very convenient since the programs in which I'm interested happen while I'm at work, and my car tends to be there when I'm there.
I'm not bashing the RPR-- it's a cool synthesis of simple technologies that I'm sure works for people in different locations who listen to different stations than I do. It just doesn't seem that it would work for me. George-- thanks for letting me "Try before I buy"!
Copyright © 2002, Paul Wren. All rights reserved.