why audi ? why?

I like the supercharged V6 on the B8 S4, ~ same power but 25 mpg sounds great, but..
no more S4 avant for the US? :(

v8 addiction

since Audi/VW in their infinite corporate wisdom decided to only give the US the 2.0T A4 Avant in *auto only*, I am going to look to BMW for my V8 addiction, no need for quattro down here, rear wheel drive will be a bit more fun. It would still be nice to hold onto my S4 wagon. come on IPO..

ike

nothing here. A little wind, very humid. Not that much.

catching up on shows new to me

I dont have cable, and I dont plan on getting it anytime soon. If I hear about a great show, I'll rent it or download it these days. Right now, I am catching up on "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia",based on my sister Thea's recommendation, which I find to be the most hilarious show since Arrested Development.

a scarf

okay, Rapha has officially jumped the shark. They should just stick to jerseys.

Mmj

Mmj
Originally uploaded by tylernol

one of the best concerts I have ever been to. Although I have mixed feeling about their most recent album, they are still brilliant live. The sound was perfect, the energy was extremely high, and maintained throughout their 3 hour set. They did not play any new songs until at least 4-5 songs into their opening song, and when they did, the songs fit perfectly, and seemed more refined than their album versions. They played songs off all of their albums, Tennessee Fire and At Dawn had light representation, maybe 1 or 2 songs from those, the majority of songs were from "It Moves", "Z" , and "Evil Urges". One of the encore songs was "Cobra" from the EP Chocolate and Ice, which is 24 minutes on the EP. They cut it back a bit, but it was still probably 12 minutes and still epic.

dirt dirby

coming soon. Is it possible to drop 10 lbs in two weeks? probably not. Good experience though. I need to fix up my cross bike, for one thing get some knobby tires for it rather than the semi-slicks I have been running on it for the past two years. And perhaps an upgrade to paul touring brakes would be in order , my avid's dont have much stopping power.

ka-ching

ka-ching
Originally uploaded by tylernol

got a wind shell, short sleeve shirt, shorts, and pants from Nau right before they closed down their clearance sale. I am very impressed with the fit and quality, and the style is top-notch, not so impressed with the made-in-china on a few pieces. But I am glad they are being resurrected by Horny Toad.

imminent

August 6, 2008 05:21:00 AM AUSTIN TX US Out for delivery
August 5, 2008 11:46:00 PM AUSTIN TX US Arrival Scan
August 5, 2008 08:06:00 PM MESQUITE TX US Departure Scan
August 5, 2008 03:02:00 AM MESQUITE TX US Arrival Scan
August 1, 2008 01:58:00 AM SAN PABLO CA US Departure Scan
July 31, 2008 11:53:00 PM SAN PABLO CA US Arrival Scan
July 31, 2008 08:01:00 PM SPARKS NV US Departure Scan
July 31, 2008 03:18:45 PM US Shipment has left seller facility and is in transit
July 31, 2008 02:01:00 PM SPARKS NV US Shipment received by carrier

new website

here

the 24-70 is here...

24-70
Originally uploaded by tylernol

but will just be sitting around until the D700 arrives. It just shipped and is due in one week.

first lens is ...

probably going to be the 24-70 f/2.8 lens, it arrives today. Amazon dropped the ball on the 50 f/1.4 and it is now on backorder , so I cancelled it, perhaps Precision Camera has it in stock. And supposedly Amazon is shipping my D700 today. Excellent!

34x19 @ Walnut Creek in 103 degree weather

that was 18 miles of pain. I cant believe I have lost so much strength in my legs for singlespeeding -- too much riding geared road bikes has led to my downfall. I was super-fast a few years back, but that was when I was only riding essentially two bikes -- my singlespeed for mountain biking, and my cross bike for the urban assaults and road rides. I think I could get up halfway the Hill of Life in 34x18. Not going even try it right now.

Hellboy 2..

saw it at the 10:40 screening at Alamo Drafthouse S. Lamar. I was pretty excited to see it, having been a fan of the first Hellboy movie, Mike Mignola's comic, and Del Tora. I left very disappointed -- it still had great Del Tora/Mignola character designs, especially the tree elemental, but it was a bit too heavy on the trite melodramatic soap-opera cheese and did not work for me.

Dr. Horrible

great!

first lens en-route

The 50 mm lens is shipping before the camera body, hopefully the camera body will ship next week and I should be all set. I think I will probably stick with this as my single lens for a few months ,renting other lenses until I figure out what I want next. It is super-fast, and will be great for all sorts of subjects, and not weigh a ton like the zooms.

I was just climbing Lost Creek and *CRACK*

I was just climbing Lost Creek and *CRACK*
Originally uploaded by tylernol

climbing the super-steep (~ 45 degree? ) climb out of Lost Creek up to Bee Caves, I stood up and started cranking as hard as I could and then I heard a loud "CRACCKKK" and felt my left foot smash into the ground. It was amusing trying to ride back with only one foot clipped in. I think I am done with Time road pedals ...I still like the off-road XS pedals but I am going to give Shimano Ultegra pedals a shot -- they have a stainless steel platform, not fucking $150 carbon/plastic.

return of the tii?

lightweight, 2.0 liter 4-banger turbo, rear-wheel drive, manual gearbox? If BMW brings it, I'll buy it, and keep my Audi around several more years.

midlife

classic song.

nikon

good weather sealing, full-frame, 5 fps, high ISO sensitivity, 51 focus point autofocus. That Nikon restructuring is paying off.
I'll take it.