I took a week off work after new year and decided to go for a drive to South Australia (~1600km away) – with thunderstorms from cyclone Isobel chasing me across the border, and still waiting for me on the way back. But it was still a fun trip. I’ll do it again though, in better weather. My route was Perth -> Kalgoorlie -> Eucla -> Over the border -> Norseman -> Esperance -> Kalgoorlie -> Perth. Mostly using the Eyre Highway. With lots of overnight stops at roadhouses, and also a bit of camping out, which was the highlight. Especially a stay near a lake about 80km east of Norseman.
Archive for transport
How to crash an in-flight entertainment system
How to crash an in-flight entertainment system
I was just sent this link, today, as I test my GUI for these very same issues.
ExxonMobil letter – part two
I’ve gotten a reply to my letter which I sent to ExxonMobil recently, and posted here on the 16th of October. The Public Affairs Manager, Samantha Potts, went through it point by point and expressed ExxonMobil’s position on each. I will give them credit here, as my expectation was no response at all, or a form letter response. (Though as GP pointed out, it merely says that they are well-organised and skilled at PR.)
Having said that, the reply dodges issues. For example, she writes:
However, it is important to point out that it is both false and misleading to suggest, as the Enough Rope program and the Royal Society have done, that in providing financial support to such organisations [she is referring to the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), in this case], ExxonMobil controls their views and messages.
While it may be true that ExxonMobil does not control the views and messages of organisations that it funds or is a client of, it surely has some influence over those views and messages. And it can choose to end its relationship with them, citing their views and messages as a reason for this.
She points out that ExxonMobil has not funded CEI in 2006, but there is no indication that this won’t change again next year. Also the reply suggests that ExxonMobil funded them only in 2005, whereas the reality is that they had been funding them for several years.
I’ve scanned and linked the reply here. I will probably reply to this – feel free to leave a comment if you have a suggestion!
Incidently, here are some excerpts from Andrew Denton’s interview with Al Gore:
On the Himalayan Queen
Travel from Delhi to Kalka on the Kalka Shatabdi Express (7:40am -> 12pm) in comfy AC Chair class. Then rush to find the platform for the Himalayan Queen, which leaves at 12:10pm for Shimla, arriving at about 5:30pm. Michael Palin shows the way in his documentary, “Himalaya”. The Himalayan Queen passes through 101 tunnels and over 864 bridges on its slow accent to Shimla. This is typical of the Roman viaduct style, multi-arch, bridges that are found along the line.
Morning commute
I took this snapshot this morning while walking through Forrest Place on the way to St Georges Tce to catch a bus to work. They’re all walking away from the train station. It’s handheld unfortunately, so I didn’t really get the effect I was going for. What I would love to do is set up my camera on a tripod in the train station itself, at the platform, facing a train which has just rolled in, with passengers alighting. I’d need a neutral density filter too, which is just a way to cut down the amount of light getting to the lens. That means slow shutter speed in daylight, which will give me pin-sharp train station, but motion blurred people. And it would work best in black-and-white. Being handheld also has the problem that people look away from the camera, as it’s obvious when I’m taking a photo!
Unfortunately, nowadays, I suspect taking photos at Perth train station might not make me popular with the security folk and police, there.
Here’s a similar hand-held photo taken a few months ago during rush-hour at Orchard MRT in Singapore. I liked the pinks and purples…
Hurry burry spoils the curry!
I was taken with the road safety signage in India. Travelling in the mountainous areas of the country – Himachal Pradesh and the north of West Bengal, there was plenty of safety advice by the roadside. Much more entertaining then “Local Police Are Targetting … Speed”, or the current road toll, which is the common signage on country roads in WA. Here are some examples, which I scribbled into my notebook:
“Don’t gossip, let him drive”
“I like you dear, but please slow down”
“It’s not a race or rally, slow down and enjoy the valley”
“Don’t drive fast, somebody is waiting for you”
“Anytime is safety time”
“Drive, don’t fly” (on a road featuring many precipices and big drops)
“If you are married, divorce speed”
“If you are married to speed, divorce her”
“Time is money, but life is precious”
“Donate blood in blood bank, not on this road”
“Enjoy your ride, don’t commit suicide”
“Drive in peace, not in pieces”
and “Hurry burry spoils the curry”
BTA
[Originally posted April 28th, 2006]
I’ve renewed my membership with the BTA, which I let lapse a couple of years ago. The Bicycle Transportation Alliance is a Perth based advocacy group for cyclists – it lobbies the government on bicycle issues and provides useful information, discounts, and third-party insurance to members. My receipt and first copy of Australian Cyclist arrived in the mail yesterday. I was impressed, having only posted them my application two working days before.
Caught the bus in today – don’t want to overdo the cycling… May bike in again on Monday.
My first commute with panniers
[originally posted April 27th, 2006]
The transmission is a bit noisy and my front brake pulses a bit, which is a bit worrying (wheel not true?). My bike may need a checkup. Have switched to slick tyres, but am a bit dissappointed by the low pressure rating (40psi?!?) – may replace with something higher pressure if not too expensive. I didn’t even look at the pressure when I bought the tyres, I’d just assumed that they would be high pressure. They are IRC Metros.
Well, the laptop survived. I just dropped it in a pannier (Deuter Rackpack II) with a jacket for a little padding. The consensus amongst cyclists at work seems to be that Dell Latitude laptops tolerate road vibration, at least for the three years before they are replaced. Collisions and near-misses can create issues though. This cycle tourist hasn’t had such good experiences with his Dell though (no info on how he packed it).
Wheels World 