Life As It Comes 
Jack’s Generic Tri4 Comments
This Sunday is another sprint-distance race - Jack’s Generic Tri. New Braunfels is a significant drive from Georgetown, especially at 4 or 5 in the morning, so I’ll be staying in San Marcos overnight on Saturday night.
I found a bed and breakfast that was actually cheaper than all the hotels I checked with, so I’ll be staying at Crystal River Inn. That should be fun, and I’m looking forward to it.
Plus, I’ll have another race under my belt.
Something’s Cooking7 Comments
I’m envisioning another revamp to my site’s look, and I’m hoping that it’ll be coming along soon. I intend to make it easier to use, more attractive, and more “Web 2.0.”
I’ve gone back and forth on the “lifestream” format, sported by legends such as Dan Cederholm. I get the feeling that unless I had it as the most prominent or main page, no one would really be that interested in it. Also, if it was so front-and-center, I’d want it to be more “lively” than which songs I’m listening to, et cetra.
Choosing to stay away from that format ultimately means I’ll be under additional pressure to post more often, but that’s a good thing.
Goals for this iteration:
1) Incorporate some trendy design elements: gradients, irregular lines, …
2) Increase usability with high-contrast links and larger/bolder fonts
3) Pick bold, outstanding colors but let the content be a big part of the design
Some inspiration:
1) Kulturbanause
2) Ollie Kavanagh
3) Billy Hughes at War
4) Grooveshark
5) Jason Reed
6) WordPress.org (recently redesigned)
Flickr Meme3 Comments
As requested, I’m posting answers to a Flickr Meme that Amanda found:
1. Agent Smith is chasing me., 2. Pinocchio’s Pizza farm, 3. 0824 14-SH, 4. summer wharf colours, 5. Kate Beckinsale - 2, 6. Essential Truths About Water, 7. Cool Blue, 8. homemade berry ice cream, 9. Showtime!, 10. Missing Autumn, 11. personal goals 2007, 12. Untitled
My answers were: 1. Kevin 2. pizza 3. Mattoon High School 4. aquamarine 5. Kate Beckinsale 6. water 7. mountain lake 8. ice cream 9. photographer 10. autumn 11. conscientious 12. kdrive.geo
Here’s how you do it:
a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd’s mosaic maker).
Here are your questions:
1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. Favorite drink?
7. Dream vacation?
8. Favorite dessert?
9. What you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?
11. One Word to describe you.
12. Your Flickr name.
Couples Tri6 Comments
This weekend was Couples Tri. This marked my first “official” experience with triathlon in an actual race.
My plan had been to compete in the Olympic Distance for The Austin Triathlon as my first race, but I figured since Couples was beginner-friendly and a Sprint-Distance, I might as well do it for the experience.
Here are my results. I received so much encouragement from the T3ers, especially once word spread that this was my first triathlon. I also felt well-prepared and didn’t really physically struggle much during the race, which I owe entirely to the T3 training. The only obstacle that came up was that I dropped my chain twice on two successive hills. Other than that, the race was a success, a good benchmark for where I am, and an incentive to keep training hard for The Austin Tri.
Enjoy some pictures! I didn’t take any of these, but they are good. Also, there are professional pictures coming in 5-10 days.
2008 Ford Focus6 Comments
I haven’t posted about this here yet, but I traded in my 2005 Chevy Equinox for a 2008 Ford Focus. It gets 35 mpg as opposed to 20 mpg in the Equinox. With gas prices soaring ever-higher and my commute from Georgetown to North Austin, it definitely is making a huge difference for me on my gas bill.
Plus, it’s a pretty sweet ride. The Focus has a new body-style for 2008, and my particular model has Microsoft Sync and ambient lighting, among other features.
