Medium Adhesion

Thursday, June 29, 2006

new york's finest revenue generation scheme

You know what's awesome? I got a $150 dollar ticket this morning for running a red light on my bicycle. That's awesome.

Yes, I ran the red light. Just like I run every red light. Just like every single cyclist in New York City runs every red light. The same way that every god damn fucking pedestrian in the city walks red light, j-walks, crosses on don't walk signs, etc. etc. As the cop was writing me the ticket, I watched 20 pedestrians j-walk from across the street right in front of me. One guy looked at me dumbfounded, he was as dumbfounded as I that they were actually citing me for this violation.

OK, I broke the law. Fine, write me a fucking ticket. But the cop was dumb enough to try to convince me as she was writing the ticket that she was keeping me safe. Fuck you. You want to keep me safe on a bike? Cite the 4 fucking cabs that cut me off on the rest of my commute to work. Cite the idiot who opened his cab door into my bike lane (which I kindly closed for him). Cite the 86 delivery trucks parked in the bike lane every block. Cite the city for giant pot holes all the way down Broadway. Cite the fucking judge who parked in the bike lane in front of the court house, where he parks every morning. That's what makes it dangerous to be a cyclist in this city.

Ok, enough venting. Time to go listen to some Ice Cube. Today is not a good day.

Thursday, June 22, 2006

Less Talk, More Photos







Here's the crew of people I work with, if y'all is interested.

Chico is in the white T-shirt. He is the artistic director and visionary behind ARW. He's a gentlemen, a scholar, and a classically trained pimp.

Sue is the little red-head with the hat on. She's Irish, petite, dainty - but don't be fooled. She swears like a sailor, drinks like a fish, smokes like a chimney, and uses simile like, uhh, a washed-up ancient greek comic book writer. Today was literally the first time I've ever seen her without combat boots on.

Frank is the big guy in the blue T-shirt. Somethings may change in life, like the tides, the phases of the moon, the smell wafting up from the dirty Brooklyn sidewalks - but Frank's T-shirt does not change. It is always blue. Always.

Bruce is the really nice and goofy guy in the green t-shirt in front of the car frame. Bruce used to be a Masai warrior tribesman in east Africa, but it turns out he couldn't jump more than about 1 and 3/8th inches (we measured) - so they kicked him out of the entire African continent in shame and sent him to Brooklyn to eat rice crackers and weld aluminum.

There's a few more team members that I didn't get to here, cause I'm limited to only 5 pictures at a time. There is a nice shot here of us sitting down to one of our meals in the shop. It's one big family. Frank is wearing blue.

peace, bitches.

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

The Photo Album, part 1








Hey everyone. I've had a few days off from the blog, a few days off from work, a few days off from reality. It's been a wonderful break. Kristin made the long journey out from Seattle and we spent the weekend hanging out in Manhattan, being tourists and generally relaxing. It was great!

I've got a few photos here. It looks like this blog thing will only let me put on 5 at a time, so here's the first 5. I'm primed and ready to put more on soon, so look for more pics in the near future.

Ok, so what you're looking at here is my actual work environment. Like I said, not your usual engineering office. Yes, this is where I've been spending upwards of 60 hours a week.

Thanks for your comments you guys, glad to see somebody is reading all this. Here's the photos..

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

June 13th, rubber meets road


New York City is that place. That place where the rubber meets the road - however it may happen, it happens every minute of the day. Sometimes it's a wonderful event in all it's excitement and ferocity, sometimes it's just ugly and necessary and downright violent. I'm not sure what I'm talking about here, but it's the feeling of the day.

Take my morning commute to work: Last week, I'd tell you that I had the best bike ride of my entire life. 12 miles of pure joy. I start way up on Amsterdam and 101st, I cut over to Central Park. I ride south down the length of the park surrounded by trees and early morning joggers. At the south end, I join the commuters at Columbus Circle. Puffy is my beacon for a good ten blocks – I'm always looking up to the big Sean Combs billboard in Times Square. I dodge massive potholes, delivery trucks, diesel clouds, obnoxious buses, taxis, and pedestrian commuters all the way down Broadway, passing through Union Square, Soho, and the financial district, towards the Brooklyn Bridge. Across the bridge, Statue of Liberty on my right (good morning darling), and Empire State Building back to my left. Down the bumpy roads of Brooklyn to find my morning bagel and tea (with lemon) at my favorite little breakfast spot around the corner from The Church. Mario hooks me up every morning.

Normally, this bike ride is a magical experience. There's a Zen moment there, when the lights all turn green at the perfect moment, when the traffic parts like Red Sea, when pedestrians actually look up from their zombie state to see you coming. I can predict the future. I can make people move when I want them to, where I want them to. I can cut through a crowd of people at full speed with enough awareness to smell the coffee from the woman in the short skirt, 6 inches from my handlebars. I can feel the hair on the back of my neck tingling before somebody steps out from in front of that parked delivery truck. I can spot a cab cutting me off with a sudden right turn - 2 blocks before he swerves. I have enough time to organize my thoughts into a string of well orchestrated profanity long before he makes his move.

But not today. Some days it's an up river swim. Don't worry, I didn't get hit today, nor did I hit anyone. But too many close calls for one day. I was close enough to a woman driving her BMW from New Jersey to reach into her car and grab the coffee out of her hand – and she never even saw me. Imagine her surprise when I yelled at her just before she cut me off. (she might have spilled the coffee, maybe I should have grabbed it from her.) Today, there were just too many potholes, too many red lights, and I think my rear wheel is finally starting to give out. Some days you go with the current, some days you just have to fight I guess.

Maybe this was all precipitated by strange event last night on the subway ride home. Apparently the man who sat down next to me on the train wasn't happy with me (just cause I exist I guess), cause he started by saying "May my God be as white as your God." Then he said it again, louder. Then he said it again, full roar, at the top of his lungs...over, and over again. I was the only one on the train not staring at him, my eyes were fixed on the little print of my book, not daring to look up. I didn't have the heart to tell him my god isn't white, black, green or purple – better not to say. It's an adventure, where the rubber meets the road.

Here's a picture of the floor at work.

Sunday, June 11, 2006

June 10, 14th street, garbage swells like a cyclone

Man, busy week! Somehow I made it to Sunday, my 1 day off of the week. I spent the day still recovering from my Friday night binge drinking-fest with fellow Seattle-guy Dave Couture (drinking too many Manhattans in Manhattan), and riding my bicycle around the city dodging taxis and inhaling unhealthy amounts of diesel exhaust....it was wonderful. When you're spending the day biking around Manhattan, don't forget to put sunblock on your forearms too, or you'll end up with really sunburned arms like mine. I think beer fixes that though.

Oh hey, I've found a much better website explain the project I'm working on, it's even got video! Check it out:

http://www.amorphicrobotworks.org/car/

Well, folks, are you ready to enter The Church where I work?!? Who's with me? Everybody hold hands, tightly, here we go. Hope you enjoy the pics.

(wouldn't you know, I'm having problems uploading pictures to the web tonight. It's gonna have to wait another day. I know you're on the edge of your chair with excrement....)

Wednesday, June 07, 2006

From the Backside


Good People - We (the powers that be) interrupt this normally boring blog to give you a picture of my sister with her hand up a cow's ass.

Love. Nothing but love.

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

The Project





Dunno if anyone's reading this, it feels kind of like I'm a radio DJ: I'm talking and maybe somebody is listening, maybe not. I enjoy the ambiguity

I'm jumping from Brooklyn to Paris today. Mostly photos today, my brain is too tired to write anything creative, or not creative. Here's a couple shots of my trip to Paris two weeks ago and the building, the installation, the project, etc. check it.

by the way, anyone can make comments now, you don't have to be all signed up as a member or anything.

Monday, June 05, 2006

Welcome to The Church


Isn't it fitting that I would travel across the country to work....in a church? Yes, it's true. Amorphic Robot Works is housed in a former church in the Redhook neighborhood in Brooklyn. (that's on the water, about a mile south of the brooklyn bridge.) This church was built back around 1840. Through the years, it was....a church, a Smo-King ash tray factory, a mob-run car chop shop, and now it houses...us. Redhook is a pretty funky little neighborhood, lots of colorful locals and lots of young manhattanites seeking cheaper living. Of course, the week I start working here, Redhook suddenly gets cool. The 'Hook made the Time Out magazine cover story this week for nyc:
http://www.timeout.com/newyork/


Anyway, back to The Church....be warned, this is not your normal engineering office. It doesn't include the long drive out to the suburbs, the dry and boring office staff, the cubicles, the endless process meetings, the old engineer who sleeps at his desk because he knows they can't fire him... None of that. It might be a little different. Maybe I'll just start with a photo of the outside today, slow introductions. Welcome to the church.

Sunday, June 04, 2006

Rain on Amsterdam


It continues to rain, and Snoop Dogg continues to flow. so things are in order - be it in Seattle or Manhattan. Snoop can flow, I'm not sure if I can keep up though. I wasn't created for that, but I'll give it my best in this unlikely format. I'm just waiting for JP to chime in with : "you got a cell phone, you got a laptop, now you gotta blog too? Sellout." sellout, indeed. Sell out, early, and often!

I'm sitting on high above Amsterdam ave on the upper west side. The rumors are true, I've gotta pretty nice balcony, perfect really for dropping toenail clippings on the unsuspecting below. I got a picture of my view attached.

I wish I could find a way to take picture as I ride my bike to work in the morning, cause that's the best part of the day. Maybe one day I'll strap my camera to my chest and let it snap away. It will mostly show my handle bars are few inches from the left rear quarter panel of a homicidal new york cab.

I'll hit it again tomorrow with some work pics. It's a unique place. That's why the blog is here. People kept telling me:"dude, you're doing some crazy shit, you need a blog." Ok, here it is. Crazy shit, and shit.

Saturday, June 03, 2006

June 3, Off the Hook


I can't think with all this noise. The rain hasn't stopped all day, my toes are wet.