Robot Claw – Page 523 – “Life In The So-Called Space Age”

Robot Claws

August 10, 2012

This is what this blog looks like:

See the black computer, in the lower right of the image? That’s a machine that runs the blog. It lives in Bernard & Lakshmi’s garage, as does a second computer (the silver one behind it) and a vast array of networking equipment. You can see the cabling disappearing into the wall connecting these machines to the rest of the house and the internet in general. This setup generates a lot of heat, and the fans are there to keep it cool. Even with them, it’s a bit like standing next to an oven 🙂

Here’s Bernard’s description of the above photo:

“This setup includes a dual-processor 8-core zeon with 32 GB of RAM and 2 TB of RAID 10 disk space, and the other machine is an i5 with 8 GB of RAM with 10 TB of (unused!) disk space. The internet connection is a gigabit enterprise switch utilizing a 100 mbs fiber connection.”

I am ahead of myself! Let me introduce my hosts. Here’s my sister-in-law, Lakshmi, cosplaying:

She put the mask on in Target, and when Bernard asked her who it was she said ‘Darth Vader’. We had a good chuckle at that one 🙂

And here’s my brother, cosplaying as a banker:

Yesterday we went shopping. This meant we saw a good selection of potential gifts for AW like this:

…and a gaggle of pretty girls like this:

…and I even saw this:

There was a lot of shopping, and a lot of buying. Gifts were bought for everyone! Incredibly, my haul even included 2 (crappy…) gamebooks purchased from a second-hand bookstore! Given I traveled with only a single tiny suitcase, I’ll certainly be mailing stuff back 🙂

Today we’re off to see some museums. I’ve also uncovered some old photos and various other treasures that are going to have to make their way onto this blog in the next few days. So much to do and so little time in which to do it…

In The Sky

August 9, 2012

Yesterday was spent mostly in airports or planes, so I didn’t take many photos. My two flights were both great: small planes (so I had window and aisle seats) and virtually no clouds meant great views of New Mexico, Arizona and California.

Where is that above? I couldn’t say for sure, but I expect it’s somewhere in Arizona. I took this next photo because the lake reminded me of a basilisk!

Here’s a shot of San Jose from above just before landing:

I arrived in San Jose later in the day. Arriving at Bernard & Lakshmi’s was like stepping into Lifestyle’s Of The Rich And Famous, what with the impossibly luxurious apartment and actual gold nuggets just sitting around!

Don’t believe me?

More later 😉

In The Mountains

August 8, 2012

Here’s a surprising fact about Albuquerque: it’s about a mile above sea level. Furthermore, it’s surrounded by some impressive mountains, and yesterday we went to this one:

It’s called Sandia Peak, and it’s massive! The photo barely does justice to how tall it is and how monolithic it looks rising above the flat city. Sandia is popular with hikers and skiers and also is home to the worlds longest suspended tram, which we rode yesterday.

That’s from the station at the bottom, right before our car docked. The cables disappeared into the distance as our 15 minute climb began!

This is not a ride for those with fear of heights! Only three towers support the car during the climb, and the distance between the last two towers is enormous as the cables carry the car 1000 feet above the mountainside below.

The weather was beautiful and the views amazing. I was hoping to see the wildlife found on the mountain – elk, mountain lions, bears – but saw only trees and the occasional bird of prey.

Eventually we reached the top, about 4000 feet above the lower station, to a total height of over 10000 feet! That’s the highest mountain I’ve ever been on!

This next photo shows Albuquerque as viewed from the top of Sandia Peak.

A couple more shots taken from the car during the trip back down. The first shows us passing the other car, and the second shows the cables leading down the mountain. You can really, I hope, get a sense of how long this is!

After Sandia we (very!) briefly visited a large Indian Casino and then saw a movie, and then later as we sat on Florence’s porch chatting the rains came in. Check out this sunset rainbow:

And so my brief stay in Albuquerque has come to an end. I’m writing this in the airport waiting for the flights to my next destination, San Jose.

The worst thing about catching up with old friends is saying goodbye again. It’s been great fun sharing laughs with Florence as she showed me the sights of Albuquerque these past few days, and I’m very grateful for her hospitality (and patience!) I wish I wasn’t cursed with friends that all live thousands of miles away!!

Although – if I’m honest – this old man’s already quite tired after only the first half of his trip. Can I keep up my energy in San Jose? Stay tuned!