Journal entries in 'Dear Diary' for August, 2005

My car has incredible handling, but that comes at a cost. Part of that grip comes from stiff, well-tuned suspension, but one of the biggest factors that contribute to a car's handling are its tires; they are your entire interface with the road. The Evo comes with very soft tires; the treadwear rating is 160. A numerically lower treadwear rating equates to a softer and usually grippier tire — race slicks have ratings of 60-80. Compare that to the tires on your Camry; they're probably rated 400 or more.

The downside of that, of course, is that stock Evo tires only last around 10,000 miles. Roughly three months ago I started noticing a marked decrease in my tires' grippiness, and realized with sadness that it would soon be time to replace them. However, cheap bastard that I am, I figured I could probably stretch them a little longer if I just drove carefully. They've lasted me this long; I just hit 12k miles last week.

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A few weeks ago I was talking with Henry and he brought up the interesting fact that we'd seen each other once every calendar year since we met. I was surprised, because it feels like we see each other so infrequently, but he listed each visit and he was right. I agreed that the streak could not be broken, and Henry and I made plans for him to come down to PR to visit. Once he had his plane ticket and I mentioned to my parents that he was coming, they reminded me of the fact that the house would be somewhat disassembled at the time. I said "Oops," but Henry said, "That's OK, it will be like camping."

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This morning I left early for work so I could stop at the panadería and get breakfast. However, when I got close to the San Juan area I ran into a huge traffic jam. Since I knew that traffic equaled no food, I darted off onto a side street to try and find a way around the it.

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I've always liked Red Chair Software, the company who makes Notmad Explorer, the software I use to transfer files to my MP3 player. Their software is way more intuitive than Creative's own software, plus they have fast service and are very helpful. This weekend I was reminded of all these things.

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I saw a Taco Bell commercial today that said they've got Cheesy Gordita Crunches back. If ever my vegetarianism was at risk, it is now. I must resist...

Speaking of Cheesy Gordita Crunches, I've always wondered whether the 'Cheesy' thing is actually part of the name or just a marketing adjective. I've always referred to them as "Cheesy Gordita Crunches" when ordering them, and I'd hate to think that all this time I've sounded as stupid as someone ordering a taco and asking them to add guacamole and Zesty Pepperjack Sauce™.

As I walked to the panadería this morning for breakfast, I passed a One Hour Photo place that was apparently going out of business, and there were a bunch of FujiLab photo processing machines sitting on the curb. They looked to be in rough shape, but wheels began to turn. If only I had access to a pickup truck...