Category Archives for Miscellaneous

Enterprise Rent-A-Car are so shit!

We booked a van with Enterprise Rent-A-Car about 4 months ago, today just 7 days befor we are due to pick it up I get this from them! by email!

Mr. Starbuck,
This email is in regards to your booking for a cargo van on the 23rd of August.
Due to the burning man event, we have been overbooked 100+ CargoVans/PickUp Trucks.
Therefore, we are cancelling all reservations for the end of August. There will be no trucks or Vans available during this tmie period.
Thank you for your understanding. Please feel free to call our branch with any questions or concerns.

Kylie Beren
Enterprise Rent-A-Car
Assistant Manager 23GP
San Francisco- Mission St.
415-522-5900

Can you beleive it? I can’t. I sent them this response (by email):

Dear Kylie,

This is totally unacceptable! Have you only just noticed you are overbooked by “100+” vehicles? What kind of system are you running? This van has been booked with you for about four months now, I did not book it yesterday, you cannot just cancel my reservation with one week’s notice, especially by email!

Because of the Burning Man event I am now unable to book another van, I knew this and booked in good time and you took the reservation. How do you not know when Burning Man is, it is not as thought this is the first year it has happened .

I need the van on the date I reserved it for the duration I reserved it for and I will be in to pick it up next Saturday.

If you have any “questions or concerns” about this then I can be contacted on 415-823-8109.

Yours,

Mr. Jon Starbuck.

No response from them yet………….

San Francisco - July, August and September 2008

Immigration

I arrived back in San Francisco on 5th July, I got questioned by Immigration for about an hour before they let me in but once satisfied i was not here to enter the US workforce or to overstay; however I was told in no uncertain terms that in order to qualify for a visa waiver again I must stay out of the country for at least “3 or 4 or 5 months”, how clear is that? It is very frustrating and confusing when you think you are playing by the rules, doing exactly what the last immigration officer and the US embassy in London said to do, not abusing the visa waiver system, not working illegally, and then to be hauled over the coals like that, but i guess there is nothing I can do about it and they did believe me in the end.

Once in I went straight home to wash and catch up on some sleep, Amanda awoke me in the early evening in order to force me down to Pirate Cat Radio for, as it turned out, a surprise welcome home reception!

Dead Computer

Unfortunately my laptop did not survive the flight so i spent most of my second day back (first week day) searching for a cheap replacement, surprisingly difficult in SF. According t the Dell website the s a Dell store in downtown SF - when i got here i was told it closed down several years ago. Nice one Dell. I ended up buying the the smallest, cheapest Dell I could find anyway as there was no real chioce in Best Buy (who I can honestly tell you were appalling, thirty minutes to even speak to a sales assistant and then I knew a lot more about what the shop sold that he did, which is saying something because I know nothing about Laptops) but I could not find anywhere else to buy one in San Francisco……….

Pirate Cat

Amanda did yet another great Pirate Cat show that same day with Fossil Fool at Pirate Cat Radio 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/morehumanthanhuman/sets/72157606086038257/

Rock The Bike:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rockthebike/

Rolling Sunlight

The last couple of weeks of July 2008 I am spending on board Greenpeace’s Rolling Sunlight for its The Global Warming Story Tour, I will be cruising up and down the West Coast with some folks from Greenpeace for twenty days while they collect personal video stories about how GW is affecting ordinary American’s and getting them to ask the Congress to legislate to stop GW by not investing in dirty or dangerous technologies and instead to use the money in clean, safe renewable energy!

Yosemite

Early August saw Amanda and I reunited after many weeks apart, she took a long weekend and we hired a car and went to Yosemite National Park which is only a few hour’s drive from San Francisco. Forest fires are apparently keeping visitors away but i saw little sign of it being quiet, we had trouble finding camping space even though we arrived on Friday. More than 4 million visitors come to Yosemite each year but the vast majority of them, something like 98%, visit only a tiny fraction of this enormous space so getting away from them, even at peak season, is easy. We took a day hike to Cathedral Lake and it was fabulous!

We also took the opportunity to visit Bodie, an amazingly unspoilt and un-Disney-fied ghost town which is held in a state of arrested decay - we also went seven miles off the paved roads to sit in Buckeye Hot Spring .

US Air Guitar Finals

We got given two tickets to the US Air Guitar Finals in SF the following weekend, a rare opportunity to see Americans actually being ironic. To air is human but to air-guitar is divine, it is all about air-supremacy,

Shhoting

Amanda and I have been talking about going shooting while in the US since 2004. Well we finally got round to booking a lesson the other day, 20 minutes in the classroom and were let loose in to shoot targets on the range with some 22 pistols. They were just not satisfying enough, se later we rented a Glock 9mm and had a go with that, a much more satisfying bang! Not that I’m going to make a habit of this, it was fun but I can’t see how anyone could get too excited about this, after an hour or two it is, quite frankly, a bit boring.

Andrea and BRC preparations

Andrea arrives in a few days from the UK, very exciting, and I have a tone of work to do in preperation for Burning Man, especally in desiging and making a shade structure for the camp.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3064/2750072393_0ecc8ae3a3_s.jpg

Veg Oil Converted VW Transporter T4 Camper Van For Sale

VW Transporter T4 1999 T reg, Camper with Elsbett multi-fuel conversion

**Pictures at bottom of this post**

  • Low mileage, only 52,000 miles
  • Colour: Silver/Grey metallic
  • Engine: 1.9 TD. Will give an efficient 40mpg
  • 10 months MOT and road tax
  • Just serviced and full service history
  • Private registration plate: T4 ASD

Multi-fuel conversion:
Van has had an Elsbett multi-fuel conversion. Will run on Diesel, Biodiesel or vegetable oil, or any mixture of the three using the original fuel tank. This is a professional conversion from the German diesel engineers Elsbett who have been building engines to run on vegetable oil since the 1970s. This is the best conversion on the market today, and the only one that comes with a FULL GUARENTEE not to damage your engine. For further details see: www.elsbett.com. A full guide to the conversion and service manual are provided with the vehicle. The use of these fuels is completely legal and if you use vegetable oil and biodiesel on a small scale (up to 2500 litres a year - enough for over 20,000 miles in this vehicle) then it is completly free of fuel duty - quite an advantage in these uncertain times of spiraling diesel prices.
Details of camper conversion :

  • Reimo super-flat front elevating roof: complete height of van with roof down is less than 2m so you can get into most car parks with height restrictions.
  • 100 litre under-floor fresh water tank with pump operated by mico switch tap in sink.
  • Propex blown-air central heating.
  • Smev glass-topped cooker and sink units.
  • Leisure battery and zig unit with dual charging relay.
  • 240V 300W inverter
  • 12V lighting (4 spotlights)
  • 2-way fridge
  • 2 swivel front captain’s seats
  • R.I.B. crash tested back seat with seat-belt
  • Seating area with removable table
  • 2 berth. Seating area converts simply and quickly to two single beds (possible simple upgrade to 4 berth with the addition of a roof bed)
  • 3 Side windows with integral blinds, one opening.
  • Gas locker with two gas bottles.
  • Porta-potii 335 (brand new and unused!) - stores under rear seat.
  • Silver insulating screens for rear window and cab windows.
  • Loads of storage space.
  • Fully insulated and carpeted. Automotive grade fabrics used throughout.

This is a walk through design makes it is possible to store long items securely inside the van, such as surfboards or bikes.

This home conversion that has been carried out to a very high professional standard and comes with a full engineer’s report for insurance purposes.

The van has been well looked after and as you should be able to see from the photos is in overall excellent condition. The only problem that I am aware of is an small area of bubbling in the paint at the bottom edge on the rear window - see close up photo for details. The van has a full service history and has just had a service at 52,000 miles including new brake pads. I have all original documents, all old mot test certificates, all receipts for work, and two sets of keys.

Viewing the van is highly recommended. The van is located in north Wales until around 16/17th June 2008 and then near Gravesend in Kent a week or so. Then probably back to north Wales if not sold. Please contact me to arrange viewing.

Please email or phone me with any questions, I will try to check email every day.

Please ring Rob on 07890 031969; he will call you back if you wish.

On eBay here!

Back in the UK - May, June, and July 2008

May 2008
May WeddingBack to the UK at the beginning of May, just in time for Suzi & Adrian’s wedding which was great! Afterwards Amanda went off to get Tinker while I spent some time with my family, a few days later I caught up with her and the dog in Bristol and we traveled on together to Wales; it was so hot and green and lush, just like I had left it six month’s earlier! Nice to have missed the entire Welsh winter.

May 2008 069May 2008 061May 2008 059Welsh Wood in SpringAmanda & Tinker outside the Harbour Master Hotel.Amanda and Tinker in the woods, Wales.

Amanda & Tniker on Borth Beach

Seems like in our absence everyone has got pregnant. We were hoping to catch up with Ian & Kate’s before the baby arrived but were a few hours too late. Next will be Imogen’s, followed a few months later by a load more.
Kate & Ian's baby!May 2008 107

I went on to Cornwall and Devon for a week in the middle of Amanda being in the UK to put up a met-mast with Dulas (so nice to get both paid properly and looked after properly) while Amanda spent another week in Wales with Tinker without me.

60m Met Mast going up in Cornwall60m Met Mast going up in Cornwall60m Met Mast in Cornwall

Amanda dropped Tinker off in Lancaster before briefly meeting up with me again in London. She went back to the US to continue her consultancy work while I stayed back in the UK and continued visiting my family & university work in preparation for an exam on the 4th June in Lufbra.

May 2008 132May 2008 129May 2008 118

Spent the last two weeks at Mum’s in Kent, on my own, doing almost nothing but revising. Can’t wait for it to be over, I am short of money now and haver a load of paid work to be getting on with but I can’t get on with it for fear of failing my exam!

June 2008

Exam in Lufbra, family things, finishing and polishing of the book, and work work work………. summer solstice at Avebury was another wet one.

Left for SFO on 5th July.

You can’t polish a turd; polygamy, abuse and pedophilia.

{I know you are reading this in your hundreds, why not comment? It is anonymous.}

I have not thought a great deal about the recent polygamy thing in Texas which has been in the news a fair bit recently (this is where 52 girls were removed from a ranch in Texas and put into care and foster-homes following allegations of abuse) because this kind of thing goes on over in wacky old America, right?

I have not thought a great deal about it until….. until last night….. last night the number of children went up by one when one of the girls, a 16 year old, gave birth. Apparently she is not the only pregnant child.

I don’t like religion at the best of times but when it is when it is used as an excuse for the in inexcusable it really gets to me; bombings, terrorism, war, murder repression, oppression….. child abuse.

In the UK we have an expression (I don’t know if it is used in the US) which says that “you can’t polish a turd” and it means “shit is shit no matter how you try to hide what it is”.

Well, for a moment I think these polygamist folks almost managed it with me, they have gone on a big PR offensive and, to tell you the truth, I was not paying that much attention in the first place.

They have tried to take polygamy and dress it up as “religion” and “freedom” when what it really is about is a few older men surrounding themselves with small armies of poorly educated, brainwashed, compliant women; don’t be fooled by their weasel-words, it is not “religion” or “freedom”, it is abuse.

And in this particular case, and numerous others, “religion” and “freedom” is really about being allowed to “marry” and have sex with young girls. It is a cynical attempt at dressing up paedophilia as something virtuous and somehow acceptable.

But you cant polish a turd.

————————

http://the-discourses.blogspot.com/2008/05/texas-surpreme-court-endorses.html

Magnetic nonsense

[this page is getting a lot of hit at the moment, must be somthing to do with fuel prices, I'd apprecate your opinion and feedback, comment at the bottom of this page]

Too good to be true
You instinctively know what something is too good to be true, don’t you? And things which seem that way almost always turn out to be just that, too good too be true. I am constantly coming across products for sale on the internet which are such obvious bullshit, and yet someone must be buying them.

MagnoFuel
Recently, while researching for my book on bio-fuels, I am coming across loads of magnetic miricles. These things simply attach around your engine’s fuel lines, attached with zip-ties, and enhance the fuel magnetically; reducing pollution, increasing performance, reducing consumption, increasing range.

Sound too good to be true? Well obviously! If these things worked they would be fitted as standard to all new cars, in fact it would probably be compulsory.

The “science” behind them
The makers offer very pseudo-scientific language to explain what they do and how they work and then fail to back any of it up with any proof, beyond the dubious and anecdotal, that they have any effect whatsoever.

For example, ecozone.co.uk say here that:

“Magno-Fuel has been tested to give fuel savings of up to 15%, provides better combustion and more power from your engine while reducing pollution.”

Tested by who? When? Where? Or am I meant to just take your word for it?

“Only after a short time will oxygen molecules be embedded between the fuel molecules, ensuring a better combustion.”

What does thins even mean?

And they go on to say:

“Bloch and Purcell were awarded the Nobel prize for their work on magnetic fields on solid, liquid and gas substances.”

Sure they were, Physics prize in 1952 “for their development of new methods for nuclear magnetic precision measurements and discoveries in connection therewith”, what does thins have to do what the MagnoFuel? Nothing whatsoever, that is what!

Other magnetic bullshit
One can also buy magnetic toilet descalers, magnetic washing machine descalers, an amazing array of magnetic jewelery and loads of other miracle magnetic gizmos avalabel to the gullible, from water treatment and fuel treatment to health (for you or your dog or cat or horse); there is tones of it and all of it complete bullshit!

And even more nonsense
EcoFlow and MagnoFlow and BioFlow, BioGuard pendants to protect you from your computer, BioPhone to protect you from your cell phone, Vitaflow for your water, Motoflow for your fuel, Thermoflow for your boiler/furnace and (my favorite) Vinaflow to protect you from your wine!

How can this be legal?
Well how can this be legal? I have no idea, I guess it isn’t. Extraordinary claims demand extraordinary proof, this is blatant modern day snake oil, a scam, a con……. it is complete bullshit!!

San Francisco - March 2008

Started the month on a weekend, went cycling all over the city again with Amanda on the 1st - visited Coit Tower (good free stuff, murals on the ground floor and the obligatory car park on the top of a hill), up Lombard Street and Haight Street (which I hate). Got visited By Chris and Tara on their way back from New Zealand, which was such fun too.

Saturday night was a very sober 1990s-style-party in Fairfax, Marin. Not like I expected it to be at all, but very worthwhile and good to get out of the city.

Sunday we took another ride down to Heron’s Head Point and Hunter’s Point. Funny wasteland corner of The Bay, old industry awaiting cleanup and redevelopment.

Tuesday was this month’s free museum day but I did not get it together to go visit any.

Thursday was Balken Beatbox the the Filmore, but they canceled due to visa problems which is very odd as I thought they were all from New York.

Thursday the 13th is Gogol Bodello at the Warfield, Gypsy Punks in San Francisco. I can’t tell you how good they were, so amazing (awesome, even), they did something like two hours, maybe more, of non-stop high-energy tunes, loved every moment of it, spent half the gig right at the front, it was like being eighteen again, came out at nearly midnight dripping wet from (other people’s) sweat and came home to some weird fog over downtown.

FogFog

On the 15th and 16th we hired a car from Rentawreck (first company to give us what we asked for, a small car!) and visited Hopland, one-hundred miles north of San Francisco, where the local equivalent of CAT is, The Solar Living Insinuate. There I took lots of Biodiesel pictures, visited a whole load of local eco-houses and hiked a little in the mountains of California. We also took in some Redwoods and drove the coast road home, Highway One, which is a much slower route but much more worthwhile, winding along the dramatic Pacific coast.

Eco-house in Hopland:
InsideEco-houseEco-house

Drive home, through redwoods:
DICCoastal RedwoodsCoastal Redwoods

Hermit’s house in Nothern California:
Hermit's HouseHermit's houseHermit's HouseHermit's House

Biodiesel stuff at the Solar Living Institute:
Biodiesel filling stationBiodieselBiodiesel ProcessorBiodiesel ProcessorBiodiesel ProcessorBiodiesel Processor

Amanda went to Washington DC for the last week of March 2008  leaving me home alone in the city over the Easter weekend. I went to The Opel 6 Year Anniversary Event at Temple SF with Nicola and Giorgia,  walked home on my own at 5am which was a spooky experiences as, with the exception of one or two  rough sleepers and the odd person going to/from work, I had what felt like the whole of downtown San Francisco to myself.

Amanda came home in time for the weekend of the 29th and 30th but we did nothing much but drink a few beers with Kate D who was in town for the weekend,  eat a fabulous Mexican breakfast at 22 & South Van Ness, and later we just watched videos….. a lazy end to the month.

Why is the BBC iPlayer so crap?

I have been trying a little experiment with the BBC’s iPlayer, the radio player not the TV thing.

I am staying in San Francisco right now and I am missing Annie Nightingale’s two hour weekly slot. It is on air live at a more convenient time here in the US that it is in the UK (because of the time difference), but still I can’t manage to get it together to listen live, but that does not matter as the BBC have Listen Again!

Just a few clicks and I get Annie any time I like, right?

No. It is great when it starts, 250kbps (than is the speed at which the data is arriving at my computer) or more but as soon as it starts playing, nice and clear audio, but the speed drops quickly to the point it becomes so compressed and distorted that I have to turn it off (after about 5 minutes, at about 70kbps) - and if I don’t then it just gets slower and slower until it stops itself.

This is depressing, frustrating, boring and pointless. I used to have this problem when I lived in West Wales too, but i put it down to the internet being rubbish in such a rural location. But I am in San Francisco now - you know, California, Google, dot-com, Silicone Valley - and it is exactly the same.

What is the point it the BBC offering a service that does not work?

Just for comparison, Pirate Cat FM in San Francisco, who have zero budget, seem to be able to manage streaming media that works (and before you say “but they are just down the road from you!” like the BBC, Pirate Cat’s server is in the UK).

Meanwhile, I also listen to the BBC’s Today Program on the same technology as when I want to listen to Annie Nightingale (maybe i am odd, but that is not the point) and its audio is, more often than not, consistent and clear.

For now, does anyone know where I can download Annie’s show as an mp3 every week?

Test on 11th March 2008
Stared at 250kbps, 15 minutes later it is at 18kbps and sounds terrible.

Test on 12th March
Fine, all day, listened to show after show after show.

Earthquake Appeal

An Appeal For Your Help

A major earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale, hit in the early hours of Wednesday morning at 12:56am. Epicentre: Barnsley, England. News of the disaster was swiftly distributed to all betting offices by the town’s 35000 racing pigeons, as victims were seen wandering around
aimlessly muttering “What the chuff wer that?” and “Na then, wots guin on?”.

The earthquake decimated large inhabited areas of Hoyland near Barnsley causing £30 worth of damage. Several priceless collections of Franklin Mint and mementos from both Tenerife and the Spanish Costa’s were damaged beyond repair. Three areas of historical burnt out cars were disturbed in nearby Kendray. Sounds levels reached an almost unbearable peak during the quake when an estimated 14,000 Staffordshire Bull Terriers began barking in synchrony.

Many locals were woken well before their Giro arrived. Radio Barnsley reported that hundreds of residents were confused and bewildered, still trying to come to terms with the fact that something interesting had happened in Barnsley. One resident, 15 year old mother of three, Tracey
Sharon Braithwaite, said, “It was such a shock my little Chardonnay Madonna came running into my bedroom crying. The twins, Tyler-Morgan and Megan-Storm slept through it all. I was still shaking when I was watching Jeremy Kyle the next morning”. Locals were determined not to be bowed as looting, muggings and car crime carried on as normal.

So far whilst the British Red Cross has managed to ship 4000 crates of Sunny Delight to the areas to relieve the suffering of stricken locals, rescue workers searching through the rubble have found large quantities of personal belongings including child benefit books, CSA claim forms and
jewellery from Elizabeth Duke at Argos, plus bone china from poundstretcher.

Can you help?
Please respond generously to our appeal for food and clothing for the victims of this disaster.
Clothing is needed most of all - especially
* Burberry or Fila baseball caps
* Kappa tracksuit tops (his or hers)
* Shell suits (female)
* White sports socks
* any product sold at Primark
* new dog leads suitable for Staffordshire Bull Terriers

Culturally sensitive food parcels are harder to put together, but your efforts will make a difference. Microwave meals, tinned beans, Netto ice cream and cans of Colt 45 or Special Brew are ideal. Please do not give anything that needs peeling.

Remember
* 22p buys a biro for filling in compensation claims
* £2 buys chips, crisps and a blue fizzy alco pop drink for a family
of 9
* £5 will pay for a packet of B & H and a lighter to calm a child’s
nerves.
* Urgently required: Tinned whippet food. Bones for Jack Russells.

Please do not send tents for shelter. The sight of such posh housing will cause discontent in the surrounding South Yorkshire communities of Rotherham and Sheffield.

San Francisco Freeze Flashmob

Following the Frozen Grand Central and the Trafalgar Square Freeze and another in Rome (let me know if you know of any more), San Francisco has had one too, despite the pouring rain, today in the rain at the cable-car turn around at Powel and Market. (best movie on YouTube I have found, let me know if you have found a better one)

Here are a few more movies of the Powel Street Freeze:
Youtube 2
Youtube 3
Youtube 4
LiveJournal
http://improveverywhere.ning.com/

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 License.