A mechanics question

Today's question pertains to physics, and I can't figure this one out on my own through my empirical testing. So any engineers in the audience, please feel free to lend me your solutions!

The problem is this: The house I live in has a driveway that slopes downhill toward the street. The last part of the ramp kind of "curves" down to the rain gutter and flat street, and almost without fail, I scrape the underside of the front of my car on the sidewalk as I'm backing out. I've tried some workarounds, including backing out at an angle (is 45 degrees the magic number?), but each time I think I've got in figured out, I go into a slump again. But here's the kicker: I have no problem at all pulling into the driveway without scraping.

So here's the question: Is it possible that it's harder to go down the driveway without bottoming out than it is to go up? Or am I really that inferior of a driver in reverse, such that I succeed 100% of the time pulling in, and maybe 5% of the time pulling out? The angle never seems to be that magical on the way in. Furthermore, most drivers can commiserate with me -- there is an innate fear of bottoming out on your way down a slope to a flat plane, while you rarely feel it going up. I'm perplexed.

Winning the credit card game

So a few weeks ago in my other blog, I wrote a piece about how people don't ask enough of their credit card companies. I realized, as I was writing it, that I was one of those people. I have been known to sign up for mileage cards that waive the first year fee, but I usually cancel them before the fee kicks in, once I receive the bonus miles. My primary credit card, though, is an Alaska Airlines Visa card from Bank of America that gives me a mile per dollar spent, as well as a companion certificate each year and a few other perks. For this, they charge me $75 each year, and I earn about 25,000 miles (slightly more than a free ticket).

This week I began to look for alternatives. I value 25,000 miles at about $250-$300, so after the fee, this was about $200. Capital One offers a "No Hassle" card that gives you 1% cash back, plus a 25% bonus at the end of the year, which would mean $300 cash, which seems like a better deal. I had some bargaining power.

So I called up Bank of America, ready to use it. I planned on saying that I wanted to cancel my card, and when they asked why, I would say that "it wasn't worth $75/year to me," at which time they would offer to waive the fee. The plan worked to perfection. It was basically as easy as calling up and getting an account balance. At the end of the conversation, the operator even asked if there was anything else she could do for me. What great service! I now recommend that anyone who pays an annual fee for their credit card follow suit. (Editor's note: They may like me more than most customers, since I've been loyal and always pay on time.)

Spider Extermination Attempt Nets Two; Habitat Destroyed

SAN DIEGO -- Two spiders were pronounced dead at the scene today during a mass arachnicide attempt. Names have not been released, but the official cause of death is being reported as massive head and leg trauma from a journey through a vacuum hose. Also during the mass raid, .0000000003 acres of prime spider habitat were completely obliterated, primarily in the corners of the ceiling and along the spiderweb ridge between the ceiling and the tops of the walls. No suspects have been found, though local environmental groups are up in arms.

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People who know me well know of my fear/loathing of spiders. When I moved to Seattle, I was amazed at the number of spiders that would find their way into my house. Now that I am in San Diego, I've noticed this isn't just Seattle's problem. Granted, I am currently living in a house that, for the most part, lacks traditional electric-powered lights. There certainly aren't any in the ceilings, and what few there are scattered around the house do little to illuminate those dark corners that spiders seem to enjoy most. So tonight, after seeing two live daddy-long-legs-ish spiders in my bedroom, I took it upon myself to do a mass purge. I fear that the spiders will get their revenge, but I needed to do it.

Buying a car from Christopher Walken

So on Sunday, Tracy and I decided to go test drive a few cars. Every so often, I need to re-evaluate my current car situation and determine whether it's time to move on. What brought this on was the fact that my car, despite its low mileage, is beginning to show some signs of wear and tear. The paint on the roof is fading, one headlight seems to be in the process of shorting out for the second time, and bumps are just a little bumpier. Plus, my gas mileage ain't what it used to be, and gas prices have gone up about 5 cents per day since I arrived in San Diego. And my commute is three times as long as it was in Seattle and requires a car.

For all these reasons, I decided to look at possibly a new Toyota or Scion. I first test-drove the Scion coupe, which looked a whole lot like my car at a fraction of the price, but didn't perform nearly as well. Next, I tried to test drive a Prius. Priuses are very hot down here for obvious reasons, and it has a lot of pluses that might get me to bite at the right price. When I asked to talk to a salesman, they presented me with Christopher Walken. Or so it seemed. Before he said a word, I could see an obvious resemblance, but after he opened his mouth, it was a no-contest. Here's a sample from a message he left me. (Apologies for the large file size) Compare this to the classic SNL skit and it all becomes clear. If only I had snapped a picture of him.

Despite his best intentions (this was his first week in car sales at age 58), I didn't end up buying a car from him. My car is still better than the Prius, especially as my driving declines when as I move to a new place in June. It was a fun day nonetheless.

MORE COWBELL!

In the Shadow of Giant Boulders: Joshua Tree

Yesterday, I went for a long day-trip with Tracy and some of her friends from residency to Joshua Tree National Park, which, at 3 hours, is the closest national park to San Diego. For those of you scoring at home, Joshua Tree is my twentieth national park visited, following (in no particular order): Rainier, North Cascades, Olympic, Crater Lake, Badlands, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest, Mesa Verde, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Zion, Yosemite, Glacier Bay, Hawaii Volcanoes, Redwood, Rocky Mountain, and Everglades. Congratulations, Joshua Tree.

We actually went there to do an interesting hike in the Wonderland Rocks area of the park, on the northern edge. This area basically looks like a bunch of boulders and other rock formations piled very high, which creates unusual shapes and spaces within which to crawl. It's really hard to explain, so hopefully the pictures do it justice! We hike mostly up for the better part of an hour and a half before returning to the car and entering the park through the conventional route. We saw some Joshua Trees on the way in, but hadn't yet seen any in the park land.

A Joshua Tree is actually a relative of the yucca plant. They only grow in very specific climates, like the high Mojave desert, and so there's aren't a ton of places in the world where you'll find them. Given the arid climate, it's impressive that such relatively large trees could even exist at all, but there are veritable "forests" of them as you drive through the park. Very interesting indeed.

All in all, it reminded me a lot of the parks in Utah, with a bright blue sky creating a pleasant contrast against the yellow and pink rocks. Certainly a different ball of wax from the parks I'm used to in the Pacific Northwest!

Joshua Tree, March 2007

Life in San Diego

Last week was my first week of work at my new job at Blueturn, and while it got off to a somewhat scary start, by Friday I felt like I was actually making some meaningful contributions. It's a small company that is in the process of rapid growth: when I interview in mid-February, there were only three full-timers. Now there are six, plus one part-timer. We are moving to a place twice as big on April 1 (moving up to 800 sq. ft. from 400), which will be nice with all the additional bodies. It looks like most of my time will be devoted to a client in the defense industry. I would tell you more about it but I might have to kill you ;-).

Tracy and I are housesitting a very nice 1100 sq. ft. house in the Mira Mesa area of San Diego, along with watching the two dogs. At first (as discussed in previous posts), I was a bit overwhelmed by all the driving, but I've since adjusted. Most of that is probably due to the fact that I have a very easy commute, which consumes most of my driving.

The dogs are great. They're generally outside when we're not home, and inside when we are, and they have ravenous appetites. Joey, whom we nicknamed "Jojo" or "Jojoba" (incorrectly pronounced "Joe-Joe-Ba", is a German Shepherd mix, and is the bigger and older of the two dogs. He can be pouty and curmudgeonly, but he knows how to turn on the charm when he feels like it. He's a leaner, and loves to just lean into you while he's getting his pets. Here's a picture of Joey:

Sugar is a pit bull/boxer mix, and she's as sweet as her name. We've nicknamed her "Sugar Puss", though unlike Joey, she'll come to just about anything. She doesn't bark or get into any trouble, and just wants to curl up in your lap and give you kisses. Here's a picture of her:

Early thoughts on this new place

San Diego (at least the part where I'm living) is most definitely not Seattle, and it's taken some getting used to. The main difference I've noticed so far is the driving experience.

In Seattle, getting around from Point A to Point B is relatively easy -- the city subscribes to a pretty strict numbering scheme that always gives you a clue on what direction you're traveling and what direction you need to go to get where you're going. The widest non-freeway roads are four lanes (two in each direction), and there aren't a lot of divided boulevards. People generally drive at or below the speed limit (especially when it rains), and while this can test your patience a bit, you don't often feel as though you might die.

The neighborhood where I now live, Mira Mesa, is 180 degrees different. Many roads seem to be 6 lanes wide (or more), there always seems to be a divider right where you don't want it, and people drive very aggressively. What's more, it's an endless array of *huge* strip malls and strip malls and business parks, and it's difficult for the newcomer to determine where something actually is and how to enter the parking lot (especially since, if you miss the parking lot, you'll likely have to do two U-turns while cutting across four lanes and driving an extra mile or two).

I will illustrate this with an example from today. I was heading west to the bike shop, and naturally, it was on the other side of the street. I figured this would be an excellent time for a U-turn, since I was now past the shop. The problem was that there was no driveway into the complex of the bike shop. So I took the next right and hoped that I could come in from behind the bike shop. No luck. So I had to go back out to the main road, turn left, and then go to the same intersection where I tried the U-turn before. Naturally, this street also had a divider, so I could turn right into the parking lot. I had to once again go past the parking lot where the bike shop was in order to pull a U-turn to get into the right lane to turn from. I'd guess this whole thing lasted about 10 minutes. So frustrating! These people need to learn the art of the suicide lane.