17 August 2013

LEGO Back to the Future Time Machine (21103)

LEGO DeLorean Time Machine (21103)
This is the LEGO set that nerds like me have been waiting for.  Through their Cussoo program, LEGO has released the DeLorean Time Machine from Back to the Future.  The set was released at this year's Comic Con in San Diego.  To no surprise, the sets were sold out within minutes.  Luck for us who did not make it, or were too lazy to head down to San Diego, the set is available at 'select retailers' and at LEGO for $34.99.

Anticipating the rate that these are selling, I ordered mine through LEGO.  These are currently sold out everywhere, typical wait is about 30 days.  You can always pay more at an online auction site or just order and wait a few weeks for delivery.

The set is pretty much what you would expect from LEGO.  Although, the prototype and other fan made Time Machines are more 'accurate', this set is great at the price point and for the general consumer.  One of the highlights is the set comes with pieces to make three versions of the Time Machine as seen in the Back to the Future Trilogy.  Notice I said "three versions" and not "all three versions".  Why?  Because there are at five versions of the Time Machine from the movies.

The three versions of the Time Machine you can build from the set
Anyway, you can build three.  Version 1 - Original from 1985, with Plutonium Chamber.  Version 2 - Upgraded from 2015, with Mr. Fusion and Hover Conversion.  Version 3 - From 1955, with Hood Box and Red Wheels (but no white wall tires).*

The set is fairly easy to build with easy to follow directions.  It is graded for 10+, but you know and I know, that if you are giving this to a kid, you end up building it yourself.  Oh, kids these days and their video games.  The build should take about an hour.  It took me about two hours, but I like to line up the "LEGO" on the studs so they face the same direction when possible.  Yes, I really do this.  I also shot the process using my GoPro camera and iPod Touch, making a stop motion gif.

 
Building the LEGO Time Machine
For each step, I would snap a photo and rotate the base the width of one LEGO stud.  You can see the piece of tape with pencil mark at the at the bottom, where my finger pops in.  There are 62 steps in the build.  The first 55 frames of the gif above shows the build, I combined some smaller steps to save time.  I did not really know how much it would rotate in the build.   Since I finished before the full 360ยบ, I showed the door open and close to finish the full rotation.  Total frame count is 97.

Marking the turntable, using a "LEGO T-Square"
Here is the interesting part.  You can see the iPod at the top of the frame.  I was just listening to it on shuffle, as I finished the build, the iPod was playing a track from the Back to the Future soundtrack.

I did not think ahead to document the process of  documenting the process.  I tore down the set before I had a change to snap a few photos.  Should have taken a before and after shot, but it is mostly there in the gif.

01 August 2013

FUCK YOU, STOP CALLING ME - August 2013

I get pretty excited when I get a call on the first day of the month.  On one hand, I fucking hate these fuckers...nothing new there.  On the other hand, I want to see if they can call me everyday for an entire month.  I will let it slide if they do not call during the weekends.  But, you know how these fuckers love to call and a Saturday morning is not going to stop them.

1 August 2013
   407-673-0587   FL, USA -  This is interesting,  I looked this number up on Google and there are no 'reports' of this being a telemarketers' number from the usual places.  Well, I am pretty sure it is one.  So, this entry might be the first 'official' report of this number being a telemarketer.  Spread the word, let everyone know that these fuckers are terrorists.

Top searches in the last 24 hours that lead you here.

Update:  In the last 24 hours, there have been 92 views of this post.  Most, if not all, from searches of the telemarketers number.  I am happy to provide you with the entertainment and, in a way, information on telemarketer numbers.  I do this for free, since my Google AdSense has been disabled.

2 August 2013
   757-414-2323  VA, USA - This is exactly what I was hoping for, two days in a row.  August is off to a great start.  I hope they keep this up...just so I have something to write about.  If only my teachers can see me now.  Hey look, I am working on my creative writing skills.  Fuck you!

6 August 2013
   479-677-8520  AR, USA - Fucking slackers,  where were you yesterday?  I give you the weekend off and you take Monday off.  Did not even call in sick?  Wait...you know what I mean.  Arkansas...what if there was a pirate on Jeopardy! and the answer was "Topeka is the capital of this state".  Then the pirate buzzes in and says, "What is Arh-Kansas?"  Would the pirate be given credit for that?  And, why is it pronounced "Arh-Kan-Saw", when you have a "Kans-Ass" located just diagonally from you?  Fuck you in the saw!

12 August 2013
  925-420-1424  'East San Francisco Bay Area' - Oh what do we have here?  Looking back on last month, we have a number from same area code and prefix, but different 'extension'.  Obviously, the Walnut Creek area is a headquarters for telemarketers.  Are they on Willow Pass Road, Pleasant Hill Drive?  Perhaps the students from Diablo Valley College are working summer jobs at this place.  Speaking of summer jobs and DVC, do you know the movie Summer School?  There is a scene where Mark Harmon wears Diablo Valley College shirt.  No kidding.

Mark Harmon sporting a Diablo Valley College shirt.
Oh, here is an idea...maybe Mark Harmon and his team at NCIS can do an episode on tracking down telemarketers.  I have said many time that telemarketers are terrorists.  I would totally watch that episode.

   925-420-1415  'East San Francisco Bay Area' - Mother fucker!  Two calls within two hours, same area code and prefix.  How many numbers do you think they have?  Fuck you!

16 August 2013
   281-386-9440  Houston, TX - Someone in Houston should find were the telemarketing office is and have them drawn an quartered.  You know, because when I think of Texas, I think of cowboys and horses.  It makes no sense, but neither does randomly calling someone on the Do Not Call Registry in hopes of me picking up the call.  Fuck you!

19 August 2013
   925-420-1423  'East San Francisco Bay Area' - Now, there are at least least four numbers from this prefix.  So, I have been watching Battlestar Galactica, both the original and the recent remake.  I see these numbers as Cylons.  I know they are out there, but not what the actual numbers are.  So far, there are four...there could be twelve.  Frak you!

26 August 2013
   918-866-7810  Sparks, OK - Looks like this the third time I  got a call from this number.  I like return callers, it lets me ignore them faster without thinking if it is a real call.  Although, it is a fun surprise when you set your phone to vibrate.  Fuck you, Sparks...okay?

30 August 2013
   616-980-2164  MI, USA - Last minute rush before the long weekend, and the end of the month.  Also, Labour Day marks the end of summer, so I guess the summer interns at the telemarketing firms are getting in those last calls.  You internship was a total waste.  Go back to school and think about how you could have had a meaningful internship at a respectable place of employment.  No one is going to hire you when they see that you worked for a telemarketing firm.  Fuck you!

Nike+ FuelBand Quick Review

FuelBand has pretty lights
The Nike+ FuelBand was released in early 2012.  After a year and a half, I finally got my hands on...uh, my wrist in one of these.  There are tons of reviews out there, most if not all, are better than what I will cover.  This will cover my first week of using this as an exercise tool.

First, a quick review of the product.  The Nike+ Fuelband is a stylish band that basically keeps track of your movement via an accelerometer.  Like a Nintendo Wii-mote, if you have played any  games on the Wii, you should be familiar with accelerometers.  The idea is, you set your goal based on 'NikeFuel'.  An average active day is about 2000 NikeFuel points.  The more you move, the more NikeFuel you earn.  It also kinda tracks calories burned and steps taken, like a pedometer. All this and it tells time.

While it is water resistant is it not waterproof.  This means you can sweat all over it and it will be fine, you can even wear it in the shower.   But, it is not made for swimming or relaxing bubble baths with champagne...nor regular baths.

Nike+ FuelBand and App for iOS.
So how well does it work?  Since movement is the key to racking up points, it helps if the activity involves a lot of moving your arms...assuming you are wearing the FuelBand on your wrist.  Those engaging in activities that concentrate on lower body movement, like cycling (see Update#2, below), will not see much gain in NikeFuel.  An activity such as tennis, where you are running and swinging your arms would yield more points.  Not an exact way of measuring, but once you have an idea of a typical workout/activity, you can set your goals accordingly.  There is even an App to help you keep track of your goals.

To give you an idea, here is my first week of using the Nike+ FuelBand.

23 July - Hockey, 2702 NikeFuel
Tuesday, 23 July - I got the FuelBand in the morning and began setting it up. Once I put it on, it began tracking my movements.  You can see my activity throughout the day with time stamps.  Most of the minor activity was from walking around at work.  The large green spike was from playing hockey.  It seems that an activity like hockey does not generate a lot of arm movement, only about 530 NikeFuel points.  This may have to do with gliding and smooth movement on skates.  Skating is lower impact than running.  Or, maybe I was not skating hard enough.  Believe me, I was tired after the first period, and I know I burnt a lot of calories that night.

24 July - Yoga, 2303 NikeFuel
Wednesday, 24 July - Again, some movement during the day at work.  Looks like I was totally slacking off around 2PM.  While I do move around a lot when I am at my desk, most of the movements are on the other arm.  The large spike at the end was during yoga.  Lots of movement of the arms during this yoga class as I move from pose to pose.  An hour of yoga was about 561 NikeFuel points.  How is that about same as hockey?

 25 July - Weights, 2641 NikeFuel
Thursday, 25 July - I think I was sitting in a meeting during that flat spot you see (in yellow).  At night, I went to the gym and started off with about ten minutes on the row machine, then did an overall body weight workout.  Then, a five minute session with the heavy bag before cooling down with stretches, earning 562 points.

26 July - Cardio, 3160 NikeFuel
Friday, 26 July - The initial spike in the morning is from driving to work.  Other days, I was carpooling, in the passenger seat.  Controlling that car is a real workout.  Once I got to work, you can see there is some quality slacking off here.  Who really works on Fridays?  I make up for it at the gym.  The workout consisted of a twenty minute walk/run on the treadmill, more weights, and heavy bag at the end before stretches and cool down.  This workout earned about 1013 NikeFuel points, mostly due to the time on the treadmill.  Lots of arm swinging and steps taken.

27 July - Hockey, 2859 NikeFuel
Saturday, 27 July - Another hockey game, also racking up about 504 NikeFuel points.  Maybe I have, what they in hockey terms, call "soft hands".  I doubt it, I am pretty clumsy out there.  I should note that I wear the FuelBand on my left wrist, and I shoot left.  I need to take more shots, but first, have better puck possession/handling skills. That orange dip you see...I was taking a nap.

28 July - House work, 3780 NikeFuel

Sunday, 28 July - The plan was to slack off the entire day.  Watched some episodes of the original Battlestar Galatica (1978).  Then I did some house work.  I was cleaning the leather couch with one of those cleaning kits, lots of dabbing and wiping, resulting in that spike with 631 points.  The second spike is from cooking.  According to these stats, cleaning a leather couch is more intense than hockey.  Seems legit to me.

29 July - Pilates, 3518 NikeFuel
 Monday, 29 July - Relative slow day at work, this gave me a chance to work on a personal project.  During the spike around 2PM, I was on the mill, making parts.  I spent about an hour cranking on the machine earning about 500 points.  At night, it was Pilates class.  While mostly core and lower body work, there were some upper body movements.  The 560 NikeFuel points was just over the amount I exerted on the mill.

There you have it, a full week of NikeFuel points.  As you can see on my charts, they have all green, meaning the goals have been reached.  I did have trouble syncing up one day (Saturday), and I did not get credit for achieving my goal for that day.  The App needs to be connected to Internet and the NikePlus website whilst syncing with the FuelBand.  For some reason, there was an issue with connecting with Nike so my goal was never registered, although, my NikeFuel points were.

The streak ended at four days.  Now, I have to start my streak over because of this minor glitch..  Looks like I am not making the honour roll this season.

Update:  Nike says the battery lasts anywhere from 1-4 days, depending on activity level (accumulating points and syncing).  I had it last well over two weeks and it still did not flash low battery on me.

I also tricked the FuelBand while cycling.  I looped it through the strap on my shoes.  Granted, I was on the trainer for this and not on the road.

Update #2:  The FuelBand works while cycling!

Nike FuelBand works with cycling
Yesterday, I went for my first bike ride of the year.  I know, it is almost September and I just got back on the bike.  Hey, I have been playing hockey.  I wore the FuelBand to see if I would get any feedback from it, expecting minimal results.  According to Nike and my initial test on the trainer, the FuelBand does not work well with cycling...unless you are on the road.

My guess is that being on the road, you have a lot of bumps and vibrations along the way to activate the accelerometer.  With the trainer, there is minimal movement of the band.  Which I why I tried strapping it to my shoe.

After the ride, I checked it and had my biggest point gain with almost 4000 points from the ride alone.  Total ride time (not including stops) was about 2:39:09, with 36.61 miles covered.  The FuelBand says I burnt 1793 calories all day, my bike computer says I burnt 1890, just on the ride.  I would say that the band did not count about 50% of my calories burnt while cycling.  I am not even sure how devices like these count burnt calories. 

List of banners one can achieve with the Nike FuelBand (stolen from How to Nike)
Update #3 - 18 September 2013  Here is an excellent in-depth review of the Nike FuelBand by DC Rainmaker.  Check it out!