Ousel Falls, originally uploaded by Brian Knight Photography.

An amazing site for teams (if they can spare the time to step off the trail for a few seconds). The volume of water coming down is simply amazing.

We’re just past CP5. Teams #3 TeamPeakAdventure.com & #1 Nike were seconds apart (Nike had stopped for ice cream) and team #2 Merrell/Zanfel Adventure was just a few minutes behind.

On the ridge, originally uploaded by Brian Knight Photography.

Teams are starting to clip in to the fixed ropes on the ridge.

On the mountain, originally uploaded by Brian Knight Photography.

I drove up, but the first teams almost beat me

Udvar-Hazy Baby!, originally uploaded by Brian Knight Photography.

So much space/camera nerdiness!!

See it again and again.

This office opened at 10am. Sure, others opened earlier, but this is the one directly between home and work (also, I’d have been back in sleep deficit if I’d tried for one of the other locations – which apparently had similar lines). In any case, the line behind me was as long as the one in front of me.

I know it’s a tradition and all that goes back to 1889, and I’m happy that we have separated the two holidays, but it makes me a little sad to still celebrate Lee-Jackson Day. At the very least can we continue with our government services for that day?

Single Point of Failure:

Using one device or communications line to perform a function. In order to ensure continuous operation, two or more devices or lines are used. Any computer or communications system that contains only one component to do a job creates a single point of failure. If that single component fails, there is no alternate one to take its place.

In the case of the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles the Single Point that failed this morning was the apathetic woman working at the front desk. The DMV’s system for managing lines at their service centers works like this:

Customers entering a Virginia DMV service center proceed to a central information counter where a staff member gives them the proper forms to fill out and assigns them a number based on what service they require. This ensures that customers end up with the right form at the right place, rather than waiting in an endless line only to find out they need to get more information and stand in line again. (source)

Looks great on paper except here’s the thing, sometimes (today for instance) you need more than one person performing triage on the line and BOTH people ought to be more on the high speed spectrum of employee ability. The girl at the desk clearly hated both her job and people. Maybe if it is only one hour into your job and you’ve just had at least three days off (two of which were paid by fellow citizens of the Commonwealth), maybe you should find another job. Please.

The lobby of the DMV had several hundred chairs, most of them empty, meanwhile the line to sit in the chairs was out the door, down the hallway, and snaked past Talbots and the kiddie play pen thing. I waited 51 minutes in line for a ticket and was then out the door and to my car 5 minutes later.

Time ticket B114 was printed: 10:51 am

Time receipt was printed: 10:56 am

What really sucks is that the service center is going to get credit for a five minute transaction. “Hey, go us… customer B114 showed up at the front desk on Jan. 2 and was out the door and satisfied in only five minutes! Aren’t we just the model of efficiency?”

No. No you are not DMV.

Now, the purpose of my visit was to renew my (expired) vehicle registration, a process that I began way back in August ‘07. Since then the car has been in the shop at least three times because in order to renew your registration you must first pass an emissions test, a test that my car has been reluctant to pass.

Anyways, my number is called and I go up to the counter…

DMV Guy: What can I do for you today?

Me: I’d like to renew my registration! <big smile>

DMV Guy: Do you have the form?

Me: Yes! <hands form over>

DMV Guy: <looking over form, typing into computer, realising how way, way past expired my car is, brows deeply furrowing>

DMV Guy: Sir, have you been driving your vehicle with expired plates?

Me: Um, no? <hopefully displaying completely innocent face>

DMV Guy: <not believing a word of it but continuing to process the transaction>

DMV Guy: You know the fees went up as of Jan 1?

Me: <blank stare, thinking… wtf?! Like I’m not going to pay it now that I’ve learned the fees have increased? Is there another option that I missed where I no longer have to register my car in the state where I live? Is there some kind of appeal process for not paying the higher fees? Of course I’m going to pay the fees. It’s $103? So what! I just paid $1,700 to get the damn check engine light to turn off and thus allow me to pass the test. What’s another hundred buck? You dummy.>

Me: Ok <hands over credit card>

DMV Guy: Thank you, Happy New Year.

Me: <indeed>

Happy new year!, originally uploaded by outdoor_type.

Almost home, originally uploaded by outdoor_type.

Got a niffty gps for christmas. Now I can collect all sorts of nerdy data about my commute. Today’s drive home took 27 minutes w/ 25 minutes of moving time… Not too bad.

Martin van Buren?!, originally uploaded by outdoor_type.

US Presidential dollar coins are out now. Does the us mint really think the 8th president is going to be more popular then Sacagawea? I mean, sure, he’s OK, but does he deserve the full on dollar coin treatment? I’m not so sure…

(Note: This was mainly just a test post. I just realised that you can post directly to your blog AND Flickr at the same time via email via cameraphone. It’s kind of neat actually.)

Also, it’s been pointed out that these are not dollar coins, but are in fact quarters.  But I didn’t have any dollar coins to photograph, so here’s an image of $2.25 instead.

No f’in way, originally uploaded by outdoor_type.

A few thoughts while I wait at the gate from today’s travels…

Airport Efficiency

This is the busiest travel day of the year, but you wouldn’t know it from visiting Washington Dulles International Airport.

I’ve flown out of here three times in the past 6 weeks or so and by far Veterans Day was the worst in terms of traffic, full lots, and long, long, lines at security.

Thanksgiving? Cakewalk. Today? Ditto. There was no line at the ticket counter, no live for the various security check points. In fact, this kind of caused a problem because unless you’ve got your act totally together and have nothing in your pockets before even entering the line you end up having to stop at the x-ray machine and stuff your bag full of your pocket’s contents. Normally you’ve got plenty of time to do this while shuffling along with hundreds of your newest, closest friends, kick pushing your carry-ons across the floor. Anyways, I’m not complaining. I just could have waited someplace else instead of here at the Z10 gate which is lacking in its amenities is all I’m saying. There, I guess I am complaining, but only a little. Things are too good is my problem.

Designed for Small Compartments

A US Air guy just walked up and put this ticket on my camera bag. No way am I checking it, even at the gate. Update: this is becoming a fun game… I took off the original tag. 20 minutes later he walked by and attached another tag! (which I promptly removed. again)

The bag is designed for small planes:

Airport Antidote
Legal carry on backpack fits all international carry on requirements, and fits into the overhead of very small planes.

After the jump, The Carry-On Conclusion, A One Wheeled Landing, and… Detained by TSA!

The Carry-On Conclusion…

So guess what? The gate agent didn’t know what he was talking about and the ThinkTank claims proved true. Not only did my bag fit nicely in the overhead compartment of the CRJ, it also fit (minus the laptop sleeve) in the overhead of the Dash 8. And because I got to board Zone 1 for the second flight I was able to be “that guy.” You know, the guy who boards early and who puts BOTH bags in the overhead. Yeah, that was me today.

Ok, as much as I’d love to end this with the bravado of the guy who doesn’t care if his fellow passengers have room for their bags, I was actually feeling a little guilty about things until I realised the flight was only half sold. I kept waiting for more people to board, ready at a moment’s notice to jump up and pull the smaller bag out of the bin, but it wasn’t long before the door was shut and nearly everyone on the plane had two seats to themselves.

Air travel can be so nice when the delays are minimal and you’ve got room to stretch your legs. Maybe I should amend this to say that air travel can be so nice when you’ve got minimal delays, room to stretch your legs, and a pilot who can put both of the rear wheels on the tarmac at the same time…

20 knot Winds = Exciting Landing

On bigger planes you don’t often feel the effects of wind pushing the tail end around, but today, today we got to experience a little bit of that.

On our final approach we were informed by the flight deck crew that a 20 knot wind was blowing at HHH and we should make sure our seat belts were securely fastened low across our laps. The ride was in fact bumpy with the plane jostling about the sky. Things became bumpier still as we made a one wheel (the left rear) landing. My seat on the right side of the plane was directly across from the right rear landing gear and I watched as we hop skipped across the runway… down and then up and then down and up and then finally both rear wheels were on the ground and then, after a slightly longer than normal wheelie, the nose slammed down too. Safe! And exciting.

Detained by TSA or HHH is a Really Small Airport

How small is it? It’s so small that the TSA folks who inspect your bags, are also the same folks who operate the metal detectors, are also the same folks who open and close the metal gates that let you in and out of the terminal (gates like you see at a locked shop at the mall after hours). So after our exciting landing, and one of the shortest taxis you’ll ever find at a commercial airport, we entered the terminal only to discover the metal gates were closed because the TSA guy hadn’t realised the only plane landing had landed. Oops. Again, that my longest delay of the entire day was caused at my destination after deplaning… I should be so lucky (or in the words of S. Vowell, it could be worse). While everyone queued up at the gate and began to fidget I sat down, relaxed, and just went with it. Welcome to the island where everything moves just a little bit slower. Ok by me.

Wow. Traffic sucks, originally uploaded by outdoor_type.

Even though I sacrificed and did my part for commuting-kind by staying off the roads until late morning (and um, sleeping in a little extra), traffic was still a big huge mess!

You know things are bad when you’ve been driving for about four minutes only to come to a complete stop well before any of the normal places that you might come to a complete stop.

Immediately after snapping this pic with my cameraphone I managed to sneak across a couple lanes to an exit. From there I worked my way through a series of back roads and managed to both avoid all major traffic arteries and not slide off the road (though there was one close call). I can report that the sign stating “Bridge Freezes Before Road” is very much true.

My commute took the same 40 minutes as it normal and I got to drive through some really pretty stretches of countryside. It’ so easy to think of the suburbs as tract housing interrupted by strip malls, but less than 10 minutes from my house are wide open spaces with horses. With the first layer of fallen snow it looked quite pretty and while I am already sick to death of all the many horrible commercials and bad x-mas displays, I do love the music and have to admit that more than one Christmas carol popped into my head as I drove through the woods and over streams and the dry snow blew about as if shaken in a small glass globe.