Pilot's Log

Now I have eight different patterns loaded for the eight aircraft carrier models I want to reverse-engineer. Of course, my main two limitations in this endeavour will be funding and patience...with the next one being working space.

This picture postcard isn't a photograph.

Nor is it a painting.

This is a computer model. In 3D.

Sagittarius Horoscope for week of July 26, 2012

After consulting the astrological omens, I've concluded that during the next three weeks, you will deserve the following titles: 1. Most Likely to Benefit from Serendipitous Adventures; 2. Most Likely to Exclaim "Aha!"; 3. Most Likely to Thrive While Wandering in Wild Frontiers and Exotic Locales; 4. Most Likely to Have a Wish Come True If This Wish Is Made in the Presence of a Falling Star. You might want to wait to fully embody that fourth title until the period between August 9 and 14, when the Perseids meteor shower will be gracing the night skies with up to 170 streaks per hour. The peak flow will come on August 12 and 13.

The wild frontiers and exotic locales aren't likely, at least for a while.

Reading this, I was reminded that a whole genre of music was invented not by the performance but by the description of said performance, when a reviewer wrote that Jimi Hendrix' guitar play was like "heavy metal falling from the sky". Maybe this means, I might discover something completely new to human experience, even if I don't do it myself.

And I may as well blab it because I don't think I have any hope of patenting it--and because I think the sooner it's put together by somebody--anybody!--the better.

I was watching the news coverage of the aftermath of the NAS Oceana F-18 crash and how the newsies were saying it could take weeks to arrive at a cause of the accident. I remembered that most military jets didn't have flight recorder systems as such, simply because they didn't have space for them. And then I realized that the aircrew already were plugged into the plane whenever it was in operation. The helmet headset. Run a data feed from the aircraft's computer to a memory module in the headset and then there would be a flight datalog even if the crew ejects from the plane. The module wouldn't have to be big...probably smaller than an iPod.

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A new format of television news.

Sagittarius Horoscope for week of December 8, 2011

Harvey Ball was a commercial artist who dreamed up the iconic image of the smiley face. He whipped it out in ten minutes one day in 1963. Unfortunately for him, he didn't trademark or copyright his creation, and as a result made only $45 from it, even as it became an archetypal image used millions of times all over the world. Keep his story in the back of your mind during the coming weeks, Sagittarius. I have a feeling you will be coming up with some innovative moves or original stuff, and I would be sad if you didn't get proper credit and recognition for your work.

The problem is that I'm not sure I trust legal professionals with my ideas. And too many other people don't want me to have ideas. But I love a good idea, when I see one happen.

In reference to THIS EARLIER ENTRY...

The other day, Dad related to me that he also noticed the car and was a little interested himself. But at the same time, a low-mileage Daewoo sedan is being sold by a neighbor up the road. The price is definitely reasonable, but whether it will still be available when Dad clears his debts is another story.

I have been brainstorming things I could do if I did in fact acquire the Bradley. But there are still too many choices. GM/Toyota (with the possibility of parts commonality with Moonshine)? Ford/Mazda? Chrysler/Mitsubishi? BMW? Something more exotic? There is plenty of room in the Witches' Cauldron to throw things in and let them stew.

HOT WHEELS: THE TV SERIES

Original Premise: A rip-off of Speed Racer (and, to a lesser extent, Jonny Quest) but based on the then-new Mattel toy car product line. Centered around the life of budding race car driver Jack Wheeler and his circle of friends as they get into various predicaments in their motorsports travels. Just like Speed Racer, Jack has a custom car called the Jack Rabbit (which was loosely based on the Ford Mustang I prototype show car) that can be modified for different types of operations.

Reimagined: Updated for the youth car culture of the 21st Century. Instead of hot-rodding and customizing cars, we're talking alternative power, new materials, and driver-friendly electronics. The Jack Rabbit starts as a science fair project study, which wins backers and is built as a real car and shown to the world.

The other day I voiced my discontent with TV news at the national level. So, you ask, how would I do things differently, if I had the power? Well, I'll tell you:

With the advent of digital broadcast, it is now possible for a network to have a dedicated 24-hour news channel on over-air broadcast rather than cable. So that's the vehicle I'd choose, rather than a half-hour condensed program. That format alone is a horrible limitation, especially in the mass media world we have now.

The big three TV networks have a powerful asset that they don't use often enough: the local affiliate news teams. My channel concept would be completely reliant on--and devoted to--them.

120 cities across America, including the Nation's Capital, all the State Capitals, and 69 cities chosen not just because of their population but their location. Each affiliate in that city gets guaranteed blocks of three minutes to present their best stories of the moment. How many blocks per day would depend on whether the affiliates are willing to work 24/7 and the need for updates.

120 cities * 3 minutes each = 1 news cycle. If this is smartly constructed, the channel's operation can be highly automated with little need for management from the central network. No national talking heads/hosts/pundits. You can cover a lot of local news in three minutes, and a lot of what is happening nationwide with 120 cities. And this would bust open the awful "echo chamber" that currently exists in network TV news.