Somehow this never made it to the Gearbox merch store.

In this one:

• Man cave renovations.
• HotS and BL2.
• A carbon fiber surfboard.

The computing domain has come along some since we last checked in. Side note: hdr is great for interior photography. I need more practice at mixing, but it's a useful tool for mitigating contrasty environments.



Kaf is not a big fan of the truck bed on account of the liner's ribbing. I decided to solve this and provide a tie-down mechanism so he can't bail whenever he spots a fallen sandwich.

V2 won't be so narrow in the middle, although the gap to the wheel well is a great place to put a water bowl. The steel cable could be replaced with a metal rail so leashes slide easier.


I'm always keen to check out Costco's garage-related offerings, recently they featured a concrete sealing product. While black isn't the most popular floor color, for some applications it looks a lot better than bare concrete. And $20 for five gallons beats any paint or epoxy, assuming it works.

I gave it a first try on a disposable surface, the dog platform mentioned above. It seemed to do the job and was very easy to work with. Back when I stained and epoxied the slab in the garage and downstairs, I skipped over the basement area adjacent to the garage as it would have been impossible to grind. This stuff seemed like it might work with less intensive surface prep and, well, the annex area doesn't need to look pretty.


The effort wasn't entirely an indulgence, it was a good excuse to reorganize the tool/storage area. The place looks considerably better if not marginally more Buffalo Bill-ish. The sealer may also be good for mitigating moisture and termites in structural wood - it's cheaper than paint and doesn't require mixing.


I finally ditched the electrical tape/zip tie flash mounting system for the Ikelite-standard quickrelease fixture. I opted for the ball-socket approach rather than the bendy-arms as they should hold up better for surf photos.


I think I finally have Nova dialed in. Almost have her to level ten, not that her legendary skin is especially good.



J sent me the Borderlands Handsome Collection for my bday - our old favorite Borderlands but in 1080 and 60fps. It's on PS4 so screencaps are much easier to procure.



Since J has already done a Gunzerker runthrough, it was my turn to dual-wield. My natural playstyle is a bit more deliberate than what Sal demands, but I'm getting by. He definitely has the most mutually-complimentary skills.





Since I'm me, I've always been after a carbon fiber surfboard. Light, durable, flexible, distinctive - really the best of all worlds. A $1,200 price tag and complete contentedness with my Tuflite board has kept the desire at bay. Until now.

I've been looking off and on since last riding one of Erik's boards and realizing how much I've grown accustomed to unstable takeoffs, owing to the renowned corkiness of Tuflite rides. Going used seemed like a good idea - everyone claims cf boards last forever and, well, damage/repairs are really easy to spot. While I wasn't f5ing Craigslist all day every day, it did seem that there was very little used inventory.


But last week I found one nearby for an excellent price. And, well, look at that stomp pad.


Of course the purchase coincided with rain and wind, but I did get out this morning. It's better than my Tuflite board on buoyancy - sitting, at least - I need to get a few more waves to assess the drop in. Where the Flyer II turned on a dime but was very sensitive to input, the Zen II is much happier going where it is pointed. I'm not sure if they have any hydrological/hydrodynamical purpose, but the topside grooves near the rails make the board far easier to grip without significant amounts of wax.

It looks to be a fairly early Aviso board. When you pull the drain plug you can see evidence of ad hoc layup. Also the weave around the fin boxes is a bit irregular and appears to contain fiberglass. Has cf board quality improved significantly with their newer methods? I'm not sure, but this one seems sound enough.


I recently spent part of a Padres game and all of the rain delay in a Western Metal Supply suite (bailing at 11:00 on a school night). Not quite as posh as the qcom or Hays boxes, but a pretty good time.


I've made a few landfill runs with tree trimmings. Lots of tree trimmings.

Nuclear launch detected.

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Friday was Jeff's 30th, for which we had a lan party. Save for three levels of Turtles in Time, we exclusively played the Heroes of the Storm beta. Breaks featured Round Table, pool time, and fireballs.


Anything but a mellow day. Brian and Jamie's barbecue was pretty awesome.


I joined Shane and Margaret on a dive trip to the Coronados Islands. I had heard good things. Unfortunatley, we picked a weekend with considerable wind and turbulent underwater conditions. The conditions left it just like any other San Diego spot.

I'm 0/2 on underwater flash. Last time my used Ikelite flash leaked. This time I used the Nikon speedlight/housing combination but it stopped working very quickly (no leaks). Ugh.

Finds:

• Quite a few schools of fish.
• A sea lion just hanging out at 60' like it's no big deal.
• A big ol' sea slug.
• A dead fish covered in shelled creatures.
• Irony, in that Shane had seaweeds grabbing his dive knife straps.

Oh and Nathan wanted a few frames with Whitney for a Mothers' Day gift.

Hill climb champions: 3. Ice Climbers 2. Suzuki Escudo Pike's Peak 1. Skyrim horse

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