Bike to Work Day

I really wanted to join the fun and bike to work today. The weather was perfect and the traffic on 405 was horrible. There was an accident that caused long delays, which doubled my normal 20-minute commute.

To make myself feel better, I came up with the following excuses for my non-participation:

1. I don't have a bike.
2. I'm afraid of annoying/getting hit by cars.
3. 13.5 miles is a long way to bike.
   

Could I Have OCD?

I think I may have OCD.

Last night I was making some modifications to my car. A few months ago, I installed a third-party car stereo with line-in so I could use my iPhone to play music in my car. The problem is the iPhone creates audible interference whenever there is data transfer going on. At first I didn't mind, but now it is getter more annoying. Thankfully I found a solution: ferrite beads.

First, I cut up a cable to extract the ferrite bead. This was not easy. The cable I used encases the bead in about half an inch of plastic. I whittled away at a corner with a knife for five minutes before I saw any ferrite at all. I decided to give up and just keep the plastic in place.

Next I tried installing the ferrite bead in my car. This is when I made my biggest mistake. I had removed the stereo so I could tape the ferrite bead to the speaker wires. Before I could do that however, the bead slipped out of my hand and into a cavity in the stereo enclosure. Instinctively I reached for it, only to push it further into the dark nether reaches of my car's interior.

Here's when I think my OCD kicks in. All I can think about is this freakin ferrite bead being stuck in my car. I'm not thinking rationally anymore. I worry the additional weight will decrease my gas mileage, or that it will rattle when I drive. I try for half an hour trying various methods of extracting it with no success. I seriously consider disassembling the entire front panel. I really can't get anything else done for the rest of the night. I try to fall asleep, but I lie awake for about an hour thinking about my car.

Not So Stimulating After All

I got my tax stimulus payment of $600 direct deposited into my bank account last Friday (^_^). Today, I got my homeowner's insurance bill for $595 (T_T).

Looks like I have $5 left to stimulate the economy. I wonder what I should buy?

Homemade Apple Pie

I recently rediscovered how delicious apple pie can be and decided to try my hand at making one myself. Here's the recipe I used. The pie turned out great, though the crust was a bit hard.