I found this linked from kottke.org:
How Many HTML Elements Can You Name in 5 Minutes?
I managed 44 elements. It’s harder than you think, even for web nerds like me who write HTML for a living!
Less
More
So, after a few very late nights and lots of coding and tweaking, I’ve put live a new version of hostile17. It’s been a while since I’ve shot anything, for various reasons I won’t go into right now, but Rich sneakily forced me to come out of my self-imposed photographical sabbatical by very kindly asking me to shoot his wedding (pics to follow). So, after making it through my first wedding photoshoot intact, I decided I should get back into photography and start posting my stuff on the web again.
I’ve taken the decision to start afresh, so there’s no photographs from the previous site. This is a clean slate in every way. Thoughts, comments and constructive feedback are welcomed - leave a comment, or drop me a line. Andy R, Rich, Chris - I’m counting on you photography-geek types to keep me inspired to continue!
Wired Magazine can be a bit hit-and-miss with its content, at least for me, but this story rocked my world. Great writing on a contentious subject involving cars, a flat-out disregard for the law and the deep-seated need to drive fast.
My preview of the Brazilian Grand Prix is now online at CNN.
Writing a preview for such an important race was a difficult task. I tried very hard to avoid any bias in the article, despite me being totally biased towards Lewis Hamilton! I even gave Massa some credit, and I’ve been an outspoken critic of his driving in the past.
This weekend will be a nerve-wracking one - Rich is getting married on the Saturday and I’m the photographer, which is something I’ve never done before. So, I’m nervous about that - wedding photographs are forever and I don’t want to disappoint Rich, Tania or their families! Then, in the evening England play in the Rugby World Cup final, and I’ll be on tenterhooks to see if they can successfully defend their title.
And finally Sunday, the day that will decide the 2007 F1 Driver’s Championship. I’m not looking forward to the start of that race. I want to see Hamilton destroy the opposition and win in style, but common sense tells me that this is unlikely to be a fairly-tale race. Still, I believe in Hamilton.
Win it, Lewis.
Update 1: as of 12pm 17/10/2007, my article is on the CNN frontpage! It probably won’t stay there for long, but still…
Update 2: as of 2pm 17/10/2007, it’s listed in the ‘Popular News’ section on the front page as well. Must be all those people I emailed it to reading it!
I was listening to the radio on my way to work this morning, Amy Winehouse’s version of ‘Valerie’ playing, and I thought to myself, “She’d do a great job on a Bond theme, a Shirley Bassey for the Daniel Craig era.”. The very first thing the DJ said as the song ended was, “Amy Winehouse would do a great job for the next Bond theme, sort of like a Shirley Bassey for the 21st Century…”.
Spooky.
Apple have finally announced the details of the iPhone release in the UK, and it’s going to be on O2. Dammit, I’m going to have to change networks again.
I woke up on Sunday morning, all ready to go to a christening for Carla’s godson. A time for celebration, and I was really looking forward to the day. Then I looked at my phone - one text message from Andy: “Shit, Colin McRae just died in a helicopter crash!”
I passed the phone wordlessly to Carla, who saw my expression fall. A deep breath. Then, “I’m glad we’re going to Jack’s christening today, otherwise I think I’d have a pretty miserable day.”
That sounds terribly self-involved now, but by way of explanation, Colin McRae was a hero of mine on a par with Senna. A driver touched by genius, someone whose ability in a car could raise the hairs on the backs of your arms and take your breath away.
I wanted to write about my experience of seeing him drive first-hand on the Rally GB, but I was looking through the Autosport forums and came across this memory, which sums him up far better than I ever could:
One memory of many.
Grizedale, 1993 RAC Rally - early morning sun just rising, blue skies, lakes and trees shining, very cold, roads icy. I’m on the inside of a long bend, looking out over the Lake District and all I can think is that there is no better place on this earth to be. First car comes through, then another, then another. Big names, big noise. Vatanen, Kankunnen, Mikkola, Salonen, Sainz, Biasion, Alen, Blomqvist, Auriol. Nothing between them. Noise first, throttle off/on/off/on barking through the scenery, cars struggling, all quick, all committed. Then something different - constant throttle, fully open, never a lift. Car appears, wheel hanging over the edge, nailed down, graceful as a ballet dancer, redefines commitment.
Thank you Colin.
Neil took the Nerd Test 2.0, so I had to, and I’m:
An anniversary of sorts, yesterday. I meant to post this then, but somehow in the confusion of working on three jobs at once, I forgot.
“This is not good. This is not good at all. This is fuckin’ bad.” So dumb. So dull. We sound like frat boys when the keg is dry, but there’s nothing else we can say about what we’ve got in front of us. In front of us, high above us, the south tower has a huge hole torn through it, a burning, screaming maw with thick black smoke pouring out. Occasionally, flames lick up one corner of the twisted mouth of the hole and then retreat, only to reappear on the other side. It doesn’t seem real. It doesn’t even seem that serious at first, actually, until I remember just how big the building is, how many stories high — and that the hole must therefore cover twelve stories, at least. “This isn’t the kind of history I want to be present at,” I say, lamely.
- For thou art with us, Sarah Bunting
I read this piece every year, on 11th September. It’s still as powerful as when I first read it, 3 days after the towers collapsed.
But wait! There’s more:
