Sunday, March 17, 2024

[1058] Thoughts

Yesterday, March 16, 2024, I gave an online presentation via Zoom a little past 8pm. The topic was an intro to Blender Video Editing.

I don't usually do this, probably never had done it before yesterday. I don't count teaching colleagues at work because that is with people I know. Yesterday was different since this was with people I don't know. Total strangers.

It was something a good friend of mine invited me to do. He was working with someone who has this goal of empowering Filipinos with skills they can use to do online freelance work. I thought it was a good idea so I volunteered my time.

I also chose Blender video editing because it was a) free and b) I don't think I can teach the basics of 3D in an hour. I think, and I hope, I was able to at least give the people who attended the call an idea of how to start out editing videos in Blender.

I do have my "issues" with Blender but I still think it is a very powerful tool that is also open source.

I do feel good about what I did. I guess sometimes I need to do things out of my comfort zone just so I can keep moving forward.

Out.

Monday, March 11, 2024

[1057] Two Car Garage

I've blogged about this countless times before but I need a filler blog post. Er, I mean I've made my decision now. As of this moment I'm choosing the Suzuki S-Presso AGS and the Toyota Veloz 1.5 V CVT Platinum White Pearl. Combined cost of both cars won't exceed PhP 2 million.

I initially compared the S-Presso with the similarly prized Toyota Wigo 1.0 E CVT Yellow SE (because I really, really like high vis colors). I decided on the former for the simple reason that it is smaller overall while having a slightly taller ground clearance than the latter. This gives the S-Presso the advantage in city driving and parking because hopefully you'll have more free space when you park. They may just be around 10 to 20 centimeters but that's still a big deal. At least for me.

As for the Veloz, I compared it to the Toyota Avanza 1.5 G CVT and the Suzuki Ertiga 1.5 GLX AT Hybrid. I originally liked (and still do) the Avanza but checking the comparison I think it's worth the additional cost for a few features the Avanza doesn't have. Like the lane departure warning sensor and the roof rack.

Again, I'm picking these two from a practical standpoint. The S-Presso would be the daily driver and the Veloz would be the weekend getaway car and alternate ride on the day the S-Presso is coding. Or the Veloz can be used when the folks are here and we need a more spacious car.

Out.

Sunday, March 10, 2024

[1056] Material Things

I'll be doing a "daydream" post where I'll be listing down some "small" material things I'd love to buy if I had the disposable income to actually get them. Technically I could probably afford some of these, but considering the price they're being sold here I'd rather look for a cheaper, more bang for the buck alternative.

  • Uniqlo clothes. Don't get me wrong, I have a good amount of Uniqlo branded clothes, but I usually only buy them when they drop below a certain amount. The shorts I saw yesterday are way over that amount. I'd also love to get a few of their Airism and DRY-EX shirts as well as some athletic shorts.
  • A mid-level mirrorless camera with two lenses. One would be a prime lens and the other would be a decent zoom lens. Most likely use the prime more often and maybe the zoom when needed. I honestly would be happy with a high end point-and-shoot camera, but when I saw how much the Fujifilm X100VI was being sold I think it would be more practical to get a good mirrorless camera. Something like the Fujifilm X-E4.
  • A great pair of sneakers. Low cut basketball shoes that I can wear when I go out. I don't play basketball anymore but I still like the shoes. Who knows, maybe I'll try shooting if I get another pair.
  • A new work table. I've been seeing those posts on reddit's battlestation subreddit and most of the nice work tables are just a few Ikea drawers and a heavy, wooden board as the table itself. One Alex drawer unit and another Alex storage unit as the "legs" and find a nice board for the table. Isn't Ikea supposed to be this budget brand in other countries? It's a luxury brand here in the Philippines.
That's it. I think I can actually buy these things but it would definitely take a long time since I'd need to save for a few months (or even years) before being able to purchase whatever it is I want to purchase.

Out.

Saturday, March 09, 2024

[1055] Blender's Video Editor

I've recently started dabbling with Blender's video editor again, for personal stuff.

I think it's still not as easy to use as Adobe After Effects, but Blender's video editor does get the job done. I guess experience using it has helped me also figure some things out, as well as thinking outside the box.

One thing is for sure, if I do plan on heavily using this moving forward I do need more tools aside both in and out of Blender. A tool to make sure all source video and audio are at the same fps, for one thing. Another thing I need to learn is how to mask things in Blender.

So hopefully I get the motivation and the time to learn these things.

Out.

Thursday, March 07, 2024

[1054] Another n+1 Bicycle Idea

I recently saw some videos on youtube about long tail cargo bikes, specifically the Surly Big Dummy. Now if you know me you know I'm not a fan of Surly for personal reasons I'd rather not tell you, but may include price.

Anyway I saw this video from Berm Peak about how he customized his Big Dummy and it got me thinking about it. A cargo bike would be a nice n+1 bike if you can ride to the grocery or market and safely park it somewhere. It got me thinking what I would do if I managed to get a long tail cargo bike frame.

I'll most likely stick to a 1x with low gearing since speed isn't a necessity for this. I'm guessing I'll need better gearing for climbs or heavy loads. So maybe an 11-speed 1x with a 36T chainring and 11-42 cassette would be a good compromise. Gear jumps would be a bit big but hopefully the ratios would be enough to handle said heavy loads and possible climbs.

Actually the only component I'm sure I want to place on this theoretical cargo bike would be the Velo Orange Klunker handlebars. Everything else I haven't given much thought.

So now my n+1 bike list consists of my main (gravel/cx) bike, a folding drop bar bicycle, and now this long tail cargo bike.

Out.