I was searching for a last minute costume to wear to Oz's halloween party. I hate spending money on costumes and I apparently hate planning ahead. I'm searching through the closet and then a brilliant idea (perhaps based on Diggnation Episode 66??) came to me. ScubaNinja!

I quickly pulled out my 0.5 mm Scuba skin, gloves, and scuba mask/snorkel. I found a ski mask in the coat closet that I acquired during my 1999 winter field testing in Bemidji, MN. I grabbed my black house shoes. I went to the basement and searched around for the replica Ninja sword I bought in 7th grade. I quickly dressed and yelled to Nicole I was ready to show her my costume.

What happened next was unexpected. She opened the bathroom doors to see my costume and I decided to add some flair. The room was dark, I jumped up in the air, drew the sword, and shouted "ScubaNinja!". I thought the ridiculousness of my costume would have her on the floor laughing. I was not expecting her to scream in terror, slam the door, and run away!

There is a lesson to be learned here. Do not underestimate the might of ScubaNinja!!!

The television show Heroes is every geeks favorite new show.  Yet everyone I know seems to be afraid that, because they like it so much, it almost certainly be canceled in a Firefly-like fashion.  Not so.  Heroes has already been picked-up for a full season by NBC.  Because this happened so early, this pretty much guarantees a second season in my opinion.  Also, it's the highest-rated new drama in the key 18-49 demo.  So stop worrying.

Veronica Mars, on the other hand, is still in limbo.  There is still a chance it could be canceled mid-way through this season.  But, given that the CW already picked-up the lower-rated (and buzz-killing) show 7th Heaven, given the early cancellation of Runaway, and given decent ratings so far this year, VM has hope.

I looked over my TiVo Season Passes, and the only other show in the list are in any type of limbo is Friday Night Lights.  I started watching it think "this will be just like the movie".  The first show way, but two subsequent shows were unexpectedly engaging.  But, if it is canceled, I could easily pass time with the rest of my Season Passes.  So I'm guess my coveted list of guaranteed entertainment and relaxation is safe, pending one announcement from the CW.

After a disastrous experience with Mintex Red Box brake pads I decided it was necessary to upgrade something with much higher performance capabilities. I've gotten several recommendations, including Hawk HPS street pads, the Hawk track-only pads, and a couple of different Padgid track pads. However, my final decision was BHP XPS pads because they are essentially track pads that also can be used on the street. I really don't see myself swapping pads before and after every track weekend. Track pads don't perform well cold and street pads don't perform well when extremely hot, but apparently the BHP pads overcame this problem and give close to the performance of a track-only pad with great cold friction. I'll post an update once I get some experience with them, but they should be much better than the Minxex pads.

For anyone interested, I purchased the pads from Stable Energies.

I considered upgrading my front disc and calipers to 911 Carrera / Boxster brakes. However, I my wish list of stuff for the car to justify spending the money on them, even at salvage yard prices.

I'm also switching my brake fluid to something with more temperature capability. I think my previous boiling-fluid problem was due to the pads more than the fluid, but I don't want to take any changes. I went with the standard ATE Super Blue fluid. There are several other options that appear to be slight better (and also more expensive) but I decided Super Blue would probably be perfectly fine for my needs.

I hope everyone else had as much fun as I did.  Nicole really deserves the credit for putting together such a fun evening — I mostly just helped out however she needed.  I had a great time visiting with old friends and meeting some new people as well.  I was a little disappointed that I didn't get circulate and spend more time with more people, but I guess there was just too much going on.  I especially want to thank everyone who drove up from Columbus, making sure it wasn't a total "Lilly party".

The last guests left around 2:00.  Nicole spent a little time cleaning up before we called it a night.  One post-fest benefit is that we now we can look forward to having the remainder of the 4 kegs of beer ready-to-dispense for the next several months.