Hello and welcome to my sidepodbed, where a Sutilesque intractable illness is keeping me hostage. The Formula 1 world wasn't that inactive as there was some testing in Barcelona and Christine kept us all updated. Day one and two went on Vettel, on third day it was Nico Rosberg who surprisingly finished on top, and the fourth day of testing has been won by Felipe Massa.
Altough there's been one news, which quite overshadowed the action in Barcelona, namely the speculations about the upcoming Bahrain GP and whether it will take place, or not. Well, now it it's official: it won't. So now we have to wait till the 27th of March when the F1 world is going to arrive in Melbourne, and open the season there. However, when one speculation/discussion has been cleared, another sparked off: will the Bahrain GP take place eventually and if so, when? And the further testing? Will it be Barcelona again? Who said Formula 1 is boring?
Our favourite ... ekhm... ekhm ... driver, Adrian S., spoke about the tyres. No, I didn't read it, I'm just posting it in case someone of you would like to. Speaking of whom, an official cap is now available. Just in case someone would like to ... You know what's frightening? That his 2009 cap is sold out. He really has got fans! Gobsmacked! Those poor souls urgently need help, if you ask me ...
Flavio B. is back in the spotlight ... well, not quite the man himself, but a book about him. I could have told you something more about it if my Italian was better. I've been a bit sloppy ...
Heikki is working on another Fonecta commercial and it sound intriguing! Looking forward to it. In the meantime Timo and Jens where busy with training. 100 km on the bike???? *dying* Reading this I really feel less fit than a chop of an old
steak! Once I'm out of this bed ... there will be steps forward only!
Lovely people, I now shall leave you with this news and links. Do not forget to ckeck out this very site regularly to find out everything on the Bahrain turmoil thing, and much more.
I am off ... it's Football Weekly time. ;-)
Hello Tuesday
PHEW!! I have just submitted work with a whole 10 hours to spare until the deadline :P I'm very glad that's all out the way!!
I missed the new daily arriving.
Well done
Amanda is ill too?? I think I need to find a new website with some healthy people :D
Hehehe in reality it's not early though... I should have been asleep hours ago so I'm not dead at work tomorrow..... But hohum, it's all in now. All I can do is pray that I wake up for work on time.
NIIIIIIICK!!! Can I have a wakeup call please!?
Which I would have been if I'd spent my evening doing the work rather than watching cool runnings... :P
I think I will watch that tomorrow night. I have it parked on a tab so I don't forget
they're saying multiple fatalities now. Hope its nowhere near our worst, that killed more than 250 :(
That is terrible. Hopefully it will only be a few people
Ooooops... Nearly forgot to set the old alarm... :D
You were going to trust Nick to wake you up?
Are you mad!?! Nick would remember at about 5pm....
We need an auto-setting headping
That was in 1931 so hopefully building codes have improved since then
They definitely will have. The problem is old buildings that survived previous quakes
Nick has too much hair for a headping to make it through I think :P
:D
yeah according to wikipedia they thought the cathedral was fine after the last one but look at it now :(
Latest headline is 'witnesses report many bodies pulled from rubble'
it's not nice waiting for a death toll :(
It is always difficult to find the faults that then result failure
That's bad
apparently two buses were crushed by falling buildings so you can only hope they weren't too full of commuters
What time was it in New Zealand when it happened
round about noon so there was lots out and about on their lunch breaks.
There shouldn't be too many people on the buses then. Hopefully people had left some of the buildings that collapsed
Much worse than at night though :(
its mainly office buildings that have collapsed and they'd be empty if it was at night time :(
It will probably take days to get real figures
definitely, theres going to be people buried below quite a lot of rubble.
other problem is they're still having major aftershocks while they're trying to clear stuff
I have been watching the USGS map but it only shows quakes over 4.5 and there have been none of those thankfully. I read earlier there have been 100 aftershocks since the Septemeber quake so this can carry on for months
Oh crap
They just had another 5.5. They really don't need that while they are trying to pull people out of the rubble
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Maps/region/Australia.php
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usb0001iiu.php
Youtube vid about the earthquake
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qt0iIHXFnR0
apparently there are bodies being removed from the YHA, hope all you foreign folk don't know anyone backpacking in NZ at the moment!
Jesus just saw the news about New Zealand. Looks pretty bad.
Hope all the Kiwi's out there in Sidepodland are OK.
Another one. 4.4 this time
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usb0001ik0.php
First confirmed death toll is 17 and will go up :(
and has now jumped to 65
Sounds pretty horrific.
and has now jumped to 65
terrible news
Yet another 4.5. That is 6 quakes of at least 4.5 in about 6 hours
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usb0001ilt.php
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/4688671/Christchurch-quake-latest-info says they have had more than 20 aftershocks.
Aftershocks are mean :(
USGS has a minimum level that they report. Either 2.5 or 4.5 so there can be any number below that and they won't show them
I am watching the coverage on the pay tv news channel, it makes me very pleased my brother moved away from there a few years ago.
You can do without worrying about someone being in amongst that.
indeed.
Predictions of 200 people trapped inside buildings now
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41712242
morning folks
I was just teaching my flatmate how to behave in an earthquake, I forgot that if you grow up in a country nowhere near fault lines they probably don't teach you that sort of stuff
Hi Leigh
No-one ever told me
Another one. 4.8this time
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usb0001img.php
I told him you're meant to shelter in doorways and as an architect that made no sense to him :D
hi steven,
the monkees are reforming this summer
Don't get him to design anything structural for you then
Have they not left it 40 years too late
Ping-tastico!!
http://theformulaoneandmotorsportsarchive.wordpress.com/2011/02/22/moving-the-bahrain-grand-prix/
http://theformulaoneandmotorsportsarchive.wordpress.com/2011/02/22/formula-1-pre-season-testing-barcelona-february-21st/
I am far too excited by this.
aparrently not - they'll be a member short though. mike nesmith won't do it
ah, they've reformed like that many times before. Hopes up for nothing :( Mike was my favourite :D
i liked his wolly hat
:(
upon further investigation the earthquake commission no longer recommend doorways as in modern homes they're not as strong as they used to be. Everything I learned in school is a lie.
one of my goals in life is to knit an identical one.
I thought Davy Jones and Mickey Dolenz were everyone's favourites
They still have to be stronger than anywhere else in a house
they don't recommend it anymore also because you're likely to get smacked in the face by a wildly swinging door.
they didn't have the hat.
I have the first season DVD box set, I might dig it out :D
I was once in Tokyo when the whole hotel room shook around and chair I was sitting on was trying to escape me. before I realized what is going on it was over and quiet. if that thing was stronger I wonder if I would have time and mindset to think about and look for some shelter whether it would be doorway or anything else ...
I used to get sick of the quick ones like that because all the lifts in my building would say "Earthquake Detected" and stop working until they were manually reset. It always seemed to happen when I was 9 floors up. Stupid stairs.
It would have been wose if you were 9 floors down
I actually worked 9 floors down so I had a few down there too, much easier to evacuate from :D
so, how is everyone this morning?
I'm googling Monkees hat patterns. Damn you! :D
sorry
;)
Official Winter Project :D
Morning chaps
morning mr lukeh
Really do feel for the people of New Zealand today, what a horrible disaster :(
we finally got in touch with my mums cousin, thankfully she is OK. She works right in town and it took her 4 hours to walk home, she said she'll never get over having to walk past bodies in the street. I couldn't even imagine how horrific that'd be.
Agreed. Really horrible.
Oh man, that is just so awful :( poor her, but I'm sure she's extremely grateful to be OK.
most definitely, and we're all glad her and her husband are the only family we have there.
woah, bad times :(
anyone get the feeling the world is falling apart around us?
I feel bad for kind of live commenting a disaster, it ain't very positive.
the people behind me in the mall this afternoon blamed global warming. I actually laughed out loud in shock.
am reading back now. it's a helpful way to understand actually. appreciated.
OMG
How stupid can people be?
Hehe. eliGP makes me laugh.
I just got my first ever Apple product. I feel a lot cooler and younger now
between numerous large earthquakes and other things, it's been an odd 15 month period
Terrible :(
didn't know you got FOX news over there?
channel 604 :(
Morning all.
Wait a minute... Mr C has been here for ages.
THE WORLDS GONE MAD!!!!
*runs screaming*
morning christine
it has y'know
Just like to mix things up a bit.
Episodes related PING! http://toata.wordpress.com/2011/02/22/161-episodes-of-episodes/
Morning :)
Ooh, I didn't watch it yet. I got so annoyed at the last episode.
Awesome. Hi people.
I think the final episode really makes up for that silly moment. Go onnnn. :)
i can't really comment - the only tv i've seen since christmas (outside of motorsport) is masterchef
I want to smell like Joey :(
I wanted to read the Sutil/tyres article but gave up when my translation software protested to translating "Herausforderung"...
challenge
Good afternoon
Hello :)
anything I can help with?
ah I see. It's in the daily *blushes*
Fine, thank you. Having a quiet morning watching classic BBC F1 clips :)
Apart from the English for "Herausforderung", nothing in particular. It's just good to see you :)
nice
:)
I wanted to read the Sutil/tyres article but gave up when my translation software protested to translating "Herausforderung"...
Herausforderung means "challenge" :-)
oh, Kathi was faster :-)
I know I know!
Herausforderung means "challenge"
;)
Hehehe.
In many ways it's been quite a Herausforderung to learn German :)
I am in bed and I wanted to keep reading my book but my eyes got a little heavy so now Alistair is reading it to me. I love you Alistair <3
"In many ways it's been quite a Herausforderung to learn German :)"
hehe sure it is
awww :)
Ah, OK :D
It's especially a Herausforderung to learn German if you don't even have a German dictionary ;)
I'd better head off to work. They just rang me to ask if I could go in and do someone's shift, I said sure, what time?
They said half past 1. There was then an awkward silence.
To the Delorean!
Hehehe!
Yayyyyy
I'd better head off to work. They just rang me to ask if I could go in and do someone's shift, I said sure, what time?
They said half past 1. There was then an awkward silence.
To the Delorean!
#MFC interesting...
US only so far... But Amazon Prime users now get access to 5,000 movies and TV shows for instant streaming for free:
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=176060&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1531234&highlight=
Wow!
Lets hope that's why they bought LoveFilm :)
(Is already an Amazon Prime member)
I don't know what Amazon Prime is but I would sign up for that!
Amazon Prime is next day delivery (in the UK) 2 days delivery in the states for free on all purchases for a fixed price. So you pay $79 a year and that means you don't have to wait to get over a certain amount to get free delivery.
The cool, kind of secret, thing is that you can add up to 5 people in your household to your prime account and they don't have to be at the same address. So my dad is on prime and so I get it for free.
The amazing thing versus a netflix subscription in the states is that at $79 a year that means they are charging $6.58 a month for this service and you get the free shipping. It's a very aggresive move. Netflix is $7.99 for streaming only.
Prime in the UK costs £49
Ahh, that does sound like a good deal. At the risk of starting the digital/physical conversation again, I don't order many things that need shipping which is probably why I haven't heard of it :)
Well indeed. I wouldn't pay for it myself. But given he had spare slots I was happy to take it for the odd occasion. It means you can order somethign you're excited about and have it the next day.
They even offer (if you're a prime member) a same day evening delivery service that I have used once it costs a surprisingly reasonable £7.99. Which seems like a lot, but is actually very cheap for that kind of service.
If you need something that quickly, you're likely happy to pay it too. Goooo Amazon :)
Bobby K update: http://www.lotusrenaultgp.com/spip.php?article4155
He is doing pretty well and his condition is positive considering what he has been through. The good news is that there have been no complications following all the surgery he has had recently.
Nice to see Filipe getting a relatively top-level drive. It seems the ROC did get him noticed.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/89611
Yay!
This makes me happy :D
saw that earlier - good on him
:)
I hope it is now safe to joke the Bobby K will be like the Terminator - he'll be back. :D
Marvellous tweet/plug:
Jarno Trulli criticises everything... http://bit.ly/fG0d4k
http://twitter.com/EliGP/status/40077913059631104
the Trulli meter is swinging low it seems ;)
Truli sw
Swing low, sweet trulliometer, coming forth to carry Heikki home...
The only thing that would have made that article more perfect? Trulli saying "GET OFF MY LAWN!!" :)
Hehehe.
Pingle: http://mrschristine.com/2011/02/22/back-to-the-future-the-game/
Hello folks
Good to hear the news is positive.
Hello all
Hey Janna
DM coming soon ;)
:)
amanda is sick too? is anyone out there not dead?
lovely daily amanda.
I could have told you something more about it if my Italian was better. I've been a bit sloppy ..
italian thursday.
I was sick last week. Perhaps it traveled across the pond with Kai.
Not that we've ever met or anything.
it's coming down the wires. the only explanation.
It's like Snowcrash.
AWESOME
si!
Well we know the comments can cause addiction, seems only right that they can communicate other things too.
you're gonna have to start a bit easier than that...
:)
That is like the only word I know, with ciao and buon journo....
piano and forte ?
Oui!
I don't think Italian Thursday would be my thing. I got into an argument with my Italian teacher at school and she told me if I didn't like her methods, I should leave. So I said "Ok" and left the room to sit on the bench outside for the rest of the class.
I was only 7 at the time but I'm still going to use that as an excuse for my incompetence with the language.
And hello, by the way :)
hehe, what did you do the next week?
It was the next day and unfortunately I had to go back. My parents wrote a "I'm sorry I was rude" note for me to copy out. Unfortunately for them I changed it to "I'm sorry if you thought I was rude but I didn't like your methods". So they made me write it out again.
Looking back on it, I was a rather precocious child.
but also awesome. we'll forget italian thursdays though :)
Adrian Sutil didn't seem too happy about the Pirellis in the German article amandoloss linked to earlier, but at least he admitted it was mostly because they were so different to the Bridgestones rather than simply saying they were rubbish...
Would you like me to try doing them? (I could even add some BSL, though I'm not as good at that as I am at Italian...)
BSL? British as a Second Language? ;)
British Sign Language. Two out of three's not bad ;)
Today is Christine's Rankings day, so if you've got anything that needs consideration, now is the time to yell :)
ooh! but how do you put that in a post?
Nothing coming to mind for the rankings but speaking of which, I've finally seen the Vettel Head & Shoulders ad. I'm not sure what has me more bemused, the spaghetti eating or the hair stroking shots at the end.
ahhh.
We have ASL (of course), but there's also the ESL Acronym, which is "English as a Second Language", which is very relevant over here with the amount of immigrants from South America.
The title of the book is "Mr Billionaire: His rise, secrets, mysteries and coincidences", presumably because he owns the Billionaire nightclub since he's not yet a literal billionaire, even in Euros.
I'm currently working on the stuff in the link Joe provided.
Moan, moan, miserable, moan
Images - or I spend a line describing the hand positions and movements involved for each part of the word.
In Britain we call "English as a Second Language" ESOL - the O stands for "or Other" because of the number of people who have learned multiple languages before attempting English. Despite this addition, a fair number of ESOL students are in fact learning English as their first language and simply happen to have got to adulthood without developing enough language skills to get by (the English GCSE pass rate may be good, but it's possible to pass the course without being able to use English in many real-life situations).
blimey. it sounds cool though, but i would pick one or the other, a post containing italian and sign language is probably a bit much for my tiny brain. should we set you up with a wordpress login?
love this post from RCE on the wood brothers in nascar: http://www.racecar-engineering.com/articles/nascar/how-wood-brothers-racing-changed-nascar/
Considering how things went last time I tried using Wordpress, I think I'm better off e-mailing...
ahh not for regular posts, no. we're trying to do as little work as possible by empowering people to blog on their own. happy to do it as a one-off though, just not every thursday.
In which case it's not going to be realistic for me to do this because I found Wordpress itself to be disempowering :(
aww. new admin system coming soon. am working hard on it, it'll be ace.
OK - I'll cross my fingers...
you can be one of the first to test it, make sure we have it right. i reckon april/may time.
I've just translated the stuff in the link Joe provided for the benefit of those who prefer to read the Briatore book blurb in English:
Stuff through the link about the Flavio Briatore book:
The unauthorised Flavio Briatore biography has recently succeeded in being on all Italian bookcases*, among the best-known Italian entrepreneurs in the world. Between his entreprenerial ideas, more importantly, we recall the Benetton team and later the Renault F1 team, the famous Twiga premises in Versilia and the Billionaire in Sardinia. But what happened for him to get there? What hides behind the luxurious surface of money and beautiful women?
These are the questions to which the three journalists Andrea Sceresini, Maria Elena Scandaliato and Nicholas Palm try to give answers in a book called "Mr Billionaire: His rise, secrets, mysteries and coincidences", published by Aliberti.
The book tries to penetrate Flavio Briatore's past in order to try to understand who he really was before becoming Mr. Billionaire. A journey that tries to discover the former associates of Briatore, his old acquaintances and his sentimental relationships and the long-time forgotten weddings. In a journey from Wedge to Milan, from New York to Nizza and St. Thomas, it encounters judicial surveys, gaming dens and casinos, with swindles, escapes, furtiveness and mysterious dead men. A journey where the money turns, whirling, but where there are indeed many mysteries to reveal.
Thank you! By then I should have passed or nearly passed my Level 1 Italian and will have at least attempted the test at the end of the sign language course, so I should be ready...
hey folks
Any takers? There's a $5 million prize...
http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/indycar-bernard-sets-5m-las-vegas-challenge/
Hello!
hi ali
I think I might give that one a pass as I am already double-booked...
...watching Petit Le Mans and the Korean Grand Prix!
Your loss
;)
Hiiiiiiiiiii :) :) :)
Even laundry seems more fun when it's HOLIDAY laundry!! :D
It does mean the money's pretty safe as I would think the best drivers would either be unavailable (due to being in one of the aforementioned races) or ineligible (due to already being an Indycar driver).
Can you imagine F1 doing this?
Evening.
Interesting idea. I assume this is aimed at NASCAR drivers if as Alia says the ALMS and F1 are racing the same day.
Of course, how silly of me.
NASCAR areCharlotte the previous night, so it's possible
I can't imagine F1 being worried about any number of clashes - and besides, F1 probably doesn't fancy inviting the masses to Brazil because it's the circuit that least resembles Bernie's vision of F1...
Only if they don't mind darting all over the place because presumably they'd have to qualify for the Indycars and race in the NASCAR on the same day...
Ping: http://sidepodcast.com/post/nick-heidfeld-joins-in-the-christines-rankings-fun
Workable for drivers in Nationwide or those not in the Chase
Right. So basically, it's aimed at those NASCAR drivers who have already been beaten by the best 10 in the series or those in a lower category. This isn't the most convincing test I've ever seen of the superiority of Indycar drivers at their own series.
anyone fancy getting their wallet out?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/150566849041
Realistically, if you're in the Chase, you're not going to be doing Indy Car in Las Vegas
i don't even know what that is?
It's a lump of carbon fibre pre-crushed by DC himself.
My info has Petit on Oct 1st.
The 16th will have the Korean GP, and the NASCAR Cup race is on Saturday night but as you say they'll have to get around the qualifying problem.
Also, NASCAR crossovers don't happen, so it'd be intriguing.
Ooops. I'd better go and update my calender...
...also this makes the bet have a bit more sense to it...
It is a nice idea but realistically who outside of a Ganassi or Penske will win an oval race?
evening guys. *falls into pillow*
I heart pillow. My bestest friend right now to help with half term retail syndrome.
hehe. i went for a haircut yesterday. worst.idea.ever.
And team ping: http://sidepodcast.com/post/lotus-renault-leap-to-the-top-of-the-team-rankings
Aww, your hair looks fine.
oi!!!!!!!!!
i meant the... kids... i...
Haircuts are just evil. #fact
Although there was a very funny moment when a little youngun tried to get in a one of those pushable cages you see in shops, when I was putting squashed cardboard boxes but I had to tell her not to go in it.
Part of me really wanted that young child to go in just to have her own Crytal Dome on the Crystal Maze moment.
Hey everyone,
IndyCar's Randy Bernard is a genius.
At least you still have enough hair to cut.
IndyCar's Randy Bernard is a genius.
Especially since the F1 people and best of the NASCAR lot aren't going to be available for qualifying day...
evening gang.....*yawn*
16 hour shifts dont agree with me......
Hiya barrie. Now that is a long shift..
Yeah, but I don't think that is their aim. I think they will get the borderline guys who want to prove themselves. Like Patrick Klingermans of the world.
With as much trouble as the mid tier NASCAR teams are in, you might get a few of those guys to roll the dice. Especially since 'The Chase' is way out of their reach.
an emergency job. we get it very very occasionally.
anyone who says civil servants dont work hard can come here and..........fluff my pillow lol
that indycar idea is supreme........I wonder who will take it up.
any F1 drivers out of contract? Vegas - is that an oval?
Yes, it is a 2.5 mile tri-oval. LINK: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Vegas_Motor_Speedway
I bet Robert Kubica is thinking.......I should be fit by then - and Renault - "NOOOOOOOOOOOO" lol
Sorry, 1.5 mile. 2.5 is Indy.
where would they get a car?
Pass...
as they are mostly off the shelf, I am sure Mr Bernard would sort something.
perhaps Team IndyCar? would make the driver easy to spot.......
It is the final race with these cars, aside from title contenders there's no reason for teams to keep a spare that day.
the last ever race with the old dallara - i bet they will have a spare car for next to nothing, but not much in the way of spares
anyone know what karun is doing on oct 16th? maybe we should promote the idea of a las vegas holiday for him
;)
He's probably going to be in Korea...
of course... and who knows, maybe racing...
:D
How about Lucas for Vegas?
#atleastitvaguelyrhymes
Pics from today, the Dancing Building and Charles Bridge
https://picasaweb.google.com/106400214729093018812/DancingBuildingAndCharlesBridge?authkey=Gv1sRgCM666ork-O_FWQ#
I'm not really here, heading to bed. Just had a great talk with friends of friends who are doing the kind of work I want to do, but maybe I can partner with them and work with schools in the US to educate kids about other kids around the world.
I found the answer. Points! He was F1 WDC so it counts ;) ;)
@MarioAndretti
After hearing today's IndyCar announcement, I'm already suited up. See photo. What do you think? http://yfrog.com/h4rzdxqj
Really weird building, love it
See I told you. Because of how restrictive the regulations are in F1, it is basically a spec series now.
ooh, we could do with a daily volunteer, if anyone's game?
I'm doing it tomorrow night and I don't like to do two in a row, so I'm out. :)
This chap seems like an interesting hire for the USGP at Austin. Was the head of the people who run the Kentucky Derby which is one of the world's biggest and most prestigious horse races.
http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2011/02/22/real-horsepower-in-austin/
the love title :)
Football related ranty ping: http://northernwaffler.wordpress.com/2011/02/22/a-cow-a-banjo-and-tottenham/
Hey gang.
Howdy.
that may have been uppercase christine stealing the windows machine.
hi jon.
D'oh. I shouldn't be allowed up late.
Evening, how are we this evening?
I'm trying to decide whether to renew my race licence...
Hey.
I wish I could find those eastenders drums :(
http://tinyurl.com/eastendersdrums
Pingle: http://sidepodcast.com/post/daily-23rd-february-2010-2
Woah
wait
2010??
doh
Eh-hem.
Pingle: http://sidepodcast.com/post/daily-23rd-february-2011/
Evening all
I don't think I will ever understand sidepodtime
I wrote that all over a lot of order forms yesterday... Something in the water maybe :P