JohnParenteau.com

Actually, it’s Fitzgerald Kennedy, but I’m thinking of changing it.

As many of you know, I have a very fun yet very expensive hobby. I like to race cars. I can’t remember how I got interested, but I do remember back in 1992, working at Universal Studios, when a co-worker told me I should goto racing school. The rest is history. I’ve been an avid amateur race car driver since, with experience in everything from open wheel Formula Mazdas through my current toy, a Spec Miata racing car. I thought it would be fun to share one of my best races so far, with a few added comments during the video for fun. It’s not the whole race, but I did most of my passing in this chunk. Right click if you want to download it instead of watching it here. It’s big and long, and you might want to be able to make it bigger to read the text.

Enjoy!

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Right (or Control) Click HERE
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In the spirit of April Fools Day, here’s a flash back to golden times of The Onion, and one of the funniest articles I’ve ever read. Enjoy!

Mir Scientists Study Effects Of Weightlessness On Mortal Terror

Yes, I’m about to write about zombies. Skip this posting if you are currently rolling your eyes.

You know, some of us have crazy thoughts. Of course we don’t think they’re so crazy, but others might. My new job requires me to drive an hour and a half each morning, which is fine since I like my job a lot, and it takes me along the coast. There are worse ways to commute in the world. Anyway, I find myself considering odd things: What would it be like to just surf all day like some of the guys I see floating out in the swells every morning? How bad is the coast line eroding? And, as I drive by the beautiful Getty Museum

I often think about what to do when zombies attack. Sure, call me crazy, but don’t tell me you haven’t thought of something equally improbable but just as compelling. Who doesn’t think about what to do if and when a bomb goes off in a nearby city, or if there’s a giant earthquake or tornado on your area? I think part of the human condition is to prepare for the worst. Many of us grew up in the Cold War era, where practicing for a nuclear attack was a reality (even if a distant one for my childhood). Those were just as ridiculous as a zombie attack, in my mind. If a nuclear bomb is going off anywhere near you that you are affected, hiding under your desk is just going to put you closer to the ground you will soon be buried in. So planning for a zombie attack doesn’t strike me as silly.

I’ve had this conversation with a few people, some of which agree and some who think I’m nuts. I don’t care. Worst case scenerio, it’s fun to geek out about it, and best case you come up with some good ideas. I bring up the Getty because, on first glance, it looks like a great place to hole up if the aforementioned undead disaster occurs. Up on a hill, clear views of the surrounding grounds, somewhat isolated. But I’m not pleased with all those windows, and being isolated can be a bad thing when you have no supplies at the ready. The armed trips out to find food can, as evidenced by many a movie scene, prove to be a good way to thin your numbers, turn your friends and family into zombies themselves, forcing you to shoot them in the head or get bitten yourself.

Consider this: A Costco/Sams Club/warehouse store.

No windows. Roll down metal doors. Plenty of food including canned items. Extra items likes tons of batteries, tools, clothing, some drugs, and cigarettes. Plenty of TVs and lots of DVDs. Think of all the catching up you can do?! Even books! Some Costcos are even solar now! Downside, no guns. But the beauty of it all is its defensible. Assuming there’s roof access from the interior, which I’m sure there is, and little or no access from the outside of the building, it’s a perfect location, one that can insure survival long enough for the zombies to begin eating themselves, or whatever they do after eating all of us good live folk.

So laugh away at me, but keep in mind where the closest warehouse store is to you. You won’t be laughing when that first zombie starts eating the brain of the guy standing next to you and you’re looking for safety.