Treasure Hunters

The one show that is worth recording in our DVR this summer season is NBC's Treasure Hunters. It's a cross between the Amazing Race, Da Vinci Code, and the Nicholas Cage movie National Treasure.

There are ten teams of three traveling around the world in search of clues that will lead them to a treasure worth a million bucks. The difference between this and the Amazing Race is that the teams have to solve a series of codes and puzzles before they can move on to their next destinations. Plus, audience members can play along online for a chance to win money and prizes as well.

It's a great show so far. It's on NBC every Monday at 9:00 p.m. Pacific time.

Rachel & Jacob's Wedding

Today we attended Rachel and Jacob's wedding. Rachel was one of Lediya's roommates from freshman year at UCLA. They dormed together at Dykstra Hall. The couple got married at Good Neighborhood Church in Palos Verdes Estates and the reception was held at the Redondo Beach Historic Library right next to the pier. Both great locations! The bride looked really beautiful as well.

We wish the new married couple well and happy honeymoon at the Riviera Maya!

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

Now reading Lisa See's Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. So far, it's a beautiful exploration of relationships between women in 19th century rural China, where they were largely isolated from men (including their husbands), spending their time "upstairs" embroidering and telling stories. The story focuses on two friends, Lily and Snow Flower. Each has taken out a contract to become "old sames", partners in every aspect for life. We see their pains and joys, their lives unfold before our eyes, and we see their relationship grow, year by year, through the women's secret writing of nu-shu, a secret way of communicating to each other.

This is a book that is a compelling story, written with sensitivity, historical fact, and insight into cultural practices. It shows what it means to be a woman (and a man) within societal traditions, expectations, influences and demands of the time period.

Stillen Cold Air Intake

As I noted in my previous post, the last thing that needed to be done for the 15,000 mile service was the air filter replacement. I had read that the stock filter was difficult to change out and that it needed to be replaced every 15,000 miles. Plus, the stock filter costs $20 at the local dealer. Since I was going to spend the time to do a quality 15,000 mile service, I decided to just replace the whole stock air system with an aftermarket cold air intake (CAI) from Stillen. What is a CAI? A CAI is a system to bring down the temperature of the air going into the car for the purpose of increasing the power of the engine. All CAIs operate on the principle of increasing the amount of oxygen available for combustion with fuel. Because cooler air has more density for a given volume, CAIs generally work by providing cooler air from outside the hot engine bay.

I know it's a performance modification, but here are the benefits of a CAI:

• Environmentally friendly. The K&N conical filter is completely washable and reusable. It also lasts forever and never has to be replaced. The filter only has to be serviced every 30,000 miles.
  
• Economical. Since the filter is reusable, I wouldn't need to buy an air filter ever again.
  
• Increased miles per gallon. The CAI enables the engine to "breathe" freer, therefore resulting in less consumption for the same amount of output.
• Increased power. The Stillen CAI adds 11 horsepower at 6,100 rpm to the G35 sedan. (Total horsepower with CAI = 291 hp).

I purchased the Stillen Cold Air Intake with Z-tube kit. The Z-tube further increases power and efficiency by replacing the stock resonator with tube with a more efficient tube. I needed help to install the CAI so I went to my friend Kevin's place for help. He's the go to guy for anything car related. It took about 2 hours to install, but now that we have more experience the next install will take less than an hour.

So what are the results? My first impression is that this upgrade is worth every penny. Throttle response is faster, the car seems livelier, and the engine seems quicker and more responsive. I will post more once I get complete MPG numbers stemming from this modification.

G35 15,000 Mile Service

My major project this weekend was to take care of the G35's scheduled 15,000 mile service. Originally, I was going to have it done at the dealer since it's a new car and I wanted things done right. So I set out and got an estimate from the dealer closest to me, Cerritos Infiniti. They quoted me $200 for the service, plus an extra $50 for a full-synthetic oil change. Ouch! So, instead of forking over that much money, I decided to do the tune-up myself. I looked at the service manual to see what the dealer actually does for the 15,000 mile service and this is basically what they do:

• Change oil and filter
• Change in-cabin microfilter
• Change air filter
• Change wiper blades
• Rotate tires
• And a bunch of visual inspections

So basically the dealer is charging me $250 for five action items. Ridiculous. So, during this weekend, I changed the oil and filter (full-synthetic oil change with Mobil 1), swapped out the in-cabin microfilter (thanks to this DIY at G-Owners), inspected the wiper blades (which were still in good shape, therefore didn't need to be changed), had the tires rotated at the local Midas for $10 with a free brake inspection thrown in, and visually checked the fluids, belts, etc. Total cost = $60. Total saved = $190. I'm also doing an oil analysis at Blackstone Laboratories to keep an eye out on engine wear and to help "prove" that the maintenance was done.

The last thing that I needed to change was the air filter. I had read from several G35 boards that it's a pain to change out the stock filter every 15,000 miles. That reason, along with several others, led me to decide to just replace the full stock intake system with a cold air intake from Stillen. That project is the topic of the next post above.

Windows Media Player 11 and IE7

Been playing around lately with two of Microsoft's new software releases, Windows Media Player 11 and Internet Explorer 7. As much as I dislike Microsoft software, I actually enjoyed beta testing WMP11 and IE7.

I am a WMP user because I run Windows Media Center from the PC and the Xbox, so if I want to stream my media from the PC to the Xbox, I am "forced" to organize my music and videos in WMP. I do have iTunes installed, but we only use that when we update the iPod. As far as WMP11 goes, it's impressive because it actually helped me organize my stuff better than how I put it together before. Especially useful is the two clicks it takes to obtain album art, way easier than in past versions. Plus, it has a streamlined interface that looks clean and uncluttered.

As for Internet Explorer 7, I just wanted to see how it compared to my browser of choice, Firefox 1.5. While it copied a lot of features from Firefox (tabbed browsing, mainly), I like the RSS feed availability on the left pane, and again, the streamlined and uncluttered feel of the new browser. But, being that I am always concerned about security, my main browser will still be Firefox. Plus, I like supporting the small guy.

Overall, both WMP11 and IE7 are worth the download. Bear in mind that both products are still in beta 2 versions.

Kaelyn Reese Macaraeg

My sister Pam's first baby, Kaelyn Reese Macaraeg, was born this evening at 6:59 p.m. in South Coast Medical Center in Laguna Beach. She weighed in at 6.85 lbs and is 20 inches long. Welcome to the world, Kaelyn!

Lediya and I are excited to be a new aunt and uncle and we also congratulate the new parents, Pam and Ben!

Check out more pictures of little Kaelyn and the rest of the family here!

The Shadow of the Wind

Now almost halfway through Carlos Ruiz Zafon's The Shadow of the Wind. I will, without hesitation, say that this is one of the best books I have ever read. It's translated from the Spanish by Lucia Graves and takes place in post-Civil War Barcelona.

What starts out as an intriguing love story for those who love books turns into a twist-filled story thick with mystery, gothic romanticism, and intrigue of the best kind. Daniel Sempere is a young child who has recently lost his mother after the Civil War in Spain. His father takes him to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a cavernous, hidden chamber full of books that have been saved from being lost. Daniel is instructed to choose one book, a book that he will guard for life. Daniel chooses "The Shadow of the Wind" by Julian Carax, and takes it home. Later that night, he devours the book in one sitting, deciding in the wee hours of the morning to discover more about Julian Carax. Soon, however, he discovers that someone has destroyed all of Carax's books, save the one he holds, and that not much is known about the author anyway. Then, in the dead of night, he meets the mysterious figure who wants to purchase the book from him--a person who smells of burnt paper. Daniel declines, extremely suspicious of this man. So his journey begins to learn more about Carax, ultimately learning about himself in the process.

Highly, highly recommended. I started the book this past Monday and I'm already halfway through the nearly 500-page book.