MONDAY:
Just after i left tuesday evening for short holidays, my supervisor sent an email telling there was a group meeting outside esrf the next monday and that i should do a presentation about my work !!!!
Since i do not have internet access at home and that i was in the wild land doing some camping, i kept myself unaware of it for the whole week.
so monday morning i arrived thinking about the work to do, watched my email box and jump off my seat! ... than another collegue arrived back from hollidays as well, it was also a surprise for him.
I had no more informations on the email box so i phoned to the secratariat to get the localisation of the meeting.... they had to look deep to help me.
off course i was by bike, so hop...went back home, get the car, catch the collegue at work and then we went both to Tullins (30 km away from Grenoble)
We arrived just for lunch there (which is not to make my easy eating reputation vanish) ... miam miam anyway. Apparently my boss did not exactly understand my position and the sillyness of the situation. I believe i should be ultra carefull now and always go along the walls for survival in this work jungle!
TUESDAY:
This morning i woke up very early with the sun (as usual!) and i went for a release of the pressure.... the eyes half closed (i usually wear glasses) i begun to change the water in the olives when i saw a little dark-brown stuff moving like a snake in the water!!!!!
first reaction: AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!
Note it was not easy to maintain the right direction for the flow that, once started you can not stop before it is +/- empty!
A closer look at it made me realise it was a lezard! how did it arrive there? it was stuck and could not escape from the basin. I believe the poor animal received the hot shower!!
Did you ever try to catch a small traumatised animal in your toilets? well it is not easy!
However, after fighting a bit i finally cought the lezard in an icecream box (whithout any ice cream in it of course!) and freed him on the edge of the window.
Maybe one day i will find it again, but i am not in a hurry!
what should i expect for tomorrow? never 2 without 3 !
WEDNESDAY:
I was really looking for a problem that day! finally i found an interesting one:
The remote control opening my car has a key usually only used to trigger the engine. This metallic key has been used so many times that the extremity is worn. This is so much that it is now impossible to unlock the doors manually with that key. The day the battery of the remote control will be dead, i will be stuck unable to get inside my car unless i always take with me the backup key still intact. but then i risk to loose both keys at the same time!
The cherry on the cake:
If i am stuck with the dead battery of the remote control, changing the battery with a new one won't solve the problem since it needs to be reinitialised on the engine trigger inside the car!!!! Isn't it marvelous and fantastic....
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
The visit of the ancestors in vizille'06
Summary of some sightseing activities we did during the holidays of may-june 2006
Main actors: little boy, moma, papy.
it was a terrible effort to do mountain climbing to reach "les cuves de Sassenage". We were amazed by the calcite minerals occuring inside the grotte. Some of the corridors inside were so narrow that we had to take a deep breath to pass without getting stuck between the walls.... it was a good idea not to eat the dessert earlier that afternoon....
(just a little bit of mom-pushing)
for a closer look:
http://www.meteoisere.com/promenades/page%20cuves.htm
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Small trip to Chamrousse 1700m ... look at ESRF!
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Visit of Sisteron and the "Citadelle"
because it would be too much easy to get there by car, we decided to make some sport to get on the top of the collin. as usual we were victorious against the elements (here: climbing the slope).
we deserved a little rest in the top of the citadelle with a 360 degrees vieuw of the surroundings.
of course dad is always triing to escape....
(no comment)
Main actors: little boy, moma, papy.
it was a terrible effort to do mountain climbing to reach "les cuves de Sassenage". We were amazed by the calcite minerals occuring inside the grotte. Some of the corridors inside were so narrow that we had to take a deep breath to pass without getting stuck between the walls.... it was a good idea not to eat the dessert earlier that afternoon....
(just a little bit of mom-pushing)
for a closer look:
http://www.meteoisere.com/promenades/page%20cuves.htm
-----------------------------------------------------------
Small trip to Chamrousse 1700m ... look at ESRF!
-----------------------------------------------------------
Visit of Sisteron and the "Citadelle"
because it would be too much easy to get there by car, we decided to make some sport to get on the top of the collin. as usual we were victorious against the elements (here: climbing the slope).
we deserved a little rest in the top of the citadelle with a 360 degrees vieuw of the surroundings.
of course dad is always triing to escape....
(no comment)
Thursday, April 27, 2006
"le manege fou"
26/04/06
there was a "fete forraine" in l'Esplanade. i went with Suxy and Ric. We tried that 60 m high huge thing that centrifuges you at 4 g (9.81 m/s^2 * 4) in the air!!! it was turning vertically at high speed.... susana was closing her eyes, that was funny... we were also screaming "haaaaaaaa stop it, we are going to die.... !!! " that was extreme.... maybe never again this thing!!!! i was weighting 300 kg for a few seconds at least 10 times ....
my god.... when finished we were shaking like tree leaves in the wind and it was hard to walk strait!
there was a "fete forraine" in l'Esplanade. i went with Suxy and Ric. We tried that 60 m high huge thing that centrifuges you at 4 g (9.81 m/s^2 * 4) in the air!!! it was turning vertically at high speed.... susana was closing her eyes, that was funny... we were also screaming "haaaaaaaa stop it, we are going to die.... !!! " that was extreme.... maybe never again this thing!!!! i was weighting 300 kg for a few seconds at least 10 times ....
my god.... when finished we were shaking like tree leaves in the wind and it was hard to walk strait!
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
the last trip & short holidays
14-23/04/06
I did the last trip between Grenoble-Ottignies with my 14 years old clio 1.1L essence camionette. The comfort of the car is limited and some tiny problems were not guaranteeing to arrive with the engine on at destination. A new funny feature appeared during the trip. When turning to the left on the motorway, the sound from the right front wheel changed sonority... ups.. seems that a bearing was in trouble... I arrived home in one single piece although the weather was ultra crap the last 200km and I could not see very far... so it took a total of 13h to arrive! I was a bit tired...
Then the day after I had to remove all the gadgets I installed 3.5 years before on it... rpm counter, radio, timer for windscreen cleaners...strange fully it was much lighter when i finished!! Some parameters made the decision to sell this small car hard to take: the rear brakes , the fuel pump, the windscreen, the glowplugs, the Pt screws were almost new. On the other hand, the 7.5 liters/100km on short daily travels and 5.2 liters/100km on long journeys for 35kW (optimistic official power at 5200rpm) are not really representing a high energetic yield.
(the small engine and the siphon operation)
Just to have fun I told my father "here are the keys, want to try it?" The ugly guy just could not stop laughing during the whole turn in the neighbourhoods. Indeed, the strange noises and the elastic undulating suspension were as usual...crap! Driving his Citroën C5 before helped to remark the huge comfort differences!
(the last trip)
Finally, we gave the clio to the garage... it was 20 km from home. Arriving close to the place: a light turned on.. The signal that the fuel tank is empty... This was a clever precise calculation the amount of essence we siphoned from the reservoir!!
Oufff the clio story is ended now... apparently the car is going to Africa or recycling.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My brand new old cool sky blue car is ready to go and so much more comfortable. ... I just have to carry it to grenoble...I said nothing about it to the people living in the same house... I want to see their head when I'll be back!!!
The photos are showing the tiny restoration i did before leaving and the new old blue car.
Apparently the Xantia does not burn exessively high amounts of gasoil which is good for an engine of 80kW (2.1L Turbo Diesel). I am estimating the consumption to 5.5L/100km on long trips when driving cool and apparently for short daily trips is turns around 6.5L/100km. So i should spare money due to the cheaper prices of gasoil in this period of high petrol prices.
To be honest the taxes and assurance are more expensive.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I also had to help my father fixing the problem with the tv antenna! apparently a (or more than one) bird came on the external wire .... sat on it...did balance on it, did an acidic shit on it... result: it broke... that was very funny to see the apparence of the wire. and probably also me doing acrobatic equilibrium on top of a ladder. Now all hertzian belgian TV channels receptions are ok... and also the TNT works!!!!
I did the last trip between Grenoble-Ottignies with my 14 years old clio 1.1L essence camionette. The comfort of the car is limited and some tiny problems were not guaranteeing to arrive with the engine on at destination. A new funny feature appeared during the trip. When turning to the left on the motorway, the sound from the right front wheel changed sonority... ups.. seems that a bearing was in trouble... I arrived home in one single piece although the weather was ultra crap the last 200km and I could not see very far... so it took a total of 13h to arrive! I was a bit tired...
Then the day after I had to remove all the gadgets I installed 3.5 years before on it... rpm counter, radio, timer for windscreen cleaners...strange fully it was much lighter when i finished!! Some parameters made the decision to sell this small car hard to take: the rear brakes , the fuel pump, the windscreen, the glowplugs, the Pt screws were almost new. On the other hand, the 7.5 liters/100km on short daily travels and 5.2 liters/100km on long journeys for 35kW (optimistic official power at 5200rpm) are not really representing a high energetic yield.
(the small engine and the siphon operation)
Just to have fun I told my father "here are the keys, want to try it?" The ugly guy just could not stop laughing during the whole turn in the neighbourhoods. Indeed, the strange noises and the elastic undulating suspension were as usual...crap! Driving his Citroën C5 before helped to remark the huge comfort differences!
(the last trip)
Finally, we gave the clio to the garage... it was 20 km from home. Arriving close to the place: a light turned on.. The signal that the fuel tank is empty... This was a clever precise calculation the amount of essence we siphoned from the reservoir!!
Oufff the clio story is ended now... apparently the car is going to Africa or recycling.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My brand new old cool sky blue car is ready to go and so much more comfortable. ... I just have to carry it to grenoble...I said nothing about it to the people living in the same house... I want to see their head when I'll be back!!!
The photos are showing the tiny restoration i did before leaving and the new old blue car.
Apparently the Xantia does not burn exessively high amounts of gasoil which is good for an engine of 80kW (2.1L Turbo Diesel). I am estimating the consumption to 5.5L/100km on long trips when driving cool and apparently for short daily trips is turns around 6.5L/100km. So i should spare money due to the cheaper prices of gasoil in this period of high petrol prices.
To be honest the taxes and assurance are more expensive.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I also had to help my father fixing the problem with the tv antenna! apparently a (or more than one) bird came on the external wire .... sat on it...did balance on it, did an acidic shit on it... result: it broke... that was very funny to see the apparence of the wire. and probably also me doing acrobatic equilibrium on top of a ladder. Now all hertzian belgian TV channels receptions are ok... and also the TNT works!!!!
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Sassenage and "les gorges du furon"
8/4/06
Here is where the story begins.... great perspective for the trip.
A
B
C
As you can see i was pushed in the precipice by a false " friend". This guy, whom asked to remain anonymous for safety reasons, even took a picture of it (photo A). I was carried by the river across terrific waterfalls, passing below huge rocks stuck by the versant of the cliffs along the river.
Fortunately i had all the canyoning equipment hidden on me and i swam a bit further down far from the danger zone (picture C).
life is full of surprises!
Here is where the story begins.... great perspective for the trip.
A
B
C
As you can see i was pushed in the precipice by a false " friend". This guy, whom asked to remain anonymous for safety reasons, even took a picture of it (photo A). I was carried by the river across terrific waterfalls, passing below huge rocks stuck by the versant of the cliffs along the river.
Fortunately i had all the canyoning equipment hidden on me and i swam a bit further down far from the danger zone (picture C).
life is full of surprises!
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
the crazy journey to "les2Alpes"
A day it would have been wiser to stay "sous la couette bien au chaud".
Ricardo and i (MadMax) decided to go to the mountains again, the end of the season 2006 being very close we realised it was difficult to expect fresh snow at low altitude. After a flash decision from the both of us we bough the tickets to "Les 2 Alpes".
As i am not supersticious i did not pay attention to the weather forecasts from the crystal bowl...
We discovered very soon that the day was not completely going to happen as usual.
To begin the rain was very present in the bottom of the station. Trustfull we took the eggs (telecabines) to the top of the mountain: first to 2200m then 3200m and then the underground funiculaire to 3400m.
the first impression: the panel found at intermediate level was right, -5°C at the top. An interrogation was also present in our minds: were is the way down? should we include a radar in our standard equipment?
One thing we could not complain about was the quality of the snow: powder.
we were resting on the snow in a kind of crevasse between big rock walls of the mountain where the path is passing by. The weak visibility in the snowstorm makes some of the geographical details of the story uncertain.
i almost did not distinguish Ricardo. he was localised just as a light shadow in the white fog of the snowstorm. At least i was almost sure it is him because i could hear his screams, heeuuuu finally it could have been the Yeti as well...
For some obscure reason i did not remember when was the last time i saw somebody passing nearby ...
What could be then the worst thing happening? if you forget about the snow that is buming to your frozen face and hurting like hundreds of needles.(some people call it "chili")
...a lightning... followed +/- 1 second later by thunder...and its echo... but was it really its echo? and not an ava...avava...avavalanche???
Suddenly energy came back in our legs and we did not think too much about something else than going away...
and finally the clothes winging:
Ricardo and i (MadMax) decided to go to the mountains again, the end of the season 2006 being very close we realised it was difficult to expect fresh snow at low altitude. After a flash decision from the both of us we bough the tickets to "Les 2 Alpes".
As i am not supersticious i did not pay attention to the weather forecasts from the crystal bowl...
We discovered very soon that the day was not completely going to happen as usual.
To begin the rain was very present in the bottom of the station. Trustfull we took the eggs (telecabines) to the top of the mountain: first to 2200m then 3200m and then the underground funiculaire to 3400m.
the first impression: the panel found at intermediate level was right, -5°C at the top. An interrogation was also present in our minds: were is the way down? should we include a radar in our standard equipment?
One thing we could not complain about was the quality of the snow: powder.
we were resting on the snow in a kind of crevasse between big rock walls of the mountain where the path is passing by. The weak visibility in the snowstorm makes some of the geographical details of the story uncertain.
i almost did not distinguish Ricardo. he was localised just as a light shadow in the white fog of the snowstorm. At least i was almost sure it is him because i could hear his screams, heeuuuu finally it could have been the Yeti as well...
For some obscure reason i did not remember when was the last time i saw somebody passing nearby ...
What could be then the worst thing happening? if you forget about the snow that is buming to your frozen face and hurting like hundreds of needles.(some people call it "chili")
...a lightning... followed +/- 1 second later by thunder...and its echo... but was it really its echo? and not an ava...avava...avavalanche???
Suddenly energy came back in our legs and we did not think too much about something else than going away...
and finally the clothes winging:
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Monday, March 27, 2006
roller blading at Europole and ski/surf at "l'alpe du grand serre"
25-26march2006
Spring is coming faster than expected.... well french people say it isn't yet but 20 C during the day is quite comfortable to drink a fruit juice outside.
to celebrate this with the visiting friend of Susana, Andrew, we did a bit of sport...
you didn't see it...okay!
i had some videos also but how can it share it on this site?
The following day:
Since we had still a lot of latent energy and we do not care about the clock time change for spring, we just took the bus for "l'alpe du grand serre" at 8h00 (7h00 for winter time and i prefer not to say when i had to wake up!)
The end of the season at low altitudes is beginning. The snow was more like soup!! Arriving overspeeded in a melting soup zone makes the snowboard suddenly breaking without announcement, ejecting the surfer, sometimes making him dig the path with the face, just to taste ice...
photograph trick: to make a picture look like you are in extreme conditions: just rotate both your head and the camera or.... just put yourself into extreme conditions!
QUIZZ: what might be hidden behind the gloves?
(the answear is not just "Ricardo"!!!!)
the only shadow was the journey in bus that we all seemed to live a bit sick (the stomack going left...right... up... down)
Spring is coming faster than expected.... well french people say it isn't yet but 20 C during the day is quite comfortable to drink a fruit juice outside.
to celebrate this with the visiting friend of Susana, Andrew, we did a bit of sport...
you didn't see it...okay!
i had some videos also but how can it share it on this site?
The following day:
Since we had still a lot of latent energy and we do not care about the clock time change for spring, we just took the bus for "l'alpe du grand serre" at 8h00 (7h00 for winter time and i prefer not to say when i had to wake up!)
The end of the season at low altitudes is beginning. The snow was more like soup!! Arriving overspeeded in a melting soup zone makes the snowboard suddenly breaking without announcement, ejecting the surfer, sometimes making him dig the path with the face, just to taste ice...
photograph trick: to make a picture look like you are in extreme conditions: just rotate both your head and the camera or.... just put yourself into extreme conditions!
QUIZZ: what might be hidden behind the gloves?(the answear is not just "Ricardo"!!!!)
the only shadow was the journey in bus that we all seemed to live a bit sick (the stomack going left...right... up... down)
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
"degaine de la mort qui tue" 10-14 March 06
L'accumulation des heures passees au labo pour terminer dans les temps la preparation des echantillons ajoutees aux longues experiences menees tout le week-end jusque tot le matin semblait pourtant avoir finalement eu un impact limite. Malgre tout, ce qui devait arriver arriva .... mes collegues et amis se sont assez bien amuses en voyant la tete que je tirais lundi matin. Jugez par vous memes:
Malgre tout les resultats sont encourrageants et il ne reste plus qu'a foncer pour analyser les resultats.
I received a comment about the french language used before. Indeed, the picture was asked by my old decrepit retired father ... he does not understand english as good as others.... so i tried to be nice with this scroundrel... Some of my friends from across many european countries are just having the opportunity to practice a bit of another language. Aren't they lucky? ;)
Malgre tout les resultats sont encourrageants et il ne reste plus qu'a foncer pour analyser les resultats.
I received a comment about the french language used before. Indeed, the picture was asked by my old decrepit retired father ... he does not understand english as good as others.... so i tried to be nice with this scroundrel... Some of my friends from across many european countries are just having the opportunity to practice a bit of another language. Aren't they lucky? ;)
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