Back to normal here, or what passes for normal during the summer; took a 75 mile ride today out to Ojai and then Channel Islands Harbor... was a beautiful day and a great ride.  I need to start increasing my mileage, getting ready for the 508.  And so now I'm on my way to read by the pool, but I have to charge my Kindle, so I figured why not blog in the meantime :)

I'm not going to comment on the S&P downgrade of US Bonds.  This is not our finest hour :( 

on G+, from xkcd :) 

If you're suffering from cycling withdrawals from the ending of the Tour de France, like I am, than join me in looking forward to the US Pro Cycling challenge, a six-day stage race in Utah, which will have Cadel Evans, Andy and Frank Schleck, Levi Leipheimer, etc.  And it will be broadcast on Versus!  Yay.  August 22... mark your calendar... 

Wow, pro cycling team HTC-Highroad has disbanded.  That sucks.  Pretty much the winningest team in cycling over the past few years, this is the team of Mark Cavendish, but also Tony Martin, and Matt Goss, and Mark Renshaw ... and Tejay Van Garderen.  Not to mention they have a great women's team too.  Well, I guess you have to have a sponsor, and they couldn't find a new one.  All those athletes will find new homes but it's still too bad.  BTW this is the old T-Mobile team of Jan Ullrich etc. 

Why your Dad's 30-year-old stereo sounds better than yours.  This really strikes a nerve for me, I *love* excellent stereo systems.  (Do not even ask about the custom system in my car, but I will tell you the subwoofer is so big we put it in the spare tire :)  The bad old days of excellent receivers and fat speaker wire and incredible huge speakers are gone, or at least fading.  Remember turning the volume knob on an old Marantz amp?  It was like a direct link to heaven. 

Lucille Ball has turned 100.  Awesome! 

35% of consumers want iPhone 5, sight unseen.  Only 35%?  Is there any reason to believe it won't be excellent, given Apple's track record?  I want one too :) 

El Bulli closes.  Boo.  I never had a chance to eat there :( 

Not exactly tipped: Nissan Leaf sales hit 931, Chevy Volt at 125.  Electric cars are all very exciting, but people are *not* buying them. 

ZooBorn of the day: a little Lemur. 

Good advice: what to do if you hate your job.  "Here is your takeaway point: It is not the job you hate. It is your relationship to it."  Bingo.