So I got my car today. Very happy with it. If you didn't see my previous post on it, it's a 2006 Nissan Almera. Sure, it's not a cool car...not by a long shot, but it's practical. Stay tuned for pics. :)

As for my life...it's a very busy week. I've finished up yet another website. I've got kast to finish up as well (progress is good). There's also a presentation on some of Boisot's theory for Wednesday. I may also possibly have a job next year, and I've got a meeting to find out more about that on Wednesday as well.

Exciting times!

The other day we had to drive to a very specific location. We had a map, but it was outdated. This resulted driving an extra few kilometers and wasting quite a lot of time.

Now, I'm getting my car in a day or two (or three), and I've decided to get myself a little something to go with it. A budget GPS unit. Now, after quite a bit of research, it seems that Garmin is the best bet in good old South Africa. So a Nuvi 200 it is!

I'm looking forward to having my own transport at last. With the GPS, I'll be set. Gadget-ridden car (there's the iPod Touch + iTrip as well) will be go!

In other news, my work on UniJunction is done. Phil's carrying on with it. There's another site I'm working on that'll use ed. And then there's kast. That, along with the usual varsity stuff makes me quite busy. I can't wait for the classes/tests to end so that I can start on my mini-thesis.

This time, there will be unboxing pics... :D

Update: Just had to give it a spin right after I got it. Awesome piece of kit. Going to properly test it tomorrow, as we're off to Pinelands to go pick up my girlfriend's Wind.

You would think that with the current economic situation in South Africa that the second-hand car market would be flooded with cheap, decent vehicles. You'd be wrong.

I've been looking for a car for a while now. My initial budget was R70000, but after it became clear that this was not enough, it's gone up to R80000. The problem is that, yes, the market is flooded, but it's flooded with the kind of car you wouldn't buy if you're looking for a good deal. If you want a Citi Golf, or a KIA, Bantam Bakkie,or something with 100000+ km on the odo, then you're in luck. I'm not. I want a solid, reliable car with inexpensive parts/services, less than 50000 km on the odo, with the model being no older than 2005, including all the creature comforts one would expect from a decent car. Fussy, aren't I?

I looked at the Ford Fiesta in particular. It's a good-looking, small, but decent car that would be perfect for someone like me. I couldn't find one in my price range with low enough mileage, so I kept on looking. Then I stumbled upon the Nissan Almera II. This wouldn't be my first choice. It's not the best-looking car out there. Don't get me wrong. It's not ugly...it's just not particularly sexy. However, it can't be argued that this is the most rational, practical buy out there at the moment.

So tomorrow I'll be test-driving a 2006 1.6 Nissan Almera II with less than 35000 km on the odo, with power-steering, electric windows, central locking, a CD shuttle, air conditioning, ABS brakes, dual airbags, immobilizer, alarm, etc (you get the idea). If I do like it (I can't see why I won't), this will probably be the car I'll end up buying. The price? R79900. What a bargain.

Stay tuned for my report/decision after the test drive tomorrow...

Update: So I went for the test drive today, and was pretty impressed with the car. So yeah, I'm buying it. In white. While it's nowhere near cool, it is sensible. 22000 km on the odo. Call it a stopgap until I'm on my feet and can afford something more my style.

It's going well, thanks for asking.

kast is coming along very nicely. I'm going to tackle my thesis proposal right after this post. Teaching is going as well as expected. Classes are interesting. Nothing to really complain about. Except that I'm as broke as never before, but it's no biggy. I pay in less than two days.

One thing I'm quite worried about is what I'll be doing next year. If all goes well, I'll worm my way into becoming a lecturer. That way I'll be able to continue my studies and do my masters degree. If that doesn't work out, I'll probably do some web development for a year or so that I can repay my debts and actually start "living". I've seen quite a few positions for PHP developers (right here in Stellenbosch) that are about more than coding. That makes me happy. I'll do that with a smile.

I don't really have anything of interest to say. I just wanted to post to get that picture of the peppergun off the main page. I think it may have been scaring away visitors. Oh yeah, my portfolio (of sorts) is up!

Ciao!

My neighbors were robbed the other day. Their door is literally less than 10cm away from mine. I could hear their metal security gate being prised open (!), and I could hear the thieves carrying off their newfound assets. What the hell could I do? Luckily the neighbors were in their bedroom with the door locked. So yeah, they pretty much waited patiently while their flat was being ransacked by a total stranger (strangers?). Something like this is enough to make a person quite paranoid.

I've installed a new bolt/chain lock thingy on my wooden door, which should give them a bit of extra trouble if/when they do try to break in here, but what the hell do I do if they're inside and the police are late (as they usually are)? I have an open-plan flat so there's no bedroom to hide in, and I have stuff in excess of R20 000 just lying around (that's a lot of money for a student like me). So this got me thinking about a no mess, no fuss, legal self defense system. Pepper-spray? Nope. Taser Gun? Only one shot...what if there's more than one of them? CO2 pistol? Will a .177 caliber lead ball be enough to scare them off, or will it only infuriate them? So then I stumbled upon this...

First off, I'd be scared shitless if someone was pointing that thing at me. From pepperammo.com:

Peppergun is a South-African developed airgun that shoots PepperAmmo. PepperGun works on the same principal as a paintball gun, but with distinct differences and advantages.

PepperAmmo in turn is a projectile, slightly larger than a paintball, but made from different materials. We fill a plastic ball with a pepper mix (capsaicin-the burning component of chillies). This is in the form of a dry powder. When you need to defend yourself against a human or animal, you would shoot it with this pepper ammo. The plastic ball breaks on impact, releasing a painful, super-irritant powder. This powder creates a dust cloud around the suspect, leaving him temporarily blind, in shock and very uncomfortable. The suspect could now be easily apprehended as it takes him a couple of minutes (3 to 5) to recover.

The result is similar to that when using pepper spray, that has been around for some time. The main advantage is that you deliver this pepper over a distance (from point blank to approx. 40 to 50m), meaning that you don't have to be close-up to the assailant in order for your self-defense tactic to be effective.

The best of all – NO LICENCE REQUIRED.

Hellz yeah.

There are lots of places selling complete kits for about R2000. This will get you the gun, 20 pepper balls, 20 practice balls, and ten CO2 canisters. Not too bad. Now, if I can find a review of this thing somewhere...I'll know whether to dosh out on it or not.