fine whine

Not that I know anything about dry ice or fog machines, but an idea occurred to me and I think it's pretty cool. What if cars were equipped not only with air conditioning but a hopped-up fog generator, such that the whole cabin would be cooled and the floor to about knee level would be fog? I assume that, given condensation and density, etc, fake fog is cooler than regular air, and would thus create a comfortable environment. Also, what would be niftier than opening up the door after a long drive and having the fog lazily gush out onto the pavement?

And in other news, in some form of guerilla action at work, today I printed off a bootleg barcode to replace one that was unreadable, which the powers that be had difficulty replacing. What would that be considered, sabotage or thinking-out-of-the-box? Or something in between? I'm guessing it probably went against some policy or other.

Also, NPR did a story this morning about Desert Combat (previously mentioned mod for Battlefield 1942). A week ago I'd never of it, and now NPR even talks about the game. Go figure.

Another television commercial's music has caught my attention, and this time I'm sure I've identified it correctly. Electronica group Fluke's "Atom Bomb" was used to push Chevrolet's fine line of cars and trucks. Primarily big trucks, and the Impala. Which is interesting, since the reason most people would recognize the song is its inclusion in the Playstation game Wipeout XL (and also the top-selling soundtrack). The interesting aspect is the contrast between the superfast, superlight flying vehicles of the video game and the stodgy, heavy pickups shown in the ad. In that respect, the Impala's also not small or nimble, ironically considering the name. Admittedly the editing makes the cars and trucks look fast, but the difference remains.

Why would they even use such a song? Not to say that it's not a good track for background music, but it's certainly nothing recent or particularly popular. I'm happy that somebody's throwing Fluke some money, as they haven't had a hit in a while (some would argue 'ever') and their last album was just a retread of previous tracks. Anyway, somebody once said that the best music to advertise cars is the music the audience liked around car driving age. Hence people of my generation were serenaded with Breeder, the Smiths and so on. Now adverts are being backed by younger, hipper artists, and the 'driving age' is no longer the legal auto driving age, but the video game driving age. Soon we'll be hearing pokemon music selling Kias, I suspect.

Just a theory, but it might work. Then again, Chevy's been repeating that commercial for a number of years, just updating the vehicles, if I remember right. Go figure.

So let's hit the ground running. Let me tell you about myself: I work for a big clothes company, but without using my expensive degree; I drive a midsize sedan and really dislike SUVs and everything they represent; I'm married and I wash all the dishes but none of the clothes; I have a Dreamcast but want a PS2, and I watch a whole lot of movies and read even more books.

Speaking of SUVs, today one lumbered out in front of me at a good half the speed limit, drove half a block and then sloooowly turned left through a red light that had just changed from yellow. I use the word 'lumbered' as the vehicle in question was the massive Toyota Sequoia, which is very aptly named. As for its tortoise pace, I am baffled as it amply proclaims a V8 engine on the rear (and I'm sure elsewhere as well), which is easily twice my car's motor.

What's the point of all the extra text on cars, anyway? The driver/buyer presumably knows what features the vehicle has, and the rest of us shouldn't care. How many tons of plastic and metal plating are wasted every year just so everybody knows that Mr. Jones has not just any Camry, but a Camry LE, I wonder.