Notes for Week 39, 2024
Song of the week:
Notes
I just wrapped up watching the final episode of the Grand Tour. Watching the show come to an actual end was more emotional than I expected. It's not just the end of a show. It's the genuine end of something that I've had in my life since I was a teenager. I watched Top Gear as various presenters rotated around Clarkson. I watched as it became the trio we all know. I watched it as I transitioned from weirdo teenager with loads of Sunday newspaper car cutouts on his wall to Gran Turismo player and onto adulthood; where I now get to share my passion with my two boys.
I've been able to have my own inspired adventures. 3 of us absolutely destroying a brand new Mustang as we adventured around northern California. Nearly killing myself in front of my petrified wife as I tried to find the bite on a car that was rolling forward off a cliff in Tenerife. Aquaplaning a Mazda 2 into a high-sided kerb, ultimately being fixed by, and I swear this is true, rubber bands.
But I also get to take stock. I've a wonderful family who allow me to do stupid things like buy a Porsche for my 40th next year. I've friends who are, much like the trio on TV, absolute muppets. But they're my muppets.
The last moments of the special were, well, special. Watching them cut to clips of the first ever 'adventure' episode of Top Gear, ending the entire saga at the place it all began was emotional. There were no real tears in the show. No big emotional ending. But it still managed to hit me. It's been with me my entire life. Inspired me, made me happy and often times confused me. The transition from BBC to Amazon was a really strange time but they made it work.
And although I've never met them, they don't know me and never will. I feel a little privileged that I got to share, even a little bit, of their hilarity. Because while the car centred around cars and motoring, and the adventures you can have therein. It was about friendship. Which can be complicated. And men rarely talk about, expose themselves to or dare to be open about friendship. But the trio certainly inspired me to stop being such a man about that nonsense.
Bravo gents. Bravo.
Tabs
- Soulwax live at Lowlands. With Max Cavalera!
- Right-wing lunatic SF "parties". When you see who's orchestrating this you'll laugh.
- OpenAI data to be reviewed by authors
- IBM AI not good enough to do layoffs. AI is not a panacea for a shit business.
- Steve Silberman Has Died
- AI will be a bust
- Telegram will cooperate with authorities. Funny what a stint in prison and not being able to be 'free' in wealthy Western nations will do.
- The intelligence age. Altman spews a lot of weird, mad stuff here. Really weird. He must have had a pint before this was published.
- Hot-wired iPhone 16
- Revolut to launch it's own stablecoin. One one hand, crypto is a bit mental. On the other, Revolut might bring stability and sense to it.
- WPEngine story. This is mental.