Thought this is amazing. This is a real jail in the Phils and is the inmates rehab program. The warden dreamed that Michael Jackson could one day visit. RIP MJ.

What happened? Met a nice fellow named Steve in Cairn’s who peddles FUIC’s when the markets are open.

Contact: Steve 0420 785 798 (photo)

Where and When to Find this FUIC Megafan

Rusty’s Markets
44 Spence St (located in the CBD between Grafton & Sheridan Streets)
Cairns, QLD 4870
07 4051 5100

Open: Friday to Sunday

View Larger Map

Happy FUIC Hunting !! Let us know your FUIC moments Comment below

I am told ‘the Cranbrook run’ is taking on cult following in Townsville with expat Adelaidians arriving in droves. I am certainly a contributor to this local phenomenom. Are you? Let us know where else you find FUICs in North Queensland. It’s a Farmers Union Iced Coffee or It’s Nothing!!!

How Do I Get There?

Get on Ross River Rd from Stocklands and drive towards Thuringowa. It’s on the left with the KFC and carwash.

More Info on Getting Townsville FUICs

Cranbrook Convenience Store
476 Ross River Rd, Cranbrook, QLD, 4814
07 4773 1399

source

The world is certainly transforming before our very eyes. Global economies are in recession, markets are volatile, businesses are crumbling, housing markets are in the pits, unemployment ison the rise - change is the only answer. This is the new millenium where cultures, corporations, entertainment, ethnicities will all slowly merge into one. A united planet, inhabited by humanity, united in the glory that is metrication.

What is Metrification?

Three countries in the world today still use the imperial measurement system. The culprits are:

• Liberia
• Burma
• United States

The countries using the imperial standards are shaded black. They continue to use imperial to this day. The world trades in metric but satisfy these rogue states with dual measurements on each package.

How cool is it to be able to drive and look at two measurement systems!   …Not

Internation Standard Units of Measurement

English Imperial Units of Measurements

To measure the above mentioned quantities in the English Imperial system, all the following units can occur:

1. Length: inch, foot, yard, mile, fathom, rod, furlong, league, mil, pole, perch, hand, link, chain
2. Area: square inch, square foot, square yard, acre, square mile, township, square fathom, square rod, square furlong, square league, square mil, square pole, square perch, square hand, square link, square chain
3. Volume: gallon, liquid quart, dry quart, liquid pint, dry pint, fluid ounce, teaspoon, tablespoon, minim, fluid dram, gill, peck, bushel, cubic inch, cubic foot, cubic yard, cubic fathom, cubic rod, cubic furlong, cubic mile, cubic league, cubic mil, cubic pole, cubic perch, cubic hand, cubic link, cubic chain
4. Mass: pound, apoth. pound, ounce, apoth. ounce, dram, apoth. dram, grain, spoth. scruple, pennyweight, short hundredweight, long hundredweight, short ton, long ton
5. Force: pound, ton
6. Pressure: pounds per square inch, pounds per square foot, pounds per square yard, pounds per acre, pounds per square mile, pounds per township, pounds per square fathom, pounds per square rod, pounds per square furlong, pounds per square league, pounds per square mil, pounds per square pole, pounds per square perch, pounds per square hand, pounds per square link, pounds per square chain, tons per square inch, tons per square foot, tons per square yard, tons per acre, tons per square mile, tons per township, tons per square fathom, tons per square rod, tons per square furlong, tons per square league, tons per square mil, tons per square pole, tons per square perch, tons per square hand, tons per square link, tons per square chain
7. Energy: calorie, inch-pound, foot-pound, yard-pound, mile-pound, fathom-pound, rod-pound, furlong-pound, league-pound, mil-pound, pole-pound, perch-pound, hand-pound, link-pound, chain-pound, inch-ton, foot-ton, yard-ton, mile-ton, fathom-ton, rod-ton, furlong-ton, league-ton, mil-ton, pole-ton, perch-ton, hand-ton, link-ton, chain-ton
8. Power: horsepower, inch-pound per second, foot-pound per second, yard-pound per second, mile-pound per second, fathom-pound per second, rod-pound per second, furlong-pound per second, league-pound per second, mil-pound per second, pole-pound per second, perch-pound per second, hand-pound per second, link-pound per second, chain-pound per second, inch-ton per second, foot-ton per second, yard-ton per second, mile-ton per second, fathom-ton per second, rod-ton per second, furlong-ton per second, league-ton per second, mil-ton per second, pole-ton per second, perch-ton per second, hand-ton per second, link-ton per second, chain-ton per second
9. Temperature: degrees Fahrenheit

Calculations & Units courtesy of Metric 4 US

We do not live in the dark ages so let our kids live in a standardised metricated future!

Disasters Caused by the Ancient Imperialists

• During Canada’s metrication in the 80’s a Boeing 767 run out of fuel due to confusion over the two measurement systems. Check out Canada’s trouble of adapting to the scientifically superior metric system.

• The two measurement systems caused the $125 million Mars Climate Orbiter in 1998. NASA and all other organisations involved in the project used metric. Lockheed Martin did not. Thruster performance calculations were measured in pound force seconds instead of newton seconds. The craft was meant to orbit at 150 kilometres but descended to 57 kilometres and burnt up.

Lorelle Young, president of the U.S. Metric Association, said the loss of Climate Orbiter brings up the “untenable” position of the United States in relation to most other countries, which rely on the metric system for measurement. She was not surprised at the error that arose.

Metric is Scientific

“In this day and age when the metric system is the measurement language of all sophisticated science, two measurements systems should not be used,” she said.

“Only the metric system should be used because that is the system science uses,” Lorelle Young - US Metric Association.

To make calculation from metric to imperial go to Metric 4 US. To read more on the conversion process of countries who have decided to embrace the future go over the the U.S. Metric Association’s website. Feel free to voice your opinion below!

UPDATE: Quote from the Barack Obama website:

The United States should not switch to metric just because all other countries did, but because the metric system is the better system, and because science, education and business have already and will profit more from the better system in the long run! Ask scientists, engineers and teachers! Some may consider our current system of measurement an instrument of pride, but it is really only an instrument of measurement.

Take Action!  Join the group and to get Obama to austrisize old measurements!!! Cool.

Current ‘Metric System Advocates’ stats: Members:188 Events-Hosted:713 Events-Attended:5062 Calls-Made:9558 Doors-Knocked:218 Number-of-Blog-Posts:18693 Amount-Raised $28,765.97

The Evolution of Johnny Mestizo [dot] com

A year on JM is as random as ever and I believe I will keep it this way. I have tried to create other specialised blogs with limited success. I found that spreading the limited time I have across a variety of blogs meant I could maybe post once a week from each. A posting frequency of once a week is good for me and my lifestyle. Two things were raised above: Firstly do I write across multiple niche blogs or write with one multi-topic blog, and secondly do I write big posts with 1 week breaks or write small posts with 1 day breaks. My preferences have evolved to the following tendencies…

Niche Blog or Multi-topic

I found myself at the start of 2008 buying domain names at an alarming rate. From owning 5 domains to owning 60+ it took a stern discerning look from my other half (my missus as we say in Australia) for me to curve my addictive ways. As we move into 2009 I will try to pawn some off most likely unsuccessfully and let them expire into the domaining free for all market. Why buy domains? Well, it is basically speculative investing. I believe the predicted price in the future for the domain utopea[dot]com will be worth more than it currently is. Market price = demand for that domain. The more people want it the more the value of the domain goes up. So I was shamelessly in it for the quick buck and had fun doing it. I still haven’t made a profit however lingering in the back of my mind there is still the possibility of one of my domains paying big time so I’ll keep domaining.

Why multiple domains? Well it is simple. To start multiple specialised niche blogs they need relevant domain names. My main random topics included sailing, technology, travel, fitness and making money online. Therefore it was imperative to own a domain for each category and then install wordpress and get the niche blog cracking. Of course one domain for each topic became 10 and so on.

Why did my niche blogs fail? I was less enthused with each niche blog the more I created. I found it hard to generate motivation for topic I was moderately interested in. I lacked equal passion for 6 topics at the same time. The lack of passion brought frustration which amounted to disgust and a state of numbness to that topic. Blog death eventuated 1 by 1. Luckily with blogging set up fees are cheap so my venture would only dent my wallet the same a couple of beers would at my local. So I learnt from my mistakes, refined my strategies and got stronger.

A multi-topic blog is now what JM has evolved to. A wide variety of posts on random things I have found interesting over time. JM basically allows me to learn about a topic as it enters my life and also helps me craft my writing abilities. I learn and I vent.

Big or Small Posts

If the posts are 500-800 worders with bells and whistles I get a decent interest from the readers out there. If they are any shorter such as basic link posts my readership will decrease and my bounce rate dramatically hit the roof! I prefer longer more detailed posts which allow me to explore and learn about the subject of interest. I go out on the Internet and research from a variety of sources and ascertain my own convoluted opinion of the subject at hand and create my posts. Small summary/link posts are pretty much just adding to the clutter which already inhabits the blogosphere.

Financial Goals

Many of my goals have failed. By now with my naive 2007 projections of wealth creation through Google AdSense I would have been a millionaire. Like most quick buck deals real life hits you like a brick and you wake up one day barely willing to continue in this futile endeavour. But I stuck it out. There are too many positive reasons for blogging that far outweight the alternative which is to coil up in the fetal position isolated from the blogosphere. When it comes to johnnymestizo.com I hope to pay to pay for hosting and domain registration fees and that is it. My profit is the positives it has brought to my life.

It is Not About the Money

If it was I would have quit long ago. Here are some reasons why I still blog:

• To develop my writing skills. I have learnt many wordsmith skills along the way as a direct result from blogging. I can extrapolate data from statistics, quote a variety of sources, structure posts with a meaningful statement and back that up with multiple arguments, write creatively with passion, integrity and confidence. In ten years time my vocabulary will be massive and my writing succinct. Without blogging any skills I learnt in high school would have surely faded. From there I can hone my writing skills even further and branch out into creative writing publishing novels yearly until retirement. The skill of writing adhering to grammar and spelling is under valued in todays society. Blogging improves literacy so I will continue to blog.
• A learning opportunity. My random topic of interest blog allows me to look in-depth at a topic and find out every opinion, perspective, image, dimension and usage about it. The Internet is huge and writing detailed posts forces me to do research on the topic. As it is a topic of interest, instead of wearily finding information like a disheartened high school subject I can attack the topic with enthusiasm. I investigate as many possible avenues as I can, find multiple sources to base my opinion on, research, research and research. Blogging allows me to learn comprehensively.
• A chance to be creative. They say blogging is therapeutic. Who says? The Scientific American back in May 2008 said,

Scientists (and writers) have long known about the therapeutic benefits of writing about personal experiences, thoughts and feelings. But besides serving as a stress-coping mechanism, expressive writing produces many physiological benefits. Research shows that it improves memory and sleep, boosts immune cell activity and reduces viral load in AIDS patients, and even speeds healing after surgery.’

Let the Celebrations Begin!

Pop the champagne and pass round the orderves Johnny Mestizo has survived 1 year! If you are as excited about blogging as I am let us know at the Mestizo forums. Happy blogging!  

For years Apple and all its marketing had no effect on me. I sat with my cheap IBM clones, intolerable mp3 playing mobiles and sank in Microsoft applications. For my 26th birthday I was given an iPod Touch and I’m blown away.

Yes - the iPod has taken the lions share of the portable mp3 player market years ago. I have not been living ‘out bush’ this whole time but the ‘iPod Touch’ is incredible. This is my quick assessment on my birthday gift and not a detailed unbiased technology review - please leave your opinion on iPod revolution below.

User Interface

Slide your thumb up the screen is like giving the scroll wheel on your mouse a twirl. The faster the action the quicker you scroll. Also the alphabet is vertically situated on the right hand side of the screen to jump to the artist/band/album/song names quickly. When playing music opt with the cover art mode or the track list mode.

Technology

There is no need for specs. It’s got a big accurate touch screen, battery life for a day and thinner than an iphone. It is simple, elegant and works.

My Verdict

Finally they have taken quality touch screen technology and combined it with precise software to provide a joy to use portable music player!

Well Done Steve Jobs

It looks like you have impressed this techie with your mission to give the customers a quality user experience on robust and reliable technology. Now for the next step - my laptop and desktop computer are becoming out of date… Is there an Apple solution? Hmmm

Well to people who know me fitness is a high priority. I am working on getting my fitness blog up and running so here is my first post: Hype or Helper - Digging into Skins Compression Wear.

Fitburner is all about Strength Endurance training. In the future I hope to have training programs, tips, workouts, my recommended products, nutritional info and pretty much anything else I discover on my road to my potential fitness! Stay tuned.

Why the heck am I splitting my blog?

Ingatz

JM

What did I get?

Western Digital MyBook World Edition II

My 1TB comes with proprietry software to allow you to upload files from home and from another location over the net. Which doesn’t really mean much - you go through your home net router and into the ethernet interface which is included in the box.

What do you get with you WD 1TB MyBook (WDG2NC10000)

• Can setup in a RAID 1 configuration
• 10/100/1000 Mb Ethernet Interface OR USB 2.0

This is also available from WD in 1TB, 1.5TB and 2 TB.

Search time is not bad but I’m finding it hard to get concrete stats on it from WD… will look elsewhere soon.

Well, I’m content with my 1TB monster and achieving one of my life goals. Unfortunately, the drive is nearly full up already!  

Get Your Own Free Space

If you want free space without buying a HDD check out my post on Mozy online storage. If you sign up you get 256MB for free on top of your 2GB. It’s encrypted making it secure and comes with software to assist in scheduled backups.

Did You Know That A…?

• Byte is 8 Bits
• Kilobyte is 1024 Bytes
• Megabyte (1,048,576 bytes)
• Gigabyte is 1024 Megabytes (1,073,741,824 bytes)
• Terabyte is 1,099,511,627,776 bytes (2^40 or roughly 1000GB)
• Petabyte is 1,125,899,906,842,624 bytes (2^50 or 10^15 or 1000TB)
• Exabyte is 1,152,921,504,606,846,976 bytes (2^60 or 10^18 or 1000PB)
• 1,180,591,620,717,411,303,424 bytes is a Zettabyte (2^70 or 10^21)
• The Yottabyte is 1,208,925,819,614,629,174,706,176 bytes (2^80 or 10^24 or roughly 1 Trillion TB)

How many drives have you got? How big? Did you join the 1TB club before me?

Comment below Ingatz

• Farmers Union Iced Coffee 26% of all votes

• Farmers Union Feel Good Iced Coffee 17% of all votes (light)
• Parmalat Paul’s Iced Coffee 17% of all votes
• Browne’s Iced Coffee Chill 9% of all votes
• Parmalat Ice Break 9% of all votes

In South Australia FUIC Rules

This iced coffee cocktail is legendary in SA. It is part of the daily routine for many. Having one to start the day at smoko or at lunch to power you on through out the day. I can tell you this is true as I am one of the legions of screaming FUIC fans. Don’t believe me then check out the 827 strong following on facebook!

Back in ‘02 FUIC was Australia’s largest selling flavoured milk with a consumption of over 27 million litres per year. I remember when I would cruise the Adelaide back roads in my Holden (I’m sure I’ll outgrow this habit one day) and pull into a Macca’s drive-thru to simply order a FUIC.

Selected McDonald’s, Hungry’s and KFC’s stock them as an extra beverage item for insertion into your meal deal upon request. Awesome.

Farmers Union Iced Coffee outsells Coca-Cola in South Australia, making it the only place in the world where a milk drink outsells a cola product, and one of the few places that Coca-Cola is not the most popular bottled beverage.

Where is FUIC distributed?

South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland (up to Mackay) and Northern Territory. How do I get Farmers Union Iced Coffee in Perth?

Urban Dictionary - FUIC

Definition: Farmer’s Union Iced Coffee.
Example: “Get Me a FUIC from the shop.”

Love it: 13

Hate it: 5

C’mon FUIC fans! Go to definition and vote YES!

What’s in this Amazing Drink?

Notice how caffeine is not specified above? Then I found this on Wiki (Iced Coffee) - Most commercial varieties of Australian iced coffee have 2-3 times the caffeine of cola.

So I headed over to the owner of Farmers Union Iced Coffee and found out the following:

All flavoured milks made by National Foods contain less than 65 milligrams (mg) of caffeine per 250mL serve, which is less than the caffeine content of 1 cup of coffee (which contains approximately 110mg per 250ml).

Fat content is a downside as discussed on a FUIC post from Blurb from the Burbs.

Despite FUIC telling us that it’s ‘Reduced Fat Iced Coffee’, it has nearly 3g of fat per 100ml, or roughly 18g of fat per drink. Now that’s more than one Mars Bar and I sure as hell ain’t going to waste my precious fat intake on a mere drink.

What are the FUIC varieties?

Since 23-OCT-06 in SA Strong (strong caffeine/coffee taste) and Light (low fat) versions of the iced coffees. This is to add to their Feel Good range of low-fat/sugar milk drinks coffee and chocolate flavours.

The feel good variety took the title as my favourite iced coffee and chocolate milk back in 2003 for myself personally. I would take a 15 minute break in the morning from my office job in CBD Adelaide. I would head back in to my Level 7 office job - Feel Good FUIC proudly in hand.

Upon heading out to the might 45 minute lunch break any meal would be complimented by another reinvigorating FUIC.

Give me 74 more photos of FUIC!

Official Adverts

The marketing campaign behind FUIC added to the superior smooth taste are the main reasons why it has been so successful. It is aimed at the working class Aussie bloke - check the ads:

The Future is FUIC

According to the Australian Convenience Store News in Nov/Dec ‘07 trends commercial milk consumption, demographical statistics and the following three facts point to a fantastic fuic future.

• Iced coffee sales through convenience grew at nearly 14% last year and the segment now accounts for more than 60% of the flavoured milk in convenience market.

• Iced coffee tends to appeal to a wide audience, but is particularly popular with men aged from 16-35.

• Farmers Union Iced Coffee received the Best Australian Iced Coffee Award 2008!

FUIC is Culture

I’ll leave you with this FUIC documentary to show you the dedication of the FUIC fans out there! Enjoy

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