Most Liked Automotive Blogs (377)

When the three connect I'm suddenly in that 'poetic' land of 'never stop' where my imagination runs as long as the magical asphalt that lies ahead of me! Just throw in some of my favorite tunes and I'm transported into a sort of parallel world in which every little thing is alright. Then suddenly I'm 'hurled' back into reality by my first traffic jam, all told I guess you might say that I'm a 'Corvette' kinda guy.

I am currently reading a book about the Dust Bowl of the early 1930's in Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.

It's a sad sad story about the "Anglo-Saxon" immigrants who in the late 1880's from Germany, Britain and other places came into the area mentioned above. The U. S. Government under Herbert Hoover removed all the American Indians and the Mexicans that had lived in those areas for centuries and placed them into terrible conditions and localities.

Within 50 years they had overplanted and raped the land with tractors and horse drawn plows so badly that when the drought cycle hit around 1930 it was so devastating that it completely ruined the agriculture in that area. The rainless seasons and high winds built clouds of dust laden with so much top soil from the parched land that some storms contained tons of dust that were the ranchers worst nightmares! And there were many of these dust storms.

The story is extremely sad how the Mexicans and the Indians were mistreated and any Black people wandering through. But when the unexpected drought hit the farmers they were completely at a loss and they suffered completely. They died from dust pneumonia and other dust borne ailments and were practically wiped out by the middle 30's.

One of the characters whose story just about covers the whole book and the family problems tell about how one of the son finishes high school and is the class salutatorian. After he received his diploma he gave it to his Mom and when she asked her son why he replies; "...you are smarter then me"! Or close to that.

Tim Egan is the author and the name of the book is "The Worst Hard Time"! That line really swelled the tears and made my throat sore. I recommend it to all.

Lately, I have been wondering how products can be described as one thing in marketing, and be something different in reality. Of course I am talking about baked beans. A more accurate description would be beans boiled/stewed in a tomato sauce, as they show no signs pf being baked as such. I never heard anyone say "I'm baking a cake, and I only used 2 bottles of tomato sauce", and at the supermarket the tomato sauce is nowhere near the other baking ingredients.

a very tasty doughnut

Its 9.30 in the morning here and I have become quite vexed as to what time is best to enjoy such a fine pastry..
Would it be best had with tea at 11.
After soup at 1.
Or with evening coffee while watching the news at 6

Such decisions are hard to make on an empty stomach

So one of the nice things about this place I live at is how the lack of nearby lighting offers a great view of the night sky, coupled with a weird acoustic effect many have noticed here, within which you can hear ordinary conversations from literally a mile away if the speakers are outside, at night I can easily hear the train go by the closest town even though the train track is 7 miles away, when DHS practices at their firing range I can hear the guns going off. That range is 19 miles away (pop,pop,pop,pop, etc.).

Ever go out at night and just stand there in the dark in the night air and quietly watch and listen?

Mars sits there South South East at about 11 o'clock as I face to the Weat. Little Dipper at 12 O'clock high. It is 2330 here Hey, if you really know your stuff those three alone put me somewhere in NA up in the Mid Atlantic, nu?

Somewhere in the NW a little while ago there were flashes on the horizon. Bright ones. I start counting. More flashes about 6 seconds later. I know what day it is and that some places do the light show a little early. Clearly that is one such place. I listen carefully. Figure the speed of sound at sea level is 0.211446403 miles per second. A little slower at this altitude. 73 Seconds later I hear the very faint booms and thuds. Figure 15 - 16 miles away. Somewhere between Clearbrook or Inwood I am thinking...

I got invited to 2 July shootenfest & BBQ tomorrow. Toying with it. Friend with a place like mine has invited about 30 folks to bring guns and try out his new shooting range (he just finished the berm last week) and also participate in the BBQ. Girls, music, guns, noise, etc. Thinking of it.. I called the State Police for his state this afternoon and confirmed there would be no legal issues in my bringing some toys to the BBQ. A .22 for the girls of course, but for me? 44, 45? Why not a wussy 380 instead? Decisions, decisions. Someone else is supposedly bringing a Barrett. Weirdly I just happen to have a can that would fit that which has just been sitting around collecting dust.. Unlinked too. Hmmm

Anyway, studying the sky. See a pinprick flash. Very fast like a strobe. I have seen such before, but mostly when staring up through one of my better NVDs. Unusual to see it with a naked eye. 3 seconds later, there it is again. It has moved maybe a half inch. Another 3 seconds, there it is again. I briefly toy with dragging the Meade down from the attic and coupling one of the PVS devices to the Meade so I can get a better look. Nah, too much dusty work and for what? I already know things circle and watch us. I can see it. No one putts a visible strobe on a satellite. Electricity is too precious up there. So it is a glint. What the sky watchers call an Iridium Flare. It is tumbling at a constant rate and every now and then the sun reflects off of it at regular intervals until the angle for me to see it is wrong. I notice a second one far to the West but dimmer. Approximate the azimuth and come in and do some research. Gotta love the Internet where everything is just a few key clicks away.

I now think maybe I was seeing the rocket booster from Cosmos 2333 and maybe SL-16 R/B. The paths are right..

I had always admired Tiffany in high school, good-looking, athletic, smart, nice arse etc. etc... Then we met at a reunion and she was even hotter than before. So we had a dance when Lionel Ritchie came on, and also when they played Phil Collins (Against the odds). One thing led to another, and a whirlwind romance blossomed. So we moved into a small flat above the gym together.

We were the ideal couple, the talk of the town. We went everywhere in a large Caddilac convertible, and I started smoking French cigarettes and wearing a cravat. Eventually I got rid of the cravat because it made me look like a poof off a cooking show but thats another story.

Unbeknownst to myself, her frequent trips to the gym had taken on a sinister life of their own. At first I made excuses for her appearance changing so radically, such as Christmas kilos or telling my mates she's bulking up for winter when they ask about the situation.

It was becoming more and more difficult to keep up with her in the bedroom, and so I started taking calcium supplements in case she broke my bones. She became incredibly strong, and her breasts developed peach fuzz. She was totally insatiable, demanding services up to eleven times each day.

Then one day I caught her drinking a bright green liquid, immediately I suspected it was the funky cold medina but I wasnt sure. Then the veins on her neck bulged up, then the rest of her neck bulged up too. Then her feet shrivelled up and her forehead became unfeasibly enlarged. So I moved out.

Horn OK please' is a phrase commonly painted on commercial vehicles like trucks, buses or local taxis in India.

The purpose of the phrase is to alert a driver of a vehicle approaching from behind to sound their horn in case they wish to overtakeThe origin of this phrase is unknown. Also, there is no official significance with respect to Indian traffic regulations. No rules in India mandate or suggest the use of such a "slogan" on a vehicle. Still many vehicles are decorated with the phrase Horn OK please.

In the early days, most of the trucks in India were manufactured by the TATA Group. When new trucks were rolled out of the factory, they were subjected to tests, and the trucks that passed the tests had 'OK TATA' stamped in the rear tailgate, with 'TATA' written below 'OK'. Owing to the huge amount of traffic, many truck drivers had 'Horn Please' painted on the tailgate, with the two words on either side of 'OK'. This was visually read as 'Horn OK Please'.

Though this may be the most likely origin, there are plenty of theories for the “Horn Ok Please” being into existence. One such theory has its roots in the Second World War where trucks were often run on petrol when there was a shortage of diesel. Petrol, being highly unstable in nature, would cause the trucks to explode at the slightest accident. Hence a warning would be painted on the back saying “Horn Please, On Petrol”. Gradually this became a norm and is still seen on most trucks even today.

Another possible explanation is that during the blackout on lights during the Second World War, if a car had to overtake a lorry in the night, it had to honk. For this purpose, there used to be a red light under the truck which the truck driver would switch on to signal that it was OK to overtake. It was the OK in the middle that would light up.

Yet another explanation (and probably one bearing some truth behind it) is that the OK is separate from the Horn Please. The OK is kept there in big, bold letters, to allow the drivers from behind to realise that they were OK and alive, thus preventing them from rash behaviour; in addition, the fact that they are able to read the OK is indicative that they are keeping an appropriate braking distance.

Another theory is that, the original words were Horn OTK (overtake) please. And since many times the T would merge into the paneling of the truck it got mistaken for OK.From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Where does one find happiness? With in you or from others who can make you happy?

I feel a bit stupid that I almost can't move the car back without backwards camera even I drive since 2008! :(

How many people here have same problem with me?

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.