Friday Follies...
What's that you say? ANOTHER Friday the 13th?
So soon?
Seems like ONLY "yesterday" (to me, anyway)!
Now all superstition aside, we're not going to talk about BLACK CATS...
(in spite of the fact that my neighbors DESERVE to be talked about...a lot)
Today, I'm going to sight in on cars...MINE among others, or as my wife refers to it..."his baby"...and rightly so...LOL!
I own a BLACK car, and when it comes to cars, BLACK truly IS...beautiful!
Think of it as one of those "universal constants" (like relativity).
Nothing looks smarter than a nice, shiny black car under the street lights (in a nicer neighborhood than MINE, that is).
And nothing is harder to keep clean THAN a black car.
It shows EVERY particle of dirt, mud, grime, birdcrap, and anything else nature or man provides.
So you have to give it a bit MORE care than other colors.
Now this is basically what my car still looks like...





And THIS is what it would LIKE to be...LOL!

This is my wife's car: a 1996 Chevy Caprice Classic, and it's a nice ride, make no mistake about it.

Rides as well as my Dad's old 1971 Ford LTD (which HE said stood for "Long Term Debt") back in the day.

For a long haul...it's good on the lumbar AND the backside!

And I know...

I drove this car from Indiana to Philly, and back again within a week..

And that was some driving!

Well, THIS is what she's driving until the Caprice comes back from the shop: a 2009 Chevy AVEO.
Please, do try to control your laughter...I know I am.
OK, so this tootsie toy "might" get 34 MPG on the highway and 27 MPG in the city, but C'MON NOW...!!!
Where the hell is the REST of the damn car?
(I checked the trunk...it's NOT in there)
Sorry, but this vehicle might provide good, BASIC (and I mean that word literally) transportation, but I can't see myself clear to feel GOOD while I drive this Tonka-Toy.
It's claustrophobic as all get out, and I drive a FIREBIRD (that has a lot more glass, so you feel a lot more "open").

And it has a cute little "spoiler" on the trunk...(WTF is THAT for,"downforce"??? I'm not going to be driving this car at ANY speed that will require DOWNFORCE)
The funny part is that with it's FOUR cylinder engine (w/ fuel injection) the BHP is less than my old 2.8L V-6!
(imagine that)
And this "Corgi-Diecast with a thyroid problem", has GOT to be LIGHTER than my Firebird, which tickles the 2800 lb range and still gets about 25 MPG (highway) and slightly under 20 MPG (city). I'm not seeing ALL that much savings over those 26 years of "technological advancement" since "my baby" (there, I said it) rolled off the assembly plant in Norwood, Ohio back in 1983.
My wife said she could get TWO of them in the same space the Caprice took up (almost anyway) in our garage.
If you place them SIDEWAYS, you really COULD!
But it IS only a rental...not something we're NOT going to keep (thank God).
I'm sorry, but when it comes to NEW cars (and recently used as well), all this computer-controlled crap is screwing things up.
Now my Firebird's got it's own "Christmas tree" on it's dashboard, but is nowhere as reliant upon the onboard ECM (computer) as my wife's car, and we're only talking 13 years difference.
Then again, if I still had my 1975 FORD TORINO, I'd barely have ANY computer crap under the hood. I would have a 26 gallon fuel tank (!) with a fuel mileage rating of BARELY 20 MPG on the HIGHWAY, and about 17 MPG in the CITY. And that was ONLY a 2 bbl carb on that 351 CID engine!
(this is not "my" Torino...Mine was metallic dark hunter green and I had oversized blackwalls and moon hubcaps)
A nice car with a damn fine ride, if gas NEVER goes over $1.50 a gallon! Thirsty doesn't begin to cover it.
My wife's car has a key with a damn CHIP in it (theft deterrent), and the steering column has about a mile of small gauge wires inside, all of which are prone to chaffing over time (nice, huh?). We call that planned obsolescence.

And she's got FOUR oxygen sensors in the exhaust system. (are the other three "spares"?) That's what technology does for 'ya...mucks things up by over complication.
But that's only the tip of the iceberg...and unfortunately, when dealing with all this computer B/S in our cars, we've pretty much all signed up as steerage passengers on the (automotive) TITANIC.
Makes you wonder about those swimming lessons Mom made you take, doesn't it?
Is it time to get the missus a "new" car?
Dunno, yet. If the Caprice starts "dollaring us to death" (as Dad would say),then YES...it is.
Other than that, we'll keep what we have for the time being.
As for ME, unless my car becomes a victim of an act of God (or a stupid-ass driver who BETTER have a LOT of medical coverage), I'm sticking with what WORKS. The A/C might not function, the seatbelts need repair, and the window moldings are cracking and need changing, but all that aside, "my baby" still does what it was designed to do, age not withstanding.
Sounds kinda like it's OWNER...and that's kinda scary to think about...LOL!
-- Lastly, please tune into the GLENN BECK program today at 5PM on FOX NEWS channel.
It promises to be a very good show, and will prepare us for the coming "storm".
If you understand that this nation needs certain PRINCIPLES and VALUES to sustain itself, and to prosper, then you will have tuned into the right show.

And it will be a LIVE telecast.
If you think this nation is STILL great, but are tired of the way the government is handling the reins, then watch the show.
Like this blog...it's COMMON SENSE for the common man or woman.
So...wherever the four winds take YOU, and in whatever vehicle you might find yourself driving...
Do have a good weekend, and stay safe out there, America.