"Normal" is a relative term

Looks like things are returning to normal here.  Over the past week we buried my 96-year old aunt (on Tuesday) and yesterday we laid to rest my 96-year old step-mom, too.  They both just wore out and died peacefully....they did it right!

Interesting factoid:  If I understood the story correctly, my step-mom invented the "conference call".  It was during WWII and she was working for the Southwestern Bell phone company.

  
She figured out a way to plug in the wires to the switchboard in such a way that she could connect calls from servicemen to multiple people on the other end at the same time, enabling them to all hear their loved one during the very brief calls the soldiers were allowed.  

Later the phone company techies of the day ran with her idea and, in the true spirit of capitalism, perfected a way to charge us extra for it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They are officially zero.  I'm talking about the odds that I will ever travel to India.  Before I read today's paper my odds of visiting India were about the same slightly lower than my sweeping Scarlett Johansson off her feet and driving off into the sunset with her beside me in my vintage Ferrari.

It seems in the northern Indian state of Uttar Prapesh the heat spiked to 117 degrees and the power company shut down.  The story said that on a good day power only works for a couple of hours anyway, but now they don't even get that.

And being the super intelligent folks they are, they rioted, took the electric company employees hostage, and burned down the electric substations.  Yeah, that'll show 'em!

So now they have 200,000,000 people (literally) running around without even their usual 2 hours of electric service a day.  And to make matters worse, I'll bet you $100 the stores are all sold out of deodorant, too.  Man, they can't buy a break!

Nope, sorry. No air conditioning, no Scotty boy.  Texas in the summer is bad enough.  I'm not going looking for trouble.

Stay cool everyone.  :)

S

"Baseball, hot dogs, apple pie, and Chevrolet"

No?  OK then, how 'bout "rugby, barbecue, peach ice cream, and Ferrari"?

 WE WON!

I'm kinda liking these long holiday weekends.  Friday night we watched the Amlin Cup championship game (rugby), and my team, the Northampton Saints, won it all in a hard fought game.  WooHoo!

Then yesterday we watched the Heineken Cup European rugby championship game where Toulon (France) beat Saracens (UK).  This was good for me as next weekend Northampton plays Saracens for the Aviva Premiership championship, which is the Super Bowl of English rugby.  A beat up Saracens won't hurt my feelings.  ;)

Today....in just a few minutes actually, I'm watching the Monaco F1 Grand Prix.  Do I dare hope Ferrari might sneak up on Mercedes and win one?

Later we're thinking about going downtown to Klyde Warren Park (no relation, DAMMIT!) to chill the afternoon away and maybe graze off one of the food trucks.  It all depends on the rain in the forecast.  It'll be one of those snap decisions if we go.

I missed grandson Parker's baseball game yesterday because it was at O-dark-thirty.  Next week it's at a more reasonable 11am.  He's a hoot to watch.  

At age 4 (almost 5) he plants his feet, taps home plate, takes a couple of practice swings, then steps into the pitch and clobbers it!  He must be batting something like .999.  And he's a fine first baseman, too.

Don't forget to think of all our service men and women who are and have served and sacrificed so much for us, especially on this Memorial Day weekend. 

Have fun, be safe everyone.  :)

S

Cars, cars, and more cars!

I was out of pocket most of yesterday as K took the day off and we joined up with my friend Neil and attended the Dallas Auto Show.  We always like to go on a weekday as weekends are a freakin' zoo.  We met up in suburbia and rode the light rail train to the Convention Center in downtown Dallas....the best $5 I ever spent!

Compared to some of the large auto shows around the world....LA, NY, Geneva, Frankfurt, South Fargo ND, Bugtussle AL, etc, it isn't much.  No wild concept cars, no unveils, none of that.  But still this year's show was surprisingly good.

The bright overhead lights that made the cars stand out when seen directly created some awful photo glare, but here goes anyway:

K really liked the new 2015 Mini Cooper S.

I concur.  It was a winner.  I understand they want to keep the retro theme, but the changes from last year's model are too minor to the untrained eye, even though underneath it's completely new.  Still a definite keeper, though.

I specifically went to see the new Mazda 3.  The auto press has given it great reviews, and while I haven't yet driven one, I must say I was disappointed.  The interior just didn't measure up, for example.  

The styling was nice, but overall I gave it just a "Meh".

Aston Martin's really tick all my boxes, they're so beautiful.  

Even the big 4-door Aston Rapide S was stunning.  The price, though, was just plain shocking!

We were told this is the only Pagani Who Are Ya * currently in the US.  No wonder, at a million bucks plus!

* If you can pronounce it, you're a better person than me!

It was actually pretty gaudy.

Yet another McLaren MP4-12-C.  I see these things all over town.  Or maybe there's just this one and they keep driving it in circles.

A Rolls Royce Wraith.  A two-door Rolls?  Umm....no!

I did like the crystal (?) Spirit of Ecstasy, though.  :)

The Range Rover Evoque was especially impressive.  The little splash of mud behind the rear wheel was a nice touch, letting us know it's a serious off-roader.  *snicker*

For a mere $47K it can be yours.

Although the design is getting rather long in the tooth, I still like an Audi TT.  Overpriced, though.  :(

Same with the Audi R8.  

Here's Lexus' attempt to prove it isn't just an old man's car:  the LFA.  It's a $350K super car that took 10 years to design/build.  It's quite good they say, but for a lot less than that you could have....

 ....this Ferrari 458 Italia.  Game, set, match!

I have friends who have Jaguars, and frankly, they spend waaaay too much time in the shop to impress me.  Still, this new F-Type is absolutely gorgeous!

I made it a point to go check out the BMW's.  I really wanted to like them, but after looking them over I was even less impressed than when I got there.  They didn't have the nice thunk you like to hear when you close the door, and the seats didn't swallow me like I want them to. 

The new "baby" Maserati, the Ghibli.  Nice, but no cigar.

The latest iteration of the car that changes super premium fuel into tire smoke and noise, the Dodge Viper.

The Fiat 500 Abarth, because I always include one in my car show pics.

I did find my next car at the show, the upcoming (this summer), all new (although outwardly it's only slightly evolutionary looking), Volkswagen GTI:

They say it, like the previous gen GTI, has magnificent power, handling, comfort, and practicality....a daily driver you can thoroughly enjoy.  The interior quality will blow you away....I can't tell you how impressed I was with the fit and finish.  Kudos, VeeDub!  Seriously, when I'm ready to put my now-7-year-old Audi out to pasture, this is what I will be buying.  :)

And now just some random shots of select vintage cars on display:

Porsche 356

Buick ____

Early Corvette

The inspiration for "Pimp My Ride"?

Yeah....a purple Lincoln.  :0

Nice Jag

Rumble seat on a T-Bird?

That was the Dallas Auto Show 2014.  Next week....Cars and coffee.  :)

S

Cars and Coffee, February, 2014

It was a cool-bordering-on-cold, windy morning, but the Cars and Coffee faithful were there in force anyway.  By the time I arrived at 7:30 the party was in full swing.

The first car that caught my eye on the British row was this nice Triumph TR-4.

I've seen this one before at the All English Car Show, but it's just one of those cars I never tire of seeing.

This tastefully pimped Mini Cooper S was nice, too.

* "tastefully pimped"....the ultimate oxymoron? *

While nothing at all exotic, I've always liked Audi TT's.  I think my name on the title of this one would look great!

This was your lucky day, Betina.  Look what I found for you....

A showroom perfect BMW Isetta 300.

Did somebody really drive this thing from Oregon to Texas?

One of the better hot rods for sure!  I think Tim "The Toolman" Taylor would approve.

The times, they are a changin'.

Now even the Korean car guys have reserved space.  Car clubs are always present at C&C, the most prominent usually being Lotus, BMW, Mini, Mustang, Camaro, and Subaru.

Oh yes, and the Corvette "comb-over" boys club, too.

I must give the Subaru WRX boy-racers high marks for their sense of humor.  :)

"If it's not leakin', it's empty"

Close, but no cigar.  If it had been blue, this could have passed for my first car.

It was a treat to see this '70-ish Lancia Montecarlo there.

It must have never gotten wet.  If it had, all you'd see would be a little pile of rust on the pavement and 4 tires.

Alfa Romeo Spyder....still on my Lust Bucket List.

I must admit, Ferrari's (458 Italia ^ ) can look good in "non-red", too.

Then again, why upset the ghost of Enzo (Mr. Ferrari)?

While not the newest or the most exotic, I still think the 599 ^ has the most class.  I love those thin "flying buttresses" off the rear glass.  They're both aesthetically pleasing and aerodynamically useful.

Nostalgia time....who wants a ride in my '56 (?) Cheeevy.  (Umm, maybe I'd better ask the owner first.)

The car that made Ralph Nader famous....the Chevy Corvair.  With the engine (and all the weight) in the back, it had a tendency to swap ends while in motion (not good for life expectancy), hence Ralph's book Unsafe At Any Speed.  He's been running for President (and losing) ever since.

Still, I think this is a great looking, very well maintained example.

There was a camera crew there interviewing some race car driver, but I was more impressed with this rig that allowed the camera to very smoothly glide horizontally.  Pretty cool!

And now, for my Show Favorite....

This immaculate Austin Healey 3000.

Achingly beautiful.

That's it....Cars and Coffee, February, 2014.  Hope you enjoyed.  :)

S