Nothing don't mean nothing if it ain't free

I really hate it when commercial-free radio stations have so many commercials telling me that there aren't any commercials.

image from onepennysheet.com

Keep on truckin'

Can't remember the last time I saw a sunscreen under a car's windshield, a bra on a hood, lights on a hubcap or license plate holder, elevator struts, or brightly colored windshield wipers.  Then again, I can't remember the last time I took my pills.  You just don't see a lot of guys working on cars these days, and who can work on an engine anymore with all the electronics.  Cars don't need tune-ups too often, it's not worth changing the oil yourself, and "pimp my car" is just a TV show, it seems.  Trucks, on the other hand, don't seem to be just work vehicles anymore.  But why would anyone spend $40,000 on a truck (or put a gun rack on the dashboard, but that's a different line of criticism)?  Yet there are a fair amount of trucks tricked out.  I'd love to have a beat up truck with an engine that wouldn't die.  If you own a truck, you shouldn't have to worry about dents or scratches or a little rust, never mind if it has multi-zone air conditioning and heated seats or not.

image from green.autoblog.com

Wine and vinegar

My dad turned 80 this week, which strains credulity some.  Over the years he has served as my "leading indicator," and we've talked frequently about the things he is experiencing and therefore what I may expect as I age.  Unfortunately, it seems I am "ahead of schedule" on some things, but he's been an impetus to be more careful about diet and exercise, so things are OK.  At my last approximately-annual check-up (can't say I'm real good about that), my GP performed a few tests he had never done before.  He explained that he was essentially gathering baseline data for what I'll benignly label "future observations."  Of course once you hit your 40s your eyesight declines a bit, there is some "thickening," and the minor yet annoying memory lapses begin to occur more frequently.   Yet these sorts of changes, and granted I'm still fairly early in the process, kind of sneak up on you, like the realization that the aches and pains that have always healed no longer go away.   For instance, my doctor correctly noted that my hearing may be just beginning to decline ever-so-slightly.  But it's not that I don't hear as well as I used to, it's just that I don't listen as much.

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Speed Demons

Maybe we should just eliminate traffic laws and drive like people do in Boston (or Rome, or Istanbul, or most metropolitan areas), as the only moving violation that seems to be enforced is speeding.  I'm not whining about getting a speeding ticket, as I haven't had one for almost 20 years.  I don't believe that is coincidental, by the way, as I haven't been driving a red sports car since around then.  I'm convinced that the "Arrest me red" folklore is true.  I don't drive any differently, and yet my car now seems to be invisible (will probably get a ticket soon for saying that).  Anyway, I see people run stop signs, right on reds, and even red lights all day long.  Who gets stopped for running a stop sign or not stopping for a right on red, and almost everyone does, unless the police are looking for an excuse to stop you to see if you've been drinking.  Click it or ticket?  I don't think so.  Wrong way?  Who cares.  And do cars even come equipped with turn signals anymore?  Look at all the drivers without registrations, licenses, inspection stickers, still allowed to drive with drunk driving records, and a million other things, but as long as they don't get caught speeding, it's all good.  As an interesting aside, I read a while ago that a company in California (where else) sells vouchers so that people can pre-pay speeding tickets.  The way it works is that you can, for example, pay $13.33 for a $100 voucher to be applied toward a future ticket (don't know if there is an expiration date)- kind of a speeding ticket insurance policy. Pretty crazy, huh?

(image from gamerevolution.com)