Greg's Horrible Waste of Internet Bandwidth

So there seems to be a new trend in car rentals—well, maybe it’s an old trend, but I’m just noticing it—where the agencies snag your license and credit card and point you toward the garage telling you to “pick whatever you want” (within your rented category of car, of course). Nice spin on the “or similar” jargon when you’re signing up. And so it went when my wife Thea and I arrived at the Fort Lauderdale airport on a recent nice sunny weekend (a wonderful reprieve from this past New England winter) for a friend’s wedding and a couple of recreational days in Key West. ... http://goaheadtakethewheel.com/the-2014-chevy-spark-catching-an-enthusiast-by-surprise/

So three weeks ago I noticed an irregular, random high-pitched "beep" from under the dash of my '11 GTI. I noticed it right after my wife came back from driving the GTI to Pittsburgh. During that trip she rolled past the 20k miles for the scheduled service reminder, which then "gonged" at me each startup. I didn't pay much attention to the beep at first, since it coincided with the service reminder; probably same issue? I can ignore the service reminder, so I can ignore the beep. I'll get the car serviced next week or whatever (hell, the service is free, right...?) The noise was not startling or anything, just a random audible "beep". Well, the following week we were going to drive the GTI to the NJMP 12 Hour, so I decided to have the service done beforehand. Thea took it in and I asked her to discuss the beep with the service manager (she heard it during the Pittsburgh trip). Car got serviced quickly, but Service Manager says h...

A short time ago, conversation among friends turned to Van Halen (no idea why). We were discussing the band, their history, and the eighties. One friend turned to me and said "they (the band) are so over-rated..." "Over rated?", I replied. "Are you kidding me?!?" 1978 was a bad year for rock. The pop charts were filled with disco , and while Led Zep had just released "In Through the Out Door", Ozzy was getting into a tizzy with Black Sabbath. Rock/metal music was still a late-60's/early-70's-attitude, a ponderous mix of old blues and heavy guitar riffs. It seemed - to me, at least - as if metal and rock was quickly on its way to the "classic" radio stations. Out of this mess exploded the band Van Halen. When they hit the charts they were a sharp lightning bolt in a sky of disappointing music, a distinct turning point from 70's metal to 80's rock. Eddie Van Halen's refreshing guitar sound was nothing like we...

Eat. Race your lawnmower (yes, they're "lawn tractors". I'm sure the  grounds are manicured well. and quickly.) Eat. Visit an elephant.      Eat. Ride a Ferris Wheel.   Paint your face (and catch a few ZZZZZ.....) Catch a concert. Or two. Or Three.   Eat. Check out some arts and crafts. (They had beer competition...but no beer sales. Boo.)   Visit some animals (and pretend that know which are the good ones...)   Burr, it's getting cold in here!   Chew your cuds... Hatch...   ...and grow.     Drag some things around... Learn about history...  ...and, um, whatever this guy's doing. See some pretty cool old farm equipment... ...and dream about the next vacation. Get your picture taken on a tractor. See some really cool birds of prey... ...