Hello, America. It’s the first Thursday of 2022, and this is the year that I’m finally going to get serious about my journalistic responsibilities. Of course, that will have no effect on this website. As I’m sure you all know, today is National Cuddle Up Day, which sounds quite inviting, only it’s also National Bean… Continue reading Random Thursday: Shambling into a new year
Category: Cars
Random Thursday: The Last 1 of ’21
Well, hello there. Did you miss me? (Don’t answer that. It’s a long story, almost as long as the time since I last posted something here.) Today is National Bicarbonate of Soda Day, and the only explanation I can come up with for the timing is that it’s anticipatory of a critical need in two… Continue reading Random Thursday: The Last 1 of ’21
The Hapless Mechanic — Part 65,784
I think we can all agree that most new or new-ish cars are not designed to permit under-the-hood maintenance by the average owner. I suspect that’s not a big deal for most of us. Modern engines are marvels of complexity, but also are (usually) such paragons of reliability that the lack of specialized training and… Continue reading The Hapless Mechanic — Part 65,784
tire change
its tuesday afternoon and tonight is trivia night at the yacht club but thats not really important whats important is that my truck has had a slow leak in the right front tire some people would refer to it as the passenger side front tire but a lot of time theres no passenger in my… Continue reading tire change
Coincidence? That’s nuts!
Have you ever found yourself in a situation where, if the details were only slightly different, the outcome would border on disastrous? Perhaps you drove through an intersection and when you looked in your rearview mirror, you saw a car run a red light and t-bone another vehicle. Or perhaps it was something as simple… Continue reading Coincidence? That’s nuts!
Hands-on Review: DBPower Portable Jump Starter
My tenure as a boy scout was pretty short (even counting the preposterous time I spent as a Sea Scout in landlocked Fort Stockton), but the “be prepared” mindset stuck with me. I’m blessed/cursed with an imagination that places me in the most disastrous alternatives of any given scenario, and the fact that one of… Continue reading Hands-on Review: DBPower Portable Jump Starter
Car Repair Customer Service Done Right
Note: The following is an unabashed plug for a local business. If you’re a competitor, don’t take it personally. Better yet, use it as motivation. So, my truck suddenly developed a rather severe front-end shimmy (a highly technical automotive term, implying that my vehicle was demon-possessed), and I began to imagine all sorts of complicated… Continue reading Car Repair Customer Service Done Right
Wrong Way Looking: Remedial Driver’s Ed
So, let me ask you a question. Is it just me, or have you also noticed that many drivers pulling up to an intersection tend to look to their right, and then back to their left after they start to move into the intersection? I can’t find any definitive statistics about whether the driver’s side gets… Continue reading Wrong Way Looking: Remedial Driver’s Ed
Mileage of the Beast
This happened on State Highway 18, just south of Grandfalls, Texas. Sorry for the poor image quality. Something kept obscuring the instrument cluster, some seemingly malevolent unseen force that nonetheless was able cast a pernicious shadow wherever my phone was pointed. Finally, either by a quirk of light or a supernatural intervention – you decide… Continue reading Mileage of the Beast
One of these things is not like the other, but I forget which
Oh, hello. I didn’t notice you standing there, in the shadows. You’re quite patient, considering how long it’s been since I’ve come around. Perhaps you should take up a hobby. Anyway, as long as you’re here, please allow me to share a cautionary tale. It’s a simple story about what happens when you reach a… Continue reading One of these things is not like the other, but I forget which