Since When Does “FUSION” Describe FOOD?

Posted by MADGestic, Yesterday, 10:25 PM in Other

Since When Does “FUSION” Describe FOOD?

fu•sion- [fyoo-zhuhn] –noun
1. the act or process of fusing; the state of being fused…

I KNOW what the word “fusion” means but to me, the foremost exemplars are not very pretty (much less tasty):

• Nuclear Fusion- Uncontrolled nuclear fusion has been carried out many times in nuclear weapons testing, which always results in a deliberate explosion. Nuff said.
• Medical; Cervical Fusion- [This procedure] involves the stabilization of two or more vertebrae by locking them together (fusing them). As someone afflicted with a herniated disk (C5-6) this carries all sorts of unpleasant memories and other imagery.
• Jazz Fusion- I don’t even know what jazz is so mixing it with anything else just… well… to paraphrase Lrrr: This concept confuses and infuriates us! (Royal “we”.)
• Super Glue Plastic Fusion Epoxy Adhesive #15277- What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?... Sticky Ass Glue. What, as hors d'oeuvres? Mmmm… yummy.

And of course, anyone that has watched more than a couple of episodes of Myth Busters knows that, while fusion can be fun and cool (e.g.: subcompact and 2 semi rigs), it is often messy, dangerous, and explosive. (See also “Nuclear Fusion” above.)

None of this makes me the least bit hungry… or even has me looking forward to my next meal.


Some years ago, as I planned a trip to south Florida to visit my oldest and closest friend, I invited to lunch and agree to meet an “Internet acquaintance” at a particular restaurant (her choice) on a certain date and time. (In fact, we were associated via RN.) Since I was planning this from ~1,000-miles away, I searched on the net for ways to make it relatively painless, and happened upon a website/free-service called OpenTable. I signed up, it worked exactly as advertised, and it was an excellent and memorable “meet, greet, and eat”.

However, I just don’t go to restaurants that often… (especially now that you can’t SMOKE!)… and when I do go I tend to gravitate toward those at which I’ve already had pleasant experiences. (Or IOW, I am certainly not making the most of this service, although it feels good to have this kind of “connection”.) But since sociable dining is such a basic human need, I do try to stay at least somewhat informed, therefore never closed my “account” with OpenTable, and consequently have been receiving (via email) newsletters and special offers from them.

Hence this post. (Some emphasis added to the following.)

$25 for $50 of French Indian fusion at Mantra

Mantra Restaurant
French / Indian Fusion

Oh crap, what the heck is this?

"May all be happy. May all be healthy." - Hindi mantra

A mantra is a group of words that are considered capable of "creating transformation." Boston's Mantra is capable of the same thing - transforming fresh ingredients into inventive, French-Indian dishes that shine on the plate and dance on the palate.

The menu features unique dishes such as Sesame Seed Crusted Pork Tenderloin, Goat Cheese and Potato Tikki, and Tandoor Roasted Veal Chop. The drink list is extensive and expressive, complete with fresh-squeezed and spiced martinis and champagne cocktails.

May you be happy. May you be healthy. May you dine
at Mantra.

:headsmack:


Now mind you, I have nothing against adventurous cooking or adventurous eating… (it’s been awhile since I’ve told the “spicy kosher leg-of-goat on my grill” story)… nor do I necessarily have anything against mid- to top-shelf restaurants (assuming the value is there)… but…

What THE HELL is “French / Indian Fusion”??!!!

Highly-spiced curry dishes in tiny, overpriced, but artfully displayed portions?! Rude wait staff in saris?! Vindaloo frog’s legs?!!


But wait… there’s more:

Mantra is housed in a historic bank built in the 1800s, and the bar is a former teller's cage.

Well I hope they provide each diner with a traditional, ceremonial dagger, the better to CUT THROUGH THE OVERWHELMING IRONY!!!


India is renowned as a former British colony (not French), and the British are not particularly well known for exquisite culinary accomplishments. Albeit France did hold small portions of India… ***rimshot***… they were pretty much outta there by the end of the Napoleonic era.

And since I’m clearly dancing around the edges of certain stereotypes, that Indian folks are well known as excellent and detail-oriented administrators (read: bureaucrats), not too dissimilar from the Dutch who drove the French out of India... that this restaurant is “housed in a historic BANK built in the 1800s”… and that “the bar is a former teller's cage”… hoo boy, am I the only one who sees this?

There’s a stereotypical joke amongst some financials regarding India’s place as an emerging market: “They keep track of trades on a chalkboard, so if it rains that day, you don’t get your fill.” I only mention this thinking of “daily specials” at the restaurant.

All of this is not to be confused with the pre-revolutionary colonization over here, nor the “French and Indian War”… not only are these different “Indians” {i.e.: Native Americans} but the French actually DID leave a culinary legacy … see for example: Cajun and Louisiana Creole cookery.

Where am I going with this? I really don’t know! Just my usual “seeing connections” where they might not actually exist. Would I eat at Mantra? Yeah, sure… so long as I didn’t have to chant for my dinner. Can I recommend it?...

Nope… not yet… I’m still trying to figure out this whole “fusion” thing. As far as I can tell, it means something really really expensive and possibly painful...
…
…
… (Again see “Nuclear Fusion” above.)

Proposition-8 Overturned: Additional Commentary

Posted by MADGestic, Aug 10 2010, 09:40 PM in Other

Proposition-8 Overturned: Additional Commentary


Please note that I do not necessarily agree or disagree with the following editorializing; these are just examples of (some of) the types of discussions that Judge Walker’s ruling (large PDF) has engendered:



The Breakdown of the Traditional Family: Why Conservative Christians Should Rethink Their Blame Game: The week of the decision on Proposition 8 was also the week of the decision on "The Bachelorette." Ali Fedotowsky said yes to Roberto Martinez, one out of 25 who competed for the chance... There could be no more perfect metaphor for the state of modern marriage this week.

Gay Marriage: What Do We Really Mean?: “…lifelong heterosexual monogamy at its best can offer something distinctive and remarkable—a microcosm of civilization, and an organic connection between human generations—that makes it worthy of distinctive recognition and support.”… I would love it if my commenters today could try to parse what Ross Douthat could possibly be trying to say.

My Fellow Conservatives, Think Carefully About Your Opposition to Gay Marriage: The potential consequence that conservatives land on the wrong side of civil rights history again is the alienation of an entire generation of voters.

Homosexuality and the law: […]There is no doubt that gays and lesbians have historically been singled out for discrimination, to the point that until relatively recently, most were too afraid of the repercussions to reveal information about their sexuality. The vitriol hurled their way during the marriage debate only adds to the evidence. As a result, they have formed a community that is, in many ways, insular and that certainly is seen as a separate, distinctive group.

Editorial: Prop. 8 ruling 'activist'? Look at the precedent: Cut through the political rhetoric and look at the law, and it turns out no less a conservative light than Justice Antonin Scalia agrees that the Supreme Court’s precedents naturally, logically lead to allowing gay marriage. Of course, Scalia loudly dissented in the key precedent-setting case, in large part precisely because of its implications. But he did not prevail.

In Defense of Judge Walker: This isn’t to say that Judge Walker is beyond criticism. A higher court might very well overturn his decision. But if a higher court does overturn Walker’s ruling it will be because of factual and legal flaws inside his 136-page decision, not because of how he lives his life outside the courtroom. Just as I think it is wrong to read things into Arizona’s immigration law that aren’t there I think it is equally wrong to read things that aren’t in Judge Walker’s ruling.

The Secular Case Against Gay Marriage: Homosexual relationships do nothing to serve the state interest of propagating society, so there is no reason for the state to grant them the costly benefits of marriage, unless they serve some other state interest. The burden of proof, therefore, is on the advocates of gay marriage to show what state interest these marriages serve. Thus far, this burden has not been met.

The Marriage Ideal: Here are some commonplace arguments against gay marriage: Marriage is an ancient institution that has always been defined as the union of one man and one woman, and we meddle with that definition at our peril. Lifelong heterosexual monogamy is natural; gay relationships are not. The nuclear family is the universal, time-tested path to forming families and raising children. […]These have been losing arguments for decades now…

Marriage and the role of the state: Ross Douthat uses his New York Times column today to put what he undoubtedly considers to be the most intellectual and humane face on the case against marriage equality. Without pointing to any concrete or empirical evidence, Douthat insists that lifelong heterosexual monogamy is objectively superior to all other forms of adult relationships: such arrangements are the "ideal," he pronounces. He argues that equal treatment of same-sex marriages by secular institutions will make it impossible, even as a matter of debate and teaching, to maintain the rightful place of heterosexual monogamy as superior: (snip)… This argument is radically wrong, and its two principal errors nicely highlight why the case against marriage equality is so misguided.

Editorial: Some Prop. 8 allies show their true goal: The ink was hardly dry on Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker's decision in the Proposition 8 marriage case before opponents started attacking the judge personally. […] Rather than critique the legal reasoning in the decision, they chose to denounce him as a gay judge.

Race And Gay Marriage In Perspective: Much worse, the comparison with interracial marriage actually understates the evil of reserving marriage rights for certain classes of people. Banning interracial marriage meant that most black people could not marry outside of their race. This was morally indefensible, but very different than a total exclusion of gays from the institution of marriage. Throughout much of America, gays are effectively banned from marrying, not simply certain types of people, but any another compatible partner period Unlike heterosexual blacks in 1960, the ban gays suffer under is unconditional and total and effectively offers one word for an entire sector of Americans--Die. For evading that ban means virtual--if not literal--suicide.




ADDED 08/13/10:

The Proposition 8 ruling: What the judge got right about morality: [...] Legal reasoning -- the way of thinking that makes lawyers so annoying to everyone else -- does very little. It cannot tell us what to value or explain what a good life is. These questions, which are moral, must be resolved outside the courtroom. But legal reasoning does do one thing very well: It exposes inconsistencies. And this is as true for laws based on morals as for other laws. In this respect the law is actually an agent of morality: It makes us treat others by the same standards we treat ourselves.


ADDED 08/16/10:


Who has standing to appeal Prop. 8 ruling? (H/T BTB): […] The appellate court may grant a stay only if it finds that the supporters of Proposition 8 have a substantial likelihood of prevailing on appeal and that there will be an "irreparable injury" if there is not a stay. […] As Walker explained Thursday, the defenders of Proposition 8 are not likely to prevail because they lack standing; also, it is impossible to see what "irreparable injury" will occur if there is not a stay of the injunction and same-sex couples are allowed to marry pending resolution of the appeal. […] But if those courts follow well-established law, they will need to dismiss the appeal on grounds that those who filed it have no standing. The outcome, then, will be that marriage equality will exist in California, at least unless and until in some other case, some day, the Supreme Court comes to a different conclusion.


ADDED 08/18/10:

Timothy Kincaid at BTB has an interesting opinion on why he thinks the pro-Prop-8 side will not be granted standing by the 9th Circuit: Tea Leaves: Prop 8 Proponents will not have standing.

Automotive: Mercedes SLS AMG Video

Posted by MADGestic, Aug 1 2010, 08:52 PM in MMH Fuel Journal (Automotive)

Automotive: Mercedes SLS AMG Video


Having forwarded the Subaru website/videos to a few folks, one particular associate replied:

Oh… one of those. Well have you seen this…


I have a history as a skeptic (if not a cynic), especially pertaining to advertisements, and generally do not get “reeled in” by fantastical “infomercial” claims. As you can see from my earlier blog post, I readily acknowledged that the Subaru “Get More Gs” website was “advertizing”. However, as I happen to own and drive the earliest retail version of the STi (2004), these videos were particularly fun for me because I recognized… even through the idealized advertising “shoots”… the genuine capabilities of the car.

This is not to say that I’ve gone drifting through a forest of concrete support pillars with a passenger and an array of recording devices on board… but I can say with confidence that the depictions are not particularly unreasonable. With a professional driver at the wheel, and under controlled conditions, the car really can do that kind of stuff; all well within the realm of probability.

So in response to my forwarding of the Subaru website, this associate sent me a copy of the new Mercedes SLS video production… which (if you haven’t already seen it) can be viewed right here.


I recommend that you click though and do the play/pause thing to let it load. It’s about 3-minutes long and it’s really neat… take a look because I’m going to talk about and I don’t want to spoil the experience for you… (albeit the title is kind of a spoiler, though I still think you’ll like it).

Go ahead… I’ll wait…


(Those that have already seen… or don’t care… can skip down to: Okay! Did you watch it?! to jump right in…)

A spacefiller is a life pattern that grows quadratically by filling space with still life. It can be thought of as a fifth class of breeder in which the primary and secondary patterns move and tertiary patterns are stationary (MMS). [1]

Hmm hmm hmmm… da-da-daaahhh… Jean Genie… hmm hmmm…


… aaaaannnnnnndddddd… we’re done.




Okay! Did you watch it?!



As soon as I saw this video… and even though I enjoyed it immensely… my very first reaction was:

That DIDN’T happen.

Remember: Skeptic/Cynic/Whatever… don’t accept it at face value, especially if they’re trying to sell you something… just enjoy it for what it is and move on.


Regrettably, my friend did not see it the same way. He apparently had what I call an: X-files Moment… you know, like the poster by Mulder’s desk:

I Want To Believe

Ummm, okay… I think I can understand… “suspension of disbelief” and all that… and like I said, it IS really neat. However, we’re talking about a professional IT tech, and not a second-grader in re: Santa Claus.

So we politely disagreed… he has an “engineer friend” that he wants to consult, I asked that he share that when available; and we left it at that.



Here is my side:

A photo is to reality as a breadstick is to a banquet.—MADG

First, put aside the car on the wall and start at the base level. It’s an advertisement, which means that things are not as they seem. It’s clean, it’s neat, it’s well-scored… this is not RealLife®. Do you know that for cereal commercials they sometimes used PAINT instead of milk because it’s so much smoother and more photogenic? And that was BEFORE the advent of CGI. So no matter what, I am 100% certain that what we see is not what actually happened.


Secondly, there is NO WAY that a company would send a vehicle rocketing down a tunnel when there were PEOPLE (and equipment and vehicles, etc) in its path. That’s just not going to happen. Government regulations, insurance restrictions, possibly union rules… and of course simple common sense (etc) make it sparklingly clear that that is just an undoable idea. You can do it virtually in editing after the fact, but this is far above and beyond what stunt professionals would do… i.e.: (again) “things are not as they seem.”


FINALLY… we get to the advertised product… the car… apparently doing a Men In Black tunnel maneuver…


… and I am still confident that it didn’t happen.


Accepting the premise ONLY for demonstration… that car started falling off the wall as soon as it turned onto it. Yes, like a bobsled, perhaps high speed centrifugal force would allow it to stick to the wall on an outside curve… (you did notice that the tunnel was curved, right?)… but crossing AGAINST that “outward” force? Cutting “inward” ACROSS THE CEILING?!

Nope… that didn’t happen. Gravity is unrelenting… there is no way that the tires would have maintained traction (i.e.: steering) across the ceiling when the car was upside-down. It would have fallen off.


“Ah-ha” says my friend… “DOWNFORCE!” Apparently the car is so aerodynamically efficient that it creates enough downforce (upforce?) to keep it stuck to the ceiling JUST long enough.

Uh-huh… and how much does that Mercedes weigh? I’ll be generous and say 3,500-pounds… so how much aerodynamic downforce would be needed to keep it driving upside-down?

Off the top of my head, I’d say that the big awkward silly double-spoiler on the back of my STi adds, AT BEST… a coupla hundred pounds… 150? 250? 350? Something like that? Certainly NOT NEARLY ENOUGH to defy gravity. And I don’t see any anti-gravitational “ground effects” on that Mercedes.


Sure, it’s a gorgeous high-performance car… (although the gull-wing doors are essentially a novelty)… and no doubt some fraction of one percent of the population will find it both irresistible and affordable.

But can you drive on the ceiling?



Don’t be ridiculous.

Automotive: Usual Stuff and a Little Treat

Posted by MADGestic, Jul 27 2010, 07:18 PM in MMH Fuel Journal (Automotive)

Automotive: Usual Stuff and a Little Treat



2010 Mercury Mariner Hybrid (MMX):

Max is still very strong on fuel economy; since May 23rd the lowest tank average is 31.172-mpg, and these range as high as almost 36-mpg! I thought for sure that that number was an artifact of a quirky gas station pump, one that shut off much too early and thereby made it seem as though the car used far less gas than it actually did. (And who knows, that may still be the case.) But you would expect one or more subsequent tanks to have unusually lower averages (since the tank isn’t full you can’t travel as many miles); yet the next 5 tanks registered (in mpg): 32.755, 33.105, 34.470, 33.961, and 31.172.

Once again, for an AWD compact SUV that weighs two tons as soon as I sit in it… and with AC on constantly… you can’t beat these numbers with a stick. They’re so good that I’m beginning to worry that there’s something wrong with my math, even though I just added a page to the workbook I used for the 2006 MMH. I skipped the first 705-miles and, at last fillup, have driven 8,724.2-miles using 289.976-gallons of gasoline. That’s 30.09-mpg… right? Well, that’s my cumulative average since January 25th of this year.

Wow, I just realized that’s 6-months of measurement! And that’s an average of 1,454.03-miles per month! Isn’t math FUN?!!

Anyway, I had Max detailed because… well… he deserved it! Speaking of which…



2004 Subaru Impreza WRX STi:

I was ashamed that for almost 6.5-years I hadn’t had the little hotrod detailed… and boy did it need it. I mean I run it through the car wash every once in awhile, and even take the vacuum to it (albeit not nearly as often)… and of course I keep Windex® wipies onboard because clean windows are function, not form… but when I woke it up this spring, the interior leather and vinyl looked really dull and tired. And the rims… OMG, they were so oxidized and laden with brake dust that I started shopping for new ones. Very sad, bad MADG.

On the bright side it’s in excellent mechanical condition and still blows the doors off of any other hand basket to hell!

So today, just a week after sending Max to the spa, the STi got the same (and very well deserved) attention. And as Professor Farnsworth would say: “Good news everyone!”…

I don’t have to replace the rims! They actually clean up real nice!

And just look at that shine!

And speaking of the STi…



A Little Treat: 2011 Subaru STi; Get More Gs:

If you’re not on the Subaru mailing list, you may not have seen these yet. These are five 30-second video clips of regular folks being taken for a ride in a 2011 STi… by a professional driver, of course.

There are bleeps in every clip… even the one with the little old lady.

Yes, I know it’s just advertising… but did that big-titty blonde have an orgasm at the 16-second mark? You tell me… something happened there.

Get More Gs



Finally, here’s a little hint for those of us that occasionally have trouble clicking through to videos on the net due to speed/bandwidth issues:

Whether the video self-starts in Play mode (the above does not) or you deliberately push the Play button… IMMEDIATELY PRESS “PAUSE”!!!... and go do something else for a few minutes. This should allow the video to load (and you can typically watch its progress) so that when it’s finished loading, you can watch it through without that choppy/interrupted “buffering” play.

It doesn’t take any longer, but you get to watch it without that annoying “stop motion” effect.



So, ummm… anyone wanna go for a ride?

Gay Sex and My 6-Year-Old...

Posted by MADGestic, Jul 17 2010, 08:12 PM in Other

Gay Sex and My 6-Year-Old: A Teaching Moment [On Shutting My Mouth]

(MADGestic: Sensitive topic; reader discretion is advised)

Cached Source

By Lisa Brown
© 2010 AOL Inc. All Rights Reserved

My husband, our 6-year-old son and I were walking around the Castro -- a neighborhood near our home in San Francisco -- early Sunday morning. Early morning because that's when the 6-year-old wakes us up. We landed at an all-night diner, because that's the only thing open in the Castro that early in the morning.

At the Castro's diner, our son can sit at the counter and chat up the servers because that's what he's good at. The neighborhood is famously gay, and locals tend to be tolerant folk, open to seeing heterosexual couples, and the results of their breeder inclinations, strolling freely down their streets.

My husband decided that today would be the day to have the "don't talk to strangers" conversation with the young lad. Whenever we come across something that we don't want our kid to do, like sticking his finger in a socket or playing in traffic, we say, "Looks dangerous," in a non-alarming way. After all, we wouldn't want to frighten our darling boy into submission, right? When it's something we want to encourage or something fairly innocuous, we say, "Looks like fun."

This morning, we were hoping to lend a nonchalant, "Looks dangerous" tone to child abduction.

Husband: "Suppose someone who you don't know asks you to get in his car. What would you do?"

Kid (pausing a brief moment): "What kind of car?"

[…]

(continue reading)


= = == == == == == = = = = === = = == == = == = = ==


This short article appeared on my almost-daily news search. Clearly the headline*** is sensationalistic, and thinking it was another fabricated “controversy” from the anti-gay brigade (AGB), I clicked through to see if it was a new “outrage” or one being recycled.

***- NOTE: Based upon the cached Google address, I added the parenthesized part to the title above; i.e.: [On Shutting My Mouth]

Much to my surprise, I instead found a well written, firsthand missive by a parent, descriptively and concisely sharing a personal “parenting moment” with skill and wit. I really felt like I was there, witnessing the events vicariously through her.

(I’m assuming that this was an actual event; but if it’s fiction… my estimate of Brown’s skill as an author would go up another notch.)

So I bookmarked the column but when I went back to read it again, I couldn’t find it. Doing various searches of the site and the net, I finally determined the proper keywords to bring up the Google cached version; which is why that is the version that linked above. Either my search skills are not very sophisticated, and/or… the article has been scrubbed from the site.


Why would it be removed? As I noted above, the headline is sensationalistic; but if you read the column, it’s not nearly as bad or graphic as the title suggests. A 6-yo found something on the ground that reasonable folks would prefer he not be exposed to… but hey, stuff happens. It could have been something like a squirrel run over by a truck, a bullet, a dime of weed, all sorts of things… (including graphic depictions of heterosexual activity, so this is not necessarily a “gay thing”).

I’m no expert but I would think this is part of parenting, and that every parent must deal with a series of these “moments” where the child’s learning curve might not adhere to the planned (or ideal) trajectory. (Note that this occurred on the day of the "don't talk to strangers" parental lesson.) This is, after all, a “parenting” website, presumably purposed to include sharing of experiences and perspectives amongst peers.

If the article was scrubbed, I suspect the reasons might be: One, the headline; and two, a 6-yo saying “looks like fun” while viewing an explicit sex act, even though to him that phrase is non-specific and rather innocuous. (Of course another reason might be that the AGB made so much noise that the website decided to remove their irritation.) Finally, Lisa Brown appears to be a somewhat outré author, and perhaps the website didn’t realize that when they first published this story.


After giving it much thought, even if they’ve tried to scrub it, I’ve decide to provide the article here; primarily because I think it represents good storytelling (it even has “a moral”), but also because it’s likely to be a catalyst for discussion.

So what do you think?...

A parental “narrow escape”?... one of those “WHEW!” moments?

A missed opportunity for education?... “When two people love one another…”

A missed opportunity for fear mongering? “If you do that it’ll fall off…”

Something else?... or just a good story?

Automotive: Potpourri 07/07/10

Posted by MADGestic, Jul 7 2010, 09:20 PM in MMH Fuel Journal (Automotive)

Automotive: Potpourri:



MMX:

Yanno… I really had/have no intention of doing the tank-by-tank “hybrid fuel economy” analyses like I did for those 3-years… however, I gotta tell’ya… this thing is still going like gangbusters. The last SIX tanks (since mid-May) have ALL been between 31.5- and 35.8-mpg… highway, commuting, all with constant AC… the AWD 2010 Mercury Mariner Hybrid is breaking my personal records. This, I believe, is mostly due to the electric air conditioner compressor.

For decades, automotive AC was based upon a compressor that was belt-driven off of the crankshaft; thereby leading to not only noticeably reduced performance (and economy) due to direct engine drag… but also to elevated overheating risk. Although electric AC units for structures have been in use for over a half-century, they run on (at least) household current; and the automotive 12-volt electrical system just didn’t have the oomph to do the job.

Now… right here is where I was going to post some details of how electricity-driven automotive AC units became available: Presumably the hybrid’s high-voltage (HV) electric/battery system plus advancements in automotive compressors. But you know what? I’ve spent about an hour poking through various websites, and either Google® isn’t the search engine that it used to be or… that information is not readily available. (And by “readily” I mean within the first 2-3 pages of Google® returns.)

But if you can imagine an automotive AC system that performs as expected (at least for a few minutes) even when the engine isn’t running!… then you can begin to appreciate the fuel savings of such.

And yes, using the electric AC will cause the gasoline engine to run more often to recharge the HV batteries… (known in Physics as the TANSTAAFL theory)… the difference is that the engine would have eventually started anyway due to driving conditions, so you enjoy a not-running-all-the-time fuel economy “haircut”.

And there it is.


Oh wait!... here it is (PDF file): 330 VDC, about 3 times household current… right, professor?



USA! USA! USA!

Speaking of Ford hybrids, this article notes:

Fleet use: From taxis to the Army

Escape Hybrids are purchased both by private buyers (including your editor's mother in upstate New York) and fleets in both the private and government sectors. They're increasingly used as taxi cabs as well, with more than 15,000 doing hack duty in cities like San Francisco and New York.

In 2009, federal agencies have purchased more than 3,000 hybrids from Ford, more than any other automotive brand. The U.S. Army was the single largest purchaser among the government fleets, acquiring 400 Fusion hybrids. […]

Does this mean I can mount a 50-caliber in the cargo area and go all Mad Max on drivers that piss me off? Should bolt right in... right?





Whatever Happened To VW?

The first used car I ever bought (when I was just a kid) was a 1971 VW Beetle… (which I drove on 2-wheels… I have WITNESSES!... and frightened passengers). My experience was so positive that about a decade later, the first new (showroom) car that I ever bought was a 1989 VW Fox. (Which managed to keep, as Jackie Stewart would say: “4 wheels on da ground”… except when doing the VW “salute”; i.e.: hiking up the inside-rear wheel on hard, and hard-braking curves. Why can’t I find images of that? Seriously, what’s up with Google®?)

Back then, VW had a reputation of inscrutable mechanical reliability: Even after many years and hundreds of thousands of miles… even after the body of the car had literally rotted off the chassis… those little boxer- and suitcase-motors were still good to go. My Fox was a case in point: After 10-years and over 200,000 Fahrvergnügen miles… (the driver’s seat was rubbed raw)… compression and timing were still in spec. I gave it away and it rode on for another year or so, until an accident (body damage) and a broken clutch cable (original… in fact the clutch plates were original as well) led the new owner to ditch it in some gas station and buy a $600 Neon… which <censored>ed him. (He would have been better off with some duct tape and a replacement clutch cable.) Point being… you know… reliability.

Much more recently, whilst doing my usual nosing around, I came upon this Yahoo® article which professes to proffer the “Best and Worst Used Cars” as per the J.D. Power and Associates Vehicle Dependability Study… and what was the lede for the “Worst Used Cars” category (emphasis added)?:

1998 – 2010 Volkswagen New Beetle

The Volkswagen New Beetle is a modern take on the old-school classic popularized in the1960s. While its cute, quirky design won the New Beetle loads of praise when it first debuted in 1998, it hasn’t changed much since (though a convertible body style was introduced in 2003). Meanwhile, rivals have become more comfortable, functional and attractive. Combined with VW’s questionable record of reliability, buying a New Beetle -- used or new -- just doesn’t make sense. “That it has survived this long -- practically unchanged since 1998 -- is something of a miracle,” writes The Washington Post. “But even miracles run their course. This one is near the finish line.”

Wow… what the hell happened to VW?

Back in 1999, after 10-years of the Fox, I was looking for a new “executive commuter”… but when I checked my list of vehicle wants and needs and just couldn’t find “cuteness” on there, I eschewed the VW New Beetle… (also, I couldn’t find an ash tray that fit in the entirely superfluous dashboard bud vase holder… what else was it good for? Nursing hippy pot plants on the move? Maybe some chives? Oh nothing, officer). However, the (North American) VW Passat with the new V6 engine was winning rave reviews… (Best Buy, Best “Large” Family Car, Most Sensible Car Overall, etc)… so I asked my VW guy (small, private, retail repair/maintenance service) what he thought about them. He said:

”They work well… when they work. But if there’s a problem, it’s likely to be a huge problem… like engine repair/rebuilt/replace ‘huge’”…

He didn’t actually say “don’t buy it” because… well… he’d made a career of repairing them… but we had developed an understanding over the years and his (let’s say) lack of enthusiasm encouraged me to look elsewhere. (So I bought the 1999 Oldsmobile Intrigue GLS, all was well with the world, and… Mom’s still driving it.) Point being: Somewhere around the turn of the century, VW lost their focus. They tried to leverage their reputation and whatever shreds of counter-culture appeal they had left, targeting the Baby Boomers with aging “hipness” and new tech… (Big Car! V6! Family!)… and apparently, they fell flat.

Now this is not to say that VW is a “bad car”. Hey, they had that 300-hp V8 crossover, the Teura…. Touro…. Tora! Tora! Tora! thing… right? And not so long ago they were >>this close<< to becoming the largest car company in the world. But as both GM and Toyota can tell you: Bigger is not necessarily better; and I will add: No company ever got hurt by not growing too big. (Jack Bogle)

I not sure where VW stands today but… sadly… it is very unlikely that I would consider their more recent products.




2004 Subie STi Windshield Gasket

Some time ago I think I mentioned that I blew the left side of the windshield rubber seal such that it was flapping in the wind… and then repaired it. Well… now the right side is pulling out.

[MADG: Remember to insert right-wing anti-gay joke HERE]

Fortunately I still have leftover gel to be able to tuck it back inside… so that I can drive fast and tight without worry… high-G… pop the clutch… stick shift… manual… rev it up… pound that tranny… supercharged… lubrication… routine maintenance… balls to the wall… penis.

[Oh, never mind.]





Ortho Wedge Coccyx Cushion

Ortho Wedge Coccyx Cushion

They had me at “coccyx”… but then they threw in “wedge”. The mind boggles!

The coccyx cushion comes in two colors and is made of a machine-washable material making clean up a breeze

Okay… TMI…

Hobby Update: Doh! And Oh!

Posted by MADGestic, Jun 25 2010, 08:44 PM in Home

Hobby Update: Doh! And Oh!


The DOH!:

In my previous hobby post I provided some images of a model structure that I was working on, and noted that my next step was to “tar paper” the roof.

(Wow, that was 3-weeks ago?! I haven’t made much progress at all. Been spending too much time posting here… gotta get my hobby priorities straightened out.)

Sometime prior to that, I had colored a couple of test sheets of model tar paper just to work out which method produced the best results; consecutively holding each on the roof to see how realistic it seemed. I kept and set aside the test sheet that was most favorable and discarded the others. (It was black of course, but it wasn’t a deep or grimy black, and it had a flat finish {no shine}.)

Jump forward to this month; I removed the test sheet from its protective plastic bag, carefully sliced it into scale 5-foot wide strips, and started working the first one. I say “working” because it was being laid down one side of the roof (front to back) and I had to arrange little cutouts to accommodate the 2 chimneys on that side. This took a couple of tries so that after I had successfully laid it, there was only one more strip left, which I then laid next to the first.

(Incidentally, do you know those bottles of envelope moisteners that you can buy at the office store? These things are great; I will never lick another envelope or stamp for as long as I live. Anyway, that’s what I’m using to attach these thin paper strips to the styrene roof structure. The moistening liquid is simulated spit and contains just a little adhesive, which is perfect for giving you time to maneuver the paper into place before smoothing it out for setting. Oh, and the applicator tip is a simulated tongue; kinda wet, a bit gooey, and just the right amount of roughness. Not kidding! Go ahead, check me on this!

No problem, I got plenty of rolling papers, so I whipped one out and got to work with the Sharpie®. Colored it, sliced it up, dabbed down some adhesive, laid it in line, and… umm… wait a second. That’s a different shade of black. Hmm, maybe it just needs to dry out. An hour later and it’s still a mismatch. What the hell?

I thought for sure that the Sharpie® had won the test that I noted above… but maybe it was a different kind of marker. Let’s see, I also have:

• … a black fabric marker (for custom tee-shirts and initializing underwear)
• … a flat black Testors® paint marker (for model-building)
• … the touchup paint marker for the car (but that’s a gloss finish); and
• … a set of a half-dozen black art markers with points of varying fineness (for detail work).

So I went through the entire testing procedures again (with all those markers), yet I still didn’t find a match! That’s the DOH!… I committed a cardinal sin of modeling… and FORGOT how I had achieved a particular effect! So now how am I going to match it? Chances are I won’t, and will have to scrape off what I’ve done so far and start over… just like real roofer.


The OH!:

Since I just recently came back to model railroading after a 30-year hiatus, I’ve had some catching up to do. One of the improvements to the hobby has been the development of magnetic couplers, but I’m going to save that discussion for when I need more sex puns. One of the other great advancements is something called DCC, an acronym that stands for: Digital Command Control. (Hmm… maybe I was a bit hasty in setting aside the sex puns.)


Remember back in the old days; say when you had a miniature railroad running circles under the Christmas tree? Or one of those little (roughly HO scale) racing slot cars sets? There was a power source (often called a “transformer”) and some kind of speed control gizmo; either a dial on the transformer itself (usually for the trains) or individual controllers for the racing cars so that you could actually… you know… race.

My first racing car set used plastic tracks of the “staple and bar”-type connectors. 2 little “bars” where inserted into the track section ends to provide the electrical continuity, and an oversized “staple” kept the sections of track together. What I most remember is that the controllers looked like little dashboards with speedometers and steering wheels that were (somewhat counter-intuitively) throttles. My brother and I eventually graduated to the Aurora-type set, which had snap-together track and pistol-grip controllers. What a blast!

But “speed control” was essentially “current control”… more or less electricity meant more or less speed, and the “throttles” were rheostats. Real simple… think “dimmable light switch”… got it?


Well DCC is like controlling a model railroad layout (of any size) by sending detailed computer commands to the trains and accessories… all 9,999 of them if you wish… and doing so with a wireless handheld remote; similar to the way you do with your TV set, stereo, door locks on your car (etc, etc), with a user interface (probably) less complicated than a modern cell phone.

Just imagine… (cue swirly screen and dream music)…

… you have the boss over for dinner, and as you retire to the den for cigars and 12-yo single-malt scotch, he asks what you do in your free time. You mention something about a model railroad and, without saying a word, his eyelids lower as he mentally begins to recalculate your annual bonus downward.

You press the button on the remote in your pocket…

On the far side of the room, tiny lights illuminate a detailed landscape; and with a faint motor sound, a small switcher locomotive emerges from perfectly detailed engine stall… then immediately and realistically rolls to a stop to be serviced.

You make small talk as you freshen the boss’ drink.

Sated, the switcher rolls forward, in slow motion veers through a turnout, and connects to a boxcar. A moment to secure it… then reverses, bringing the freight load with it… and it’s off to deliver product to the customer.

Pushed through a series of twisting tracks and turnouts, the load arrives at an industrial freight client… CALAMITY® Safes and Anvils (We Also Move Pianos!)… whereupon the switcher detaches, then backs out, retracing its convoluted route back to pick up the next load, which incidentally must be delivered to the far end in the other direction…

By this time the boss is eyeing the layout like a cat watching chickadees at a birdfeeder. You point out how the miniature signals operate in an accurately prototypical manner… then cue the diesel horn for the crossing…

He’s yours.

Here’s the magic: DCC sends commands through the rails, and tiny mobile decoders in each powered piece receive, interpret, and enact them. So instead of “more or less” power controlling the speed of ONE unit, EVERY unit can be controlled with just one remote. Via static decoders, accessories (lighting, turnouts, background soundtracks, etc) can be controlled with the very same remote.

And that’s the OH!… that I finally learned what DCC is and what it can do.


Man… there’s no way my hands will ever keep up with my imagination. Here I am dreaming up an impressive Stanley Kubrick special effects layout… when all I have is a straight 3-foot section of test track on a round wrought iron (indoor) patio table serving as a cluttered workbench.

Talk about raising the bar.

Oh well… it’s good to have goals.

Automotive: MMH MMX Fuel Economy; Plus

Posted by MADGestic, Jun 21 2010, 10:34 PM in MMH Fuel Journal (Automotive)

Automotive: MMH MMX Fuel Economy; etc

It’s now been just over 6-months since I took delivery of the 2010 Mercury Mariner Hybrid (MMH MMX or “Max”) so it’s time for an update.


On June 20, 2010 (my last fillup) the odometer reading was: 8,241.5-miles; or almost 1,400-miles per month. (Annualized, that would be roughly 16,000-miles per year which I think is a bit above average.) Commuting to work and visiting Mom accounts for about 1,150-miles per month; this means that I drive just over 200-miles per month for “grocery-getting” and “shelter kitty visiting”. Aside from my routine ~275-mile roundtrips to Mom, I have not yet taken the car on any long trips.

Precise fuel measurements began with the third tank, which was pumped at the 705-mile mark and measured at 1,062-miles on January 25, 2010. A total of 22 fillups are now part of the record, averaging about 11.5-gallons every 7 days. Having used 254.149-gallons in the measurement period, average fuel economy thus far is:

29.653-mpg.

This includes the cold dark days of winter (27.92-mpg January-March) which blossomed into the warm colorful days of spring (31.01-mpg April-June), and is about 0.43-mpg better than my 2006 MMH (“Mary Mariner”) 3-year average of 29.224-mpg. Although Max is noticeably more powerful than Mary he also has better power management, particularly regarding the gasoline engine.

2006 MMH: ”When needed, the gasoline engine and electric traction motor work together to produce the equivalent of 155 horsepower.”

2010 MMH: ”The 2010 Mariner Hybrid is powered by a 2.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine as well as two electric motors/generators that combine to produce 177 horsepower.”

That’s a 14% power increase with essentially the same fuel economy… not bad.

• There haven’t been any problems or service-related issues.
• The front passenger window has a faint rattle when driving with it partially open (1-2 inches), and my large DD coffee sometimes squeaks in the cup holder.
• Of course I object to the lack of a dedicated and lighted ashtray (which means that I have to use a portable in one of the cup holders); but since the fun and sexy ambient lighting actually shines into the cup holders, I’m willing to forgive.
• The “head unit” (i.e.: navigator, sound system control, and hybrid operations display; formerly aka: the Radio) is a quantum leap forward, what with Sirius radio, traffic, weather, etc, in-dash multi-CD loading (as opposed to a cartridge deck under the front passenger seat), DVD capability[***], huge music/video hard drive, touch screen colorful graphics; and, most importantly (to me), easy iPod connectivity… (my music cyber-library)
• I think it was the 2008 model when Ford switched from all-wheel disc brakes to rear drums (and I commented back then); although what is more noticeable to me is that the 2010 model uses the “real” brakes (as opposed to the regenerative braking system) much more often. For the 2006 model, I drove at least 35,000-miles before seeing any brake dust buildup on the rims, whereas that is already evident in just a few thousand miles for the 2010... (and I chose the 12-spoke rims, DOH!). However, I have not felt that the brakes are lacking, even though they are demonstrably less effective than the 4-wheel discs (according to tests/reviews). That’s probably because I’m still pretty relaxed driving and have not yet even braked hard enough to engage the ABS.
• Unlike the 2006 MMH, I have not yet had this one up over 100-mph, even though it is probably more capable. If I do so, I’ll report it after the heat dies down...
• The cap-less fuel filler is THE BALLS!

[***] “DVD capability”- Mom got a big kick out of the fact that, during an hours-long weekend power outage, I went out to the driveway, sat in the car, (drank a beer behind the wheel), and watched a movie (Star Trek). Since it’s extraordinarily rare for anyone to ride in my back seat (3 times per year, tops) I didn’t buy the “entertainment system”, so the movies play in-dash… even when the car is being driven (I tested), which was quite a surprise to me.

Oh, and I did a pretty good job of touching up the door dings from the valets next door… might not pass a museum inspection but at least they’re not as obvious.



In other “news”:


Subaru Badge of Ownership:


Subaru, which is perhaps ~1% of the US market, has long been known for its advertising “quirkiness”… or for “advertising” its quirkiness… (something like that).

Back in the 80s, I remember that a Subaru model was chosen as the “official” Car of the American Ski Team for the [xxx] Winter Olympics; and I remember that because an automotive review noted that the totally plasticized interior could be “washed out with a garden hose”. Think about that for a moment… never mind slushy ski boots… wouldn’t it be great if you could send your car through an automated car wash with the windows OPEN? All the baby spit-up, toddler spills, MIL secondhand smoke, and general litter just gets flushed away! Man, I’d pay at least 10-bucks for that kind of wash!

Subaru was also a frontrunner in niche-marketing to the LGBT community by hiring tennis star Martina Navratilova as a spokesperson for a 2000 advertising campaign. Hmmm, decade-old “edgy”.

Back in 2004, Subaru helped bring rally sport, “Fast and Furious” customization, and affordable pocket-rocket supercar-trouncing performance to the common man with their barely street legal Impreza WRX STi (see exciting attached image)… and in at least one case, desperate middle-aged “boy racer wannabe” satisfaction (see also attached parked-outside-the-supermarket image… I chose the silver to match my hair).


So NOW, with this “Badge of Ownership” program, Subaru once again proves that, like Apple Computer and Scion (inter alia), they’re more than willing to whore the brand to try and maintain an image of “edginess” without offending the mainstream consumers upon whom they actually rely for their continued commercial relevance.

And frankly, since the old “Fast and Furious” crowd will often DEBADGE their ride… (to confuse the putative competition, for ease of waxing {BRAZILIAN!}, and as a pretense of individuality)… this whole corporate “YOUR Badge of Ownership” is like spraying Febreze on the cat box… hold your nose and pretend it’s something sweet.

(You know… somewhat like the Shaun White and Red Bull “You Were A Lot Cooler Before You Got Old and Sold Out” kind of thing, for example.)

Hey, there are reasons why I don’t put bumper stickers on my cars… in the case of the STi, not the least of which is that very few folks would get a chance to read them as they fly by. Why on Earth would I go out of my way to add automotive corporate “customization”? And no, not even the “LGBT Rainbow” badge appeals to me… why would it when an HRC “Equality” sticker is more obvious and affordable? (And possibly more aerodynamic.) Hmm? Although I’m still keen on Subaru, this “Badge of Ownership” program is just way too silly for me.


I was going to add something else automotive-related, but I’ve only got ~30,000-miles on the STi, it still looks pretty good, goes like all hell; and I can’t help but notice the size of those tires in the “supermarket” image… just look at those puppies… mmm-yeah… Daddy does NOT need a new pair of shoes… ‘cause I’m not finished with these yet!


More later…

Today in “Well Duh-uh” History:

Posted by MADGestic, Jun 7 2010, 08:20 PM in Other

Today in “Well Duh-uh” History:


Alcohol Use and Smoking Are Associated With Headaches in High Schoolers


Ummm... sorry... I'm not sure I can add anything to that.

Hobby Progress: RR Modeling Update

Posted by MADGestic, Jun 1 2010, 07:59 PM in Home

Hobby Progress: RR Modeling Update


Although still ambling along at a modest pace (as opposed to riding a hobbyhorse), I can (as requested) provide an example of some actual progress.

Recall that I have taken up again… (reuptaken?)… model railroading in N-scale; something I haven’t done for about a third of a century, nor ever at this level of interest and detail. I’m engaging in various skill-building exercises, thus far more in the “modeling” (as opposed to “railroading”) aspects.

Feeling that I had a few too many plates spinning on sticks, I decided to focus more on some basics, such as making trees and building structures. Trees are fun, messy, and relatively easy to make; even kids and somewhat sloshed adults can do it; and as a group activity I would place it somewhere between “Bowling Birthday Party” and “Chuck-E-Cheese Free-for-all”.

Of course, being a detail-oriented anal retentive geek (see below), I try to add some character to my trees… grain, color, dead branches (etc)… but since layouts often require scores of trees… (huge tracts of them)… anytime you can convince folks that something is really fun to do AND get them to produce just for kicks… everybody’s happy and that’s a good thing… right Huck?

Anyway, trees aside… rather than continue to try and build several structures at once, I’ve made progress by focusing on one only. Since it’s a learning process, it feels like it is taking forever… (like this blog post)… but at least I have photographic proof:

About 3-weeks ago, I posted this image as an indication of the various things I was working on. View that image, and pay special attention to the structure in the top-left corner. Although it’s not yet completed, I’ve finished painting and weathering the exterior of the structure.

See here, here, and here.

I took it outside tonight while there was still some natural light, perched it atop Wilbur Weber, and snapped these images. You can see some brick/mortar detail, stone accents (such as above and below each friggin window), and overall weathering. Especially note the crown of the façade in this image… see the shadowing in the details up top? I’m sweating over this… it’s not perfect, but as a learning project… I’m pretty darn happy with the results thus far.

And NO, I’m not fishing for compliments; I’m really enjoying myself, and I want to share that good feeling with everyone.

I still have to do the roof detail, and I’ve come up with an ingenious way of modeling tar paper. (Have I mentioned this?) Conventional wisdom is that painted toilet paper cut into strips is the way to go. While I agree with the “cut into strips” part, rather than painted TP, I’m using a black Sharpie® on plain rolling papers. (Just make sure you don’t catch the glue strip or any watermarks.)

I swear this makes the best scale-model tarpaper roof…
…
…
… or at least it does in my mind.



More later.