Wounded Warrior Project Fundraiser

Well, Brigid showed some cleavage to get us to head on over to the fundraiser. Can't say I have anything that will match or come close to that attraction, so I guess I'll just tell you about it.

Carteach is raising money for the Wounded Warrior Project. This is an outstanding organization that helps our nation's veterans recover after they are wounded in combat. They offer a assistance in a variety of programs for physical and mental wellness. Carteach has collected some pretty cool prizes and all you have to do is make a donation to the WWP and then email him the receipt. For every $5 you donate, he'll put your name in the drawing once.

Click here to go donate money: Wounded Warrior Project

Click here to visit Carteach and send him your receipt.

Or email it to him here.

The Continuing Adventures of "Waffle Iron"

Browsing the internet one day (or possibly over the course of several days) and I found a website called Toaster Central. These guys ROCK! All they do is refurbish old small kitchen appliances. As you may or may not know, I have several antique waffle irons. The first waffle iron I ever owned belonged to my grandmother and was made, according to my research, in the Late 20s - Early 30s. Needless to say it was not in the greatest condition. The first waffle generally stuck, it looked quite hideous, and one had to wonder about the eighty year old wiring.

Off to Toaster Central it went. For about $100 they stripped it down, rewired the whole thing, polished everything until it shone like new, and provided a new power cord, as well as a copy of the original owner's manual, instructions on seasoning the grid, and a brochure with a variety of classic waffle recipes.

Here are before and after pictures.

I couldn't be happier. I was hoping to send my Great Aunt Mary's to them but they said they can't work on it. I guess they won't do them unless they can find factory manuals for various specifications. If you are reading this and you have a box full of Electrahot factory manuals, please give the guys at Toaster Central a call. Then let me know so I can ship them a waffle iron.

Walk Without Rhythm, You Won't Attract the Worm

Who'd a thought that Fatboy Slim would be a Frank Herbert fan.

Sitting here rocking out to Fatboy Slim's Greatest Hits which I just picked up, and had to give mention to possibly the best music video of all time.



PS Greatest Hits aren't that great but Weapon of Choice is and the video still ranks up there.

Everybody Loves Waffles

Well, Brigid reminded me of how much I love waffles today. I went on a low carb diet regimen about two years ago, it's worked nicely both weight-wise and health-wise but I don't get waffles very much. So instead I am going to tell you all about the antique waffle iron "collection" I inadvertently stumbled into.

First, when in college, my mother gave me my grandmother's old waffle iron, a Universal 9324A manufactured in the mid to late 20s. Beautifully designed, decorated with scrollwork,

I loved it so much that my roommates found me a comic to commemorate my love (or to make fun of me, still not totally sure).

That was on or about 1987. A few years ago I was in Anacortes at a flea market. I had ridden down with some friends and we were in full leathers including back patches. On a table marked "Free, Everything Works" was antique waffle iron number two. Sunbeam W2A (Late 40s to mid 50s). Off I go, waffle iron under one arm.

Later at that same market, chatting with a lady who has a Homelectrics 1703 (Late 20s to early 30s) for sale.

Obviously I don't want it as I already have two antique waffle irons. Until she says I can have it if I want as she is no longer going to do flea markets. Waffle iron number three has just created an instant and official "collection".

Fast forward a couple months, I am joking with my family about my "collection" and my aunt mentions that she has Auntie's (our great aunt Mary who we all called Auntie) waffle iron from Maryhome (her house in the middle of nowhere New Hampshire) packed in a box and I can have it if I want. Well of course I do. Enter Electrahot 148 (Early 30s).

It's official. I actually have an excessive number of waffle irons posing as a collection. Well, might as well make it official. Onto amazon.com to order a copy of Antique Electric Waffle Irons, 1900 - 1960 by William F. George.

The best part, I can make enough waffles for the whole family without anyone having to wait at all. Too bad I'm single.

Tips for New Riders

If there is no sign telling you that the speed limit is less, you don't have to slow down for the corner. No really, if the engineers who make the traffic speed calculations have decided that a car can safely make this particular curve at a particular speed (ie the current speed limit) there is no chance whatsoever that your motorcycle can't make it at or above that same speed. After all, motorcycles can corner (insert your own made up statistic here)% faster than the average car.

DON'T SLOW DOWN!

Hey, Slow Driver!

But this long line of cars
Is trying to get through
And this long line of cars
Is all because of you



Yeah, you. You're driving along about ten miles an hour below the speed limit. That's OK. The road is windy and you aren't comfortable on windy roads. Maybe you don't have the greatest car in the world. A bunch of cars are piling up behind you but there's nowhere to pull over, so not much you can do about it. Anyway, here comes a passing lane. WTF? Why are you now driving 75 miles an hour? No one can pass you 'cause the passing lane just ended. Now I have to risk my life to get around you on a winding road, either on a dashed line or by just ignoring the lines and rocketing around when there is a break in the traffic.

Jacka$$

A Step in the Right Direction

From Geert Wilder's speech in Berlin:

"Without the nation-state there can be no real national political freedom. That is why we must be good patriots. Patriotism is often branded as fascism. But patriotism is no fascism. On the contrary. Every democrat and defender of freedom must by definition be a patriot. A soul needs a body. The spirit of political liberty cannot flourish outside the body of the nation-state. The nation-state is the political body in which we live. That is why we must preserve and cherish the nation-state. So that we can pass on the liberty and the democracy which we enjoy to our children."

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A Little Bit of HIstory

1983. I move to Los Angeles, move in with my Uncle Pete and Aunt Noreen and buy this car.

Ok, it wasn't exactly this car. Inexplicably I can't find one single picture of my Challenger anywhere in my stuff.

Ok, OK. It wasn't even this model. You can tell because of the passenger side mirror.

Anyway, enough of the interruptions. Can I finish my story?

I love this car. At one point it had shark teeth, Flying Tiger style. At one point it had a Batman logo on the driver side door. Then the Principal of Regent College drove it for a year and asked if he could paint it, so it became British Racing Green.

At some point the original 383 motor blew and a 440 was installed. Didn't run any better but it did get worse gas mileage.

Skip forward twenty eight years. Over the years various people crashed into me, causing damage that I was or wasn't able to fix depending on their car insurance and my financial state. The transmission had started to slip and the engine was burning oil. One day my wife pulls up in front of my work, comes in and says "Honey, the car is making a funny noise". Apparently women find loud knocking noises funny. Who knew?

Shut it off, tow it home, there it sits. I love this car. Coolest car I ever owned. After one Dodge, I am a committed Mopar man. I will fix the motor. I am a mechanic, I can do that.

Sort of expensive though. One year follows another. The tires rot. The headliner collapses. The seats start cracking and falling apart. I keep thinking, "One day I will restore this car. I really love it."

Last week I gave in to the inevitable. It ain't gonna happen. I don't have a shop, I don't have the tools, I don't have the money, and I don't have the time to do a full restoration on an old classic.

Today my baby went away.

The good news is that the new owner loves Challengers, has a fully restored Barracuda sitting in his garage, and is committed to fixing her up. NO SCRAPYARD for my baby.

Someday, maybe, I will buy one that has been maintained properly and never sat in the back yard of someone's house for fifteen years. It will run and just need minor work to clean it up and make it really nice. I will do that because that is something I can realistically do. I can dream, can't I?

Maybe They Should Have Used the Nook

Apparently using the Kindle at college is a violation of the civil rights of blind people. Who'd a thunk it? When did we get to the point where letting people who didn't have a disability access technology meant that we were automatically discriminating against people who did have the disability? Was the plan to eliminate textbooks written in Braille? Is there some arcane rule that all books published in e-book format are automatically prohibited from the ranks of all other formats? Pretty sure there isn't but hey, I was wrong once so I suppose there's a possibility, however remote, that it could happen again.

Washington Examiner