Why Toyota Is Going to Be Just Fine And GM Isn’t

I just got a robo-call from the dealership where we have our Toyota Yaris serviced: Toyota of Nashua.

The recording said that in light of the recent recalls they wanted to let their customers know they were changing their service department’s hours. -To 24/7 until further notice.

The recording gave me the option of pressing 1 and getting connected with the service department right away.

Love them or hate them, THAT is good service and good customer relations.  -Two things I’ve never received from GM.

A Conundrum of Bloggy Proportions

I have been getting a lot of hits on this page in the last couple of months, mostly referring from other places where I post thoughts, argue points, etc.

I have been doing that (writing on other forums), primarily, rather than writing blog posts.

This is for a couple of reasons:

First, I don’t want to copy/paste someone else’s  comments from a message board or topic forum and then have a discussion with myself on the blog. I won’t learn anything and the original writer hasn’t given me permission to do so.

Secondly, the things I’m inclined to write about are varied as can be. They range from ethics to guns, to civil rights and the wonderful personality of our dogs.  I’m neither a well-known person, widely published by other organizations, nor am I a specialist that can write volumes on a niche topic. Those are great things, but it’s not me.

As much as I like to write about guns, there’s only so much I can write that’s not a rip-off of someone else or hasn’t been said elsewhere better than I’m likely to present it.

I’m tempted to let the entire blog just die when it comes to renewal time. But I would like your feedback.

Thoughts?

Sad Puppies

Our two dogs were boarded last weekend so we could go to Vermont to attend the college graduation of my wife’s baby sister.

At any rate, this morning we started hearing the tell=tale signs of the infamous Kennel Cough (Tracheobronchitis).

Of course both dogs will get it because it’s infectious as Hell. which means two, very sick, very miserable quarantined dogs for the next couple of weeks.  Both the boys are healthy so chances are they’ll be just fine, though the youngest one, Pippin, has it pretty bad this time and is just miserable, off his food and very clinging.

The vet/boarding facility is top notch, but I’m seriously thinking I’ll pay someone to come dog sit for a few days the next time. Heck, at the price it’s quite the nice weekend gig for someone.

All hail the sick pooch:

Susan Boyle: Wow

I don’t usually comment on “popular culture,” but this was frankly too good not to talk about.  Yes, in case you missed it, I’m speaking of Susan Boyle, a dowdy, paunchy, cat-owning 47-year-old from a small village in the UK who belted out this number…And friends, if you don’t click, you’re missing a genuine treat.

Who knew such beauty was inside this woman? And how sad we that often forget that beauty truly lies within, not in the simple the wrapping of the package.  Thanks Susan, for reminding me of that.

Housekeeping

I know it’s been mighty damned short on posts lately, and honestly, I apologize.

But tonight it’s certainly time to add a few folks to the blogroll, people I think are often interesting to read, even when I don’t agree with them.

In no particular order:

Tekmage’s Blog

Lookingforlissa

Natalia Anatova

The munchkin wrangler

Skotaku in America

Too Old to Work too Young to Retire

Weer’d World Arrr

TFS Magnum

Welcome one and all to the blog roll!

I’ve met some of these folks and I have to say they’re very nice people and more to the point dear readers,  they have interesting things to say.

A winter morning

It’s 5:40 am (don’t ask me why I’m awake at this hour) The snowfall has stopped for now, the plows are gone and there’s about 10 inches of fresh snow covering everything. My wife is sleeping contentedly upstairs, the house is warm and I have a dog who thinks he’s still a puppy curled up keeping my toes warm.

In front of my computer is a large picture window overlooking the Merrimack River. I can see the tree  branches across the street, now devoid of all foliage, outlined against the glow of distant streetlights, framing the view of the river. And it’s so very quiet.

I love having four seasons.

You know it’s winter when…

40 of the top 100 goggle trends searches are about emergency school closings and other weather related stuff.

Deep thoughts…

Based upon a detailed and scientific analysis of my spam, I am ready to draw three conclusions about the average American male:

1. They have very small penises
2. They cannot use them well and need “V-!Agr_a”
3. They have a real thing for teenage girls named Debbie doing obscene things with farm animals

-That is all

Attention Wal-Mart shoppers

This is just disgusting.

The Juice:

A worker was killed in the crush Friday after a throng of shoppers eager for post-Thanksgiving bargains burst through the doors at a suburban Wal-Mart, authorities said.

“He was bum-rushed by 200 people,” co-worker Jimmy Overby, 43, told the Daily News. “They took the doors off the hinges. He was trampled and killed in front of me. They took me down too. … I literally had to fight people off my back.”

Clearly it was very important to get that discount on the totally unneeded, usually frivolous and probably largely unwanted gifts you were out to buy in celebration of the “Prince of Peace.”   -So important you mindless cattle were willing to kill someone to get it.

Last night I was commenting to my lovely bride about how much I detest the Xmas holidays.

It’s not the Christmas, carols, many of which I love. It’s not the religious aspect, which while I don’t subscribe to the belief is certainly nothing bad or even annoying. It’s not the idea that once a year at least, we should make an attempt to be kind to one another -not a bad sentiment at all.

No, all of these Holiday traditions are just hunkey dorey as far as I’m concerned.

What disgusts me is the way we as a society approach this season: Consume, consume, consume. The holiday season hasn’t seemed to me to be anything but this consumerist gluttony for a very long time.

One of the things I’ve always been grateful for in my religious education and reading has been the sage advice and wisdom to be found in the various holy books, religious apologia and philosophy. Many of these I’ve adopted for my own moral code, and this one in particular seems apropos today:

Number two of the Seven Deadly Sins: Gluttony.

Gotta love being married to a gun-loving girl

My wife just looked at a web-site about “assault weapons.” Her comment?

“It’s not gonna go ‘splodie killing spree all by itself!”