mustang84

Reminds me of this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGRLRHkz8Js&feature=related

I'm looking to get into the home ownership thing in a year or two. I wanted to do it this year to get in on the tax credit, but I couldn't swing both a mortgage payment and school loans being a single guy with only one income. Level driveways are always nice!

It's amazing how fast things can change in the span of three days. On Tuesday, I was: knee deep in a project for work with what seemed like very little light at the end of the tunnel; the announcement that my company might need to have another round of layoffs this summer due to lack of incoming work; my stocks were getting hammered beyond belief; I was at 45 hours of work for the week even though it was only a Tuesday. Today: the project went out without a hitch and is probably the most complete drawing set issued of the projects I have been a part of; my company won a project that is twice as big as our largest project we have done to date, laying all employment concerns to rest; my stocks rebounded with the largest gain I have made to date; I made the last payment on the car and can now say I own it instead of the bank. Safe to say I dodged a few bullets... How's life and work for other C&Gers? Are things looking up, or is the economy still dishing out a lot of uncertainty?

The growth of sunbelt cities correlates with technological and mobility advancements in the 20th century. Phoenix and Las Vegas grew after air conditioning and the automobile became widespread. The ability to transport foods via refrigerator & freezer trucks also had a major impact, as did the modern supermarket. Phoenix and Las Vegas have nothing to do with Detroit's decline and everything to do with changes in our society over the last 100 years.

My dad chewed tobacco for 20 years and stopped going to the dentist during that time. About 10 years ago, he started having some really bad pain in his mouth. He gave in and went to the dentist, only to find he needed $8000 in repair. Hasn't touched tobacco since. Had he not brushed regularly, he'd probably have very few teeth by now. Best of luck Camino. It's better to get it done now than live with constant aching or run into issues later down the road.

A vote for the Turbo Regal here. Practical, but stylish, luxurious, and has some "serious balls."

Around here, a couple of the undercover state patrol vehicles are Grand Marquis, one being white and the other maroon. The only distinguishable aspect are that both have tinted rear windows. And to make things worse, so many old people drive Grand Marquis on I-80, so it's the norm to pass them. Brilliant move on the state patrol's part, but sucks for those of us that like to travel a little faster.

The definitive mid-80's automobile. Not sure, but I think the Cutlass was the best-selling nameplate in '84.

The closest Costco to me is 114 miles away, and that one didn't open until recently, so I've never been to one before. When I was a kid, there always used to be at least a couple sample ladies at Fareway, which is a Midwestern grocery with a very 50's vibe. Every Saturday, I'd get my filling of bratwursts and crackers with cheese.

I bought your Colgate toothpaste, the one with tartar control......AN' IT MADE ME FEEL...LIKE A PIECE OF SH*T! Who wrinkled my Randy Travis poster??

I really like Pearl Jam's first and second albums. Vs. is better than Ten, IMO...a bit more raw and dark. Vitalogy is ok, and everything after that is very hit or miss. As for Nirvana, they are midpack as far as grunge goes. They always get labeled as pioneers, yet the true pioneers of the genre were bands like Green River and Screaming Trees that were putting stuff out years earlier. Later bands like Alice in Chains and Pearl Jam were simply better musicians.

I can't remember the last time Mercury sold over 10K in a month. A pat on the back for the winged messenger. So much for Lincoln being volume and Mercury being niche. I'd rather have it this way and see Lincoln move upmarket into more exclusive territory, while Mercury covers the premium compacts and smaller vehicles that are within the price range of the urban hipster crowd. The Milan has really been gaining steam lately...I'm crossing my fingers for it to hit 5,000 at least one month this year.

The 1999 Mustang is the spark that turned me into a car enthusiast. Before it, I noticed cars, but I never really paid attention to what they were.

I love Scarface and all, but I was kinda cringing while watching this. It doesn't seem appropriate for an elementary school play.

I went back outside and took some more pics closer to sunset, which really shows off the deep shine.

Another spring means another weekend whipping out the trusty old Meguiar's clay and wax kit. I spent a good couple hours just getting rid of the little rust fallout spots that accumulated during the winter, and finished it all off with a couple coats of wax. Post your spiffed up rides if you have them.

http://www.autoblog.com/gallery/2010-j-d-power-vehicle-dependability-study/#2 Top 10 Porsche Lincoln Buick Lexus Mercury Toyota Honda Ford Mercedes-Benz Acura

I sat in one at the Chicago Auto Show and compared it to the Camry, Accord, and Malibu. I think Ford wins on this one; the entire upper dash is rubbery, as opposed to the other three which are full of harder plastic. The top of the doors were also rubbery IIRC. There are some areas of hard plastic, but in general the areas you are touching the most are pretty nice. I would place Malibu in 2nd, because tolerances seemed better than the Accord & Camry. The Accord gets third because the doors had a tendency to feel tinny when closed. The Camry plastics were on par with the Malibu, but the 'Bu has a much more stylish interior, so Camry gets 4th because it excels in no category.

This reminds me of a man around here that gunned down his former high school football coach in the town of Parkersburg (the same town that was devistated by an F5 tornado in 2008). Parkersburg had one of the best high school football programs in the state and coach Ed Thomas was highly regarded. In the video below, his confession says he shot Ed because 'he was the devil.' He pleaded not guilty by means of insanity, but the jury recently found him guilty of first degree murder.

Didn't the flood of '93 also do Cairo in pretty badly? I thought I heard there was talk of moving the entire city at one time. Helena, Arkansas is another river town that has been hit hard. 41% of the remaining population lives below the poverty line, and it has one of the highest crime rates in the nation for a city its size.

I thought I had read something one time about Cleveland working to redevelop its inner city areas, although checking the population chart they are still losing people like a sieve. I can attest to the Quad Cities and St. Louis though, having been to both. Davenport is back above 100K and Moline is in the process of revitalizing itself. Rock Island is still pretty rough. They are building a new high speed rail that will connect the Quad Cities to Chicago, so that should bring more investment. St. Louis is coming around. The visitor center still recommends avoiding Kings Highway, but the downtown and midtown areas have undergone gentrification and many are choosing to move back into the city. In 2008, St. Louis proper increased its population for the first time since the 1950 census.

http://www.freep.com/article/20100309/BUSINESS01/100309058/1322/Toyota-accuses-GM-of-offering-predatory-incentives Like Toyota wasn't preying on GM when they went into bankruptcy.

This has always been of interest to me. Of course Detroit and Flint are the famous ones, but scattered throughout the Midwest and Great Lakes states are smaller cities that were once heavy on industry and now empty shells. Some places like the Quad Cities, St. Louis, and Cleveland are making a comeback, while others like the ones listed below continue to deteriorate. Gary, Indiana - founded in 1906 by US Steel Corporation, it was Indiana's 2nd largest city until changing demographics, steel layoffs, and rising crime sent almost half of the population packing. Today it has just under 100,000 people. Gary in the early 60's --------- East St. Louis, Illinois - In the shadow of the Gateway Arch, East SL is regarded as one of the most dangerous cities in America. It's population is now 28,000...1/3 of its 1950 peak. --------- Harvey, Illinois - An inner-ring Chicago suburb. Famous for the Dixie Square Mall, where the mall chase scene in Blues Brothers was filmed. The mall closed in 1979, and the city has dwindled down to 30,000.

This is article delves into how Japan's pro-business culture denies basic consumer protections and has a history of threatening safety activists. It's a good read. Full article