Meek Reunion

Brenek-Vasicek Reunion and after party

Weekend

The pot of gold didn't look very far.
Munchkin misses Bubba.

Catfish Caleb in La Grange

Lori sent me these pics of Caleb and Steven's catch. From what I hear Caleb caught most of 'em. He's gettin' serious 'bout fishin'. Maybe I could learn something from him.

Mammatus

We were watching the after thunderstorm clouds-Mammatus.
Sinking pockets of air. Thanks Keith.

RIP: Symbol of Eco-Defiance Is a Goner

Top picture is crushed EV1's.
Some recently published quotes:

“I think G.M. is basically declaring the S.U.V. dead,” the New York Times quoted John Casesa, managing partner of the auto consulting firm Casesa Shapiro Group in New York.

"They're dinosaurs. Put a fork in them," Erich Merkle, vice president of auto industry forecasting for the consulting company IRN Inc. in Grand Rapids, Mich., said in an interview.

The shift from trucks to cars this year was so rapid that Ford and GM executives view it as permanent. Both GM and Ford recently announced huge production cuts and plans to crank out more cars even as U.S. automakers, and even Toyota Motor Corp., continue to see their sales drop.

Webb's figures show wholesale prices on big SUVs such as Chevrolet Tahoes, Ford Expeditions and Toyota Sequoias are down 17% from a year ago. Full-size pickups have fallen as much as 15%, Webb says.

With gas at $4 a gallon and counting, no one’s really interested in SUVs that “get 15 miles per gallon downhill with a tail wind.”

"It's a challenge," says Adam Lee, president of the Lee Auto Malls dealerships in Maine. "How do you tell a good customer, 'You paid $32,000 and now it's only worth $17,000?' "

It is unfortunate that while G.M. puts the final nail in the coffin of many of its S.U.V.’s, it cannot replace those lost jobs with increased production of smaller greener vehicles. Too bad G.M. killed its own electric vehicle, EV1, years ago.

Learning to "Scoot"

This Weekend

Restored the mailbox. Chloe and Andi went swimming. Bubba came home from his mom's. And lots of other stuff...It was a nice weekend.

Not hard to get a smile

Broken?or Unrepaired?

Too often then not, I find myself "fixing" things...instead of replacing them. (material things, procedures, work stuff, etc.) I always say "I can fix anything but a broken heart". If not, I'll leave it broken until I figure out a way...or rig it. Alot of the time, we instantly develop a new way. Then, if a minor hiccup comes along, we completely disregard and start all over. What a waste. Maybe that's old school, but the sense of accomplishment sure outweighs the enjoyment of the new, bright, shiny, and expensive. Where I'm going with this is that society has become too reliant on just going and picking up another one, or going to another system. What happened to using our brains...engineering, "southern" engineering? Don't get me wrong...I love evolving and new ideas, but I'm starting to really hate waste in any form. I'm convinced that being brought up unspoiled makes you appreciate things. I'm not sure how to write exactly what I'm thinking, but it makes really good sense in my head.
Thanks, Dad and Mom.