Topic: The Chit-Chat Thread

@HobbitGamer Living in a city as crowded and car-unfriendly as Amsterdam, with the parking fees we have over here, one is better off without a car, so I don't have one. Contrary to a lot of other countries, public transport over here is pretty good, and there's bike lanes everywhere, so in the summer I use my mountain bike, and in the less sunny times of the year, I use public transport to get around.

And besides that, I got a lot of friends and family members who do have cars, because they live outside the city, so if I need to go anywhere else, I can usually call on them. And seeing as they're always the designated driver, that leaves me to REALLY enjoy parties and birthdays and such...

This seems like an appropriate time to discuss railroad history!

....

Weird. Now, this happened almost a month ago but ...

It was a Friday, i was driving home from the supermarket after my usual post-work Friday shopping. I'm stopped at an intersection waiting for the car ahead of me to make a left turn when i see a Ford 250 pickup truck coming across the intersection in reverse. I'm like "what the censored?"

Then i see some dude chasing after the Ford, running like crazy. The car ahead of me is in the process of turning (so i still couldn't go anywhere) and the Ford is mere feet away from my car. The chasing dude reaches the driver's side door and opens it, and — THERE IS NO ONE DRIVING THE TRUCK. He jumps in and tries to cut the wheel, but it's too late. The Ford clips me, knocks off the passenger-side mirror and sideswipes my car all the way to the rear wheel.

When the cop comes to fill out a report and such, he's all like "well, this is a first for me!"

I eventually went home, called my neighbor and he came over so we could smoke out and watch New Japan Pro Wrestling.

(In case you are wondering, the truck, which was ironically owned by the owner of a car repair shop down the block, had a shift-stick (located on the steering wheel column) that was held together by electrical tape; apparently it was idling in their driveway and the stick dropped into reverse, giving the truck a chance to escape its human masters.)

@the_shpydar - Did Davey Boy Smith Jr. have a match?

@Ryu_Niiyama $2500? What the heck did it need, an engine?

@ThanosReXXX You ruined it. You were supposed to give a history of the Model-T and the advantages and disadvantages to changing from timing chains to belts. 😛
That is handy that everything is pretty accessible without a vehicle.

@NEStalgia ...I’ll eat your consoles

@the_shpydar That sounds like something I saw on Live PD

@bimmy-lee
Heh, no actually if memory serves, that night had Guerrillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa) in action (for the titles maybe?), and Switchblade vs (i think) Goto.

I do rather like Davey Jr. though. Definitely living up to his dad's legacy.

I have a bet in on a bunch of routine stuff that happened all at once. Tires turned into pads and rotors. Alignment turned into tie rods and wheel bearings. Depends on the vehicle though.

@the_shpydar - Yeah, I like what I’ve seen of him. I was a Bulldogs mark back in the day. I loved Matilda. It didn’t take much with me.

Thankfully, the only thing I've had to replace internally with my current vehicle was the battery about three years ago. Externally, I've had to replace all the tires once, both bumpers, and the front grille. The back bumper was the result of someone backing into my vehicle while it was parked, so nothing out of pocket there. The front bumper and grille....You can thank a fox on Christmas night about 3-4 years ago for that one. Thankfully insurance fully fielded that one. The only reason I even knew what I hit was because of the color. No avoiding that one.

I've also totaled a vehicle before, but it wasn't worth much at that point anyway.

its dangerous to go alone!
take this.

That's adorable

I love that so much. Who knew they could turn something as grotesque as Jabba into something so cute?

It's dangerous to go alone with empty stomach.
Eat this!

Aaaand now the Cookie Monster is food, too.

@bimmy-lee ah yes, cascading failures. Didn’t think of that, even though that happened to me when I got a flat. Flat tire revealed uneven pad wear, which revealed the ol’ caliper knuckle shear, which revealed worn bearing. I got lucky and was only out $110 for a tire and $80 for other parts, easy afternoon labor for myself. But it would have been like $900

@NEStalgia catalytic converter and sensors, spark plugs, condensor cleaning, freon replacement, air and cabin filter replacement, fluid flush. And this is at a shop near my job and the labor is a little higher. But I couldn’t get an appointment with my normal shop today.

Funny part is I had an appointment for the flush on Saturday. Sigh.

Because they didn't include Ristar in the Sega Genesis Mini, they had to remaster SpongeBob: Battle for Bikini Bottom just to make it up to me and my leg.

@Ryu_Niiyama that price sounds more like flat out robbery for that.... Did they at least have a fancy bedazzled gun when they held you up? Something flashy like a good plated stock with a mysterious heart pattern engraving or something?

@NEStalgia - I should have thought of the converter. The price of that part alone can range from $250-1,000+ without the sensors depending on the vehicle. The cabin air filter can also get pricey in the labor department. I can see all that, plus tax and shop supplies rounding out to around that total.

@HobbitGamer
It was called Nasi Kerabu (Kerabu Rice), a Malay dish.
Blue rice (with using natural blue color from Blue Butterfly Pea flowers) served with side dishes.

@Ryu_Niiyama Daaaang. That’s some big city pricing. They’d better be cleaning and straightening the condenser fins with tweezers. So basically they’re doing a tuneup and cat change. Must be a car built in the past 10 years? You’re not in Cali, are you?