Monday Randomness

Just got back in town after a long weekend in FWA. Friday, my parents and I went to the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum in Auburn, IN, which is about 20 miles north of Fort Wayne. The museum is a real treasure, housed in the 1930s-era headquarters/factory showroom for the former automaker. We also went to the National Automotive and Truck Museum, which is in the remaining factory buildings behind the ACD museum. NATMUS, as it's known, is kind of a work in progress, but it has some impressive displays of its own. I took 283 pictures on Friday, only about 10 of which I would consider junk. I might post a couple of them in the coming days if and when I get time.

Saturday night I went to see Spike and the Bulldogs in concert. Spike and the Bulldogs is one of the premier local bands in Fort Wayne...they are a rock and roll cover band playing music from the 1955-1966 time frame. I have a real appreciation for that era's music, and I enjoyed the concert very much.

Whoever thought $2.64/gal gas would be considered a bargain? That's what it is today at the corner of Centennial and Sylvania-Metamora roads. With [tinfoil hat] August 22 only a few hours away [/tinfoil hat] I decided to top off...I also needed to clean a ton of bug debris off of my windshield.

Speaking of my Jeep, it's sticking around for a while longer. A second photo of a 2007 Wrangler sticker confirmed it's 16/19 fuel "economy". Again, this was the 4-door version with the auto transmission. It's still unconfirmed what the mileage on the 2-door is going to be...but I wouldn't imagine it would be better than 17/20 (my Liberty stickered at 17/21 and doesn't quite achieve those numbers). So, since I don't think it's smart to trade for a vehicle that gets worse mileage in today's world...it's likely no-go on the Wrangler. Another problem the 07 Wrangler is having are "defects" that were found prior to delivery from the Toledo plant. So far, no 2007 Wranglers or Dodge Nitros have been delivered to dealers due to these "defects". That makes my "never buy the first year of a model" jitters return.

A lot was done to my Jeep this weekend. First I had some rust (that's not a typo) repaired on the front passenger door. When I got it back, my dad and I reinstalled my newly repainted tubular side steps and put mudflaps on the front. My side steps were originally flat gray, but are now graphite metallic, which matches my wheels. It looks really good now, but it can no longer pass as a potential off-roader now...it's officially Mall Rated. I might get a picture here once I wash it again...it does look really sweet.

Look for a Jeep section in my list of links (on the right side of the page) in the coming days.