Time to lay some pipe, baby!

OK, more like sweat some pipe. I stumbled across a leak on our basement floor, that was coming from the hot water line that runs to our kitchen. Once again, the half assed work of the merry handy men that flipped our house, throws me a new project. I don't think either of those joints are supposed to be the same color as the Statue of Liberty, so time to cut 'em out and replace, before a tiny drip, floods my basement and burns out my 20 year old hot water heater... Sweating pipe isn't a huge deal. Just make sure surfaces are clean and smooth, dry fit the whole thing first, and then it's off to the races. Oh, and don't burn down your house at the same time. My best friend owns a plumbing supply shop in Mission (free plug: The Plumber's Friend) and he recommends some gizmo called the Shark Bite. I am usually the first to jump on the band wagon when it comes to new gizmos, but they can't be nearly as fun as standing on a step ladder, with a propane torch wondering why in the Hell the solder isn't taking. If the sweating is a bust, I'll break down and try the Shark Bite. Anyway, above is the before pic, and the after pic should be up in a day or two.

Subsidized Consumption or: Who exactly is Chrysler refueling?

I've had a rant about this building up inside of me for a while...

Since I first saw an ad for the Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep "Refuel America" program, I thought it was a strange idea. Then it clicked! Someone in the Chrysler family did the math and figured it would be cheaper to just cover part of consumers fuel cost, than it would be to come up with a more fuel efficient car that people would want to buy. Not one of the eligible vehicles gets better than 24 MPG (according to the program calculations). Plus, these numbers have to be somewhat suspect, because the only way a Jeep Commander gets 15 MPG, is if you drive it on the moon. According to my quick math, the Chrysler family of vehicles averages just over 18.5 mpg. In fairness, I don't have a way to compare to other manufacturers... but I'm pretty sure that most of the other big boys have at least one, non-hybrid that can sniff 30+ mpg.

Of course, there's a catch... By participating in the Refuel The Middle East program, you lose out on some rather hefty incentives. Like up to 7,900 smackers on a Dodge Ram pick up truck. So, assuming you are saving $500 a year on the fuel program for 3 years, you are actually leaving $6,400 on the table. Congratulations to Chrysler for coming up with a sham promotion that actually ends up screwing it customers.

I think it's odd that in a time of heightened sensitivity to the increased cost of living, as a result of a spike in fuel prices... that an American car manufacturer would go against the grain and encourage their customers to go ahead and buy a new car or truck. Even worse; buy a new car or truck that gets lousy mileage and will lose it's resale value faster than you can say "Kelley Blue Book".

Full disclosure - My Nissan Pathfinder gets rotten mileage, but the wife's Toyota sips gas. Not exactly an even trade off, but better than the alternative of having a Durango and a Chrysler 300...

Ahhhh... Flavor Country

Looks like Prairie Village has finally given in, and come up with a smoking ban that kicks in August 1st. I'm ok with this. It's nice to come home from a night out with friends, and not stink like a North Carolina outhouse.

Not Evil Enough?

I first stumbled across My Morning Jacket one night while watching a documentary on the 2004 Bonnaroo Music Festival. Included were two songs from the album It Still Moves. Golden and Steam Engine. I was intrigued enough to pick up the album and spent last summer getting in to it. About a month ago, I am came across their concert video, Okonokos. Fantastic DVD. I only wish I had a better sound system to pump it through!! So the new album, Evil Urges, came out about a week or so ago and I finally picked it up. I have to admit, based on the 2 singles Evil Urges and I'm Amazed, I was ready for a great album.



Instead, it's looking like a good album, w/ a few great tracks and some clunkers. It's safe to say that MMJ is exploring new territory on Evil Urges, and maybe trying to shed the alt-country/70's rock/jam band label... but it's just not working for me. The venture into Buddy Holly-esque pop and 70's soul just isn't clicking. Don't get me wrong, these guys are incredibly talented (the first 2-3 songs on Okonokos will set you straight), and I am looking forward to seeing them in KC this summer. But I get the feeling it's going to take me a while to warm up to Evil Urges.

Road trip!

Spent a quick weekend in Dallas for a wedding. We didn't get a chance to see much of the town, but the folks we came across all seemed quite nice. Anyway, here are a few observations made along the way...

1. We decided to drive, so the 9 hours down and 9 hours back kind of cut in to our free time. I was surprised to see the difference in gas prices between Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas. Anywhere from $3.60 per gallon to $3.98. Maybe our 2006 Pathfinder wasn't the best car for a round trip of almost 1,100 miles... but still ended up being cheaper than flying (by about $9...).
   
2. The Pathfinder holds up quite nicely with the cruise control set at 85 MPH.
3. You think Kansas City is a fine example of urban sprawl? Check out Dallas. Even the side streets are 3 lanes wide. From the folks we talked to, a 1 hour drive to and from work is the norm. Makes the drive from the surrounding suburbs in KC seem like a leisurely stroll.
   
4. Seemed like about every 8 blocks, there was a stretch of strip malls and shopping districts. Think of Leawood Town Center, and then repeat every 2 miles.
   
5. Seeing what some of the folks in Dallas have to navigate just to get to the grocery store, makes me appreciate the Village even more. Sure, we are landlocked and don't have room to expand... but I can also get to the grocery store, gas station and liquor store in 4 minutes, 6 if there is traffic.
   
6. Only recall seeing one person in a cowboy hat... and that was in Oklahoma.
7. Garmin GPS systems are pretty cool. Ours got us to and from as well as around Dallas w/o issue. Also on the way home, it lead us directly to a small, rural Missouri town where my dad's parents used to live. It even found the street named after my grandfather. Of course, it was a dead end that lead to a nursing home...
   

It's not the years, honey, it's the mileage...

Truer words were never spoken...

Anyone else underwhelmed by the new Indiana Jones flick? I'm still a little cloudy as to why exactly the felt obligated to crank out another one. Understandably, Harrison Ford isn't getting any younger, and maybe they wanted to test the water for some type of spin off (Mutt, anyone?), but it just felt thrown together. Seemed like just about every scribe in the business had at one time or another worked on the script, yet this was the best they could come up with? No beef with the move from supernatural to extraterrestrial, but the whole thing felt rushed. The momentum from the opening 40 minutes is completely lost the moment they leave the cemetery.

After watching them last week, neither Temple of Doom or Last Crusade are that much better than the recent addition.
I remember seeing the original at the old Bannister Mall theater when I was 9 (anyone else remember the corny paintings of Burt Reynolds, Dolly Parton and John Wayne in the lobby?). As with most 9 year old boys, I was left breathless and begging for more (as was my aunt, but for different reasons...). There definitely hadn't been anything like it in my short movie watching life. Intentional or not, the bar had been set for the genre forever known as the summer action blockbuster (OK, there was Jaws and the Star Wars movies), and action movies would struggle too keep up with Dr. Jones for years to come. Genres came and went... The One Man Wrecking Crew (Stallone and Schwarzenegger mowing thru hundreds of faceless bad guys), The Buddy Flick (Lethal Weapon and Tango and Cash), High End suspense action (Die Hard, although I think it was released around Christmas '88), The Genius Serial Killer (Silence of the Lambs) and then finally the Sharon Stone "erotic thriller" of the week. None of these could kill of the passion for Indiana Jones, the way grunge killed glam rock. As CGI reared it's ugly head, scripts took a back seat to "blowin' up a bunch of shit". So... maybe Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is the end result of exploding national landmarks, giant asteroids, dinosaurs and Agent Smith? A soulless mishmash of a dozen different stories by 2 dozen writers.

Much to my delight, Mr. Ford seems to have held up quite well since he last cracked the whip, but it's the genre that has aged the most.

10th Annual Waldo Brookside Pub Crawl - Post Mortem

Another year, another crawl. All went well and turn out was excellent. A few observations...

• Finn's Waldo Bar was closed for remodeling. Not sure if that was legit, or mandated by KC Liquor Control...
• The Tap Room needs to put a sign on their front door when they are having a private party. We walked in the front door, and were greeted by about 50 people, munching away on dinner salads. 2nd time this has happened.
• Bad food and plastic cups do not a good bar make (ahem, Tanners...)
• I wish The Gaf had kept the old bar from Romanelli's. It was a huge horse shoe shaped bar in the middle of the room. The lay out of The Gaf's bar area is fine, but looks just like every other restaurant bar in town.
• For better or worse, 75th Street Brewery appears to no longer carry bottled beer. It's either one of their fine brews, or Bud on tap. I guess it's a matter of personal taste, but if you are participating in an event that centers around drinking all day, some folks tend to pick a horse and ride it the whole day. Throwing a MUDDY MO' STOUT into the mix can be a serious curve ball.
• Judging from the crowds at The Brooksider and Charlie Hooper's, Power and Light might be taking a bite out of the summer crowds at these bars. The patio on the Brooksider was pretty sparse and Hooper's wasn't exactly crowded.