Thursday, December 31, 2009
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Our Government underwrites failure....
I'd like to compare a few articles that popped up in my reader yesterday to show the absolute lunacy and hypocrisy of our federal government.
First...the federal underwriting of failed mortgage giants freddie and fannie continues...when will it end? We've already subsidized 111 billion in losses, and now that cap has been removed only to be replaced by a new formula whereby the more that is lost...the more we will subsidize them.
I say enough already. Failing companies should be allowed to fail.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34587552/ns/business-us_business/
Next up..despite this horrendous performance the leaders of these companies continue to pull in millions in compensation! Wasn't there supposed to be pay limits for bailed out companies?
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34585340/ns/business-us_business/
ah yes, here they are. the pay limits for execs like those at GM...right?
Well apparently even those pay limits are flexible if you pull the right strings.
After all, what good is a pay limit if you can't bribe your way out from under it.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34577443/ns/business-autos/
Each of these articles are fine examples of what is wrong with this country. We subsidize failure and punish success. Subsidize spending and punish savings.
Enough!
First...the federal underwriting of failed mortgage giants freddie and fannie continues...when will it end? We've already subsidized 111 billion in losses, and now that cap has been removed only to be replaced by a new formula whereby the more that is lost...the more we will subsidize them.
I say enough already. Failing companies should be allowed to fail.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34587552/ns/business-us_business/
Next up..despite this horrendous performance the leaders of these companies continue to pull in millions in compensation! Wasn't there supposed to be pay limits for bailed out companies?
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34585340/ns/business-us_business/
ah yes, here they are. the pay limits for execs like those at GM...right?
Well apparently even those pay limits are flexible if you pull the right strings.
After all, what good is a pay limit if you can't bribe your way out from under it.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34577443/ns/business-autos/
Each of these articles are fine examples of what is wrong with this country. We subsidize failure and punish success. Subsidize spending and punish savings.
Enough!
Friday, December 18, 2009
Ron Paul
continues to impress,
Ron Paul in 2003,
"Ironically, by transferring the risk of a widespread mortgage default, the government increases the likelihood of a painful crash in the housing market. This is because the special privileges granted to Fannie and Freddie have distorted the housing market by allowing them to attract capital they could not attract under pure market conditions. As a result, capital is diverted from its most productive use into housing. This reduces the efficacy of the entire market and thus reduces the standard of living of all Americans.
Despite the long-term damage to the economy inflicted by the government's interference in the housing market, the government's policy of diverting capital to other uses creates a short-term boom in housing. Like all artificially-created bubbles, the boom in housing prices cannot last forever. When housing prices fall, homeowners will experience difficulty as their equity is wiped out. Furthermore, the holders of the mortgage debt will also have a loss. These losses will be greater than they would have otherwise been had government policy not actively encouraged over-investment in housing.
Perhaps the Federal Reserve can stave off the day of reckoning by purchasing GSE debt and pumping liquidity into the housing market, but this cannot hold off the inevitable drop in the housing market forever. In fact, postponing the necessary, but painful market corrections will only deepen the inevitable fall. The more people invested in the market, the greater the effects across the economy when the bubble bursts."
http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul128.html
Ron Paul in 2003,
"Ironically, by transferring the risk of a widespread mortgage default, the government increases the likelihood of a painful crash in the housing market. This is because the special privileges granted to Fannie and Freddie have distorted the housing market by allowing them to attract capital they could not attract under pure market conditions. As a result, capital is diverted from its most productive use into housing. This reduces the efficacy of the entire market and thus reduces the standard of living of all Americans.
Despite the long-term damage to the economy inflicted by the government's interference in the housing market, the government's policy of diverting capital to other uses creates a short-term boom in housing. Like all artificially-created bubbles, the boom in housing prices cannot last forever. When housing prices fall, homeowners will experience difficulty as their equity is wiped out. Furthermore, the holders of the mortgage debt will also have a loss. These losses will be greater than they would have otherwise been had government policy not actively encouraged over-investment in housing.
Perhaps the Federal Reserve can stave off the day of reckoning by purchasing GSE debt and pumping liquidity into the housing market, but this cannot hold off the inevitable drop in the housing market forever. In fact, postponing the necessary, but painful market corrections will only deepen the inevitable fall. The more people invested in the market, the greater the effects across the economy when the bubble bursts."
http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul128.html
Monday, December 14, 2009
Monday, December 07, 2009
China and back in 5 days
i arrived in dalian, china around 9pm last monday evening after travelling for app. 24 hrs! newark to beijing, then beijing to dalian. luckily i had a driver to pick me up from the airport because the taxi situation in dalian was a bit crazy. as was the driving....it was like cairo! you would think lane dividers, trafic lights, and even driving on the right side of the road were just suggestions. thank god i was so tired, otherwise i probably would've had a heart attack.
i stayed up for to wait for 2 colleagues coming in from chicago and also to force myself onto local time. in my travels i've found that forcing yourself onto local time seems to be the best way to get over jet lag.
on tuesday morning it was off to our plant for a meeting and a tour. fun fact, apparently they have to pre-order electricity. and if they mis calculate the demand...there is none! interesting. Dalian is a city of around 6 million that was historically a popular summer destination for beach going russians. during my visit though, the fog hardly lifted enough to see the ocean. our plant and the hotel are located in a very nice area of town (commonly called the development zone) that was filled with various JV's (joint ventures), hotels and housing units for expats and locals working in the plant. it was very western in it's appearance.
around 11 we headed to the airport to catch a flight to qingdao, unfortunately all flights in and out were cancelled due to fog! actually i take that back, the custom there is not to cancel, but rather delay. so it wasn't until about 5pm that we finally called it quits and headed back into town for another night in dalian. no one could explain to me when a delay became a cancellation. with some extra time on our hands we went to this great chinese restaurant. the entire first floor was filled with fish tanks and displays of what could be ordered. a waitress followed us around taking our order while we pointed. want squid? no problem. sea cucumbers (for stamina, i was told), no problem. stingray or eel? no problem, how do you want it, raw or cooked? crazy selections, but great food!
Wednesday morning it was the same story...more fog! but luckily it began to break and we were on the ground in qingdao by 12. while waiting for our driver we had some kfc. some things are the same everywhere! once in qindao we found our driver and started the 2hr drive to rizhao. finally, we were at hyundai wia! the countryside was very rural and very poor providing an interesting contrast to the state of the art engine plant(s). nothing to share regarding the customer meeting except that it was generally very successful. so successful that they treated us to an authentic korean dinner followed by on offer of foot massages! (not from them, but at a massage parlor). and yes, a real foot massage, not "special service"...or so i was told anyway. we couldn't get in, the place was packed! so we set off for a few more drinks before finally hitting the road back to qindao around 11.
and then..
more fog!
and the highway was closed. yes closed!
our driver, and seemingly every other driver, was perfectly content to stop their car and sleep in it for the night. luckily one of my colleagues found this 100% unacceptable and convinced the driver to turn the car around, drive backwards up the shoulder to the last exit and take side roads back to qindao.
a mere 3 hrs later and we finally checked into our hotel at 3:30 AM.
that was by far, the best nights sleep in the most comfortable bed i have had in my entire life. ever.
on our last day there we had meetings with 2 seperate warehouse company's to discuss inco terms and various import/export issues which were rather unventful. finally it was off to beijing thursday night and then back to the states on friday.
My overall impressions..
food - awesome. far better that US chinese food (As expected)
tea - really good. bring some home, but get it where the locals get it.
language - in some ways, easier than english. but good to travel with a local since outside of major cities, english is not very common
money - exchange rate is around 6.5 to one (all the time). but things are cheap. the 5 star hotels we were in were only 100 or so /night. very affordable. travel with a few thousand rmb for each week you're there.
and here's a few things i learned about doing business in china...
hand the business card with 2 hands, receive with 2 hands, (actually, this is for most things..credit card, receipts etc.)
always take a moment to look at the card.
bow slightly when greeting
"special massage" or "special haircut" at the hotel is, uh, very special. (no i didn't get one, but was informed)
the koreans like to drink!
always fill up the others glass first
have a well charged, functional cell phone at all times.
travel with a local!!!!!
plan on delays. lots of delays.
i stayed up for to wait for 2 colleagues coming in from chicago and also to force myself onto local time. in my travels i've found that forcing yourself onto local time seems to be the best way to get over jet lag.
on tuesday morning it was off to our plant for a meeting and a tour. fun fact, apparently they have to pre-order electricity. and if they mis calculate the demand...there is none! interesting. Dalian is a city of around 6 million that was historically a popular summer destination for beach going russians. during my visit though, the fog hardly lifted enough to see the ocean. our plant and the hotel are located in a very nice area of town (commonly called the development zone) that was filled with various JV's (joint ventures), hotels and housing units for expats and locals working in the plant. it was very western in it's appearance.
around 11 we headed to the airport to catch a flight to qingdao, unfortunately all flights in and out were cancelled due to fog! actually i take that back, the custom there is not to cancel, but rather delay. so it wasn't until about 5pm that we finally called it quits and headed back into town for another night in dalian. no one could explain to me when a delay became a cancellation. with some extra time on our hands we went to this great chinese restaurant. the entire first floor was filled with fish tanks and displays of what could be ordered. a waitress followed us around taking our order while we pointed. want squid? no problem. sea cucumbers (for stamina, i was told), no problem. stingray or eel? no problem, how do you want it, raw or cooked? crazy selections, but great food!
Wednesday morning it was the same story...more fog! but luckily it began to break and we were on the ground in qingdao by 12. while waiting for our driver we had some kfc. some things are the same everywhere! once in qindao we found our driver and started the 2hr drive to rizhao. finally, we were at hyundai wia! the countryside was very rural and very poor providing an interesting contrast to the state of the art engine plant(s). nothing to share regarding the customer meeting except that it was generally very successful. so successful that they treated us to an authentic korean dinner followed by on offer of foot massages! (not from them, but at a massage parlor). and yes, a real foot massage, not "special service"...or so i was told anyway. we couldn't get in, the place was packed! so we set off for a few more drinks before finally hitting the road back to qindao around 11.
and then..
more fog!
and the highway was closed. yes closed!
our driver, and seemingly every other driver, was perfectly content to stop their car and sleep in it for the night. luckily one of my colleagues found this 100% unacceptable and convinced the driver to turn the car around, drive backwards up the shoulder to the last exit and take side roads back to qindao.
a mere 3 hrs later and we finally checked into our hotel at 3:30 AM.
that was by far, the best nights sleep in the most comfortable bed i have had in my entire life. ever.
on our last day there we had meetings with 2 seperate warehouse company's to discuss inco terms and various import/export issues which were rather unventful. finally it was off to beijing thursday night and then back to the states on friday.
My overall impressions..
food - awesome. far better that US chinese food (As expected)
tea - really good. bring some home, but get it where the locals get it.
language - in some ways, easier than english. but good to travel with a local since outside of major cities, english is not very common
money - exchange rate is around 6.5 to one (all the time). but things are cheap. the 5 star hotels we were in were only 100 or so /night. very affordable. travel with a few thousand rmb for each week you're there.
and here's a few things i learned about doing business in china...
hand the business card with 2 hands, receive with 2 hands, (actually, this is for most things..credit card, receipts etc.)
always take a moment to look at the card.
bow slightly when greeting
"special massage" or "special haircut" at the hotel is, uh, very special. (no i didn't get one, but was informed)
the koreans like to drink!
always fill up the others glass first
have a well charged, functional cell phone at all times.
travel with a local!!!!!
plan on delays. lots of delays.
 |
| 2009 China Trip |
Sunday, November 22, 2009
What good are deadines?
particularly self imposed ones?
well, they help motivate me, if nothing else. i had made an agreement with Roman (cage builder) to have my car up to him the weekend of the fifth. But that meant i had 2 days to get both front floors completely installed. I made a valiant effort..but just couldn't get it done unfortunately.
but i did get the drivers side completely installed. the fit was really good, i would definitely recommend EB's floors to anyone doing this job. I had to recontour the firewall slightly to match, but given i needed to repair a rust spot on the firewall anyway, that was no big deal. the biggest pain in the ass is trying to weld vertically! man, i wish i had a rotisserie! maybe next time..
today i got the Pass. side completely prepped..but ran out of time to weld it in. but at least it should be "drop in" when i get back.
mel and i are heading to NY for thanksgiving(!), following that are attending my niece and nephew's christening. i wonder if bri got a 2 for 1 discount?
anyway..i'm the godfather. so i better watch the movies (only 1 and 2) before i get there so my godfatherly advice is polished up.
then on the 30th, while mel drives back to michigan alone, i'm off to china. 20+ hrs of flying each way for 3 days of meetings. fun. fun. fun.
hope everyone has a good thanksgiving! life's short, so skip the turkey and go straight for the pies!!!!
i had to remake this little channel because it came off in pieces with the cross-member.
here's the piece hole i made to repair the rust and recontour the firewall.
cleco's were a big help where clamps couldnt reach
the final product (drivers side)
Here's the Pass. side all fitted, prepped and ready to be welded in,
well, they help motivate me, if nothing else. i had made an agreement with Roman (cage builder) to have my car up to him the weekend of the fifth. But that meant i had 2 days to get both front floors completely installed. I made a valiant effort..but just couldn't get it done unfortunately.
but i did get the drivers side completely installed. the fit was really good, i would definitely recommend EB's floors to anyone doing this job. I had to recontour the firewall slightly to match, but given i needed to repair a rust spot on the firewall anyway, that was no big deal. the biggest pain in the ass is trying to weld vertically! man, i wish i had a rotisserie! maybe next time..
today i got the Pass. side completely prepped..but ran out of time to weld it in. but at least it should be "drop in" when i get back.
mel and i are heading to NY for thanksgiving(!), following that are attending my niece and nephew's christening. i wonder if bri got a 2 for 1 discount?
anyway..i'm the godfather. so i better watch the movies (only 1 and 2) before i get there so my godfatherly advice is polished up.
then on the 30th, while mel drives back to michigan alone, i'm off to china. 20+ hrs of flying each way for 3 days of meetings. fun. fun. fun.
hope everyone has a good thanksgiving! life's short, so skip the turkey and go straight for the pies!!!!
i had to remake this little channel because it came off in pieces with the cross-member.
here's the piece hole i made to repair the rust and recontour the firewall.
cleco's were a big help where clamps couldnt reach
the final product (drivers side)
Here's the Pass. side all fitted, prepped and ready to be welded in,
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Almost thanksgiving?!
Yesterday morning mel and i took a little trip down to Detroit to plant some trees. in 20 years, jefferson will start looking really great. in the meantime..well....let's not think about that.
not only did the green twine hold the tree bulbs together..it apparently makes a good hair tie too.
I called in some reinforcements yesterday afternoon to help me make some headway. I worked on cleaning up the PS floor surrounds (welding surfaces) while my buddy roy started cutting out the DS floors. i picked up a combo break/shear and roll so i've been anxious to try it out. it came in handy while trying to make the repair section for the upper floor lip on the PS. i also cut out and welded in some new material in the tunnel section..that steel is really light gauge stuff and got pretty chewed up while taking out the old floors.
Today was a bit more of the same along with the musical additions of my neighbor, who blasted a mix of phil collins and the miami vice them (i'm not kidding) while i worked. i cleaned up the PS floor cross-member and the small piece that reinforces the front of the rear suspension to the floor (what's that piece called anyway?).
One more vacation day tomorrow to go up north and finalize the plans for the cage (hopefully)and check out a used race seat . I need to make sure i know exactly what else to do and what to bring before taking the car up for the cage. it's an hr drive..so i don't wanna do it more than once!
not only did the green twine hold the tree bulbs together..it apparently makes a good hair tie too.
I called in some reinforcements yesterday afternoon to help me make some headway. I worked on cleaning up the PS floor surrounds (welding surfaces) while my buddy roy started cutting out the DS floors. i picked up a combo break/shear and roll so i've been anxious to try it out. it came in handy while trying to make the repair section for the upper floor lip on the PS. i also cut out and welded in some new material in the tunnel section..that steel is really light gauge stuff and got pretty chewed up while taking out the old floors.
Today was a bit more of the same along with the musical additions of my neighbor, who blasted a mix of phil collins and the miami vice them (i'm not kidding) while i worked. i cleaned up the PS floor cross-member and the small piece that reinforces the front of the rear suspension to the floor (what's that piece called anyway?).
One more vacation day tomorrow to go up north and finalize the plans for the cage (hopefully)and check out a used race seat . I need to make sure i know exactly what else to do and what to bring before taking the car up for the cage. it's an hr drive..so i don't wanna do it more than once!
Monday, November 09, 2009
A day off, and some alfa progress
The weather was great, the tea was warm, Black Merda was cranking on my stereo...it was a great day to be home working on my car. i finished welding in the inner sill then cut and fit the a-pillar base panel. once that was all in i welded back in the a-pillar pieces i cut out and then, finally, fit the outer sill!
One of the tougher parts was fitting in the new jack point. it's supposed to contact 3 different surfaces and unfortunately only 2 were available as the car was sitting. so i went ahead and got the cross-member out of the way and fit in the new front floor just well enough that i could get the location right and weld in the jack point.
my welding is getting better as i gain confidence and experience but these pieces today (in particular the jack point and inner sill) have to be good welds. they (potentially) carry a lot of load. so i played with the welder a bit to make sure i could draw a good bead and then went at it. as i let the car off the jack i was a bit nervous...but i haven't heard a big crash yet!!
despite it's name, i find great stuff to be decidedly UN-great. i found even more up behind the fender today!
A few pics below, the rest here,
http://picasaweb.google.com/corr0864/2009ALFAProject?feat=directlink
One of the tougher parts was fitting in the new jack point. it's supposed to contact 3 different surfaces and unfortunately only 2 were available as the car was sitting. so i went ahead and got the cross-member out of the way and fit in the new front floor just well enough that i could get the location right and weld in the jack point.
my welding is getting better as i gain confidence and experience but these pieces today (in particular the jack point and inner sill) have to be good welds. they (potentially) carry a lot of load. so i played with the welder a bit to make sure i could draw a good bead and then went at it. as i let the car off the jack i was a bit nervous...but i haven't heard a big crash yet!!
despite it's name, i find great stuff to be decidedly UN-great. i found even more up behind the fender today!
A few pics below, the rest here,
http://picasaweb.google.com/corr0864/2009ALFAProject?feat=directlink
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Papa needs a new pair of...
SOCKS!
There's nothing like starting your day off with a new pair off socks..is there? For someone who loves new socks, i tend to wait far too long before actually buying them. But last night i bought some and man..it's a whole new day! Mel and i hit costco last night, for me it was the first time in 4 or 5 years stepping foot in a costco! but nothing had changed..still crates and pallets of cereal, christmas toys, TV's and of course..socks.
I went in for a CT scan yesterday, i expect the results in the next day or two. i haven't though about it much because i've already convinced myself that my little cancer "problem" was merely a speedbump in my life. my fingers are crossed.
And could this be the badest snowmobile...ever?
There's nothing like starting your day off with a new pair off socks..is there? For someone who loves new socks, i tend to wait far too long before actually buying them. But last night i bought some and man..it's a whole new day! Mel and i hit costco last night, for me it was the first time in 4 or 5 years stepping foot in a costco! but nothing had changed..still crates and pallets of cereal, christmas toys, TV's and of course..socks.
I went in for a CT scan yesterday, i expect the results in the next day or two. i haven't though about it much because i've already convinced myself that my little cancer "problem" was merely a speedbump in my life. my fingers are crossed.
And could this be the badest snowmobile...ever?
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Why The Face!?
WTF..
i'm disgusted by this,
http://themessthatgreenspanmade.blogspot.com/2009/10/stunning-wages-and-benefits-for-federal.html
aside from the fact that the federal government employes 1.9million civilians (sounds like about 1.8 million too many to me), they are paid far, far above market rates.
your tax dollars at work.....
i'm disgusted by this,
http://themessthatgreenspanmade.blogspot.com/2009/10/stunning-wages-and-benefits-for-federal.html
aside from the fact that the federal government employes 1.9million civilians (sounds like about 1.8 million too many to me), they are paid far, far above market rates.
your tax dollars at work.....
Monday, October 26, 2009
Mel fired her kiln today and the weather was beautiful outside...so it was easy to justify staying out all day!
Whoever was working the alfa line spot welding and applying undercoating the day this car was built certainly earned their money!
I finally got all the spot welds drilled along the floorpan mounting surfaces then cleaned up and shot it with primer. The a-pillar base plate i got from classic alfa looks great. Unfortunately the inner sill (behind it) was in really bad shape, but only in a relatively small area. i have a friend with a machine shop and I'm gonna see if he can bend up a small replacement panel for the inner sill. the jack point basically fell off in 1 rusty clump! nice!
At this point I'm gonna hold off on doing anything else with the floors till the a pillar and jack point are in place. the next step on the floors is to take out the cross member..but I'm using that for support right now on the dolly.
A few pics added to my folder (at the bottom)
Mel and i went to the cidermill yesterday along with a few friends. the weather was crappy, but the food was GREAT! damn i love the fall.
Whoever was working the alfa line spot welding and applying undercoating the day this car was built certainly earned their money!
I finally got all the spot welds drilled along the floorpan mounting surfaces then cleaned up and shot it with primer. The a-pillar base plate i got from classic alfa looks great. Unfortunately the inner sill (behind it) was in really bad shape, but only in a relatively small area. i have a friend with a machine shop and I'm gonna see if he can bend up a small replacement panel for the inner sill. the jack point basically fell off in 1 rusty clump! nice!
At this point I'm gonna hold off on doing anything else with the floors till the a pillar and jack point are in place. the next step on the floors is to take out the cross member..but I'm using that for support right now on the dolly.
A few pics added to my folder (at the bottom)
 |
| 2009 ALFA Project |
Mel and i went to the cidermill yesterday along with a few friends. the weather was crappy, but the food was GREAT! damn i love the fall.
Friday, October 23, 2009
A Ride in the Volt - A shocking Tale!
i wrote this a few weeks ago...just now getting around to posting though.
Well, not literally shocking. I mean, the car didn't zap me or anything.
But as a gearhead who is a firm believer that you can never have enough horsepower, what i found shocking was how much i liked the car. Before going into details..a few disclaimers.
1-i was unable to drive it. Mel brought home an IVER (development vehicle) and as such, she's the only one allowed to drive it.
2-The IVER is, naturally, a pre-production vehicle. This one had so many wires and test unit's hooked up that the back seat was hardly visible!
Other than that though, this was more or less a production intent vehicle with most parts being off tool (to my untrained eye anyway). I had an appt. for a brain MRI last night so Mel offered to deliver me to my appt. in the volt and show off what she's been working on over the past year and a half.
A few impressions,
Styling-wise the car has been watered down significantly since it's concept debut. that's unfortunate, but not unexpected given the aerodynamic driven design convergence of today's high mpg cars (in particular). It still looks good though and is distinctly Chevrolet. The tail lights weren't of the final design nor were the headlights but even with those two issues and the flat grey paint, the car looked good. It'll be nice to see a few cars with color on them as surely that will only improve things. My mind kept envisioning the car in dark blue for some reason. The hatchback opens up to an enormous amount of space, particularly with the seats down. You could easily put ski's, a bike, a few dogs...maybe even a supplemantal 350 ci chevy in the back. Just saying...
On the inside i was immediately drawn to the IP (instrument panel). It is awesome. The two displays are large, colorful, crisp....really cool stuff. (most of) The buttons function like those on an ipod..there's no physical movement but rather the activation is by way of capacitance. They essentially sense the presence of your finger. This IP is a big departure for GM, and a huge step in the right direction. This is the interface for the ipod generation. there seemed to be a lot of room inside and it was proportioned well. The shift mechanism was a bit odd, no doubt it's a concession to those drivers that expect to have a clunky shifter to move the vehicle from Park to Reverse to Drive. In this car, little more then a toggle switch should be needed since no physical drive mechanism is actually connected to the shifter.....but perhaps consumers aren't quite ready to take that leap yet.
Riding impressions
Things were a bit cramped given all the equipment in the car, but that was quickly overlooked as we started moving. Despite GM's efforts to make this car feel as "normal" as possible, its difficult to overlook the fact that this is a vastly new type of vehicle. Backing out of the driveway, virtually silent, and then heading down the street, again, virtually silent, is a unique experience. Without the engine noise masking so much of the NVH you would think all sorts of new squeaks and rattles would be heard. And they probably were there, to start. But GM is well on it's way to providing a vehicle that runs silent. There were a few whines and whistles as various pumps, servo's etc. did their job, but overall the vehicle is very quite in EV mode.
The power is adequate. Not overwhelming, but adequate for this type of vehicle. And unlike an engine, the power is very linear. There's no sense of any sort of power band. It's a cool sensation.
But what does the engine sound like? Well, it's not silent, thats for sure. With the radio off the engine could be heard coming on quite clearly, but that's not to say it was overly loud. given that the engine operates more like a generator then a direct source of propulsion, it's noise is not dependent on speed. That takes a bit of getting used to. The best comparison i can make is that it sounded like a very muted turbo prop airplane engine. There's a low level "drone" of sorts that comes to life as the engine hit's it's operating speed(s). If the radio was on i think it would be virtually un-noticable. There was a vibration that could be felt, but that was very subtle. When the vehicle stops the engine goes into auto-stop.
We didn't drive it long enough to confirm the 230mpg number, but i didn't expect to. As an engineer, i don't doubt that 230mpg was arrived at via some legitimate calculation, i just wonder under what real world conditions that could really be achieved. But I'll give GM the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise.
plug in charging
Mel showed me how the plug works and it's pretty simple. if you can plug in a toaster, you can plug in a volt. It would be nice if the charge port door could be opened from outside the vehicle (there's a button inside right now), but i understand that's probably not preferable for security reasons. Maybe that functionality is on the keyfob?
A few suggestions, though admittedly these may already be on someone's open issues list,
-Fix the blinkers! they blinked too fast and seemed to operate at 2 different intervals (maybe just teething problems at this vehicle level?)
-Remove the gloss coating above the drivers IP screen. the reflection was annoying...
-Do something with the door panels! the funky design looks awful
Anyway, i hope i don't get Mel in trouble for writing all this! Even though the car is not completed yet, the vehicle i saw is a massive achievement and in it's current state, quite impressive. As launch approaches and the car is refined further, i think we can expect to see an even more impressive vehicle take shape. Given that the world seems to be moving from combustion engines, GM needs to start transitioning drivers to a new set of expectations regarding noise, feel etc. the volt seems to be a good first step in that direction. It operates close enough to a normal vehicle to not scare off drivers but provides enough of a different experience to help bridge the gap to the next generation of technology. This vehicle is a bridge for GM. To where?...that may not be clear right now, but this is GM's first major attempt at changing consumer expectations for the driver's experience and in that i think it will be a major success.
Well, not literally shocking. I mean, the car didn't zap me or anything.
But as a gearhead who is a firm believer that you can never have enough horsepower, what i found shocking was how much i liked the car. Before going into details..a few disclaimers.
1-i was unable to drive it. Mel brought home an IVER (development vehicle) and as such, she's the only one allowed to drive it.
2-The IVER is, naturally, a pre-production vehicle. This one had so many wires and test unit's hooked up that the back seat was hardly visible!
Other than that though, this was more or less a production intent vehicle with most parts being off tool (to my untrained eye anyway). I had an appt. for a brain MRI last night so Mel offered to deliver me to my appt. in the volt and show off what she's been working on over the past year and a half.
A few impressions,
Styling-wise the car has been watered down significantly since it's concept debut. that's unfortunate, but not unexpected given the aerodynamic driven design convergence of today's high mpg cars (in particular). It still looks good though and is distinctly Chevrolet. The tail lights weren't of the final design nor were the headlights but even with those two issues and the flat grey paint, the car looked good. It'll be nice to see a few cars with color on them as surely that will only improve things. My mind kept envisioning the car in dark blue for some reason. The hatchback opens up to an enormous amount of space, particularly with the seats down. You could easily put ski's, a bike, a few dogs...maybe even a supplemantal 350 ci chevy in the back. Just saying...
On the inside i was immediately drawn to the IP (instrument panel). It is awesome. The two displays are large, colorful, crisp....really cool stuff. (most of) The buttons function like those on an ipod..there's no physical movement but rather the activation is by way of capacitance. They essentially sense the presence of your finger. This IP is a big departure for GM, and a huge step in the right direction. This is the interface for the ipod generation. there seemed to be a lot of room inside and it was proportioned well. The shift mechanism was a bit odd, no doubt it's a concession to those drivers that expect to have a clunky shifter to move the vehicle from Park to Reverse to Drive. In this car, little more then a toggle switch should be needed since no physical drive mechanism is actually connected to the shifter.....but perhaps consumers aren't quite ready to take that leap yet.
Riding impressions
Things were a bit cramped given all the equipment in the car, but that was quickly overlooked as we started moving. Despite GM's efforts to make this car feel as "normal" as possible, its difficult to overlook the fact that this is a vastly new type of vehicle. Backing out of the driveway, virtually silent, and then heading down the street, again, virtually silent, is a unique experience. Without the engine noise masking so much of the NVH you would think all sorts of new squeaks and rattles would be heard. And they probably were there, to start. But GM is well on it's way to providing a vehicle that runs silent. There were a few whines and whistles as various pumps, servo's etc. did their job, but overall the vehicle is very quite in EV mode.
The power is adequate. Not overwhelming, but adequate for this type of vehicle. And unlike an engine, the power is very linear. There's no sense of any sort of power band. It's a cool sensation.
But what does the engine sound like? Well, it's not silent, thats for sure. With the radio off the engine could be heard coming on quite clearly, but that's not to say it was overly loud. given that the engine operates more like a generator then a direct source of propulsion, it's noise is not dependent on speed. That takes a bit of getting used to. The best comparison i can make is that it sounded like a very muted turbo prop airplane engine. There's a low level "drone" of sorts that comes to life as the engine hit's it's operating speed(s). If the radio was on i think it would be virtually un-noticable. There was a vibration that could be felt, but that was very subtle. When the vehicle stops the engine goes into auto-stop.
We didn't drive it long enough to confirm the 230mpg number, but i didn't expect to. As an engineer, i don't doubt that 230mpg was arrived at via some legitimate calculation, i just wonder under what real world conditions that could really be achieved. But I'll give GM the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise.
plug in charging
Mel showed me how the plug works and it's pretty simple. if you can plug in a toaster, you can plug in a volt. It would be nice if the charge port door could be opened from outside the vehicle (there's a button inside right now), but i understand that's probably not preferable for security reasons. Maybe that functionality is on the keyfob?
A few suggestions, though admittedly these may already be on someone's open issues list,
-Fix the blinkers! they blinked too fast and seemed to operate at 2 different intervals (maybe just teething problems at this vehicle level?)
-Remove the gloss coating above the drivers IP screen. the reflection was annoying...
-Do something with the door panels! the funky design looks awful
Anyway, i hope i don't get Mel in trouble for writing all this! Even though the car is not completed yet, the vehicle i saw is a massive achievement and in it's current state, quite impressive. As launch approaches and the car is refined further, i think we can expect to see an even more impressive vehicle take shape. Given that the world seems to be moving from combustion engines, GM needs to start transitioning drivers to a new set of expectations regarding noise, feel etc. the volt seems to be a good first step in that direction. It operates close enough to a normal vehicle to not scare off drivers but provides enough of a different experience to help bridge the gap to the next generation of technology. This vehicle is a bridge for GM. To where?...that may not be clear right now, but this is GM's first major attempt at changing consumer expectations for the driver's experience and in that i think it will be a major success.
 |
| 2009 09 The Volt |
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
How many vehicles does one man need?
You may think the answer is 1...but no, it's actually 4.
I've always been a truck person. I tried to fight it when i leased my audi, but it caught up with me. 2 weeks ago i bought a 99 silverado z71. You may think it's difficult to fit 5 cars in the driveway (incl. mel's), but it's surprisingly cozy! I got a great deal on it, i just need(ed) to do a little maintenance work (brakes, u-joints, etc). The real reason i bought it is that i have to haul my race car around to a few different places this fall and to borrow a friends truck once is one thing...but 4 or 5 times is a bit much. so what the hell.
Here's a pic...but now the hard part.
....What color truck nuts do i buy...
I've always been a truck person. I tried to fight it when i leased my audi, but it caught up with me. 2 weeks ago i bought a 99 silverado z71. You may think it's difficult to fit 5 cars in the driveway (incl. mel's), but it's surprisingly cozy! I got a great deal on it, i just need(ed) to do a little maintenance work (brakes, u-joints, etc). The real reason i bought it is that i have to haul my race car around to a few different places this fall and to borrow a friends truck once is one thing...but 4 or 5 times is a bit much. so what the hell.
Here's a pic...but now the hard part.
....What color truck nuts do i buy...
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Berlin and Ilsenburg
Here's some pics from in and around Berlin as well as a few from Ilsenburg. Berlin is a great city. The division between east and west is still quite visible today although it's clear that significant investment has been made in the former East.
On Saturday we visited the "ddr" museum. It attempted to give a glimpse into the life of an east German by showing products, clothes, furniture and general lifestyle info (including some crazy DDR tv!) Good stuff, but it was overcrowded and not very inviting (maybe indicative of the east?!)
On Sunday we woke up and walked about 500 meters to the site of Hitler's bunker and his death. This site is pretty hard to find because the German government is not very keen on advertising this due to the threat of it becoming a shrine for neo nazis. In fact it wasn't until the world cup was held here just a few years ago that it was identified with a plaque! The site today is nothing more then a parking lot. Underneath which remains the walls and floor of the bunker, albeit completely filled in with sand. The bunker is located on the former east and remained more or less in tact until well after the war (albeit covered over). The Russians, who controlled the east, left much of the WWII damage unfixed for many many years after the way. Hitler and Eva Braun killed themselves at this spot in Berlin along with Goebels and his family. The body's were damaged during shelling and partially burned. There was a lot of controversy and uncertainty about what happened to the bodies. Following the collapse of the wall Russian records show that after attempting to burn the bodies, the remains were buried, in secret, not to far from Berlin in Magdeburg. After a few years the remains were unearthed and cremated with the remains being scattered in a river. but even that account is contested..so we'll probably never know.
The wall itself ran right THROUGH the hotel we were staying in. Our hotel was built after 1989 but there are some buildings where the wall run's right down it, some streets that the wall cuts in two. It's incredible really to think that this wall existed and divided this city like that for so long. Some people could literally look out there window and view a completely different world. In front of the hotel was "no man's land" and only 500m's or so down the street is the Brandenburg gate! Much of the area that the wall once occupied, in this part of town, has been given to various countries for their embassy's including the US and Canada.
Of course we visited checkpoint C (or checkpoint Charlie). At one point this was a 10 lane crossing point, but today there's not much left. a replica of the original guard shack surrounded by lots of placards and info. The before and after photo's are very striking.
On Monday we visited the German historic museum. I'd highly recomend this, it covers German history...All of it!
After the three hour drive to Ilsenburg we started the actual work portion of this trip. It's too bad we didn't have just a bit more time though because the next town over is Nordhaused, famous for the "mittelwerk" where the germans built thousands of V2 rockets! they were built INSIDE a tunnel system, cut by slave labor, towards the end of the war. The allies took all the remaining rockets following liberation, after which the russians sealed the tunnels. They have only recently been opened back up and you can tour these today. It looks exactly like it did at the end of the war! Also outside of nordhausen is the small Dora concentration camp. A small but brutal example of the worst of humanity.
Maybe next time...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Adolf_Hitler
http://www.subbrit.org.uk/sb-sites/sites/n/nordhausen/index.shtml
On Saturday we visited the "ddr" museum. It attempted to give a glimpse into the life of an east German by showing products, clothes, furniture and general lifestyle info (including some crazy DDR tv!) Good stuff, but it was overcrowded and not very inviting (maybe indicative of the east?!)
On Sunday we woke up and walked about 500 meters to the site of Hitler's bunker and his death. This site is pretty hard to find because the German government is not very keen on advertising this due to the threat of it becoming a shrine for neo nazis. In fact it wasn't until the world cup was held here just a few years ago that it was identified with a plaque! The site today is nothing more then a parking lot. Underneath which remains the walls and floor of the bunker, albeit completely filled in with sand. The bunker is located on the former east and remained more or less in tact until well after the war (albeit covered over). The Russians, who controlled the east, left much of the WWII damage unfixed for many many years after the way. Hitler and Eva Braun killed themselves at this spot in Berlin along with Goebels and his family. The body's were damaged during shelling and partially burned. There was a lot of controversy and uncertainty about what happened to the bodies. Following the collapse of the wall Russian records show that after attempting to burn the bodies, the remains were buried, in secret, not to far from Berlin in Magdeburg. After a few years the remains were unearthed and cremated with the remains being scattered in a river. but even that account is contested..so we'll probably never know.
The wall itself ran right THROUGH the hotel we were staying in. Our hotel was built after 1989 but there are some buildings where the wall run's right down it, some streets that the wall cuts in two. It's incredible really to think that this wall existed and divided this city like that for so long. Some people could literally look out there window and view a completely different world. In front of the hotel was "no man's land" and only 500m's or so down the street is the Brandenburg gate! Much of the area that the wall once occupied, in this part of town, has been given to various countries for their embassy's including the US and Canada.
Of course we visited checkpoint C (or checkpoint Charlie). At one point this was a 10 lane crossing point, but today there's not much left. a replica of the original guard shack surrounded by lots of placards and info. The before and after photo's are very striking.
On Monday we visited the German historic museum. I'd highly recomend this, it covers German history...All of it!
After the three hour drive to Ilsenburg we started the actual work portion of this trip. It's too bad we didn't have just a bit more time though because the next town over is Nordhaused, famous for the "mittelwerk" where the germans built thousands of V2 rockets! they were built INSIDE a tunnel system, cut by slave labor, towards the end of the war. The allies took all the remaining rockets following liberation, after which the russians sealed the tunnels. They have only recently been opened back up and you can tour these today. It looks exactly like it did at the end of the war! Also outside of nordhausen is the small Dora concentration camp. A small but brutal example of the worst of humanity.
Maybe next time...
 |
| 2009 10 Berlin |
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Adolf_Hitler
http://www.subbrit.org.uk/sb-sites/sites/n/nordhausen/index.shtml
Monday, October 12, 2009
Guten tag vom ilsenburg
I just got into ilsenburg after 2 days in berlin. i forgot the cable for my camera (Actually mel's camera) in the car...so photo's will follow shortly!
Friday, October 09, 2009
Finally!!!
well, i'm finally done with the interferon! After a year of 3 x weekly shots, endless pills, doctors visits, ct scans, MRI's and rarely making it past 9PM..i'm finally done! And i have to say..i feel pretty good. :) I saw my oncologist on Monday and wasn't shy in telling that i hope i never see him again! nicely of course....but my life should be back to "normal" now. Many of the changes i made in the last year will of course have to be permanent as i will always be at a high risk of re-occurrence. Looking forward over the next year(s) I'll go in for ct scan's every 6 months and continue with my 6 month dermatologist schedule. I don't think I'm ever considered "cured" but if I'm still healthy in another year I'm considered in remission..i think. I'm not too concerned about labeling my condition at this point beyond "cancer free...apparently" :)
I also have to say that despite all the horror stories we hear about our medical system, my experience was fantastic and i couldn't have asked for better doctors. And of course I'm extremely fortunate to have a great, supportive family and girlfriend. I can't imagine how some people do this alone.
And it couldn't have come at a better time because i fly to Germany in a few hrs. mmmm...chocolate and beer! i mean....water and brocoli! :)
I also have to say that despite all the horror stories we hear about our medical system, my experience was fantastic and i couldn't have asked for better doctors. And of course I'm extremely fortunate to have a great, supportive family and girlfriend. I can't imagine how some people do this alone.
And it couldn't have come at a better time because i fly to Germany in a few hrs. mmmm...chocolate and beer! i mean....water and brocoli! :)
Sunday, October 04, 2009
I'm doing it all wrong!
so i've been working on my race car for many...many...many months now. and i need many more before it will even resemble a car again. But after watching these videos..i realize i'm doing it all wrong. i should just hire these guys! They build a new acura prototype in less then 22 hrs! Watch the crash..then the time lapse build video. Really cool.
ALMS: Patron Highcroft Petit Le Mans Rebuild from GrandTouringPrototype.com on Vimeo.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Brains!
So just in case there was any doubt...here's photographic proof that i'm healthy.
and have a brain..
and have a brain..
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Saturday, September 19, 2009
One sill down
Well, one sill down and one to go!
After spending the morning fixing the dedicate outlet for my welder (breaker kept poping), I got the B pillar patch panel fitted and welded in. I wound up cutting it too short so i had to make a little "extender". In this case (non-structural) i think that's alright. Had it been the sill or something..i would've started over again from scratch. I also cut out a section of the wheel well from the rear clip to replace part of mine.
Once that was all in it was on to the sill..
and to the guys from EB spares i have to say...great work! The sill fits awesome and only required the minorist (is that a word?) of tweaking. I'd highly recomend them to anyone needing to do this repair.
Now i need to clean up and go pick Mel up from the airport!
After spending the morning fixing the dedicate outlet for my welder (breaker kept poping), I got the B pillar patch panel fitted and welded in. I wound up cutting it too short so i had to make a little "extender". In this case (non-structural) i think that's alright. Had it been the sill or something..i would've started over again from scratch. I also cut out a section of the wheel well from the rear clip to replace part of mine.
Once that was all in it was on to the sill..
and to the guys from EB spares i have to say...great work! The sill fits awesome and only required the minorist (is that a word?) of tweaking. I'd highly recomend them to anyone needing to do this repair.
Now i need to clean up and go pick Mel up from the airport!
Staycation
While mel is away in Yuma (miss ya babe!) i decided to take a few days off and get some quality time in with my Alfa!
Yesterday i spent all day working to get the skins off the rear clip i bought. I was able to get them off in 1 piece and they are in remarkably good shape for being 35 years old. even more so when compared to what i cut off my car! Getting them off required drilling out about 500 spot welds and splitting all the seems. The best way to do this seemed to be a 3/16 drill bit followed by a putty knife and a sledge hammer. A bit crude..but the results were great. I started off using a screwdriver to split the metal (after drilling) but that focused the energy too much and was making the panels wiggly.
Once i got them completely off i stripped all the paint off and shot them with a quick coat of primer. Voila!
Today i spent most of the day working on the Driver side sill (the pieces under the door that you step over when you get into the car). Luckily i was able to extract the necessary patch panels from the rear clip as well. I only needed to cut the old, rusty steel out and cut the replacements to match.
This pic shows the lower b pillar patch piece where it needs to go. But i had to cut it out first and repair the middle sill piece behind it (next pic)
Here's the middle sill patch piece in place and ready to weld.
Unfortunately my welder was giving me fits all day...it popped the breaker a dozen times while i was trying to use it. After making up a heavier duty extension cord (20 amp) and not fixing the problem..i went ahead and pulled the breaker. tomorrow morning i'll replace it with a 25 amp breaker. I'm sure that's up to code...somewhere.
Hopefully i'll be able to completely finish the Driver side sill repairs tomorrow. exciting..i know.
Here's some more pics,
And here's some more pics of my new niece and nephew!
http://picasaweb.google.com/corrid3/MollyAndGradySBirthday9152009#
Yesterday i spent all day working to get the skins off the rear clip i bought. I was able to get them off in 1 piece and they are in remarkably good shape for being 35 years old. even more so when compared to what i cut off my car! Getting them off required drilling out about 500 spot welds and splitting all the seems. The best way to do this seemed to be a 3/16 drill bit followed by a putty knife and a sledge hammer. A bit crude..but the results were great. I started off using a screwdriver to split the metal (after drilling) but that focused the energy too much and was making the panels wiggly.
Once i got them completely off i stripped all the paint off and shot them with a quick coat of primer. Voila!
Today i spent most of the day working on the Driver side sill (the pieces under the door that you step over when you get into the car). Luckily i was able to extract the necessary patch panels from the rear clip as well. I only needed to cut the old, rusty steel out and cut the replacements to match.
This pic shows the lower b pillar patch piece where it needs to go. But i had to cut it out first and repair the middle sill piece behind it (next pic)
Here's the middle sill patch piece in place and ready to weld.
Unfortunately my welder was giving me fits all day...it popped the breaker a dozen times while i was trying to use it. After making up a heavier duty extension cord (20 amp) and not fixing the problem..i went ahead and pulled the breaker. tomorrow morning i'll replace it with a 25 amp breaker. I'm sure that's up to code...somewhere.
Hopefully i'll be able to completely finish the Driver side sill repairs tomorrow. exciting..i know.
Here's some more pics,
 |
| 2009 09 Staycation |
And here's some more pics of my new niece and nephew!
http://picasaweb.google.com/corrid3/MollyAndGradySBirthday9152009#
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Congrats!
to Brian and Maureen (bro and sis in law) their new additions!
http://picasaweb.google.com/corrid3/MollyAndGradySBirthday9152009?feat=email#
http://picasaweb.google.com/corrid3/MollyAndGradySBirthday9152009?feat=email#
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Why Google is evil
I have a gmail account
a picasa account
i use google reader
i use google stock screener
i use google analytics
and of course, i use blogger.
so why is google evil? quite simply, it provides access to too much information. let me paint the picture,
about a month ago i had a lingering headache for a week or so. following that i had a serious of dizzy spells along with the feeling that i was falling. Normally i wouldn't think much of this but given my recent medical history i decided to have it checked out. one brain MRI later and i was on my way home feeling better with a CD of pictures in my hand. That's where the problem comes in. I had to wait 2 days before i get in to see my doc and get the results, all the while carrying around this CD of brain pics. what would you do?
well if you're me and your a glutton for punishment...you google "melanoma brain mri", or "melanoma spread to brain" and compare the online pics to your own.
bad idea
I'm not a doctor, i have no idea what i'm looking at. every little white spot or black spot..or any spot i perceive as being unusual is suddenly suspect.
in the end there doesn't appear to be anything wrong except for a bit of vertigo. thank god. but not thank google...you foster my paranoia!
a picasa account
i use google reader
i use google stock screener
i use google analytics
and of course, i use blogger.
so why is google evil? quite simply, it provides access to too much information. let me paint the picture,
about a month ago i had a lingering headache for a week or so. following that i had a serious of dizzy spells along with the feeling that i was falling. Normally i wouldn't think much of this but given my recent medical history i decided to have it checked out. one brain MRI later and i was on my way home feeling better with a CD of pictures in my hand. That's where the problem comes in. I had to wait 2 days before i get in to see my doc and get the results, all the while carrying around this CD of brain pics. what would you do?
well if you're me and your a glutton for punishment...you google "melanoma brain mri", or "melanoma spread to brain" and compare the online pics to your own.
bad idea
I'm not a doctor, i have no idea what i'm looking at. every little white spot or black spot..or any spot i perceive as being unusual is suddenly suspect.
in the end there doesn't appear to be anything wrong except for a bit of vertigo. thank god. but not thank google...you foster my paranoia!
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Monday, September 07, 2009
Labor Day Weekend
Mel and i went over to my friend Schaefer's on saturday and went out on his boat for a few hours. The weather was perfect for some boating..some knee-boarding and even a bit of wake-boarding.
Mel was nice enough to get me mid fall!
Paris is not a fan of speed, and needed a little love to calm her down.
I forgot to post these. Two weeks ago my friend Kevin Tar came into town for a wedding and rented a new camaro..it was an automatic SS! I got a few pics next to my car before heading out to woodward for a test drive. It's impressive, even with the automatic. Putting the tranny into manual mode (to use the paddle shifts on the wheel) yields two solid gears of burned rubber!
Since mel is a doctor (almost :) )...i figured she was qualified to pull my stitches! and what a job she did..i only cried once.
I got a bit of word done on my car. I'm waiting on some steel pieces from the UK and can't do much on the sills until it arrives. But i stripped a lot more of the undercoating (that is nasty stuff!) and started to remove the skins from the rear clip i bought. There must be 1000 tack welds holding it on!
Here's a few more pics from the weekend
Mel was nice enough to get me mid fall!
Paris is not a fan of speed, and needed a little love to calm her down.
I forgot to post these. Two weeks ago my friend Kevin Tar came into town for a wedding and rented a new camaro..it was an automatic SS! I got a few pics next to my car before heading out to woodward for a test drive. It's impressive, even with the automatic. Putting the tranny into manual mode (to use the paddle shifts on the wheel) yields two solid gears of burned rubber!
Since mel is a doctor (almost :) )...i figured she was qualified to pull my stitches! and what a job she did..i only cried once.
I got a bit of word done on my car. I'm waiting on some steel pieces from the UK and can't do much on the sills until it arrives. But i stripped a lot more of the undercoating (that is nasty stuff!) and started to remove the skins from the rear clip i bought. There must be 1000 tack welds holding it on!
Here's a few more pics from the weekend
 |
| 2009 09 Labor Day Weekend |
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