I'm still up, rampaging all about town. Have hours to go before sleep. Also witnessed recent (Dec. 24) eruption of Mt. Etna and felt medium earthquake in Catania early morning hours of Dec. 26. And that is only the minor excitements.

Z displeasing The Gods again.

hey hockey buff. here is a dec.8th post for zeno. its him buddy . i predicted the earthquake and volcano.

zeno has had 5 smaller to medium earthquakes off the coast near his home.

quote/ "nature is getting ready to punish him for his gallivanting around and his unsavory ways. the earth listens and then speaks.

i just hope he doesnt set off a volcano in italy unto those poor souls over there. quote/

R*R;

What did you think of my Christmas Eve? Do I get a round of applause for nuking a "friendship" from someone that I haven't seen for 6 months?

See if you can top that on New Year's Eve.

So let's hear about the major excitements.

Car question for those in the lounge:

I want to buy a new car. Specifically, a hatchback. Something practical but still fun to drive, with some pep. Mainly looking at VW Golf GTI and Mazda 3 hatch.

Golf GTI pros: More power. More fun. Nicer interior. Prefer the boxy traditional look. Prototypical "hot hatch".
GTI cons: Pricier. Less reliable (maybe). No AWD option unless I got the R version (which is over $40k so prob not happening). More expensive to maintain, repair, and insure. Recommends premium gas. Base model doesn't have common safety features like blind spot monitoring. Considering my typical stop and go NJ commute, extra power may go largely unused.

Mazda3 hatch pros: Less expensive at comparable trim levels. 2019 has AWD option. Good reliability. All the standard safety features even on base model. Cheaper to run and insure.
Mazda cons: Less powerful. Less fun. Rounded look not as appealing to me. Visibility out rear window not very good.

Anyone advice from any car gurus out there?

Golf R AWD (288 hp): $42k
GTI fwd (222 hp): $28k
Mazda3 AWD: $25k (guessing based on '18 model - 2019 doesn't come out for another couple of months).

Get an American car.

Probably won't go wrong with either one.

Does being in a sicilian laundromat at 10:30 on a Friday night count?

Oh, possibly. But I only know one Sicilian.

Finally, lastcard nails one. Buy a Ford Escape with the turbo engine and AWD. An excellent vehicle; I've had one for over 5 years and love it and it has performed wonderfully with no problems.

Have nothing against American cars. However I want a hatchback and don't really want an SUV, even a compact one like the Escape. I have not looked that closely at the Ford Focus, could be an option although I do not think they offer an AWD version.

I think bottom line comes down to how much I think I need AWD. It is one of those things you don't need 95% of the time, but you are really grateful to have it during that other 5%. I have read good winter tires/fwd is as good as AWD and mediocre all-season tires. But I'm not sure how true that is. Leaving AWD out of the equation it probably wouldn't be close - I think the GTI is about the most fun you can have driving for under $30k. The Mazda (or other options like the Focus etc) are more practical.

get an old Volkswagen

Growing up there was this lil sub-culture that would restore, modify and supe-up those old Fastbacks and other models. Were super-cool looking autos

cars:

toyota and honda for new are really the only choice unless you plan and are sure you will keep it till the wheels fall of. as those two brands hold their value well and have almost no problems for the longest.

if younger without lots of spendable money that money should be invested in things that go up in value rather than things that go down. buy and drive the car that you can really afford and not have any payments on it.

if in an icy or snowy and hilly area at all then awd is a giant leap over just front wheel drive. no comparison.

for awd subrau is tops.

you dropped some advice on me, baby rayzee

You read the car-review, I stand imbued

Vagabond

John, do you assist regularly in the grammar thread in OOT? I posed a question in there and require assistance

I do if I can help.

i dont think you helped over there. you ******ed the conversation.

Oh, Ray. I tried.

loungin on a saturday mornin.
feel the storm a comin,
comin without warnin.

Played some 12 string guitar already this weekend. Hadn't played guitar in over a year but it was fun. Played babe im gonna leave you, stairway(both badly) and wail and wasp by alice in chains, which actually came out ok.

Don't encourage him.