To The Metal

We’re treading on hallowed ground here folks, I grew up on Knight Rider.

That said – they pulled it off.

A few notes though…

The panoramic CG… sucked.  It was bad.  Really bad.  Maybe it was due to watching it on HD – but how hard is it to simply have a Mustang speed down a highway and shoot it from a helicopter?  This was the equivalent of the model car used in certain jump sequences in the old series.  Still, the old series started out without the final version of KITT even complete, so – I’ll take it.

I like how they gave subtle nods to the old show without allowing it to dominate – that’s key here.  We want to tread a new path without relying on 25 year old file footage.  I’d hope for more cameos though – more Knight, maybe even some Bonnie Barstow or even William Daniels.  It can be done – just don’t overdo it.

Last but not least, the commercials.  Maybe I’m spoiled as most of the television I view nowadays is on DVD – but I’ve had it with the amount of advertising… it is borderline ludicrous.  The Focus / Mustang ads were cute, but I can’t help but feel dirty watching most modern television series live.

Val Kilmer pulled off KITT as well.  It’s a new twist on a classic concept – some of the quirky know-it-all is still there and frankly when Mike told him to ‘shut up’ I nearly fell out of my chair.

All in all I’m hopeful.  But NBC needs to throttle down the advertising just a tinge.  Nearly every vehicle in the show worth looking at was Ford, I don’t need 5 minute commercial brakes that equate to the same show minus the plot.  Seriously.

Move is off for reasons I’m not blogging about, TTM isn’t going anywhere, neither am I.

Looks like I’ll be taking the site down for some time towards the end of the month, and I’m not entirely sure on when it will be back up.  While I do enjoy having my own little web-server in my home, my only options out in PA are cable or fiber optic and neither have a static IP or the capability to support a full blown web server unless I drop twice the price for a business class account.

So if I don’t happen to come back – happy trails folks.

So this year, the day of the primary, a news story started to circulate about the musician John Cougar Mellencamp and a disagreement with John McCain. It stemmed from McCain’s camp using a few of the Cougar’s hits during his stump speeches. Mellencamp is a Democrat, an Edwards supporter, and as we all know when it comes to wealthy Democrats – free expression is only free FOR THEM. For anyone else? Pay up.

Such was the case when Chrissie Hynde, the singer of the Pretenders found out that vast Right Wing Conspirator Rush Limbaugh was using the track “My City Was Gone” as his intro theme for 10 years. A few negotiations later, the intro song was back and Hynde had a half million dollar check from Limbaugh – per year.

Even Sean Hannity has run into this situation as for years he used “The Heart of The Matter” by Don Henley as his intro music. Henley found out, complained, and Hannity subsequently stopped using it.

At least Andrew Wilkow plays bumper music that nobody would listen to for free, let alone for royalties. I’m a little annoyed by that guy, but that’s a topic for another post.

This whole thing brings me to one of two possible conclusions…

The first is based in the fact that John McCain is not a Conservative, but a closet Socialist in an Elephant suit. Real Conservatives know this – that’s why most of us supported Ron Paul, but I digress. What better way to make McCain look like the real big media definition of a conservative than to have some elitist hypocrite attack him who hasn’t recorded anything of value since he purchased his first answering machine in 1982.

My second possible conclusion is that Mellencamp wants money. For a Liberal supporter of John Edwards to complain about McCain – but happily sign every check he gets from Chevrolet when his song is used to advertise pickup trucks with gas mileage ratings equivalent to the IQ of the average Mellencamp fan – reeks of hypocrisy.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Chevrolet. I drive a Chevy pickup. Mellencamp is a sell out, an opportunist, and a hypocrite. McCain isn’t worth even a dimpled chad, he’s nothing more than Hillary Clinton with natural hair color and descended testicles. This is just another case of wealthy people trying to manipulate the public for their own benefit.

Saturday night I lost my cellphone.  No clue where it went.  Looked all over, called it, nothing.

Monday I cash in the insurance policy.  Tuesday I get the phone.  Tonight I get home, and there’s the phone, sitting by the stairs in my house.   No calls were made, nothing, but there it is with a dead battery.

Landlord has no idea where it came from, neither do I.  Maybe I dropped it somewhere and my neighbor picked it up, no idea.

Weird, very weird.

No Conservative primary in NY…  In lieu of voting, I give you…

Most, if not all cellphones now have GPS capability.  Why not offer a service so that when a phone is lost – the account holder can pay a small fee to have the phone located.  Sure, there’s a chance it could be abused, but just the same – I’ve lost my RAZR and for the life of me cannot find it.  If I could click a button on the website and be told where it is – I’d use it.

Last night I stopped off at the gas station to top off the Chevy and get some cash.  Well I put the gas on my credit card, and accidentally tried to use the credit card at the ATM as well.  I punched in the wrong PIN, got declined, and didn’t think twice about it.

Today I get home, the phone rings.  “Out of area” is the caller and when I pick up the phone to say “Hello?” I get dead air.

Right before I hang up, I hear the nice robotic voice of my bank’s computer verifying my charges because the decline triggered a fraud alert.  Not only that, I can also have it set up to text my cellphone.  Never actually dealt with a fraud alert like that, but I’m glad it’s looking out for me.

That whoever is behind engine design at GM is a sadist.

I’ve never had more trouble changing SPARK PLUGS on any vehicle other than a GM – nor have I ever had a spark plug snap in half on any brand other than AC Delco.  I’m doing a basic tuneup on the Silverado as weather permits – had a new exhaust system installed at Monro the other day, tonight I got half the plugs done, they look to be pretty clean considering the blown head gasket they apparently had repaired.  No idea what I’m in store for with the passenger side cylinders yet… once I get the plugs, wires, cap, and rotor in – then I’ll replace the fuel filter and finally swap out the oil pressure sending unit.  I don’t see the list of repairs getting shorter any time soon, but I’ll take care of the easy stuff first.