Oddly enough…

Posted on July 26, 2007 by SJ

Last night I’m heading home from the gym, camera on the dash, and I see a white Subaru Impreza with NJ tags and a bunch of kids in it catching up. We pull in to the 55mph zone and are immediately stuck behind a farm truck with what looks like a loosely packed load of lettuce in cardboard boxes. A couple cars ahead of me just blast over the double-yellow and pass the truck. I get to the truck and a combination of blind curves/hills and oncoming traffic keep me from even looking to pass the 10mph monstrosity. So we get over to Big Island Rd and I figure I’ll just pull off and take the back roads home – NAY I was cut off.

What cut me off?

The farm truck, creeping slowly to the left with no turn signal. Now a big justification behind the speed limit drop on this road was rural traffic. Being a bicycle rider, I can fully understand the fear of having vehicles weighing 12-15 times what I do hurtle past me with little regard for my safety. To be honest though, I can’t imagine that many of these farm vehicles would be street legal outside of this road – nor would the drivers pass a simple driving test.

Every day farm trucks driving below the limit do so without the use of turn signals or hazard lights, even tractors do not have hazard lights. Heaven forbid the kids in the Subaru passed me to pass the farm truck and then ended up smashing into it because the driver didn’t use a signal before he crept left? Who’d be more at fault? Would I have justification for getting the signature of every driver who uses Pulaski Hwy to petition that all rural traffic must adhere to the same standards as the rest of us? I think we’d outnumber the residents who called for lower speeds in less than a day.

All that said – I still have no issue with the 45mph limit, just the lack of enforcement of the limit. Flash back to the same traffic yesterday, I’m now in the 45mph zone, the driver of the Subaru obviously frustrated with how I’m driving but ahead there’s a town Cop heading the same way I am. I giggle to myself hoping the Subaru will pass only to be confronted with a trunk-lid that reads POLICE. It didn’t happen though, as the Cop pulled off onto Mount Eve road instead of continuing down Pulaski. The Subaru never did pass, and definitely aired his frustration a couple of times, but either the presence of my dash cam, the previous Police sighting, or maybe just respect for the speed limit kept him from doing it.

This morning, on my way in, another Chevy Trailblazer – NJ tags, catching up to me in a hurry doing WELL over the 40mph limit stayed behind me all the way through the 45mph zone. Despite plenty of opportunities, they didn’t pass. I already knew they had no problem with speeding – so maybe it’s the dash cam, pretty cool if it was.

I’m hoping to wire my car up with a front and rear mount dash cam this weekend, figure a pair of web-cams attached to a laptop should do the trick. Then again I may just call it quits and just enjoy the drive.

–Cheers

Posted in Driving, Speeders | Leave a comment

The Speed List – Update

Posted on July 25, 2007 by SJ

I’ve continued to update the list of speeders on my road, so far I’ve collected 4 speeders and one tailgater who either saw the camera or simply didn’t have enough faith in his car to actually complete a pass when I was only doing 45mph. I will keep updating the list as I spot new speeders, I’m actually hoping to get at least 10 by the end of the week, that way I can do a little rough math and maybe find a way to make an educated guess of how many people are still speeding on this road. 8 or 10 speeders might not seem like much over the course of a week, but understand that this is 1-2 speeders over the course of a 10 minute commute, which translates to a rate of around 12 speeders per hour doing at least 15mph over the limit.

Consider the number of people I personally affect by not speeding, the one or two cars which can pass me usually do, but if there are a line of cars, it is unlikely that people who were speeding will continue to do so unless many people pass me. I would suppose that my numbers are not entirely accurate as I’m not at the side of the road with a radar gun – which leads to my main point… Where is the enforcement???

Arbitrary speed limits decided without the benefit of science or law enforcement influence are an absolute waste of taxpayer dollars and will only serve to punish the decent, law abiding drivers like myself with longer commute times and also by being subjected to more aggressive drivers who simply want to keep going like they always have.

The solution is simple – if the residents of Pulaski Hwy have any commitment to their cause, they will call on law enforcement to heavily patrol the road and wipe away the reputation that it has had for as long as I have driven it – Pulaski Speedway.

Posted in Driving, Speeders | Leave a comment

WOW.

Posted on July 23, 2007 by SJ

Very rarely do I walk into a business and say WOW.

I always remember the ones that do, and I frequent them.

Case in point? The Central Deli in Florida. It’s your typical deli, what isn’t typical is the speed at which they complete orders, the level of attention and service you get, and the quality of the food – not to mention the prices are very reasonable. I’ve seen the place go from completely dead to completely full and be cleared back out in under 5 minutes.

All that said – QuickChek, a deli/convenience store/gas station which is already well established in NJ has opened up a store across the street from the Central. I held out for a bit, last week I stopped in for a breakfast sandwich, the place was dead. One of the staff was just gazing out the front door with a blank look on their face. I got my sandwich and the place started filling up again. It’s what I feared when QuickChek had come in, that my personal favorite deli would be run out of town.

Today I went to QuickChek for gas and lunch, and again – said WOW. First of all, plenty of gas pumps all widely spaced and protected from the elements by a large canopy. Fuel prices are about 15-25 cents cheaper per gallon for premium (what I use) than any other area gas station. My car tends to run better on QuickChek gas too, IMHO.

The store? It’s big and very well lit. The aisles are widely spaced, the selection is vast, there’s very little chance of bumping into another patron of the store at any time. The deli? Outstanding. They’ve got your typical Subway/Quiznos type options, but instead of making your request to a person – you go through your various options on a touch-screen kiosk which both prints your receipt as well as queue’s the order.

The coffee stations are all clean, with plenty of space and plenty of options. I’d say the coffee is better than most deli brews – currently I’m taking care of a ‘creamy vanilla’ – the flavor is just right. Once I was done making my coffee, my sub was waiting for me and then I made my way to the front of the store to check out.

I paid $5.34 for a medium coffee a double-meat 6-inch Italian combo. Pretty good deal. A similar offering at Subway or Quiznos would cost around $7 and not nearly have the same level of quality or taste. Most standard Deli sandwiches start at around $8 for simply too much food. I guess it pays to play the averages and get it just right.

Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

HAVEF8TH

Posted on July 23, 2007 by SJ

A long, long time ago – in a township far, far away – I was a stupid kid and a reckless driver. I drove too fast too often, and got my share of easily avoidable (read: if I drove normal) tickets.

Last week, the speed limit on a portion of my road was lowered from 55mph to 45mph in a knee-jerk reaction by local residents easily sopped up by local politicians. Apparently a little over two years ago, some nitwit was speeding and took out two telephone poles before he landed in a ditch. A 45mph sign does nothing to stop a speeder.

I wrote a letter to the editor a day or two after the limit was dropped asking a simple question – “Where is the enforcement?” Simply put, a speed limit sign has no effect on the speed of most drivers without consistent enforcement of that limit. Short of hitting the sign, the new 45mph speed limit isn’t going to slow anyone down but those who didn’t speed to begin with.

I’ve rarely seen a single speed trap on this road during peak commuting hours, if any. This road – Pulaski Hwy – has a reputation as a minimally patrolled high-speed corridor between New Jersey and State Route 17. The only time anybody actually slows down here is if there is a speed trap or slow traffic and no passing zone.

Warwick is a big place, there are hundreds of miles of roads and highways and a limited number of police officers to patrol it. Frankly if I was one of the 92 residents who signed the petition calling for a lower speed limit, I’d be offended that nobody mentioned enforcement. The meathead politicians in Warwick are obviously as useless as the higher paid ones in Albany and Washington.

Warwick needs more cops. The local State Police need more cops. They need more cops as well as politicians willing to tell people the truth – that a speed limit means nothing without effective enforcement and that is what this road needs – effective enforcement.

Anyone who signed the petition is welcome to hang out in the 40mph zone near my home where they will see just how ineffective a sign can be. The signs make the residents feel good, and I’m sure they’ll remember the opportunistic jerks in local office who supported the change come November. Personally, I’ll still be asking “where’s the enforcement?”

Keep an eye on my post: The Speed List where I highlight the idiots I deal with on a daily basis who simply don’t give a crap about the 45mph speed limit.

(Note: The editor of the local paper emailed me and confirmed that my letter will appear in this weeks issue of The Warwick Advertiser.)

Posted in Driving, RANT | 2 Comments

All men aren’t pigs.

Posted on July 18, 2007 by SJ

I’m sick of it.

I’m sick and tired of men being portrayed as simplistic idiots. I won’t buy something if it portrays a man as an idiot.

That said – I doubt I’ll be buying Trojan’s any time soon.

With Condoms in Particular, Local Stations Can Say No

I applaud the stations that decided to not show this ad, despite some idiotic reasons which have nothing to do with MY reason for not liking the ad. My reason for not liking the ad? It implies that all men are pigs – but if you use a Trojan – you’re a handsome gentleman.

I see the ads where the pizza delivery guy in the minimum wage job driving the jalopy has one up on the guy living in the big house ordering the pizza one too many times. If the ad had shown a bar full of men surrounded by dozens of Labrador Retrievers, there’d likely be a riot with the National Organization for Women at the forefront!

Want people to buy condoms? Advertise a screaming kid. Advertise someone having wild sex while wearing them. Advertise a a couple talking about how they didn’t even feel like it was there. I’m not going to be insulted into spending my money on your product. I’m sure there are just as many women out there who either don’t care or will say nothing when a guy doesn’t wear a rubber but you don’t see them portrayed as dogs in prime time TV.

I’d rather be a pig.

Posted in RANT | 2 Comments

Rebates…

Posted on July 17, 2007 by SJ

AS a general rule, I never purchase an item based on the rebate – either I usually forget to send it in, or they have an archaic level of detail required to complete them. Still – for my job I purchased quite a few Samsung LCD’s a few months back that just happened to have a rebate available in addition to the low price offered by NewEgg.

So I filled it out, it’s a decent chunk of change – enough to buy another LCD. Yesterday I get a postcard saying my purchase was made outside the qualifying period.

Huh?

Now NewEgg had a link to the rebate which I printed out, it covered any purchase made between April 1st and 30th and had to be postmarked by May 30th. I bought the things in mid April and mailed in the rebate in early May.

I call the 800 number on the card, and realize that they’ve processed May’s rebate – not April’s. Two entirely different offer codes. Thankfully the woman on the phone sorted it out in short order and re-processed it, but this is precisely why I don’t like to deal with rebates.

Could it have been operator error? Sure. Could it have been an effort by Samsung to either spread out the rebates or just save money by denying ALL incoming rebates on the first try with a simple mistake on their end? More likely.

I trust big multinational corporations as much as I trust big government. Samsung still makes solid products, but this sort of stuff just bugs me.

Posted in Ramblings... | Leave a comment

Wide Open Racing, Please.

Posted on July 16, 2007 by SJ

Week before last, TNT decided to cut the number of commercial breaks – integrate the ones they did show into the race screen – and move all the statistics to the bottom of the screen. Odd? Yes. Outstanding concept? Absolutely.

More than ever, TNT is the WORST network for NASCAR coverage. Every 10 minutes or 12 laps – commercial break. 3-4 ads for everything from TNT original series to other useless crap. 75% of the time, the commercials are cut into by the local network for their damned Optimum Online ads. It’s annoying. Whether it’s green flag or yellow flag, it seems like we’re watching MORE commercials than racing.

God forbid you’re doing chores, if the timing is off you might not even see the race. I encourage NASCAR to either drop TNT as a network for covering NASCAR races or bring back the Wide Open Racing format. Quite honestly, with that many commercials I’d rather listen to the radio broadcast.

Posted in RANT, Reviews | Leave a comment

Harry Potter 5 – The Order of The Phoenix [*****]

Posted on July 15, 2007 by SJ

For the record – I haven’t read the book. In fact, although I am a major fan of all the movies thus far – I’ve only read the Goblet of Fire. See, the reason is – every movie adaptation of a book, even the Harry Potter stories, is just that – an adaptation. Stories are cut, modified, and introduced to serve the silver-screen based universe. If I read the book and really enjoy a part that is cut from the movie – it might just skew my opinion of the picture all together and I like to be as objective as possible.

All that said, Harry Potter 5 – The Order of The Phoenix – was a knockout. Picking up where the Goblet of Fire left off, we find Hogwarts in turmoil, Harry Potter hating his relatives, and Voldemort on the loose. The Ministry of Magic is in flat out denial of the truth – that ‘you know who’ is back and is responsible for the death of Cedric Diggory. Trust me folks, expect to spend much of this experience aggravated beyond words. This is on purpose of course, as we get to deal with Dolores Umbridge, the grand inquisitor of the Ministry who is in charge of maintaining the coverup.

Plenty of humor and good times are to be had though. Don’t expect any Quidditch or even much give and take between Potter and Malfoy – as the story here is the rise of Voldemort and the Order of The Phoenix which is tasked with fighting him. Potter and his usual cohorts also join together to train themselves in the dark arts when Umbridge simply tries to convince them all that evil doesn’t exist.

Probably the grandest and yet the darkest of the movie series. All the performances as expected are top notch and likely give any producer of a failed trilogy heartburn as they see that this series – 5 of which have been completed thus far – has no intention of slowing down before the author has penned the final novel. That’s the beauty of this series – for young or old – the stories are rock solid, the effects are just right, it is a perfect shining example of what can be done when QUALITY is put before QUANTITY. Hollywood could learn something from JK Rowling. Not sure they will.

Check it out, with 350 million in global box office sales since its release a few days ago, I doubt it will leave theaters for a few weeks.

Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

Coke Zero – A step in the right direction.

Posted on July 13, 2007 by SJ

Our nations obsession with the soft drink is nearly as dangerous as its obsession with the hard drink. Course, I’d rather wake up with a hangover than 10lbs heavier due to the amount of sodium and empty calories I’ve consumed.

I don’t drink soft drinks anymore besides an occasional glass of ginger-ale. My favorite is Coca Cola. Tons of calories, tons of sodium, plus some sort of acid that can actually wipe out tooth enamel, clean tools, and even strip the paint off a car.

Coke Zero is their latest iteration, 0 calories, 30mg of sodium per serving, and for once – it’s a diet soda that doesn’t taste like diet soda. Sure, there is a faint nutra-sweet like aftertaste, but not nearly as powerful as diet. If I were to call this stuff anything, I’d call it Coke Light. The syrup is thinner, the carbonation is less, and the sweetness isn’t obnoxious – it’s comfortable, like Coke.

Good show. Now if I only knew what drinking this chemical cocktail would do to me in 50 years, I’d consider buying more.

Posted in Ramblings... | Leave a comment

Another nail in the coffin…

Posted on July 12, 2007 by SJ

I believe that one of the final nails in the coffin of Big Music will get hammered into place on July 15th, 2007. On that day, 300% to 1200% increases in the royalties paid will be due from Internet broadcasters across the fruited plains – retroactive of course. It’s a near fatal blow to a struggling business that is generally created and maintained by fans.

Many see this as a complete load of shit, considering that Big Music has exempted terrestrial radio from paying these fees. Currently, only Satellite radio pays royalties and they pay significantly less than that which will be required by Internet radio. Personally, I see this as a glowing opportunity to cut Big Music down at the knees.

¾ of my music collection is comprised of both independent and big label artists that I discovered by listening to Internet radio. As the stations shut down due to an inability to afford these new royalties, all artists will suffer by losing this free flowing outlet for their music.

For years, the industry has been in a downward spiral due to the short sightedness of the jerks in charge. They raise prices instead of improving the product. They hide behind the RIAA and devastate the consumers – free from blame. At every turn they attempt to increase revenue while limiting the options of the consumer.

Sadly for the Industry, this IS the 21st century where music can be affordably obtained ANYWHERE. The days of the Big Music storefront are over. Tower Records is gone, others that depend on this archaic failure of a business model will inevitably follow. Last Sunday an FYE rep gave me a $3 coupon at the Nickelback concert. Even at $3 off, I can get the same music for less from iTunes. Why bother?

So Big Music still thinks it can control the game and keep terrestrial radio viable in the information age in all likelihood this will lead to an even greater decline in overall sales and revenue as acts that rely on Internet radio exposure are forced off the air. Eventually, as a result of this latest calamity – I believe that artists will refuse to sign with any label that limits how their music is exposed to the fans.

They claim this is done for the artists, but it will only serve to decimate them. I don’t listen to the radio. I don’t buy CD’s. I am in a growing MAJORITY of WIRELESS consumers who rely on NEW TECHNOLOGY to satiate our entertainment needs. The Industry will never wake up, they’ll simply file for bankruptcy behind a cloud of golden parachutes ala Enron.

Go ahead and write your Congressperson as they wish you would at savenetradio.org. Personally, I’m going to sit back and enjoy the fire as Big Music screws the fans, the artists, and especially themselves – one last time.

Posted in Ramblings... | Leave a comment