Out of the Blue

My pal MrCoffee recently joined the ranks of licensed drivers, or re-joined, as he had been licensed in the past as he'd managed to let his license lapse (people who don't live in New York City have a hard time believing how easily one can survive without one), and we were up at our buddy Devicer's when it was proposed we take a drive so he could practice driving his rented Jetta. I'm not going to try and recreate what happened next, since I didn't see it, and Devicer's description of what he saw in his rear-view consisted of a lot of "oh-nos!" Basically MrCoffee hit a gravel patch and ended up skidding across the (thankfully empty) oncoming traffic lane managing to come to a halt in the opposite shoulder without hitting the sheer rock wall it abutted. Far from being an indictment of his car, which I think was most guilty of being shod with crappy stock tires, this incident serves as quite a testament to German engineering, as before he managed to come to a halt, MrCoffee managed to total a street sign and (get this) a 25-foot tall tree, while emerging shaken, but completely unharmed, with the Jetta suffering from little more than a couple of scratches and some lost minor plastic bits. As we assessed the situation and it became apparent that this was a far more minor accident than it appeared at first, I walked over to see what the sign that was knocked over was supposed to be telling people, which was, naturally, 'no parking or stopping at any time.' Doh!

Play Time: This guy's got moves!!! Flash required. Thanks Brendan Reville.
Story of the Day: Police hunt 'criminal' chimp. Thanks Uncle Skeeby.
Story of the Day II: NPR Button Loose Lips, Again. Thanks Zdim.
Wild Science: Laser propels plane. Thanks BigDog.

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47.
 
Being geeky
Jun 11, 2002, 11:30
47.
Being geeky Jun 11, 2002, 11:30
Jun 11, 2002, 11:30
 
Whats wrong with being geeky anyway. I'm under 30, own two cars, a ford mondeo V6 zetec and a 2.5 v6 clio (multi cylinder engine sound far sweeter). I have almost paid off my mortgage on a modest 2 bedroom apartment in Manchester. All because I talk cisco and M$ to other geeks who want teaching. Being a geek rox. And if that means I like to read OOTB because i'm a geek then oh well.

Never argue with an idiot. They will drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.
46.
 
Crappy stock tires?
Jun 11, 2002, 08:50
anon@194.71
46.
Crappy stock tires? Jun 11, 2002, 08:50
Jun 11, 2002, 08:50
anon@194.71
 
Oh, please. They aren't so bad that they will send you off the road. Crappy driving on the other hand...
45.
 
Re: About the telephone pole
Jun 11, 2002, 08:34
45.
Re: About the telephone pole Jun 11, 2002, 08:34
Jun 11, 2002, 08:34
 
Now the newer traffic lights have a breakaway connection at the bottom. They'll go flying when you hit them.

Good god! So rather than killing/injuring the 2-3 people in the car, we kill/injure a possible 10-15 people who happen to be in the near vicinity of a damned heavy pole that flies around?

Shit, better hope they never have THEM at my local intersection.

If they had them when we had our crash, we would've sent a traffic light straight into a petrol station, gas pumps AND a fuel truck.

Safety ahoy!

44.
 
Homestar!
Jun 11, 2002, 05:03
44.
Homestar! Jun 11, 2002, 05:03
Jun 11, 2002, 05:03
 
Homestar, Homstar, isn't he great? Homestar, Homstar, hey baby. Homestar, Homstar, Pom Pom too, Homestar Runner we love you!

--RevRaven
43.
 
Re: Typo
Jun 11, 2002, 02:16
anon@216.86
43.
Re: Typo Jun 11, 2002, 02:16
Jun 11, 2002, 02:16
anon@216.86
 
Please take your medication, sir, you're starting to scare the children.
42.
 
Re: Typo
Jun 11, 2002, 01:10
anon@24.69
42.
Re: Typo Jun 11, 2002, 01:10
Jun 11, 2002, 01:10
anon@24.69
 
*YAWNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN*
what a bunch of bloody lame whiners
41.
 
Re: About the telephone pole
Jun 11, 2002, 00:59
41.
Re: About the telephone pole Jun 11, 2002, 00:59
Jun 11, 2002, 00:59
 
Me too O_o

Xombie x0mbie x0mb|e Xombie
40.
 
Re: About the telephone pole
Jun 10, 2002, 23:11
40.
Re: About the telephone pole Jun 10, 2002, 23:11
Jun 10, 2002, 23:11
 
Whenever i watch videos of car chases or jacking, or accidents, I now always think of Grand Theft Auto...

39.
 
Re: About the telephone pole
Jun 10, 2002, 22:13
39.
Re: About the telephone pole Jun 10, 2002, 22:13
Jun 10, 2002, 22:13
 
Perhaps that's in Europe or Canada then. In the U.S. safety is directly proportional to the (amount big companies spend on lobbying against it) - (average insurance payout) / (corporate profits for fiscal year) - (executive golden parachutes and misc. perks)

38.
 
Re: About the telephone pole
Jun 10, 2002, 21:35
38.
Re: About the telephone pole Jun 10, 2002, 21:35
Jun 10, 2002, 21:35
 
Newer Telco poles are designed to snap at bumper height with sufficient (not, as you may assume, 200mph) speed.

Not around here. They still bury them at 1/3 the total length of the pole. They are still those old creosote coated monsters I put in the ground when I was a kid working for MaBell, now Verizon 15 years ago.

Now the newer traffic lights have a breakaway connection at the bottom. They'll go flying when you hit them.

The suprising part of taking out a pole is getting the bill for the new pole and all the overtime it took the communications union to install it. Insurance companies normally won't cover this cost.


Snappy2Stroke

-- Standing above the crowd,
He had a voice that was strong and loud.
We'll miss him.
This comment was edited on Jun 10, 21:39.
-TPFKAS2S
Avatar 10139
37.
 
Re: About the telephone pole
Jun 10, 2002, 21:15
37.
Re: About the telephone pole Jun 10, 2002, 21:15
Jun 10, 2002, 21:15
 
Newer Telco poles are designed to snap at bumper height with sufficient (not, as you may assume, 200mph) speed. Built in safety. It's how someone in the Navy managed to snap one in 2 with a Ninja crotch-rocket, he didn't make it as would be expected, but it's still impressive for a 600 pound bike.

36.
 
Re: Typo
Jun 10, 2002, 20:58
36.
Re: Typo Jun 10, 2002, 20:58
Jun 10, 2002, 20:58
 
I don't understand this trend of people substituting letters for words and numbers for letters.

Think of it as a form of emphasis. Part of the reason why people get angry and send "flame mail" is because it's very easy to misunderstand dry text. Without hearing the writer's tone or inflection, humor can often sound mean. Take this paragraph. Am I being mean & condescending? Dry and pedantic? Or lighthearted? Depends on the person's mood when they read it, plus how well they know my writing style.

"DUDE, where's my car?"
"Dude, WHERE's my car?"
"Dude, where's my CAR?"
"D00d, \/\/h3r3'5 /\/\y c4r?"

I look at it the way my friends talk in real life.
"How do you know so much about swallows?" That's a pretty dry statement until you use Sir Bedevere's voice when you say it. I see "1337 5p34k" as just a form of emphasis combined with street talk. If people "not in the know" don't understand it, then it makes it all the more appealing to speak it.

Whew! That was a long-winded opinion.


Avatar 3753
35.
 
Logo?
Jun 10, 2002, 17:49
anon@64.32
35.
Logo? Jun 10, 2002, 17:49
Jun 10, 2002, 17:49
anon@64.32
 
Isn't the same Blue's News logo from last week?
34.
 
yeouch
Jun 10, 2002, 17:29
anon@63.74
34.
yeouch Jun 10, 2002, 17:29
Jun 10, 2002, 17:29
anon@63.74
 
In my accident my seatbelt definitely saved my life- the pole put a 2 foot deep divot in my honda, a car not known for their lengthy snouts- the gouge was right in front of my legs too. I walked away from that one with minor facial lacerations and a swollen knee.

rist3902
33.
 
Re: About the telephone pole
Jun 10, 2002, 16:50
33.
Re: About the telephone pole Jun 10, 2002, 16:50
Jun 10, 2002, 16:50
 
My '79 Honda Accord tussled with one of those back in high school. It won.

I cut a '78 Dodge Aspen in half, leaving the engine compartment on one side of the pole and the remainder of the car on the other side. I was going about 65 mph and fishtailed into it. The pole is still there in place. Small scratches on the side of it.

I had a friend split a '68 Chevelle roughly down the middle resulting in the death of one of the people in the back seat (no seat belts) and him requiring brain surgery. He actually ripped the first pole into thirds and pulled two other poles almost out of the ground. The police estimated his speed at 115 mph.

That makes for poles two humans zero on my end of the world.

Snappy2Stroke

-- Standing above the crowd,
He had a voice that was strong and loud.
We'll miss him.
-TPFKAS2S
Avatar 10139
32.
 
Police hunt 'criminal' chimp.
Jun 10, 2002, 16:48
32.
Police hunt 'criminal' chimp. Jun 10, 2002, 16:48
Jun 10, 2002, 16:48
 
LOL

"Officers are advising residents not to leave large bowls of bananas in prominent positions and to leave their windows closed."

31.
 
Sigh...
Jun 10, 2002, 16:40
anon@128.229
31.
Sigh... Jun 10, 2002, 16:40
Jun 10, 2002, 16:40
anon@128.229
 
I can only hope that one of these days people will learn to simply ignore the trolls around here. Let them spout their nonsense. The worst thing you can do to them is to ignore them. They *HATE* that. Usually it encourages them to go elsewhere and find a group that is more easily baited. You can't argue with people that have the mentality of a 12-year-old. They are impervious to logic. So just let it go. Ignore them. It's the only solution.
30.
 
About the telephone pole
Jun 10, 2002, 16:36
anon@63.74
30.
About the telephone pole Jun 10, 2002, 16:36
Jun 10, 2002, 16:36
anon@63.74
 
My '79 Honda Accord tussled with one of those back in high school. It won.
29.
 
Re: Typo
Jun 10, 2002, 16:30
29.
Re: Typo Jun 10, 2002, 16:30
Jun 10, 2002, 16:30
 
#25, Oh well gee, i'm sorry, I'm not in high school like you. I'm no longer familiar with the ridiculous terms that pertain to your pusedo-real "life".

Xombie x0mbie x0mb|e Xombie
28.
 
hmm?
Jun 10, 2002, 16:13
indiv
 
28.
hmm? Jun 10, 2002, 16:13
Jun 10, 2002, 16:13
 indiv
 
* REMOVED *

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