Blinky Lights and Shiny Objects

A few posts ago I wrote about how the lever to open the trunk of my car had stopped working. I was on the phone with the service department today to set up my 30k appointment, and mentioned that I was having this problem. The service manager that I was talking to, Steve, immediately suggested that the lock-out lever may have been accidentally set. He described the lever's location so I could check it myself. (The lever happens to be unmarked and Not Obvious.) Sure enough, that fixed the problem immediately. Kudos to Steve at Bigger's Mazda for sharing information for free over the phone - not normal for a car dealership service technician! I wrote out a list of nifty links to send to a friend, and figured I may as well share them with you all as well: This site integrates Google Maps so you can figure out exactly how long a walk you took was: http://www.usatf.org/routes// This site was written by "some guy". I'm not sure how medically accurate his advice is...

I would like to share the play I wrote last weekend with anyone who would like to read it. I think it turned out very well, especially given the time constraints and this is the first time I've ever done anything like that. BUT I'm worried that if I put it out on Google Docs with the setting where ANYONE can read it, some kid will find it and rip it off for their creative writing assignment. Paranoid, I know, but I'm proud of the multi-level symbolism I was able to create around a train whistle, and I don't like the idea of some cheatwad getting extra credit for it! Okay, that sounds really far-fetched when I write it out like that. Here's the link: (link removed 3/31/15) I may take it down in a month or so, to reduce its weblife. Warning: not entirely work safe. Read it yourself before deciding who else to show it to! I'd love to hear comments. (I disabled the capthca-thingy, but comment moderation is still enabled.) (And if you knew me in college or b...

My Mazda3 sedan reached 30,000 miles on the way home from work today. In the near three years I've had it, I've had only two things you might be able to classify as problems. First, they did a recall to fix an airbag sensor that would crack and let moisture in. Second, I've recently realized that the lever inside the car that pops the trunk has stopped working. I'll get that fixed under warranty at its 30k checkup. So I have been more than pleased with the quality and design of the entire car. I'm starting to see more of them on the road, too, so others must be happy as well. The payments will be over around this time next year, and then I hope to drive it for many years after that. I spent more time and energy researching which car to buy than which house to buy - and while we had to compromise on the house (1.5 bathrooms instead of 2) I don't feel I had to compromise on the car at all. Thank you, Mazda, for designing and building a small car that isn...