trinacriabob

TWICE. That's it, thank you very much. Once at the end of college. Some of us went down to the Marina del Rey to drink. I probably had 3 or 4 Greyhounds. We drove back to campus and I aired out a bit. I then drove the 7 miles home. I did not like the sensation. The second time was in grad school. Some people who lived near me and in my program were celebrating job offers. I went with them. The Long Island Iced Teas kept coming. I remember laying in bed the whole next day (Saturday), not even knowing how I got out of my clothes. I felt very depressed more than anything else, wondering why people drink in the first place. Overall, idiotic experiences. I can honestly say I have never purchased more than 20 to 30 alcoholic drinks in my entire life and I think I have purchased red wine 3 x to keep at home to fight cholesterol( )...and I takes me forever to get through a bottle. Seriously, when a Coke is 1.75, a beer is 4.00 to 5.00, and wine/mixed drinks are even more than that, why would I support that industry? Remember, this is from someone who clips coupons!

I've been to Pensacola FL many times. I like to go in the shoulder season and mid-week when it's still warm and not too crowded. I may be getting a free ticket on Southwest. Since I have no other vices and I'm cheap, this is the only area where I spend money. I'm looking at their route map and it looks like I could get fairly close to South Padre Island, TX. Not at ALL interested in going when college students are around, so I will pick another quieter time. After all, it's for R & R. Anybody been? Is it nice? Clean, warm water? Good food? What's there to do?

OMG. Out of control! I'll have to apply that to other irritating abbreviations that come my way!

Hey, Lauren, do you speak with a TWANG? I mean, since you moved NORTH....to the SOUTH?

frump

I hate all you guys who live in the East! It is bone dry out here (but then, that means no humidity). We get NO fall foliage, though, if you drive up into the Sierras, you will get some stands of aspen that turn to yellow and orange for a very short "window of time" and, set amidst the Ponderosa pines (evergreen), it is quite nice. Seriously, I love the vegetation you guys have. If we could freeze New England and Eastern Canada to remain in two modes (summer and fall colors), I'd be relocating in a hurry!

RUN

killer tomatoes

Promise.

Pantho, awesome! The complete phrase I learned it in (the second sentence I learned in German): "Der Italianer sind lustig und verruckt."

I can't believe I'm gonna post this... I respect Ocnblu for being Ocnblu What a character! They broke the mold!

Drive what you like (even non-GM) and don't apologize.Now, if it's a Subaru, we'll have to talk (where's the barf icon when you need it?)

Quadruplets baking in the oven? Tonya Harding's Dad? White Trash poster boy? "Good Gawd"!

Z, buddy! My kind of thread. One fine Cali. day, I was driving to the Southland. And I took the route from Bakersfield (fuggedaboutit) and on through Mojave (Mow-haw-vee, not Mow-jayv). At any rate, I am driving through town and there is an AFB near there. Behind the strip of Dennys, MickeyDs and Dunkin Donuts, there were mothballed 747s peering their heads (humps). YYYYIIIIIPPPPEEEEEE!!!! I found the next turn lane and drove all around the fence, looking at these lonely beasts. They looked deserted (no pun) and a little dowdy. Nacelles: yes, Engines: no. What a way to end a career -- having rattlesnakes encircling your feet (landing gear).

yours

Flybry, is there an Intrigue in your future? I'm coming down to vacation in So. Fla. in late May/early June. You gonna drive me around in it?

Neither, Flybry. Check out picture 1. The light metallic colors are the most flattering IMO. I love that blue you see combined with the taupe interior. Love it. I'm not one for dark colors, largely because of the safety issue at night. I'd take white over black, though, in reference to your question. One nice color that was flattering for the car was the metallic forest green, but I wouldn't choose it. Sidebar: the darn car looks WAY better WITHOUT its spoiler. This way, that gently and tastefully curved lip/crease in the rear is accentuated.

Comment 1:You don't know how painful it is for us dyed-in-the-wool WOPs to be living on the West Coast! We don't have dealerships with names like that! I'm busting up. Comment 2: Pantho - I agree. I too would pick Intrigue over those vehicles. In a heartbeat.

Caddycruiser makes some good points, almost all of which, IMHO, are accurate.The press liked the Intrigue because it straddled the middle ground between the then Regal and the still with us Grand Prix...meaning it hit the "sweet spot" in balancing nimble, athletic handling and a supple, controlled ride. I absolutely loved the ones I've rented for achieving that balance. You are right. Going into the LaCrosse is very Buick. The 3800 is a tad quieter than it has been in the past, but not to the extent that they rave about. Perhaps it is the 3.6 that gets you that level of quiet. I only know 400 miles of driving a 3800 equipped LaCrosse. I will say that the feel at idle is improved. As far as handling goes, the LaCrosse is, again, still a Buick. There is some ponderous wallowing over highway undulations and some body lean if pushed too hard. This would be the case when the suspension is in CX and CXL form. The Grand Prix is an adult's go kart. It's a fun car to drive and inspires more confidence when pushed harder. However, the Intrigue does not approach that level of sportiness as Caddycruiser indicates, though it comes damn close. The Intrigue still retains a little bit more Oldsmobile in its personality than leaning all the way over on the continuum to being Pontiac-like. That's what sold the Intrigue and reeled in different consumers. A sporty sedan with great road manners combined with a luxurious enough driving experience, all for a very reasonable price. I wish the LaCrosse could be more like the Intrigue. Maybe "Ninety Eight Regency" was right, if I recall a post of his doubting the ability of the LaCrosse to step in as a "surrogate" Intrigue (on the old board).

I think that the 350 was well represented by having Chevy and Olds versions around, with me preferring the latter. The 307 was an Olds design (305 belonged to Chevrolet and 301 to Pontiac) The place to be would be to have those great interiors (a little toned down, though) with today's improvements in hp, torque, efficiency and longevity.

verruckt, with 2 little dots on top of the u

I feel bad about what happened but am relieved that you are ok. I have never lost a car in that manner, but I can empathize as to what that would be like. About the depression: it is TOTALLY normal to feel that way after things come in doses or waves that don't make sense. If it continues, seek help from your doctor, even if it involves medications. What you will see is that the situation will rectify itself. (Every depressive bout I have ever had ends). As smart and together as you are, there are many things that will propel you upward despite the loss of a car, though the trauma and the physical discomfort are transitional and have to be reckoned with.

recipes

The color of the brick threw me. Those are definitely Midwestern. Some affluent person outside of Cham-bana or Chicago's North Shore would do a house like that! But I could see (Upper) Saddle River, NJ. As far as Denver goes, in Ken Caryl Ranch and such where I've rummaged around looking at houses, they used the redder brick and stayed away from the excesses in wood trim (Denver tends to align itself a little more with the Intermountain West in terms of house styles, IMHO). Still, if that sled were powered by a garden variety 350 V8 or even that short-lived 4.1 Buick V6, it would be nice to have.