Thing to [never] Do In Your New VW Rabbit

Yes, I bought one of the covetted 2006 VW Rabbits. The last black two-door in the area. It begs to be driven. It begs to be driven FAST. And that 6-speed Tiptronic transmission, AWESOME. Oh, if you're wondering what happened to the last new car I bought, let's just say that I got sick of it not having anti-lock brakes. Now, I just didn't just go out and buy this car. I did some research and even test drove a Mini Cooper first. But the Rabbit wins. Hands down. Better performance, more comfortable ride, and thousands less than a comparably equipped Mini Cooper.
The sticker price of a comparable Mini is $4,000 more than what I paid in total for my Rabbit. Then add in tax, licensing, destination charges, and the fact that the dealership was upfront in saying that they mark UP the Minis about $1,000 and will not negotiate a price, and the Rabbit actually cost over $8,000 less!
So anywho, here are some helpful tips from me to you on Things That You Should Never Do in a 2006 Volkswagen Rabbit, should you purchase one.

• Never stomp on it "just to see how fast it will really go"
  
• Never race Mini Coopers (their drivers really hate losing)
• Never punch it off the line
  
• Never play "auto tag" with new Mustangs
  
• Never throw it into Sport Mode, downshift, and drop the hammer on some punk who's going only 70 in the fast lane.
  
• Never tell your wife how fun it is to drive.
  

Just so we're clear, the new Rabbit has an inline 5-cylinder engine that cranks out 150 horsepower and 170 ft/lbs of torque. While it is about 500 pounds heavier than the Mini Cooper, the extra 30% more horsepower and 55% more torque makes up for it... and then some. Plus, the extra weight makes for a much more comfortable ride and aids in handling. Oh, and I'm not comparing the Rabbit to the Mini Cooper S. Let's be fair here. You'd compare the GTI to the Mini Cooper S.

...the Rabbit is a damn fun car.

House Democrats Win Hugs From Me.

So that whole plan by the Defense Department (which was fully back by the White House) to CHARGE U.S. citizens to flee a war-torn Lebanon, was finally scrapped.

I would like to give House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi a big hug for this statement:

"A nation that can provide more than $300 billion for a war in Iraq can provide the money to get its people out of Lebanon," Pelosi said on CNN.

Yeah, hugs to the Democrats!

No, not a Martini.

I added the "Hawthorn" to my list of approved Martini-type beverages while the wifey and I were in Monterey two weeks ago.

Before I get into it, I'll start by saying that, by and large, I completely and wholeheartedly agree with Joseph Dobrian:

While it is true that you can follow [a martini] recipe, substituting vodka for gin, and produce a liquid that some people will drink, believe me, it is not a martini, not no way, not no how. It is a concoction suitable only for those who have no soul and less guts.

I have nothing against vodka, but a martini is made with gin. You want vodka and dry vermouth? Order a kangaroo.

I have, and ever shall be, a proponent of the Gibson. But, I now add to the short list of acceptable libations other than the traditional Gibson: the Chicago Martini (aka the Collection Martini) and the Hawthorn. The Hawthorn is 2 parts vodka, one part gin. (NO, it is NOT a Hawthorn Martini, it is a Hawthorn.) When made with Grey Goose & Bombay Sapphire, and served on the rocks, it's great. But it really needs to be ice cold or on the rocks. When it starts to warm up... *shudder* rubbing alcohol comes to mind. This is one clear beverage that it is acceptable to shake.

But it still annoys me that I have to explain to bartenders what a Gibson is. So far, only ONE restaurant/bar I've ever been to hasn't questioned me on the Gibson. Hrmph. "Gibson, wet" is a lot easier to say than "A gin martini with 3 onions, 1/2 ounce of vermouth".

When we were in Washington DC at the end of May, I ordered a Gibson at the bar in our hotel (Hotel Sofitel) and the gal asked, "Bombay Sapphire?"

I nearly fainted.

And it was PERFECT. We wound up hitting the bar nearly every night we were there because the Gibson was a source of instant and pure joy!

The Day the Internet Was pwn3d.

By now, you've likely heard of "Eon8", the ambiguous/mysterious website.

With oh so scary words like "deployment" and "tracking" and map of the world with little points marked on high-population areas, it sure didn't folks long to get all paranoid about it.

My pals over at Unfiction had several items sorted out by decoding some of the "information" that was posted on Eon8. My guess of viral marketing was incorrect. (The Unfiction guys are GOOD. I helped out in the early states of "Perplex City" but just a little.)

Eon8, in a nutshell, was all nothing. Just a silly social experiment.

However, the crew responsible for Eon8 have made some rather suspect conclusions/deductions based on the responses of web denizens. They were trying to guage reaction based on the fact that so little was known about Eon8... but at the same time, they employed every single stereotypically/psychologically "scary" method employable on the web.
- A blank black background
- White text only
- A black & white map of the world with "sites" marked
- A "deployment" counter (counting down, not up)
- Repetitive use of codes and "encoded" information

Sorry for the over use of quotes in there, but if you've read up on Eon8, you'll understand the use.

Anywho, I'd call their experiment a failure from the outset. The site was NOT ambiguous. The folks who set it all up were TRYING to get people to react to it. You can't guage reaction when you're actively eliciting a reaction.

If they had made the same site instead using:
- A white background
- Blue text
- A color map of the Earth
- A clock (not a countdown timer)
- Ambiguous/nonsensical statements (not using any sort of code)

...their little experiment would have gone completely unnoticed.

Yeah sure guys, the joke is on us. But guess what, you still failed.