Rear view caught on film

NPR News had a great picture of a concept car from Japan that has replaced the rearview mirrors with little cameras that look like flashlights pointing backward. The cameras are always on.

Think about that for a minute. What if your entire past was on film? Everywhere you'd been, everything you had done...caught on tape. Every time you looked in the "rearview" mirror at past relationships, it was permanently burned into film? All the stupid stuff you said and did caught in a timeless stream of conviction for you to proudly show your next date. Bummer.

When I look in my rearview mirror, I sure hope what I was trying to leave behind is getting smaller...not being played on the big screen.

"Cut! Edit! Take 2!"

Thoughts?
mama j

Teens-Do you believe this to be true?

Looking for love?

It’s all about the numbers. A daily chart in the article about car ownership states that “LUXEMBOURG'S roads are jammed with 647 cars for every 1,000 people, the highest ownership rate in the world.”

Pretty scary statistic but not as crazy as the number of teens in our local high school.

With over 2,400 single, available teens in our High School alone, each student has about 1,200 members of the opposite sex to choose from daily. You can pick someone based on hair color, height, intellect, sports activity or even by lunch hour. You will have a hard time exhausting all the options. But if you do, you can always head to the football games and meet another thousand options from the rival school. Sweet!

Or is it? The problems with using school as a dating service are many:
1. Where is their past accident report?
2. What happens when you break up and you have to see them everyday in math class?
3. How do you make after school romantic when you just spent a whole day together in school?

Truth is, it’s so easy and comfortable at school that the effort that should go into getting to know another person is complete eliminated. No need to go to out to lunch, have a hot lunch at school with him. No need to drive over to her house when you can just walk to her locker. Why would you carry her books when books are online?

Dating is supposed to involve some participation on both sides. Let him call you and ask you out, don’t text message him in Brit Lit. How about a homemade Valentine instead of giving him a candy heart that says “U Rock” out of the box as you stand their eating the rest in front of him. That’s SO romantic!

Let me ask you this, if true love is graded on how much effort you put into your school-day-dating, what is your GPA?

Thoughts?
mama j

Filthy Filters

What exactly do air filters accomplish in a car? Well, they keep the junk that's in the atmosphere from getting into your engine. If your filters' dirty, that nasty stuff is getting in there.

I've met people that have that effect on others, especially couples who are dating. Let's say one is pretty scuzzy to be around. After a while, your filter gets clogged and next thing you know, their junk gets past your filter and you start behaving just like them.

Routine maintenance means you check under your own hood once in a while and take a close look at what is getting past the filter...and why.


Time for a replacement?

Thoughts?
mama j

Graduation gift

Every teen's dream is to walk down the isle in their cap and gown after graduation and have their parents hand them the keys to a brand new car.

Most kids don't get a new car - most get a dependable used car if they are really lucky. And if they hit the jackpot, it will be a car that may be used but is have very few miles on it and is in close to perfect condition. Not the one with cigarette burns in the faded fabric and the muffler hanging by a thread.

In a recent car advice column in the Washington Post, an 83 year old grandmother was concerned about the safety of a car she wanted to give to her daughter for graduation. It had barely been driven and had been locked in her garage for several years. The advice was "Go for it!"

If you were a car, describe what kind of "mileage" you would have to disclose on your graduation day. Do you have dings and dents, peeling paint or worse, accidents to confess? What if you were given a car at graduation that matched your reputation? Would you be proud to hold those keys in your hand?

Thoughts?
mama j

New Year's Grieve

Here is your math quiz for the day -

1. What is the likelihood of you crossing physical boundaries with your date when you have had one drink? How about two? Five?

The National Campaign this time of year is to keep teens from drinking and driving. Now, parents open their "finished basements" to boys and girls to have their own new Year's Eve party. Parents feel they are keeping their kids safe from an accident but in reality, teens now have the option of drinking and crossing physical boundaries and don't have to worry about wrecking their car in the process. How nice.

Here is your reality. You cross the lines, drinking and/or having sex and you can guarantee there will be a reason to grieve the next day. Hung-over? Vomit in your hair? Take a pregnancy test and that will lighten the mood. Guys, sit there with her while she waits for the results. They are your results too, remember?

Thoughts?
mama j

Bumby ride

My car has been really giving me grief lately. Granted, it has 144,567 miles on it but I'm sure I have more miles than that and I run just fine!

It's the bumps. The ride just isn't smooth like I expect it to be. Yes, I've changed the shocks, struts, greased up the bearings, checked the axles and even tightened the spare tire below.

It's an aggravating clunk that reminds me of the way some people thud through the house like a ballerina with concrete shoes. These are the little things that happen over time; you begin to notice the irritating habits and quirks that just might make or break your relationship. "Should I just get rid of this old heap?"

Then, on a bad day, you do your research (the way you should have done before you put down a deposit!) and find that you could have had something that went along far more smoothly. Too late. Now you are stuck with a lemon.

So what is the lesson in all this? When you shop for your car, you do the research. The more thorough you are, the less chance you will have of winding up with a car you don't like. The other side of that is that maybe you are a tad bit too picky. The joy of any relationship (whether it be with a car or another person) might just be to recognize that there will be times when the ride isn't smooth in spite of your careful selection but that it is just part of the package and the package is still well worth keeping.

Thoughts?
mama j