Month: October 2008

70,000 Miles

70,000 Passed the 70,000 mile mark on the way out of work tonight. That makes a yearly average of just under 22,000 miles a year. At the risk of jinxing it I’m pretty happy with the reliability of the car since the warranty. Sure, I’ve been stung by some crazy dealer service prices but not next time (which incidentally is due in 2,300 miles). Got my fingers crossed for at least another 30k before the super charger gives out.

In other news, gas prices keep coming down here as everywhere. Regular is now below $3 almost everywhere in San Diego and premium can be had for less than $3 in a few Arcos. I am noticing that the traditional 20c gap between regular and premium seems to be widening. On Monday in El Centro, Costco was selling regular for $2.86 but premium was $3.19. Hmmm.

Got a bit of a bee in my bonnet right now about buying a VW camper van/vanagon. I’d love to get a classic to run around the desert in for the cool winter months. Been looking at ebay but most everything is too expensive or just too run down for me to even start. I did see something today that was located in San Diego but it was a 1980 and the look really isn’t what I want, not the classic shape. Only looking to spend 2-3K max so probably will end up just idle browsing.

Not digging the new theme, will be finding something different soon.

Future Listening Choices

Some time in the next few weeks we’ll see the official list of who stays and who goes in the Sirius/XM merger lineup. I’ve been a big fan of XM in the past and I wonder if I will like the results. My favourite channel, UPop, was taken off the air for a long time for no reason; it’s currently back but it’s owner, Worldspace, filed for Chapter 11 this week so I’m already resigned to losing it.

Since then I’ve been listening to XM Cafe, The Loft, Fred, Top 20 and some random button pushing to find something I like. The Loft is not bad and Fred is pretty good when they stick to the alternative music and not stray into rock. But I’m not feeling the love for XM that I used to.

Today I read over at DBSTalk.com that a great many program directors have been let go suggesting that a lot of XM channels are being axed, including many that I like.

So right now I’m thinking that I may return to CDs and the iPod in the MINI for my future commutes. I’m not fond of the Sirius stations, though if BBC Radio 1 is offered, that might be enough for me to keep being a customer.