RE: Ford vs Dodge full size pickups Posted by: earthworm (My Page) on Mon, May 30, 05 at 12:29 """ But the true reason for the Diesel is economy - 20 to 30 % greater MPG""" $5,000 extra is also for a true heavy duty truck engine. But this high price should become more reasonable down the road...Volkswagen charges about $1,000 more - this pays off in 3 to 5 years - and is good for those who drive over 20,000 miles per year.. Gary, as far as the extra oil goes - 2 or 3 times is, IMO, an exaggeration.. 20 to 40% more is closer.. 2005 and still no "light duty" Diesel made in America - a disgrace !! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Another EARTHWORM-ISM ! The main reason for buying a Diesel is "FUEL ECONOMY" ?? Most people I know,myself included, Bought thier trucks with the Diesel option for PULLING POWER,ie TOWING. Fuel economy was even a consideration. And as far as the amount of oil, Gary is pretty close to right on. He IS NOT referring to a V.W. , as you always do, or a Slaab, oops I mean Saab.

Thanks everyone! Annie, I looked at Stanley's site and found many different sizes to choose from. Not sure about shipping outside the US though. Amazon.com won't do it and Amazon.ca only carries things that I don't care for. None of the retail/hardware stores listed on Stanley's homepage are available in Canada, but Wal-Mart. Of course, the Wal-Mart stores here in Canada are very different than the ones in the US. AM, I completely agree with you about the fact that Wal-Mart stores don't carry high quality stuff especially the ones in Canada. Anyway, after searching for an hour I finally found one local store: Home Hardware, that carries Stanley Thermal bottles. They are small, 1-L and 24 Oz are all they have. Maybe the 1-liter will work. Compare to what he eats right now (basically nothing), 1-liter of hot food will seem like a huge meal to him. Mara, I don't believe we have Chick-Fil-A in Canada, at least not in our city. Even if we did DH probably wouldn't bother to go look for Chick-Fil-A for a meal. A chocolate bar from the vending machine and a cup of coffee at the office lobby would be much easier to him. Jessica, I could never get angry with people who try to help me. I will consider the Bento box idea once the weather is less brutal. Definitely would try sushi because DH loves sushi. A salad is good too as long as the box has lot of compartment so the greens, protein, and dressing won't mix until he's ready to eat. Will off to Home Hardware next week to see if I can find the Stanley bottle. They have it listed on a national site doesn't always mean they have it in a certain store. Thanks again, everyone! I will continue to try. Al

Finished The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides. Agree with chisue about the self-absorbed nature of the characters, but that’s precisely the essence of teens and 20+ year year-olds in the throngs of self-doubt and self-discovery, right? Loved — simply loved — the authenticity of grad students and post-grads doing pure research (i.e. anything remotely readily applicable to real life), their life of intellectualism, poverty and blissful impracticality. Before I went into law, I did my doctorate in what was the beginnings of AI at a time when AI wasn’t a household word. With those street--creds (for what they’re worth), I can tell you the book felt like a capsule of those impossibly heady years of high-octane interdisciplinary discussions and debates that lasted all night. Evolutionary biology, yes! Stephen Gould, yes! Theory of meaning, yes, yes, yes!! Anyway, you get the point, the author gets it, it’s the real deal. As chisue points out, the book also bears witness to the sad, slow and painful unraveling of the mind of a manic-depressive. (I recall Katherine Graham’s account of her brilliant husband’s descent into bipolar disorder in her memoir from the late 1990s, with uncannily similar details of a manic-depressive’s behavior.) The writing was quite good too. Overall, a great read if you’re into subjects of this kind. 3.5 to 4 stars.

I happen to like Fords, but would never buy a small one. Detroit simply does not make good small cars - never has and never will. I currently own the mid-size Ford Edge Sport SUV with the twin-turbo V6 and love it, but it is a far better vehicle than the compact Ford Escape. If you plan on driving trips with others + luggage, I would not suggest going down to a subcompact. "Subcompact" is actually a rather elastic category, so I'd suggest aiming for the larger-size end of the subcompact models, or staying with the compact category. Be sure to purchase a cargo cover; theft is a real problem with out-of-state license plates in certain areas. - Subaru is beloved for its proprietary AWD technology, so if you need AWD it's the best option (well, the best affordable one - the best is the Audi Quattro, but it's $$$$$$$). - Toyotas are bulletproof, but the compact SUV RAV4 is their most popular model, and can be very hard to find - especially the hybrid and AWD models. - Kia has become a very "hot" badge lately, but the Hyundai models are identical (Hyundai bought Kia decades ago) and can often be found at bigger discounts. Our BFFs were in the market for a new 2nd car and after driving the Mazda 3 and 5, plus the RAV4, our friends and I were wowed by the subcompact Hyundai Kona. Much quieter, more responsive (with the turbo option), handles very well, and was more comfortable both front and back seats. They weren't concerned with storage space as their other car is a full-size SUV, however. - BE SURE to adequately test the infotainment systems on ALL the cars you like, while you are on the road during the test drive. Kia/Hyundai have a superb voice-activated infotainment system; fast and accurate. My Edge Sport has the 2nd generation of that system, and it's good (Ford leased it from BMW who developed it), but it's now two generations old and the newer 2022> Kia/Hyundai voice systems leave it in the dust, speed-wise. I mention this because Mercedes, Honda, and Toyota have been dinged by pro reviewers for having less-than-ideal systems compared to other mfgs. You really do NOT want to have to work your way through 4 layers of menus just to change the temps inside your car, LOL. - Make certain you know the details for updating the GPS maps on the infotainment system. Some mfgs are a rip-off, charging hundreds of $$$ for upgrading the maps when it's just a software reload (on a single CD, no less). On the Ford it's $70 and in fact you can buy the CD from Amazon and load it yourself. HTH! How exciting it will be for you to have a new car as you start retirement travel!