Ghost train to Wildwood

New Amtrak President Joseph Boardman has a large task on his hands. I suggest he starts in Wildwood, Florida. While cruising the backroads north of Orlando we blundered into this small town and came upon the railroad station. There was an Amtrak sign outside:

We drive into the parking lot. We try the door of the ticket office and it is open; the benches are in good shape; the windows could do with a clean but there is nobody about. No timetable is posted. Outside the CSX engines are idling in the sunshine.

Hogtown City Limits VIII

Former hack and Councillor Adam Vaughan has been doing his damndest to throw spanners in the works down at the Toronto City Airport; by blocking the taxi lanes with cement parking curbs. Fortunately Vaughan lost the case at court, presumably at Toronto taxpayer's expense. When will these lefties get the message that trying to block business in Hogtown isn't too sensible as we head into the worst depression in decades.
Toronto's "large imperfect" Mayor, David Miller, and assorted borough-mongers, have been doing their best to get the airport shut down. They have just lost a tax fight with the Toronto Port Authority, which controls the airport, in which a $37 million assessment has been knocked down by arbitrators to $5 million and backdated to 1999. This looks like a deliberate attempt to wreck the viability of the airport by the anti-business cabal.
Porter Airlines, which is rapidly expanding, flies from Toronto City Airport in Bombardier aircraft manufactured at Downsview in Toronto. The airport provides jobs in manufacturing and jobs in service industries, which in turn bring the businessmen to town who are doing the vital deals for the benefit of the city. Time for the Stalinists to recant and build the beautiful bridge to the Islands Airport; playing their part in a much needed revival. Shovels in the ground, gentlemen?
See: Globe and Mail, Mon Feb 23, 2009.

Dark side of the moon

I recently visited the space museum in Florida. Here is what they don't tell you at Cape Canaveral.

Crosley "crackpots"

Pics: Colin Marsh

On a recent visit to the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing in Ocala, Florida I came across these two Crosley cars, the Hotshot sports model on the left and the 1948 station wagon to the right. One of the advantages of the these cars was 50 miles per U.S. gallon. As the sign next to the wagon pointed out: Who cared? Gas was 19.5 cents per gallon. People who drove them were considered "CRACKPOTS." The cars were built from 1939 until 1952.
I am currently reading the book "Crosley" by Rusty McClure with David Stern and Michael A. Banks, [Rusty writing about cars], which is the story of the Crosley company. Oddly enough the bodywork of these cars was used as the basis for dragsters and at the Bonneville salt flats.

Short and Sweet

Ron Stockey sent me this picture from Las Vegas, Nevada. You can rent this Lamborghini by the hour, a Lotus too.

Hogtown giddy limits

'We'll shut you up! We'll nail you down! We will, my little master!
'We think we've all heard quite enough of this your sad disaster!' Edward Lear.

I must say the boroughmongers are supplying some top-class entertainment. Well we haven't heard enough of Adam Gambrione until he has quit the TTC and left politics all together. I suppose you have to say that things are going rather well. First "Large Imperfect" Mayor Miller throws in the towel, after a mauling by his own supporters, then his anointed successor Giambrone gets caught with his pants down and his mayoralty campaign implodes. What chance a lucrative sinecure for Mayor Miller now?
Meanwhile the "Hopey, changey stuff" over at the school board (TDSB) has hit the buffers. After all it is so last year. Wasting money on grandstanding at the Air Canada Centre does not make up for failing to supply basic school text books, computer printers etc., scrubbing graffiti and fixing thermostats so that TDSB are not heating the neighbourhood. Bruce Davis, TDSB big-wig, has shot himself in the foot by issuing a toothless ultimatum to board member Josh Matlow, hitherto unknown, but now the second most talked-about person in the city, after Giamboner that is.

I fought the law

Can't get this song out of my head, written by Sonny Curtis of The Crickets, and still a winner after all these years:

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Bobby Fuller died on July 18, 1966 in Los Angeles in mysterious circumstances. A cold case if ever there was one.

100 mpg anyone?

Wired brings you the entrants for the X-prize. I fancy the Lotus Seven lookalike with the Kubota diesel motor.

Blighty Blanketed

Colin Marsh took this picture near Heathrow Airport, as parts of the UK were covered in a foot of snow. We've had 54 inches of snow so far this year in Toronto. The record is 82 inches for the whole winter which may be exceeded this year.

This picture was taken outside our apartment in Toronto on Saturday. The sign reads "Snow removal within next 48 hours."