Hard to believe that the already high price of air travel (20% is already in taxes) could go up another $14 per flight.
May 27, 2013 — Another airfare increase may be on the way. But this time It has nothing to do with the airlines. The Obama administration has proposed raising the taxes on air travel by about $14 per flight. It’s a move the airlines strongly oppose. The administration says higher taxes are needed to help reduce the deficit, pay for improvements at the nation’s airports and add thousands of new immigration and custom officers to reduce wait times. The airlines think the higher taxes will backfire and hurt the economy. LINK
Although Memorial Day is one where we remember and honor those who have sacrificed their lives for our country and our freedom, this year I’m remembering my mom who died 5 months ago since her grave marker was set in time for Memorial Day. I think spending a little time there with my dad helped with closure for him (and me), although he admits it is challenging to be alone and to feel a purpose. Thankfully he has many friends in Sidney and several activities each week; between yard work this spring, church, retirement gatherings and his card buddies, he is keeping his calendar full. I stop when I can each week (or so) and my brother and his wife bring him dinner regularly. Still I know there is a void.
One of the tasks on my list this Memorial Day is to evaluate the interior of the new to me1982 Mercedes Benz 300D turbodiesel. Although for its age the interior is in good condition, it does need both cleaning and some repair. Unfortunately I don’t have the repair skills enabling me to do this myself, nor know someone in the area, so I’m struggling a bit on this project.
The primary issue is the piping around the material on the door posts and door frame. The headliner has held up pretty well and hopefully can be gently cleaned – same for seats, minus a few cuts. I’d like to re-pad at least the seats at some point, but for now they are ok. I might look into some kind of seat cover in order to protect them further? The Mercedes smell is prevalent (those who have owned a Benz know what I’m talking about), although I’m not sure exactly why? Glues, seat material or the horse hair padding the backrest of the rear seat?
I’m looking forward hearing more from owners/drivers of the new Chevrolet Cruze diesel that will be available in the U.S. It will primarily compete with the Volkswagen TDI diesel line when it comes to price, performance and economy … and according to a USAToday article, may beat them at all three. (I’m withholding judgment)
The Cruze diesel went on sale this month, starting at $25,695 including shipping. Until now, Volkswagen has had the mainstream diesel car market to itself in the U.S. The Cruze diesel is first to challenge it.
Cruze diesel comes only with a six-speed automatic transmission and is lower-price than the VW Jetta diesel with automatic transmission. The VW so-equipped is $26,325.
VW sells a manual transmission version of the Jetta diesel, and it’s less-expensive than the Cruze.
Location: Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge, Townsend, GA, USA Photographer: Mary Ellen Urbanski was at Bluebill Pond when she saw what she thought was an alligator sunning itself on a stump.
On a side note and as an interest to aviation history buffs, the “now” Harris Neck NWR was once a WW2 Army airfield for P-39 and P-40 fighter planes… and according to reports used by the Navy anti-sub blimps for touch and go landings – link.
In keeping with a slow once-over on the new to me 1982 Mercedes Benz 300D Turbodiesel, it looked as if the previous oil change was not a diesel specific oil … meaning that it wasn’t designed for the additional soot carrying and lubricating characteristics often associated with compression ignition engines. Along with needing EIGHT quarts of oil, I changed the filter which is quite substantial compared to previous diesel or gas vehicles I have owned – our ‘87 560SEL Mercedes included.
I was really just anxious just to get the old oil changed and wasn’t necessarily focused on oil brand, etc. – that will come after a conversation with my brother-in-law Gary Gerber who’s in the lubrication business. He sells diesel oils and has all the resources and contacts that will help me find an oil (and maybe a fuel additive) for an old 5-cylinder diesel. (previous posts)
I love reading stories about bright young inventors exploring the world of science and remember with fondness the days of science fair projects. One that recently caught my eye was a scholarship winner from California who worked with super capacitors and is finding ways to improve electrical energy storage devices (as well as charging and discharging them). LINK and video clip below
The future is bright so long as we have a next generation like Eesha Khare.
What Khare has designed and created is a supercapacitor with a “special nanostructure” allowing it to store significantly more energy while charging incredibly quickly. It also remains viable for 10,000 charges compared to the more typical 1,000 charges of today’s batteries.
Her experiment used the supercapacitor to power an LED, but both Khare and Intel believe the same tech can be used to similar effect on a smartphone. There’s also potential uses for car batteries, too, which could make electric cars more viable if their recharge time can be cut to a few minutes or even seconds.
Hmm, perhaps we are alone in having to make significant changes in our health care coverage this year … not to mention paying more for less?
“If you already have health insurance through your job … nothing in this plan will require you or your employer to change your coverage or your doctor. Let me repeat: Nothing in this plan will require you to change your coverage or your doctor.” — spoken by President Obama in Pittsburgh on Sept. 15, 2009.
