Well, all this talk about high gas prices has led one Senator to go “back to the future”, so to speak. Apparently, he’s been urging a return of the 55 MPH speed limit in an effort to spur conservation of fuel and other resources. That used to be the law of the land beginning in the mid 1970s, when yours truly still rode a bike with training wheels.
To be honest, I don’t know if going back to the double nickel will make driving on our roads and highways any easier. Even when I do travel at the posted speed or slightly higher, my overall fuel economy is hardly affected. Then again, I do use cruise control when I’m out on more open roads, such as I-40 or I-85. But at least I’m not like Sammy Hagar in a certain music video that came out before he joined Van Halen. I wouldn’t want to get caught in public wearing that crazy getup he has there. Totally bogus, indeed!
This past holiday weekend has been quite a crazy one, indeed. Aside from the heavy doses of “natural fireworks” that we received in Durham on Friday night came two instances of loss and recovery that played out in a rather unexpected way.
First, I had to help my parents cut down parts of a crape myrtle in their backyard that was badly damaged in Friday night’s storm. One of the three trunks was badly severed to the point where it looked as if the entire tree was split in half. Fortunately, the damage wasn’t extensive enough to render the tree unsalvagable, although we ended up cutting down the severed trunk and several limbs from another part of the tree that were damaged as well. The plan is to bind together what’s left so that the tree itself can continue to bloom and prosper in the years ahead. Which is a stretch in and of itself, given the way the branches grew up and out like a giant mushroom. That crape myrtle may never the same again, especially since it was the last thing my grandmother planted in the backyard before she died many years ago. But at least it still has an opportunity to keep growing and blooming, albeit in a stunted fashion.
Speaking of all things unsalvagable, I accidentally dropped my cellphone into the washing machine Sunday night when I came home to wash my clothes. I didn’t notice that it was even in there until I had finished washing the load. By the time I made this fateful discovery, I tried in vain to revive my cellphone but to no avail. Turns out I had it in there long enough for the water and detergent to short out the components and render the phone unusable. Fortunately, I was able to get a new phone from Alltel at a special rate, since my contract is up for renewal in a couple of weeks. So you could say I really lucked out on that one.
For what it’s worth, at least the weekend wasn’t a total wash. I’d have ended up with a dead tree and a phone with way too many bells-and-whistles that I wouldn’t even know what to do with. Which is more than enough to dampen anyone’s mood (pardon the pun).
In honor of July Fourth, I came across something I hadn’t seen in a long time. Back in the day, TV stations used to sign off for the day once Johnny Carson or The Late Show ended. Usually, these sign-offs were accompanied by the playing of The Star Spangled Banner. One version that sticks in my mind the most is a clip known as “Flag Evolution”, which used to appear frequently throughout the 70s, 80s, and into the 90s. I used to see it quite a bit on many a sleepless night when WRAL in Raleigh used it for its closing segment. The phrase “they sure don’t make them like that anymore” rings true indeed.
Interestingly enough, the voice-over for the sign off is none other than WRAL veteran weatherman Bob DeBardelaben. For those of you too young to remember, he was the funny-looking bald-headed guy who did that segment of the newscast before Greg Fishel came along. Which means I am getting old …
Anyway, however you celebrate, have a happy and safe Fourth of July!
