John Warren's Blog

If you're looking to get out of the house with your family this weekend, but at the same time stay out of the cold, head to the DECC for Fun-Fest. It's a taste of summer, just when cabin fever may be setting in. Activities and fun include petting animals from the Lake Superior Zoo, demonstrations from the Duluth PD's Tactical Response Unit, sports demonstrations and a whole lot more.  There's even a full carnival in South Pioneer Hall. A great way to escape the winter doldrums for awhile...Saturday and Sunday February 27&28. 

Mother Nature is teasing us! Mid 30s for days and now night time lows just above zero. At least we missed most of the snow. I can't wait to awaken the covered sleeping giant pictured. If the roads stay dry, I just may have to bundle up and do it!

Winter still has a way to go, and it got me thinking about vehicles that have gotten me through the snow and cold over the years. It really wasn't that long ago that 4 wheel drive was not that common. In 1966, the Olds Toronado and Cadillac El Dorado introduced front-wheel drive. Considered experimental by some, front-wheel drive was not really accepted by the motoring public until the early 80s. All-wheel drive? Unheard of!

Over the years, I've had a few winter beaters that I'd drive when storing nicer cars to protect them from the ravages of salt and sand. All rear-wheel drives clunkers. It seems hard to believe that there was a time you could buy a car for $50-$100 that would actually get you through the winter. But it was possible. In Ely, I paid 35 bucks to an old guy for a '59 Chevy station wagon. Yeah, it was dented, rusted and ugly. The "eyebrows" above the headlights were rusted through, but he patched 'em up. Did he use plastic body filler? Bondo? Nope. Cement! But it started every morning without benefit of garage or tank heater, and it made it up the hill to the radio station. It even got stolen once. In the middle of the night, I  heard it start up (rusted exhaust). I looked out the window just in time to see it fish-tailing down Camp Street in the snow. Couple of days later, I got a call from the nearby town of Winton. The car had been found.  I told the officer I'd pick it up later that day. There was a second of silence on the line..."Uh, you really want it back?" Heck Yeah! I drove it until April when it started to smoke bad. Ended up giving it to a guy who wanted to enter a demolition derby.

I've had a '65 Galaxie, '62 Fairlane, '66 VW, '55 Pontiac among others. All of them performed valiantly and never left me stranded. And they were fun. A new dent? So what. Parking lot door dings? Who'd notice. Rust? Already there. I never thought I'd have to worry about one getting stolen, but.....

Simpler cars that you could keep running with whatever you happened to have lying around. Try that today.

Valentine's Day can for me can be stressful, and not just because I'm trying to find the perfect gift or trying to come up with something original. No, it's because this time of year I hear people talking about "Valentimes" Day, with an "M" rather than an "N".  It's just one of those things that grate on me a little bit. I hold my tongue and don't correct them. What's the point. I know it's no big thing, but I have to wonder if these people ever even looked at the February 14th cards, or listened to the jewelry/floral/restaurant ads that appear arround the first of February. Oh well. I'm not going to let it ruin the "holiday". Happy Valentime's Day!

I'm not a huge fan of award shows, but I do watch some of the Oscars and I did watch most of the Grammy Awards on Sunday, mostly because my wife, Connie, wanted to see it. While watching the show and the subsequent entertainment-type shows and websites for the next couple of days after the show, it hit me: When did the Grammy Award Show become a show about everything BUT music?

Sure, there were artists performances, but they seemed more intent on going over the top in execution. The songs themselves took a back seat. And what's with all the lip-synching? I guess it's hard to sing when you're swinging from the rafters in a bed sheet like Pink did, or constantly running up and down stairs among robot-like soldiers like Beyonce did.

But the biggest focus on the Grammys seemed to be fashion. The red carpet, best and worst dressed; the whole "Who are you wearing?" thing. Fashion is a fleeting thing, and some songs become classics and endure for decades. Is the focus of the show misdirected? Instead of the usual awards, maybe the show should give Grammys for Best Dressed, Best Lip-Synching and Best Pyro-Technics During a Performance. That's pretty much what the show means now.

I see that Renee, our web guru has changed the picture above my blog to a left-handed person. This shows me two things: 1) She pays attention to detail, and 2)Someone actually read the previous blog! Thanks, Renee!