"The Car of Tomorrow" (1951) / "Mouse In the House" (1947)

This is an old MGM cartoon directed by Tex Avery. Apparently there is another version of this floating around which was shortened slightly in order to be more politically correct. This is the original, which still has the Chinese and Indian cars which were removed. Since I just had an accident, which totaled my car, I'm looking for a good used one. Rather than start with Craig's list, I figured that looking on You Tube might prove to be interesting.

And right below is a very good "Tom and Jerry" cartoon from 1947, titled "A Mouse in the House." It's the same old story you read about in the news all the time - too many people and not enough jobs. This one is directed by the legendary team of William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, who would later bring you Fred and Wilma Flintstone, as well as the town of Bedrock.

The Perfect Moment

The car turned 200,000 miles today. I can't take credit for all of those miles, having bought the vehicle with something like 125,000 miles on it. But in the last 3 and a half years, this $2,600 automobile has ferried me around flawlessly, leaving me stranded only 3 times. Twice was in my driveway, in need of a new battery, and once, in a parking lot when I had the engine off and the music on for a long time. I pulled out my cables and had it jumped before AAA ever got there.

I have calculated the cost of operating my 1996 Mitsubishi Galant, and find it to be really cheap when compared to buying, or leasing, anything else. It gets between 25 to 30 miles per gallon, depending on several factors. It has taken me on trips into the mountains, as well as just going into town while shopping. The total cost per mile to own and operate this car, including gas, is about 28 cents per mile. Gas is by far the most expensive portion of this, averaging about 14-15 cents per mile, based on about $3.78 per gallon and a 27 mile per gallon average. In other words, half of the cost to operate this vehicle for 75,000 miles has been spent on gas!

It's really a perfect moment when you watch the numbers roll over. I tried to take the picture while driving, but it came out a bit blurry, so I took this one after I pulled over. Probably a good idea if I want the car to get to 250,000 miles. Beyond that, well, let's just say that we're taking it 50,000 miles at a time...

Me and My Car

My car is 2 years old today. What I mean by that is that I have had it for 2 years. It's a 1996 Mitsubishi Galant.

They say that people often resemble their pets and I am inclined to agree. As a matter of fact I can even justify extending that viewpoint to include people and their cars. Take me and my car as a case in point.

We are both, as you can see by the picture, primarily gray and a bit battered in places. We both need a little TLC to get us going in the morning. For me it's iced tea, for the car it's radiator fluid and check the oil.

We're both a little tired and I figured out the reason why. I have traveled 3 times around the world with lots of extra miles operating at sea, add to that all of my road trips and commutes and I have logged about 189,000 miles. So has my car.

There are, in both cases, some bows to things modern. I love music and cherish my scan sticks. The car has a USB port. We were made for one another.

When I bought the car I was ill and wondered if I was going to make it. The car was in the same shape. Now here I am 2 years later and both the car and I are stabilized. Don't get me wrong, I'm not ready for the Olympics and the car isn't going to be doing the Daytona 500 anytime soon, but we are comfortable with one another and our individual quirks.

So I guess we're like Roy Rogers and Trigger, sidekicks forever on a sunset trail.