Fulcrum525, I Invaded Litchfield County.
 

Lets just say that I went for a bit of a drive today....however I'll start off by making this diesel relevant.

If after coasting downhill for a period of time is it a bad thing that the usual diesel knock gets a little bit louder but then quiets down once I get on the throttle?


As many here know I am am now functionally unemployed which is the single most embarrassing thing in the world. (To me at least) However while I search for a new job I don't want the family finding out that I'm not working so for the past few days I've had to force myself out of the house to find things to do until my brother leaves the house a little after noon time. Today I decided to go for a little drive to Southbury just to try out the Starbucks that's there. It is one that I've never been to so I wanted to see what its like and how it compared to the two best that I've ever found in CT (New Milfords and Simsburys)

9:30 AM: Leaving Newington going to Southbury

I went to said cafe and I found it to be full of chatting people. It was a bit crowded but overall still a pleasant atmosphere. However I disliked the layout of the store so I would have to rate it as average. While it would have been nice to just sit and drink there were only a handful of tables open and I didn't want to take space away from the usual customers. So instead I sat in the car and drank my coffee as the rain came down. Sitting there looking at the clock I knew that I would have kill a few more hours. Being on the boarder of my favorite little corner of CT I deciding to point the car north and just drive a few roads that I've never been on before (From that point forward it turned into quite the journey) While driving on some of the hilly roads that predominate the area I did get one surprise. One of my sunroof drains must still be clogged as I still get a few drips of water coming down the drivers side pillar during heavy rain, but today it was minimal to nonexistant. I found that if I drove straight and level it would leak but with so many dips and climbs I had no leaking.:) I managed to get myself a little 'lost' in this area but that was alright because I was seeing new things.

Approx 11:00 AM New Milford

I left the house with under 1/4 tank of fuel so I stopped in New Milford for a quick top off after the reserve light had been on for 25 or so miles. The station was a Citgo that had a terrible diesel pump that looked like it was leaking diesel everywhere. Enjoying my drive and not wanting to go home yet I pointed the car north again and thought about going to Kent to get what can only be described as the best hot chocolate I've ever had in my entire life. Instead of taking the normal Route 7 north I veered off it and drove through New Fairfield and Sherman for the first time. It was a nice little area. Sadly when I got to Kent I found that my destination was closed on Tuesdays at this time of year. Undaunted I swapped some CDs out of the changer and decided to drive to Sharon to visit another little restaurant that I had been to on my very first trip through Sharon. Being in exploration mode however I again avoided route 7 and went up a quiet little road that I think the locals would prefer 'outsiders' not know about. I knew about the route and wanted to save it for a sunny day but I figured "why not" and went for it....I was not disappointed. Being in the hills on foggy/cloudy days can be just as pleasing as gorgeous summer afternoons.

Approx 1:00 PM Sharon CT

The drive through the valley briefly took me through the land of evil but the views were truly spectacular. Upon arrival in the main town I found that the little cafe was either no more or was undergoing renovations...it was hard to tell. Being a bit disappointed I continued my drive but eventually decided that it was a good time to head home and check the days online job postings.....I should have kept driving as very few relevant openings were posted today. I stopped once on route 4 to admire a small brook but other then that it was a straight shot back to Newington. Irony nearly kicked when I got home, 160+ miles driving on relatively slick surfaces on unknown roads was completely uneventful. I pulled my car into the garage, put it into park and then watched in terror as the garage door came crashing down behind me.....just a few seconds sooner and my rear window would have been smashed or my trunk lid dented :eek: I got home at 2:30, 5 hours after I left and I wasn't the least bit tired :cool:


#1 I love my car.
#2 Michelin MXV4's are really amazing tires. My tires didn't slip once all day long, even on a few gravel areas/steep inclines. (The same cannot be said for the tires that were replaced by the Michelins)
#3 Meguiars NXT wax-I'm sold on this stuff, I put it on in April and the rain this year has been relentless. It still doing its job as good as the day that I applied it.
#4 I love my car
#5 The one thing I wish I had was my new CD changer but luck hasn't been on my side lately....

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/car-audio-multimedia/264073-becker-980-cd-changer-repair-help-pictures.html

Thankyou for reading, here was the route that I took. Chauffeur driven scenic tours of CT $25 for anyone who is interested :D

http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/2972/routecb.jpg

wooo Wolcott!

I think the garage door is trying to tell you something.. :D

Yes, replace the damn springs or else the consequences will be emotionally and materially expensive. ;)

That's a great drive! We take one fairly close every year with the kids to do some leaf peeping and occasionally repeat a similar track out through the Northeast corner.

Sorry this is all coming at your expense but I did get a good chuckle out of it. :)

Hmmm...$25...and you've got room for 4 kids in that thing.:D:D


Or you could do like I did and just leave the door open all the time. :o It is on my list of things to do before the winter when the funds allow. I hate having parts of paychecks spent before I even get them, especially on items as unexciting as garage doors and springs.

Yep, easily room for 4 and you know it. Maybe it should be $25 a head then :cool:


Trust me if I had known the days jobs postings would have been as dismal as there were I would have kept going up into Salisbury and then along 44 all the way down into Simsbury and Farmington, then route 10 and finally home.

Nice ride, I like taking them up to VT in the winter to visit Orvis.


NXT is the best wax I have been using it on everything for years and its great. I last waxed my truck in July and its still pretty good. Might throw another fast coat on before winter sets in if I can walk.

I'm debating if I should just get a bit lazy this winter and just do a really good cleaning and then apply wax to wax instead of going through the whole "clean, clean, clay, polish, wax" routine....its getting cold out....

I'm in the lazy mode, I only do more than wax if I absolutly have to. My truck for example needs a good paint cleaner taken to it badly. Thats this springs job, but I probably won't do it again for years.

Ohhhhhhh, now you're going to get nit-picky. :)

I waxed one of our cars once. 5 or 6 years ago, I think.

Your like the rest of my family, not big on cosmetic car care.

Well don't forget that if our little deal works out I'll be waxing all of your cars. ;)

Your family doesn't even know you're unemployed? Ooook then.

That's called "keeping up appearances". :D

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/200...et_468x341.jpg

Funny show that I have seen a few times. I just started watching this one and I'm enjoying it greatly thus far :)

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/2592/32274391.jpg