Glenn:
Me, post quarantine:
…and that’s a “best-case” scenario.
Author: Kim du Toit
Auction Time: Choice #2
1968 Iso Grifo GL Series I:
For those not familiar with this monster, here’s the background (from Sotheby’s):
The Iso Grifo was created by a powerhouse of Italian engineering talent, including former Ferrari chief engineer and “father of the GTO” Giotto Bizzarrini; designer Giorgetto Giugiaro; and revered coachbuilders Bertone. A muscular gran turismo, its Bertone-built coachwork surrounded an advanced chassis with de Dion rear axle and inboard brakes, a configuration that reduced the unsprung weight compared to a live rear axle. Power was provided by a Chevrolet 327 V-8 of the same specification used in contemporary Corvettes, endowing the Grifo with ample performance and fine reliability. The model remained in production into the early 1970s and saw a total run of 413 examples in all configurations.
Excuse me, but “engineered by Bizarrini, designed by Giugiaro and built by Bertone” just about checks all my boxes. Also, “Chevrolet 327 V-8” means I could get its oil changed at the local Chevy dealer for $50 instead of paying two grand to have the same thing done by Ferrari on one of their engines.
And it’s beautiful. Good grief, I would get a tingle just from seeing it parked in my garage when I went out in the morning — even if I wasn’t going to drive it.
Finally, note that the interior is wonderfully devoid of all the modern electronic shit that confuses, clutters and just subtracts from the MTBF (mean time between failures). And a stick shift… performance, simplicity and elegance all in one package
News Roundup
All the news that’s fit to summarize.
…which worked SO well in the Middle Ages against bubonic plague, didn’t it? And btw, the world was doing just fine until the godless Chinese started spreading yet another pandemic around the place.
…into what?
…meanwhile, in the real world where people have to eat…
…just as long as said undocumented workers can produce a 2019 or 2020 tax return. (FIFY)
…you had me at “Mitt Joins With A Democrat”.
Coronavirus Bulldozes the 2020 Race Out of the Media Spotlight
…cloud, silver lining, etc. etc.
…oh, and Harry: you know that $25 million yer Dad is going to send your way each year? You get to pay U.S. taxes on it, when you eventually do have to get your green card in order to stay here full-time. Welcome to America.
…told ya.
…and only a few dozen million of them were put together or handled by people infected with the virus. Prove me wrong.
And finally:
…and I didn’t see a single one.
Hoofbeats
When the downfall of Western Civilization is chronicled in centuries to come, and historians say of us as we say now of the Roman Empire: “How did such a thing happen?”, I would suggest that they first examine things like this, and the society which gave birth to them:
Belching Beaver Brewery’s ‘Viva La Beaver’ Mexican Chocolate Peanut Butter Stout
It is difficult, even for me, to enunciate just how much Wrong is inside one simple line of text.
Time for some restorative measures to take the taste out of my mouth… and it’s not even 7am CDT.
Auction Time: Choice #1
I promised to reveal my top 5 choices, following on from Saturday’s Auction Time post. Here’s #1, the 1993 Land Rover NAS Defender 110:
I don’t know if I’d ever need to go off-road for any reason, but it’s nice to know that if I did, I’d have one of the best-ever vehicles for the task (with a proper 4-wheel drive, not that “all-wheel” nonsense) at my disposal. (Maybe I’ve been influenced by Doc Russia’s Doom Wagon — here and here — just a little.)
Also, Mr. Free Market has one of these LWB 110s, and when I was Over There we put many mile on it, en route to the various shooting ranges. Apart from the kidney-shattering ride, I loved the experience — and it sure was nice to be able to throw muddy boots and such into the back without any misgivings about damage or dirt to the interior.
So yeah, that’s my #1 choice. Its only serious competitor (in the utility vehicle category, that is) was the FJ Company’s (smaller) Toyota FJ43:
…which would be my backup pick should the Landy’s price get bid out to the stratosphere.
The rest of my choices will follow over the next four days.
Monday Funnies
And so we begin Self-Isolation Week 4:
But let’s not dwell on that, and bring on Teh Funny, the first of which was supplied to me by Reader Old Texan (thankee):
Remember the good old days, when we actually used to go to work?
…and something we all know:
But never fear:
And seeing as we’re wandering down that road:
And one final reminder: remember to maintain social distancing!! Like this:
…and not like this:
