CD Revival Revisited

I am continuing to listen to my CD collection that I started back in August. I am about half way through my collection, and I have found that the mega stars of their time like Janet Jackson, U2, Madonna, James Taylor, Dave Matthews and Sting have lasting value and what I am calling I-pod worthy. In other words I would download the entire album into the I-pod. Most other albums have one or two songs worthy of saving and some leave me scratching my head wondering what I was thinking in purchasing. I am planning a music playoff plan when I complete revisiting the entire collection sometime early in 2011. I will continue updating my supposedly interesting analysis of my music collection.

100,000

I heard a statistic yesterday that the average American gets a new car every four and a half years. It was a timely stat for me because this December 31 my Aztec will be in my possession as a new car for eight years, and on Wednesday it rolled through 100,000 miles. While I did sink some considerable money into it between miles 75,000 to 90,000 miles, it still seems like a well worn "new" car to me. I can't imagine trading it in for a new car. I know the crazy sounds and scrapes that it makes; I know the handling of it to the detail. In fact, I must keep my hands in the 10 to 2 zone on the steering wheel because it is worn smooth. In many ways, it is as much me as it is my car.
This is the second car I have taken to post 100 thousand miles. It is unimaginable to me why we as a society need to trade cars every four and a half years. I enjoy thinking about the different roads the Aztec has been on and where it has taken me. Besides covering most most roads in the central Illinois region to Chicago and the Quad-Cities, the Aztec has taken me to Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Alabama. It has helped me move three times; it has carried my bikes and bike trailer to multiple trail heads, hiking paths, camp grounds, and adventure. It has suffered through listening to Cubs wins and losses on 720AM; it has cheered on Notre Dame and the Bears as well as a few Bulls games on long drives. It has suffered through my eclectic music collections. It brought my daughter home from the hospital after she was born. It has been my home base after numerous races.
I have never gotten a car to 200,000, but maybe this is the one. Let you know in about 8 years.

The Only Road North recommendation

I finished reading a terrific novel today, The Only Road North by Erik Mirandette. It is a book for all of us with adventure in our souls.  It is not just a simple book about adventure for the sake of adventure, it links to life meanings and spirituality. The author, Erik Mirandette, does not dwell too long on events; he describes them simply and effectively probably as he experienced them himself.  The story is about a trip he takes with a small group from South Africa to Egypt.  The mode of transportation is on motorbikes.  As one can imagine, this story includes beauty, danger, and some pretty remote and lonely locations.  He concludes with meaningful observations regarding the trip and the tragedy that occurs. I highly recommend this book as it displays culture, friendship, and adventure on the highest level.