Wayne’s World Movie Icon – “The Spindle” - is Now Just a Memory

By Maureen Condon

“The Spindle”

If you recall the wacky “Wayne’s World” movie from 1992, you’ll likely remember “The Spindle” – cars on a skewer.

The Spindle was created and installed in 1989 by Dustin Shuler at Cermak Plaza, in Berwin, IL. This work of art was commissioned by the Cermak Plaza shopping center owner, David Bermant, who donated his BMW to be placed second from the top of the sculpture.


When it was demolished, after much local protest, it was placed on E-Bay, with a minimum $50,000 bid. But nobody wanted it. I can’t understand why. I like it! It’s eye-catching.


The 1967 Volkswagen Beetle at the top and the 1976 BMW immediately below it were saved. Sadly, the other cars and the spindle itself were put in a dumpster.


I guess some art just isn’t meant to be immortal. Darn!

When is a Child Car Safety Seat No Longer Safe?

Your child’s car safety seat may look perfectly fine. But looks can be deceiving.

Car safety seats for infants and young children have expiration dates. When the expiration date is reached – usually around 6 years after it was manufactured -- the seat is no longer safe to use and it should be disposed of, or even better, recycled for its plastic parts.

The expiration date is stamped on the seat, usually on the bottom. Car seats and booster seats have these expiration dates because the materials degrade over time from sun and heat exposure -- weakening their effectiveness in a crash.

Another caution: If you have a hand-me-down child car seat you need to know not only the expiration date, but also the history of the seat. Has it been in an accident? If so, its materials or structure may be compromised and it should not be used again, even though it may look fine.

Parents should exercise caution when obtaining a child car safety seat from any source, other than the original manufacturer or retailer.

Charities and consignment or thrift shops have no way of screening the seats they offer the public to know if they have expired or been in an accident. Anyone picking up a car seat that has been placed with a charity, consignment or thrift shop, or left at the curb for disposal, may be unknowingly putting their child at risk.

The best way to make sure that no one unwittingly uses your discarded child car safety seat is to dismantle it – cut off the straps – and drop it off at a recycling facility. 90% of car seat material can be recycled.

Recycling programs for car seats are just beginning to appear nationwide. Contact your local recycling program to ask if a safety seat can be recycled where you live.

Consider starting a child safety seat recycling program if one is not already available in your community. To start a recycling program, you will need volunteers to collect and disassemble the seats, a collection and storage location, and a buyer for the recyclable components.

If you cannot find a way to recycle your child’s old car seat, cut off the straps and disassemble the seat before discarding it so that the seat cannot be recovered from the trash and used. Write "DO NOT USE" in permanent marker on the seat frame, and dispose of the frame separately from the straps and padding.

For more information on this topic, visit:

http://www.ehow.com/how_5821607_recycle-child-passenger-safety-seats.html

http://www.brighthub.com/environment/green-living/articles/30766.aspx

It's High Tech Tailgating Season!

By Maureen Condon

The Latest Tools for High Tech Tailgating
Photo Courtesy of "Switched"


Some experts estimate that as many as 50 million Americans participate in tailgating annually.


Are you one of them? Need to update your tailgating style to reflect the high tech world we live in?


If you’re in the market for a new vehicle to take tailgating, visit your Yark Fiat in Toledo Ohio and check out the latest models. Here’s what to look for:

• A power sliding rear roof for easy access and open-air tailgating.
• An all-weather cargo area with a quick drain system for ice and beverage storage.

• Hybrids that feature 120-volt AC power outlets that let you power heaters, refrigerators and several big screen TVs on a built in generating station.

• Other vehicles that accommodate:

o Antennas to downlink satellite TV so you can catch the pre-game show.
o HDTV TVs and Xbox Video Game Systems that pack easily and plug into your vehicles' power source.

And, here are some ‘high tech’ tailgating accessories to consider:


The Hotspot Notebook Portable Grill is a portable charcoal grill that folds down like a notebook computer, about one inch thick and extremely portable. It has 192 square inches of cooking space on a stainless steel grate.


The Koolatron Compact Cooler http://koolatrononline.stores.yahoo.net/koolatron-p20-compact-12v-coolers.html gives you a place to put those cold ones -- a veritable refrigerator for your car. It was designed to fit in a tight place like between seats or behind one of them. It plugs into your cigarette lighter and keeps food 40 degrees cooler than the outside temperature.

Compact Coolers, like this one from Koolatron, are Space Savers

The compact Freedom Tray http://www.freedomtray.com/ that grips a variety of objects and collapses into a one inch thick for easy storage.

Want more? Here’s a link to 15 far out accessories.

In case you’re curious, here are some statistics on your fellow tailgaters from an informal survey of 5,000 tailgaters by www.tailgating.com:


• 60% of tailgaters surveyed are between the ages of 25 and 44.
• 79% are men.

• 58% have a college degree and 14% have completed a graduate program.

• 46% tailgate 6-10 times each season, with 21% tailgating as many as 11-15 times.

• 44% said that husbands and wives shop for tailgating food and supplies together.

• 41% spend more than $500 a season on tailgating food and supplies.

• 49% travel less than an hour to the stadium, and 8% more than four hours.

• 51% start setting-up at the stadium 3-4 hours before the game, while 39% start 5 or more

hours before kickoff.

• 95% cook their food at the stadium, with only 5% preferring to bring fast or prepared food.

• 59% use a combination of grills, stoves and smokers to cook their food, while 39% prefer

grilling alone.


Looking for cities with the best tailgating stadiums? Baltimore tops the list, followed by Denver, Houston, San Diego, and Cincinnati. For the complete list, visit:

http://www.hightechtailgating.com/NewsFactsFigures/NationalTailgatingIndex/tabid/143/Default.aspx

And finally, here’s an ultimate tailgaters’ check list for things to bring tailgating:

http://4wheeldrive.about.com/od/tailgatingacc/l/bltailchecklist.htm

You can print it and laminate it and have it handy for each tailgating party.

Share your tips for tailgating with the community in the comment box below!

Auto Art - Beauty in the Eye of the Beholder!

By Maureen Condon

Carhenge

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. So, artists have created beauty -- or what, in some eyes, passes for it -- out of many unusual palettes of materials…automobiles included.

I’ve seen the real Stonehenge, and this automotive replica isn’t bad! What do you think?

Carhenge, located near Alliance, Nebraska, consists of dozens of old make and model cars half-buried, upright, in the ground, or welded to the tops of other cars.

Built by Artist Jim Reinders, it was dedicated at the June 1987 summer solstice. In 2006, a visitor center was constructed to service the site.

Carhenge - Does anyone think they can use this configuration to tell the time of day?

The field around Carhenge is a car art reserve.

Notable art objects include: a car-part dinosaur; a pioneer's covered station wagon; “The Four Seasons” – this one is really a stretch; and a half-buried Yugo “gravestone,” proclaiming the death of the foreign car in America.

They got that wrong!

Dinosaur Power? A takeoff on cars and horsepower?

The Pioneers wouldn't have gone too far in this Covered Wagon! Way too easy to break an axle!

The Four Seasons - But which car for which season? OK, White for Winter. Yellow for Fall - think Aspen leaves? Maybe Pink for Spring, and Green for summer or vice versa? You guess!

Yugo Gravestone