#Packard truck

[newyorkthegoldenage]

A world's record for a coast-to-coast trip by motor truck was established in 1920, when the three-ton Packard truck shown in the photo rolled into New York just 13 days, 13 hours and 15 minutes after leaving Los Angeles. The previous record was 17 days, 3 hours. The record-breaking truck, which was equipped with pneumatic tires, was made for coast-to-coast trips. Built in 1918, it had already rolled up 120,000 miles. The tires lasted through the entire trip.

Photo: Bettmann Archive/Getty Images

[firecooking]

Two 'non cannon' humanization's for my tugs au

On the right is Captain Star's Truck, he\she

On the left is Captain Zero's Sedan, he\him

I like to think they are dock hands or office boys. Mainly shadowing the Captains around and helping out where needed

The Sedan has terrible luck, and is always breaking down or getting totalled, but is super enthusiastic none the less and suspiciously fast and loud, almost sounds like a 12 cylinder speed boat engine is under that hood, but that'd be ridiculous. Right?

The Truck is faithful and hard working. He's a little rusty, a little dusty, doesn't like starting in the cold but always ready to help once her engine starts and you get him on the move

Little cuties even if they don't exist in the au

[frenchcurious]

Packard 645 Dual Cowl Phaeton by Dietrich 1929. - Classic Cars & Trucks.

[lucisevofficial]

OC #2!!!!

Cameron "Cam" Virginia Packard, novel deuteragonist and all-around great catch.

Age: 20 Gender: Female (Cis) Occupation: Unemployed (she's working on it) Birthday: 06/01/1984 Brief: Lives in a trailer at the edge of state game lands. High school dropout, hunter, mechanic, lost her virginity at conversion therapy camp. Canonical milf-fumbler, functional alcoholic, homesteader but not happy about it. Design Notes: Flannel, camo, ballcaps. "she seems like she drives a truck" she does indeed

Art by @translucina

[nancydrewwouldnever]

I still find it a shame that that amazing Camaro just sits in the garage.//

my uncle has a 1949 packard that unfortunately sits in the garage.

For true antique vehicles like that, it can be really risky to try to road run them. But Chris' Camaro is basically an all-new modern build under the hood, there should be no problems whatsoever with road driving it regularly.

My father had an enthusiasm for old trucks, and was forever tinkering but never finishing with ones he bought as projects. When he died my mom had to sell off two, a late '40s Ford, and an early '50s Chevy. It pissed me off because I had really wanted the Ford for myself. It basically looked like this, only in need of complete paint job:

[filmfirecr4cker]

twin peaks notes!!!

okay so these are all my notes and thoughts on the pilot and the first episode :3 enjoy.

pilot:

“it (the story) encompasses the all. it is beyond the fire, though few would know that meaning” 

“laura is the one” 

god josie is actually so beautiful 

sarah's paranoid has everyone caught off guard. i wonder if she knows something we dont

i love the choice they made having pete’s pov of finding laura be shot handheld. it makes it so much more off-putting and found-footagey

I LOVE LUCY SHES SO CUTE

sheriff harry truman you are so beautiful to me <3 

poor andy :(

the shot of the palmer’s stairwell is so off-putting i love it 

AUDREYYYYY god shes so cunty 

the way leland holds onto harry’s jacket was such a good character choice 

goddd shelly is so gorgeous 

all the ladies are so beautiful lets be real 

shelly and bobby are linking 

bobby and laura were dating 

laura was 17 when she died 

i like the detail of aurdey changing from her oxfords to red heels when she gets to school 

james’s goofy ass haircut.. like girl whatever

the last time mrs. palmer saw laura was 9pm 

she had just come from bobby’s 

laura’s phone rang sometime that night 

the wide shot of the pulaski girl walking across the bridge is so fucking good 

james said “laura was the one” which is probably referencing the fact that she was the one for him but its also an echo of the log lady said in the intro as well sooo

AHHHHHHHHHH SPECIAL AGENT DALE COOPER FBI MY POOKIE BUTTTTTTTT 

oh my god i love him so so much actually 

i like how harry and coop meet at the end of the hallway and walk towards the camera and then the camera starts moving with them 

coop is actually so funny i love him. him and his trees 

you can tell harry fell for him right when he asked about the firs BWHAHAHA

while they were in the elevator, there was a man with one arm 

ronette repeated “dont go there” 

laura was dr jacoby’s patient 

laura’s parents didn’t know she was seeing him.. i wonder why?

i dont know if this was intentional or not but while dr. jacoby was talking to coop and harry, he was touching the hula girl on his tie under her skirt. idk i just noticed it and it weirded me out. fucking freak 

laura had a letter "r" under her nail on her ring finger. it seems like the killer is leaving a clue maybe??

apparently this is something coop has seen before 

snake and donna are dating 

laura’s last diary entry was “asparagus for dinner again. i hate asparagus. does this mean ill never grow up? nervous about meeting j tonight.” 

i love how lynch creates the atmosphere of twin peaks. it feels wet and cold 

“tell harry i didn’t cry.” oh andyyyyyy he’s so sweet. poor thing 

the video tape of donna and laura is so cute 

coop is so good at his job. thats my man

“you didn’t love her anyway” YEAH GET HIS ASS GET HIM 

audrey loves to cause problems on purpose and i support her 

snake and that gayass pose he does up against the wall 

laura was cheating on bobby with james 

donna definitely had feelings for laura and she fell into the trap of being in love with her best friend then hooking up with the boy she was with to feel close to her “i wanna kiss his lips bc they taste like you” kind of vibe yk?

love all the shots of the woods 

did ronette escape or was she let go?

the found laura’s half heart necklace and a note that says “fire walk with me” written in blood

james has the other half  

in the deposit box they found a flesh world magazine with ronette’s picture circled inside it and about $10,000 cash 

and there’s a pic of leo’s truck in the mag as well 

leo is shelly’s abusive ugly fucking husband. i hope he dies 

shelly is cheating on him with bobby 

the actor that plays leo is so bad LMAOOO 

the snowshoe rabbit :((((

coop is so fascinated by the flora and fauna of twin peaks and i love how he tells harry all about it (asking him questions and stuff). its so sweet

andrew packard was josie’s late husband who died in a boating accident a little over a year prior and he was katherine's brother. josie ended up inheriting everything that katherine would have so i guess that explains why she has a stick up her ass...

log lady is here!!! love her 

harry and coop are literally “me and the bad bitch i pulled by being autistic” LMAOOOO

i love harry sm. he's always looking out for everyone; hes such a good sheriff <3

teresa banks was the case that coop had mentioned earlier that made him think that laura’s death was connected somehow 

donna’s sister harriet is so cute. her being a poet and everything 

bobby is so annoying smhhhh 

“oh we’ll find her. dont you worry about that.” now why would you say it like that TO HER DAD YOU FREAK oh my god boys are so fucking stupid and creepy 

i wonder why snake and bobby are called “mutt” and “jeff” by joey and scotty????

ed and norma are having an affair and it seems like they’ve had feelings for each other for a while 

norma’s husband is in jail for manslaughter (yikes bitch)

oh coop is whittling i love him :(( 

HIS LITTLE THUMBS UP GOD

he’s by best friend guys like actually 

“you think they spotted us?” “gimme a donut.” LMAOOOOO LIKE???

laura was wrapped up in some fucked up stuff apparently 

“i knew her more that she thought i did.” ughhhhhhhhh kms

bobby killed somebody!! 

OOOOO THEY KISSED DONNA AND JAMES KISSED!! god it kinda was gross like they were literally eating each other’s faces BWHAHHA 

they buried their half of the necklace 

bobby is such a punk bitch 

OH MY GOD WHY DOES HE HAVE THOSE FUCKING CRAZY EYES DAMN

james looks like a cornered dog 

awww doc hayward and donna’s relationship is so sweet smhhh

lucy is such an angel with her little donut buffet 

EWWWWWWW WHY ARE THEY (snake and bobby) BARKING FUCKING TWEAKERS GODDAMN?!??!??!

josie and harry are so so cuteeeeeeee i love them 

harry literally pulled the baddest bitches in the entire show 

katherine is plotting evilly in her armchair WITH MR HORNE

god i love how foreboding the shot of the palmers stairwell is 

someone found the necklace donna and james buried and it looks like mrs. palmer had a vision about that or something??

lots of cheaters in this town LMAOOO

"it's beyond the fire" and "fire walk with me" what is the fire???

episode 1:

“behind all things are reasons. reasons can even explain the absurd.”  

HIS ASS IS UPSIDE DOWN LMAOOO

his fucking sock garters COME ON

“diane, it struck me again earlier this morning. there are two things that continue to trouble me and im speaking now not only as an agent of the bureau but also as a human being. what really went on between marilyn monroe and the kennedys? and who really pulled the trigger on jfk?” LIKE BITCH!!! I HATE HIM (affectionately)

coop is so real for being transfixed with audrey bc me too

laura tutored audrey’s brother johnny 

johnny is said to have “emotional problems” bc he’s 27 and in the third grade. im assuming its some mental disability 

audrey said that “emotional problems” run in the family 

audrey you are so strange girl. love you tho

i love how everybody in the station has donuts in their mouths LMAOOOO 

i also love how coop says "three for three" after he sees andy, lucy, and harry all eating donuts

laura’s cause of death was blood loss

leo has a big old blood stain on one of his shirts :0

EW YOU FREAK LET GO OF HER GOD 

his nasty ass ponytail fucking barf

laura was doing cocaine 

james has been the only one who seems to have been the most honest whilst being interrogated (yk excluding the part about the locket) 

laura, bobby, and snake have been in cahoots with leo. im guessing it has to do with drugs 

laura’s video played again and it stopped on a frame of her face and her voice whispered “help me” 

big ed is james’s uncle 

harry knows about ed and norma

someone drugged ed at the roadhouse 

coop has some of his FBI guys coming down to examine laura’s body 

ed gave a little gesture to hawk when he returned james back to him, which hawk mirrored back to him. they seem to be touching the side of their eyes/temples? and wiping down, like a tear maybe??? what’s up with that?

james’s mom is out of town 

HEHEHHEHE HARRY CALLING THEM SHERLOCK AND WATSON 

pete and josie have a sweet relationship too :((

pete kind of reminds me of my dad a little bit 

laura helped josie with her english 

she aid that the last time she saw laura, she was upset about something but they didn’t talk about it. laura then told josie “i think i now understand how you feel about your husbands death.” whatever that means

katherine is such a cunt i hate her so much

of course cooper would know what shenanigans means 

katherine is cheating on pete with benjamin horne. gross. 

she and mr. horne are trying to bankrupt the mill. he also suggests that they burn it down

EWWWWW OH MY GOD HES KISSING/SUCKING HER TOESSSSS NOOOOOOOOO

so donna went over to the palmer’s house, and sarah suddenly hallucinated and thought donna was laura. then she saw a creepy guy crouching and looking up at her from a bed? and promptly started freaking out

rosette worked at the horne’s department store as a salesgirl at the perfume counter and joked it was “the sweet job she ever had”

the one armed man is back!!!

“laura died two days ago. i lost you years ago.” mr. horne said this to audrey and it gives us some insight into their relationship (i hope they elaborate on this more in the future)

okay so it looks like bobby comes from a religious and military home

his father is def the dominant head of the family. he has a strong presence and his wife seems to be more meek compared to him. very “good christian wife” core. thats not a dig at her, she seems sweet enough, but when general briggs slaps bobby for putting a cigarette in his mouth at dinner, she does nothing about it 

laura helped norma with the “meals on wheels program” that laura helped organize. she really does seem like such a golden child

the log apparently saw something the night laura died  

god, the way shelly’s face dropped when leo asked about his shirt gave me chills

laura recorded tapes for dr. jacoby

“i just know im gonna get lost in those woods again tonight. i just know it.” (laura on one of her tapes)

she also mentioned a  “mystery man”. i wonder if its the creepy guy sarah hallucinated or something

ohhhhh so it was dr. jacoby who found the other half of the necklace 

[rainbowriderjt]

1952 Packard Truck

[wheelsgoroundincircles]

Packard Patricia pickup

Chris Coleman

Former Test Driver & Mechanic at Automotive Industry (2007–2008

What were the original reasons for Chevrolet coming out with the El Camino?

The El Camino, and other similar vehicles, like the Ford Ranchero, Subaru BRAT, Dodge Rampage and others, were designed to offer car-like comfort, performance and convenience, with the cargo capability of a light truck. Three of the forerunners to this were the Packard Patrician pickup, the Chevrolet Cameo and the Dodge Sweptline pickups.

1957 Dodge Sweptline with tailfins

Chevrolet Cameo Fleetside

The El Camino was based on the full-sized Impala originally, and was enormous. The low ground clearance and hefty weight made it a poor choice as a pickup. Most owners purchased them for styling reasons, especially with the cat eye taillights and horizontal tail fins.

1959 Chevrolet El Camino

Later, Chevrolet downsized the El Camino and based it on the Chevelle/Malibu, where it remained until it was discontinued.

1968 El Camino SS

With nothing in the rear, other than an empty bed, it was difficult to make it competitive as a muscle car, since the weight distribution was heavily biased towards the front.

Also, the bed used curved sheet metal in many places, to accommodate the rounded body panels, and this wasn’t a good fit with common pickup cargo, like plywood, hay bales and crates.

With the passenger compartment realistically holding two people, it was worthless as a family car, while a station wagon version of the Chevelle would be perfect. These things made it an odd fit with a very limited customer base.

Holden Ute, from Australia

Paradoxically, in Australia, cars like these, called Utes (short for utility) were and are extremely popular. Australia has a more rural environment and remote ranches and homes, which make this type of vehicle perfect for them. However in a more suburban setting, like the U.S., the El Camino was always an odd choice.

1972 Ford Ranchero - Based on the Torino

Dodge Rampage

Dodge Rampage, built on the K-car platform

Subaru Baja

Today, no one makes a ute for the American market, but that doesn’t mean these may not resurface from time to time. As kids grow up and nests are emptied, we may once again see a demand for the ubiquitous El Camino, Ford Ranchero and others.

[automotiveamerican]

Nine Times Non-AMC Vehicles Used AMC Engines - Daniel Strohl @Hemmings

From trucks to racing, the underdog’s V-8s and straight-sixes did a lot The common misperception about American Motors throughout the years held that the company just assembled cars from other carmakers’ parts, including other carmakers’ engines. While the company did, at times, purchase engines from companies as varied as Packard and Porsche, in fact its engineers developed several lines of…

[osrphotography]

International Trucks D-Line 1510 ute at the Packard & Pioneer Museum.

The D-Line utes were produced from 1955-75 as a replacement for the C series (a C1200's headlights can be seen in the left-hand side of the frame).

Unfortunately for International Harvester, the D-Line never made a noticeable dent in the American pick-up market. This, coupled with the oil crisis of the mid-70s and the fact that IH utes were not fuel efficient, killed the line in 1975.

I don't know whether any came to New Zealand as utes, although a number were modified and used as ambos. This particular one was imported from Queensland, Australia.

[icleanedthisplate]

Dine-Out Meals of May 2023, Ranked (Part 1)

I ranked the following based on taste alone. I made no consideration for ambiance or the general dining experience or whatever. I included meals I got to go. I included food trucks, catered meals, and fast food.

I haven't confirmed, but I believe this is the most restaurant meals I've ever eaten in a single month, mostly due to time spent on the road. So many meals that I've apparently hit the character limit for Tumblr. I'll have to break it up into two posts. This is the top 20 meals; the next post will be the rest. The top four meals will be in consideration for best of the year

Should you be interested in the pictures or reading the few words I had to say about each meal, click on the home page and scroll down or see the archives.

Sauerkraut Balls, Sauerbraten, Cherry Strudel. Edelweiss. Colorado Springs, Colorado. 5.18.2023.

Filet Mignon w/Brussels Sprouts and Horseradish Mashed Potatoes, Donut Bread Pudding w/Espresso Ice Cream. Packard’s. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. 5.25.2023.

AB Tuna Pizza (shared), Hot Mess Roll, Brother From Another Mother Roll, Pop Rockin’ (sampled), Apple Harumaki. Akira Back. Delray Beach, Florida. 5.11.2023.

Vichyssoise Soup, Choppy Chop Salad w/Salmon. Gary Rack’s Farmhouse Kitchen. Delray Beach, Florida. 5.12.2023.

Chopped Salmon Salad. Samantha’s Tap Room. Little Rock, Arkansas. 5.22.2023.

Chopped Salmon Salad. Samantha’s Tap Room. Little Rock, Arkansas. 5.1.2023.

Watermelon Gazpacho, Citrus & Gorgonzola Salad. Range. Denver, Colorado. 5.17.2023.

Rotary Club Lunch (Chicken, Salmon, Asparagus, Fruit Salad, Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup?). 42 Bar & Table (Catering). Little Rock, Arkansas. 5.29.2023.

Salmon Skin Roll, Dragon Roll, Drunken Noodles. Sen Thai Asian Bistro. St. Louis, Missouri. 5.6.2023.

Rotary Club Lunch (Chicken, Squash Casserole, Pineapple Bread Pudding?). 42 Bar & Table (Catering). Little Rock, Arkansas. 5.2.2023.

General Cho’s Chinese Chicken Soup Dumplings, Spicy Tuna Roll, Stir-fried Malaysian Noodles w/Tofu. ChoLon Modern Asian (Central Park). Denver, Colorado. 5.17.2023.

Chicken, Vegetables, Rice, Cake. Balli’s Terrace Catering. Harlingen, Texas. 5.16.2023.

Baleada Con Todo w/Cauliflower Chorizo. El Sur Street Food Co. Little Rock, Arkansas. 5.13.2023.

Three Fold Salad w/Chicken. Three Fold Noodles + Dumpling Co. Little Rock, Arkansas. 5.15.2023.

Beef Liver & Onions w/Corn, Pinto Beans, Tomato-Cucumber Salad, Mashed Potatoes, Pineapple Cake. South Park Diner. Clarksville, Arkansas. 5.26.2023.

Onion Pakora, Bendi Masala, Chilli Garlic Naan, Chef’s Signature Lamb Curry (Shared All). Desi Flavors. Tampa, Florida. 5.9.2023.

Blue Crab Wonton Nachos, The Spread (Kim Chi Quesadillas, Chicharrónes w/Hummus, French Fries w/Lump Crab, and Smoked Salmon Crostini), Tuna Poke Niçoise. (Shared all.) Ciao Baci. Little Rock, Arkansas. 5.15.2023.

Stuffed Flounder w/Broccoli, Salad. Mike’s Grill. Bartow, Florida. 5.10.2023.

Southern Fried Chicken Salad, Cherry Fried Pie w/Vanilla Ice Cream. Boomarang Diner. Checotah, Oklahoma. 5.24.2023.

Poblano. Rosa Mexican Kitchen. Thornton, Colorado. 5.18.2023.

[wikkerwisp]

Heyyyy so...whos your favorite character from atlantis

Honestly; All the *OG* crew who helped Milo in the end are bits of my favorites— I loved Vinny's depressive but witty humor and love of fire. I love Mole's quirky dirt keeping and clearly particular essence. Audrey was a gd sweetie but also strong, right minded, and clever. Packard was the embodiment of (who she was), a goddamn chain smoking gossiping communicator who acted as a (clearly) witty bourbon grandma to the others. Sweets is just fucking iconic as hell and the only one other than Milo and Kida with gumption to protect life (and is thoroughly the dad of the group actually)— but also— goddamn as a 'anti-hero' or even adversary, *Helga* was goddamn epic, sly, smart as hell and could've done better than Rourke.. However.

Kida, there's always her too, always I was inspired by her empathy, courage, curiosity, and even innocence to rely on the first outsider to plead for her people at large—even with the risks attached.

However, furthermore.

Bold faced truth—

My biggest favorite is obviously, because as a very malnutritioned bean pole nerd ass historian and being fascinated by linguistics and ancient cultures of *all* types— Milo fucking Thatch.

His obvious and outright interest and love (let alone mastery) of the many ancient languages, history, social norms, and his ***willingness to learn***—

I aspired to be an 'ally' /guy like him, even being born as an AFAB because as much as this movie (inherently as it is a white savior trope)— *Milo isn't going to talk over Kida, nor the king*- he sadly, let's Mr. Jughead Mercenary Commander do all the talking (I always hated Rourke, I could tell even as a kid at the beginning of the movie how much of a shady shithead capitalist he was).

Milo. For lack of better terms, is what I aspired to be as a kid— from the moment I saw him?

Kind, curious, factual, strong willed (albeit an awkward ass lonely guy with no friends initially and only his cat)— and above all— Willing to try, learn, and understand— let alone with the utmost empathy to Kida, and his fellow crew members.

The third to last finale scene— (the truck scene where they are hauling Kida away for profit and Rourke punches Milo)—

Was such a powerful scene- of bystanders who were powerless seeing this white bean pole of a man be socked in the nose by this giant Jughead bitch- only for his crewmates to realize.... Milo was not only right, but catering to their truths. As people. And the *adversity* all of the other crew had likely faced before.. and reflected the shitty things they did.

Milo standing up for not just Kida, but the late-Atlantian king— as well as the people themselves— as a complete outsider— against (arguably) "his own people"— to show their ignorance and sheer greed ... let alone what they were truly committing to— genocide of an entire race/ancient culture/entire lineage of families who were already dying out.

My biggest note to take from Atlantis, was not just Milo's defense and argue for an entire race, but seeing the same kindof hopelessness to feel he could change anything that Vinny, Mole, Packard, Cookie, Sweets, or even — FUCKIN FIRST OF THEM TO ACT WAS THE CLEARLY LATIN CODED GIRL, OUR HOMELASS AUDREY.

Audrey's scene, Milo's pleas, and the whole gd scene of her glaring at everyone and *each of them* knowing full fucking well where Milo is right, and not only that— but them realizing three main things then and there:

1. Rourke would likely also betray them the same, and realizing how Milo truly considered them friends.

2. Not only what they were doing is wrong, but *Vinny* of all people making the case that (paraphrased) "(other times) Someone got hurt, but not someone we knew." Detailing that he considered not just Milo a friend, but that they had only *lived* because of Milo's guidance and help. And that Rourke was abandoning him.

3. Notice, other than fuckin Packard and Milo, (including Sweets, but he was busy back at the palace)— all the main crew was either non-white or POC, or Mole (who is French).

Meaning, they *knew* intrinsically what it was like to be almost eradicated, loss of their livelyhood/cultures, hell— taken advantage of by not just imperialism, at large— but now Rourke.

And Milo stood not just with the Atlantian people, Kida, and her father— but because he was (albeit white)— used and maltreatment and not taken seriously as a person too— he understood not just the facts, but the deep deep guttural empathy of even his crew mates.

Pleading their hearts, to make the right choice— because he knew they had too, taken him in, albeit fucking with him.. and that they had meant something to him— whether they cared or not.

And the moment Audrey, Mole, Vinny, Packard and Cookie (sans Sweets)— all realized (with Rourke punching Milo and fucking him up/over personally breaking the photo + damning him to rot along with the Atlantian people—

As soon as they realized #1-#3— Specifically Audrey (we see the buildup of her looking at Milo in the mirror and trying to keep her mouth shut—

The others followed, seeing not just the fact that Rourke was fucking up an entire civilization— but now too— one of their own.

And despite their prior attitudes, proved that they were guilt ridden to some degree- and only stayed because they considered eachother ' a broken family'— much like what Milo also went through, losing his (both?) parents and then Thaddeus (his grandfather).

...

I rambled.

But yeah, Milo inspired me a lot, and his sheer willingness to try new food, new religion, mystical nonsense and even using ancient knowledge to save a civilization knowing damn well he might fail?

And not just doing it for only Kida and *her* people, but stood up (again, even after being hurt, and fighting) because it was ***right***.

[e350tb]

Red Alert - Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen: The Defector

Indianapolis, Indiana - Soviet Eastern Military District Day Thirty

The Red Army had marched into Indianapolis mostly unopposed.

They came in mechanised columns, led along by American jeeps hastily painted and decorated in Soviet colours. US staff officers guided them to all the centres of state government and had stood idly by as the Governor and state legislature were dragged out to the KGB trucks. Soviet flags and loudspeakers now adorned every building and lamppost, demanding obedience to General Vladimir and the Soviet ‘provisional government.’

It was lucky, then, that Vladimir’s occupation police left much to be desired.

These were second-line men, armed with older battle rifles (some dating to the last war). Most were either boys or middle-aged men, sent to the military police units to free up fitter men for frontline combat. Spending the entire campaign in relative safety behind the line had softened them, made them lazy, and it was therefore easy for Gunter to slip in unnoticed.

Not that he made it easy for them. He’d been set up by Jackson’s CIA spooks with a cheap suit and a reasonably convincing fake moustache. Today he was Saul White, a rural lawyer and an immigrant from Eastern Europe - his ‘real name’ was Caslav Kovac. He was, of course, an enthusiastic communist, and was driving into Indianapolis to convince a Soviet officer to help set up a revolutionary curriculum for elementary schools in the town of Springfield.

In actuality, he was to make contact with Major Vyacheslav Andrijovych Kyrylenko, a Ukrainian staff officer who had managed to contact one of Jackson’s spooks. He had information, and he wanted to defect.

“Where were we meeting this commie piece o’ shit?” Corporal McLean, newly promoted and dressed in a chequered shirt and jeans, was at the wheel of the old yellow Studebaker Champion. “And why’re we stuck in this thing? Ain’t you meant to be some kinda commie bigwig?”

“I’m a good communist,” said Gunter, smirking. “I don’t buy luxury cars. We’re looking for a bar called the Honest Abe.”

“Heh,” PFC Ferris, wearing a leather jacket and shades, “I read Stalin had a Packard.”

“Ah, but Stalin was not a good communist,” said Gunter.

“And what makes a bad communist?” asked Ferris.

“Ask me, they’re all bad communists,” grunted McLean.

“A bad communist, comrades,” said Gunter, “is very easy to find. He is a communist who disagrees with your personal definition of communism.”

“Seems pretty easy to be a bad commie, then,” Ferris chuckled.

“Ah, but the worst kind of communist, the kind the good Soviet party member truly hates, you can spot from a hundred miles away,” continued Gunter.

“Oh yeah? How d’ya spot him?”

“He’s the one who’s actually read the Communist Manifesto.”

McLean blinked.

“That don’t make sense.”

“Cool it, McLean, this is our stop,” said Ferris, pointing to the side of the road.

The Honest Abe was a rundown establishment in a back street, a smoky old dive that one might have seen in an old detective film. Beyond the filthy windows, the men could see off-duty Soviet soldiers drinking their leave away, with a few nervous civilians sprinkled in for good measure. McLean and Ferris shared glances.

“They really gonna believe a Soviet officer is going to have a political meeting here?” asked Ferris incredulously.

“These are occupation troops, Ferris,” replied Gunter. “The officers here aren’t exactly the cream of the crop. Besides, we’ll be long gone before they realise that we’ve gone to a… what’s the word?”

“A dive,” said Ferris. “Hell, makes the dives back in Brooklyn look like the Ritz.”

“Hell, I didn’t know they had dive bars in Indiana,” said McLean. “Didn’t know they had anything in Indiana.”

“Alright, settle down,” said Gunter. “Let me take the lead here, ja?”

“You’re the boss, Cap,” replied Ferris.

Gunter nodded, leading the men into the Honest Abe. The smell of cigarette smoke and cheap beer was overpowering, mixed with mysterious stenches that were somehow even less appealing. The soldiers were singing old folk songs - a few particularly drunken men in the corner were trying a decidedly unique take on Jailhouse Rock. Others talked - some loudly and some in hushed tones. A few men in dirty tanker uniforms quietly shared a table - one of them locked eyes with Gunter, and in his ice blue orbs he could see the echoes of battle.

The gentleman sitting at the bar, flanked on both sides by laughing, singing soldiers, some of whom were hitting on the barmaids, stood out like a sore thumb. He was slightly taller than average, his hair a greying red, and he wore a clean, pressed uniform that marked him out as a staff officer. He didn’t look up as Gunter sat down next to him, McLean and Ferris strategically taking a seat close by.

“Comrade Kyrylenko?”

“Comrade White.”

Kyrylenko got out of his stool and motioned for Gunter to follow.

The Ukrainian led Gunter into the men’s room, which had been blocked off by an ‘out of order’ sign written in English and Cyrillic. As he slipped in, Kyrylenko glanced back at the barman - for a moment, the old Hispanic man looked up and nodded, before returning to the glass he was cleaning.

Gunter shut the door behind him. The bathroom was, perhaps unsurprisingly, even dirtier than the bar outside. Discarded toilet paper lay on the floor, and the window was ajar, leaving the last stall alarmingly exposed to the alley beyond.

“Perhaps you could have chosen a place that smelt less of… piss?” he said flatly.

“Would you have preferred a boardroom?” Kyrylenko replied wryly. “I hear you capitalists like that.”

“I would have preferred somewhere where I didn’t have a chance of contracting VD, I suppose,” muttered Gunter. “Or at very least, I would have liked a drink first.”

“Very funny,” grunted Kyrylenko. “Listen, I want to make one thing very clear; I’m not doing this because I’ve ‘seen the light of the Western system.’ I don’t have time for the Americans or the British, and quite frankly I hate Germans.”

“Charming.”

“Yet Soviet strategy is changing, and… and I fear where it is leading.”

He reached into his jacket and produced an envelope.

“These are all the notes I could smuggle out,” he said. “I took them from General Cherdenko’s Headquarters - the airship Lazar Kaganovich. That is where they are keeping your President and your General Carville while they are interrogated. That envelope contains the deck plans and as much as I could write down about the ship’s security arrangements.”

He swallowed.

“It also contains two pages on the Chicago Project.”

“The Chicago Project?” Gunter tilted his head.

“It’s-”

“Sir, we got a problem.”

McLean and Ferris barged into the room.

“Couple of guys in green caps just walked in,” said McLean. “They got SMGs and they look mighty pissed.”

“Chekists,” snarled Kyrylenko.

He drew his pistol from his holster.

“Everything I know is in that folder,” he said. “Make sure it reaches your commanding officer. If the Chicago Project succeeds…” He shook his head. “Get out, through the window.”

“What about you?” asked Gunter.

“I’ll buy you time,” Kyrylenko replied, training his gun on the door. There was a gunshot outside and the sound of screaming.

“Good man,” said Gunter. “McLean, Ferris, with me! Los!”

“You’re gonna have to shoot your own countrymen, you know,” Ferris warned as he followed Gunter to the window.

Kyrylenko smiled wryly.

“They’re not my countrymen, Yankee,” he said. “They’re Russians.”

McLean climbed out the window first, Ferris swiftly following. Gunter half dove through the opening, and seconds later he could hear the door being kicked in.

“Major Kyrylenko, you are under arrest-”

“Slava Ukraini!”

Kyrylenko fired three times, and then there was the rattle of at least three submachine guns. Gunter winced; without another word, he raced off down the alley, leaving the Honest Abe far behind.

----

An hour later, a staff car pulled up outside the Honest Abe.

Lieutenant-General Khabarov climbed out before the driver could open the door. He frowned at the sight - the KGB had gathered the staff of the bar on the pavement outside. They had been forced to kneel, and one of the Chekists was inserting a magazine into his service pistol. General Cherdenko was standing to the side, hands tucked behind his back - he nodded to the Chekist, who walked up behind one of the barmaids and lifted his pistol to the back of her head.

Bang.

“Winning hearts and minds, General Cherdenko?” said Khabarov, watching the body drop with distaste.

“Dealing with partisans, General Khabarov,” replied Cherdenko. “These decadent imperialists only understand force.”

“Are these the same ‘decedent imperialists’ we’re meant to be converting to Marxism?”

He watched as another body dropped limply to the ground.

“Everywhere we don’t have a PsiCorps beacon, we are dealing with an intense insurgency,” he said. “We have had officers assassinated, convoys ambushed, the entire supply system disrupted. We can’t advance west because we keep having to put out brushfires in the rear. This does not help. It only makes them angrier.”

“Comrade Khabarov.” Cherdenko grinned. “Once the Chicago Project is online, it will not matter. We must simply hold on for two more weeks - then the war is won.”

“I could have sworn we said something like that in Pittsburgh,” muttered Khabarov.

He shook his head.

“I remember Kyrylenko,” he said. “One of your staff officers aboard the Lazar Kaganovich. Did he share anything with the Americans?”

“Even if he has,” said Cherdenko, “my security detail is impeccable. They’ll never get through to their President.”

“I would recommend taking your ship to the rear nonetheless,” replied Khabarov. “The last thing we need is for Dugan to be broken out.”

Cherdenko scoffed.

“You’re getting terribly soft, Leonov Viktor,” he said flippantly. “You need to drink more - and perhaps indulge in the more carnal pleasures. You’re too wound up!”

He laughed, walking towards the door of the bar.

“Colonel Chenkov! Have your men liberated any of that American ale?”

The Chekist had reached the end of the line of captives. He raised his gun to the back of the trembling barmaid’s head and pulled the trigger - there was a click, and the slide sailed backwards harmlessly. He fumbled for another clip, but Khabarov raised his hand.

“That will be all, Sergeant,” he said. “The point has been made.”

The Chekist nodded and walked away, leaving the terrified woman alone. Khabarov sighed and turned back to his staff car.

“Two weeks until peace,” he muttered. “I’ll believe that when I see it.”

[frenchcurious]

Packard Super Eight 1941. - source Classic Cars & Trucks.

[joshuawithers]

40 years of the Mac and why I can’t use anything else now

By the time I was buying my first Apple Macintosh computer the launch of the Mac in 1984 was already a myth, a story shared from one nerd to another, like an Aboriginal Australian cave painting.

In grade five there was an Apple IIe at the back of the classroom no-one knew how to use but when I realised that the computer magazines at the library full of computer programs and games written in Basic contained not just ideas and lines of code - yes, actual real code just printed in paper magazines - but code I could type into an Apple computer, execute, and then enjoy, I was hooked.

I kept on reading those computer magazines like APCMag, PC User, PCMag, Macuser, Mac Format, and countless others whose names escape me but the school library stocked so generously.

At one stage I designed on paper my dream computer which would triple-boot Microsoft Windows, OS/2 Warp, and Mac OS System 8. I think a “Mac on a PCI card” product had been released, or the opposite for inserting in a Mac, so I designed my Frankenstein’s monster of a computer and presented it to class imagining that they would a) care, and b) be in awe of my product design and computer engineering. Alas neither Steve Jobs or Bill Gates wrote and congratulated me.

I’m not sure how I wrangled it, but somehow our family acquired a Packard Bell IBM-compatible personal computer with a 486 SX 25/33 processor, 4MB of RAM, no sound card, but it did come with Windows 3.11.

The Radio Rentals rented computer and I quickly became close friends but somehow with its 25MHz CPU and 4MB of RAM the computer ran slower than a slug chasing down an ice cream truck.

Enter, my Uncle Grant.

Uncle Grant was my super uncle from Townsville who sold and serviced Apple computers. We’d not been on friendly talking terms about computers since I used his Apple Macintosh and neglected to save a document he had open, but he was quick to diagnose the problem with my computer’s speed: I had an image as my desktop wallpaper. Also, he was quick to quip that “a Mac wouldn’t have that problem.”

What he neglected to acknowledge is that a Withers didn’t have a spare buck either so we went without a Mac for about a decade more.

As I’m sure is the story for most modern Mac users, having your own personal Macintosh Desktop Experience was a dream for too long.

Years later Apple announced the Intel transition from Power PC chipsets and all of a sudden, thanks to an Intel Inside and Bootcamp, these new Macs can run Windows and Mac OS X which is the perfect justification for a nerd to make for a new Apple MacBook purchase.

All white and plastic, it was beautiful, and that new Apple MacBook never needed to be tainted by Bootcamp and Windows. It turned out that Mac OS is actually quite capable on its own.

Not quite as beautiful as that G3 iMac I acquired years after it was ever useful, but always be beautiful.

And that’s why I can’t use any other OS today. I’ve tried Windows and Linux of late, I’m always open to a change so I know I’m using the best tools for the job, but my taste gravitates to the Mac. It is beautiful, useful, and just plain nice. I’ve even tried the iPad as a main computer, or the phone. But it’ll always be the Mac for me. Happy birthday, and hello, old friend.