[Texascavers] Cavern restaurant @ CaCa
At 01:26 PM 11/28/2008, Randy Baker wrote: I was at Carlsbad Caverns in October 2008, and the underground restaurant was closed. You could buy bottled drinks/water, and pre-packaged sandwiches, but that was it. My first trip there was in 1953 or '54 as a first or second grader. It could only minimally be termed a restaurant--more like a cafeteria at a picnic. I remember very well standing in line--with some sorta pipe rails keeping us tourists under control--for the quite generic looking white boxes of prepackaged lunches, courtesy of Cavern Supply. The whole meal was pretty much a box lunch deal, more noted for the novelty of the event than the quality of the food. I think there was fried chicken in addition to white bread sandwiches. Tours were still led by a ranger in those days but the light show and playing of religious music during the stop at Rock of Ages (which my own dear mother had extolled in platitudes of in rampant antipation) had been some years earlier dispensed with (which met with great wailing and lamentation by my same dear mother). I still have a distinct visual image of the light and sound show I never saw. Thirty or so years later whilst making our way to a white water rafting trip in Idaho a truck full of us stopped in at CaCa to indoctrinate some newbees. We bought our tickets, did a hit of acid, and toured the cave, enjoying a whole new perspective than the '50s trip. The Rock of Ages show was amplified for me. The lunch room was not an issue at the time. --Ediger - Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: texascavers-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: texascavers-h...@texascavers.com
[Texascavers] Cavern restaurants
At 12:47 PM 11/28/2008, Minton, Mark wrote: Jerry Atkinson posted: >Pretty much any underground chamber qualifies as a cave. And they say the only restaurants in caverns are in the Carribean. There used to be--and I see no reason why there shouldn't still be--a restaurant in a LARGE lava cavity just outside the archeo site at Teotihuacan (is that spelled right?). There were skylights which let in a good bit of light (in addition to the electrical artificial lighting) and the thing was natually cooled. Service and food were both good enough when I was there many years ago. --Ediger - Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: texascavers-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: texascavers-h...@texascavers.com
[Texascavers] cave restaurants
there used to be a restaurant in a lava cave near the ruins of teotihuacan, but that was many years ago. th moore - Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: texascavers-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: texascavers-h...@texascavers.com
Re: [Texascavers] RE: Cavern restaurants of the Caribbean
I was at Carlsbad Caverns in October 2008, and the underground restaurant was closed. You could buy bottled drinks/water, and pre-packaged sandwiches, but that was it. Randy Baker Bexar Grotto Webmaster http://www.caves.org/grotto/bexargrotto/ --- On Fri, 11/28/08, Minton, Mark wrote: > From: Minton, Mark > Subject: [Texascavers] RE: Cavern restaurants of the Caribbean > To: Texascavers@texascavers.com > Date: Friday, November 28, 2008, 12:47 PM > Jerry Atkinson posted: > > >http://travel.spotcoolstuff.com/unusual-restaurant/cavern-mexico-santo-domingo > > Which says: > > >Pretty much any underground chamber qualifies as a > cave. To be a cavern a cave must 1) have formed naturally > out of rock; and 2) be able to produce speleothems, which > are those icicle-shaped mineral deposits created by dripping > water. > > By the sound of their definition, any mine could be > considered a cave. Interesting that one of their criteria > for a cave to be a cavern is the presence of speleothems. > There are plenty of real caves without them. And they say > the only restaurants in caverns are in the Carribean. What > about the restaurant in Carlsbad Caverns? Maybe that's > not fancy enough for them, or is that closed now? > > Mark Minton - Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: texascavers-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: texascavers-h...@texascavers.com
Re: [ot_caving] Prez-elect Obama
Private school. I would think the secret service would not be as happy with public school as they were when Carter sent Amy. The times have changed. Look at the security with this swearing in compared to the earlier ones. Quinta
[Texascavers] RE: Cavern restaurants of the Caribbean
Jerry Atkinson posted: >http://travel.spotcoolstuff.com/unusual-restaurant/cavern-mexico-santo-domingo Which says: >Pretty much any underground chamber qualifies as a cave. To be a cavern a cave >must 1) have formed naturally out of rock; and 2) be able to produce >speleothems, which are those icicle-shaped mineral deposits created by >dripping water. By the sound of their definition, any mine could be considered a cave. Interesting that one of their criteria for a cave to be a cavern is the presence of speleothems. There are plenty of real caves without them. And they say the only restaurants in caverns are in the Carribean. What about the restaurant in Carlsbad Caverns? Maybe that's not fancy enough for them, or is that closed now? Mark Minton
Re: [Texascavers] OT - the new Hummer Truck
Chris, I love it when you rant. For the last week while I have been visiting in Austin I have been running around in Viv's Honda CRX which has over 300,000 miles on it, does not leak oil and I've only put $10 worth of gas in it and that includes a trip to Sugar Land and back in the last 24 hours. Cindy PS Ranting is really appreciated when followed by photos. On Thu, Nov 27, 2008 at 9:07 AM, Chris Vreeland wrote: > I think I'll rant for a second, here. > > First off, can we open a nice gulag for the idiots who designed & marketed > any "Hummer" within the last 3 years for crimes against basic human > intelligence? America could utterly stop producing new cars for 10 years, > and it would simply not be a problem. We are awash with the things. Every > day, cars with minor dents or hail damage are hauled off to the junkyard > because the insurance claims the repairs will cost more than the bluebook > value of the vehicle. New cars are sold at inflated prices, then the value > declines precipitously as soon you drive them off the lot, because suddenly, > they're "used," despite having maybe 50 miles on them. If we didn't have > such a glut of new vehicles, I suspect the older ones would retain their > values -- a vehicle with 75,000 miles on it still has an intrinsic value, > yet that value isn't perceived by the car-owning and buying public any more, > because we're having new cars crammed down our throats at an alarming rate. > I think it's telling that GM's sales are off by 45%. People are beginning to > figure out "Hey, I've already got one, and it's good for another 100,000 > miles, if I take care of it." I think so-called bluebook values are skewed > in favor of the insurance companies getting out of having to pay for even > semi-reasonable repairs, and to push the owner towards purchasing a new > vehicle at twice its value. I'm curious as to how a person can justify > paying $25,000.00 for something that will be worth $15,000.00 ten days > later, if it's damaged in a hail storm. Yet somehow, the auto companies are > failing, despite selling these things at at least 1.5 times their actual > value. My heart bleeds for them. Really. I bet a lot of GM's problems stem > from their financial wing making bad loans to people who could ill-afford > new cars, then having to repossess them, and sell them used for half the > price. Oh, the humanity. > > When considering the potential longevity of you average vehicle, it seems > doubly so for soundly-constructed vehicles designed specifically for the > rigors of off-road driving, like the older 4-Runners, Pathfinders, and the > classic 70's & 80's era Toyota pickups and Land Cruisers. Of course, Gill > would have me include long-wheel-based pickups in this category, and he'd be > right. (the list could go on -- I don't feel like writing a dissertation on > International Harvester) Some of you may recall the Grey Pendejo. It was a > 1979 Chevy pickup with full-time 4WD. It had no air con, no radio, no > satellite hookup, no onstar, no GPS, -- I had 4 big-ass tires, a heavy-duty > suspension, an engine and a steering wheel. It still had plenty of intrinsic > value when I sold it in 2003 because it was sensibly engineered, easily > repaired, and built to last. There's no reason on earth why a vehicle like > that can't be made to run for 50 years or more, by an industrious owner. One > need only to look at Cuba to see how well a vehicle can be made to continue > running long past the day its "bluebook value" has expired. I find it > disheartening that society as a whole attached so little perceived value to > used vehicles, and that we're constantly mining & harvesting all the goods > it takes to build brand new ones, while perfectly serviceable vehicles are > being crushed & recycled due to cosmetic flaws, or the difference between > the cost of repairs and an insurance companies' willingness to part with the > necessary funding to effect same. "Oh, I'll have to take a salvage title if > I choose to take the 'totalled' value and pay the difference out of pocket > if I choose to repair my bumper, fender & right headlight assembly. Better > to have it crushed & buy brand new." WTF, Humans? > > And now, back to LED headlamp reviews -- I want a Stenlight for Xmas, > please. > > Chris. > > PS. Bonnie, Pete & Lee Jay: sure enjoyed caving with y'all at Punkin a > couple weeks ago. I felt privileged to be in the company of such a fine > group, and it was awesome racking up some virgin cave. Pics are slowly being > edited, and I'l post them to Flickr one of these days. > > > On Nov 25, 2008, at 12:30 PM, David wrote: > > Have you seen the 2009 Hummer Truck yet? >> >> How does $ 46,000 sound?That was the sticker >> price for the "Alpha version" that I saw sitting on the lot. >> ( The Alpha version has front and rear lockers ) >> >> It is slightly bigger than a mid-size truck. >> >> The 4x4 version has good ground clearance, but skid plates >> are not included. A fron
[Texascavers] Request for Caving Movie Footage
FYI in case anyone is interested in helping out. I know nothing about this outfit. Mark Minton Hello, My name is Alex Dove and I manage Big Imaginations, Inc. which is a children's education and entertainment company. We are creating an original series cartoon and puppet series and supplementing content with live-action video footage or still photos to help educate and entertain our audience. We have many different characters to assist children identify with them and also real-life situations. One of our goals is to educate kids on geology, geography, and caves. We are currently working with Mammoth Cave, Cave of the Mounds, and some other National Park cavern systems. We would absolutely love video footage of Mexican caves, cenotes, etc, including wildlife such as the bats that fly out, and possible footage from inside the sinkholes. Also of interest is the ecology of the environment, nature, wildlife, energy, transportation, natural resources and people interacting together. We understand that some of the areas in this request fall outside your area of expertise, however, we wanted you to know and understand wide reaching goals of ours in case you might know of other instances of footage which might be useful for us. 1. We want to educate and entertain children and families to show them about the effects of deforestation, human impact and other conditions which erode the existence of plants and animals on different geographical areas of our planet, and subsequently the inverse with the re-population of trees, plants, green energy, and healthy habitats for animals. 2. Teaching kids about the weather, what it is like, made of, how it comes about and the effects it has on plants, animals and the geography of our land. 3. Showing wildlife and animals in their natural habitats 4. Ocean wildlife and marine biology is important for children as well as trees, mountains, rivers and streams 5. Watching families interacting together is a primary interest for us as we desire to educate kids to interact with their families in a meaningful and nurturing way and to get outside into nature doing activities together, such as biking, boating, walking, swimming, camping, fishing, etc.. 6. Creating energy and the use of energy 7. Natural resources around the globe Our show concentrates on various topics such as: geography, animals and insects, weather, people and culture, and important facts and educational topics. All sorts of footage could be useful whether it is “green” or simply activities that people are doing together or shots of nature or animals. So, much like PBS and shows like Sesame Street, Electric Company, and Mister Rogers, which integrate live actors, animated cartoons, and puppets with live action video to help illustrate a learning example we are doing the same. We are doing much similar things with our show but a bit different as we are focusing on outdoor activities, nature and animals, and scholastic learning. Our show is working with professionals in the puppet, animation, and filming industry who have worked with Jim Henson's Muppets, Sesame Street, Wiggles, Big Comfy Couch, and other programs. We are interested in video footage of the world from nature shots in the U.S. and all over the world. We are working with various businesses, non-profits, associations, state and local offices as well as federal offices. We have collected footage from 25 U.S. states' Dept. of Tourism and are also working with some safari experts who travel the globe to gather footage of animals from Africa, Europe to South America and also under the ocean. This footage helps us educate and entertain children. Our interests are vast as we look to teach children about geography around the globe and here in the United States. Along with general geography we are focusing on animals in these areas. Plus, we hope to help inspire kids and families to be more active together whether hiking, swimming, rafting, or taking a walk together so teaching kids about these different areas and the animals and activities that are available will broaden their understanding of the world around them and hopefully get them out and participate. The footage we are interested in is broad and covers many different areas and geographies, but all focuses on nature and activities to get kids interested in active lifestyles. Much of the video footage we receive is either B-roll, on tape, or DVD. Some is raw footage but some is already edited. We would re-work the footage clips in post-production but require the rights to use in our shows? Our use would be to cut the video into segments and post-produce clips of various items together with sound and other animations. We have been documenting contributors’ contact information as a bibliographic credit reference to each instance we use their footage. I would gladly include any such reference to your organization as you see fit. Please let me know if you ne
[Texascavers] Stone's rebreather training event
In October, a week-long session was held in Austin for debugging and training with the new Poseiden rebreather based partly on Bill Stone's old Cis-Lunar MK5 design, in preparation for a planned expedition to J2 Cave in Oaxaca next spring. Cavers and cave-divers from many places attended; some of them were at TCR. There are a large number of photos of the goings-on at http://picasaweb.google.ru/GoldenMedia.1/J2BillStoneProject?authkey=BCw-1zEEedA# These are photos by Andrey Bizyukin. Captions are in Russian, but many of you will recognize people and places: a few TCR shots, some taken in my library, some at Stone's log house, some at some other house where a swimming pool was used, some at Lake Travis, and even a few at the Salt Lick and the Posse. Andrey is very fond of his fish-eye lens. -- Bill Mixon -- You may "reply" to the address this message came from, but for long-term use, save: Personal: bmi...@alumni.uchicago.edu AMCS: edi...@amcs-pubs.org or sa...@amcs-pubs.org - Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: texascavers-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: texascavers-h...@texascavers.com
[Texascavers] new Speleo Digest series editor
The Speleo Digest have been published since 1956, with the aim of reprinting and preserving the best material from local caving newsletters. It was started by the Pittsburgh Grotto and taken over by the NSS starting with the 1967 edition. It has fallen behind from time to time. I was series editor for a while back in the seventies and prepared a few of them myself. Currently, the most recent issue published is for 2003, which is a shame. It is a very big job to get one put together. Recent issues have been close to 600 pages of 3- column type and illustrations. Back when I was doing some, it was a typewriter, scissors, and paste job. But then they were shorter. Now it is easier per page, because most material can be scanned and OCRed, or even received from the original publisher in digital form. The most recently published issues sell for around $25, a good deal for such a fat book. They are sold to NSS members only. Go to caves.org, then bookstore, then Speleo Digests. Buy some to encourage the NSS to continue published them; if your grotto maintains a library, it certainly should have them. About 10 issues are in print. Emphasis is on cave descriptions and maps, but there are also sections for techniques articles, humor, etc. Below is announcement of a new series editor, to whom issues of newsletters should be send so that material can be considered for publication. I urge you to do so, so that the SD can continue to be _the_ library of American caves and caving. Also, of course, I'm sure the series editor would be happy to hear of any offers to edit and prepare one of the back issues or to help in any other way. Note that the new editor says that newsletter submissions have been dropping off in recent years. I imagine that's because issues haven't been coming out. Any editor can tell you that the way to get material is to publish regularly. I think grottos with newsletters have been being routinely informed by the Speleo Digest of what issues have been received, but it might not hurt to ask the new series editor what issues for 2004 and later he has--or just send the damn things, to make sure. --Bill Mixon + (Please circulate widely among cavers) After years of dedicated work shepherding the Speleo Digest series, Scott Fee is retiring from this task. At a recent NSS Board of Governors meeting it was decided that I would be taking over the duties from Scott. Scott has thankfully agreed to help me with this transition, which will greatly aid the process. I want to formally thank Scott for all the work he put in getting the Speleo Digests published and up to date and the many hours he spent making sure that every aspect of each printing was as perfect as it could be. So, to begin making this change, please submit all future newsletters to the following address: George Jaegers 3144 Ironwood Lane Allentown, PA 18103 Electronic submissions can be sent to: gjaeg...@cavingexpeditions.com According to Scott, the newsletter submissions for the Digest have been dropping off over the last few years, so if you are doing a newsletter for your grotto please consider sending it for a future Speleo Digest. I would like to thank everyone in advance for your participation in the creation of grotto newsletters and helping to make the future Speleo Digests successful publications. Don't be surprised if someday I come knocking looking for volunteer editors for future Digests. George Jaegers -- You may "reply" to the address this message came from, but for long-term use, save: Personal: bmi...@alumni.uchicago.edu AMCS: edi...@amcs-pubs.org or sa...@amcs-pubs.org - Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: texascavers-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: texascavers-h...@texascavers.com
[Texascavers] Testing Tequila
For those interested in tequila, Mexican scientists have found a relatively easy method to test whether tequila is actually produced and aged the way it is supposed to be. Cheers! Mark Minton - Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: texascavers-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: texascavers-h...@texascavers.com
[Texascavers] Fwd: Big Imaginations - video footage request
Forwarded by Bill Mixon Begin forwarded message: From: "Alex Dove" List-Post: texascavers@texascavers.com Date: November 27, 2008 12:11:27 AM CST To: Subject: Big Imaginations - video footage request Reply-To: Hello, My name is Alex Dove and I manage Big Imaginations, Inc. which is a children's education and entertainment company. We are creating an original series cartoon and puppet series and supplementing content with live-action video footage or still photos to help educate and entertain our audience. We have many different characters to assist children identify with them and also real-life situations. One of our goals is to educate kids on geology, geography, and caves. We are currently working with Mammoth Cave, Cave of the Mounds, and some other National Park cavern systems. We would absolutely love video footage of Mexican Caves and in Texas The Devil’s Sinkhole (and other caves/sinkholes that you support), the bats that fly out, and possible footage from inside the sinkhole. Also of interest is the ecology of the environment, nature, wildlife, energy, transportation, natural resources and people interacting together. We understand that some of the areas in this request fall outside your area of expertise, however, we wanted you to know and understand wide reaching goals of ours in case you might know of other instances of footage which might be useful for us. 1. We want to educate and entertain children and families to show them about the effects of deforestation, human impact and other conditions which erode the existence of plants and animals on different geographical areas of our planet, and subsequently the inverse with the re-population of trees, plants, green energy, and healthy habitats for animals. 2. Teaching kids about the weather, what it is like, made of, how it comes about and the effects it has on plants, animals and the geography of our land. 3. Showing wildlife and animals in their natural habitats 4. Ocean wildlife and marine biology is important for children as well as trees, mountains, rivers and streams 5. Watching families interacting together is a primary interest for us as we desire to educate kids to interact with their families in a meaningful and nurturing way and to get outside into nature doing activities together, such as biking, boating, walking, swimming, camping, fishing, etc.. 6. Creating energy and the use of energy 7. Natural resources around the globe Our show concentrates on various topics such as: geography, animals and insects, weather, people and culture, and important facts and educational topics. All sorts of footage could be useful whether it is “green” or simply activities that people are doing together or shots of nature or animals. So, much like PBS and shows like Sesame Street, Electric Company, and Mister Rogers, which integrate live actors, animated cartoons, and puppets with live action video to help illustrate a learning example we are doing the same. We are doing much similar things with our show but a bit different as we are focusing on outdoor activities, nature and animals, and scholastic learning. Our show is working with professionals in the puppet, animation, and filming industry who have worked with Jim Henson's Muppets, Sesame Street, Wiggles, Big Comfy Couch, and other programs. We are interested in video footage of the world from nature shots in the U.S. and all over the world. We are working with various businesses, non-profits, associations, state and local offices as well as federal offices. We have collected footage from 25 U.S. states' Dept. of Tourism and are also working with some safari experts who travel the globe to gather footage of animals from Africa, Europe to South America and also under the ocean. This footage helps us educate and entertain children. Our interests are vast as we look to teach children about geography around the globe and here in the United States. Along with general geography we are focusing on animals in these areas. Plus, we hope to help inspire kids and families to be more active together whether hiking, swimming, rafting, or taking a walk together so teaching kids about these different areas and the animals and activities that are available will broaden their understanding of the worl d around them and hopefully get them out and participate. The footage we are interested in is broad and covers many different areas and geographies, but all focuses on nature and activities to get kids interested in active lifestyles. Much of the video footage we receive is either B-roll, on tape, or DVD. Some is raw footage but some is already edited. We would re-work the footage clips in post- production but require the rights to use in our shows? Our use would be to cut the video into segments and post-produce clips of vario
texascavers Digest 28 Nov 2008 14:34:00 -0000 Issue 651
texascavers Digest 28 Nov 2008 14:34:00 - Issue 651 Topics (messages 9463 through 9475): book review: lava tubes 9463 by: Mixon Bill Re: kill you for the new Hummer Truck 9464 by: Don Arburn Re: Thank you! 9465 by: TM Raines Re: OT - the new Hummer Truck (TOP GEAR) 9466 by: Ted Samsel OT- 43 Dodge Carryall. 9467 by: Ted Samsel 9468 by: Fritz Holt Re: 15th ICS - the abstract deadline is MONDAY! 9469 by: germanyj.aol.com Cavern restaurants of the Caribbean : 9470 by: jerryatkin.aol.com Project to remove last vestiges of Aquarena Springs amusement park : 9471 by: jerryatkin.aol.com LED flashlight milestone 9472 by: David New Speleo Digest Series Editor 9473 by: Alex Sproul Re: OT - the new Hummer Truck 9474 by: Chris Vreeland 2008 DFWG Holiday Party 9475 by: John P. Brooks Administrivia: To subscribe to the digest, e-mail: To unsubscribe from the digest, e-mail: To post to the list, e-mail: -- --- Begin Message --- Caves of Fire: Inside America's Lava Tubes. Dave Bunnell. National Speleological Society, Huntsville, Alabama; 2008. ISBN 978-1-879961-31-9. 8.5 by 11 inches, 124 pages, softbound. $38 (NSS life members $34, other NSS $35). The bulk of this book describes and illustrates the many features that occur in lava tubes; a shorter final section discusses some of the lava tubes in Hawaii and the western states that are open to the public, mostly on self-guided tours. It is mainly a picture book, with just enough text to explain the many color photographs, an average of more than two per page. The reader will be struck by the variety of features in caves that have an undeserved reputation for being subway tunnels, especially the interesting, if fairly rare, lava formations and the striking colors of the lavas, though the colors may be less striking under a typical caver's light than in these well-lit photos. Dave Bunnell wins frequent awards in the NSS Photographic Salon, so it is no surprise that the quality of the photos is generally very good, despite the need to illustrate a large number of different subjects. Readers of the NSS News will recognize the editor's favorite font, but it was a poor one for a book on lava tubes, because it apparently doesn't contain the Hawaiian letter ʻokina (as in aʻa; Unicode 02BB). [It is possible your mail reader won't be able to cope with it either. It is sort of a comma raised and rotated 180 degrees.] A few of the photos show what look to me like unwanted artifacts of Photoshopping. But, overall, the book, which was prepared for printing by the author, is the nicest NSS book in years. The price is reasonable for a book all in color, and the reader will learn a lot about a type of cave unfamiliar to many.—Bill Mixon -- You may "reply" to the address this message came from, but for long-term use, save: Personal: bmi...@alumni.uchicago.edu AMCS: edi...@amcs-pubs.org or sa...@amcs-pubs.org --- End Message --- --- Begin Message --- Amen brother! Sent from my iPhone On Nov 25, 2008, at 7:28 PM, Gill Ediger wrote: Running scarred of the unknown is an unwarranted and undignified activity; there is, however, no really workable substitute for using good judgement and being careful. Bad luck, on the other hand, can only be viewed as providential. Say your prayers. --Ediger --- End Message --- --- Begin Message --- Great George, And don't forget Jon Cradit and family who came out the day before and stuffed quite a few issues. Soon, Terry On Nov 24, 2008, at 7:10 PM, George Veni wrote: I learned today that after this weekend’s Spring Creek Cave trip, the team went to Terry Raines’ and finished inserting the UIS brochures into the December issue of the NSS News. The word I have is that they had fun doing, telling deep caving tales while in the production line, and were fed a delicious lunch courtesy of Mercy Raines. My thanks to: Charlie Emerson Jim Jasek Mimi Jasek Bill Steele Ellie Theone Diana Tomchick as well to Terry and Mercy, plus Ernie Garza and anyone else who may have helped earlier. George --- End Message --- --- Begin Message --- Any of you get BBCAmerica? I like TOPGEAR.. with Jeremy Clarkson, James May & Richard Hammond. http://www.topgear.com/us/the_show/ It would be interesting for them to do their ratings of vehicles other than Lamborghinis, Fiat Pandas, etc. Say, have them dismantle a UNIMOG or summat. It's no secret that Ford's new F-150 SVT Raptor is a seriously capable off-road truck; when we got a ride in it earlier this month it was clear after a few 100 mph, speed-limiter-slamming runs through the desert that Ford didn't skimp on the truck's durability. Or speed. Even so, it surprised some
[Texascavers] 2008 DFWG Holiday Party
> Metroplex Cavers, > > Its that time of year again.dig those white elelphant gifts out of the > closetand plan on attending the DFWG Holiday Party. > > The details: > > December 13, 2008 > > 7:30 pm until 1:00 am > > 6879 Avalon Avenue > Dallas, Texas 75214 > > 214.320.0166 > > What to bring ? > > BYOB. > Potluck food ( wouldn¹t it be nice if everyone cooked their favorite holiday > dish?) > Pictures of of your latest caving adventures ( we will have a slide projector > and digital projector ) > Tales of daring, heroic trips > and don¹t forgetbring a white elephant gift to recycle through the > grotto > > THE RULES: > > 1. All white elephant gifts brought or received must be removed from the > premises after the party. We will keep a list of who is naughty and nice > 2. Please do not park in the yard. > 3. Friends or relatives recently released from prison or mental hospitals are > encouraged to attend the Bexar Grotto Holiday party. > 4. All Metroplex and Texas cavers are invited; however the formation of new > Grottoes at the party is strictly prohibited. > 5. Please drink responsibly and designate a driver. > 6. Objects with large steel wheels should not be rolled around inside of the > house. >
[ot_caving] GM, Ford, Chrysler - the exec. jet story
Can you believe those 3 morons who flew their private jet to D.C. to ask for a 25 billion dollar loan? They should be immediatley fired for their stupidity. Their jets should be confisicated and sold on e-Bay. That is like me driving a Lamborghini to the Food Stamp office asking for a life membership. The next time an executive pulls such a stunt, they should ride the Greyhound, or go on horseback and buggy. Can't the government use Eminent Domain to take over these crappy companies and clean house? They could start by putting a moratorium on the Corvette, the Dodge Viper, the Ford GT, The Cobra Mustang, and close all the plants that manufacture V8 engines, that don't use fuel saving technologies. They should scrap the V10 engine, until it can be proven to be environmentally friendly. Do any of you miss Oldsmobile? You won't miss GM either, or Ford or Chrysler. ( I do miss International Harvester ) Chrysler needs to let Jeep go. Jeep should be an independant company for off-road enthusiast, not a corporate subsidized imitiation of what Jeep should be. For example, imagine the horror if Harley Davidison was a division of GM. David Locklear - Give this to a friend: ot-subscr...@texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: ot-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: ot-h...@texascavers.com
[ot_caving] Prez-elect Obama
Did you hear Obama is sending his kids to a privileged private academy? What do you think? On one hand it would be easy to say that is hypocritical especially since he campaigned on "CHANGE." It could be argued that his decision reflects his credibility. On the other hand, having a prez kid in a public school might be a distraction to the other kids, his kids and also his ability to focus on being president. I believe our founding fathers intended for poor kids to receive a few years of basic education covering only the 3 R's. I am certain they never intended on kids going to school year round from the age of 6 to 18, and taking a wide variety of courses at the expense of the taxpayer. Although I enjoy learning Spanish, I am very against taxpayers paying for kids to be required to take a foreign language elective and I am especially against the cult of education that believes the european Spanish is the correct Spanish to teach. What I am saying is it is a complete waste of taxpayer money to teach a kid who has little desire to learn the aspects of castillean Spanish when they will never ever have a need to use it in their life. I have a close cousin who is a Spanish Professor and when I told her this, she vowed to never speak to me again. I believe the troubled kids in our inner city schools who are likely to end up spending most of their lives in minimum wage jobs or worse - in jail, need a different kind of education. They don't need to learn Shakespeare.They need to be taught how to work and how to pay taxes. Imagine the taxpayer money that was spent sending a kid thru 12 years of school only for him to end up with a life sentence in prison. Anyways, our public school system is a complete failure. It appears the schools in D.C. may be some of the worst.I went thru the Texas public system in the 70's in South Oak Cliff suburb of Dallas. It was a rough school, and it is a miracle that I didn't end up dead from enhaling spray-paint fumes in plastic sacks as that was what most elementary schoold kids did with their spare time. I can't imagine Obama's kids being forced to go thru the horrific school system that I attend there in South Oak Cliff. If they were to attend a public school, it might force the lazy administrators to clean up the system. The Republicans can't say much on this issue, because they would never conceive of sending their kids to a public school. My only beef is so far, I see no CHANGE from Obama, just the same old crap that has been going on in D.C. since the 1700's. Will his new cabinet give us the HOPE that he says he wants to give us. I would not be surprised if a number of factors were considered for their decision. Such as the need to have both girls near each other, so the Secret Service could better protect them. They probably also needed a flexible school that would allow a tutor to travel with the prez family so the kids didn't have to always be in the class room. It may have also been easier for the Secret Service to cordon off a small school versus a big easily accessible campus. So I am not going to hold it against Obama. And it might have been completely his wifes' decision. David Locklear - Give this to a friend: ot-subscr...@texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: ot-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: ot-h...@texascavers.com
[ot_caving] Re: reply to post about the car topic
Speaking of bottle openers, Academy Store ( in the boat section ) sells an old fashioned bottle opener that can be attached just about anywhere.It is stainless steel and has 2 holes for inserting screws. - Give this to a friend: ot-subscr...@texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: ot-unsubscr...@texascavers.com For additional commands, e-mail: ot-h...@texascavers.com
