Best Of

I've noticed too, that some of those old childhood favorite shows are hard to revisit nowadays. The old saying, "You can't go home again" really rings true. With "The Beverly Hillbillies," I can still watch the first three seasons, which were in black and white. To me, it still manages to feel a bit fresh and edgy. But once it went to color, it just seemed like it was getting stale, tired, and repetitive. And more corny, than edgy.

And I agree that with "Green Acres," it could often come off as stupid. Yet at the same time, there was still a sort of comic genius behind that stupidity, that managed to make it work. I think most tv shows lose their charm over time, so that by the time they're canceled, it's almost like a mercy killing. But I think "Green Acres" degraded less from start to finish than "The Beverly Hillbillies" did.

I think "Leave it to Beaver" has stood the test of time, though. But I think that's because, for the most part, it didn't try too hard to be trendy or preachy. There was very little slapstick. It was mostly just childhood stories about growing up, and learning lessons along the way. Most of the story lines could be re-used today, although there would just be more cussing and sexual innuendo.

Thanks for thinking of me with that '58 Packard, but no thanks! LOL

I don't mind the 'pod' headlights, as I think (accent on 'think') Mercury and Dodge may have done something remotely similar....but I DETEST the fin-on-top-of-a-fin at the rear of the '58 Packard!

I do like the glassy roofline on hardtop coupes.

On a different subject, my local donut shop has had color episodes of "The Beverly Hillbillies" on lately.

Today, there was a striking light green metallic '67 Imperial convertible that pulled away from the Clampett mansion, upon which Miss Hathaway's often-seen bright red '65 Dodge Coronet 500 convertible pulls up.

I know that show was a very big hit in its day, and as a kid I liked it, but sheesh, it hasn't aged well. I have a hard time thinking of a dumber sitcom, when I watch it today.

"Green Acres" was dumb, but it was dumb almost with a wink and a nod!

This is my 6 month review of my 2024 new to me Toyota Crown Platinum. I have only put a few thousand miles on it and now has about 14K miles. It is very refined, quiet, comfortable and thus far reliable (it would be a giant surprise if it was not). The hybrid max power train has plenty of power and my mileage has been right around 30 mpg with at least 50% around town driving. I do notice a very slight shudder when accelerating from a stop but the otherwise is silky smooth for a 4 cyl and the 6 spd auto shifts seamlessly.
The seats are comfortable and the cabin quiet. I find the JBL audio pretty good but not great.

However there are some negatives. The interior is too plasticky. But I find that on almost all cars I ride in.
I was very unimpressed with my BIL's girlfriends Audi Q5 interior as well. I think the Genesis interiors look very upscale and probably would be driving a used G70 with the 3.3 turbo right now if it had a spare tire.

While washing the car about a month ago I noticed the 3rd middle brake light was crooked. It turns out the light fell out of its cheap plastic housing because the cheap plastic tabs that hold it in were deformed possibly from the heat of the sun. That bracket should have been metal with metal tabs. I managed to snap it back but I am not confident it will not happen again.

I also wish the AC was a little stronger and that the vents would direct air as well as the ones in my 2006 Silverado work truck. That system works much better especially now that I had the system recharged this summer for the first time in 19 years.

The infotainment works pretty well but the electronic nannies are a pain. The cross traffic alert sounds way too often and it will never let you forget that your seat belt is unbuckled with a fast paced obnoxious dinging. Also I like to drive with my left hand at the top of the steering but my arm often gets in the way of the sensor that looks at my eyes resulting in an annoying message to keep my eyes on the road. Also when I lock the car it sometimes beeps once, sometimes twice and sometimes 3 times. I have no idea what that is about. The problem with these technically complicated cars is that you don't know if it is operating as intended, there is something not right, or that I am not knowledgeable enough about it and am doing something wrong.

I do like the overhead camera display, The adaptive cruise and other aspects of the car. All in all I do like it and recognize all vehicles have there good and bad characteristics.