Schumacher will race again

After the injury that happened to Felipe Massa on July 25 in Hungary, Michael Schumacher is preparing for the upcoming European Grand Prix as he emerges from his nearly three-year retirement to replace Massa for the rest of the season. Me and my husband are both excited to watch Schumacher race again for the Ferrari, but we do hope that Massa will recover well.

I don't watch F1 but since hubby likes to watch F1, I became a fan. Sometimes I wish I could drive a car as fast as an F1 race car driver like having a supercharger in my car. I don't have to own a Ferarri, but a car with a pontiac supercharger will at least quench my thirst for speed.

It would really be an exciting F1 race for Schumi and although he is not allowed to use Ferrari's F60 car before the European Grand Prix in Valencia on August 23, he is in top condition to get back on the race track and this is one race I will make sure not to miss.

when it rains it pours

It happened to me again. When it rains, it pours and not only does it happen with blessings. Sometimes it happens with trials and challenges also. As our phone line had no dial tone last week and no repair man was in sight, we had to go to the house of my in laws so that I can work. They had good internet connection and all I had to bring was my laptop computer. It was quite a long drive going there and as we were on our way, our car air conditioning failed. It was really hot that day, so we had to travel all the way to Valenzuela City from our place without cool air. Even if we opened the windows, it was still hot. But I guess good things still happen to good people because a neighbor of my in laws who was a mechanic was there when we arrived. He also has a small auto mechanic shop and he has the parts that our car needed. In fact, he also now has diesel parts, air conditioning compressor and more. Our car's air conditioning was repaired before we went home two days after. And as the challenges came one after another, the solutions to these challenges came with the help of some really good people. Apparently after six days of waiting, our phone line was repaired and it was such a relief. It was quite difficult for us without the internet connection and I can work from home again.

Sometimes my first reaction when something goes wrong is to be irritated or annoyed, but thinking about the past week, it made me think that sometimes I just really have to wait and be patient to be able to think clearly on what I can do about the problem, rather than being a problem myself. ; )

road mishap

It was unfortunate that my brother had a motor vehicle accident the other day wherein a motorcycle hit him on the driver's side. It happened when my brother was turning left when suddenly this motorcycle came from nowhere and apparently was trying to cut in. The impact was quite hard because it had left a deep dent on the door that he was not able to open it. If there is any consolation though, no one was seriously hurt.

The damage was unsightly and it will be unsafe for him to drive the car at all. His insurance company had suggested a specific repair shop, which according to them is one of the best in the area and is affiliated with a Los Angeles Auto Body repair shop. The necessary repairs are currently being completed and much to our relief, the door does not need to be replaced. We have yet to see the new paint job though, but at this point my brother is quite satisfied with their technical expertise.

Motorcycle accidents are becoming apparent in the roads nowadays wherein 2,092 accidents were reported, of which 51 had fatalities, in the first five months of the year alone. It is a fact that they have the right to use the road, but they have to be careful too. Swerving, driving on the curb and sidewalks, and basically ignoring lane partitions are what causes a rise in the incidence of road mishaps involving two-wheeled transport. If these motorists will follow traffic rules and regulations, then the number of accidents will not reach such a worrisome level.

the power to upgrade

I really wonder what's with men and the need to update or upgrade their gadgets. My hubby and I had a discussion about his DSLR camera. He wanted to buy another lens which is so expensive, and I told him that it's going to be the last big purchase that he will have for his camera for an indefinite period of time.

Now he is thinking about installing a vw turbocharger in the car - whatever that is. He said that the turbocharger can markedly improve horsepower, torque and more by forcing air into the system. I asked about fuel consumption and he rhetorically answered that more air means more fuel can be put in because there is more power from each explosion into each cylinder.

So what does the wife has to say about this? He has to choose one and it's either the new lens or the vw turbocharger for the car. He is still thinking about it. ; )

BYD E6 Electric Dreams

With the prices of fuel going up and our ozone layer continually thinning, I think it's about time to look into the green car market. An electric car is a type of alternative fuel car that utilizes electric motors and motor controllers instead of an internal combustion engine (ICE). The electric power is usually derived from battery packs in the vehicle. In general terms, an electric car is a rechargeable battery electric vehicle.

BYD, which stands for Build Your Dreams, is a Chinese manufacturer that produces many of the world’s cellphone batteries and is planning to begin selling in the United States an electric crossover vehicle with a 250-mile range and a plug-in hybrid vehicle. It started selling a smaller version of the plug-in hybrid in China last month, almost two years before the Chevrolet Volt is scheduled to go on sale, and a year before Toyota says it will introduce a plug-in vehicle.

BYD has introduced the BYD E6 electric car at the Beijing International Auto Show. It takes the shape of a crossover, or MPV, and will be built on on the F6's platform. E6 will be a 5 seater with an acceleration of 0 to 100 kph of around 10 seconds. Top speed should be top speed of 160 kph (100 mph), and the battery pack, which is located under the rear passenger seats, will be based on BYD's own lithium-ion iron phosphate technology. Range per charge is expected to be 300 km (186 miles). BYD projected the battery had a life of 2,000 cycles, for a lifetime range of about 600,000 km (373,000 miles).

I hope that this does not remain as a concept and that we would definitely see production of this type of car. As with any new technology that requires mass uptake by the public to succeed, there is a great incentive to convince people that electric cars are a good thing.

Drive My Car, Lady Heart

Actually it is not MY car, but our family's car. Jeff and I were contemplating about getting a new car and as we go along the conversation, we can't help but reminisce about our old car's younger years. This is Lady Heart, a 1989 Mitsubishi Lancer EL acquired by my brother in 2004. It was his first car, and eventually when he bought a new car, he had to sell her. Dahil sa sentimental value, Jeff and I opted to buy it from him, at least we are still the owners. The name Lady Heart came from Kristine Hermosa's DJ name in the teleserye Pangako Sa 'Yo and we chose it as a pet name for the car among choices like Amor Powers, Yna or Madam Buenavista. Marami ng pinagdaanan ang pamilya namin kasama si Lady Heart...pagaayos ng papers, when we were preparing for our wedding, pamamasyal, getting me to the hospital when I was about to give birth, charity works, etc. , from good times to hard times. She even survived a ride by Ces...hehehe. It was where Joaqui first learned the word "car." It was with her that I learned to drive. If ever, letting her go would be difficult for Jeff and I. For one, never nya kaming itinirik sa gitna ng daan...yung tipong nakaka-tense na situation. We never had a flat tire with her sa gitna ng isang busy road or highway. We never had one accident with Lady Heart (knock on wood)...well, I also owe this to my husband's safe driving. She is one of the unsung heroes in our lives. Kung ikukumpara ko nga si Lady Heart sa tao, para syang isang matapat na employee. She has provided good service to all of us and if ever she decides to retire, nakakalungkot. She maybe quite old, but with a good care from my husband, she has surpassed a lot of cars her age. Our conversation of buying a new car always ends up in a hope that somehow, we could always keep her. Who knows, if she stays long enough, she might be Joaqui's first car.