During Thanksgiving, I spent that week and weekend in California. Yeah… Talk about a crazy time to fly out there with Sept. 11th and all. Strange thing enough, with all the National Guard security at the airport, it was quicker to leave the NYC Metro area than it was getting back from LAX. LAX’s security was just too nuts. I literally went through Newark airport in 30 minutes to the gate. 3 hours early, since I planned 2 hours ahead plus one as the FAA suggests. Ugh! Funniest thing was when the National Guard asks passengers carrying waterbottles to drink it in front of them. I almost busted out laughing when he said, “let me see you swallow! swallow it!” LOL!

Anyhow, Caroline Chaing, who also works for Johnson & Johnson (but internally transferred to Neutrogena) invited me over to stay over Thanksgiving since she was staying out there and coming to see family during xmas break. She was an extremely great hostess, and we also met up with a few other Johnson & Johnson folk out there.

I arrived the day before Thanksgiving, dead tired, and United Airlines sux ass. I can see why my tickets were so cheap. The mean was so bad, that I’d rather eat my old high school cafeteria food. I was starvin so much on the trip. Dammit no snacks or penuts either. Good thing for the alcohol. Got 2 minibottles of Johnny Walker Black which help me sleep. Yeesh! Anyhow Caroline picked me up at the airport and brought me to her apt. Pretty sweet. Right in Santa Monica.

Anyhow, on Thanksgiving Day (daytime and afternoon), Caroline and I went to a joint church sponsored event where we were serving food for the needy. They had planned to serve 3,000 people that day, not only with food, but with entertainment (tyco drummers, and a marachi band). We signed up for drink duty serving coffee and juice. In was a really great experience. Although we didn’t get the 3,000 people, we did serve 1,500 and got back many thank-you’s and smiles. It was a really great feeling.

Michelle Wilson and her boyfriend Jarred cooked Thanksgiving dinner for us… Notice that ring? She just got engaged the day before Thanksgiving!

The Dinner was for all Johnson & Johnson peeps in the IMLDP program in California, With the exception of Caroline’s friend Alex (First chair on the right)

I also met up with a few old Yonsei people who went to UCLA, and chilled with them.

Alright, you guys know about my story previously of my car dying on the George Washington Bridge during rushour a few weeks back. Last night my car hit 70,000 miles. After doing some research I found out that the life expectancy of my car is only 82,000-85,000 miles, and since I put 10,000 miles in about 4 months, that means I got till February before I can anticipate my car dying completely.

Here’s stuff on the list to look for:
@ 68,000 miles+
- head gaskets fail (known defect but ford will only replace ’94+ models only)
@ 79,000 miles+
- radiator dies
- headtor core busts
by 82,000 miles-85,000 miles
- transmission failure (engine completely blows out)
- rotor failures

Recalls on the car:
1992-95 models w/3.8 Liter V6 – Cruise control cable could freeze due to water in cable, preventing the driver from disengaging cruise control. Recall limited to cold-weather states. Have dealer install cable boot to prevent water from entering the cable.

1993 models with antilock brakes – Incorrect parts may have been installed. Only affects 212 cars with a build date in Jan. 1993. Have dealer install correct parts.

1992-95 models – Snow could block engine cooling fan and make it overheat, creating a possible fire hazard. Recall limited to AK, IA, MN, NE, ND, and SD. Have dealer install harness with circuit breaker.

Gee, I have a lot to look forward to. Does anyone have any friends in a Honda, Toyota, Nissan or Subaru dealership? I want a Japanese car, something that won’t need much than an oil change!
I’ve been looking at a fully loaded Honda Accord Coupe, Toyota Camry, Nissan Maxima, or the Subaru WRX.

Ford Sux!