Casualties of Modern Technology (10 of 12)- The Station Wagon

Given sky-rocketing gas prices and concerns that oil barons in Dubai are getting wealthy at American motorist's expense, one of the few areas where the right and left agree here in the United States, the station wagon is clearly a highway dinosaur, though I did spot one in a rural part of North Carolina several weeks ago.

The station wagon, according to Wikipedia, is an automobile that has a sedan/saloon with its roof extended. The vehicle also consists of of a three-box design or 'an auto with one or more rows of folding or removable seats behind the driver.'

The car was first developed in 1922, and the full-size station wagon, including the Ford Country Squire, hit the highways in 1967. But, the decline of the station wagon started in the 1970s as its gas-guzzling reputation made motorists opt for more economical imports, such as cars from Toyota.

But, the Wagon Queen Family Truckster, made especially for the Chevy Chase 'vehicle' (pardon the pun) "National Lampoon's Vacation" (1983) helped keep some station wagons on the road until the end of the Reagan administration.

Station wagons were also quite popular at drive-ins, especially for features that were more family friendly such as "Old Heavenly Dog" (1979), which also starred Chase.

One drive-in theatre which has made a successful comeback is the Hull's Drive-In in Lexington, Va., the country's only non-profit drive-in. From Friday night until Sunday night, Hull's will screen a double-header consisting of "John Carter" and "Wrath of the Titans."

Other drive-ins which are active include the Highway 21 Drive-In in Beaufort, SC, one of the very last remaining drive-ins in South Carolina. It is screening "Battleship" and "Think Like a Man" on screen one; while "The Avengers" and "Dark Shadows" show on screen two.

Further down south, the Starlight Drive-In in Atlanta, one of the very few drive-ins with six screens, is showing several double-headers, including "Think Like a Man" and "21 Jump Street" on screen one.

While out west, 88 Drive-In in Commerce City, Colo., which is the Denver metro area's only drive-in venue will show "The Avengers" and "John Carter."

http://www.cinematreasures.org

http://www.hullsdrivein.com

http://www.hwy21drivein.com

http://www.88drivein.com

http://www.starlightdrivein.com

NCAA Gymnastics Preview_ Kat Ding of Georgia

The University of Georgia Gym Dawgs team is back in contender mode this year thanks in large part to Kat Ding, a senior from Sparks, Nev.

Ding was named SEC Gymnast of the Week on Feb. 14 for her 39.550 performance in a win over Arkansas. In that meet, Ding finished first on bars with a 9.95 and she tied for first on vault with a 9.9 during the meet with the Razorbacks.

Ding was also featured in the "Faces in the Crowd" section of "Sports Illustrated" (Feb. 27th issue). Ding also scored another 39.550 in a win over Kentucky.

Other gymnasts for the fifth-ranked Gym Dawgs, which will be vital as the team hosts the NCAAs in Gwinnett, Ga., (an Atlanta suburb some 45 miles from the UGA campus in Athens), are Gino Nuccio, Shayla Worley and Noel Couch.

Quote from Shakespeare_We'll Keep it Short

Hmmm... quoting William Shakespeare a collective ten times on two blogs during this month of December was not a very bright idea, but we like to finish things we have started; the image above is from an early film version of "Hamlet."

Here is our latest quip from the Bard:

"Absence from those we love is self from self-banishment."

While researching this post, we learned that the Georgia Shakespeare theatre company in Atlanta is seeking funds to keep operations up. On Dec. 16th and 17th, they will host a holiday cabarte entitled "Cocoa and Cards." Both performances start at 7:00 p.m., and we wish them well.

SIDEBAR: Amazingly enough, we had no idea that today would have been Mexican artist Diego Garcia's 125th birthday when we quoted him yesterday. Today, a painting by Rivera, who was Frida Kahlo's romantic partner, was used as Google's doodle.

Bonus Silly Photo to Fill Space- Ayran

Today, we feature ayran, the yogurt milk beverage that is very popular in my late father's country Turkey. An Istanbul taxi driver named Atilla Kalkan gave me the recipe back in 2008. Alas, efforts to find him on Facebook failed (though there are a lot of Atilla Kalkans out there!).

One can find ayran at Harmony Market in Cary, NC (Raleigh, Phone: 1-919-380-0077) along with other Turkish food items with the noteable exception of raki (the Turkish version of the greek spirit ouzo) as they do not have an ABC license.

For our friends in Georgia, ayran should be available at Bereket Turkish Grocery in Atlanta (phone: 770-613-9950), where one can also get a Cola Turka...a Turkish cola beverage which once featured commercials with Chevy Chase! (Yes, that is true).

One can not find ayran at Texas Tavern in my hometown of Roanoke, Va., though it can be found (if you ask) at Arzu International, which is also downtown. So, if you are inclined to have a cheesy western at Texas Tavern for breakfast (a scarmbled egg sandwich with a hamburger pattie and cheese, ask your doctor before eating!) and Izmir kofte (lamb dish which unlike cheesy westerns does NOT cause heart attacks) for lunch at Arzu then the Star City is the place to be!

NOTE: Ayran was one of the items listed on my Christmas wish list. Of course, this is ironic because Turkey is a Muslim country and I actually prefer Festivus over all religious holidays. The beverage can also be purchased online in the United States (and perhaps Canada) from tulumba.com in New York.