Is Toyota the new Pinto?

As a (happy) Toyota owner I feel the urge to chime in on the recent spate of news involving the Toyota recalls. I have owned three Toyota Corollas in my life. My very first car was a little red used one which I bought in 1981 for $1000. My next used Corolla was blue and bought from the original owner with insurance proceeds from a demolished Hyundai. And my current one which I bought new in 2006. Luckily, it is not one of the many models involved in the current recall. Even more lucky, is the fact that I have not had one problem with my '06 Corolla.

Well, actually, a funny thing happened the first day we got it home. And it actually involved a faulty floor mat, but it was completely my fault. Every Toyota I have ever driven has been a manual transmission which requires the pressing down of the clutch before the ignition will engage. After getting the car home I installed my old floor mats and without realising the minuscule depth of clutch pressure prohibited by the floor mat I was unable to get the car started. After several calls to the dealer, the salesman actually came to my house and disconnected the security system and took the car back to the dealer only to have the more astute repair man discover that it was the floor mat all along. Oops. Today it is nearly four years old and has barely 22K miles, and I am hoping to drive it for another ten or fifteen years (*knocks on wood*).

I have complete sympathy for those folks who do own models in the recall. I can't imagine feeling afraid every time you must drive to work or have to strap a young child in one. I can't imagine having to struggle to make that monthly payment to Toyota Financial Services while wondering if you're paying off a death-trap. It's got to be scary and frustrating. I believe Toyota Corp.'s initial anemic response has added greatly to the frustrations of its customers. And that is unfortunate.

I used to be much more brand loyal. Toyota; Levi's; Doc Martens; But ultimately it is the quality represented by the brand not the name itself. I think Toyota may have got a little too big too fast but I do not think they deserve the entirety of blame. Part of their rapid success was built upon the sale of the hybrid Prius® which was fueled by the public demand for more energy efficient vehicles. A demand that American automakers are only beginning to respond to. Honda and Toyota have been the front runners in this movement toward fuel-efficient vehicles for many years already.

Ford survived the Pinto. Chevrolet survived the Corvair. If Toyota is to survive the current recall it will be born of superior customer service and return to a quality product that people will trust in again. I think the trust and brand loyalty runs deep in most Toyota owners. That loyalty and trust would be the most tragic loss for the company. However, still incomparable to those who sadly have lost much more.

Blind Boys of Alabama - I shall not walk alone

Winter Pause

The truth is that in this very moment of deepest winter with all its paradox and juxtaposition, of frosty rooftop mornings, fuzzy magnolia buds and daffodil bulbs yet to burst forth with color and ever new life, that I can be in winter pause and know another spring lies just ahead; that bitterness melts into a caress. The truth is that at this very moment we know - all we are, all we can become and all we might never be. And as I contemplate my deepest, darkest fears, I watch for temperate signs of spring, of hope for a kind renewal and the assurance of perennial love. (c) 2010


artwork: Windflowers by Godward

Live Birds (not Byrds)

Boursier-Mougenot creates a walk-though aviary for a flock of zebra finches, furnished with electric guitars and other musical instruments. As the birds go about their routine activities, perching on or feeding from the various pieces of equipment, they create a captivating, live soundscape.

MLK Day 2010

I got the photos uploaded of my peach cobbler and of the birds enjoying my homemade suet pine cone. Decided to give them a post of their own.



I have had such a good time making this and then watching the birds enjoy it and flit about the Bradford Pear Tree where they naturally come for the red berries at this time of year.




I can't wait to make another one.

Happy New Year! Didn't go anywhere, didn't do anything, didn't buy the t-shirt and had a wonderful time.

The job search continues but I am really enjoying many domestic moments. Yesterday I made a homemade suet pine cone for the birds outside my window. And today I am making a homemade peach cobbler. The smells of cinnamon and fruit baking and warming the house even brought the reclusive man-child out of his cave and video game haze.

I've been reading too much internet blogs and articles and not writing enough, at least that's what those nagging voices tell me. I realise I don't have an easy time talking about myself and an especially difficult time trying to sell myself. That is the hardest part of job-hunting for me.

On the other hand, it seems there is a whole new generation (at least in the online personas I've been reading) where there is no shortage of people who have an extraordinary ability to do just that - sell themselves. There is a whole online community of self-promoters and I really can't see that they're offering anything more than they want to teach me to become a self-promoter too. I've tried to find some value in them as I am always looking for ways of self-improvement but seriously they all seem to be touting this message of snake-oil charm - "You too can have all this, great looks, great health, great smile and hair, make more money than you ever have all for just $1200 I can send you my secrets in ten easy lessons..." Where is the substance. Where is the nugget of truth?

Maybe it is a generational thing. I was born in the early sixties when children were incidental, meant to serve their parents own ends, seen and not heard. By the late sixties and early seventies a shift occurred in parenting styles for many. More liberal minded parents began to make the child a central figure, children were given more liberties, they were often treated as equals and only received positive reinforcement. And I'm not arguing against any of these parenting methods per se but now that generation is entering their late 30s and early 40s and they seem to be vapid, self-absorbed nincompoops who have mastered nothing more that recycling old cliches and creating new buzz words.

It can be hard to keep one's focus with all of that chatter going on and I know that I AM my best coach.