Author Archives: mikeodom73

Things to check when planning a road trip

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A Few of the Essentials

When you are planning to take your car on a road trip cross-country, a little planning and foresight is necessary. Since you will be driving your car to a destination that may be unfamiliar to you, it pays well to get your car looked at to see that it is not only roadworthy, but also to give you peace of mind that you have done your best to make sure that your car won’t suddenly cough and sputter and just roll over and die on the side of the road somewhere. You’ll need to check things such as the Landing Leg Safety Equipment, oil levels and even tire tread. Don’t set off before checking any of these things.

Check your tires

why you need long distance driving services

Take a penny and slide it in the grooves. If the grooves are not deep enough to bury the penny up to half its height, your tires are too worn to survive a cross-country road trip. Change your tires. Some people check the tires that are attached to the car but they forget to check the spare tire that’s sitting in the trunk of the car. You also have to get that checked to see if it has proper tire pressure and if it is not too worn down. Nothing is more annoying than to get a flat tire and to learn that the spare tire in the trunk is also flat. You won’t be able to limp your way to the nearest service station. Worse, an unexpected expense like this can upset your road trip plans.

Check the fluids

Check the oil. Better yet, get an oil change. Change the oil filter and check the air filter. These things keep particulates from accumulating in the oil making it too thick and viscous that it won’t lubricate the engine properly.

If you are in the habit of getting a periodic oil change, then all you have to do is to ensure that you have enough motor oil. Locate the dipstick. Take it out and wipe it clean. Then put the dipstick back in and take it back out. You will see the level of oil in the engine. There is usually two indicators for minimum and maximum.

By checking the oil, you will also see if it is clear or murky and filmy. Clear oil means it is still clean and thus, your car engine is in good working order. When the oil is dark or murky, chances are, you need an oil change. When there is a whitish film on the oil – that means water has mixed with in with the oil and that could spell major trouble.

Check your emergency car supplies

Make sure that in your emergency kit in the car. Don’t just pack a first aid kit. Also pack in a can of motor oil, a can of automatic transmission fluid and a can of brake fluid. It just might save your car and save you a headache while on the road. It also will not hurt to have an empty gas can in the trunk just in case you run out of gas and you need to hike to the gas station you just passed to purchase enough gas to drive back to the gas station and fill up. And if you are going by truck, consider getting a truck bed cover manufactured by companies like Peragon. A retractable tonneau cover can properly protect all your belongings.

Make sure you pack a flashlight with extra batteries. Make sure you have your reflectorized early warning device (you should have a pair) to put in front of and in back of your car as you are stalled on the road. Make sure you have a fire extinguisher in case of engine or fuel fire. Pack some flares in case you are in real trouble and someone is badly injured.

Make sure that the pliers, a screw driver, lug wrench, cross wrench and jack are all in the trunk and they are all in good working condition. You never know when you might need it. Also, a set of jumper cables can help you get your car started if your battery suddenly dies on you.

Check all your lights

Check your headlights, signal lights and tail lights. Make sure that your front and rear windshield wipers are working properly. Check to see that the utility light in the trunk and the map light in the car are also working. Checking the windshield wipers and sprinklers will ensure that visibility on the road is maintained.

You do not want to be pulled over and issued a traffic ticket for broken or faulty lights. You also might want to get your car battery checked as these lights depend upon battery power when you use them. You also will not enjoy sitting in your car on the side of the road in the dead of night being eaten alive by mosquitoes as you wait for a tow truck because your battery is drained.

If you don’t have time to check all this out, and make the appropriate changes before your trip, I recommend and have has great success traveling with long distance transportation companies. One in particular I like and have worked with before you can find here: http://www.longdistancedrivingservices.com/. It’s kinda a last minute resort, if you can’t fly or drive yourself. But it’s a fun experience, and you get to be on the road.

That’s all for now. Have fun!

Preventive Car Maintenance: Keeping your car roadworthy

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Roadworthiness is a driver’s basic obligation

If you’ve had a decent driver’s education, you would know that it is the car owner’s responsibility to maintain the roadworthiness of the car he drives. Driving a car is not a right, it is a privilege. Only persons who can fulfil the obligations required by law for operating a vehicle are given a license to drive. Keeping a car roadworthy is one such obligation of car ownership and car operation. A person cannot just keep driving his car until it falls apart in the middle of the road. A car’s registration is periodically renewed as this is the opportunity for government agencies such as the Department of Motor Vehicles to determine a car’s roadworthiness.

Maintaining roadworthiness benefits the driver

Maintaining your car is beneficial for you. A car which is well-maintained will seldom get into accidents caused by equipment malfunction (faulty brakes, brakes that do not deploy, etc.). There is also less risk for a car to be pulled over because a police officer happens to see wires sticking out from under the lid of the trunk, or under the trunk. There will be no traffic citation or traffic ticket for a busted tail light or a signal light that isn’t working.

Keeping a car well-maintained also means that if you are suddenly in need of money and find yourself having to sell your car, you can get a good deal because your car’s resale value is not lowered by obvious signs of wear and tear – or signs of neglect.

What is roadworthiness?

When a car is roadworthy, it is suitable and safe for use on public roads. A car is suitable for use on public roads when its condition meets the requirements for being used on public roads – it runs smoothly without endangering the lives and wellbeing of its driver or passengers. This also means that a car is safe to ride in and it does not put other motorists or pedestrians at risk of injury. In some states, before a car is allowed to be registered or before it is allowed to renew its registration, a car owner must submit his car for roadworthiness inspection and the car must obtain a certificate of roadworthiness.

Osama Bin Laden killed hiding in plain site

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Obama makes late night announcement of the successful operation to kill Osama Bin Laden

It was reported late evening Sunday that Obama was going to make an announcement from the White House at 10:30 pm. but when the news broke , many could only speculate as to what the announcement might be. I was monitoring the White House live feed waiting for the President to come on while moving from news site to site when I learned that the announcement was going to be about the death of one of the United States most wanted persons. Osama Bin Laden had, after all, been on the wanted list for almost 10 years and with a bounty of 25 million dollars. The live address scheduled for 10:30 pm did not take place until nearly an hour later from the White House when the President announce live on television that Osama Bin Laden had been killed in Pakistan.

In fact, as of this post Osama Bin Laden remained on the FBI top ten most wanted list. The President warned Americans in his announcement that while this was a major milestone, it would not end the threat of Al Qaeda. Immediately after the announcement all U.S. Embassies were put on high alert around the world. The news from the white house brought almost an immediate reaction of people gathering at the White House and Ground Zero in NYC of people carrying flags, singing and shouting USA, USA!


The crowds grew quickly and contrary to one Pentagon leader saying the crowd was small only a handful of a younger crowd gathering and he opposed the celebrating of the death of Bin Laden. The large crowds in DC and NYC quickly proved him wrong, the gatherings closing the streets to local and police traffic in both spots.

After the live announcement from the White House, the news began to break out of the early morning assault by U.S. operations with scattered chunks of what happened. Still only small amounts of details were being released a little at a time of how the raid was constructed and when it had been determined that a million dollar compound did actually house one of the most wanted men in the world. It has been reported that the assault happened by helicopter and one of the helicopters crashed and had to be destroyed. However, there were no American casualties reported.

Later on in the early morning more details broke out of the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden. It was reported that there were other people killed in the early morning raid that included two other males and one female. It has been reported that one of the men may have been one of the sons of Bin Laden and a courier. The woman killed was said to have been used as a human shield in what was called heavy resistance within the compound that was described as a high security compound with walls up to 18 feet and barbed wire. It was also reported that the original intelligence about the whereabouts of Bin Laden had been learned in August, but the confirmation of where he was living did not come until mid-March. The President signed the order for the operation on Friday before he left to visit the devastation of the storms in Alabama.

Many of the news agencies still trying to get the break on what really happened while in New York more and more people gathered at Ground Zero singing God Bless America and the Stars Bangle Banner. Questions began to pop out about how long Bin Laden may have been living in a mansion less than 60 miles from the Capitol of Pakistan. It was learned that the mansion was built for Osama nearly 5 years ago but only speculation as to if he had lived there that long.

This was great news to hear that our troops have finally prevailed in a long battle and our intelligence officers were able to gather the information that lead them to where Bin Laden was. The strike force was successful in their mission and carried it out without any reported injuries of the task force. There will still be a battle for our troops and I pray for the safe return of them all.

UPDATE!!! AP has just reported that the body of Osama Bin Laden has been buried at sea.

Is the Second Amendment in jeopardy

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This video is scary!
Currently, our freedom and rights including the Second Amendment right to bear arms have legislation threats from our own government. But this video provided by the NRA shows that anti-gun politics and organizations here in the United States are not the only evil lurking to destroy American rights. There are other countries in alliance with the UN and a evil organization called IANSA that want to take away our right to defend or home and family.
It is wrong that so many have given the ultimate sacrifice to defend our freedom, The Constitution of The United States and the Bill of Rights. Currently we have troops in hostile environments fighting in wars putting their lives on the line to defend freedom. How can we, as Americans, stand by and watch as our rights are being subjected to deterioration! As our troops are over in distant lands fighting for our rights, we not only owe them our support. We also owe it to them and those who have fought before them to defend those very same freedoms from the enemy here in our own country. Americans here on the home front were given the right to keep and bear arms by the founders of our great country (as detailed in one state by this page: https://gunlawsuits.org/gun-laws/alabama/gun-permit/). It is also written that that right shall not be infringed. However, now has come the time when we must stand up and let our voices be heard. Today with the threats at hand that want to take away those very same rights, it becomes our responsibility to defend those rights and our freedom.
So, in this post I have presented to you a problem, but I also want to provide you some solutions.
On April 19, 2010 The Second Amendment March will be held in Washington DC. Visit The Second Amendment March web site for more information and make plans to attend. Join the NRA and GOA

Free Legal Advice on Barack Obama’s Inauguration Day to Answer Consumer Questions

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LegalForce Answers announces a lawyer day of service to help answer consumer legal questions for free

PALO ALTO, Calif., Jan. 19, 2009 — LegalForce , the largest community of American lawyers on the Internet, announces a day of service for lawyers across the United States to answer legal questions of Americans for free to commemorate the historic inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama. LegalForce is the largest community of American lawyers on the Internet with more than 315,000 American lawyers and legal professionals. Commemorating Barack Obama’s historic inauguration to the United States presidency tomorrow, lawyers across the country have united to volunteer their time to answer questions for free for all Americans through the LegalForce Answers forum.

LegalForce includes a free legal questions-and-answers forum that provides personalized answers to consumers’ specific legal questions. “LegalForce Answers” is the largest legal Q&A website where users can find and vote on the best attorneys in their cities and states – through their LegalForce best lawyer profiles – and the quality of their answer through votes from the community of LegalForce users.
In addition, “LegalForce Answers” lets consumers answer questions so that they can share their own experiences with others who are struggling with similar legal issues.

“We’re pleased to be able to answer questions of any type on a pro-bono volunteer basis today, and help those individuals who cannot afford a lawyer through LegalForce,” comments Jason Smith, a public interest lawyer in New York. Through LegalForce, individuals from all walks of life can their questions answered by registered American lawyers working on a pro-bono basis.

“Consumers are increasingly turning to the Internet to research their legal issues in these trying times.
Bankruptcies, foreclosures, and personal financial issues are on the minds of many Americans. LegalForce Answers
today provides a fast, free and easy way for consumers to get answers to their questions, and at the same time, provides them with even more information and guidance to help them get the advice they need,” said Wendy Weinstein, LegalForce product manager. “LegalForce Answers also lets lawyers who want to do good during this historic election demonstrate their expertise and share some initial guidance with consumers in need.”

The launch of “LegalForce Answers” creates an online community focused exclusively on legal issues where consumers can ask specific, highly detailed questions – even anonymously to protect their privacy – or search a database of questions asked by others on a broad range of legal issues. Users can also be automatically notified when questions or answers are posted on specific topics of interest to them, or when a specific lawyer posts a new answer to any question. Answers can come from both lawyers and non-lawyers.

“LegalForce Answers” is also the only legal Q&A forum that recognizes those lawyers who volunteer their time during this historic time provide helpful answers as judged by the community of LegalForce users. Lawyers can achieve different “levels” based on the quantity and quality of their answers, and that level is displayed together next to each answer they provide, as well as in their LegalForce Profile.

In addition to being able to vote on the quality of an answer and view other people’s votes, consumers can assess the background of every lawyer who provides an answer by reviewing their LegalForce Rating and LegalForce Profile, which includes a lawyer’s professional experience, industry recognition, and client endorsements. To make that easy for the consumer, a link to the lawyer’s LegalForce Profile is displayed beside every answer.

LegalForce Answers is a great forum for consumers to ask questions on bankruptcy, foreclosures, legal disputes, other legal questions for free in these trying times. As Barack Obama takes on the American presidency, lawyers across the world have united to answer questions of consumers for free through LegalForce.

About LegalForce

LegalForce is a lawyer search website that rates and profiles every attorney to help consumers find the right lawyer. In addition to detailed lawyer profiles, the free site includes the LegalForce Rating, outstanding attorneys across every major city and small town in America.
LegalForce gives every attorney a free online profile and an opportunity to give and receive peer endorsements. The website currently includes profiles and ratings on licensed attorneys in all 50 United States. Founded in July 2008, LegalForce is privately held, with angel funding from private investors and venture capitalists in the Bay area.
For more information, visit http://www.legalforce.com.

Distributed by eReleases – http://www.ereleases.com

The Link between Motorcycles and Erectile Dysfunction

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Take heed, men who have the passion of riding on two wheels. There might be a possibility that motorcycle riding can lead to erectile dysfunction which may require treatment with meds like Levitra or the other erectile dysfunction drugs soon.

The International Journal of Impotence Research has published a study that highlights the link between the increasing rate of erectile dysfunction and motorbike riding men. Research shows that penis nerves are in danger of being damaged by the vibrations produced by motorcycle engines (mostly coming from under the seat). Uncomfortable motorcycle seats can also restrict the flow of blood through the arteries of the penis which discourages erection.

Motorcycle riding does not only threaten penile erection but also the health of the male prostate and bladder. The same research also found out that men who operate forklift trucks and other heavy machinery (which noticeably have strong engine vibrations) are also susceptible to erectile dysfunction.

Doctors mostly prescribe erectile dysfunction drugs like Viagra, Levitra, and Cialis. Riders tend to buy these medications from their local drugstore or from websites like menschem.co.uk. Erectile dysfunction is no longer considered a frustrating condition as it once was. What these medications do is help men suffering from erectile dysfunction by increasing the flow of blood to his penis thus encouraging an erection that can last up to the completion of the sexual act.

Erectile dysfunction drugs are however not magic pills because you still need to be sexually aroused before you can experience an erection. The same erection is also expected to go away after the completion of the sexual act. If not then that would be another problem.

But why wait for erectile dysfunction to strike you when you can prevent it by installing comfortable seats on your motorcycles? If riding motorbikes is your pleasure you can at least limit the damage that the engine vibrations can cause by making sure you have comfortable seats which puts pressure not on your perineum area but on your buttocks. A simple cushion such as an airhawk can help as well.

Quality motorcycle seats can be an additional expense, but compare this to the possibility of developing erectile dysfunction and you would agree that this is the most cost effective way of managing your health and your sexual life.

Miller Lite Bottle Caps Equal Cash for MDA This Summer

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Brewer Announces Fundraiser As Part Of Its Summer-Long Harley-Davidson 105th Anniversary Celebration Promotion

MILWAUKEE, May 22 /PRNewswire/ — Miller Brewing Company will donate 10 cents to the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) for every Miller Lite bottle cap collected now through Sept. 1, 2008, as part of the brand’s “Better. Bolder. Summer” promotion. Miller Lite, the “ultimate light beer,” is the official beer sponsor of this summer’s Harley-Davidson 105th anniversary celebration.

Legal-drinking-age consumers can donate their Miller Lite bottle caps in several ways, including at collection points located in participating retailers across the country; just look for the “Miller Lite Bottle Caps for MDA” boxes beginning in early June. Ultimately, these bottle caps will be shipped to Milwaukee for the August 28-31 celebration of Harley-Davidson’s 105th anniversary. Miller will make a donation up to $100,000 to MDA based on the number of Miller Lite caps collected.

“We are proud and honored to be teaming up with our favorite neighbor once again as we celebrate Harley-Davidson’s 105th anniversary with them,” said Antonio Maldonado, Miller Lite’s vice president of marketing. “Enjoying the only light beer brewed to deliver the perfect combination of taste and refreshment is usually reason enough to choose Miller Lite. This summer, beer drinkers can feel even better about drinking ‘the ultimate light beer,’ knowing that they’re helping raise money for a great cause in MDA.”

– Consumers also can mail bottle caps to Miller Brewing Company,
Attention “Miller Lite Bottle Caps for MDA,” 3939 W. Highland Blvd.,
P.O. Box 482, Milwaukee, WI 53201-0482.

– Additionally, any Harley-Davidson riders coming to Milwaukee for the
105th anniversary celebration are encouraged to bring their Miller Lite
bottle caps with them and deposit the caps into the giant Miller Lite
bottle.

Miller Lite bottle caps collected around the country will be sent to Milwaukee to be counted and deposited into the giant Miller Lite bottle. In addition to raising money via the “Miller Lite Bottle Caps for MDA” effort, the brewer is helping raise money for MDA in other ways this summer:

– For every 18-pack of Miller Lite bottles or cans sold at 7-Eleven
stores across the country, Miller will donate 25 cents, up to an
additional $100,000. Consumers can learn more about the ways that
7-Eleven will be partnering with Miller Lite and MDA at displays in
their local stores.

– At participating retailers across the country — bars, restaurants,
grocery stores, liquor stores and so on — consumers can join the fight
against muscular dystrophy by purchasing a motorcycle mobile for $1,
with all proceeds going directly to MDA.

– Consumers also can contribute to MDA via BetterBolderSummer.com.

MDA is a voluntary health organization working to defeat more than 40 diseases through programs of worldwide research, comprehensive services, and far-reaching professional and public health education. The ALS Division of MDA is the world leader in the search for a treatment and cure for Lou Gehrig’s disease with its aggressive research program. MDA also offers the most comprehensive range of services of any voluntary health agency in the nation.

About Miller

As one of America’s oldest brewers, Miller Brewing Company continues the commitment of founder Frederick J. Miller to brew “confoundedly good beers” with “uncompromising quality.” Through more than 150 years of innovation and brewing excellence, Miller has built a broad portfolio of award-winning beers that capture approximately 18 percent of U.S. beer sales. An unprecedented four-time gold award winner at the World Beer Cup, Miller Lite is the great tasting, less filling beer that established the American light beer category in 1975. Miller’s latest innovation is Miller Chill, a chelada-style beer brewed with lime and salt to provide a unique twist on refreshment. The company also brews Miller Genuine Draft, Miller High Life, Foster’s, Milwaukee’s Best Light, Olde English 800, Mickey’s Malt Liquor, Icehouse and Sharp’s, a non-alcohol brew. Miller imports Peroni Nastro Azzurro, Pilsner Urquell and Tyskie and offers the Sparks line of caffeinated alcohol beverages, as well as regional craft brews from the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company and the Blitz-Weinhard Brewing Company. Miller is a wholly owned subsidiary of SABMiller plc, one of the world’s leading brewers with a global footprint spread across six continents. For more information, visit http://www.millerbrewing.com/.

Source: Miller Brewing Company

The longest running Harley blog post

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This was a post that was on the blog before we took over the site. But we love (hate?) Harleys too, so we decided to recreate it!

It is amazing some of the things that you will come across while surfing the web. In fact, I have started a collection of pages that I have found and would like to share with my readers.

Today’s link is to a very large and popular blog site with many contributors called Blog Critics Magazine. I mean this site is huge! However, today we will be exploring the culture section where Frank Giovinazzi of Car Buyer’s notebook made a post entitled Harley Davidson – How Do I Hate Thee. Its a rather small post in itself where Frank gives out 11 reasons  why he hates Harley Davidson and the dweebs (as he refers to them) who ride them. The post was made in may of 2003 and only contains 243 words, but to this day the Post still gets traffic and has currently 1745 comments with the last comment being made as of this post at 16:36 on January 12th. That was yesterday in case nobody is paying attention…. this post has been read and commented on for going on 5 years now.

I have to hand it to Frank for making this post. Fact may even be that the man owns a Harley. But whether he does or not is not what it is all about. It is about the controversy that was created by him making the post. The post about hating Harley Davidson that has almost created a meeting hole on the web where people get together on a semi-regular basis to kick sand at each other on everything motorcycle related from helmet laws to owning American vs metric motorcycles.  How ingenious of Mr. Giovinazzi.

There you go! Check out the blog post and shoot us a comment below and let us know your opinion of Harleys! By the way, not sure where the laws are headed, but I thought I’d mention it here while we’re talking about motorcycles…pretty soon the government might start requiring smog checks for motorcycles too. At any rate, keep your bike clean, and you won’t really have anything to worry about!