Yeah, Oregon doesn't let you pump your own gas, either. it confuses me when I'm there, but I could get used to it.

Many happy returns, Frankenbuddha!

I have a distinct memory of driving in Pennsylvania, in the pouring rain, my tank at E, hoping against all odds I would make it to Jersey so that I wouldn't have to get out of my car.

The gas station attendant had this really pissed look on his face when I finally got there.

I can't remember the last time I didn't have to pump gas myself. It's been decades. But it doesn't bug me - it's pro'lly the farm boy in me that feels pumping gas yourself is the normal way to do things....

She walked into my office on legs as long as one of those long-legged birds that you see in Florida - the pink ones, not the white ones - except that she was standing on both of them, not just one of them, like those birds, the pink ones, and she wasn't wearing pink, but I knew right away that she was trouble, which those birds usually aren't.

Ha, I love this one. And this one:

Darnell knew he was getting hung out to dry when the D.A. made him come clean by airing other people's dirty laundry; the plea deal was a new wrinkle and there were still issues to iron out, but he hoped it would all come out in the wash - otherwise he had folded like a cheap suit for nothing.

If Oregon abolished the "no self service" gas law, unemployment would SKYROCKET.

Not a fan. No-one touches my car 'cept me. EEEgor is *my* minion. Rrrr.

Pumping one's gas was a bit of a feminist issue when I was in high school. It was still something ladies didn't do in BR in the 80s. There was a book, even, Real Women Pump Gas. So having someone else do it always gives me a moment of confusion.

I just went to McDonnalds to get coffee. There was a 1910 Model T Ford in the parking lot that had been converted to run on batteries. I noticed a pretty brass plaque on the dash that said, "This vehicle has 1910 suspension and brakes. Drive carefully."

Heh. My 1959 Lincoln has four wheel drum brakes. Drum brakes are prone to fading after heavy use - I've had that happen while driving in heavy traffic. (The Model T has cable-activated drum brakes instead of hydraulic.)

There was a book, even, Real Women Pump Gas.

Actually the title was Real Women Don't Pump Gas.

It was an unofficial followup to Real Men Don't Eat Quiche.

The Model T sounds like it was more bicycle than car.

Rachel Maddow: Gone Fishin'!

Wondering where Rachel Maddow's been all week?

While Executive Producer Bill Wolff's wife Alison Stewart has filled in, Rachel's been on vacation fishing in Massachusetts.

Cape Cod's Nelson's Bait and Tackle shop reported that Rachel joined them for a trip on the fishing boat the Beth Ann last weekend, and Thursday morning she tweeted a photo with a prize catch (see below for full version).

"Have caught all fish in sea. Sorry! Ready to think politics again soon," she wrote.

That is a pretty big fish she caught....