chikki, 1 and 2 are taller gears, meaning the engine turns faster to do the same work. The engine turning faster produces more power, which is needed at low speeds. As the vehicle speeds up, it switches to shorter gears which lower the speed of the engine. A vehicle is geared, generally, to keep it in it’s power band at any given speed. Hence the different, lower gears. You can use them to slow yourself when going downhill to not heat your brakes, or for towing, etc.
OK, here’s my take. And no flames, either. If you are living under the assumption that there is nothing beyond what you perceive with your five senses . . . nothing whatsoever at all . . . then logically, you must conclude that there is nothing supernatural out there: no gods, goddesses, God, GOD, whatever. Athiests win.
But, if you believe that there may be something out there that cannot be regularly accessed by the five senses, right down to telepathy, ESP, auras, spirits, etc., then you’ve opened the door to the possibility that there may be powers out there beyond your comprehension. Because after all, if you admit that there is something out there that you don’t have complete understanding of, how far of a jump is it to the idea of a spiritual power? If you accept that, then it is only a matter of what details rock your boat, be it God on his throne for real, or the use of a symbol for God as a visualization tool for getting in touch with this spiritual plane (in other words, I’m saying that we construct god to give our limited minds the ability to parse a spiritual realm that we could not otherwise access).
Or, to go further, you may simply believe the God and stories you were brought up with, because it gives comfort in times of crisis, it’s what you’re used to, and, if you believe in the existence of a spiritual being and act morally, than it doesn’t much matter HOW you do it (Jesus, Moses, yoga, tai chi, Buddhism), so long as you do it and walk the talk. It all goes into the same pot.
Easy, no? Just don’t ask me to explain Ted Kennedy. Such things are beyond the powers of mortal man.
Not disagreeing, but I’ve also heard the term “Deus Ex” used to refer to what might be called “Star Trek-isms.” This is when a seemingly insoluble problem is solved by the the show’s Mad Scientist/Engineering Chief/Technical Dude creating some kind of mysterious ultra-high-tech gizmo to solve the problem.
Ammonia or urine WILL NOT cure a jellyfish sting.
Vinegar will discharge some of the venom. I guess you could drink a bunch of vinegar then pee on the sting…if you really wanted to.
Do the little rainbow stickers on the back of people’s cars signify a secret gay club or what? Excuse my insensitivity, but I would realy like to know.
Also, is Jamie Lee Curtis really a hermaphrodite? More than a few people I’ve spoken to accept this as fact. What’s the deal?
“According to an oft-repeated whisper, Jamie Lee Curtis is an intersexual (the preferred medical term for persons of ambiguous gender, replacing ‘hermaphrodite’).”
“No one but Ms. Curtis, her parents, and her doctors has the definitive answer to this one, and none of them is talking. Curtis has repeatedly declined deigning to provide a response to this rumor, and her physicians – even if they had something to say and wanted to say it – are bound by doctor-patient confidentiality strictures.”
My question – for the past sevral years, I’ve been spotting lots of bumper stickers reading simply “TOWANDA!” Towanda, Pennsylvania? Uhhhh … it’s not like Wall Drug or anything like that. What’s the deal?
I believe it is a reference to the warm, romantic and very funny book/movie “Fried Green Tomatos” (the full title of the book is “Fried Green Tomatos at the Whistle Stop Cafe.”) IIRC, “Towanda” is the name of a mythical Female Avenger. In the book, for example, frustrated menopausal housewife Evelyn Couch (played by Kathy Bates in the movie,) fantasizes about Towanda doing things like using a cattle prod on child molesters, force-feeding fashion models and saving the world in various large, small, and occasionally violent ways. “Towanda!” becomes a kind of battle cry for the Evelyn Couch character as she comes out of her depression and learns to take charge of her life. I would put it almost in the same category as a Tarzan yell as a way of saying “Look out, world, here I come!”
I, for one, associate “Towanda!” with lesbians in particular as well as with women in general, because the romantic leads in “Fried Green Tomatos” are both women. This is explicitly stated in the book, less so in the movie. (I, for one, find it impossible to believe that anyone could think the characters in the movie are not lovers, but several straight women have told me that they missed that fact entirely. I guess that’s how lesbians managed to hide in plain sight for so many years.)
Sorry if I’m a little fuzzy on the details – it’s been a few years since I read the book, and my dog ate my VCR tape of the movie.
In pig latin, people have a habit of saying (excuse my spelling) “ix-nay on the upid-stay”. Now, I can tell the latter word is stupid, but “Nix on the stupid” sounds weird… Is that what it means?
frock, it is apparent that you are very interested in Jamie Lee’s status. But could you please restrict yourself to posting about it in one thread at a time? Believe me, you will get a more than adequate response that way, and it’s less frustrating for those of us who routinely read a large percentage of the new postings on several of the boards. Thanks!
Hmmm. Well, since I seem to be putting my $.02 in an awful lot on this thread, let me say that I always thought of it as meaning, “Don’t say the word ‘stupid’ (in front of this other person).” I know it’s kind of a limited scenario, but I see the exchange at the water cooler going something like this:
John Doe (Pontificating to Mary Smith): “…well, I for one, think that anyone who’d buy an S.U.V. with these gas prices must be stupid!”
(I hope this is coherent. It’s getting kind of late.)
Unbeknownst to John Doe, Richard Roe, proud owner of a new Eddie Bauer Edition behemoth, ambles up to join the conversation.
Jane Doe (Hissing to John Doe while sneaking a guilty sidelong glance at Richard Roe, whom John has not yet noticed): “Ix-nay on the upid-stay!”
I saw this on another board(sorry if you find anything offensive, it is not my fault). What exactly does the word “ickle” mean? Have I been living under a rock all this time? I can only guess that it means “little”.
Yes, Gadget Girl, ammonia DOES work on jellyfish stings. I speak from experience. Urine probably works, too, but I’ve never had to resort to it.
Nobody wants to touch Kennedy/Thurmond? I understood they’re both pork barrel kings, as are all the other name senators and representatives. National issues are cute, but to build the long terms necessary to become a famous congressman, and hopefully a famous governor or president, you have to keep your voter base happy, and few things work like giveaways.
Yes, Gadget Girl, ammonia DOES work on jellyfish stings. I speak from experience. Urine probably works, too, but I’ve never had to resort to it.
Nobody wants to touch Kennedy/Thurmond? I understood they’re both pork barrel kings, as are all the other name senators and representatives. National issues are cute, but to build the long terms necessary to become a famous congressman, and hopefully a famous governor or president, you have to keep your voter base happy, and few things work like giveaways.
