If it’s an OEM part that I need, I usually use the car manufacturer’s parts catalog to find a part number. Then I enter that part number in a web browser, and browse through whatever comes up to find the lowest price from a trustworthy source (usually a car dealer online somewhere that sells/ships parts and has an online store, but sometimes eBay, Amazon, etc.)

Aftermarket parts get a little more complicated because it depends entirely on what kind of part you’re looking for.

A babbling brook.

This is the best primer over ever found on the topic

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjHf9jaFs8XWoGULb2HQRvhzBclS1yimW&si=GLVXGfURN4xxPusO

Also Crimson Tide and The Abyss

Same. Lost a very good friend because I was too slow to change, lost my family because I did.

77% of national flags contain red.

…Which is a bit disturbing because it is generally used to refer to bloodshed or might in battle - partially in a “let’s honor the past” sort of way, but mostly in a “don’t fuck with us” sort of way.

I did a thing a couple years ago where I dropped about $500 buying every style of boxer brief that looked appealing or had a strong fanbase. I tried saxx, Duluth, all citizens, meundies, bn3th, Mac Weldon, Lululemon, Tommy John, separatec, and probably a few others.

All Citizens are my winner overall - the BN3TH are also really nice - I actually like their cuts and design better, but the materials don’t hold up nearly as well as the All Citizens. All Citizens are also much better value, IMO.

For the All Citizens, I’m specifically talking about their Paradise Pocket boxer briefs. My legs are proportionally beefy in comparison to my waist, so it’s also nice that All Citizens offer an “Athletic Fit” option that keeps the legs from being overly tight. Just snug enough not to ride up without pinching or leaving a visible line visible through pants.

Camping, traveling, hiking and going places that are enjoyable and accessible with my wife and dogs.

Gardening / homesteading in such a way to live as self-sufficiently as possible.

My way I want to give back in retirement is working as a volunteer urban/wildland canine search and rescue team.

I train my dogs in scent/detection sports and tracking now so I’m prepared to understand how to do the real deal once I have time to volunteer in retirement. My current job is in a related field, so I already have many of the other skills and certifications that would be needed, but I don’t work with dogs for my job.

If I need extra income in retirement, I’ll probably get into offering dog training for detection/tracking.

This article is from January and a quick search didn’t yield anything newer.

https://electrek.co/2024/01/03/tesla-cybertruck-american-made-pickup-truck/

The Cybertruck isn’t instead on the “2024 American Made index,” so we probably can only go on whatever Tesla is claiming at the moment, though it does seem likely that it will be at or near the top of the ranking for most American trucks of next year’s list.

Not completely by my own choice, but I feel like I’ve seen National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation - at least in part - once or more per holiday season since it was released.

The same is true of Elf, but obviously that movie is quite a bit more recent.

For movies I’ve watched the most by my own choice, it’s probably the Kill Bills or Inglorious Basterds, but those have got to be way behind in raw count. Goonies and the Back to the Future series probably have honorable mentions because of how long they’ve been around and continue to be a fun watch.

Finished installing a 3.5" lift on my truck - it goes in for an alignment Tuesday, and then it’ll be ready to drive!

This has freed me to start working on my car again - I had pulled the transmission to replace the clutch, upgrade the synchros, and install a limited-slip front differential. That’s going back in, and I also installed upgraded coilovers. Probably have at least a few more weekends of work there to get the car back on the road, but I’m super excited to have two working vehicles on the horizon. The car has been down since around Christmas.

Also US, and largely agree, but I would move Hardee’s/ Carl’s Jr. Down to bottom tier. That’s also where I’d put Jack in the Box. I’d put both In-n-Out and Whataburger as mid tier - I think both are VASTLY overrated.

Though In-n-Out is owned by a Christian Nationalist that’s hell-bent on turning America into (more of) a fascist oligarchy and openly using their wealth to destroy democracy, so they’re on my boycott list, along with Chick-fil-A.

Takes me about 2 seconds with a 5lb steel mallet.

Disclaimer: I hate cruises and the entire industry, but ended up getting roped into a few before COVID by weird family dynamics.

I found a portable router to be pretty handy on cruise ships. The only Internet available is through the ship’s WiFi, and the Internet package I had limited connectivity to a single connected device per cabin. The travel router would be the single MAC and allow all our devices to connect. I was also able to share with family in the next cabin over.

A few months ago I stayed in a hotel for about a week and I couldn’t get my Nintendo Switch to connect through their Wi-Fi. My Switch also doesn’t work on my phone’s hotspot for some reason, even though other devices connect and work fine. Anyway, that scenario would’ve been nice for a travel router, but I didn’t bring it with me on that trip.