Simanaitis Says

On cars, old, new and future; science & technology; vintage airplanes, computer flight simulation of them; Sherlockiana; our English language; travel; and other stuff

Monthly Archives: June, 2013

ARCHAEOLOGY, MARITIME STYLE

AVAST, YE—Them that dies ’ill be the lucky ones. Now that I have your attention, I’ll share information on maritime archaeology as detailed in the 17 May 2013 issue of … Continue reading

June 10, 2013 · Leave a comment

HAVE A SMOKE

IT WAS extremely easy for me to quit smoking in 1984. The doctor said, “Yes, pal, you’re having a heart attack,” and, later, “Do you smoke?” “I used to,” I … Continue reading

June 9, 2013 · 2 Comments

A CENTURY OF AIRLINE COMFORT

IT’S TIME to celebrate the 100th anniversary of airline comfort. Things have changed a great deal since 1913’s first commercial scheduled passenger-carrying heavier-than-air flight (all these qualifiers are useful). Here’s … Continue reading

June 8, 2013 · 5 Comments

U.S. DIALECTS

WE ARE a country rich in dialects, y’know? The dialects are partly based on geography, partly education, partly upbringing, partly age, but fun to learn about however they’re analyzed. A … Continue reading

June 7, 2013 · 2 Comments

LE MANS

WITH THE Le Mans Vingt-Quatre Heures de l’Endurance coming later this month, it’s appropriate to recall Le Mans tales, several entertaining, one horrific. Its Le Mans start is historical now, … Continue reading

June 6, 2013 · 2 Comments

A SMALL CYCLE COLLECTION

I AM current custodian of a small cycle collection. Well, not all cycles, as one of them is a Vespa; the others are a Dirt Bike and a Road Cruiser. … Continue reading

June 5, 2013 · 6 Comments

CALIFORNIA COOL

IN THE mid-part of the last century (how quaint this sounds in 2013!), Southern California was the birthplace of the cool. A wonderful exhibit curated by the Orange County Museum … Continue reading

June 4, 2013 · 1 Comment

WHAT’S “FRENCH KISS” IN YIDDISH?

THE WORD police of the world have been very active recently. Matters have ranged from “French kiss” to “Jewish dumpling,” which certainly suggests the breadth of it all. And, in … Continue reading

June 3, 2013 · 1 Comment

F1 ENGINES 2014—HONDA 2015

RACING IMPROVES the (Honda) breed. The company’s recent announcement to return to Formula 1 in 2015 as McLaren’s engine supplier makes great sense for Honda, its production cars, its engineering and … Continue reading

June 2, 2013 · Leave a comment

TUPOLEV ANT-25

WHEN STALIN said “Jump,” Soviets were wise to respond “How high?” Famed aircraft designer Andrei Nikolaevich Tupolev was no exception. In fact, I’ve already recounted two of his technical leaps, … Continue reading

June 1, 2013 · 3 Comments