Author: Kim du Toit

Ron Asks The Question

The Gun Thing, Wildlife and Hunting

“If you could only have three rifles to address all your hunting needs, what would they be?” — Ron Spomer

Of course, it depends where you live OR what terrain you would be hunting in, and what animals you’d be after.  Those three factors (before we even begin to talk about your hunting abilities) are probably the biggest drivers.  I mean, your needs in eastern Wyoming are going to be vastly different from eastern Kentucky, right?

And just in those two areas, what you hunt is going to be… diverse:

But enough equivocating.  Let’s make it really difficult, and say that you have friends all over the place so at any time you’re likely to get an invitation to join them on a hunt where they live.  (But if that makes it too difficult, go ahead and pick three rifles for hunting where you live.)

So you need three truly all-round rifles in your safe, (say) because that’s all you can afford.

Now pick ’em.  (My choices are below the fold, but pick yours first.)

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Monday Funnies

Funny Stuff

So off we go:

To round things off, so to speak, I understand that bikini pics are quite popular in these parts.  Well, you asked for it:


Okay, that’s not really a bikini…

So get out there and spread the knees… I mean news.

Classic Beauty: Tallulah Bankhead

Classic Beauty

This post previously appeared last week, by mistake.  Sorry.  Put dead bats on my head.  Cover me with honey and roll me on the ant heap. — Kim

When asked why she was leaving the New York theater business for Hollywood, the languorous Tallulah Bankhead is reputed to have said:  “Fame, money and to fuck that divine Gary Cooper.”

Well. she achieved all three goals, and was scandalous in a time when scandal was assiduously avoided by the studio bosses.  And her life… oy, what a life.  (Read all about it here.)  And then there was her beauty.

Thise eyes… that heavy-lidded, sleepy look… yikes.  (And yes, she does resemble Bette Davis, and in more ways than one:  they played pretty much the same roles, Tallulah on stage, and Davis in the movie versions.)  And her posture?  Someone once said of her that she didn’t sit in a chair or on a couch;  she looked as if she’d been poured into it.

And let’s not even talk about what she did to a bed (both in pictures and in real life).

I find her fascinating, and I’m not the only one.

Exquisite.  And let’s not even talk about that voice.

That Garage Thing Part 3: The Moderns

Drive Time

After the last two chapters in this series (Part 1 and Part 2) I can already hear the rumblings:

“Okay Kim, enough blathering on about overpriced old cars that will massively deplete your lottery winnings, and end up spending more time in the shop than in your garage.  What four cars would you pick if you could only buy a 2024/25 model?”

Actually, it’s not a difficult question.  Here they are, with a few words of explanation for each, and to make life simpler I’m not going to go into the luxury/supercar category because very few of them actually get me going.  Each of these are cars that just about anyone could buy with just a small lottery win, or even a large performance bonus.

Acura Integra Type S

It’s the adult version of the Honda Civic R;  same 300+hp engine, stick shift (!!!!) but with a little more luxury and a more comfortable ride.  And Honda reliability.  What’s not to like?

Mazda MX-5 Miata RF

Everyone’s favorite sports car.  This one is for New Wife, who still misses her old MGB GT dreadfully.  Also note the stick shift (!!!!) which means I wouldn’t mind driving it too… and having this means I wouldn’t be tempted into a Porsche Boxster or Cayman ($$$$).  Less than half the price (and running costs) of a Porker, and pretty much the same amount of fun.  Perfect.

Mercedes GLA 250 AWD

Call this my “guns ‘n groceries” car.  Basically, it’s a classier version of a VW Golf (interior dimensions are amazingly similar), but it’s a Merc.  Sadly, it’s not available with a stick shift [boo hiss]  but I can slum it, I guess.  New Wife would be driving it more than I would, anyway

Toyota Tacoma TRD
New Wife has absolutely forbidden me to get a truck, any truck, ever.  But I bet she wouldn’t mind me having one to fetch mulch for her rose garden at that new mansion instead of smelling up her Merc.  Also, from my perspective, it’s pretty much a Hi-Lux, FFS, and it has a stick shift (!!!!).  And if the things are good enough for a Somali warlord…

…feel free to guess where I’m going with this line of thought.

Putting together this last list was more fun than I thought it would be.  As any fule kno, I frigging hate modern cars with a passion, but given all my preconditions (stick shift etc.), I think the above may well be the best of the bunch.  (I love the fact that of all of them, the Acura is the only one that does not come with an automatic option.)

Feel free, as always, to take issue with me in Comments.