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flameroki-a · 3 years

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HEADCANON - FAMILY .

tw : child neglect + parental death + strangulation + heart attack .

name : todoroki hina ( hi meaning sun/day ; na meaning to bear/endure ) . age : 30 ( age of death ) . status : deceased . quirk : torch - she could , quite literally , light herself on fire and become a human torch . hina had to get ‘charged’ , as to say ; her battery being the sunlight . due to that , at night she could only do so much , never fully transformed but not in a total weakened state --- this to say that she couldn’t generate her own fire . story + personality : when alive , hina was a very kind . she was known for her warm and cheery personality , as well as warm smile . the hero had bright ginger hair , a feat that would later on also be seen in her son , although his to be darker . she was a hero that unfortunately died on the job , a sudden call at night having her leave the todoroki’s home in a rush ; unfortunately to never come back alive . enji was 6 when she was killed , strangled only for the villain to get away later on .

name : todoroki hanzou ( han means half ; zou means to hide/hiding ) age : 46 ( age of death ) . status : deceased . quirk : temperature control - could control his own temperature at will , but also of certain things , whether to make them cold or hot . story + personality : hanzou was , before his wife’s death , a pretty calm dude all things considered ; it was pretty normal for toddler enji to appear beside him by his desk and they would spend hours together while the man worked . but he loved his wife dearly , and after her death he never remarried again . after what happened , not only did he begin to hate heroes more and more , but he also started to grow more strict yet distant as well ; many hours spent at work if not at home by his office doing the exact same things . he expected the very best from his son as his only child , never satisfied with a mediocre grade even if never present in enji’s life ( usually the nannies enji had were the only one involved in his growth ) . many arguments could be heard throughout the halls of the todoroki household due to both being stubborn , until their last big fight : about how enji had went and did the u.a. exams without his knowledge , and had entered the school in the top students ( not only was he mad about him doing this without telling him , but also a school for heroes like he despised ) . after this event , they spoke less and less , usually not even a word was said between them if the walked by each other . hanzou died because of a heart attack he had due to stress when in his 40′s , and was found dead against his desk on his office by one of the maids . neither todoroki’s men were in talking terms by then , and enji was even thinking of moving homes when his father died , that thought vanishing quickly . enji was 20 when he became a orphan .

MISC HEADCANONS .

when enji became a hero , his mother’s killer was still free and roaming ; and while it wasn’t his first arrest , he was able to capture them unlike anyone else in almost 20 years . it was one of his first big feats --- HOWEVER , he does not know they were the one that killed his mom .

enji’s a example of how a powerful quirk plus a weaker one were able to create a stronger quirk : even if he got the majority from his mother ( since it was stronger ) , it was thanks to his father quirk that he is now able to generate his own fire and energy . this occurrence was one of the reasons why enji thought of mixing his quirk with another strong one , especially ice . he did not take in thought that with his own experience , his parents’ quirks were unbalanced : meaning one of their quirks ruled . with him and rei , it was balanced , half/half .

due to losing his mother a young age , most memories enji has of hina were ‘blocked out’ as his way of coping . the only things he knows are her hero name and that she was the reason why he became a hero , and that she was nice ( yet he really can’t recall why ) , and no matter how much he tries , he gets a headache every time he tries to remember more ( he kept them locked away for 40 years , it will take a while before he can remember anything else , if ever ) .

here’s a post on how these things happening shaped enji as a person + ignited his change .

#* HEADCANONS // what you'll find might surprise you .#child neglect //#parental death //#death //#heart attack //#strangulation //#long post //

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the-lightning-strikes-again · 4 years

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Do you think quintessence exposure prolonged Allura’s life and she would’ve lived an unnaturally long life for even an Altean if she’d lived? I think about this question a lot because this girl got blasted by and was exposed to insane amounts of it.

Hi, asennnaa. Ah, those are good questions! I’m not sure I have a perfect answer because I’m still grappling with how to handle some of the holes or contradictions in this show. I do think VLD’s entire universe confirms that infusions of quintessence into a body, as you suggest, can unnaturally prolong a life. But what counts as “enough” quintessence exposure to really make one immortal? Just “how immortal” can Allura get? Because other characters are shown to require multiple infusions of quintessence in order to remain even marginally immortal.

It looks like Zarkon was still aging, even with quintessence infusion. Here is a fresh Zark:

And here he is again ~10,000 years later with the wrinkly lips, sunken-in cheeks, and big eye baggies that are all standard signs of aging.

Old zarkturtle status achieved.

So despite standard access to quintessence infusions, and even being overcome with quintessence in the rift itself, both he and Haggar seem like they’re fighting a battle with the clock and still losing. Could their lack of immortality and constant need to infuse with quintessence be because they were accosted by rift creatures (so not experiencing “pure” quintessence infusion in the rift)? I suppose it’s possible.

And a lack of ongoing access to pure quintessence might also be part of the entire Galra Empire’s continuous desire to get to purer and larger amounts of quintessence. Because it’s not just power on the line.

Zarkon himself confirms what he hopes to achieve through quintessence in s3:

Desire for immortality is a huge motivator for the entire empire harvesting quintessence in the first place. Zarkon wants to live forever with his friends and family. But oh nu, he’s still aging. And even Lotor?? What is ten or one-hundred-thousand years in the face of a universe that is billions of years old? Is anyone technically immortal in this show? How long can anyone actually live?

An “imperfect-immortality” would also explain the strange reality of Lotor. He is a beautiful boi and is also 10,000 years old as well. Executive Producers Lauren Montgomery and Joaquim Dos Santos suggest in a Season 5 AfterbuzzTV interview that Lotor’s infusion with quintessence in utero results in him aging very, very slowly.

(Here’s the dialogue from the interview if you want it, from around the 13:30 mark:

JDS: It’s pretty safe to say that Lotor’s kind got that Daywalker kind of thing going on.

Interview: —Little vampire—

LM: Being in…in her womb, as [Honerva] was being exposed to all of this quintessence—it’s part of his DNA. It almost puts him on a level with Allura, pretty much who her quintessence is a part of her DNA. So it’s interesting to see.

JDS: And it’s allowed him to stay so beautifully young.

LM: He’s aged at a much slower rate than your average Galra.

Interviewer: So he IS a vampire.

LM: I think all Galra are kinda space vampires.

JDS: They’re kinda space vampires, yeah. Safe to say. You’re getting instead of blood, you’re getting like…planet juice.)

And it just so happens that, in the active plot of VLD, we’re introduced to Lotor at a point in time where he’s aged physically and mentally to the point of, what, maybe early twenties? The canon’s not clear about it. Despite the lack of a canon-backed “mental-to-physical human-age equivalent,” Lotor appears to careen between a tricky mastermind and a boi who’s still a bit embarrassed about his nanny:

(While I tend to think he’s early 20s in physical and mental agility, you could probably even argue Lotor acts like an older teenager still sometimes, lol. Quality eye-roll and pout right here. Does anyone else get, “Mom, shut up” vibes from this gif? And even his idealism, his unshakable belief that simply giving the empire what it wants will result in peace--it lacks a critical foresight about other people experiencing quintessence madness, dangers from within the rift, and the inevitable wars to “control the gates” and such technology. And there’s some things to be said about humans obtaining full brain development around age 25, as the prefrontal cortex, which inhibits impulses and assists with critical decision-making, is the last section to develop in full. So it makes me think, for all his intelligence and schemes, that he’s mentally a bit younger than he’d like to appear. And obviously doesn’t want to appear, considering how embarrassed he is about his nanny in front of his new-found friends, lol.)

But I digress. So just based on the evidence and the extra-canon commentary from EPs, it seems that if we panned out 20,000 years in the future, we might see a significantly aged Lotor, with the deep face lines and lip wrinkles and gaunt cheeks. Because he’s never stopped aging. His body clock is just totally and utterly creeping along, lucky boy.

If you want to trust the extra-canon text, then you might be able to extrapolate that like Lotor’s DNA, Allura’s DNA gives her an extended life. Although unlike slow-age Lotor, Allura appears to have had a more accelerated childhood. She can’t be more than Kova’s 28 decaphoebs (years), given that the season 3 finale shows Allura was born after Kova’s introduction. And yet, unlike Lotor’s strange history of taking forever to grow up, Allura presents as physically mature within a fairly normal timeline.

This would actually suggest that something is a bit weird about Allura’s DNA. And its something that makes her quintessence more intense than even Lotor’s own quintessence signature, if you want to go by the interviews where LM says, “It almost puts him on a level with Allura.”

So what was this mysterious event?

Allura certainly could still infuse herself or be infused with quintessence to prolong her life, but that wouldn’t prolong her life indefinitely or put her even within range of what’s naturally going on with Lotor’s DNA.

Is there something inherently unique about Allura’s lineage or species, then, that could answer this?

Let’s look at Alteans first. The canon seems oddly contradictory about the natural age of Alteans. Coran is at least 600 years old because he was alive with the Castle of Lions was being built. But yet executive producer LM states that there’s something inherent in Allura’s DNA that makes her even more special than the average person, and even more strangely…Allura’s father, Alfor, doesn’t seem to fall into either of these two categories.

Despite Alfor understanding the deep secrets of the universe via Oriande, and having personal direct exposure with unlimited pure quintessence through building and even fighting in Voltron, he ages. Hard.

Here’s Alfor as a young man:

Here’s Alfor, only decaphoebs later, not long before he died.

So here we have an aging Alfor. And oof, in less than 28 decaphoebs, with no explanation as to why Coran would be doing so well in comparison. (Feel free to speculate!)

So whatever is wrong with Alfor’s life cycle, it would seem to be an isolated incident that not even exposure to Voltron or to the rift could undo. In which case, it’s hard to know if Allura’s DNA would naturally have the same weaknesses from her lineage. If not, then she should at least be able to reach 1,000 years naturally, if the spunky Coran is any measure to go by.

But Alfor did do something that I think places Allura as entirely unnatural and probably the most likely candidate to have a form of true immortality in this entire show:

So right in season 1, episode 1, Coran admits that Alfor has done some pretty wild alchemy. He physically connected Allura’s essence with the essence of Voltron—the single source of self-regenerating, infinite quintessence throughout the whole of the entire universe.

I’m not sure if this alchemical forge-bond would protect Allura from physically aging, but it would suggest that Voltron’s life force and Allura’s life force are intimately tied on the material plane. There is no other canonically shown bond like this in a living person, in the VLD universe. It makes Allura entirely unique as a character and likely helps to explain why she is so consistently over-powered compared to even Haggar/Honerva.

Because unlike ANY other Altean, including Honerva, Allura has an infinite, massive battery of pure quintessence to pull from at will. And it’s tied to her very life force.

I don’t know if a person’s life force being personally connected to Voltron would confer physical immortality, but I do think there’s a lot of evidence to suggest that as long as Voltron exists, Allura’s essence would be preserved within it. And as we saw in season 6, Shiro was capable of interacting with other paladins despite his physical death, because Black Lion had preserved his essence.

So I guess all of this is to say, it seems there would be a lot of reasons for why Allura could live a very long life. It does seem that if she infused herself with quintessence in an ongoing fashion, and she quite often has, then her already long Altean lifespan would become longer. And even in physical death, Allura could still “exist” like s6 Shiro to communicate and interact with the living, in a way that not even her father could.

(Which makes you wonder about that s8 ending with the Lions mysteriously flying off for an unknown reason and Lance’s Altean marks lighting up like a homing beacon, but oof, that’s perhaps another topic.)

Thank you so much for the ask! I hope my winding ramblings help to answer your question or encourage further thought about the possibilities!

#Voltron #Allura #Lotor #Zarkon #Alfor #Haggar #Honerva #Quintessence #Space Vampires #Quintessence Aging #Imperfect Immortality #Alchemical Bonds to Machines #Thanks for the ask!

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stories-from-my-mind-to-yours · 5 years

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This is a Public Service Announcement.

TL;DR: Quick thank you to the reader, please give feedback, part of my most recent story further down. /end TL;DR

This is aimed at all of my 64 followers, to whom I truly am deeply grateful. Should anyone else find this, I am more than happy to share these lines with you as well.

The motivation to keep writing is largely thanks to you, yes, You, the one reading these words. As I write them, it feels as tho we are connected, on a level that cannot be easily explained. Now, less sentimentality, and let’s get this PSA underway.

I’ve been working on the latest addition to my page, and the aim for it is to be a lot longer than my previous stories. Some time in the future I would like for it to be released as a book, but that may be aiming for the stars with a broken slingshot. But nonetheless, I have set a goal, and I intend to pursue that goal like a stubborn child clinging to his favorite toy. I will be releasing excerpts, but given the depth of the storyline, as well as considering the time it takes a fully fledged author (which I am not) to write a decent book, there may be large gaps of time where I won’t be posting anything at all. But it is my sincerest hope to bring forth a story that you will enjoy, in fact the enjoyment of reading the story when it is finished is my only motivation. The possibility of my writing bringing some form of financial reward to the table would absolutely be a tremendous bonus, but it’s not something that I’m counting on in the foreseeable future.

But enough about that now. I promised you an excerpt, and I shall deliver. Feedback is greatly appreciated, good or bad, if you have an opinion, I want to hear it. The stronger the opinion, the more I want to hear it. Hell, I’ll even give you my phone number, if you want to call me and tell me how much my story sucks. Or how much you like it, your choice. Either way, that’s the end of my PSA. I hope you enjoy.

A Tale Of Time. Chapter I.

Far away from home.

The bright white sky above him was breathtaking, almost unbelievable. The two Suns was a magnificent sight all on itself, but the two large planets, visible even in the daytime sky, made it all feel unreal. The furthest planet reminded him of the pictures he'd seen of distant planets as a child, but this one had rings. The rings were turned on its head, going north to south, and covered much of the planets appearance, although it was painfully obvious he should’ve crashed on that planet instead. That planet had both oceans and vegetation, and an atmosphere. He could even faintly see the white clouds as they went on their way. The other large planet was on the opposite side of the planet he stood on, much closer to the binary star, and had paid a terrible price for it. The surface looked like a charred steak, cooked for far to long, and too close to the fire. It reminded him of burned flesh, covered in ash. If it weren't for the sun visor built into his helmet he wouldn't even have been able to turn his gaze anywhere near the source of light, it was simply too close and too bright for Terran eyes. Even with the visor down, the light hurt his eyes, but it was surely a sight to see. The two stars rotated so close to each other, it was almost hard to make out where one ended, and the other one started. He could see that the smaller one had started drawing mass from the bigger one, a sure sign that a supernova was due to happen soon. Well, soon considering an astronomical scale. It could be tomorrow, it could be in a million years. He had to look away, or risk permanently damaging his eyes. He blinked a few times, the sun spots on his eyes would take some time to disappear. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky, most likely because there just wasn't enough moisture in the atmosphere to form even a single tiny cloud. And what little wind there was, only brought more heat, and sand. If it wasn’t for the slight situation he found himself in, he would’ve been amazed by the view and the scenery. The scorching sand below wasn’t much better than the bright light. Every step with his bulky boots was a struggle, the weight on his back and shoulders made the desperate fight for his life far worse. But at least he hadn’t chosen the black suit, and the suit did keep most of the heat from the sunlight off of him. “Cherish the little things in life sweetie, soon they’ll be gone, and then you’ll have nothing.” That’s what S'am used to say to him when he got cranky. If she had been here she would’ve had a few harsh words to say to him, that’s for sure. He could see her face in his mind, that short red hair, and the way her big blue eyes twinkled when she tilted her head to the side and smiled. And that cute little wrinkle she got between her eyebrows, she'd do that sometimes, mostly when he had done something stupidly dangerous. What he wouldn't give to see that face just one more time before... He shook his head violently, trying to shake his thoughts in order. No, that train of thought was not leaving the station. He tried to think of something else, but there wasn’t much else to occupy his mind. Sand. Sand dunes. A few small rocks sticking out of the dirt. More sand dunes. It didn't matter where he looked, it all looked pretty much the same. But he knew he couldn't just sit down and wait for the inevitable.

"You gotta keep moving, Jackass." He said to himself as he started walking. The concept of time quickly became completely pointless in this burning hell. There was nothing but sand and small patches of rough, dry dirt as far as the eyes could see. He couldn’t for the life of him remember the name of the binary star this god forsaken planet orbited around, but he remembered that both the inner planets were tidal locked. That meant that, if he was unlucky, which he apparently had a habit of being, he may have to cross a quarter of the planets circumference before finding some form of shelter. And to make matters worse, he felt the heat had already taken a heavy toll on his mind. He could hardly remember his own name. “One more step, Bru'ce. Just one more step.” That was the only thing he focused on, the next step forward. He couldn’t even begin to guess how far he’d walked, or for how long. But his survival instincts and his training took over, and ushered him forward. He knew damn well that the chances of him finding shelter was low, so he had made sure that he at least wasn’t wandering in circles. As he reached the crest of a small sand dune he stopped and turned around. The tangled mess that had once been his parachute, and the only reason he was still alive, dragged behind him. He looked to see if the lines it made in the sand behind him were somewhat straight. To his surprise, they were. Well, sort of. Not the straightest lines he’d seen or made, but absolutely good enough. With the sun on his back he kept walking. He was certain the two suns had been higher when he started, so he must be getting somewhere. But he hadn’t a single clue as to what he was aiming for. But there had to be something, somewhere. If he could find the escape pod, if there was anything left of it, then maybe he could send a distress signal. The relay wasn’t that far, it should be able to pick up the signal. Hopefully. No, definitely. It was going to work, he was getting off this lifeless rock alive. He just had to work hard for it. He adjusted the solar panels behind his helmet, trying to deflect as much light as possible. It had started getting hot as soon as he had woken up. He had flashbacks of the chaos on the ship, something catastrophic had happened, but he couldn't say exactly what. The onboard computer had been beeping furiously, just about every alarm possible had gone off at the same time. No cabin pressure, engines failed. Even the damn near indestructible antigravity reactor had gone offline. Then, darkness, and falling. He had woken up again in the escape pod as it tumbled down towards the surface. The emergency parachutes had deployed too soon, and burned up in the scorching hot atmosphere. If he hadn't bailed out in time and deployed the suits built in parachutes he would've been as dead as... Well, as dead as this planet. His thought were interrupted by the water reclaimer beeping discreetly in his ear. He glanced at the cracked display on his left arm. Water level at 35%. It had been 20% just a little while ago, but the thought of drinking his own recycled body fluids felt less appealing than ever. At least his batteries were fully charged. He knew he wouldn’t suffocate, unless the carbon filters clogged up due to all the sand. The rest of the display wasn’t much use, the atmospheric data was unreadable, and he wasn’t going to remove the only shade he had either way. The chances of this planet having an oxygen-based atmosphere, in sufficient quantities, were probably not the best. He laughed to himself. "Not the best? That's the understatement of the century right there." He kept his eye on the horizon and kept walking. “Come on, Bru'ce. One more step. I’m coming home, S'am. Just one more.” He started walking down the sand dune, desperate to find something.

#A Tale Of Time #scifi #story time #space exploration #humans are space orcs #space australia #earth is a death world

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prouxvaire · 3 years

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Drinking Beer & Building Shit: Donkey Shelters

First, a warning: Sad farm shit ahead.

About this time last year, I walked out to the barn one morning and found the older of my two donkeys, Doc, laying unresponsive on the ground. He was alive, but barely. The vet lives just down the road and was able to make it out to us quickly–so I didn’t have to wait long for help and a diagnosis–but it wasn’t good news. Doc had some kind of stroke or other neurological event in the early hours of the morning. He was blind, unable to stand up, not responsive to outside stimuli, and very clearly suffering.

I’m not a person who puts down an animal easily or lightly, but in this case, there was no question about whether or not it was the right decision. And it still really sucked.

My only consolation is that it was the best case scenario in a shitty situation. If the stroke happened in the middle of the night and I came out to find a dead donkey in the barn in the morning, I never would have known what caused it (and then would have been in a full-on panic about whether or not he got into something toxic, or if there was some kind of electrical hazard, or all of the million other scenarios I would blame myself for.) Or if the symptoms had been less severe, I might have held on longer than I should have and he would have suffered needlessly.

And he was, in fact, an old donkey. An old donkey who had a good life here causing trouble and escaping fences, and generally giving me a run for my money in the “who can be the grumpiest old man on the farm” contest.

So, losing him was fucking sad.

It was two hours of pure crisis, adrenaline, sorrow, and then, when it was over and the vet was driving away, I turned back to the barn and realized… it was not actually over. Because there was a 300lb dead donkey in the barn. In December (When the ground is typically frozen… i.e not ideal for farm burials.)

Let me say again, for the record, how fucking sad this was. And, also, a completely different set of logistics than when, say, a beloved family pet like a dog or cat dies.

Anyway, my mom showed up with a case of beer and we got the thing done, but, let me just say… not the most fun part of farm life. (Possibly related note: I own a set of bucket forks and have access to a backhoe tractor attachment now.)

So, that is the very sad part of this story.

It’s also relevant to note that at this point in time I was just maxed the fuck out on “tasks”. There was almost a whole year of life there that just felt like a neverending set of tasks that sucked the life out of me and brought me no joy or energy. (Probably worth analyzing, but not in this post.) Finding a new donkey to integrate into the farm was an endeavour fraught with tasks, when my tank was already running on empty.

At the same time, donkeys are social animals (you can’t just have a single donkey in a pasture by itself… that’s torture.)

So–ignoring everything else going on in the world in early 2020–even just on the farm, both Parker and I were struggling.

Initially the way we handled this was just by opening the gates to the pasture and letting Parks hang out wherever he pleased…

When it was Parker and Doc together, the pasture escapes invariably ended up with me chasing both of them back from down the road like a crazy person (and, on one memorable occasion, getting dragged through a field by a donkey on the run, true story) … but Parker alone just wanted to hang out and be closer to the “action”. (i.e. whatever I had going on)

(In another life I would definitely have a pasture closer to the house and more integrated with the back yard. Donkeys like being a part of stuff.)

But, come summer, I couldn’t ignore that Parker needed more donkey friends (and that getting him donkey friends was going to mean a lot more work for me.)

One of my good (human) friends found a donkey rescue about an hour away, and the director of that donkey rescue convinced me to adopt 3 new bonded donkeys.

That’s a mom (Marianne), her boyfriend (Guy), and her daughter (Zoey.)

Parker was super excited to meet them at first. But they had been spending most of their time in a pasture with 20 other donkeys, so they were actually more excited for wide open spaces and grass, than to hang out with Parker.

Also, Parker took a liking to Marianne, and Guy took exception to a dude hitting on his girlfriend… and I had a regular donkey love triangle on my hands.

It became clear, quickly, that all of them could not share a pasture. Also, there was a fencing shortage in 2020 because… reasons. I guess everyone was building fences and using a lot of toilet paper in quarantine?

I rigged up two different versions of a “fence” that the donkeys basically just laughed at and jumped over about 30 seconds after I thought I was done. (Did not know donkeys were jumpers before this… fun fact for me.) Then my mom took over with the help of my neighbor and rigged up, well, this thing…

And I’m going to say it was 67% effective, because one third of the donkeys figured out how to do this…

You really have to watch that thing to the end… it is astounding.

(If this post is starting to feel like an epic saga, imagine what it was like to live the thing.)

Anyway, efficacy of the fence notwithstanding, I needed another shelter (aka run-in) for the donkeys, since they all couldn’t share space in the barn without a lot of aggression. Which meant this mess had to go…

I built this addition/annex to the chicken run back in 2017 when my chickens were being mysteriously killed. (By, it turned out, a dog that lives down the road, and was slipping the fence when the batteries on his electric collar went out.)It looked a lot better then.

For the most part, since the dog was secured, the chicken run (and annex) have only been used periodically. And, in the meantime, have collected a lot of weeds. So…

Goodbye chicken run annex.

So many “helpers” on the farm.

There’s some old barn foundation in this area so I used tapcons and the sheer force of my will to hold the posts in place for this build. Then tied it in to the existing barn “framing”. (I use that term loosely because that barn is older than all of us.)

Still holds up though.

The roofing I used on the chicken run was basically corrugated asphalt, which I know, sounds weird…but it’s cheap, easy to install, and good for scrappy farm structures. For these purposes I want general shelter, but nothing needs to be weatherproof obviously.

Not going to lie, it takes a soft (and accurate) touch with a hammer to install this stuff, because if you miss the nail it’s super easy to put a hole in.) Perhaps best installed sans beer? I wouldn’t know.

Fun fact about corrugated asphalt roofing… I guess it’s delicious?

I wouldn’t know, BUT THE DONKEYS WOULD.

Generally I have no complaints about this roofing except for one thing… between the time I built the chicken run and the time I built the addition, they changed the size of their sheets from 4×6 to 3×6 (and also were straight out of the color gray this summer.) So I ended up short a panel and also now I have a multi-colored barn roof.

Normally this shit would drive me nuts, but honestly… 2020 was exhausting.

This run-in has one wall open to the north, and the west side was finished off with pine planks.

While the intent was to provide shade and shelter in late summer and fall, it’s not appropriate for an all-season shelter in Michigan.

So while that was a good weekend project last summer, I also had to do some modifications in the barn to have a split stall.

This was the existing set-up:

Although just for reference, this was the setup back in 2013 when I first decided to adopt donkeys:

So, marked improvement.

But it was not enough space for ALL the donkeys, particularly ALL the donkeys that did not get along. So.

The back wall came out, and I created a flexible “stall” by adding a fence gate (so the barn can be one stall or two, with a second entry through an old man-door on the north side of the barn.)

Let me just say, it required a lot of “creative” engineering… (creative = beer, just FYI.)

So, good news, it kind of worked, in that all of this effort did manage to keep my one lonely donkey separated from the three larger donkeys who wanted to bully him. But it didn’t work in that the whole point of this endeavor was for Parker not to be One Lonely Donkey.

Marianne, Zoe, and Guy would be incredible donkeys for anyone who either had an established herd or were just adopting those three alone (they were super friendly and great with people… also, hilarious) but, in this case, were not good friends for Parker, and also (if it wasn’t clear) a metric fuckton of work for me.

Honestly, the thing that is obvious now (and really should have been obvious then) is that you can’t bring 3 bonded donkeys into a space with one single donkey and expect everyone to be friends. After two months with only increased aggression toward Parker I decided I couldn’t foster the 3 larger donkeys any longer, and instead sent my mom on a mission to find one other lonely male donkey that might be less aggressive and more likely to bond with Parker.

So…

Meet Nigel.

Nigel and Parker spent 3 weeks in separate pastures, but are now living together on the farm like a couple of grumpy old men. (Which makes three of us.)

And listen, dealing with donkey drama really was the least of anyone’s concerns (including mine) in 2020, but still, it was exhausting.

Anway, we got through it…

Welcome to the farm, buddy.

from https://ift.tt/3cKFmAS

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sureyhny · 3 years

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Drinking Beer & Building Shit: Donkey Shelters

First, a warning: Sad farm shit ahead.

I’m not a person who puts down an animal easily or lightly, but in this case, there was no question about whether or not it was the right decision. And it still really sucked.

So, losing him was fucking sad.

Let me say again, for the record, how fucking sad this was. And, also, a completely different set of logistics than when, say, a beloved family pet like a dog or cat dies.

So, that is the very sad part of this story.

At the same time, donkeys are social animals (you can’t just have a single donkey in a pasture by itself… that’s torture.)

So–ignoring everything else going on in the world in early 2020–even just on the farm, both Parker and I were struggling.

Initially the way we handled this was just by opening the gates to the pasture and letting Parks hang out wherever he pleased…

(In another life I would definitely have a pasture closer to the house and more integrated with the back yard. Donkeys like being a part of stuff.)

But, come summer, I couldn’t ignore that Parker needed more donkey friends (and that getting him donkey friends was going to mean a lot more work for me.)

One of my good (human) friends found a donkey rescue about an hour away, and the director of that donkey rescue convinced me to adopt 3 new bonded donkeys.

That’s a mom (Marianne), her boyfriend (Guy), and her daughter (Zoey.)

Also, Parker took a liking to Marianne, and Guy took exception to a dude hitting on his girlfriend… and I had a regular donkey love triangle on my hands.

And I’m going to say it was 67% effective, because one third of the donkeys figured out how to do this…

You really have to watch that thing to the end… it is astounding.

(If this post is starting to feel like an epic saga, imagine what it was like to live the thing.)

For the most part, since the dog was secured, the chicken run (and annex) have only been used periodically. And, in the meantime, have collected a lot of weeds. So…

Goodbye chicken run annex.

So many “helpers” on the farm.

Still holds up though.

Fun fact about corrugated asphalt roofing… I guess it’s delicious?

I wouldn’t know, BUT THE DONKEYS WOULD.

Normally this shit would drive me nuts, but honestly… 2020 was exhausting.

This run-in has one wall open to the north, and the west side was finished off with pine planks.

While the intent was to provide shade and shelter in late summer and fall, it’s not appropriate for an all-season shelter in Michigan.

So while that was a good weekend project last summer, I also had to do some modifications in the barn to have a split stall.

This was the existing set-up:

Although just for reference, this was the setup back in 2013 when I first decided to adopt donkeys:

So, marked improvement.

But it was not enough space for ALL the donkeys, particularly ALL the donkeys that did not get along. So.

The back wall came out, and I created a flexible “stall” by adding a fence gate (so the barn can be one stall or two, with a second entry through an old man-door on the north side of the barn.)

Let me just say, it required a lot of “creative” engineering… (creative = beer, just FYI.)

So…

Meet Nigel.

Nigel and Parker spent 3 weeks in separate pastures, but are now living together on the farm like a couple of grumpy old men. (Which makes three of us.)

And listen, dealing with donkey drama really was the least of anyone’s concerns (including mine) in 2020, but still, it was exhausting.

Anway, we got through it…

Welcome to the farm, buddy.

from Home Improvement http://diydiva.net/2021/02/drinking-beer-building-shit-donkey-shelters/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

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andrewysanders · 3 years

Text

Drinking Beer & Building Shit: Donkey Shelters

First, a warning: Sad farm shit ahead.

I’m not a person who puts down an animal easily or lightly, but in this case, there was no question about whether or not it was the right decision. And it still really sucked.

So, losing him was fucking sad.

Let me say again, for the record, how fucking sad this was. And, also, a completely different set of logistics than when, say, a beloved family pet like a dog or cat dies.

So, that is the very sad part of this story.

At the same time, donkeys are social animals (you can’t just have a single donkey in a pasture by itself… that’s torture.)

So–ignoring everything else going on in the world in early 2020–even just on the farm, both Parker and I were struggling.

Initially the way we handled this was just by opening the gates to the pasture and letting Parks hang out wherever he pleased…

(In another life I would definitely have a pasture closer to the house and more integrated with the back yard. Donkeys like being a part of stuff.)

But, come summer, I couldn’t ignore that Parker needed more donkey friends (and that getting him donkey friends was going to mean a lot more work for me.)

One of my good (human) friends found a donkey rescue about an hour away, and the director of that donkey rescue convinced me to adopt 3 new bonded donkeys.

That’s a mom (Marianne), her boyfriend (Guy), and her daughter (Zoey.)

Also, Parker took a liking to Marianne, and Guy took exception to a dude hitting on his girlfriend… and I had a regular donkey love triangle on my hands.

And I’m going to say it was 67% effective, because one third of the donkeys figured out how to do this…

You really have to watch that thing to the end… it is astounding.

(If this post is starting to feel like an epic saga, imagine what it was like to live the thing.)

For the most part, since the dog was secured, the chicken run (and annex) have only been used periodically. And, in the meantime, have collected a lot of weeds. So…

Goodbye chicken run annex.

So many “helpers” on the farm.

Still holds up though.

Fun fact about corrugated asphalt roofing… I guess it’s delicious?

I wouldn’t know, BUT THE DONKEYS WOULD.

Normally this shit would drive me nuts, but honestly… 2020 was exhausting.

This run-in has one wall open to the north, and the west side was finished off with pine planks.

While the intent was to provide shade and shelter in late summer and fall, it’s not appropriate for an all-season shelter in Michigan.

So while that was a good weekend project last summer, I also had to do some modifications in the barn to have a split stall.

This was the existing set-up:

Although just for reference, this was the setup back in 2013 when I first decided to adopt donkeys:

So, marked improvement.

But it was not enough space for ALL the donkeys, particularly ALL the donkeys that did not get along. So.

The back wall came out, and I created a flexible “stall” by adding a fence gate (so the barn can be one stall or two, with a second entry through an old man-door on the north side of the barn.)

Let me just say, it required a lot of “creative” engineering… (creative = beer, just FYI.)

So…

Meet Nigel.

Nigel and Parker spent 3 weeks in separate pastures, but are now living together on the farm like a couple of grumpy old men. (Which makes three of us.)

And listen, dealing with donkey drama really was the least of anyone’s concerns (including mine) in 2020, but still, it was exhausting.

Anway, we got through it…

Welcome to the farm, buddy.

from Home http://diydiva.net/2021/02/drinking-beer-building-shit-donkey-shelters/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

#home

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xeford2020 · 5 years

Text

Space Oddity: The Surprising Story of How Ford Helped Put a Man on the Moon

By Ted Ryan, Archives and Heritage Brand Manager, Ford Motor Company

Words reverberated throughout the NASA Mission Control Center in Houston, and cheers and celebrations erupted both at Mission Control and around the world. The Apollo 11 lunar module had just landed on the moon.

Fifty years after that fateful moment, there isn’t much about the moon landing that has escaped our collective knowledge. But one thing that might surprise people is that Ford Motor Company had a huge hand in the Apollo 11 mission. All of the equipment that enabled the mission — including the voice transmission back to Houston and out to the rest of the world — was possible because of Ford’s role in building and maintaining Mission Control Center.

How did the company that put the world on wheels come to be a part of putting a man on the moon?

From Carbon Arc Lamps to the Space Race

The story begins with Philco, founded in 1892 to produce carbon arc lamps before shifting into battery, radio and television production. In 1953, Philco engineers invented the surface barrier transistor, the first high-frequency transistor that enabled the development of high-speed computers. Philco’s effort to miniaturize and perfect the transistor led to work with the U.S. Military and NASA, but by 1960 financial difficulties forced the company to seek an outside buyer.

Looking to expand its product offerings beyond the automobile industry, Ford was intrigued by the access to new and innovative technologies engineered by Philco. It purchased the company in 1961 and Ford transferred its Aeronutronic Division to a new entity it called Philco-Ford.

In 1963, the company went head-to-head against tech giants like IBM, RCA, Lockheed, Hughes Aircraft and AT&T in a bid to implement Mission Control Center at the new Manned Space Center in Houston. Although Philco-Ford was considered an underdog in the process, it was ultimately awarded the role as prime contractor.

“Had it not been for the merger with Ford, the company most likely would not have been considered for the job because of the magnitude of the engineering resources required,” Walter LaBerge, manager of Philco-Ford Houston Operations, noted in an oral history recounting the project.

Building What Had Never Been Built Before

The job responsibilities for Philco-Ford were immense, encompassing the design of hardware and software systems to solve problems that had never been experienced before, plus manufacturing, installation, start-up and testing of the control center, including data and control links to NASA’s remote tracking sites.

“In short, what NASA needed on the ground to assure a landing on the moon in the 60s was a major computer-assisted decision-making capability which no one had when Philco-Ford received the contract,” reads a company document from the time.

The Mission Control Center was completed in about two years — just in time to monitor the Gemini 3 mission in March of 1965 — and was fully functional a few months later when all mission control operations were moved from Cape Kennedy to Houston’s Manned Space Center.

In addition to designing and building out the control center, Philco-Ford provided technical and engineering support personnel during construction and ongoing operations. The system designs were updated for each mission, some of which required as many as 2 million wiring changes. Other statistics from Mission Control are just as staggering now as when they were installed more than 50 years ago:

· More than 1,500 different items of telemetry data — from the astronaut’s health to the results of test to flight data — flowed into the center simultaneously.

· The Mission Control Center housed the largest assembly of television switching equipment in the world.

· More than 60,000 miles of wiring were laid and maintained to continue operations.

· Five IBM 360/75 mainframe computers sent data to more than 1,300 indicator switches to be monitored by mission flight controllers.

The Journey to the Moon

While Philco-Ford was involved with all of the Apollo missions, two stand out for their complexity.

The Apollo 8 mission featured the first spacecraft to orbit the moon and return to earth. This mission presented serious challenges to the personnel and equipment at Mission Control Center because signals and data would be lost as the craft went behind the moon during the lunar orbit. There were some concerns about how the signal would be reacquired, but the equipment worked flawlessly and even allowed the astronauts to make several broadcasts from space — including a message of peace on Christmas Eve 1968.

In July 1969, Apollo 11 was the focus of the world. The work by Philco-Ford and the Mission Control staff was even more complex due to the unprecedented nature of the mission. As the world held its breath on July 20, the descent to the moon’s surface was broadcast around the globe.

The astronauts conducted a series of experiments and gathered lunar surface materials. They deployed the Early Apollo Scientific Experiments Package (EASEP), which would remain on the moon and monitor environmental conditions. The EASEP was a joint effort of NASA, Philco-Ford and IBM, so even after the successful return of the astronauts on July 24, 1969, the experimental package would remain and broadcast data for another year.

Life After the ‘Giant Leap’

Philco-Ford’s role with Mission Control continued as the Apollo missions gave way to Skylab, Apollo-Soyuz and eventually the Space Shuttle. Renamed Ford Aerospace and Communications Corporation in 1976, the company also began to provide additional services in satellite communication, including high-speed information systems with communication and environmental satellites. At one point in the early 1980s, Ford Aerospace had built more than half the communications satellites in orbit.

In 1990, Ford Motor Company exited the aerospace industry when Ford Aerospace was sold to Loral Corporation, but the same spirit of curiosity and innovation that powered its aerospace endeavors is still alive and well today. With major investments and advancements in self-driving technology, connected and electrified vehicles, as well as a major initiative to connect our transportation systems to a more efficient network, Ford is actively working to harness the power of technology to help cities overcome their own unique challenges. We’ve put our heads down to create groundbreaking technology before, and that gives us the confidence to know we can do it again to make life better for all, right here on earth.

Meanwhile, the Mission Control Center became a symbol of the space race recognized around the world, with historian Layne Karafantis describing it as “the most famous iteration of a particularly mid-century technology: the global Control Center.”

“The MCC in Houston, filled with consoles and computers and displays of real-time data, became iconic,” she continued. “MCC was a dynamic space whose design was created and implemented with almost every possible contingency considered. The Philco-Ford team’s integration of display, communication, and data-processing technologies within the Center made a manned mission to the Moon possible.”

Just like the rest of the world, Henry Ford II watched star-struck when that mission proved successful, inspired by its magnitude — and by what it could also mean for our terrestrial future.

“Only a few generations ago, most men lived and died within a few hundred miles of their birthplaces,” he said in a statement. “Now our horizons are virtually limitless. If man can walk on the moon, he can look to the planets and beyond the solar system as Columbus must have looked across a forbidding ocean… If we show the same determination and willingness to commit our resources, we can master the problems of our cities just as we have mastered the challenge of space.”

#1 Ford Daily | Đại lý – Showroom ủy quyền Ford Việt Nam 2019 Ford Daily là showroom, đại lý Ford lớn nhất Việt Nam: Chuyên phân phối xe ô tô FORD như: EcoSport ✅ Everest ✅ Explorer ✅ Focus ✅ Ranger… [email protected] 6A Đường Trần Hưng Đạo, Phường Phạm Ngũ Lão, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh 711240 0901333373 https://forddaily.com/ https://forddaily.com/xe/ https://forddaily.com/dai-ly/ https://forddaily.com/bang-gia/ https://forddaily.com/tra-gop/ #forddaily #dailyfordhcm #fordshowroomhcm https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ford+Daily/@10.7693359,106.696211,15z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x1f188a05d927f4ff!8m2!3d10.7693359!4d106.696211

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componentplanet · 4 years

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2020 Chrysler Pacifica Review: Swallow Your Pride – This Beats an SUV

For most Americans, a minivan is the best people-hauler for the demographic called parents-with-kids-and-all-their-crap. And the 2020 Chrysler Pacifica minivan serves the demographic better than virtually every other sports utility vehicle or minivan. You can have a Pacifica sort-of-inexpensive or trimmed in leather, with or without hiding stowable second-and-third-row seats, or as a plug-in hybrid, all with third-row seats usable by adults. Come 2021, you’ll again be able to get the Pacifica with all-wheel-drive.

The Pacifica handles relatively well. The plug-in hybrid goes 32 miles on battery power and has a battery-plus-engine cruising range of 520 miles. It is roomier and lighter than a full-size SUV. On the downside, some useful driver assists are optional on the Pacifica. Pacifica’s reliability from recent years past is not on par with competing minivans, especially from Toyota and Kia.

The Pacifica is one of the few three-row vehicles comfortable in all three rows.

On the Road with Pacifica

I drove an upscale Pacifica Hybrid with a full suite of driver assists, the latest UConnect 4 infotainment system, and black leather seats with contrasting stitching. It feels roomier than a full-size SUV because it’s roughly the size of the full-size Dodge Durango SUV, 203.8 inches versus the Durango’s 201.2. With a shorter nose and without the sloping rear of some SUVs, plus a couple more inches of width than Durango, there’s a lot more room in the Pacifica for people and cargo inside.

Handling is pretty good for something that weighs a handful of pounds shy of 5,000. It gets to 60 mph in about 7.5 seconds via a 3.6-liter V6 Atkinson cycle gas engine (higher efficiency, lower peak power) and an electric motor that net 260 hp, all driving the front wheels. Once in a while during testing, the nine-speed automatic was slow to shift or thunked into the next gear. The shifter is a rotary knob on the dashboard. Most reviewers hate shifter knobs (or buttons). I say: They leave more room for cupholders and phones on the dash or console. Nobody manually shifts a minivan. This knob would work better if it was coated in grippy rubber.

The infotainment system and navigation, called UConnect and now up to version 4, continues to be one of the easier packages to comprehend. The display is 8 inches diagonal, which is good, but a 10-inch display would be nicer (likely on 2021 models).

2020 Chrysler Pacifica.

The Pacifica excels three ways:

Around town, driving is almost zero-cost because the 16-kWh battery tucked under the floor lets you cover 32 miles of commuting to work, car-pooling, and handling daily driving tasks. It will recharge overnight on 120-volt power, or in about two hours at 240 volts. Many owners won’t burn any gasoline most days of the week, although maybe you might, because there’s no button to force the Pacifica to run electric-only before going to the combustion engine. So Chrysler uses an algorithm to decide when to use what. In a week of driving, I averaged 29 mpg, close to Chrysler’s 30 mpg EPA overall rating, which is quite good for a 2.5-ton vehicle.

Second, on longer weekend or vacation trips, you get up to 520 miles of driving. You only have to fill up once a day. Yes, the kids have to go pee more often than that, but the interstate service area choreography of one parent taking the kids to the bathroom while the other heads for the fueling islands, then meeting up while the refueler parent dashes back to the restrooms, seems to save very little time.

For weekday carpooling tasks and weekend family trips, you can fit up to seven people; the middle row is always two buckets, not a bench. And everybody, in every seating position, is plenty comfortable, especially in the hybrid. The under-floor battery means there’s no space for the stowable (Stow ‘N Go) seats that fold into the floor, but those stowable seats are thinner and less comfortable. The comfier PHEV’s seats are heavy to take out, though.

The Pacifica has upscale finishes on most trim lines. The UConnect 4 center stack display is 8.4 inches.

Lots of Trim Lines

Shopping for a Chrysler Pacifica starts with “Where do I start?” There are eight Pacifica gas-engine versions, five of them called Pacifica Touring (gut none called Pacifica Car Pooling); plus six Pacifica Hybrid versions; plus more two gas-engine entry model Pacificas, only they’re called Chrysler Voyagers (explanation below). As for the hybrid models, there are three Touring models (Touring, Touring, 35th Anniversary Touring L) and three Limited models (Limited, Limited 35th Anniversary, Limited Red S). The hybrid 35th Anniversary (of the first Chrysler Corp. minivans) and S models are upholstery, badging, and paint variants. If this sounds confusing, it is, and there’s not much on the Chrysler Pacifica website that helps you see what features are on what trim lines.

The least costly hybrid, the Touring, is $41,490 including $1,495 freight. That is $6,250 more than the gas-engine Touring, but you are eligible for a $7,500 tax credit, so really it costs less. The Touring gets you power-sliding doors, heated mirrors, keyless entry/ignition, a power-adjustable driver’s seat, three-zone climate control, the 8.4-inch touchscreen, Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and USB jacks. Driver assists are blind-spot warning/rear-cross-traffic-alert (same system) and rear parking sonar. No forward-facing driver assists.

The Touring L, $45,780 including freight, may be the sweet spot: It adds leather upholstery, heated front seats, and a power liftgate. But it, too, lacks a full range of driver assists.

The Limited, $47,340, is where you can add a fuller array of driver assists. It has nicer leather, vented front seats, navigation, UConnect Theater (rear entertainment), and 20-speaker audio. For $995 you can add the Advanced Safety Tec Group: stop-and-go adaptive cruise control, advanced forward collision warning, advanced lane departure warning, parallel/perpendicular parking assist, front sonar (rear is standard) with auto-stop, and surround cameras. You can also add a $1,895 panoramic sunroof.

The top-line Hybrid Limited Red S fully optioned runs $52,000, before tax credit.

Be still my heart: the 1984 Dodge Caravan, enabler of the soccer mom demographic. It’s also 28 inches shorter than today’s Pacifica.

The Shrinking Minivan Market

Minivans as we know them date to the 1984 Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager, boxy vehicles, some with woodgrain wrap on the sides. They helped keep Chrysler Corp. alive. (The vehicles, not necessarily the woodgrain.) Sales of minivans, all brands, peaked in 2000 with 1.4 million sold, 8 percent of the year’s 17 million sales. Most had three rows of seats, and even the third row was reasonably comfortable at a time when there were far fewer SUVs. And they drove like cars at a time when SUVs didn’t.

Minivans were popular with college-educated boomer parents in the suburbs who drove their children to sports practices a lot, had similar-to-each-other buying patterns, got involved in the PTA, and tended to vote. Demographers called them soccer moms or soccer parents, which annoyed the heck out of them, more because soccer mom was too easily understood as well as misunderstood. In retaliation – “how dare these people reduce me to two words” – they switched to SUVs that were bigger, top-heavier, tipsier (until electronic stability control came along), cost you 3-5 mpg in fuel economy, and lacked room for teens in row three. Nothing like seeing six kids in shorts and cleats disembark from a GMC Yukon Denali, not a Pacifica, to prove you’re not a soccer dad or mom.

Fast forward to 2019, and sales of the five minivan models (plus leftover Chrysler Town & Countrys) amounted to just over 400,000, or 2 percent of the (again) 17 million sales of light vehicles. The best-seller Dodge Grand Caravan gets the majority of sales in fleet markets, making the Honda Odyssey and Pacifica the top two sellers to individuals.

Minivan Model 2019 Sales 2018 Sales Change Dodge Grand Caravan 122,648 151,927 -19% Honda Odyssey 99,113 106,327 -7% Chrysler Pacifica 97,705 118,322 -17% Toyota Sienna 73,585 87,671 -16% Kia Sedona 15,931 17,928 -11% Chrysler Town & Country 5 6 -17% Totals 408,987 482,181 -15%

Between 2000 and today, more than a dozen minivan brands departed the market: Buick Terraza, Chevrolet Uplander, Chevrolet Venture, Chrysler Voyager, Ford Freestar, Ford Windstar Cargo, Mazda MPV, Mercury Monterey, Nissan Quest, Oldsmobile Silhouette, Pontiac Montana, Saturn Relay, and Volkswagen Routan. The one significant entrant is the Kia Sedona in the 2015 model year.

In 2020, the aging Dodge Grand Caravan goes away this spring, to be replaced by the Chrysler Voyager, effectively an entry-level Pacifica. That will likely be the rental-fleet minivan. Insiders say the two-name strategy helps the residual value of the Pacifica. Any time more than half the sales for a model go into fleets, it depresses resale prices.

The 2020 Pacifica measures 203.8 inches long, 79.6 inches wide, and 69.9 inches high. This allows for superb cargo space: 32.3 cubic feet with all seats used, and 140.5 cubic feet with the middle and rear seats down.

Should You Buy?

If you do a lot of urban driving, you’ll likely love how much of it can be on electricity, where the cost of electricity (low) is equivalent in cost to the Pacifica getting 82 mpg on gasoline. It is roomy on legroom as well as side to side shoulder room, so you really can get three across in back.

The Pacifica scores well on IIHS safety tests: good overall on crashworthiness, and a Top Safety Pick. However, it’s light on standard driver safety assists: Blind spot warning is standard, plus government-required features such as a rear camera. If you want a fuller range of assists that help especially on long highway trips, you’ll really want one of the Limited trims and the features of the Advanced Safety Tec package.

Only when you reach the Limited are significant additional driver assists offered in an options package.

Against the competition, the same money, roughly, will get you the sensational Kia Telluride or Hyundai Palisade three-row SUVs with less space and a premium-car fit and finish. Against other SUVs, the Honda Odyssey is well-thought-out and so is the Toyota Sienna, which is the only minivan to offer all-wheel-drive. The Kia Sedona, less flashy, has rock-solid build quality and reliability on its side. Consumer Reports rates recent Sedonas at 3, 4 or 5 of 5, while the Pacifica is rated at 1 or 2 out of 5.

The Chrysler Pacifica has been out since the 2017 model year. It gets a significant refresh for the 2021 model year with all-wheel-drive offered on the gas-engine Pacifica only (Chrysler last had an AWD minivan in 2004). Chrysler could have redirected the PHEV’s electric power to the rear wheels for all-wheel-drive (as Toyota has done to create AWD on a front-drive car), but chose not to. There’s a new, version 5, of UConnect Drive by Android software. And there’ll be an additional trim line at the top end, called Pinnacle. To keep up with the competition, the 2021 Pacifica will make standard forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, and lane departure warning/lane-keeping assistance.

Now read:

2018 Honda Odyssey First Drive Review: Tech Makes It the Ultimate People Hauler

2020 Kia Telluride Review: The New Benchmark for Midsize SUVs

At Last: Driver-Assist Terms Will Be Common Across All Cars

from ExtremeTechExtremeTech https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/307788-2020-chrysler-pacifica-review-swallow-your-pride-this-beats-an-suv from Blogger http://componentplanet.blogspot.com/2020/03/2020-chrysler-pacifica-review-swallow.html

#2020 Chrysler Pacifica Review: Swallow Your Pride – This Beats an SUV

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amsjournaltoshare · 7 years

Text

South Korea!

Assalamualaikum and hello! It was mid-December 2016 when we went on a 10 days, 9 nights trip to South Korea. It was defo one of the countries in out bucketlist. Alhamdulilah, we get to go on a trip to South Korea.

Okay as usual...flights. We bought our tickets like mid-august. So we took:

Brunei to KL (airasia), KL to Incheon airport (Malaysia airline)

and as for our flight back, we decided to stay for a night in KLIA.

Incheon airport to KL (Malaysia airline), KL to Brunei (airasia).

Our flght cost about BND700+ per person (both airasia and MAS). Fortunately, this year (2017) Royal Brunei Airlines (RBA) has provided a direct flight from Brunei International Airport to Incheon Airport, South Korea. WHEEE!!!! Seriously, we would definitely make a visit to South Korea again....and again!

Below are just some information of our accomodation (where we stayed while in Seoul and Busan). Initially, the plan was to stay near Myeong-dong, Nam-daemun area and after our trip to Busan, we planned to change hotel and stay in Itaewon. However, we were just in love with out hotel so we decided to cancel out booking with our hotel in Itaewon and continue our stay in Nam-daemun. We make our bookings by Booking.com but you can also check Airbnb as there are also many options.

So this is where we stayed, 8 nights in Hotel 8hours which is just 5 minutes away from City Hall and Metro station, one stop from Seoul station, 10-15 minutes walk to Myeong-dong, 5 minutes walk to Nam-daemun market, 20-30 minutes walk to Namsan.

At the end of this post, we’ll share the applications that we used for our trip for example Kakao Metro. We’ll share the summary of our itinerary and also suggested place to eat. Hope you will enjoy reading this and hope its beneficial!

Day One (Arrival, Myeongdong and Cheonggyecheon stream).

The first thing we did when we reached outside the arrival area, we went to look for prepaid lines for our phone, there were so many options for lines at the airport. There were also a modem (wifi only) but you need to pay using credit card. We decide to just buy a line with unlimited data for 10days. I literally forgot how much it costs but the staff at the counters could speak English really well and they are all so nice.

On the Train from Incheon airport to Seoul Train Station. Express Train which costs 8000KW.

Behind: Glass building is the City Hall. 5 minutes from our accommodation.

After settling with the hotel, our first stop in search for food is Myeong-dong.

Busan Jib is a restaurant located in Myeong-dong. It’s Halal and you can check it our on instagrm @busanjib_myeongdong

After that, we went back to the hotel and rest. At night, we went on a stroll to Cheonggyecheon stream. It was so beautiful with the wonderful lights and Christmas decorations. Below are just some pictures :)

Day Two (Namsan tower, Buchok Hanok Village, Changdeokgung Castle)

We went to different places in Seoul. We walked most of the time and used the subway. That “Kakao Metro” phone application was truly a life saver.

First, we went to the Namsan tower, Buchok Hanok Village, Changdeokgung Castle (we bought all tickets on the spot), we suggest for you to check the opening and tour times online :) Buchok Hanok Village, Changdeokgung Castle and Insadong is just few minutes walking distance apart.

Cable car tickets to Namsan tower :) (round trip)

We walked for about 10-15 minutes from Buchok Hanok village to reach Changdeokgung Castle At Changdeokgung Castle, we bought tickets to visit both the castle and secret garden, since the garden is a secret...we decided not to post pics on it. Well maybe just abit.

The building behind is the prince’s library, facing a beutiful lake (frozen when we’re there).

UNFORTUNATELY, both out phone ran out of battery!!! You know how during winter battery would ran out fast. And we left our powerbank back in the hotel. So careless!

Anyways, here is a pic of a restaurant in Insadong called Little India which served HALAL INDIAN FOOD. The chicken massala was so so good! Love the environment and ambience of the place. I felt as if you’re in mini India, outlooking the artistic street of Insadong, South Korea.

Day Three (Nami Island, Petite France, Dinner at Itaewon).

Whee! Alright, from the city hall we took the metro to Yongsan Station where we bought tickets adn took the train to Gapyeong station, it was about an hour journey to Gapyeong station. You can check in other blogs for more information (because thats what i did), upon arrival we took the taxi instead of the bus because we’re just an impatient couple. It only took the taxi about 5 minutes to drive us and cost around 3000-5000won.

Ferry to Nami Island :)

Here are some pictures of our day at Nami Island. We ate on the island, there was a muslim restaurant called Asian Cuisine with Prayer room on the first floor of the restaurant. But somehow I couldn;t find the picture of the place :(

Winter Sonata Statue :)

Next, off to Petitie France. You can use the bus as well but we decided to use the taxi. It took about a 20 minute drive frim Nami Island to Petite France with 18000won one way.

Some pics in Petite France! It was a unique place, we prefer to just share few pictures and let you explore it by yourself! There was no halal restaurant or prayer room in Petite France, glad we brought snacks!

Back in Seoul, we decided to hvae a proper Korean Dinner so we head to Itaewon in search for a Halal Korean restaurant called MAKAN restaurant. From Itaweom station, it was about 10 minutes walk to the restaurant but....it was very very hilly. Cardio on point guys! But it was worth it. You can google up the restautrant or check it out in HHWT app. Here’s the bulgogi (beef) that we ordered.

Day Four (Bears Town Ski Resort)

Our first ever ski trip! Super excited although the night before we’re still contemplating whether to go or not on day four or should we shift it to another day since we’re still tired after our trip to nami island. Transportation need to be book early via email.

Transportation to Bearstown ski resort:

Option A: Ski shuttle bus for pick up.

From Seoul:

Kensington Hotel-6.55am

Sogang Uni Station exit 2- 7.05am

City Hall exit 4- 7.10am

Alive Museum Insadong- 8.30am

From Bearstown:

5.30pm- drop off at Insadong

7.00pm- drop off at Sogang University and Kensington Hotel

We took the bust from city hall and took the 5.30pm bus back. The ski shuttle bus fee: Round trip 4000won and One way 3000won.

NOTE TO SELF: THE BUSSES WERE ON TIME!!! XD

Option B: Take bus #1001 at Gangbyeon Station (subway line 2) and get off at Bears Town Ski Resort.

BEARS TOWN SKI RESORT FEE

Option A: 0900-1700 (inc. Lift, ski rental or board rental, ski wear rental) Total:KRW154,000 / BND 186.60 per person.

Option B: 0900-1300 (inc. Lift, ski rental or board rental, ski wear rental) Total:KRW123,000/ BND 149.10 per person. WE TOOK THIS OPTION as we want to have our lunch and walk around the resort.

So many people! But the ski area accomodates different level of ski peeps, the pros, children who we assumed is under the ski scheme? And then theres us, the newbies.

There were no halal restaurants so we settled with snacks that we bought and some seafood and rice cakes. Also on a side note, no one at this resort speaks English so you need to be ready in understanding and explaining stuffs or if your korean is good then thats even better!. But no worries, luckly there were tourists who speaks both English and Korean language to help us out XD.

Day 5 and 6 (Train to Busan)

Note to self: Do not buy a last minute ticket to Busan as seats might not be available and you will end up standing like us for the whole 3 hours. But we got lucky because we did get to sit for like an hour XD

Transportation: Busan trip via KTX.

Seoul to Busan: KRW 59,800/ BND 72.50

Busan to Seoul: KRW 53,900/ BND 65.30

We stayed for a day in Busan at Beach Hotekl Haeundae! (Refer to the first part of the post for more information). Honestly, the was better than we expected. It was super clean. You can check it out more on booking.com. And its just 3 minutes form the streets for Haeundae.

Busan Day One

Busan Train Station. Where we took the metro to Haeundae.

First stop, star kebab restaurant because we were starving. It was a small restaurant owened by a turkish couple. The kebabs were not bad!! It defo made our tummy happy.

After that, we head down to Haeundae Beach during winter!!! It was just about 2 minutes walk from the restaurant.

Although, it was winter but there were still alot of people at the beach. Seagulls and performances. Super fun! Then we head and check in to our hotel to rest before heading to a wonderful temple by the beach via taxi, Haedong Yonggungsa Temple.

The Haedong Yonggungsa Temple:

For dinner we had Indian food (again!) at a restaurant called Punjab Indian Restaurant. It was quite pricy from our opinion but the food was great!

Busan Day Two

Since we only have about half a day before our train back to Seoul. After a quick breakfast at the hotel, we took a taxi to Gamcheon Culture Village (a must visit when you’re in Busan!). It was basically used to be a shanty area but they painted and give an artistic feeling towards it. Hence, the place became awesomely cute and pweety.

After that, we head back via taxi to the train station and signed off from Busan and hello again Seoul. Don’t worry this time we bought the train tickets when we arrive to Busan hence we had seats.

For dinner, we made our way again to Itaewon via metro from Seoul Station. We had our wonderful dinner at a restaurant called EID. (it’s around the same place as MAKAN restaurant).

Day 7 (City Hall, Ewha University, Hongdae and Dongdaemun)

After a week in South Korea, we are ready stroll around Seoul and did some shopping. Thank you for Korea’s awesome Metro, really east to get by anywhere.

City Hall: We just went in just to see whats up in the City Hall since we took the Metro mainly from there almost everyday.

Then we took the Metro to Ewha Univerity Womans University as we heard the structure of the university was mind-blowing. Indeed it was. And it was where you can find stuffs for shopping besides Hongdae.

The picture below: on the left and right are rooms to i guess lecture hall/ students union. How cool is that?

Then we headed to Hongdae adn visit the adorable Hello Kitty Cafe!!! The original yogurt and sweet potato latte tasted really really good!!!

Then we walked around Hongdae to survey what we’re going to buy the day before we head back to Brunei.

At night, we went to Dongdaemun Design Plaza to check out the LED flowers. Then we stroll around Dongdaemun and end our night at Myeongdong for a Seafood Party.

Day 8 (Lotte World, Ice Skating and Yang Good BBQ at Yeoksam)

Lotte world is basically an Indoor amusemant park (half indoor). We had a wonderful time at Lotte world, the ticket cost about BND 80.00 but we somehow ours got discounted because it was close to chrismast. Like any other amusemant park, the queue for the rides were as well long. So we planned ahead on which ride we targeted. The Atlantis is a much!

Behind was the atlantis, we queued for 50minutes for this ride...under the rain. But it was worth it! Most of the pictures of Lotte world are still in our other hard disc which...is MIA now :(

We also went Ice skating. Can you see that above the ice skating rink were the rides as well.

Highly recommended place to east at Yeoksam (near gangnam). Yang Good BBQ.

Day 9 (Last day- Shopping and Souveneir hunting)

For our last day in Korea, we did most of our shopping at Insadong where we had our breakfast at one of the cafes. Cafes in Korea is a must try! They were sooo different and brought a different feeling in you.

Then we head to Hongdae to continue shopping.

So that we don’t have to carry out shopping bags to dinner, we rent a locker at the metro station and place our shopping bags there. It was really an easy access and convenient.

Then we to have our last dinner in Korea, we wanted to try the Korean Fried Chicken and we’re luck that there is a restaurant which serves that in Hongdae. Its basically a restaturant located at a resthouse. BOA HALAL KOREAN FOOD DOSIRAK, i found this on the HHWT app as well.

We then head back to our hotel and start packing as our flight is on the next day. You might want to arrive at the airport early because it takes quite an amount of time at the immigration/scanning area. And Incheon airport is huge, you have to use rail to transfer to the next gate.

Day 10 (Annyeong South Korea)

Additional Information

Apps for survival:

The first one was just simple guide from English to Korean (greetings, transport, food etc)

Kakao Metro is a must have as it guide to which metro station you should take and which exit. It also update you the time of arrival or if there were any changes in the time.

Halal Korea is where we search for a place to eat and prayer place.

Scan Halal is where we scan some of the snacks we bought and see if it contained any non-halal stuffs.

HHWT is where we search for place to eat and also place to pray.

Waze to look for directions when walking.

Halal Restaurants that we went:

Busan Jib in Myeongdong (@busanjib_myeongdong)

Makan Halal Restaurant in Itaewon (check out HHWT)

Eid Halal Korean Food in Itaewon (check out HHWT) : 67, Usadan-ro 10-gil, Yongsan-gu.

BOA Guesthouse (Hongik University Station, Exit 4), 15, Sinchon-ro 1 gil, Seodaemum-gu, Seoul. Cross @ crosswalk infront of LG electronic, keep walking till Bizeun rice cake shop, turn left and just walk straight up.

Yang Good BBQ (Yeoksam Station, Line 2), ( check out HHWT)

Little India in Insadong (check out HHWT)

Punjabi Restaurant in Haeundae, Busan

Expenses (per person):

Pocket money: BND 1500.00

Food budget: BND 250.00

Transportation (include train fron Incheon and back, KTX, taxi rides, metro tickets and busses): BND 50.00

Admissions to places of attractions (including Bears Town Ski Resort, Lotte world, Nami Island, Petitie France and others): BND 350.00

Flight Ticket: BND 750.00 return

Itinerary Summary:

Day One: Arrival, Myeongdong and Cheonggyecheon stream).

Day Two: Namsan tower, Buchok Hanok Village, Changdeokgung Castle.

Day Three: Nami Island, Petite France, Dinner at Itaewon.

Day Four: Bearstown Ski Resort.

Day Five: Train to Busan, Haeundae Beach and Haedong Yonggungsa Temple.

Day Six: Gamcheon Culture Village, Back to Seoul, Seoul Plaza, Itaewon for dinner.

Day Seven: City Hall, Ewha University, Hongdae (Hello Kitty Cafe and shopping), Dongdaemun (Dongdaemun Design Plaza-LED flowers), Myeongdong.

Day Eight: Lotte world, Ice skating and dinner at Yeoksam

Day Nine: Shopping day at Insadong, Ewha and Hongdae.

Day Ten: To Incheon airport, Home time.

It was defo one of the best trip that we have experienced together. We did alot of things that we have never thought we would ever experience (like ski and snowboarding). We hope to visit South Korea again and hopefully this time we have a chance to explore Jeju Island, In shaa Allah. Sorry for not sharing alot of photos but we hope you’ll enjoy reading this post! :)

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