Realm of the Wombat

We found this flaming white automobile outside Acme a few weeks back. There was no indication of what make it is, but Jim Dandy (shown giving his approval) and I have narrowed it down to an early 1950s vintage Plymouth, but the exact model is still up in the air.

For more info about 1949-1952 Plymouths, Jim Dandy suggests this article at allpar.com.

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We were wondering about the origin of April Fool’s Day last week. Of course, there are multiple theories. The most popular has to do with the change to the Gregorian Calendar. People that resisted the change celebrated New Year’s Day on April 1, were sent on “fool’s errands” and targets for other pranks. For a more elaborate summary of these theories, see museumofhoaxes.com.

Here’s a double dose from last week’s “New Music Friday.” First is the latest release from Beck, Guero. The openning tracks will certainly remind you of Odelay, then gets a bit more toned down toward Mutations or Sea Change. This is an unusual album in that way for Beck; it’s not a completely different direction for him. However, it’s solid from top to bottom, so if you like any of Beck’s pre-Midnight Vultures stuff, you’ll like Guero.

Who’s Abandoned Pools? Abandoned Pools is the current project for one time Eels member Tommy Walter. Naturally, I found them in the ‘See Also’ section of the Eels page at allmusic.com. Humanistic is an alternative/punk-pop type album that isn’t revolutionary by any stretch, but I’ll say it rivals anything heard on the radio. They have a new album coming out this year which I’ll probably check out. Hopefully Walter will show off a bit more of the ‘instrumentalist’ label that intrigued me in the first place.

I actually saw this festive vehicle on Solano last week but didn’t have my camera in the car. I caught up with it downtown this weekend. The decor seems to be a kid’s dream: a Christmas tree on the hood, Haloween pumpkin on the roof, dinosaurs, and action figures.

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I spotted this one in a driveway on San Pablo when I found the Donation Tercel. They could be owned by the same person I suppose. The amount of detail in the scales on the Dragon Corolla is pretty impressive. I also like the fin attached to the roof. Structural modifications are worth extra points in my book.

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Do you see where it says “Game #1″ in the center there? That means we’re going to the A’s home opener. If they go with a five-man rotation to start the season, we’ll see Rich Harden. If they skip Blanton or Meyer, we’ll see one of the rookies (likely Haren).

To prepare you for the coming season of Oakland Athletics baseball, read the following:

• Five Questions: Oakland A’s (The Hardball Times)
• Oakland A’s Preview (Baseball Think Factory)
• AL West Preview (All-Baseball.com)
• Interview with Billy Beane (Athletics Nation): Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
• Interview with Bill James (Sons of Sam Horn)

With the fragile state of the Pope these days, my compatriots and I started wondering about the structure of the Catholic Church. Specifically, we wanted to know how many Cardinals are there? Well, it’s 183 as Paul found the answer at Catholic-Pages.com. Also of interest is the index of Popes through history, which includes 264 or 265 depending on who you believe. I’m not sure what the discrepancy is. For more info on JPII see the CNN biography (the Vatican site is swamped, so don’t expect to get in there).