Off Topic: Movie rentals for the new economy ($free)

(Even Batman has made some cutbacks)

In the spirit of the Tata Nano (I had to tie this in some way), I've been looking for ways to save money.  I recently disconnected my cable television service... first time in decades.  It's a strange feeling at first... not having access to hundreds of useless channels.  Unemployment is taking its toll on my entertainment budget, if you call a bunch of crappy commercials "entertainment".  So, what do I do now for a little vegetative downtime?  Netflix? Blockbuster? NO!  We're trying to save money here.  I want something for nothing.  Can I rent movies for free?  Yes I can!  Well, not exactly "renting", but good old fashioned neighborhood borrowing is what I'm talking about. 

Now, what's the best way to organize a lending system to allow listing, searching, tracking, reserving and returning?  Sure there are some really sweet desktop apps like Delicious Library 2, granting you've got a Mac and $40, but allow me to emphasize my goal here - it's saving some green... holdin' on to my loot...  being downright CHEAP!

Once, back in 2006, I found this really slick online neighborhood lending library system that allowed the creation of a community that others could join (just your subdivision for instance), easy inventory management (you could just use a modified CueCat scanner and bulk scan your DVDs and CDs and the system would enter all the descriptive info and cover art), it was brilliant.  Alas, I have no idea what t was today, so I decided to do some digging around.  Here's what I've found:

DVDLender
BorrowMe
LendList
Neighborrow
BillMonk
Traxtuff
LendBee
Divvy
LendAround

and some other swap site here.

What good is this link list to you?  Well, it's a starting point.  It's too early in the game for me to a dozen reviews outlining the pros and cons of each.  I'm hoping to get YOUR feedback.  Have you used any of these?  Do you know of some good lending / borrowing apps that aren't listed above? 

Now, if you don't have friends or neighbors, you could always take advantage of the Redbox Free Movie Wednesdays or take your chances on YouTube.

Cubs to begin arriving in three weeks

(You can stop staring at your scrapbook because the cubs will be landing soon. Image source)

Many of you have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the first new cub type scooters in the USA since Honda discontinued the Passport back in 1983 (actually, there have been others but nothing worth mentioning). Well my friends, the wait will finally be over in just three weeks. You can expect the first of the cubs to begin shipping May 5th from SYM's headquarters in Alabama. The long awaited Symba will be followed by the Fly Scout just one month later, shipping from California.

The Symba has all its cards laid out on the table, and it's a pretty nice hand. Will the Scout be able to trump the Symba? Well, I know she's got a few tricks up her sleeve. We won't really know until around mid June. In the meantime, be sure to visit your local dealer around the second week in May to kick some Symba tires!

"State of the Scoop" address

(Is TSS lying dead under a sheet or about to be unveiled? Find out now!)

"So, what happened Steve? Did you give up?"
"Hey man! Where ya been? I called missing persons on ya!"
"I can't start my day without my coffee and morning scoop!"

I hear ya folks... Just wanted to give a little update. First to address the "death rumors". TheScooterScoop did NOT throw itself under a Hummer or OD on Vespamphetamines. TheScooterScoop didn't get sold on Craigslist so we could buy TheSUVScoop. TheScooterScoop was NOT hanging with Chris Brown the night of the assult and TheScooterScoop had NOTHING to do with GM's attempt to justify more bailout money with their P.U.M.A. (Please Unload More Assets). Where was all this "forward-thinking" ten years ago, guys?

TheScooterScoop has just been (and continues to be) in a state of incubation. We havn't run out of material. No, as a matter of fact, my head is about to a'splode with stories if this launch doesn't hurry up. Launch? You say? Yes. We are launching TheScooterScoop v4 this month this year to celebrate 4 years of scoop! I've decided to back away from working for specific scooter brands for a while and concentrate on three things... Working with ALL the brands to bring you the fresh scoops right here at TheScooterScoop, digging to bring new and fresh scoops for EVpulse (instead of just republishing stale press releases), AND working on some new and exciting projects with my good friend and fellow hooligan, Casey Cook to be revealed RIGHT HERE on TSS. We've got one project in the works currently that involves a Honda Ruckus and a BBQ grill... sorta. Don't wanna give away too much, but I know it'll be fun!

So, the rest of 2009 will be... "revealing", to say the least. So, tighten up yer chinstraps and snug up yer gloves because the ride is about to begin!

North Carolina call to action!

This comes from Josh Alleman (of Scooter Vita) a vocal scooter activist from North Carolina who is concerned about a new law about to go into effect that would now require insurance and registration for scooters, including those that would normally be classified as mopeds.  Here in Texas it doesn't matter, you've gotta have a license, registration and insurance no matter what.

I'm going to reprint Josh's message below.  If you live in North Carolina, you might wanna read this:

The lack of local concern here is disappointing to me. This bill is expected to pass in the Senate tomorrow without argument.

Call our Senators!

Burr, Richard - (R - NC) Class III
217 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-3154
http://burr.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.Conta...

Hagan, Kay R. - (D - NC) Class II
B40A DIRKSEN SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-6342
http://hagan.senate.gov/contact/contact.cfm

If it passes in the Senate, it goes to the House of Representatives. Call your Representatives! What are you doing at the moment? You can probably pick up the phone.

http://www.ncleg.net/gascripts/members/memberList.pl?sChamber=Senate

I'm not against insurance and registration for scooters. It only makes sense. Insurance is the problem though, because insurance isn't given without a driver's license. If you don't have a drivers license, you can't get insurance. If you can't get insurance you can't drive a moped or 50cc scooter. Perhaps we need some manner of "moped" endorsement on an ID or something for the folks that don't have a license.

I'm not for people with DUIs to be on the road drinking. If you get caught on your scooter under the influence, you have abused your last privilege to be on the road (after your regular driver's license was taken), and you're done. Walk, ride a bike, take the bus, whatever... There should be zero tolerance for that.

There are MANY of us in the scootering community though, myself included, who aren't addicts (I'm NOT addicted to scooters! *cough cough*) and we don't abuse the privilege, and we RELY on our scooters as an economical and fuel efficient means of transportation.

50cc scooters go 30mph out of the factory. Many of them can go a whopping 45 mph if you tinker with them and de-restrict 'em. Why should we have to have a drivers license on something that is little more powerful than a bicycle?

I'm looking forward to the Winston-Salem meet tonight, and I hope that you all will help me write a petition. Those of you who can't make it, please do your part for yourselves and your fellow scooterists.

~Josh

Austin Rally in <30 Days!

Love Austin?  Love scooters?  How about BBQ?  Mini Golf?  Drinks?  Rides, more BBQ, Mexican, more rides, drinks, gymkhana and raffles?
Then you WON'T wanna miss the first Riff Raff SC sponsored rally being held in Austin, Texas > May 1st - 3rd.

This is an all inclusive rally.  If you like to ride and hang with other friendly riders, you should do your best to make it!  Go HERE to register. 

BIG shout out to the other sponsors Vespa Austin and Urban Moto Shop.

Print ads done RIGHT. Bravo Vespa Australia!

TheCoolHunter, in the UK, stumbled across this print ad for Vespa Australia last year and I think it really get's the job done.  There's no half nikked chicks on scooters.  There's no poorly placed photoshopping of the scooter on a beach somewhere.  There's no shot of the scooter surrounded by a bunch of nonsensical tech embellishments.  As a matter of fact, there is NO SCOOTER AT ALL!  Still this ad communicates perfectly the idea of "breaking out of the gridlock with a Vespa".  Hat's off to you Vespa AU!
Thanks to @samcarew for the scoop via Twitter!

Getting caught up now!

Oh, woes me! I haven't been able to post much of anything lately.  The torrent of emails I've been getting leaves me little time to continue with the habits of my daily life.  Hording vintage scooter parts, tending to my swimming pool kombucha (I just tought him to roll over!), eating last year's easter eggs (makes riding packed elevators a real hoot), changing the oil on my David Bowie animatron (he sings Suffragette City) and posting fresh scoops have ALL taken a hit thanks to the flood of heartfelt emails we've been getting from the scooterati and also from Nigerian Kings escaping the country with suitcases full of money (didn't know I was such a trusted figure over in Nigeria).  

Thankfully, Google has updated their Gmail service to help with the emails.  If you have the same problem you should check out Gmail Autopilot!  A real lifesaver!

The configuration is VERY simple... almost TOO simple.

 

My only complaint is the limited number of config points.  I have emailed requesting a "punctuation error" adjustment with the ability to insert ellipsis for added suspense.  Google is usually pretty good about responding to customer feedback.  

So, if you've been waiting for an email response to your, "Should I buy this Honda Elite on Craigstlist" from November 2008 then the wait is OVER!  w00t!  Thanks for tuning in.