PennSilverTaco's "Perfect 5-Lug Regular Cab" Build, Aspergers, and General BS MegaThread!

AWD like the subbie! So I guess this story has a happy ending?

 

@Iamraiderpower
@LocoLocal

This was fairly recent, sometime in mid-November; right before Thanksgiving. My best friend's band played at the bar where I work on the Friday before Thanksgiving (may have been Friday). It was a relatively slow night at my bar, so when my friend's band finished playing, we all headed over to another bar. It was so slow that my bar closed early, and everybody including the bartender and one of the bouncers ended up going to the other bar.

My friend who had been playing that night was originally going to drive me home, but I was having such a good time with my coworkers that I thanked him for the offer and told him to head out without me (He had probably a beer the whole night). I did not anticipate having any trouble finding an Uber, and drank the night away. Before long, it was last call (By law, bars have to close by 2am in PA). The bouncers started herding everybody out. However, since people in the service industry take care of each other, they let all of my coworkers and me hang around for a bit.

I decided I wanted to go home and opened the trusty Uber app on my phone, but to my shock and surprise there were no UberX cars available. The bouncer from my bar who'd joined us at this bar after we closed early overheard me expressing annoyance about the fact that no Ubers were available, and offered to drive me home. He'd only had a couple drinks and is not a lightweight by any means, and I figured anything was better than having to call my parents totally hammered at two in the morning and ask for a ride home.

So, I decided to go home with the bouncer. Looking back on it, he probably shouldn't have been driving that night, but both of us made it home safe.

Even though there were no Ubers presently available, I'd still been able to get a fare estimate. This had come in at just over $20, which was actually quite high even for 2am on a Friday or a Saturday for a 12-minute ride home...

So, the bouncer and I leave the bar and I tell him that I'll give him twenty bucks that's about how much my Uber would have cost, and my house is out of his way. He tells me to keep the twenty in my pocket and follow him. I know at this point that we are not walking to his truck and ask what we are doing. He informs me that we are going to an after-hours bar (in PA, an after hours bar is an establishment that has a license to stay open until 3am-4am, but is members-only and thus not open to the general public), where I am not a member. I ask the bouncer if he is a member, and he tells me to just be quiet, keep cool, and follow his lead. Translation: No, I am not a member. He kept saying "Chuck, I've got this."

So, we make it to this members-only bar, and the bouncer starts chatting with the bouncer at this bar like they are best friends. After a quick conversation, the bouncer asks to see my ID. He glances at my license and we're in. I stepped into the men's room to take a leak and then rejoined my coworker. He told me again to just be cool and follow him, and he introduced me to random people he knew as we walked to the other end of the building. He got himself a Bud Light and asked me what I wanted. I asked for my go-to drink, a lager (Yuengling is lager's first name in this part of PA; If you ask for a lager, you're gonna get a Yuengling; If the bar has both bottle and draft, the bartender will ask which one you want; If you want a Sam Adams, a Landshark, or any other type of lager, then that's what you ask for, but if you request a lager in my area, the bartender will give you a Yuengling). The bouncer pays for both drinks and hands me that cold lager. I thank him and we continue our walk around the bar. This bouncer was like Norm from Cheers, as he seemed to know every second or third person in the place and each one of them seemed to know him.

In the bar business, coworkers like to bust on each other. This is especially true among the bouncers, and the bouncers don't only goof on each other. We (meaning the bouncers and the rest of the staff) bust each other's balls all the time. Having Asperger's Syndrome, it took me quite a while to pick up on this, and I ended many a shift with my feelings hurt over the years. This particular bouncer has made a national pastime out of fucking with people, but this night gave me a new respect for him. There was no ball-busting on his part tonight. He bought me a beer and introduced me to all of his bar buddies by saying "This is my coworker, Charlie. He's a barback." When the meet and greet was over, we ended up sitting in a corner near the pool tables, just chatting. I bought myself a second lager, he bought himself a drink, and we ended up just bullshitting the night away until almost 3am.

When we finally did leave, he literally had another surprise up his sleeve. We had barely even crossed the street after exiting the bar, and with a big grin on his face, he says "Chuck, look at this." Seemingly out of nowhere, he pulls his second bottle of Bud Light out his jacket and takes a long swig from it. All I could do was laugh.

We made our way back to the bouncer's old F150, he cleared his stuff off of the shotgun seat for me, and I climbed in. He placed his beer in the cupholder as if it were a bottle of Coca-Cola, started the engine, and we were off. I put on my seatbelt, but he didn't. His truck must not have had a seatbelt warning chime, otherwise that would have driven me crazy. The highlight of the evening was right as we were driving out of town, when he took another healthy swig of beer as we drove past a marked police SUV idling in the median.

It was freezing that night, but that 20-year old F150 had a great heater. This bouncer always busts my balls about how his F150 is better than my Tacoma, but it's all in good fun. His truck has 4 more cylinders than mine, probably weighs over a thousand pounds more than mine, and can probably tow almost double what my truck can tow; comparing an F150 to a Tacoma is pointless in my opinion.

Anyway, I've directed many Uber drivers to my parents' new house after having more than a few beers, so directing my coworker there was no problem. I thanked him, we did our ceremonial fist-bump, and I went inside. The next morning I woke up without a hangover and went back to work...

 

Yeah, and my coworker got full coverage on the CRV in case something like this happens again. The issue with the Subaru was that they only had liability insurance on it since it was so old. My coworker's insurance company considers damage by deer an act of god, even if the vehicle doesn't have full/collision/comprehensive coverage. My Taco is covered by USAA, and while I do have full coverage, my policy says that if I did only have liability, deer strikes would be covered. The difference is that my truck is still considered relatively new, has less than 80K miles on it, and is worth like $10,000-$12,000. My coworker's Subaru was 17 years old at the time and had like 250K miles on it. My coworker's insurance company not only declared the car a total loss due to its age and mileage, but refused to pay out because they didn't think the car was worth anything. My friend ended up getting like $250-$300 for the car after much arguing.

 

I'm going to tag you in some of my posts that you may have not seen!

 

I was just going through old posts and found this one.

In Doylestown Borough, police do have the authority to issue parking tickets, but the Borough has it's own dedicated parking enforcement that is separate from the police.

The parking enforcement guys do take pictures of the license plates, but they can't run them...

 

Bill, how tall are you?

 

Ouch, that sucks for your friend, never had any issues with USAA insurance, and the more I hear about other insurance, the more I'm happy to stay with USAA. To anyone who can get USAA I highly recommend them.

 

I was curious to know if anyone had exported a Tacoma to China, so I googled "Toyota Tacoma in China" and very quickly found my answer...

I found these pictures in the Wikipedia Commons, and they were taken in Beijing by a Wiki user Navigator84, on April 13, 2015.




These are obviously brand new trucks (note markings on doors, and writing and stickers in windshields). Also, when I say China, I mean Mainland China. I am continually amazed that people still thing Hong Kong is a city in China.

FUN FACT: While they are both represented by the same embassy and the mainland's capital of Beijing (where these two Tacos were spotted), they are considered two separate places. Not separate countries, but rather "two systems, one China." HK is a Special Administrative Region with considerably different rules and regulations than mainland China. As many people know, HK was a British colony for over a century. It was turned back over to China in 1997, but China opted to keep the British system in place (though watching the news will reveal that democracy is not alive and well in HK). Like the UK, vehicles in HK have their steering wheels on the right but are driven on the left. Unlike the UK, which allows LHD vehicles (including Tacomas likely owned by expats and those in the U.S. military) to be exported into the country and registered there, HK only allows RHD vehicles to be brought it into the country, though LHD vehicles registered in the mainland may be driven into HK with a special permit (just like HK-registered RHD cars maybe driven into Mainland China with a permit). Mainland China has the same setup as us (and most of the world), with LHD vehicles being driven on the right side of the road.

As such, Tacomas would technically be legal in Mainland China, but it would probably cost a fortune to get one into the country. On top of that, while brand new Hilux pickups are available in both China and HK, the Tacoma is considered gray market over there and parts are probably not readily available.

That said, I can't help but wonder what these two then-new 2015 DCSBs were doing in the country...

Nice to know a communist country suppresses free speech but would allow a Tacoma to be exported into the country, while the government of the greatest country on earth won't allow us to bring Hiluxes in!

 

My dad was in the Navy for 25 years and has used USAA since he bought his first brand new car ('83 Celica GT) right after joining. As his son, I am entitled to use USAA even after I move out on my own! I would NEVER use any other insurance company!

 

Nothing good on TV tonight?

 

Nope

 

Tacos around the world are quiet common (same as 4Runners)
Here is another one, next to China.

 

Pennsylvania is not the only state that is way too overzealous when it comes to carding everybody who wants to buy beer or anything age-restricted...

https://www.southbendtribune.com/co...cle_ecd03f4d-b1ea-5fef-ac2d-c99df1657195.html

 

Here's another one, though is more of a store policy than a state law...

http://blog.timesunion.com/kristi/2012/01/16/ara-im-57-and-price-chopper-wouldnt-sell-me-beer/

 

@Plain Jane Taco
@LocoLocal
@98tacoma27

I work at a bar and a lot of my coworkers smoke; My boss (the general manager), most of the bartenders, two of the barbacks, and one of the bouncers. I am regularly sent on "cigarette runs" to the local Wawa by my boss on busy nights (I am on the clock and thus paid; The one bouncer also lets me keep the change when I come back with his coffee and pack of cigarettes). Sometimes, I'll only end up getting one brand of cigarettes (my boss and one barback both smoke Marlboro Menthol Lights). However, sometimes I end up buying multiple brands, and I guarantee you that the cashier knows I'm not a new smoker who is trying different brands to figure out which one he likes best. I do not smoke. Let me say that again. I DO NOT SMOKE. I've smoked hookahs before, I've smoked weed once, and I smoke cigars occasionally. I will never smoke a cigarette, ever. I think it's a disgusting habit.

Luckily, I know most of the employees at the Wawa and I've been going there so long that they don't card me anymore. Even better, they know I am not a smoker and that the cigarettes are for my friends/coworkers. They believe that I am telling the truth when I say the people I'm buying the smokes for are all over the age of 25. Every once in a while, there will be a new employee, or an employee who is working a different shift; who thus does not know me and asks to see my ID. I show them my license and am able to buy the cigarettes without incident. Then, there is the goody-two-shoes for whom a valid license showing that I am 10 years past the minimum legal age to buy tobacco is not good enough, even if I buying one or two packs of the same brand of cigarette.

Years ago at the same Wawa (2013-2014, before I even worked at the bar), I made the mistake of saying that the cigarettes I was buying were not for me, but for a 40-year old bartender at my friend's bar. I was self-conscience about the Wawa employees thinking I was a smoker, since I came in there all the time to buy smokes for this bartender as a favor to her and was always asked by the clerk if I needed matches. Well, this moral midget behind the counter refuses to sell me the cigarettes, and her manager backs her up. I stormed out in a huff, drove up the street to the CVS (this was before CVS stopped selling cigarettes), and bought a pack of smokes without incident (I don't even think I got carded at the CVS). The bartender was a bit pissed at me, because apparently the cigarettes at CVS were more stale than those at Wawa, but was grateful. She also told that I should probably keep my mouth shut about who the smokes were actually for, and I took that advice to heart, as much as I hate being thought of as a smoker.

Even when I do keep my mouth shut, random clerks (typically teenagers) try to force the "truth" out of me (this is after they've looked at my license and determined that I'm old enough to buy cigarettes). The truth in this case is that I'm a nonsmoker in his late 20s who is buying cigarettes for his coworkers who are anywhere from 25 to 40. My therapist says there are people who follow the letter of the law (Those cigarettes had better be for the person buying them; no exceptions) and the spirit of the law (Store employees take you at your word and let you buy the smokes no matter what). I think it is pretty obvious that I follow the spirit of the law, and for anything short of boarding an airplane, I tend to get extremely frustrated with people who don't do the same.

My attitude when it comes to buying cigarettes is this:
1. I was born in 1989 and am thus legal to buy cigarettes.
2. My driver's license is valid and thus a legit form of ID. I also have a passport and a military privilege card, both of which are valid.
3. When I go into this Wawa to buy cigarettes, I am using either cash or my boss's credit card (the employees have never questioned the fact that the credit card has a woman's name on it); My money is green and the credit card is valid!
4. I know that I am not buying tobacco a minor, and it's none of your business why I am buying 2 to 4 different brands of cigarettes at the same time and who I am buying them for (Please reread #3).
5. If I'm buying one or two packs of the same brand of smokes, it's even less of your business who it's for!

Unless someone I know is working the counter at Wawa, buying cigarettes for coworkers is often a very tense situation and I feel myself getting very defensive.

 

And then on another occasion at the same Wawa, I got into it with a teenage girl because she wanted me to take my sunglasses off. I've been buying smokes for coworkers at this Wawa since like 2012, and this had never happened before. It's not like it was nighttime, either. It was the middle of the day and quite sunny outside. I'd already handed this girl my license and she just starts making a weird motion with her hands.

I'm thinking "You have my fucking driver's license. What the hell else do you want?" I finally say, in a rather frustrated tone, "What?!?!" She tells me to remove my shades and I grudgingly do so, while demanding to know why. She made up some bullshit about a cop being in back watching the CCTV screens, and she could lose her job if she didn't do everything by the book. As someone who worked in retail as a teenager, I can sympathize with that, but don't bullshit me. For starters, there was no cop car anywhere near that Wawa. I also guarantee you that local police have better things to do than bust underage tobacco purchases.

FUN FACT: I've heard that it's only illegal for minors to buy tobacco. Once someone under 18 is in possession of the cigarettes and smoking them, the police can't really do much of anything. Unlike alcohol, the liability falls exclusively on whoever purchased the tobacco products. In Pennsylvania, a 20-year old can lose their driver's license for having a BAC of .02, even if they aren't driving (or anywhere near a vehicle for that matter).

This same girl is also one of the employees who figured out I wasn't a smoker and initially questioned who the cigarettes were for. I lied and said they were mine, and now we are borderline friends. She addresses me by name (not the usual robotic "Sir," but "Hey, Charlie") and doesn't card me anymore. I know that she knows the smokes aren't for me, but she seems to realize I'm on an honest guy whose money is green and doesn't question it anymore...

I will smoke a cigar with friends on special occasions, but this is rare. Let it be known that I absolutely detest cigarettes! The only reason I go on smoke runs for my coworkers is because they're paying for the cigarettes, and I'm being paid to drive to the Wawa and buy the cigarettes.

 

Honestly, I wish every smoker I particularly cared about would quit smoking. It really is a filthy habit!

TRUE STORY: I did smoke one cigar in my Tacoma, once. I've also had friends and family smoke in the immediate vicinity of my truck's interior, but it's not enough to cause an unpleasant smell. I forbid smoking in my truck, especially cigarettes. One time in like February 2015, I went bowling with my boss and we took the Tacoma. After our game, she wanted to have a cigarette before I took her home. Knowing I'd have her head if she lit up in my truck, she smoked in the parking lot while I waited in the truck with the windows up and waited for the heat to warm up. The good news there is that the heat was nice and warm by the time she finished smoking so we were nice and toasty for the drive home. My boss never smokes in her own car (actually a company vehicle provided by the owner of the bar who dislikes smoking even more than me. Another coworker (a smoker) just bought a brand new 2017 Silverado Z71, and while he doesn't smoke that often, he smokes in the truck from time to time and allows my boss to do the same.

 

It took me 3 beers to finish it.

 

Dude totally digging the thread. My buddy just told me he has AS and I see a lot of him in you.... you in him? Y'all in each other?

Either way. Keep it rubber side down and the flames under control.

 

A hair over 6 ft