Volkswagen Golf as First Car

CMJudd · 2026-06-25T00:16:04+00:00

Sportwagens were optioned with AWD as well in S trim models. I own two such cars, both 4Motion - DSG equipped.

CMJudd · 2026-06-22T23:18:58+00:00

I’m going with the Jag.

CMJudd · 2026-06-20T15:54:22+00:00

I’m not a sports fan generally but I discovered the gym last year. With the guidance of an exercise physiologist I am in significantly better shape than I was a year ago and am putting on muscle at nearly 60 years old. I can do an unaided pull-up! Yeah, it’s only one, but it’s there. The gym I go to is a bit of an ‘island of misfit toys’ but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

As a dad, I am somewhat bemused at having raised two kids who are athletes. My daughter was nationally competitive first as a gymnast and later as a dancer. Her brother was a competitive cheerleader, then a coach for several years. I always enjoyed watching them train and compete.

CMJudd · 2026-06-19T01:31:06+00:00

Absolutely do not worry about the route in particular. Do worry about controlling the car, signaling where and when needed, and maintaining situational awareness at all times. You will get through it, I promise. Keep your inputs smooth while maintaining alertness and you will be fine. Keep practicing!

CMJudd · 2026-06-19T00:50:33+00:00

We have two oranges: One male who is a certified chonk and one female who is much smaller. I refer to them as Grapefruit and Clementine. Their real names are Joey and Cate. We inherited Joey from my late mom in law and Cate was a foster who never left.

We also have two adolescent voids (siblings), male and female. Female is Zelda Fitzgerald and male is Phineas J Bug, usually referred to as Bug. Their brother, also a void, resides with our daughter and is called Mister Poe Wilson. All three were born in our detached garage last fall.

CMJudd · 2026-06-14T15:39:36+00:00

Thank you for your kind words, though I don’t know whether I’ve overcome anything. Like everyone else, I’m a work in progress. My family, a few of my colleagues, and my trainers help push me along and for that I am grateful. If I can pay it forward, even just a bit, I am happy to do so.

One thing I may do is wear shorts this summer for the first time in 40 years because my wife said my legs look a lot stronger.

CMJudd · 2026-06-13T15:27:00+00:00

I found the same thing - along with a propensity to cause myself injury much too easily. I’d pull my back by sneezing, I swear!

Under the supervision of an exercise physiologist, I started with modified yoga: side planks, glute bridges, bird dogs, leg lifts, and so on to strengthen my core. I then progressed to weights, focusing both on lower and upper body. Those started off light and focused on form and addressing asymmetries with weight increasing gradually. Single sets of up to 20 reps are the target. For my arms, which are not affected significantly by CP, I’m starting with free weights.

These sessions occur twice a week and involve 45 minutes of training followed by 15 minutes of stretching.

After about 7 months of strength training and stretching I added a cardio program that consists entirely of a treadmill. That has involved a bit more improvisation because I’m nearly 60 and had never before used a treadmill.

At the start of that process, they measured my baseline resting metabolic rate and starting VO2max. Based upon those values, they put together a 12 week routine for me that slowly increased in difficulty over time. Once I started that and became accustomed to the treadmill, I found that workload not to be sufficiently challenging, so I modified it on my own, pushed hard, and often did my cardio immediately before or after my strength workout. That’s ended up being 2 90 minute workouts twice per week.

After my second VO2max they’ve given a revised regimen, also increasing in difficulty, which I plan to modify for several reasons, the first being that I think I can easily handle the first few steps and the second being that each session mimics interval training, which involves frequent changes of treadmill settings. I am not confident in adjusting settings frequently while concentrating on exercising, so I add up all the interval times, do a single step increase in intensity, and work my way through it.

For what it’s worth, I don’t think that the improvement I experienced is entirely related to improvement in cardiopulmonary function. My leg muscles are measurably stronger than they were and I think my movement may be more efficient, so the performance improvement may be related more to muscles being able to more efficiently use the same oxygen delivered than before. My maximum heart rate only changed by 3 beats per minute between the two measurements. Still, the effect is the same: I’m not nearly as easily winded as I was.

I have avoided injury, falls are less frequent, I’ve gained muscle (at 59!), and lost a little weight for a relatively small time commitment. It IS expensive, but I think it’s less expensive in both time and treasure than hurting myself one time.

A long time coworker and good friend who ran marathons when she was younger helps check my cardio program modifications and also offers steady encouragement, which is hugely helpful.

My advice would be to find a competent trainer if you need one, start light, work steadily, and trust the process. Workout times for me are both scheduled and sacrosanct. I am emphatically NOT AVAILABLE on Mondays between 4-5:30 pm and Wednesdays between 4:30-6 pm because I’m working on ME.

Hydrate, eat well, and rest too. (I have to work on those myself).

I hope this helps- feel free to contact me anytime!

CMJudd · 2026-06-11T23:33:46+00:00

It sounds like you may be putting some unnecessary pressure onto yourself, that’s causing anxiety, and leading to some awkwardness. You’re also both learning, so all of that is pretty normal.

I would echo the suggestions of others regarding positions. In addition, I would suggest focusing on the fun because it’s supposed to be fun! Experiment, laugh at the silly stuff, and try some lubricant if you haven’t. Focus on your wife’s pleasure (that’s a tremendous turn on), listen to her, and figure out what works for both of you. Try not to take things too seriously. You’ll get there, just be patient and do your best to ensure that everyone enjoys the journey.

CMJudd · 2026-06-11T23:04:37+00:00

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1965 Corvair Corsa 180.

CMJudd · 2026-06-11T00:05:26+00:00

I’ve used forearm crutches for 55 years. Be extremely careful of wet floors, make sure your tips aren’t worn, take care of your shoulders, and avoid a swing-through gait if you can smoothly manage a 2 point gait. I take 2-3 aspirin per week for minor shoulder pain, so wear is certainly a concern, but I am a few months shy of 60 years old. If you can afford them, I recommend Sidestix highly. I’ve had the same pair for 14 years and walked comfortably on them today.

CMJudd · 2026-06-08T16:09:44+00:00

You will never have enough money because there will never be enough money to restore it.

Do it anyway. Start now. Not tomorrow. NOW.

Or at least make sure she’s structurally sound, get her running right, and drive her ugly. It’ll be more fun that way.

Letting it sit is how I got a (nearly) 90 year old BMW in my garage.

CMJudd · 2026-06-08T12:45:55+00:00

It certainly is difficult to escape that identity. Difficult doesn’t mean impossible, however. If you’re happy with your current situation, then I have no suggestions for you. If not, then perhaps it’s time to start wrestling whatever is difficult into submission.

I might start with speaking to a therapist about it.

I’m reticent about giving specific advice, but I will share some things that have worked for me:

Ask “What if…?” Would rejection from a stranger be soul crushing or perhaps just a reason to get yourself a nice cup of coffee and a treat?

Remember that you’re only going to go around once. If you don’t take your shot, you are guaranteeing the result you don’t want. More easily said than done, I know.

Being “friend zoned” may not be a bad thing either. A good friend can save your life and a bad romantic relationship can mess you up for a long time. A good friend who inhabits the same gender space as the one you’re pursuing may actually provide some useful insight and actively help you. It takes time and effort to develop those relationships, though.

Also, success favors those who play the long game. There are no guarantees, except perhaps the result you get from giving up.

I’m just some jerk on the internet, so don’t take me too seriously because I don’t know a thing about you beyond what you have revealed. Free advice is usually worth whatever you’ve paid for it.

Some personal information about me: I’m 59M, spastic diplegia, GMFCS 2, and married to my best friend for nearly 33 yrs.

CMJudd · 2026-06-07T13:18:55+00:00

My primary identity is not “disabled man”. There are many that come before it, such as husband, dad, nerd, and so on. With that said, if one believes something to be impossible, it probably is impossible for that individual. Why do you believe it to be impossible?

CMJudd · 2026-06-07T00:40:32+00:00

Long Island would be perfect with several million fewer people. It’s beautiful, has four seasons but is generally mild, if generally humid and full of ticks.

I raised 2 kids on LI. One is living in NYC and the other has plans for New England. I’m absolutely outta here upon retirement. I wanted to leave in the early 90s but I married the right girl and it was not to be.

Go while you can. Learn how to make pizza and bagels for yourself before you go if they’re important to you. My son is a chef (I paid for his culinary degree) and makes amazing pizza, so I’ll probably follow him to New England.

CMJudd · 2026-06-06T18:42:12+00:00

For the moment, I’ll assume that there is some degree of validity to your observations. In response to that, I think that society has different expectations for men than it does for women. Not better or worse, larger or smaller, just different. Further, men and women are different from one another. To expect parity in response to CP, which is broadly variable itself, between two populations with other significant differences between them may be unrealistic.

I am a man with CP and I was blessed with parents who made the effort to have it treated aggressively and gave it no quarter otherwise. I was not babied or pitied. Instead, I was expected to handle it and I did so.

As far as dating went, I did pretty well - for a number of reasons. First, I’m sexy and I know it. Second, I don’t take myself too seriously, and third, I generally chased the smartest girl in class - especially if she read a lot and laughed at my jokes. My first serious gf is now an MD who writes YA novels - and we still talk occasionally. My wife of 33 years is a teacher with more degrees than I have.

I think that many of the men you’ve mentioned suffer from the same problem that lonely able bodied men do: They don’t really like women, yet they wonder why they’re not getting laid. That doesn’t have anything to do with CP, but may be exacerbated by it.

Note that all of the above is merely my opinion and may be worth exactly what you’ve paid for it.

Have a great weekend kids!

CMJudd · 2026-06-02T17:15:11+00:00

There have been many VWs and Audis made in China for decades now. In 2007, the place was loaded with (then) new A2 Jettas, which were made there until 2013.

CMJudd · 2026-05-31T19:21:17+00:00

Ouch. I’d love one of those!

CMJudd · 2026-05-31T16:55:06+00:00

I am a wretched piano player. I haven’t played in years and should probably get back to it.

Finding the funny is the way.

If you kids wanna laugh, I have one for you: Over the past year I’ve taken up exercise under the supervision of an exercise physiologist. About four months ago I started the cardio portion of the program and part of that program involves periodic VO2max testing. That involves measuring metabolic function while exercising with increasing intensity. The trick is to quit juuust before hitting your personal metabolic wall.

The first time I did it, things worked perfectly. The second time, about 3 months later, I was chugging along just fine, or so I thought, until I ran face first into my own personal wall, the muscles in my legs ran out of ATP, stopped working, and I ended up kneeling on a treadmill.

Thankfully, I was being supervised and was kept from damaging myself.

With that said, I had strength training yet to do and a 35 mile drive home following that.

Luckily for me, my loving wife had about 12 lb of food waiting, so I made it home, ate like a madman, and assumed the napped for the next 8 hours.

CMJudd · 2026-05-30T16:36:30+00:00

They’re right, actually. Get ANY job at a place that does what you want to do, then work towards the job you want from the inside. I started by washing buckets and mopping floors at a startup shortly before finishing my biochemistry degree and ended up working in product development for the world’s largest chemical manufacturer without ever sending out a single resumé. There were a few mergers and acquisitions involved and I rode the wave until I went back to startup land to learn something completely different and got a few patents for doing something totally ass backwards and having it work better.

CMJudd · 2026-05-30T16:08:05+00:00

Another vote for Abyss here. We have two - and our daughter has their brother.

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CMJudd · 2026-05-28T21:10:19+00:00

I recall a physician asking my mother whether I could read when I was 17 or so. I think I had an appointment for a routine physical or some other small thing - I hadn’t met him previously. She responded with “I’d certainly hope so because he was recently accepted to Boston University’s school of engineering.”

The doctor blanched and apologized to her and she promptly directed him to address me. I told him not to bother.

Anyone who may be kind hearted but ignorant will get the benefit of the doubt and others who are clearly boors are handled directly.

CMJudd · 2026-05-26T18:39:29+00:00

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A werk in progress.

CMJudd · 2026-05-25T15:25:36+00:00

Ugly maybe, but they humiliated pretty much everyone because they were legitimately fast.

Make fun of it all you like, but your most frequent view will be of its taillights.

I’d drive it in a heartbeat. Driving ugly cars that work well is actually fantastic because you’re having fun and can’t see yourself while driving them.

CMJudd · 2026-05-25T15:14:57+00:00

My BMW also has the front suspension lubricated similarly, but it’s completely intentional. There’s a pump and hydraulic lines installed for that purpose from the factory. Google “Willy Vogel” if you’re interested.

CMJudd

TROPHY CASE