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Fighter Jets on Chouteau Avenue, St Louis

Dave Farquhar St. Louis March 7, 2022March 18, 2025

At the intersection of Chouteau and Cardinal avenues, near downtown St. Louis, there is a curious sight. Sitting outside the Bissell Auto and Body Company is a Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star. And if you look behind it, you can see the hulks of numerous other airplanes and helicopters, in varying states of (in)completeness.

The airplanes on Chouteau Avenue near downtown St. Louis aren’t an airplane graveyard. They are the private collection of Dan Bissell, the owner of the garage whose lot they occupy.

Standard Gauge and Wide Gauge toy trains

Dave Farquhar Toy trains March 3, 2022July 27, 2022

What is standard gauge and wide gauge? The difference between standard gauge and wide gauge depends on whether we are talking real trains or model trains. Because the two things can either be the same or opposites depending on which you are talking about. In toy trains, it was a marketing solution to an engineering problem.

Can you put a computer on carpet? Yes, with caveats

Dave Farquhar Hardware March 1, 2022March 1, 2022

Can you put a computer on carpet? Yes you can, with caveats. But the biggest issue with putting your computer on carpet probably isn’t what you think.

Putting a computer on carpet is one of those weird questions I get, like putting a computer on its side. It’s one of those things that might have been a bad idea at one time, but doesn’t make much difference today.

What happened to Eat-Rite Diner

Dave Farquhar St. Louis February 28, 2022December 4, 2022

Eat-Rite Diner, the 516-square feet flagship of a greasy spoon empire, sat on Route 66 for decades in St. Louis, at the intersection of Chouteau and Seventh street. Today it’s gone, but not forgotten. Here’s what happened to Eat-Rite Diner, the icon that struggled to make it into the 21st century.

The Eat Rite Diner at 622 Chouteau in St. Louis operated under that name from 1970 to 2020, with one interruption in 2017-2018. Today Fleur STL, an upscale take on traditional diner food, lives on at the old Eat Rite flagship location.

Who was Roy Cohn?

Dave Farquhar Toy trains February 24, 2022September 12, 2023

Roy Cohn is a polarizing figure in 20th century American history, with some spillover into the 21st. He is best known as a lawyer, but he was also chairman of the board of Lionel, the maker of electric trains, during the 1960s. I will assume that’s why you’re here, before getting into the other things Roy Cohn was known for.

Roy Cohn didn’t think his involvement with Lionel Corporation, the famous toymaker, warranted even a footnote when he was writing his autobiography. But the infamous lawyer and political operative wasn’t just a lawyer, he was also a corporate raider, even if he wasn’t a particularly talented or successful one.

Should I buy a used office chair?

Dave Farquhar Health February 23, 2022February 19, 2022

On the advice of a work from home veteran, I bought a used office chair recently. It was the best advice I’ve received in a long time. Should I buy a used office chair? Should you? Yes, and here’s why.

How many pages should your resume be?

Dave Farquhar Careers February 22, 2022February 22, 2022

Getting your resume correct length is essential. If your resume is too short or too long, it can be a deal breaker and potentially even keep HR from ever seeing your application. So here’s how many pages your resume should be, and some tips for getting it to that length.

The ideal resume is two pages, so it fits on a single sheet, front and back. A single page is also fine, and certainly better than going over two pages.

Lionel’s Trutrack experiment

Dave Farquhar Toy trains February 17, 2022June 1, 2022

In 1973, Lionel tried to give its flagging product line a boost with a new track system. It combined elements of some of its other very successful track systems. Here’s why Lionel Trutrack crashed and burned and you’ve probably never heard of it.

Tandy 1000 value

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing February 16, 2022August 8, 2024

The Tandy 1000 was an important early IBM compatible PC. It was by no means the first IBM PC compatible, nor was it the first successful one. But it was notable for being what the IBM PCjr should have been, and it was widely available at Radio Shack stores, making it one of the first mass market PCs. It has some cultural significance, and that cultural and historical significance drives its value.

Today, a Tandy 1000 is generally worth around $250 US. However, that amount does come with some caveats, including condition and whether the unit works.

Filmora not recognizing MP4 files? The fix.

Dave Farquhar Video February 15, 2022February 6, 2022

My son does a lot of video editing. His friends recommended Wondershare Filmora as being more stable than the other things he’s been using. But he had a problem. It wouldn’t see his MP4 files. If you have a problem with Filmora not recognizing MP4 files, here’s how we fixed it.