My wife is from near down there. Obviously, we pronounce Lafayette county differently. But, her gumbo is out of sight! So God is good to me, better than I should get.
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We a Lafayette here in Ga but pronounced differently I ever get out your way I will have to stop by to check out her gumbo as i love cajun food.
Itās great gumbo. I was told by her dad that the shore nuff, original gumbo was different and more of a pot luck, throw whateverās in the fridge in the pot and cook it kind of deal. But hers has shrimp and sausage. You canāt beat shrimp and sausage unless you add crab and steak, in my opinion. Lol
And you probably pronounce Lafayette like I do. Which is technically wrong, but it sounds odd when she says it 
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Soundās good;
We do say it the same.
First, consider what I drive, a 1998 Civic. Itās power to weight ratio is comparable to the Tacoma with an I4. Iām not the kind of driver who needs to accelerate quickly to get out of hairy situations; I avoid hairy situations instead. I donāt buy this tripe that you need a massive power-to-weight ratio to be safe. If that was the case, Americaās truck drivers would be causing collisions left and right. I consider a pickup truck a utility vehicle, so as long as its power-to-weight is better than that of a commercial truck, Iām happy.
But here is why I brought up the F150: If I did happen to want a truck that has a power-to-weight ratio similar to a sports car, Iād rather have a full-size F150 that is lighter, more powerful, and has smaller displacement, than the midsize V6 Tacoma. In fact, I donāt get why anyone would want a Tacoma over an F150. The F150 is a better value in every respect, except maybe resale value.
They canāt. Not with 100% certainty. But an inference can be made based on the reliability and ownerās reports of the predecessor. A newly released car has to be designed, tested, and manufactured under the direction of teams of experts, working under the companyās basic values and principles. Some of the individuals on those teams likely were involved w/ the predecessor. So it stands to reason some sort of prediction or prognostication is possible about a newly released car design, based on the specifications the manufacture publishes, and the carās predecessor. Iād find it hard to believe that everything that had occurred at the company prior to the new release should just be ignored.
In my case, the Toyota reliability was appealing, whether perceived or real at that point in time. Then I bought a new 2013 F150 with the 5 liter V8 after test driving both it and the V6 Tacoma. I was initially set on the Tacoma. The prices were similar after Fordās rebates at the time ($10kish), and the Ford was bigger, had more power, and was quieter inside the cabin. So I bought it. I traded it off for my wifeās Highlander within a year. I liked the truck, but Iād prefer her to have the newer, better vehicle. Some of that is beside the point, but I agree that the Ford is the better value if reliability is similar.
As far as power, I have seldom needed it to get out of a scary situation, and I donāt have to have the most powerful thing in the segment. I just really like low rpm acceleration and an engine that doesnāt seem labored and have to downshift often. I like to stay below 3k rpm and just kind of motor around. Iāve never regretted having the ābiggerā engine. I canāt really say the opposite is true. If fuel economy is vastly different, sure, the smaller engine makes sense. But in my experience, real world fuel mileage is often really similar (4.8 vs 5.3 GM, 5.2 vs 5.9 Dodge).
You might recall a Maverick TV commercial that Ford ran for a while that would surely not pass muster today. They showed a small group of airline stewardesses (in their official uniforms) doing basic maintenance procedures on a Maverick, and even bolting-on new front fenders. The tag line was something along the lines ofā¦So simple, even a stewardess can do it.
Yikes!
Unfortunately they donāt make that, or any Tacoma with an I-4 and a manual. Last year you could get that in the 4x4 model, but only one came into the dealer and it had a bad clutch and the dealer did not want to fix it or even look at it.
This year you can get an I-4 with the automatic, in theory. But if you want a manual, the only ones available are V-6 4x4 TRDās that are optioned up to the max.
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Iāll be darned, youāre right. I just tried to ābuildā a Tacoma with a manual transmission on Toyotaās website, and the only transmission options were automatics. I guess that means the Frontier would be my only option if I wanted to buy a new midsize truck since Iād prefer a manual transmission.
In the end, Iāll probably opt for another car when the time comes anyway. Iāve realized my need for a truck is only once or twice a year, and Iāve realized Iām more comfortable driving something that is small and maneuverable rather than drive something as big and bulky as todayās āmidsizeā (yesterdayās full-size) trucks. I really wish I had one of those old 4-cylinder Tacomas that arenāt much bigger than a car.
I was introduced to gumbo in the late 60s @Scrapyard_John. I visited NO several time when in high school and walked downtown on St Charles along the street car tracks. Every other old home seemed to be a boarding house and they served dinner to the public. It was obvious that gumbo was okra soup with the left overs from lunch thrown in. I acquired a taste for it though.
A regular cab 2wd model would serve your purposes. If they still made one with an I4 and a manual. I really enjoyed that 99 model. 25 mpg combined driving at 80 mph, 30 miles a day to work. With 287k miles on the clock when I bought it from a guy intending to sell it as scrap. If I could have a ādo overā, Iād hang on to it. I eventually made a quadruple your money profit (which was important at the time) on it in a round about way after doing some repairs, trading it for another vehicle, and doing some more repairs on that vehicle, but itās one of the vehicles I sort of miss. It just served its purpose. It wasnāt overly powerful, impressive, etc. It just kind of did itās thing, was useful as cheap transportation, could haul random stuff in the bed, and it was fun to shift the 5 speed.
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I really enjoy trying different foods from different cultures. Goat meat isnāt bad at all if prepared well. I initially thought goat meat was a āMexican thingā (thereās a funny story there about some migrant workers BBQing the wrong goat if anyoneās interested) until an older black gentlemen let me try his wifeās barbecued goat meat. Not bad at all!
My friend Raulās mom made the best tamales, though. Damn, they were the bomb.
Looking at Toyotaās and Nissanās websites, you canāt get a Tacoma or a Frontier regular cab anymore. Thatās unfortunate, because a pickup truck is one vehicle Iād rather not buy used. Most have been either been worked hard as a work truck, or been dipped in brackish water or saltwater launching a boat, or been driven aggressively by a lunkhead who weaves in and out of traffic. Itās pretty rare to find a used truck thatās been well-cared for.
Iād buy a 2-4 year old off-lease hatchback or Prius, but not a pickup of the dame vintage.
A Mexican thing? The only place Iāve ever had goat meat at was at a Jamaican restaurant.
Back in the day, there was a neighborhood family in Dallas that adopted a couple goats. They named them Romeo and Juliet. Unfortunately, they didnāt have enough land to keep the goats, so the Dallas code enforcement people made them get rid of them, and they decided to slaughter and cook them.
My father always wanted to keep goats on his property, but he never did. He said goat milk was good for making fudge.
I rarely see regular cab trucks of any make anymore, although I realize theyāre still available at least in the full sized truck segment. Itās strange. Looking back, the only crew cab trucks used to be fleet trucks owned by construction companies and the likeā¦to haul the crew to work. I understand the appeal since I have a wife and 2 kids. But if I was a single guyā¦meh, I think Iād rather have a regular cab.
You know, a lot of people in the south would balk at goat meat. But eating deer meat isnāt an issue for most. Whatās the difference? Other than the fact that goats are slower and not as cute lol.
I was introduced to goat meat at Sardis many years ago @Scrapyard_John and have been to several āgoat roastsā since then and enjoyed the meat from my first bite. There always seemed to be a few who were too squeamish seeing the the entire carcass hung on a spit cooking to taste it. I guess it compares to watching sausage being made. We have become so civilized that many disassociate the meat from its source when they sit down for a steak, etc. Maybe that situation will push the faux meat industryās popularity.
When was the last time you hunted goat? Macho men hunt for dinner. No, Iām not putting you down, just pointing out that some guys like hunting for dinner as our ancestors did thousands of years ago. The tools change, but the desire doesnāt.