Luke Judge

BY MIKE JAQUAYSContributing Writer

Dispatch Staff Photo by JOHN HAEGER The crew of the new Sherrill Auto Repair and Machine, including, from left, Abby DuBuke, Rob DuBuke, Karin Musgrove, and Jon Musgrove, pose at their Route 5 location.

SHERRILL — An auto repair job back in 1994 has led to a partnership between the mechanic and customer, as Rob DuBuke and Jon Musgrove — along with Musgrove’s wife Karin and DuBuke’s intern daughter Abby — have teamed up as owners/technicians of the brand-new Sherrill Auto Repair and Machine on Route 5.“Back in 1994 he did a set of cylinder heads for me while I was a senior in high school,” Musgrove recalled of his first encounter with DuBuke, a Vietnam Army veteran who went to Morrisville State College in 1973 on the GI bill for auto mechanics.DuBuke, a North Tonawanda native, said he was looking at the time for something he enjoyed enough to do it for the rest of his life, so he chose auto repair. he picked MSC because he heard it was the best school for his education, DuBuke recalled.DuBuke has now worked at area repair shops for more than 30 years.Musgrove also took auto mechanics at the college and worked the last 10 years in repair business. he said DuBuke approached him two years ago to ask if he ever thought about going out to start a business of his own.Absolutely, DuBuke was told at the time, and after careful consideration, planning and prayer over the next couple of years, the Sherrill Auto Repair and Machine business opened three weeks ago.“I just felt like there was something more and something better I could be doing,” Musgrove said.Both mechanics are ASE certified; DuBuke also has new York State certification and Ford training, while Musgrove has GM master certification.The vehicles they service are not limited to those falling under their certifications, of course … DuBuke and Musgrove welcome any vehicle in need of repair.heir services include large and small automotive repairs and machine works including everything from electrical systems and check engine light checks to grinding valves and milling heads, and anything in between.They also do the mechanical preparation work for vehicles sold at Vogt’s Auto Sales in the same building.Karin is their computer and public relations expert; she has designed their website and gotten the business on Facebook.she and Musgrove live in Sherrill.Oneida resident DuBuke admitted he was happily surprised when Abby, 19 and a graduate of the Oneida High School class of 2009, decided to follow in his footsteps. Currently attended her second year at Onondaga Community College and majoring in automotive technology, Abby said she expects to transfer to MSC in the near future to take advantage of their offerings.she said she started helping out with her dad two summers ago while she was off from school, and quickly found she enjoyed the work, especially the precision needed.“I really started to like it — it was a lot better than sitting behind a desk all day,” Abby said.The education in college will never match what she receives right there in the shop interning for her dad, she said.“It’s all hands-on here, while I get the textbook part in school,” Abby explained. “It’s nice to be working with my dad; he is a great mentor and teaching who is strict when he needs to be but has a lot of patience to show me what he wants me to do.”The future looks bright for the business, as the struggling economy has meant vehicle owners often can’t afford to go out and buy new replacements, sticking with their old models for longer.DuBuke said at his age many people might be considering their retirement plans rather than the prospect of going into a whole new business venture. Not so for the 30-plus-year veteran of the Central new York automotive repair business.“At my age I should be retired, but this is just something I always wanted to do,” he said. “I always wanted to do things my own way — now it’s Jon’s and my way — and we can make that happen here.”The technicians agreed the best part about the job is seeing the people who come to the shop.“I like seeing people I haven’t seen in a long time,” Musgrove said. “I like taking care of their problems and seeing them later and have them tell me their vehicle has never run so good. We don’t want to write up a $1,000 estimate as soon as people walk through the door. We just want to fix it right and have them leave happy.”“We live here and we work here,” DuBuke added. “We see these people in the community and we know them.”Sherrill Auto Repair and Machine is located at 497 Route 5 in Sherrill next to Vogt’s Auto Sales, and open Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and other times by appointment. For more information, call 367-0053 or 367-0054, or visit their website at:sherrillauto.com

• Return to Paging Mode

books Manuals & Magazines army veteran, auto mechanics, musgrove, north tonawanda, repair job, staff photo

It disappeared when the concept of the humble common man was replaced by the concept of the liberated, empowered individual. The major events of history and the minor actions of our social revolutionaries have tried successfully to individualize and diversify all of us common folk. Time was when most humans lived off the land. They scratched out a living tilling the soil and worrying about the weather, the condition of the animals, the pests that would destroy the crops, and the income from the harvest. They reaped what we could and shared with their neighbors the fruits of their hard labor.

The latest census revealed that only 2% of the employed citizens of California, a state whose leading industry is agriculture, was involved with farming. I don’t know if that census figure includes all the part time illegal immigrants dedicated to the agri-business, but the numbers certainly reflect the change from a rural lifestyle to an urban one.

The loss of common sense may not be a serious problem. Common sense usually included the “what to do,” “how to do it,” “when to do it,” and the “where to do it” advice derived from the general consensus of a more unified population. Not everyone believed this advice, however, nor followed it. The conventional wisdom was available from our parents and elders, if we cared to listen to them. Most of these were simple folk who lacked a college education, yet they eventually learned the lessons that life on the farm taught everyone. It was a hard life full of physical labor that demanded many sacrifices. The paltry, annual net income after paying off creditors and suppliers was barely sufficient to raise a large family.

Those who escaped the uncertainty of the farm economy fled to the cities to look for jobs with a steady income. The rapidly growing cities offered opportunities in factories for the robust and eager to work and supposedly to take home a decent wage. That lasted for a while until the robber barons’ excessive greed exploited the workers and drove them to form labor unions.

The shared sensibilities of the common man began to change when that happened. The unions were necessary, of course – a natural response to the growing power of the abusive factory managers. Then the oppressed workers discovered the power of unified groups in a democracy. The unions’ monolithic resistance and solidarity eventually helped to raise the standard of living for the underprivileged working class particularly after World War II.

Yet, as industries grew more sophisticated and job descriptions more specific, groups of specially talented workers formed their own unions, dividing the hourly workers and reducing the force of unified action. In the airline industry for example, there are unions for the pilots, the mechanics, and the flight attendants. Each union can shut down the company, and each can strike for improvements to the benefits and wages of their members without caring much about the consequences to the rest of the labor force and to the viability of the company. Can you find any common sense being used here? Is there a common purpose anymore? A common concern for the welfare of everyone in a large organization?

Despite the social and political movement in this country to integrate minority groups into the cultural mainstream and eliminate the noxious “separate but equal” conditions, the results have been less than satisfactory to the minorities. Motivated by movements applauding diversity and a bold “stand out in the crowd” individuality, everyone is encouraged to be different and proud of it. Advertisers appeal to the younger generation to reject the old and buy the newest fad of consumer products.

Movies, sporting events, rock shows, and “reality” TV are examples of our interest in being different and shocking. Common behavior is not espoused, it’s boring. “I’ve got to do my thing, be myself, take my chances!” is the cry of our disenchanted youth. “We don’t want the lives our parents had. What good is their advice for our generation? Look at the disaster they have made of this world!”

Rebels at various levels of iconoclasm, some more violent than others, are standing up and trying to change what they believe is our misguided approach to evolving civilization and exploiting the environment. “Bravo!” I say. “But don’t throw the babies and seniors out with the bath water, please.” Although the intentions of the rebels may be noble, there is no common agreement as to how they should go about what they want to do.

Citizens are advised to: Go and surf the Internet for supposedly independent recommendations and proven solutions. Study the suggestions and justifications of the “experts” about the issues behind the various propositions placed on the ballot that our state governments can’t agree to resolve. Read the contentious Op-Ed articles in your newspaper.

Consensus about anything is impossible to achieve today. It is hampered by the intervention of lawyers and lobbyists who craft the legislation, by the constant political and bureaucratic infighting, and by the superficial opinions of outsiders unfamiliar with the intricacies of administering a multi-tiered governing organization whose primary motivation is to interpret the polls rather than serve the most informed voters.

How can the common sense that was developed years ago in rural America, which we seniors only vaguely remember and seldom use anymore, aid us today? It is practically useless except for the few, very general ideas we inherited addressing morality and ethics. Most of those ideas have to be relearned by each generation. The behavior of our recently disgraced Presidents and CEOs has proven that.

There is a specialized, evolving common sense about driving a car, using a computer, eating and exercising, and letting MasterCard take care of everything else. At the work place there are procedures for doing everything, so common sense isn’t needed except in an emergency. In those instances where we can’t seem to behave as others expect us to, we have governments, regulators, “people of authority,” and manuals ready to tell us what we should do. Or tell us what we did wrong!

Today common sense whispers to us to go with the flow, but don’t give up our individuality. Defend vigorously our right to be heard even it our opinions are defenseless. (Doctor Phil will straighten us out, or our favorite TV judge will settle the dispute we have with our neighbor.) There is a talking head on TV or radio who knows everything better than we do. Forget yesterday’s common sense. We have Martha Stewart to advise us about when to sell our stocks and how to decorate our houses. We have weather forecasters and gurus about any subject that troubles us. Their expertise is much better than our inherited common sense which gently cautions us to harbor doubts about the “professional advice” of unknown strangers.

“Common sense” is an obsolete term. We hardly see it in black and white anymore and rarely hear the phrase mentioned. “Put on your rubbers, it’s raining outside,” is not “in.” Kids have rubber soled Nike shoes fit for any surface, wet or dry. “Nothing to excess,” is not appropriate in a modern world that searches for superlative performance and honors record achievement. “Never tell a lie,” unless … (The exceptions are too numerous to list here.) Being able to get away with exaggerating, omitting the truth, or saying nothing is not considered “lying!”

The term “common sense” was formerly used to chide someone into following advice by putting down anyone who actively ignored its wisdom. Those folks weren’t good enough to be “common,” when the commoner was a respected citizen. The House of Representatives sounds so much more dignified than the House of Commons in England. But I may be unwisely biased.

Well, let’s not belabor the obvious. Times change. Obsolete common sense only benefited the common person. That person does not exist any longer. The media have erased him and her from our vocabulary. Today’s generic replacement is not respected by those who address the public with their manipulative advertisements and political rhetoric.

“Be different and follow us as we change things for the better!” is their repetitious message. Above all “… to thine own self be true,” as the renown playwright Shakespeare admonished us. “You deserve it,” says the smiling, pretty female face with whitened teeth and loose, blown dry hair in the lush cosmetic ad.

Today, the expanding overload of annoying sound bites and high pressure sales messages that we encounter each day have only a marginal impact on our judgment. Consequently, I don’t see a shared common sense becoming popular again in the near future. “Practice safe sex, don’t do drugs, don’t smoke, and don’t drink and drive” are common sense messages that our youth ignore today.

My “Silent Generation” ignored similar messages when we were young. Perhaps the practice of paying lip service, if not attention, to the generally accepted common sense of a community died before the hippy revolution. So, if common sense is already dead, let’s bury it and stop lamenting its passing!

Chic Hollis lived on four continents, speaks seven languages and had five children, all of which helped him gain a unique perspective on life.

books Manuals & Magazines common sense, greed

Summary Box: IPad may be Kindle’s first big threat and complicate choices for consumers

March 29th, 2010 Summary Box: IPad could be big threat to KindleWAR OF WORDS: Amazon’s Kindle might get its strongest challenger yet when Apple releases its iPad tablet computer. Although the Kindle starts at $259 and the iPad at $499, the iPad does so many other things that people who want to read books electronically might have a tough choice.

Apple Reveals Many Apps for iPad

April 1st, 2010 You can see different iPad apps at Apple iTune store before the release of the Tablet PC on this Saturday. According to Steve Jobs, you can take a quick preview of the iPad apps and learn how to use them.

Summary Box: Apps to curb texting while driving have tough task

March 28th, 2010 Summary Box: Apps to curb texting while drivingWHAT’S HAPPENING: Startups are trying to help drivers break the texting habit with applications that block phone functions in a moving car. THE PROBLEM: It’s tough to create a comprehensive system, because the phones have a hard time distinguishing drivers from passengers, and the apps don’t work on all phones.

Summary Box: Cell phone apps let you bank money without trips to the bank or deposit slips

February 23rd, 2010 Summary Box: Cell phone apps for check depositsBANKING BY PHONE: Soon, you might not even have to visit a bank or an ATM to deposit a check. You’ll simply snap a couple of photos of it with your cell phone.

Summary Box: HP plans to cut 9,000 jobs as it creates automated data hubs

June 1st, 2010 Summary Box: Hewlett-Packard to cut 9K jobsTHE CUTS: Hewlett-Packard Co. is laying off about 9,000 people, roughly 3 percent of its global work force.

Apple Offers iPad Replacement for Faulty Battery at Service Fee $99

March 15th, 2010 more imagesTo get rid of incessant criticism over its irreplaceable battery, Apple has decided to offer a Battery Replacement Service for its new iPad tablet. Under the new iPad battery replacement program, you will be provided an entirely new iPad, if your iPad’s battery no longer holds a charge.

Summary Box: In Europe, Asia, throngs mob Apple stores for gadget of the moment _ the iPad

May 28th, 2010 more imagesmore imagesSummary Box: Long lines in Europe, Asia for iPadON SALE NOW: Long lines snaked down streets in Europe and Asia as Apple’s iPad went on sale outside the U.S. PUSHED BACK: Apple Inc.

Using iPad, iPhone apps on new device

April 3rd, 2010 more imagesmore imagesUsing iPad, iPhone apps on new deviceAs with the iPhone, the iPad’s usefulness will grow with the thousands of applications that will be available for it. Users can get apps for such tasks as reading the news, checking weather and playing games — either for free or for a fee, usually no more than a few bucks.

Glance: A look at of the major changes coming to the software behind the iPhone, iPad

April 8th, 2010 more imagesmore imagesGlance: Changes coming to the iPhone, iPadSome of the major changes coming to the software that runs the iPhone and the iPad:— The ability to use multiple apps at the same time. This is something iPhone users have long been clamoring for, and it will allow users to, say, play music from an app such as Pandora while surfing the Web — something that isn’t possible with the current software.

8 Things that Netbook can Learn From iPad

April 8th, 2010 Video is one of the important features for any portable computer. Netbook doesn’t handle Video that good.

Summary Box: Cable companies forced to play nice as they lose video subscribers

May 26th, 2010 Summary Box: Cable providers try to play niceCUSTOMERS’ REVENGE: Cable TV companies are trying to treat their customers better. THE STEPS: Some companies are offering 30-day money-back guarantees and putting orders in writing.

Date and time for iPad Pre-order

March 12th, 2010 more imagesEarly adopters fervently waiting to place their order for Apple’s iPad need not wait longer. In case you are in dark about the date and time to pre-order iPad, we have some details.

SUMMARY BOX: Wireless carriers justify early termination fees to break service contract

February 23rd, 2010 more imagesmore imagesSUMMARY BOX: Wireless carriers justify feesWHAT THE WIRELESS CARRIERS SAY: The nation’s biggest wireless companies are telling federal regulators that they give consumers adequate notice about early termination fees that apply to break a service contract before it expires. THE INVESTIGATION: Last month, the Federal Communications Commission sent letters to AT&T, Verizon, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile USA and Google seeking information about early termination fees.

Summary Box: Apple offers details on highly anticipated iPad tablet

January 27th, 2010 more imagesmore imagesSummary Box: Highly anticipated Apple iPad tabletWHAT IS IT?: The iPad is larger in size but similar in design to Apple’s popular iPhone. It has a 9.7-inch touch screen and weighs 1.5 pounds, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity built in and an option to use AT&T’s 3G data network.

Summary Box: Democrats challenge Comcast, NBC Universal on risks of proposed deal

February 4th, 2010 Summary Box: Democrats challenge Comcast, NBCBIG QUESTIONS: Executives from Comcast and NBC Universal had to explain in two congressional hearings Thursday why they think consumers and rivals won’t be hurt if the cable TV provider takes control of the entertainment company. Democrats in particular said they worried the deal could lead to higher cable TV rates, fewer video programming choices and unfair struggles for competitors.

books Manuals & Magazines global work force, hubs, ipad, startups

Many times when a sewing machine stops operating it is usually a small thing that caused the loss of sewing time as well as immense frustration. The very best thing to do is just take some time before you start sewing to check the machine and make sure the machine is functioning as this can save you time. Brother sewing machine repairs can be done at home and will save you having to take the machine in to a repair shop.

The brother sewing machine is a heavy duty machine that can stand up to years of use and when it stops working all it may need is a good cleaning and oiling or maybe it may need a small part replaced like the drive belt or a needle. Brother sewing machine repairs require sewing machine oil, a crevice attached vacuum, tweezers, white lithium grease, a small flat head screw drivers and toothpicks. If you have these tools you can fix the machine yourself.

One should at least every three to six months give the machine a thorough clean up and oiling as this will ensure that the machines functions well and will also last you for many years if you do regular maintenance. One should always read the machine manuals instructions before you start to use the machine as this helps you to become familiar with the machine.

The machine repairs are no different to any other machine repairs. Here is how you give the entire machine an overall repair and clean out:

The first thing you need to do is open all the covers such as the top bottom and side covers using a screwdriver to remove the screws. Set the screws and covers aside making sure they don’t get lost in the process Then remove the thread bobbin plate and thoroughly clean inside all the openings with the vacuum and if there are pieces of fabric or thread stuck use either your tweezers or a toothpick to remove these pieces that have wound around any of the machine parts Loosen all the grime between the teeth on the gears and then lubricate all the moving machine parts with machine oil and use the grease on the gears only.

Once the entire machine has been cleaned and oiled you can reassemble the machine and it is ready to be used. Use your manual for Brother sewing machine repairs as the manual will explain step by step what to do when you encounter a problem.

books Manuals & Magazines brother sewing machine, machine manuals