This afternoon The Bitespot received 73 spam messages from about 3 P.M. until 7.  I don’t mind having to delete a few but 73 is too many. The ability to comment will be turned off for a while as before. After the spam front passes, perhaps I’ll be able to turn it back on. Just e-mail comments to me at harleyiii@bitespot.net in the meantime .

The cold weather reminded me that it’s time to change the gear oil in the lower unit of your outboard motor. If the seal around the shaft has leaked, the water that got inside the lower unit might freeze and crack the housing.  I went several seasons before changing mine the first time and the oil that came out was black and bad looking. I’ve changed it every year since. The oil this year had about a teaspoon of black oil but the rest was almost as clear as new. There was no sign of any water.