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2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Subject: Adult Truths
*I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.
*Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.
*There is a great need for a sarcasm font.
*How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?
*Map Quest really needs to start their directions on #5. I'm pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.
*Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.
*I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least ‘kind of’ tired.
*Bad decisions make good stories.
*You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren't going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.
*Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blue Ray? I don't want to have to restart my collection... again.
*I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page technical report that I swear I did not make any changes to
Have fun!
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
I love Gabe Dixon as a solo artist. I had heard he joined Tedeschi Trucks. Great snag by them.
I have the TTB record (vinyl) of the Layla album. Some songs are done better by Allman, Clapton, etc. Some are better by TTB. The sound is worlds better on the TTB recording.
Trying to wrap my mind around Los Lobos doing a Beach Boys tune.
Color me jealous!
Economists are saying oil will drop to ½ of what it was earlier this summer. Let’s see if gas prices drop by ½. Anyone want to bet?
If oil prices go back to where they were a year ago (unlikely, but possible), then I expect to see gasoline prices at roughly where they were a year ago. That is a better indicator, and a fair comparison.
2018 430i Gran Coupe
Come now, would you really feel good about stealing from your poster buddies?
jmonroe
However, I just checked USEA gas price data (all grades, so it's a mix), From 2015 till 2021 gas prices were range bound between $2.20 and $3.00 bouncing back and forth with WTI price approximately $40-$68 with two very short periods of big drops one spring 2020 (first lockdowns - that's when it hit a "negative" number one of the days) another early 2016 (dropped to $25 for couple of weeks, which was reflected in short period of $1.80 gas price), which is quite good correlation. So yes, if gas oil price is cut in half and stays that way for more than two weeks, I fully expect gas price to follow it to a decent extend, not half but say 30 percent or so, just as it did before multiple times on its way up and down. It won't happen next day, just like price hikes don't happen, either (contrary to what people believe there is at least week delay between oil price and gas) albeit admittedly hikes are always quicker than drops.
There is psychological explanation to that - we always quickly notice negative developments, but positive ones we often treat as "background noise", something that's "natural", so not noteworthy.
2018 430i Gran Coupe
As demand continues to drop, the other excuses are going to become prevalent…
-“will need gov’t help to stem dropping demand so we don’t have to do layoffs”
-“we need gov’t help because we didn’t move to EV support quick enough”
-“we’ll just abandon our underground gas tanks that aren’t needed anymore and let communities clean up the inevitable hazardous seepage”.
I could go on. The oil companies are parasites. The sooner we dispatch them all to history, the better we all will be….economically and environmentally.
I THINK @graphicguy meant that prices won’t drop to where they were before given all of the associated costs you mentioned and yes the oil companies are more than quick to raise prices, often within hours of a reported shortage of supply even though the new higher prices are not even seen yet by the producers.
Like you said prices will drop but slowly compared to that step change increase they had. And they never come back to the pre-price increase. The new price will be several cents more. It’s almost like the oil companies throw us a life-line and we’re so happy we just ignore the fact that we’re still being screwed. Wow, we don’t have to pay 5 bucks for a gallon of gas anymore; ain’t life grand?
Not every producer of goods can get away with that since there are many producers of bread, soft drinks, pickles etc. so the free market system inherently protects the consumer. However, with the oil companies this is an almost full proof way of incrementally raising the price of your product thereby creating a new baseline. Rinse and repeat. Nice work if you can get it and they’ve got it.
jmonroe
2018 430i Gran Coupe
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
OK, now tell us how you really feel.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Who are you talking to?
jmonroe
I fight the auto-texting app on my Samsung phone. It brings up words
based on the letters over which it thinks I dragged my fingertip. It will often instert
the wrong word correcting the one it thinks is wrong already in the text. From then on
it thinks that wrong word is a better choice than the one I already had in the text. I
have to go slow and correct each word if it pops in the wrong one. Sometimes the wrong one
gets popped in after I've finished the text.
Example: "There are about 60 cars at the cruise-in" becomes
"There are about 60 cats at hte cruise-in."
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Regarding oil and gas prices, did you see that 5 million barrels of oil from the US strategic reserve was exported to Europe and Asia?
https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2022-07-05/oil-from-u-s-reserves-head-overseas-as-gasoline-prices-stay-high?context=amp
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
This nightmare is why I’m not quite ready for an EV:
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
Took the very young grandkids so our seats were in the Family section.
Once we got inside the stadium from the garage, we weren't sure how to get up to our level.
I asked a woman who was directing traffic how we could get to our seats from where we were.
She said we needed to take the elevator up another level.
Then she said 'I see you are all Yankee fans, I have something special for you just go in there'.
It was a special access club.
I gave her a skeptical look but she said 'No it's OK and I think you'll really appreciate it'.
You might have to zoom in the read the story but it gave me goose bumps.
I'll be catching a Guardians - Padres game in San Diego at the end of August.
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2015 Subaru Outback 3.6R / 2014 MINI Countryman S ALL4
Can’t argue with that. No matter how many pumps I find at Costco, it’s still a 35 minute endeavor. I’ve also had zero issues with charging , so…I’m biased.
I wonder how many more will get installed when this video gets tweeted again next year…
23 Civic Type-R / 22 MDX Type-S / 21 Tesla Y LR / 03 Montero Ltd
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
I’ve filled up my time doing things I really like (like mentoring at the local 2-year degree school, chairing the advisory committee for the local arts and entertainment community, etc. I like doing those things. I have mostly resisted (few pockets of ZOOM meetings that I charged them for) doing “real” work.
They finally sent over a consulting gig that I only have to do for a week. But, it’s on the land of Mickey (Orlando) and I’d be working with Lockheed (which really interests me). Headed that way tomorrow.
Not looking forward to the Orlando weather. But, I am looking forward to working with the folks at Lockheed, who are some of the brightest folks I know.
So, the sales manager at the Honda store I bought the Accord from dropped me a voice mail stating he’d pay $1,000 more than I paid for it.
Called him back. He said Hybrids are the hot ticket and hard to come by from the factory. Told him $1,000 probably wouldn’t do it. He asked me what I was thinking. I don’t know. Gotta see if there’s something out there I can buy reasonably, and more importantly, something I like.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
2018 430i Gran Coupe
I thought I would always want to work especially in our own business. But now that I got used to retirement I would never trade it for working. If a company wanted my skills I'd have to tell them I would be totally useless as an employee, no interest, no motivation, don't care....I want to do what I want to do on my own schedule. Besides, I don't have time to be working.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
Can’t argue with that. No matter how many pumps I find at Costco, it’s still a 35 minute endeavor. I’ve also had zero issues with charging , so…I’m biased.
Perhaps it's my Costco (now, oh so far away...), but I've never had a 35 minute experience. I mostly went Friday nights, might be at worst 15 minutes in total. There have been a few times on the weekend, however, where I've driven by and said, "no thanks."
And, also no real charging issues, but I may not remember if there were given my backup plan of ~14 gallons of petrol.
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
Not sure about the feather in my cap. My former company signed a DOD contract. As those things go, they reach well into the future. I told them time and again that I was going to retire, and that I'd be more than willing to train anyone they designated. They didn't.
So, they have to honor the contract in a given amount of time or pay a very hefty penalty. As it stands, the scope of the work is in a very narrow niche. I know how to do it. And, I have intimate knowledge of both my old company and of the project with Lockheed. So, I'm more of a unicorn than anything else for them. They can certainly hire someone much cheaper than me, and certainly younger. But, big companies can't seem to get out of their own way, sometimes.
The guy I used to report to just retired, also. That means there are few in the company who would even know where to begin.
Their HR dept is overworked and says they don't have time to find someone else. And, there's no one to train the new hire if they did.
The further I'm away from my employee days, the more I'm glad I'm retired. Loved working there the entire time I was with them, but forgot how much time I spent daily just doing non-productive things that didn't make any difference and never amounted to a hill of beans, only to get to the meat of what it was I needed to do. No more political gamesmanship, nor butt kissing, worthless report writing, and no more "holding my tongue".
Whew....that went into a different tangent!!!!!
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
When my old employer asked me to come back as a consultant I wanted to know for how long because I started Social Security and if it was for only a few months it wouldn’t be worth it to me. So, when I asked, my old boss said, “I’m afraid to say because I don’t want to scare you off”. I said, “you gotta tell me or the answer is no.” He takes a deep breath and said, “at least 6 months but probably indefinite”. I said, “OK for 6 months (because that wouldn’t kill my Social Security) and we’ll see how it goes after that”. Well, “after that”, since I was having so much fun (didn’t have to do monthly reports, go to stupid meetings, etc,) just left alone to do it my way working with some old buddies turned into almost 7 years.
Every 9 months the boss came by and said, “still having fun, I told you that you would” and then told me what my new hourly rate would be. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, “they liked me a lot more as a consultant than when I was a full time working stiff”. My only concern was I had to finally pull the plug and get off of that candy before the cleaning crew found me slumped over my keyboard one night.
Now, about that “brightest folks” comment, there are a few bright folks in here, I happen to know one pretty well. So let’s knock that off right now.
jmonroe
2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6
I know what you mean.
My old employer called me about 2 months after I pulled the plug for the last time. This wasn’t my old boss because he had retired himself by that time but he threw my name out saying “I doubt he’d be interested but good luck. I’m pretty sure he’s really done”. My old boss was right but the new guy wouldn’t give up so easily. Kept calling me with a better hourly rate but you guys would have been proud of me because I kept saying, “no thanks but thanks for asking”. Finally he got the idea. They must have been in real trouble because they kept throwing money at me and I never once alluded that the money wasn’t enough.They sure as hell didn’t throw money around like that when I was an almost 35 year full time working stiff that’s for sure.
I’ve really settled into retirement now all right. I do what I want to do when I want to do it and and I only do that when I feel like it.
jmonroe
I wonder what was up with this electric F-150 that it was only able to tow an empty trailer such a short distance?
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-e55Vued028&feature=emb_title
Out of Spec Motoring did a payload test between a Rivian and a Lightning using water totes in the bed.
The Lightning didn't lose as much efficiency as the Rivian which they put down to the tote being more exposed over the top of the Rivian cab.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.