Robert Hall

Haven't been around much lately, been a busy summer...hating the constant rain..been so wet the last 3-4 months. Is this Cleveland or Seattle? Moved into the new house on June 22, been going back and forth working on the old house, moving out everything, unpacking boxes, busy with work since then...old house almost ready--should be on the MLS in the next week finally. Getting new carpet this week. Had the inside and inside of the garage painted over the last two weeks. Getting tired of the 25 mile drive on I-271 and the fecal I-480 back and forth between the two houses (480 freeway has the worst drivers in Ohio I think--saw the aftermath of 3 crashes in a 5 mile stretch yesterday). The worst drivers are no longer BMW drivers--its KIA drivers--they drive like complete assholes.... Looking forward to getting the house for sale and actually getting back to enjoying my weekends....

For 'safe' colors, like the way-overused black, silver and white, I never thought I'd go for any of those, but I do like my metallic black Jeep w/ the beige and black interior. It's a very common color combo on so many SUVs, though...esp premium and luxury models. Not a fan of white, but could go for a pearl white on Cadillacs..

Not sure about 'safe', but F8 green and Octane Red are my favorite current Mopar colors..I'd definitely go for that green. Perhaps like the song, she's 'a Barbie girl in the Barbie world'... it's cool when people are fearless and be themselves in public..

Quite the beast. The contours make it look it smaller than it is..looks smaller in the side profile pics..would like to see a photo parked next to the regular slab-sided upright Escalade. 'Escaladiq' would have a better name?

The Auto World C8s are very nice...I have a couple of them, my favorite is the Zeus Bronze.

It's in Floriduh, so probably flood damaged.

My last one I got 3 years out of (iPhone SE (2020))...it got harder to charge and the battery life got worse over time. We'll see how long my new iPhone 14 Pro lasts..I'll be happy w/ 3 years..

I wouldn't say lazy, just efficient...as a tech person, I don't have any interest w/ fooling around with bull$h!..just want products that work well and require minimal maintenance.... that's why I like Apple products, for example, none of the constant update nonsense w/ MS trash. Apple products just work and work well. I have no interest in EVs at this point, but I can see the low maintenance/charge at home angle as being attractive. But with gas stations everywhere and very quick to fill up compared to finding a charging station, I don't see any advantage to having an EV for my use case.

Thanks for the birthday wishes. Today makes a week since we moved into the new house, the movers were pretty quick and efficient w/ the furniture last Thursday. Been unpacking boxes, getting rooms around the house set up (my office is pretty well along), going to the old house in the evenings to clean out, etc. Just exhausting...been relaxing in the hot tub in the evenings. Going out for some good seafood Friday night for my birthday...will Uber downtown. Looking forward to the 4 day weekend, more unboxing, working on cleaning up the old house, going to the Indy Car race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Sunday. Did do a fun thing the other evening--went and saw Santana in concert--had never seen Carlos play, he's great live. The June weather has been crazy...hot and dry at the start of the month, then lots of rain lately, and this week smoke and haze from the Canadian wildfires (I think Ontario is less than 50 miles from here across the lake). Looking forward to July.

Yeah, she's loving it. I can definitely see using the tub as part of my daily routine. Should be fully moved in at the end of the month around my birthday..

New pic of Lula and Lola, now almost 14 weeks...plus Jack! The breeder called last week and they had one puppy left, asked if we would be interested...so we added Jack to the pack...

Got in the hot tub for the first time tonight...fantastic. Learning the remote and all the jet settings. Hadn't been in a hot tub in years, just what we needed. Very relaxing. Was streaming some Pink Floyd to it's speakers...

Really neat looking car...can see a bit of DeLorean in the profile. Love the front on the new concept and the flared fenders...

Saw a very clean bright red '71 Chevelle in traffic the other evening...had a nice rumble Definitely not stock, had badging that read 'Malibu 427' on the sides (definitely not the original engine). Was behind a modded '57 Chevy 2dr sedan in traffic yesterday...black w/ flames painted on the side, rumbling, crackling, loud and strong smell of gas. Very different from all the generic appliances around it on a residential street. Not really my style, but I can dig the street rod aesthetic..I wonder what the generic consumer resources in their white Kias and other transportation appliances on the street thought of it..

The microwave and hot tub were installed today...looking forward to using this. Got some landscaping to do around it..

From personal experience, the '00 DTS and '06 STS had some of the most comfortable seats I've dealt with for daily driving and road trips.. I miss cars that focus on comfort and silence...not everything has to be optimized for setting Nurburgring times. I drove my sister's DTS from Phoenix to LA or San Diego several times when I lived in Phoenix, very comfortable and quiet. 6 hr drives weren't bad at all. 6 hrs (or 50 like I did in 2017) in my Jeep and my back is in a world of pain.

We pushed out the furniture move by two weeks to the 22nd. We are behind because it's mostly me moving everything else. Two people with a lot of stuff...

Saw a few interesting red cars on I-90 today...a red Ferrari 308 coming up behind me this afternoon..it passed me, and I realized it was a Fauxrari...looked like a 3rd gen Camaro or Firebird with a 308 style body kit...faded red paint, '1MAGNUM' license plate...different, haven't seen something like that in decades. Also saw a '61 Corvette convertible w/ patina--red w/ white cove inserts, 6 round taillights, side pipes, roll bar, old slotted mags. Spotted a very clean stock-looking red '65-66 Mustang coupe. Went to a retirement happy hour for a coworker the other evening, in the parking lot was my company founder's silver Ferrari 812 Superfast which he bought after selling the company last year, and the VP of Product Management's new red Corvette Z06 convertible (in that incredible red that looks like a Hot Wheels spectraflame color).

I liked those Malibus..rented several back then. I liked the Impala a lot. As far as the Equinox, I drove a rental one a year ago to Syracuse and back on a Saturday/Sunday--6+ hrs each way on I-90. Even in LT trim with cloth seats, I found the seats more comfortable than my Grand Cherokee. My sister won't ride in the GC for more than a half hour or so anymore--she loathes the concrete leather seats in it and I get her point--it must be the M-B origins of the WK2, but the seats are very firm.. She loves her new Equinox and drove it to SC and back comfortably when she snow-birded this past winter.

I like the Malibu...have driven a few of this and the previous two generations as rentals. The steering wheel and dash on this one looks almost identical in design to my sister's '23 Equinox.

This past week, got the 11x11 slab poured for the spa, the electrical for it in place...it will be delivered and installed this week along w/ the 2nd attempt at a new microwave install (with the first, I discovered the importance of buying a microwave with a 'zero-clearance' door). Met w/ the landscapers today about some tree work and continued yard and garden work. Made two trips this weekend w/ a rental Transit high roof, going to make another trip in the morning then drop it off after work.

And all the moronic Tesla fanboys and Elon bootlickers are going to ecstatic about it, claiming it's the greatest truck ever built and will outsell all Detroit trucks...

Saw a neat burgundy '32 Ford roadster w/ a tan top and interior in a driveway this afternoon... had flames painted down the sides. Saw a really clean dark red '92-97 Cadillac STS in a restaurant parking lot...always liked these cars. Saw a dark gray Cadillac Lyriq on the freeway, 2nd I've seen (saw and sat in one at the auto show in Feb)...car looks great on the road in motion. Saw a black Tesla Model S upside down in a ravine off the the side of I-480, flashers on, guy standing beside it on his phone..

Just another weekend of moving content between the houses. The actual move w/ movers of the furniture is scheduled for June 9th...though that date may move. Should be actually living in the house w/ the dogs that weekend. I have a camping cot and slept in the house a couple nights this past week, was great...very quiet. Loved watching the sunset from the patio and sitting out there after dark. Need to get some of the outside lights sorted. Getting a bunch of misc work done--had the carpet cleaned, ducts cleaned, alarm system and doorbell cameras installed, furnaces serviced, got the yard service going, getting the concrete pad and electrical for the hot tub done this coming week...

My 2020 iPhone SE had gotten to point it would only last 2-3 hrs on a full charge with constant use. So it was time for a new phone, got my first big phone this week--an iPhone 14 Pro (the Pro Max is even larger, I don't need one that large). Nice hefty phone, still fits in my pocket but larger than the SE...like it so far...good battery life.