trinacriabob

As for the rear taillamps, yes, more Regal. As for the opera window, the one on GP angles upward slightly as it goes rearward, so maybe a mix of GP and Regal, which has the most rectangular of all these GM intermediates. As for the front, it's something worth tinkering with. It also comes down to space. Cutlass Supreme/Salon returned to more separated grilles in '87 for its swan song. I see where you get Regal. An early '80s Regal coupe's headlights leaned back slightly. Their front one piece Parthenon-like grille also did so, and also sitting a hair forward. They had a chrome front bumper. If they toyed with the geometries on this one, including the cubes, made the grilles narrower, taller, and leaned them back a minute amount, in addition to working on the emblem and/or hood ornament, this could have turned out interesting, and even appealing. These don't have the horizontal chrome bar across like at the top of Regal's "Parthenon," so they come off as cleaner. There is some sloppiness in the way things are put together, including the lack of side lights up front, too. Now, in this year, there was Calais instead of Salon, but thicker bucket seats with more recessed seating and back insets would have been sweet. It goes without saying that the Brougham needed to stay, too. America had a love affair with this car for a long time and my family was smitten twice.

I'm always window shopping for a colonnade and, while I didn't find one, I found this photo and, since I scrutinize the colonnades, some things immediately jumped out. For one, the magenta color is overpowering. Not a good look. Moving along, the front grille is the big difference. The headlamps are canted, hence the same. The shovelnose grille, which did look good and modernized the anemic '78 through '80 coupe models is not shown. Instead, there's a grille that's more related to an 88 or 98, but it's made a little "sportier" by making it more compact and also leaning it back slightly. Without the shovelnose, the bumper is a traditional chromed one. This is meant to be an '82, and the "cubes" remain. Personally, I think it looks great. The second is the opera window. This doesn't show the curve at the bottom rear corner. In this manner, it looks much like the Regal colonnade coupes of the same years. I don't have an opinion. The curved one was specific to the Cutlass Supreme. We can't see the taillamps, but notice that the don't go all the way up, suggesting that this design may have had horizontal ones. But we can't see what they did with it. I don't know what to say. I'm just sharing this. However, I do like this grille treatment!

Southwest announced its bag pricing. It's $35 for the first one, and $45 for a second one, so not horrible. Let's see if they will package up bundles. I like using them for ATL to TPA or JAX, having been cheaper than Delta and including the bag. They also use STL for connecting and do it all within Terminal 2, so it's an easy airport to connect in. They have had good nonstop service between all major West Coast airports, from SAN all the way up to SEA. I'm just waiting to see how this "new" airline unfolds.

If anyone intends to purchase an "old school" ticket on Southwest, meaning with 2 free bags, you can do so up through May 27. On May 28, they will start nickel and diming for seats, bags, etc. The curtain is falling on this airline as we knew it for so long. I will now have less incentive to use them.

@surreal1272 I'm guessing from the photos that the new vehicle is white, which is always a good choice for both heat and visibility. I've seen some in that enamel pale gray (they might have called it dove gray in the past) and they really caught my eye. (That color comes into style and goes, once being popular in Cadillac and Buick ... my dad had a Buick in that color with the tufted buttoned velour seats in the same color and long trips in it were a pleasure.) If I could have that, with a gray cloth interior, along with a 3.5 Pentastar V6, I would enjoy driving one. Not that I enjoy moving - I hate it - but the Chrysler vans can sure carry a lot of stuff with the seats down. On the GM side of things, I sort of miss the now long gone Silhouette minivan by Olds over those of the other GM divisions.

Of this genre, these are among the more attractive. Nice.

Good morning ... 416d037c-a50d-4e5a-8755-ff1afb477d5c.mp4 blame it on recent use of Lufthansa.

Indeed. I was caught in it within the last week. A beautiful flight on a Lufthansa jumbo, defying the jet stream headwind, was going to make Newark in 7.5 hours. Cruising at 600 mph if going west is almost amazing. However, we then circled over the Hudson River Valley for almost an hour. Cloudy outside, too. I will now avoid that hub and try to use IAH-Houston Bush if on United if possible. Big Texas skies. I have a lot of respect for ATC folks. They have so much on their plates.

For buying things, I don't like IKEA. For the bright cafe', I do. Yep, Denver and those dips in weather that go away very soon.

Here, and in some other cars, it's deliberate and clean ... not just a moulding that looks poorly pasted on. If we want to look back, the last MC ('06-'07) had some fussy, stupid things on the exterior that could have been fixed to make for a more compelling "swan song."

Random thoughts ... for real: A lot of last-gen Impalas are on the road and in excellent condition. Except for those thick pillars, they did dial in the ride and handling. Yes, SUVs are easier to get into and out of. I'm having breakfast at IKEA in Jacksonville ... frickin' hot here these days. Cheap and pretty good breakfast. Free coffee (or tea) ... hello!!! Love the custom homes on the A1a south of Ponte Vedra Beach.

I'll have to give a listen. I would imagine. Two words say it all: Mary Richardson (Kennedy). I learned of this in the last 6 months or so. This is what I refer to when Americans, and others, should NOT forget and forgive easily.

Good afternoon: Is this one ugly s.o.b. or what? (Not political.) It's all those years of "clean living " - - - - - I found this under RFK Jr. laser eyes ... like something out of the "Twilight Zone."

I'm glad you like the color combo like I do. Plus, it's two-tone inside. It was a welcomed difference. I'd prefer the larger displacement and the 6 speed automatic. I don't need 9 gears! Also, the only thing I hate is the kink in the rear C-pillar moulding. It looks like a fabrication mistake and could have so easily been designed out of the car.

@G. David Felt I agree with this broad rule of thumb. I once tried octopus in a seafood salad at a Y2K celebration. I thought it was chicken. I kept chewing and it was weird and rubbery. With my mouth full, I again asked what it was. I was told "polpo," initially misunderstanding it to be "pollo." I went to the bathroom and spit it out. I now do eat things I didn't like before - lamb, pork chops, and more shellfish. The few times I've had lobster lately, the quality seems to have gone down, so I'm not as impressed as I used to be. - - - - - What I was going to say ... People love to talk about cars. What may initially start out as a tentative (parking lot) conversation turns enthusiastic when it's genuinely only cars that you want to talk about.

An oldie but a goodie. It could almost run on just its instrumentals.

Thank you for the responses. Yes, it's near the sea and seafood is big, but octopus wouldn't go to the top of their list. Cuts of bigger fish and shrimp would be considerably more common. I would think ahead and realize that some food is visually off putting, such as octopus and, in the States, alligator or rattlesnake, even if the latter supposedly taste like chicken. The hostess was of the sort who would be too obtuse to ask. I worked around the octopus and only ate the rice and condiments in the risotto, so the main dish was not filling.

A family invited people to dinner. You didn't ask what they're making. The main course is an octopus risotto. And not much else. I would think that's inappropriate. I'm sure a lot of people wouldn't want to eat snails in someone's house in France or gator steaks in someone's backyard barbecue in Florida. Your thoughts on serving a "polarizing" dish like that.

I think that Americans should not forgive as easily as they do. Forgiveness is overrated. And that's me speaking as a Catholic. Those people will continue to pull the same $hi+. Musk's weirdness and nastiness should not be forgiven and forgotten. He should have stuck to being a businessman, if you even want to call him that. People should walk away from products and services offered by rotten people, and that would even include changing doctors, for example. I had a real "winner" of a doctor 3 years ago, as in one rude mofo.

Nicely composed photo. - - - - - White smoke ... and I'll never forget where I was/am. I am in disbelief. The new Pope is American. (There's a reason for everything.) I could put this in the joke thread, but won't ... Q: What do Trump*, Elon Musk*, Luigi Mangione*, and the new Pope** have in common? A: Their college degrees (baccalaureate) were all granted in ~ Philadelphia. * UPenn ** Villanova

About food and the "boot country," there have been some changes due to globalization. By that, I mean much more interest in fast food, candy bars, and bad snacking. In the last 20 or so years that I've been coming here almost annually, I can see that the Big Mac attack (translation: bigger butts) has been more pronounced, and "growing." The people, primarily younger women, used to be very thin, and now I'm seeing some of the bigger rumps, and jeans to accommodate them, that are part and parcel of Americana. I love me a Big Mac meal about once a month, wherever I may be, but not much more than that.

Oh yes. Also, this way, I skip dinner and/or just eat a snack.

I know most of us here love food. Here's what €14 got me for lunch: 4 spinach and ricotta cannelloni tubes, a nice piece of swordfish, steamed spinach with tasty garnishes, and a bottle of ice cold water. Delicious ... and good for you. I went here yesterday and they didn't have pasta and main choices that were as good. Big supermarkets tend to have a large cafe' section that features good lunch specials and the locals gladly go there. And I tend to be cheap, so ...

I didn't realize Hyundai ICEs are not reliable. I thought they were in it for the long haul. I have trouble with the desert aesthetic for long periods of time. I have friends in the urban area near PSP and also in the High Desert. It's sunny and dry, but driving across all the emptiness can become depressing after a while. The southern part of South America was to my liking. Chile's capital of Santiago was very, very safe and I've heard it has more crime now. Its seaside town of Vina del Mar was something. The south of Chile begins to look like Scandinavia. Uruguay was my favorite country.

Some songs are timeless and some of the older ones are so honest in their lyrics: "L.A. is a great big freeway Put a hundred down and buy a car In a week, maybe two, they'll make you a star Weeks turn into years, how quick they pass And all the stars that never were Are parking cars and pumping gas" Classic!