Robert Hall

You can definitely get 50mpg in a compact w/ a diesel... it doesn't have to be an Aveo-sized sh*tbox. The automakers just have to have the courage to sell them here.

Apparently, the city has a $250 million budget shortfall going into '09, so it will be interesting to see if they start cutting projects and cutting employees and contractors. My contract was recently renewed thru March 31st '09, but I may run screaming sooner if I have to...

I keep hearing the Rush song 'Red Barchetta' with it's ominous sounding 'Motor Law'... R-Cube

Hmmm....a fleetwide average of 50 would require a fleet of diesel Aveo sized cars and trucks...

Nice..highs still in the low '80s the last few weeks here in Phoenix, with a couple days in the '70s. Highs in the '70s should be the norm soon though.. No cloudy days. R

Interesting... my dogs start barking and jumping around when the doorbell rings. Actually, since I pay and tip online, I really don't need to appear at the door except to take the pizza (though I always check it before the delivery guy leaves, as Papa John's has a history of forgetting toppings).

Yes...I've done that for years... w/ Papa Johns also. Still have to get up to answer the door, though.

I feel old...I remember those ads.

Nah..a conversion... I recall an ad years ago from a company did them and similar 'Cowboy Cadillacs'..kind of a civilian version of a flower car.

Cherokee (what the Liberty is called outside the US)

french fries

Interesting..a Lincoln pickup. Certainly more interesting than the Mark LT turd of recent years.

Ya..I esp. liked May and June, Sept and early October in Ohio. July and August can be hot 'n humid, though. Michigan was ok then also. IIRC, winters there (SE Michigan) were grayer than NE Ohio, with less snow, but just as damp...and some nasty ice storms. After jr. high and high school mostly in the Florida Keys, I moved back to Ohio---in college and grad school, I spent 6 winters and summers in the Akron/Cleveland area, 3 in Ann Arbor, Mi, and 2 summers in Chicago... interesting variety of weather those years, IIRC...then I moved West in June '97. One of my favorite little weekend trips in Michigan was the time I drove all the way around the thumb...very pretty....also drove up to Charlevoix, Ste St Marie, went to Mackinac Island, drove around the upper peninsula. The summers of '94-96 were fun, amidst grad school and driving back and forth between Chicago and A2.. One place at the northern tip of the thum I liked was Port Austin...I recall eating in a restaurant called 'The Bank'.

And how about the global brands--Chevrolet and to a lesser extent, Buick? Who controls them--GMNA or GME?

Fascinating..never heard of that one..I didn't realize GM had experimented w/ V8 Ws (GM-10 back then) before the GP GXP and Impala SS...

Interesting... 'disentanglement' from the American patient.

At least it does have some color, though, rather than the usual cheap car depressing all-gray.

Another article, and another reason to hate the red state Repubs: Top Republican senators oppose Big 3 bailout

kosher

I was behind one a few months ago at a light and noticed it was badged as 'Pathfinder Armada', think they did that only the first year.

Never tried SecondLife... first life is interesting and complex enough.

I've thought about San Diego also... I've gone to the beach there in the summer (Pacific Beach usually) for 10+ years now...have a couple friends there. I've thought a year in SD, Honolulu, or the SF Bay Area could be an interesting change of pace, no worse than a year in Phoenix I figure..

Mmmm..pepper bacon. There is a good local bakery less than a couple blocks away. And the local gourmet supermarket (AJs) is a mile away or so, they have great breads...I think we are going to get Thanksgiving dinner from there. For restaurant bacon, my favorite is still Original Pancake House... I think there is one of those out in Scottsdale, and there is one less than a mile from my place in Denver..

When I was on my job hunt in August, I had a head hunter contact me about a position in Maui...that could be interesting. I've lived in the Florida Keys, which are islands connected by bridges. Lousy beaches, though.. and humidity and hurricanes.

Nice and sunny and only 80 today in Phoenix...the days are too short, though...daylight by 6:30 or so and dark by 6:00 PM... Speaking of Ohio weather, my sister said it was yucky in Dayton this week, her flight back last night was delayed in Charlotte for 2 hours, didn't get until almost 1 this morning, flying back to Columbus via Chicago tomorrow afternoon. I don't know how she does it. 75k FF miles so far this year. Will be back here for Thanksgiving, though we are thinking of going to Ohio for Xmas to visit our Mom and brother..can't get them to come out here.