Wow

I saw this in downtown Birmingham on Friday. Pretty impressive.

No one will confuse THIS one with a Passat.

Behold, the first cloth-roofed Ford Five Hundred I have seen, spotted this morning on 14 Mile. The only word for this is "stunning."

Watching Noah take a nap.

Bubby used to do this for me too.

Eating

Playing

Bubby's first great-grandchild.

Bubby

Hot!

This is my bubby cutting a hot potato kugel. Note she is holding the pan that just came out of the over with her hand! Lots of chefs talk about how much they get burned in professional kitchens in an effort to sound macho, but I would like to see them try this one.

Homemade Kugel

We went down to Toledo yesterday to see my grandmother and eat potato kugel and talk. That is a fabulous homemade kugel - note how the circular pan promotes maximum crust formation. I have the recipe, and I probably won't post it. You have to have a few secrets.

Returning to current events

My friend George sent me a picture of this beautiful Wagyu strip loin from his employer, D'artagnan. This cow led a good life. I do not think it is an overstatement to note that most people (myself included, so far) do not eat a steak like this in a lifetime. George gets to take stuff like this to fabulous restaurants all the time and eat samples with the chefs, and that is actually a form of employment. Amazing.

Oswiecim, Poland

This week there has been a lot of news concerning the 60th Anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camp Auschwitz, and I am pausing from recording our daily events in acknowledgement. My brother sent me this excerpt from our great-grandfather's memoirs about what Oswiecim, Poland was like before the Nazis transformed it beyond comprehension, and it made me stop and reflect on the magnitude of the loss.

An excerpt:

Oshpitzin! That is the Yiddish name of the famous Galician city Oswiecim, and until the end of the First World War it was the most important point that bordered on the two Upper Silesian towns of Myslowice and Katowice, a part of Germany at that time.

I recall many pleasant youthful memories when I remember the great love and respect with which my father would pronounce the word “Oshpitzin”, and he meant this with regard to the lively and many-faceted Jewish life that existed there, as well as the great influence that Oshpitzin had on other Jewish communities. There was something magical about the fact that the smaller towns around it, which could have possibly been independent in municipal terms, refused to become so, and they chose to remain a part of that cultural milieu in order to be able to say with pride that they were an integral part of that great Jewish municipality which was then called Oshpitzin County.

This is a special essay. Yakov's wonderful writing style is of another era, and it was well-translated, retaining its flowing manner from the original Yiddish. His description is of a lost world - that of the Eastern European Jewry of a unique time and place. The complete excerpt, along with many other accounts, is available at the link as part of the Oshpitsin database at jewishgen.org, and was originally published by the Oshpitsin Society in 1977.

LL Cool N

100% Fact: Ladies Love Cool Noah

The truth comes out.

Of course, a lot of that demand is because Lauren has a lot of stuff in the warehouse, and they want to store actual products in the space. As opposed to ski boots, vacuum cleaners and a pink (of course) golf bag.

Lauren and Noah stopped by the office yesterday

There was considerable demand for an appearance.

How Cold Is It?

It is so cold in Detroit right now that it is hard to type anything but

asdfhfad lasdfjkh hdfsajk kljasdfh asfdjfh,

because your hands keep freezing to the keyboard. I might call off ice-fishing tomorrow. Lauren will be disappointed, but I just don't think it's safe.



Seriously, it's negative 5. I can't believe I left the house.

X-90 Sighting

Lauren and I both love these Suzuki X-90s. They are like tiny Oompa-Loompa cars! The only thing I would rather spot on the road is one of those great, rare Japanese minivans from the early eighties, like the Mitsubishi SpaceWagon (my favorite) or the Toyota Van - especially the 4WD.

Pagina oficial del GARBANZO

This is a crazy Spanish food site, with an introductory essay that Alta Vista translates thusly:

"We are a group of friends whom we like the good one for eating and for giving the great pleasure us to taste a SPANISH STEW It enchants east subject of gossip to us for that reason once to the month we go where it is necessary to prove the chosen one And although always is preferred the SPANISH STEW in the lunch usually does not have complaints if by somebody botillo of the Bierzo is suggested good or fabes with clams"

Click on "Recetas" and it goes on to state:

"There is no region in Spain that does not count on its own prescription of the spanish stew, with its own particularitities. The lebaniegos, mountain, maragatos spanish stews, pote Galician, escudella, the canary stew, the rotted pot..., at heart share the same idea of adapted a healthy and nutritious complete plate to the characteristics of the zone in which it is prepared, all of them within the so Spanish tradition of the spoon kitchen "". Of all these "stews" For us, the MADRILENIAN SPANISH STEW is without doubt the best gastronomical delight than to taste itself it could at any time and place (safe with temperatures superior to the 30 degrees Celsius), like better representative of the gastronomy Madrilenian, not too extensive or well-known but exquisite and nonfree of variety. Proximamente we will go including in these paginas tipicas prescriptions but of the Madrilenian kitchen, and spanish stews in general, without trying to be I simply catalogue exhaustive but an acceptable reference to these subjects that interest to us."

DIRECTIONS FOR USING THIS LINK:
Click on "Cocido" under "Cocina madrilena" to view this recipe. I will be trying it our myself (sans blood sausage - which is available in Birmingham but why?)

Yum - Fried Hummus

Here is recipe from the June 1992 issue of Gourmet that is basically a fried hummus patty - sort of a twist on falafel. If you are looking for a real (and highly-rated) falafel recipe, this looks good:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/104489

The definition

Here is how dictionary.com defines this delicious leguminous plant.

HB Produce Thursday Presents: The Chick Pea!

OK, so Produce Thursday had to wait until I had a few minutes at lunch today to post. I guarantee it is worth it, because today’s theme ingredient is: the Chick Pea!

Check out the link for a very helpful "about the check pea" from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

Clearly there are deals to be had.

I tell you, it is a buyer's market for pink 1978 Coupe de Villes right now. Note that I am not telling you where to find this beauty, I am keeping this one for myself.

Our anniversary is next month...

Perhaps I could trade Lauren's A4 for this new (to us) pink Cadillac. See below for precedent. Clearly I am an extremely thoughtful husband to understand my partner so well.

Back at Target again

We are really there a lot. The problem here is that they put all of this pink stuff right across from the baby products, so if we go in for a burp cloth or some nipples Lauren sees these and wants to redo a room.

This is what I should have rented in Vegas

I don't think I will qualify to buy one from Ford Racing without a track history, but they should offer this as an appearance package on the Mustang GT. I still won't buy it because I can't see over the hood (see review in HB archives) but I'll enjoy looking at it on Woodward. Maybe I could use the stripes to steer.

Lunch on Tuesday

Leftover sushi from Sushi Cafe, on Maple Road in Troy. Very good fish, very slow service (every time). Bring a book, it's worth it.

"They don't say 'please' in Israel"

This is a really strange riff on the "Royale with Cheese" scene from Pulop Fiction. But hey, it's 100% turkey meat with Tahini! How could that be bad?

Priya and Dr. Fleischman.

Priya is the cat, and I am certain that there is something fairly unusual about this pairing. On the other hand, it is not like they have anyone else to talk to, and the pig is mroe than capable of taking care of himself.

Noah at Target

And how they wound up.

It's pretty good. My guacamole recipe is very simple, yet still a secret. The trick is in the proportions, and it is hard to learn those.

How Bourgeois Killer Guac:

The absolute best avocados you can find. Start with two.
Medium grain sea salt (iodized. It's out there)
Ground pepper
Fresh Cayenne Pepper
Fresh lime juice

Halve avocados and sprinkle with other ingredients to taste. Mash with a fork until smooth with some chunks. Do NOT Blend, you will be disappointed.

Variations:
1. Lemon juice instead of lime (this is a more subtle taste
2. Add a small amount of diced (drained) tomatoes and minced garlic
3. Add a tiny (really minute) amount of California olive oil to mask bland avocadoes. I like "O" brand

Here are those avocados from last Sunday

Finally ripe enough to eat! I have to say they were almost worth the wait. These are not as good as summer California avocados, but they were not a watery mess either.

Telway on John R

Detroit still has a lot of great burger joints where you can go for a couple of sliders. Grilled onions are a must.

And again

Granted, I don't take a lot of pictures when he is crying.

More Typical

More often though, he seems to be smiling or reacting to something.

Very Composed

Our boy is capable of relaxation, sometimes.

Better Made

And they are, too. A real Detroit potato chip, you should consider these if you like potato chips. The hot variety are great too, so support your local snack foods.

On the Mat

Binkie Boy

Need for Speed Underground 2

Tough day today - no time to post anything until now! Happily, the weekend is upon us, with its promise of Italian food, new Netflix selections ("Anchorman" showed up today) and the Detroit auto show.

And, of course, now that the foneGEAR Xbox is back from CES, I can play Need for Speed Underground 2, a carefree jaunt through the world of street racing. It is sweet, just a great racing game. Explore with the link and have a great weekend.

Mmmm....Crete

Here's the label from that olive oil I bought at Papa Joe's the other night. I finally tried it yesterday with some sourdough bread and it is way beyond expectations. This is a $30 taste in an $8 bottle - it is really that good. In color (deep yellow), aroma and mouth feel this is really above average, but the taste just sets it apart. It is intensely flavorful and spicy, and I don't even want to cook with it, it is almost too nice to mask with ingredients.

Uh-Oh

We were at Target and Lauren saw all of this stuff. Now she wants to redo the bedroom in pink. I don't see it happening.

Extremely Charming

Look at this guy!

Lauren's mom sent some new pictures.

Pomegranate Recipes

Here are some recipes for pomegranates from the Texas A & M "Aggie Horticulture Newtwork." I make no claim that these are any good, but how bad could they be - especially that second punch recipe! I would be surprised if you could still taste anything after the second cup. How Bourgeois notes that you are drinking at your own risk!

No Mess Preparation!

How to eat a pomegranate in three easy steps

HB Produce Thursday Presents: The Pomegranate!

That's right! The pomegranate is so wonderful it almost speaks for itself, but for the uninitiated here is a brief but complete description of this tasty fruit.

This article from the Purdue Department of Horticulture & Landscapre Architecture also contains excellent information on many other Mediterranean fruits including the olive, the loquat and the persimmon.

Robbed!

Like much of the modern bourgeois, my familiy stores its income in banks and Krugerrands. Stories like this one give us pause though, especially as my father was in this bank branch yesterday as it was being robbed! He said it was the most exciting thing that's happened in a long time. Apparently no one but the teller knew what was happening, and immediately after the robber left she ran around the counter and shouted, "We've been robbed!" Very dramatic.

Note to robber: Dad could not remember what you look like immediately after the theft. Way to be nondescript!

It's about time it was topical

Noted at the pediatrician's.

Worse for Mom than baby.

Note that Noah is smiling.

Post-shot

Right after. Not the most fun 30 seconds of his young life. Sure beats polio.

Looking good.

And typically happy.

Look at the forearm!

He's like Popeye!

Pre-Vac

Lauren and Noah looking nervous and oblivious, respectively.

Hot Salami

OK, I sync'ed my PC and now the pictures are back. Here is my sandwich from yesterday with some of that fruit from Sunday. I ate at my desk so I could go to Noah's appointment.

Scraping

I'm sitting here working in the living room, and there is this loud repetitive scraping noise coming from the front of the house. I looked out the front blinds, and my neighbor across the street is slowly shoveling his driveway. It is 18 degrees with a windchill of 4 and it is 5:45 AM. This is nuts, I don't care how much it snowed, I'm staying put.

Oh man, now Noah's crying.

***

Well, he feels totally cool now. Baby Tylenol must work, I feel much relieved.

Shhh

Shhh.pdf (application/pdf Object)

As an employee of a headset manufacturer I would prefer people just go ahead and talk, but if you insist on silencing the people around you who are really just trying to have a quiet personal conversation, albeit at 100 dB in a Muni car full of people, then this is the funniest way (to date) to do it.

Brownwood Acres

As we gear up for produce Thursday, I thought I would note that I am hearing a lot from my arthritic, insomniac colleagues about the benefits of tart cherry juice in relieving joint pain and promoting a peaceful nights rest. Michigan of course is renowned for its' cherries, the Traverse City area being home to the annual Cherry Festival.

I don't know anything about the claims of the "Nutraceutical" manufacturers or the science behind the product, but the word-of-mouth is encouraging.

Mmm..Flavonoids

I can't find the pictures!

Maybe I forgot to move them from the memory stick? They are definitely not on my computer. Sort of a bummer, I will go in early and see if they are still in the camera. Weird.

Fever

Noah received his first four vaccinations yesterday, and he took it pretty well. It turned out to be hardest on his mom. Overnight he developed a bit of a fever, so I am up now just making sure it stays low and safe. At 4:30 I threw in the towel on the night and made a pot of coffee. Noah is taking a nap right now, so I can steal a few minutes to post some pictures of his appointment.

Krispy Kreme Shares Jump as Chief Is Ousted

There is nothing not to like about this story (unless you bought Krispy Kreme last March or happen to be the CEO) - it has intrigue, food, accounting irregularities...but the article only obliquely addresses whether their donuts are any good.

I happen to like them, but I also know many people who definitely prefer the cake-ier donuts at the competition. For coffee I definitely prefer Dunkin' Donuts - but that might be a factor of being able to turn right off of 14 Mile into DD on the way to work, while having to go left and into the Oakland Mall parking lot for KK.

This issue merits further research. Stay tuned for updates.


The New York Times > Business > Krispy Kreme Shares Jump as Chief Is Ousted

The New Yorker: Fact

Is Iran the next target in the war on terrorism? Sy Hersh thinks so. This are a lot of very serious allegations in this article.


THE COMING WARS by SEYMOUR M. HERSH

A Snack

Last night Lauren wanted to go to Borders to buy a birthday present, so I dropped her off and ran into Papa Joe's for a minute to look for a snack and a couple of staples. Here is what I came up with:

An orange flavored bar of dark chocolate
Half a pound of Molinari hot salami (from SF. This is where we would stop for sandwiches on the way to Stinson Beach)
A pound of coffee (Birmingham blend)
A bottle of olive oil from Crete

Out the door for about 20 bucks. The coffee is worth noting especially, because Papa Joe's sells excellent coffee that doesn't cost any more than getting whole bean coffee at Meijer or Kroger. The Birmingham Blend is my favorite. I am slightly dismayed that they have not had Monini olive oil for the last several weeks (except the Fruttato, which Lauren does not like as much as the regular), and I will probably go back to that when it is in stock. It is an excellent all purpose extra-virgin oil from Italy and a relative bargain at around eight dollars.

Treo 650 Update

After spending some time on the phone with (very nice) Sprint tech support this morning, I finally have both of the email accounts that I had wanted to work with my Treo actually syncing up and sending email. It did take a hard reset of the phone, but I back up my data very often (typically a couple times a day).

I am now able to use Gmail and my office Outlook email very effectively with the VersaMail program included on the phone, and so I feel that this device is finally approaching the utility I had envisioned it having. Combined with all of the other Palm features I think this is still the phone to beat in the category, and when there are good wifi and gps solutions available it will be pretty impressive.

This is really amazing.

When I arrived at work this morning my colleague Fred said, "there's a present for you on your desk." And was there ever! Fred is moving, and he gave me 71 old records! My collection has long been light on the '70s, but Fred has plugged the gap. In addition to the classic Village People album on top, the rest of the pile contains numerous Chicago, Jackson 5, Fleetwood Mac, and Neil Diamond albums, in addition to the odd Bob Seger, Captain and Tenille, John Denver, Gordon Lightfoot, it just goes on and on...I will try to catalog everything but now at least my 9 copies of "Tom Jones Live at the Flamingo" have some company in the living room.

GC Update

I was behind this one on the way to work this morning. I think it is a little bland and minivan-like from the back. Not a lot of interesting detail on these broad, flat planes. The side and three-quarter profiles are nice though. I think the tail lamps are good looking.

Noah and two grandfathers

It turns out red-eye is genetic.

Lauren's parents came over

And we all went to the Original Pancake House in Birmingham. Lauren and I both had the "49er" flapjacks, Ken had blueberry pancakes, my dad had a baked corned beef omelette, and my mom and Lauren's were sort of at the other end of the table so I am not sure what they had. Must be more observent.

Up Close

The cat could care less

I think she honestly has no opinion about her new crying, gurgling, burping roommate. I have to give her credit for taking it pretty much in stride.

So my parents were visiting Daniel in New York...

And this is what they brought me. Sweet.

Lauren and Noah

How we spent our time instead

So what did we do, you ask, while we were out not driving cars? My parents were already at our house watching Noah, so we went to Westborn Market, the produce market in Royal Oak. Still no good tomatoes, but we did get excellent citrus including some tangerines, navel oranges, and white grapefruit. Lauren purchased some leaf leetuce for the guinea pig ($1.99/lb) and some beautiful asparagus. We also obtained a wheat bread from a brick oven made from untreated wheat flour for $2.29 - a pretty nice price for a good bread. The best part? Red peppers were on sale for $1.49/lb! That is unheard of so I loaded us up.

I did gamble on two Mexican avocados, which are a really vivid green and sort of small. They are not Haas, and they were unlabeled as to variety. They were $.99 each so if they are nothing special I won't be devastated.

In the Matter of Detroit Auto Dealers Association, Inc.

For a little more information, enjoy this "AGREEMENT CONTAINING CONSENT ORDER TO CEASE AND DESIST" from the Federal Trade Commission web site. This light little read details the agreement between certain Detroit area car dealers and the FTC in the matter of "DETROIT AUTO DEALERS ASSOCIATION, INC., Docket No. 9189 a corporation, et al."

"Closed lots frustrate Saturday car buyers"

I really thought that at this point in the weekend I would be writing about my impressions of the Grand Cherokee and the Pathfinder, but it turns out that due to decades of labor disputes (and rumors of anti-competitive dealer practices) virtually no auto dealers in the Detroit area have Saturday hours. This is in marked contrast to the rest of the country, where Saturday sales hours provide convenience and accessability to the majority of customers for whom it is a struggle to shop before 6pm on weeknights or two late nights a week.

In trying to figure out why this was the case, I came across this article from the Detroit News that attempts to explain the matter. I personally think it is a joke, to the point where I might go test drive cars in Toledo next weekend if I cannot get into the dealers during the week.

This probably speaks for itself.

NEWS.com.au | US military wanted 'sex bomb' (January 14, 2005)

Seriously, this is an SRT8

You'll have to take my word for it because of the lousy conditions, but this is the new (pre-production) Chrysler 300C SRT8, with 6.1 liter 425 HP engine, and in this case, a manufacturer plate and gold spoked wheels! It was identifiable by the prominent SRT-8 badge in the lower right corner of the decklid. Sorry about the lousy picture quality - this was hard to catch! Spotted on 14 Mile in Troy yesterday at noon. You see cool stuff in Detroit.

Wet Willy

When Daniel was over the other night he took this picture with his new Nokia 6620. Cool phone, extremely lightweight given the feature set. It also has Bluetooth and records video. Now that I have the Treo though I would find it difficult to go back to three letters on a button. Still, Daniel was able to get this for $50 with a plan, which is extremely inexpensive for such a powerful phone.

(For the record, foneGEAR does make a veriety of attractive headsets, cases and chargers for this phone).

Pineapple News and Information

Pineapple News and Information

Just in case you want to attend that symposium.

In fact, from now on Thursday is Produce Day

It occurs to me that one of the things that really makes ME say, "How Bourgeois" is the preoccupation of America's well-off with natural food. Truly good food (that is, it tastes good AND it is good for you) seems to be out of reach of large segments of the population. Try to find a decent avocado or tomato in Detroit, say, this month and you know what I am talking about. Hell, try finding nice green leaf lettuce. At Farmer Jack today in Clawson they wanted $2.99/lb for it, and I was buying it for the guinea pig! He is extremely discerning.

But I digress. In San Francisco on weekend mornings I would sometimes go down to the Ferry Plaza farmers market for fruits and vegetables (and once for Lauren's birthday cake - http://www.miettecakes.com). The reality was though that I needn't have left my neighborhood (Sunset, 25th/Judah), because withing easy walking distance of my house there were multiple produce markets with wonderful food that changed often depending on what was fresh. And it was cheap! The pig never ate so well, and Lauren and I had plenty of healthy, interesting food for not much money.

The ready availability of wonderful and frequently affordable food is one of the things I miss the most about California. I know that we could scamper down to Eastern Market, but frankly we are more than busy right now feeding and burping Noah. Maybe they should consider delivery. In any case, I am now going to do my part for the cause of expanding knowledge about produce with How Bourgeois' Produce Thursdays, where each week we shall explore a different fruit or vegetable.

Did you know that the University of Hawaii at Manoa has a College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources? Their web site is where I learned about the pineapple working group. Hopefully I can attend the Fifth International Pineapple Symposium, but I am not sure if my travels have me near South Africa in April. In any case, follow the link to learn how to grow a pineapple in your home, and if you are in California please send avocados. Everything in Detroit right now is from Chile and kind of watery, aven the ones at TJs.

Social History of the Pineapple

Who doesn't like a nice pineapple? They're good for you! No fat, no cholesterol, 25% of your daily Vitamin C recommendation. The link will take you to Hoag Levins excellent Social History of the Pineapple page.

At foneGEAR, Paul's is our wash of choice.

My office is in agreement that Paul's on 14 Mile provides a superior wash experience. Soft cloth, 5 bucks, towel dry (you should tip) and even when there is a line it moves pretty quickly. The quick wash is $2.99. This is the way it should be.

More on the next rde

I saw a new Grand Cherokee on the road this morning. Pretty tight right? I like it in black. Dodge Durangos are being advertised very inexpensively in Detroit right now, but I feel like that would be a bit much, it would overpower my driveway and make my house look comically small.

Here's a better one.

My brother was over yesterday.

He is going back to New York this morning. Always good to see him. He doesn't like my pictures either, apparently.

Glam Wife

If you were wondering why there are no pictures of Lauren up, here is my fabulous wife. She hates most of the pictures I take of her, but I was lucky enough to find one she liked.

Rants

Here's the new Rant from Autoextremist.com abot the Detroit auto show. I have been reading this since 1999 when I was an intern at GM, maybe the first issue, definitely by the second. Back then the archives were still free, too. I recall feeling very brave reading it from my computer in the old GM building on Woodward and Grand Boulevard. I am still reading it because:

1. I live in Detroit and care about the city and the industry; and

2. It is usually insightful and clever. It is also entertaining to get a weekly dose of car gossip, speculation and insider information.

Cilantro

Robb Zerner's colleague Jed wants to know how people feel about Cilantro. Me, I love it. Vote here.

Hello Ladies!

Look at this guy! Very charming. (Advertisers take note. College is expensive)

A Noah Fix

Noah spent the afternoon at his grandmother's today. Looks like he's having a good time.

foneGEAR Gets a Plug

Here is a brief mention of foneGEAR's CORD FREE Headset from the excellent Detroit News. Not sure why I did not catch this sooner.

"FoneGEAR LLC, also in Troy, is exhibiting a wireless headset that allows people playing online games to talk to each other."

Isn't that great! Our first mention in the local press. A big thank you to Nick Bunkley of the News for noticing us with all of the other things going on at CES.

Welcome to Detroit

Where I roll on them things every day.

No, really.

This is my least favorite Detroit weather - just above freezing, raining on your head, and it's garbage day so I needed to make two trips to the curb this morning before I could get in the car. Since it snowed this week, of course there is a ton of it on the ground turning into filthy slush by the minute.

On the other hand, it's auto show week! Every January, Detroiters take joy in going down to Cobo center for the premier auto show in the world - the North American International Auto Show! You park downtown, freeze your face off walking to Cobo, walk around looking at cars until you are ready to faint from hunger, and then go to Greektown for lunch. If you are really serious, you get your hand stamped so you can go back in the afternoon.

This year I am all about checking out replacements for my Integra, mostly of the 4-wheel drive variety. I like all of the new Nissan trucks (Pathfinder, Xterra, Frontier Crew Cab), but of all of them the Xterra that is coming out next month probably makes the most sense based on price and size. The Pathfinder is almost redundant to me because it is like a more expensive, cushier Xterra. The new 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee is very nice too though, and it is produced right here at the Jefferson North Assembly plant in Detroit, which is compelling. I grew up in Toledo, Ohio, where Jeep is an institution and the largest private employer in the city, and I have always wanted one. Reliability has been a concern though, so I think I would lease it. I have driven the new Toyota 4Runner, and it is very nice, but I cannot get past the bizarro exterior styling, even though my 1988 Corolla (burgundy with gold-sprayed rims)achieved 140,000 miles before my brother Daniel wrecked it.

So there is a lot to think about, and I am still open to suggestions. If anyone has any, please feel free to let me know.

Mileage

This is yesterday's odometer reading.

What people will see when you buy this car.

Here is the back view.

Parting with a Legend

My fabulous 1998 Integra GS-R is for sale, because I need a car I can actually transport my son in. That means four doors. This Acura is a truly sweet road car (“SRC”) and a great opportunity for the discerning enthusiast. This very red (the precise shade is Milano Red) example was adult-owned, never raced and well cared-for. I am the second owner and bought the car with less than 30,000 miles (it has less than 70,000 now). Maintenance has been kept up to date, and the car has had a new clutch and rear brakes about a year ago (we lived in San Francisco, this is a given). It has not been in any accidents.

This car has not been modified in any way – it is totally stock (a serious rarity – check www.traderonline.com ) and features Acura's excellent, extremely reliable 1.8 liter B18C VTEC 4-cylinder, which produces 170 HP and redlines at 8000 (that's eight thousand!) RPM. It is a joy to drive, with its racing-inspired all independent suspension and short-throw five-speed manual transmission. This car was expensive for a small vehicle, more than $21,000 in 1998 (equivalent to more than $24,300 in 2004 dollars*), and the money went for engineering, not massive sheet-metal and useless gimmicks. There is a six-speaker CD stereo system with tweeters in the door, but the mellifluous VTEC motor provides a lot of this car's soundtrack. Despite its' high-performance nature, the GS-R is extremely comfortable and was EPA-rated at 25 city/31 hwy. The GS-R features the following:

Front-wheel drive
Power steering
4-wheel anti-lock disc brakes
Driver and front passenger airbags
Double-wishbone independent suspension, front and rear
Rear anti-roll bar
Alloy wheels
Short-throw shifter (factory)
Quad halogen headlamps
Full instrumentation
Digital clock (the finest!)
Black leather bucket seats
Power moonroof
Power windows
Power locks
Floor mats
Rear wiper
Cargo cover
8-way adjustable driver’s seat with adjustable lumbar support
4-way adjustable passenger seat
60/40 split fold-down rear seats
Superman™ front license plate (negotiable – if you insist I will keep it)

Of course, there is a price for all of this goodness. In this case the exact figure is $12,500 OBO. Since there is exactly zero chance of your plan to buy and federalize an Alfa Romeo coming to fruition (I consulted on a project like that for in my last job – we determined it would have cost the client more than $30,000 to make his Maserati 3200GT street-legal in the US), this is your best option. Get it before I trade it in, and please see my profile for my email address.


*http://minneapolisfed.org/Research/data/us/calc/index.cfm

Music for Layovers

CES attendees partying typically hard. Ladies and Gentlemen: Cheap Trick!

Les Corneilles de Noir

Here's another picture from Roger, this time of the corporate rock stylings of the Black Crows at the Olympus booth. Even if we don't end up getting any sales at the show, at least Roger got to to see live music.

Insert "Moses called" joke here

Here is a picture of Steven Tyler at CES that Roger just sent to me. I believe the woman on the left is his fiance, could not confirm though.

Sorry for the incontinence

This is a real email we received this morning from a logistics provider regarding an incoming product shipment:

"Good morning L-,

On entry number xxxxxxxxx you will be receiving a check for a refund on duties. This is due to the shipment being split with another house bill.

Sorry for the incontinence.

Rgds,"

Searched!

Sunday morning

Noah, Dad, Priya, The Economist

Above the Clouds

37,000 Feet over Nevada, just before dinner.

Roger's new iPod case.

My colleague Roger's wife gave him this Vaja ipod case for Christmas. I don't mind putting it up because I doubt that foneGEAR will sell $100 cases anytime in the near future. Our objective is to offer great value. This case is glove soft though and smells like the inside of a Jaguar, so it might be worth it. It should be interesting to see how it holds up.

How to ruin your blog in six easy posts

OK, so Lauren found the last set of pictures on building a trade-show booth incredibly boring. Now I am not even sure I want to post the pictures I have of the actual product we had on display, not to mention the sweet plasma/Xbox live setup we had to showcase the fact that the foneGEAR CORD FREE headset is compatible with network gaming applications.

In order to right the wrong, I want to talk more about that '05 Mustang I was driving around Las Vegas last week. Having rented coupe and convertible versions of the outgoing body style ('04 coupe, '03 convertible), I feel minimally qualified to evaluate the postives, and yes, shortcomings of the new model.

First, I am in agreement with most of the automotive journalism I have read so far that the new design is wonderful. There is a lot of talk about the looks of this car being retro, or even dated, but the reality is that the proportions are right on, and the fact that the design is forty years old just means that it was right the first time. Nothing else in traffic looks like it, and when kept at an appropriate speed on the move (say, 15% faster than everyone else) it really looks purposeful. On the Strip, people were definitely checking out the car frequently, no small feat considering that Las Vegas Boulevard has a greater than normal amount of eye-candy. One complaint: to my eye the B pillar is too fat. The convertible fixes with problem though, when the top is up, by not having a B pillar.

The build quality of the new model seems pretty high, without the cheap feeling I got from the last model's interior trim, seats, and gauges. Switches, levers and knobs were all pretty good, all though the radio buttons and dials felt flimsy to me. This base model Mustang was overall a lot of fun to drive even without the GT's optional V8, with the standard V6 veing pretty powerful and nicely loud and the standard automatic being a drag but not a deal-breaker. The rear-wheel drive handling was very balanced and I never felt the back of the car break loose on the dry pavement in Vegas.

Overall the car was comfortable, but a couple of issues would prevent me from buying one. The very cool looking three-spoke steering wheel tilts but does not telescope, and this was where I found my main irritation. I admit that I have purchased a couple of suits at Napolean's Closet in Birmingham (gone, but not forgotten), where shoppers taller than 5'8" could not be helped. But, if you needed a Burberry suit in a 35 extra-short (and that would be petite even for me), this was your place. Bottom line? I felt way too close to the wheel of the Mustang. I absolutely hate having to reach far behind me to grab the seatbelt, and in our Audi I don't have to, because it is within anyone's reach. In the Mustang, I had to awkwardly grab for it every time. I hate having to tilt to the side to get out of the car, and it is never difficult to get out of my Acura coupe. Yet to get out of the Mustang, I had to either slide the seat back (usually I would as a courtesy to the valet) or else twist my whole body far left to clear the door, a super-stupid move.

If Ford had decided to design this car for everone, anyone would feel comfortable driving this car after a few minor adjustments. Lauren's mother's Suburban has power-adjustable pedals, and they work. Adjustable pedals and a telescoping steering wheel should be standard on this car. The average adult male height in the United States is 5'9"* and the average adult female height is 5'4"**- about my height. By my rough estimate, that makes considerably more than half of the adult population in the United States too short to fully (and safely - airbags hurt. I have had one go off on my chest) enjoy this car. Too bad, because it is really great looking. I bet a lot of other people will have the same experience. Maybe I'll fit in one of those new 400 HP Pontiac GTOs....


*http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/growthcharts2/f/avg_ht_male.htm?terms=average+height
**http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/growthcharts2/f/avg_ht_female.htm?terms=average+height

Six

Five

Four

Three

Two

Creation of a Trade Show booth

Stage One: Packing crates.

No betting odds may be faxed from the business center.

Noted picking up a package at the Monte Carlo.

Finally one of me and Noah

I was complaining that I did not have good pictures of myself with Noah, so my brother sent this one. Note my chins! Usually I only have one, but apparently when I gaze downward I am blessed with a second one.

Hard to improve upon

In-N-Out Cheeseburger, Fries, Coke. Difficult to make better(yes, I know about the codes).

Lunchtime

We were out running some errands for the booth and stopped for a burger. Could have gone for Sushi, but this is better. When Lauren and I lived in California and our friends visited, we would take them to In-N-Out on the way home from the airport. It's that good.

Crazy morning fog in Las Vegas, 7 AM

. I got up and looked out the window, and this was my view. It's cold too. Very smart thinking to leave my winter coat in the parking garage in Detroit.

Noah looking at Dad

Isn't this a neat picture? He is such an expressive baby. He's alert like that when ever he is awake. I took it before I left with the Treo. Resolution's not bad for a phone.

Roar

MGM

Tres retro

Check the gauges.

Monte Carlo

Cruising the Strip in High Style

How I roll in Las Vegas.

Preparing for Departure

It's about 10 on Monday night, and in the morning I will leave Detroit to get my company's exhibit set up for the 2005 Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas. It is really interesting, a big glitzy show with more doodads than you can imagine. By my really rough estimate, it works out to walking through more than 40 Best Buy stores full of stuff. This year my company, foneGEAR, will occupy 400 square feet of prime Las Vegas Convention Center real estate (South Hall Booth 37036, if you're stopping by). The main structure of the booth should be up by now without us, so we (myself and Mark our National Sales Manager) just need to make sure the plasma screen gets installed (and our headsets get hooked up to the networked Xbox) and the planogram is laid out properly.

We have great stuff to show this year, more than 150 cellular and wireless products that are compatible with dozens of different phones. It's pretty sweet. foneGEAR has just finished its' first full year of operations, and it was pretty good. '05 looks like it will be really good already. I'll post frequently on the pre-show events and the show itself, if my co-exhibitors don't mind my taking some pictures.

The odd part about this for me is that while I really enjoy CES (a lot), it is strange to have a 7-week old infant at home and head out for Las Vegas for a week. Maybe it's just odd to have a 7-week old baby - he is so wonderful, and I am still not over how surreal it all is. Lauren and I will have known each other for nine years next week. In January 1997 I was a freshman at Michigan State, and I was walking down the hall of her dorm, Case Hall 5 North. I was wearing this pair of Simple shoes, and as I walked by her door this arm reaches out and grabs me, and there is this cute girl who said, "Those are cool shoes, do you skate?"

Well, no.

But from then on we were friends. It turns out that what I thought (for years) was a random meeting was actually the culmination of a two-week stakeout, with me totally oblivious to Lauren's spying as I ate my jello and mashed potatoes in the Caf. Destiny took a while to get around to us, so we did not go out together until October 27, 2001. We ate Thai food and went to my friend Naheed's Haloween Party in Detroit. From then on, we were pretty much inseparable, and have had a really amazing three years together. The pace has been very fast though, maybe 2005 will give us a breather. So far, we have lived on the same street in Michigan together twice, lived in the Sunset neighborhood of San Francisco (25th & Judah) , gotten married, changed jobs, and had Noah. We're readyto just take it easy a little (not likely).

Anyway, about CES. I have already made dinner reservations for the whole week (you need to plan it out in advance, a lot of people show up for this thing) and I am very interested in perusing all of the flashy, blinky stuff on display. I'll just miss Lauren and Noah. Hopefully they will be reading this every night for the update. It should be interesting to see who else does.

Check out the Treo 650.

My company is going to have compatible chargers and cases out shortly. I have had it a week and it is rapidly becoming indispensible. The dimensions are a bit different than the Treo 600 so the old cases won't work. The camera is so-so, the email sync is pretty good, although for some reason it does a soft reset when I try to load up my outlook account. I'm going to try to get that resolved tomorrow before I leave for the 2005 Consumer Electronics Show (more on that later). Gmail works just fine though. Overall I like it a lot and can see why it was so highly anticipated.

Aunt Heidi and Autumn and Noah

Early Noah

Uncle Paul

Noah and grandpa.

Noah and bubby.

Noah and Zayde.

A very young Noah and Grandpa.

Noah and Grandma.

New Year's Day breakfast

Ilya and Ilana.

I need some pics of Noah and mom and dad

It just occurred to me that I have lots of pictures of our boy with other people, not so many (good ones) with Lauren and I. We need to get in front of the camera.

Ilya, Ilana and Noah

Noah and Uncle Ilya over the weekend.

Already exhibiting great social skills.

Noah and equally new friend Erich. Somebody email me about red-eye reduction in low light.

I just can't hold the camera steady.

Is it just me, or is it harder to take a sharp picture without the viewfinder? The LCD screen on the back of a lot of cameras is great for framing the shot, not so good for keeping the camera still.

Happy, blurry guy.

Introducing Noah

New for the '05!

The definition

bour·geois ( P ) Pronunciation Key (br-zhwä, brzhwä)
n. pl. bourgeois

1. A person belonging to the middle class.
2. A person whose attitudes and behavior are marked by conformity to the standards and conventions of the middle class.
3. In Marxist theory, a member of the property-owning class; a capitalist.

adj.

1. Of, relating to, or typical of the middle class.
2. Held to be preoccupied with respectability and material values.

[French, from Old French burgeis, citizen of a town, from bourg, bourg. See bourg.]

Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

I guess my readers can judge over time if any of this is true, or if the assessment below is merely snide.

How bourgeois

About two years ago, my fiance and I had moved out to San Francisco, where I was a tax consultant for a big 4 firm. Cube life in the at clients in the South Bay and working under intense industry scrutiny post-Enron got very old, so now we're back in Detroit. Now I work for a brand new consumer electronics manufacturer, and we got married and have a new house and a baby. We are only 27 - this has been a crazy ride.

When our son was born, my father told an acquaintance, an educator, about his new (and first) grandchild. His colleague remarked, "how bourgeois." Well, it is and we love it. Here's the story.