Atlanta

[bearishgurl]

[quote=desmond]I guess you did not have a few thousand acres of land, a lake house, oil and gas wells, rental homes, another new gas well on the way and a great family in Texas. Too bad, Svelte. It is raining today but no parade. No need to show your anger, watch this you might calm down.

[/quote]

desmond, I saw your “bucolic” video the other day and I think it’s great that you were able to finally restore that barn to park your “toys” in. I could move to a same/similar situation as you did … with family support in every direction to help me with whatever I needed. Having resided in Cali more than 50 years (Norcal AND Socal), I agree that the Golden State has seen better days but would still consider some of Norcal’s semi-rural and rural counties to “retire” in. The PROBLEM is finding a lower-cost SFR ($350K or less) in many of these counties which meets my needs and requirements (which aren’t that stringent) due to a constant severe shortage of listings. It seems that even young families are checking out of the rat race that is SF Bay and settling into areas such as Lake County, CA to raise their children among sheep, goats, vineyards and other crops. Obviously, those who have done so likely had well-established parents in those counties (or neighboring counties) and have “bought” their properties from relatives or were deeded them.

I’m going to make a decision on what to do within the year. My last kid who is a freshman in college is required live on campus for one year and as soon as I can situate them into a more permanent living arrangement, I’ll feel much freer to leave the area and maybe even the state.

In truly envy you (yes, in spite of the oppressive heat, loud crickets and chiggers). Living amongst family no doubt makes it all worthwhile.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=flu][quote=spdrun]Get a pre-1997 diesel. Problem solved, no smog test required. And Mercedes made some damn nice cars in the early 90s that would last forever :)[/quote]

Uh, no….[/quote]

With these cars, you need a good reasonably-priced diesel mechanic chained to your ankle. Not only are they annoyingly noisy, they habitually leak like a sieve (main seal?) and their electric windows (incl moonroof), hydraulics and A/C are all prone to failure. And Good Luck in finding parts … especially for the 1980’s models.

I will say, however, that it is much tougher to get killed in one. They’re built like a tank (and driving them is akin to driving a tank) :=0

[spdrun]

Noisy is good — it makes you feel like you’re driving a machine, not a bloody Internet-connected sensory deprivation couch in a padded room on wheels. Most of the work can be DIY’ed if you have an IQ of over 75.

Parts are not a significant problem for 80s models, even oddballs like stick shift 220 and 240 diesels. Seriously, I have an older 240d and it just works for the most part. There’s very little to go wrong compared to modern cars.

Main seal is an issue since it’s an oddball rope type seal. You either live with it, or have it done once and it will last another 200k miles or so 🙂

[bearishgurl]

[quote=flu]I’d take silicon valley over georgia anyday…If you still care that much about your career and you are a techie and you are single, that’s the direction I’d personally go…Planning ahead. Companies always look great on paper for the first few months or even a year…The question is, what are you going to do IF it doesn’t work out and you want to move out… In the Valley, if you can’t stand X, you walk your resume over to Y, and you can probably get a better position/comp package for doing so….Even if you haven’t stayed put for more than a year, it generally isn’t frowned upon, because everyone does it too.

Much less here in SD…And even more so in Georgia….

If you’re gonna go through the trouble of relocating, I’d try up north first..I’d even stretch to say that if you’re single and a techie and don’t have property here in SD, the choice between Silicon Valley and SD is also a no brainer…[/quote]

kev, I third flu’s advice. The last we heard from you, you were living in the OC (renting, I believe). SV is the place for you to go to make money. You may very well be able to move up fast in a SV firm, depending on your experience and niche. Start scattering your resumes up there or work with a SV “headhunter.” SV has more than 50 miles of tech companies who as flu said are always “churning” employees … not usually thru firings but because the employees are on the move up there in order to gain different experiences and get better pay/benefit packages or companies deliberately “poach” employee(s) from their “competition.” If I were you, I’d focus on the money and benefits now because there will inevitably come a time where you won’t be able to anymore due to age. Forget the concept of “job security.” It really doesn’t exist.

[spdrun]

The work unculture in SV is sickening. SD is more laid back. Do you really want to give your life and firstborn to a tech firm?

[bearishgurl]

[quote=flu][quote=FlyerInHi][quote=flu]The one thing I absolutely can’t stand about CA…

The idiotic, bureaucratic CARB rules….[/quote]

California was the leader in clean air. In fact, the EPA eventually adopted California rules, as have other states who implemented smog programs.

The rules are made for everybody. If you don’t like them, put your car on non-op and make it a track car.

I’m sure people remember the polluted air back in in the 80s and before. Smog alerts all the time. LA was almost like Beijing. The air cleared up in the 90s.[/quote]

It is entirely possible to pass a sniff test but still fail carb because of stupid rules.

But what is going to be even more fun is watching a lot of you going in for the post MY2002 cars smog checks…..

Basically, those tests will require only an OBDII link, and if your ECU ends up throwing any CEL’s (even if it isn’t directly related to emissions), you might end up failing the smog test anyway even without a sniff check.. It’s not a problem for folks with OBDII scanners that can simply reset whatever fault codes or folks that have a custom flashed ECU that can do whatever to the ECU…. But it will be very very interesting to see what it does to the average person who doesn’t have that ability……[/quote]

I’ve ordered an OBD II scanner because I’m about to hit the road again on a ~4400 mile odyssey. (My vehicle was built in an OBD I year (MY) except was an early adopter of OBD II). I won’t EVER attempt to smog it in Cali again until I know exactly how it is going to read before going in there. Cali really doesn’t want any older vehicles still on the road and is insidiously doing everything in their power to keep them from getting re-registered. The state should change the term “biennial smog check” to “biennial everything check” because essentially, that’s what it is. It has little to do with being a “gross polluter” although the state BAR uses that term very “loosely.” It’s an expensive “gotcha” and constant revenue stream for state-supported “Test and Repair” stations and I refuse to play the game anymore. Stay away from them and patronize only “test-only” stations for your biennial “smog” check.

Like many older vehicle owners, I’m not stupid. I know my 20 yo Lexus is very well maintained and if it wasn’t, I wouldn’t take it out alone on the desolate, open road. I also have several relatives in “flyover” states (which don’t have “smog checks” in place) who will pay me a very fair price for my vehicle should I want to sell it while I’m there due to a major breakdown. I also have relatives in one state who have a shop who can repair major items on it for a fair price (although they would need to have parts shipped in).

For the last 3 years or so, I’ve carried all my vehicle’s service records and title with me on the open road so I will have “options” in the event of a major breakdown. But I expect it will last at least another 200K miles with regular maintenance.

[Coronita]

[quote=spdrun]The work unculture in SV is sickening. SD is more laid back. Do you really want to give your life and firstborn to a tech firm?[/quote]

If you really work in a high tech, the idea of “laid back” doesn’t really matter irrespective of where you are. I think there are plenty of folks that work in Qualcomm’s formerly named QCT division that can attest that their hours aren’t necessarily better than in the Bay Area. Or if they really were in a position to be “laidback”, I’m pretty sure the other positions are being mirrored with folks in Beijing or Bangalore who is doing almost as good work for 1/8 the cost, and eventually at your expense…

I guess that’s why they’ve been losing a lot of people to Google and Apple, since all else being equal, bay area comp packages still triumph over down here…which is perfect for a bachelor that doesn’t care about things as managing rental property, or about things about living in a good school district…So if you’re young ,healthy single, put in maybe a good 3-4 years, make some good money, make some good connections, and then when you’re ready to settle down, move out of the area….

Going to a place like Georgia (although it’s not impossible) seems like it would be career limiting.. It doesn’t seem like you’d be building that much of a network with where most of the action is happening…

And like many people always says, most of the time, it’s not about what you know, it’s about who you know…

[The-Shoveler]

[quote=flu]

If you really work in a high tech, the idea of “laid back” doesn’t really matter.
[/quote]

Got to go with what flu says, been in the biz for 30+ years.

There are only two modes no matter where you are located.

1) overworked.
2) soon to be unemployed .

Better to be where it is easy to find your next Gig (because YOU WILL NEED IT).

[Coronita]

[quote=The-Shoveler][quote=flu]

If you really work in a high tech, the idea of “laid back” doesn’t really matter.
[/quote]

Got to go with what flu says, been in the biz for 30+ years.

There are only two modes no matter where you are located.

1) overworked.
2) soon to be unemployed .

Better to be where it is easy to find your next Gig (because YOU WILL NEED IT).[/quote]

I look at it this way… If some guy in Bangalore or Beijing can do 80% of your work at 1/8 of your cost… You better make sure that 20% edge you have is something the company really cares about OR you better be sportying an 8:1 efficiency over your overseas peers..Because pretty soon that will be your only differentiator…
Being in the Bay Area is one way to help you to stay at the top of the game..Afterall, that’s one place where a lot of incubation happens…There are other places as well…

[bearishgurl]

[quote=spdrun]Too much money in it not to have duplicate bureaucracies. Someone is making money certifying the parts for CA use, not to mention selling the certified parts for an inflated price.

The ironic thing is that I actually see more smoky clunkers on the road in CA than around NYC. Not sure if safety inspection gets rid of the worst of the worst, or if they simply die due to rust before they can turn into smoking messes.[/quote]

I don’t believe pre-1973 vehicles have to be “smogged” in CA and we don’t have “safety inspections” per se (any Pigg correct me if I’m wrong here).

[spdrun]

It’s a lot easier to freelance in technical fields in a market that’s not saturated with techies like the Bay Area. (It may be easier to be a W-2 bendover bitch in the Bay Area, though.)

And no, it’s not illegal to be a freelance tech person unless you’re working on 1099 to a middleman. Direct 1099 relationships are perfectly legal, subject to the usual IRS tests.

And then you don’t have to work for a bunch of arseholes who dictate your entire life to you as if you were a kindergartener.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=FlyerInHi]Flu. I own a service station in CA.

You cannot reset the ECU to pass smog. The whole drive cycle needs to run for your car to pass smog. The newer cars now sent the VIN when you plug in.

The new rules were negotiated with auto manufacturers who want their customers to have a good consumer experience (easy smog).

The benefit is that new cars are perfectly clean, expect for the CO2 of course. Compare to the polluting old cars of past.[/quote]

LOL, who would have thunk it! Could it be that the “auto manufacturers'” lobbyists in Sacramento were successful in getting legislation passed which would have the eventual effect of consumers purchasing more new cars more often out of “presumed” necessity??

[spdrun]

Not really. You can reset the ECU to clear codes. But all OBD readiness indicators have to be “ready” before you can pass emissions, which requires a certain length and type of drive cycle.

So basically, if you have a fault, you can repair it and clear it, but then you have to drive the car for a given distance to allow it to test itself.

Interestingly, the average age of a car registered in the US is 11.4 years now. It’s hit a plateau since 2009. People are actually keeping cars longer than ever. Despite Cash for Clunkers, Bernanke Bucks, and all that crapola designed to encourage them to spend like drunken sailors at a Port Said bordello.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=spdrun]Not really. You can reset the ECU to clear codes. But all OBD readiness indicators have to be “ready” before you can pass emissions, which requires a certain length and type of drive cycle.

So basically, if you have a fault, you can repair it and clear it, but then you have to drive the car for a given distance to allow it to test itself.

Interestingly, the average age of a car registered in the US is 11.4 years now. It’s hit a plateau since 2009. People are actually keeping cars longer than ever. Despite Cash for Clunkers, Bernanke Bucks, and all that crapola designed to encourage them to spend like drunken sailors at a Port Said bordello.[/quote]

Oh yeah, I KNOW I have to drive for at least 15 mins on the hwy after clearing the codes to get the best result.

The REASON people in Cali are keeping their older cars (not sure about other states) is because of the exorbitant cost of auto insurance coverage here. If I had a “newer” vehicle similar to mine (say 2011), my coverage cost with the same limits of liability would more than double, even though I only drive about 11,500 to 13,000 miles per year (only 6-7K of those miles locally).

It’s not really worth it for the “casual” or “semi-retired/retired” driver to pay $200+ per month in car insurance while the vehicle is garaged for days at a time (believe me, I’ve ran thru some purchasing scenarios my agent). Especially for a driver who could put that money to much better use.

Also, I think it is highway robbery to be charged 8% sales tax on a late model vehicle where sales tax on the full price of that vehicle was just paid on it a few years ago as new. Even if you purchase a late model vehicle from a private party who is willing to “fudge” on a bill of sale how much you actually paid for it, it would be a little difficult to convince the DMV that you only paid a few thousand for it (say a 2011 Lexus), unless you are attempting to title an intra-family vehicle transfer and your seller-family member is standing right next to you with his/her ID at the ready.

[FlyerInHi]

Spd, why I earth would you subject yourself to being a grease monkey?

I’ve owned quite a few cars over the years. I’m most impressed with my new Camry. For the “average” person, it’s does everthing well. Starts up every time. No leaks, no noise, prefect AC. No stains on your driveway. If you live in a condo, you have to maintain your own parking spot. 21k, zero percent financing. How can you go wrong?

Ideally, everyone should be driving a zero emission cars with LTE access to alert big bro when the check engine comes on. Registration suspended if not repaired in 30 days. We can become energy independent very quickly if we have the will. It’s not about some enthusiasts’ enjoyment, but good transportation policy for everyone.

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