Married Couples, the caring and feeding of

A while back, I had alluded to spending time with Jason and Michele, one of the many couples I know who have been married for less than 3 years or so. I was asked to perhaps comment on what I have noticed about the married couples I know. This is more relevant today, since I was the 'best man' at my friend Christian's wedding in late December out in beautiful Laguna Beach, California. Perhaps I might have some really unique insight into the behavioral patterns of married couples where I've known the groom for at least several years. After wracking my mind for some consistent theme, I realized that I couldn't quite come up with anything truly profound, analytical, or even funny. However, I can say that the movie view of married couples from the unmarried person's standpoint does seem flawed, in at least one aspect. For instance, in 3 of my more familiar movies (About A Boy, Bridget Jones' Diary, There's Something About Mary), the married couple smarmingly lectures to the unmarried protagonist about how great it is to be married, and urges the same protagonist to follow their fine example. I have yet to encounter such admonitions from the 'real' married couples I know. So, that time-worn script cliche doesn't bear out in real life. However, there is one key observation I've noticed about real-life married couples, particularly those who have been married fairly recently: The guy is noticeably more deferential to the gal in marriage then even when they were dating. Most of this is just a gut feeling, not based in any real pattern, so maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree (Woof!). Maybe guys become bigger wusses as they get older. If any of you out there disagree, or have some kind of explanation for this apparent phenomenon, you know how to reach me.

Tasteless customized vehicle of the week

This week's exercise in cutting-edge automotive taste is this '91-'94 era Nissan Sentra 2-door found on Walnut Grove Ave. in culturally-savvy Rosemead, California, in the very Mod-ish Bauhaus-eseque shade of flat primer (which is another annyoing phenomenon of late, rivaling the late-80s practice of painting the whole car white). Barely visible from this angle, but nonetheless prominent is a very classy and large "Nissan Sentra" proudly spelled out in Olde English script. The owner is rightfully proud of the fact that it's a Sentra, especially when he/she pulls up on Valley Boulevard among the more pedestrian Civic, Camry(ies), and Corollas of the world. I offer this up as proof that you don't need to spend a whole lotta $$$ to make your car look like a refugee from a Valley Boulevard parts bin.

"Sure, where do I sign, miss?"

No, really.

From the BBC:

Sex cues ruin men's decisiveness Images of women such as Kelly Brook can be distracting to men

Catching sight of a pretty woman really is enough to throw a man's decision-making skills into disarray, a study suggests.

Reminds me of a 'Friends' episode where Ross accompanies Chandler to get him to cancel his gym membership, but winds up getting his own membership with the help of a spandex-clad assistant named Maria.

Happy B-day Cheddar-lady!

What's not to like about this adorable and yet self-aware 106 year old? Gotta love her reaction to the cheesy and dairy industry folks who tried to 'crash' her place to do a little self-promotion, and her picture. Did you also get the name of her hometown? Cheddar, England. Get it? The thing that I really am jealous of is that she still has her hearing.

Tasteless customized vehicle of the week

In what should easily become a regular feature here (for being in the San Gabriel Valley provides no lack of poor examples of vehicle customization), I will show off some examples of the vehicles that probably shouldn't have their registrations renewed because of they emit excess visual pollution. Today's example is actually one from Ann Arbor, taken outside the local T.J. Maxx. It appears to be a 1990 or '91 Honda Accord EX Coupe that's been hit with the ugly stick. In this case, the owner has equipped with a very retro landau roof that would make the fine folks at Don Massey Cadillac blush.

What's in a name?

3.5 liters. That's the most popular engine displacement out there. Every major automaker has at least one engine in this size category, virtually all of them 6-cylinder engines. Who has it? GM: 3.5 L "High Value" OHV V6 (Chevrolet Malibu, Pontiac G6) Toyota: 3.5L DOHC V6 (Toyota Avalon, Lexus RX350) Honda: 3.5L SOHC V6 (Honda Pilot, Acura RL) Nissan: 3.5L DOHC V6 (Infiniti G35, Nissan Altima) Hyundai 3.5L DOHC V6 (Hyundai Santa Fe-2006) Chrysler 3.5L SOHC V6 (Chrysler Pacifica, Dodge Magnum SXT) Mercedes 3.5L V6 SOHC (Mercedes E350, Mercedes ML350) This is soon to be joined by Ford's new (and long-overdue) 3.5 L V6, which will find its way into some of its new midsize sedans and even some Mazdas. This invariably leads to a bit of a squeeze when coming up for names of vehicles equipped with such engines, especially if it's a luxury vehicle. Ford instance, you have the Nissan 350Z and of course the Mercedes E350. Until last year, Hyundai's large sedan was known as the XG350. Now Lexus joins the fray with the ES350, RX350 and IS350. Huh?

Another Three Intitials......PMP

Blogging admittedly has been light of late. I have been busy preparing for my Project Management Professional Certification Exam , or PMP, something that I've been occupied with for the greater part of the last 4 months. The good news, is that I passed today, on my first try, so I can turn my attention to other matters around the house, not the least of which is the relative mess that I've made in the past 4 weeks. With the PMP, I get to put one more set of initials after my name, for what good that'll do me. What is good about passing this exam is that I should have one less excuse for coming up with lame blog entries.

Another Fast Break winding down

Veteran readers of this blog (of which I can still count on one hand) know that I'm an old-timer when it comes to following professional basketball. Who can ever forget the excitement that came with every April, when the Lakers would faceoff against Sampson and Hakeem of Houston or Jack Sikma and Kiki Wandeweghe of Seattle, and the Celts would face off against Detroit and Philly. The final culmination of this would result in a titanic struggle between the Lakers and Celtics in a sweaty parquet-lined dungeon known as Boston Garden for TRUE hoops bragging rights. In those days, calling the winner of the NBA Finals 'World Champion' may have have been based on myth, but no one could ever doubt its veracity. I look fondly to the days when CBS still had the NBA broadcast rights, and ESPN was still showing Pac-10 basketball games at midnight eastern, and the closest to a box seat at a Laker game was sitting on top of the stairwheels in the colonnade at the Fabulous Forum. However, for several years now, the NBA playoffs have been long, tortuous and dreary conclusion of the Sports Year, which for me begins each September with the start of college football, building up around the holidays when the college hoops and college bowl games take place, and depending on how my Bruins are doing, crescendoing around March, when NCAA bids are announced. Now, the NBA playoffs are an interesting on certain levels, most of which have very little to do with which team advances to the next round. Instead of watching the league, I merely follow it, as a novice investor would 'follow' the stock market. There's a business aspect to the game that I find quite entertaining, and each season, I match wits with a hapless opponent in what is the closest analogy to stock-picking contests. ESPN.com has provided the venue the last 2 seasons via its very easy-to-understand (and free) Fast Break game. I must confess that my record on Fast Break hasn't been what I would have preferred, and it hasn't helped this week that my starting center is out for the season. Which is ironic, because much has been made about the recent hiring by the Houston Rockets of a stats guru with little basketball knowledge (no, they didn't hire Mitch Kupchak), who is expected to take over general manager duties for 2007-2008. I admit that merely following the game has resulted in some very questionable decisions in my roster selections, but the increasingly business-stats-focused aspect of the game is an interesting turn of events, because evaluating talent has become increasingly complicated with the global nature of basketball. Even a guy like Jerry West can't figure out from 100 minutes of tape of a promising player in the European leagues would translates into a mid-or-late first rounder. The increasing reliance on statistical data to faciliate decision making, be it in player acquisition, or determining your starting lineup night after night reflects what's happening in the business world, which has really turned heavily into data mining to guide decisionmaking. So, when I lament the passing of those days when shorts really were shorts, and trade rumors only took place hours before the actual moves, not months, I'm not lamenting the increasingly commercial nature of the sport. That's to be expected. But leading a team to a division or league title shouldn't be based on outcome of the analysis of B-school number jockeys, especially because NBA playoff series generally are 'best-of-seven.'

Saturn Outlook revealed in NYC

Here are the first official photos of the upcoming Saturn Outlook mid-large SUV. Roughly the size of a Chrysler Pacifica, the Saturn Outlook made its debut at the NY Auto Show today. I'm really excited about this vehicle, because this vehicle sets new standards (at least for GM) for interior, drivetrain, and chassis refinement. It also looks a heckuva lot nicer than most of the vehicles in its class, including the Ford Freestyle and Toyota Highlander (which is arguably the blandest looking SUV out there). Based on the unibody Lambda platform, it comes with a 265hp 3.6L V6. and an all-new 6-speed automatic transmission. It offers true 3-row seating, and pretty decent towing and off-road capability, especially considering its car-based roots. The Outlook is expected to go on sale later this year as a 2007 model. Its main competition includes the upcoming 2007 Acura MDX, which is also expected to be unveiled in NY this week, although if this artist's rendering is any indication of what to expect, I won't need to worry about getting enough ZZZZZs before my Project Management Exam this Friday.

West Coast Dirge

Those of you who are familiar with my current situation know that I have relocated to California as of 3 weeks ago, "awaiting further instructions." At the behest of my friend Jason, I have decided to resume my journal activities. Calling it 'blogging' would make it sound too dignified, as if it had some kind of journalistic quality to it. We all know better than that. A lot has happened over the past month or so. I sold my house in Michigan, unloaded at least 70% of my belongings via the Salvation Army and a pretty interesting garage sale. I bid/bade/boded(?) farewell to homeownership and Ann Arbor, and hopped aboard a Northwest Airlines jet back to LAX. Since getting back to Southern California, where I am staying with my parents (hopefully for not much longer), I have seen some pretty momentous things, not the least of which is UCLA's incredible run through the 2006 NCAA Tourney. It was truly a tournament run that exceeded all expectations. "UNBELIEVABLE" The defining moment of the 6 games played was the March 23 UCLA-Gonzaga game, where UCLA miraculously rallied from 17 points down to defeat a very talented Gonzaga team. The Gonzaga Bulldogs were led by All-American Adam Morrison, who will forever be remembered for crying uncontrollably with 22 seconds remaining in the game. I wonder if that episode cost Morrison votes in the Wooden and Naismith Awards for Player of the Year, which were awarded this past week. The best memory I will take from the game was of UCLA guard Arron Afflalo coming over to Morrison to help him up from the floor of Oakland Arena after time had expired. To me, that epitomizes class and sportsmanship, which is a heckuva a lot more than I can say about the way the Florida team handled 'winning.' Since last week's National Championship game, I have been maintaining a very low and humble profile. Yesterday, I joined Jason and his lovely wife Michele for dinner at Johnny Carino's an upstart Italian franchise that had a new store in Simi Valley, not far from the Reagan Library. As usual, it was fun watching a married couple interact. After dinner, I was able to catch this very eloquent sunset, although my camera phone doesn't quite do it justice.