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troph

Certifiably Surly
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Posts posted by troph

  1. 12 hours ago, NWBuck said:

    Not to get too Cloak Room, but a buddy of mine who lives/works in Miami said that "Spring Breakers"  had been in Miami for about three weeks- lotta beach fun, lotta drinking, lotta debauchery. Spring Break.

    But, he says that curfews and such didn't start until the students from the HBCUs arrived.... same behavior, but different response.  Could be that it took a while for the Miami folks to get tired of the chaos and crack down, but it certainly feels to him like there might be other factors involved.

    I don't know about that, maybe but we were there (SB/MB) all of last week, from March 13 until March 19, in South Beach/Miami Beach and we had no issues and saw no issues.  Granted we didn't even drive down Ocean Avenue during the day let alone at night and we engaged in classic middle aged behavior - two beers and lights out at 10pm but still it was not nuts until after we left. 

    side note - wow there are a lot of "body positive" folks in Miami.  My gal and I were fretting over our 40 and 50 something bodies with swim skirts and cover ups for bikinis and who knew none of that was needed or expected.  I've now seen more fat lady bare ass crack with a thong shoved up it than I can ever forget, all in one week in Miami.  o_O

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  2. 10 hours ago, rage-a-holic said:

    I just got home today. Headed back next month and also in June, let me know if you need some recs.

    that would be awesome.  I'll probably start looking to book in the next couple of weeks.  any kick ass places to stay too.  we normally do the airbnb thing and try to stay out of the resorts but honestly after covid we are thinking an all inclusive might be nice too so we are wide open to recs on places to stay from all-inclusives, to boutique hotels to airbnb spots.  pretty excited about scuba - this will be our first scuba trip.

  3. 3 hours ago, Pescado_Rojo said:

    Baseball Hall of Famer Ted Williams home in Islamorada has been for sale for several years. 

    https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/baseball-star-ted-williams-s-longtime-home-seeks-4-2-million-52405

    large_BN-RT785_0126WI_GR_20170124141327.

    that's actually a really great house.  a rich man's fishing cabin basically.  I think it probably needs $300K maybe a tad more in an overhaul - mostly surfaces - but other than that it has a ton of appeal. I'd go in on it with 8 other uh... guys. lol.

  4. 51 minutes ago, dlatin said:


    I noticed in the boat fanatics thread you are working through you certifications. I did the same thing, starting with 101, then 103, 104, 105 and 106 over the course of a year all working to charter my own boat in the BVIs. I did the 106 in the BVIs with an instructor that gave me the confidence to do our trip a couple months later. I rented a 46’ monohull and sailed 10 days with my wife and 2 kids age 10 and 12. It was an amazing trip. A month later Irma destroyed the BVIs. We are sailing a catamaran in July.

    That’s awesome ! Except for the storm. Yeah this is a long haul plan, need something to work toward, the career thing only satisfies so much. I’d love you to join the thread over there and share your sailing stories! 

  5. On 3/19/2021 at 9:14 AM, fattyflattie said:

    Man I wish.  But I can't do that, ours stays on lease thru the end of Quail season.  Unfortunately, I haven't been home but a handful of days this year to use it anyhow.  We did book a small weekend trip close to house over Easter, and will be hitting the Guadalupe late in the summer.  Have a few more vacations planned in between, just not camper related.  Kind of easing into it I guess.

    We are having a hard time with it outside our summer mountain trips. We are planning those but Texas has been harder. We did the coast once and going back in April. Other than that most places we like aren’t that far for day trips. I guess it is what it is, maybe west Texas camping but honestly l love basing out of a Marfa Airbnb instead.  thinking about storing ours in CO after this summer actually.  We love camping up there.

  6. On 3/1/2021 at 2:04 PM, CooterBrown said:

    Our friends alternate charters between BVI and USVI. It's the USVI this time around.  I don't think the plan is to also do the BVI but then again they asked us to go last night and I didn't get much details other than the charter cost and dates.  After 25 minutes of research this morning, I booked flights and a villa for the 2nd week. Going pretty much blind with no expectations and I kind of like it.  Just still have to find a Jeep rental. Struck out at the first two I tried and waiting on word from a third.

       

    Hell yeah! That’ll be fun! I’d be super stoked in your shoes.  I’m working on my certifications and should be all clear by year end, thinking Bahamas for thanksgiving then  BVI another time. Oddly our top friends are “meh, I get sea sick, but I’ll go to {insert land destination} with y’all.” Ugh. 

  7. I have no issues with full attendance sports and concerts in the fall *if* every person 16 and older has easy access to a vaccine. None whatsoever. These vaccines are 100% effective at keeping us out of the hospital and from dying. That’s the goal. Chances of getting the virus astronomically lower with compounding impacts of individual immunity and even partial herd immunity.  I’m as progressive as they come and as conservative about closures as anyone but enough is enough. The vaccines will make covid what certain Americans wished it was - no big deal. At that point, fully open, no restrictions. Let’s get our roar on in the roaring 20’s. 

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  8. We just got back - stayed on 4th and Washington - a block from the curfew area. Honestly we had no issues, police blocked off the neighborhood which as a side note is one of my favorite neighborhoods.  We sat outside and drank wine etc after dark and enjoyed the sea breeze and mild temps. Of course we were asleep by 10pm and not bar hopping. Late in the week police blocked off our streets (south of fifth) to keep the revelers out but that was it. During the day was fine.  The curfew hit though the day we left.  
     

    9-10pm or so on our streets... this is 4th, we were on a side street.

     

     

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  9. 21 hours ago, burntorangebongos said:

    I really don't want to sell. I'm in Lakeway backing into a greenbelt. It made me want the home I'm in and I think it will help me sell my house. I don't really want to sell but this may be a great time to cash my chips and walk. My next door neighbor just sold his house. He and his wife saw how things were going and decided to cash out. They priced aggressively and ended up selling 160000 over listing. Fuck me. That means my taxes are going up for sure. Now I'm thinking I need to sell but I don't really want to right now because I don't know where to go.  If I sell, I need to just go ahead and retire. There won't be a reason to go from a low cost house(I paid off the mortgage) into something else in the Austin area where I'd be paying high dollar even with a cash buy.

    I guess I'm here where I have to make these decisions and I don't have a plan. I have always wanted to live in a mountain town where I could walk to everything and then be a winter Texan in a condo on SPI as a renter. But I don't know if that is doable anymore. All I can say is that I am pissed Mexico hasn't gotten their shit together so I could have moved into an affordable mountain town there where I could walk to everything.  

    So if you were in my boots, mid-50s just trucking along with everything copesetic and able to manage just fine as is....would you cash out your chips even though you like where you live? Even though it means leaving Austin because I'd have no reason to stay and I should go ahead and retire?

    I wouldn't sell now.  I'm familiar with lakeway and am kicking myself for selling pre-pandemic to start the build of our new place.  I left (another) $100K on the table after getting an extra $100K then.  The inventory problem is made much worse by the pandemic.  I do think that things will even out in the next few years but I don't think prices will go down.  I think supply and demand imbalances out here will drive prices higher through this selling season at least.  I would expect 2022 to be another similar year. Right now we might be seeing as much as 15% or more growth and that will settled down to sub 10% at some point.  Anything below that would require another crisis or a significant increase in interest rates but if rates rise I think the market cools and slows but I don't see prices going down.  The influx from the coasts continue drive pricing higher but those buyers still see Austin and Lake Travis as a value so there is room for additional price growth.  We currently have our house and 3 other projects going in lake travis and I would say it's as tight or tighter than 78704 which is one of the hottest zip codes in the US.  Lake travis is insane right now, and add a differentiator like greenbelt or golf course, canyon or lake views and you have even more scarcity. 

    I think your instincts are right, there are two issues to deal with - one is replacement if you do sell and the other is holding costs while you stay.  taxes are what they are and you just have to manage that but with homestead protection you should be able to realize a faster appreciation than tax costs so you can hold until you can't afford the taxes if you want to.  On the first issue, you either downsize or move further out if you stay local or you move all together.  profits on a homestead are great but they only help if you can take them out of the housing equation or use them to buy bigger/better.  I used mine to improve my view and am happy with that decision, but the next time I sell I will have the same "now what" you have now. 

    if you have a retirement plan that doesn't require you living in Austin and allows a downsize then do what the coastal folks are doing (riding the market up there then downsizing to here), ride this sucker up, include the profits in your retirement plan and eject in a few years to a tranquil spot earlier than you anticipated and thank your lucky stars for being in the right place at the right time.

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  10. On 3/21/2021 at 10:37 AM, Gil Bang said:


    Go ahead, I’d love to hear it.

    first, I love our realtor.  We use him constantly and he does great (not just good) work.  we talked about our priorities and philosophy before buying and selling and he holds us to it - both for getting higher prices and not dickering over good offers when we are selling when to do otherwise is against our stated goals.  This might be his greatest attribute helping us stay true to our goals when our emotions get the best of us.  He's low key (I am not and my partner is so-so) so he's a great counter balance.  He doesn't take himself too seriously.  He's a good looking guy but is unassuming and doesn't think these are his houses he's selling.  He's got great boundaries and recognizes the risks we are taking and steps in as a true professional here to help us.  He was hard to find.  We are fiercely loyal to him and happy to pay him for his services, he really is a value-add.

    Prior to that we've had a lot of experience with realtors over the years.  I've seen agents lie about conditions, sell out their clients on lowest price, speak badly about their clients, offer to sell only to us because they might get the right to sell it if we buy as opposed to another builder or buyer, refuse to honor binding agreements in conversation that has lead to significant litigation or threat of it. I've seen lying about square footage both directions - either to stay out of trouble with city requirements and/or avoid taxing issues, or inflate them for pricing. I've also seen them lie about what can be done post-closing (city restrictions, etc.).   I'm sure I could think of more but that's all off the top of my head. Some of this is dumb crap some is unethical.  and to the point I responded to, I have no doubt some selling agents are exaggerating the existence and degree of multiple offer situations - which isn't to say multiple offers aren't wide spread in the Austin MSA because they are. 

    I'm confident you don't fall in to the category of bad and/or unethical but realtors as a profession don't have the best reputation for a reason.  Thankfully guys like our realtor and you help folks find their way and counter act that.  And the same can be said for lawyers, we have our bad apples too and they give the rest of us a bad name at times.

  11. 9 minutes ago, Ghost of Shag said:

    I’m as amazed at those who are shocked by this loss as I am by those thinking Shaka gets fired.

    Have you watched this program for the last six years? Of course we were going to struggle with a pressure defense team. We turn the ball over with regularity and only have one guy who can handle the ball. We take shitty shots and get panicked quickly. We don’t shoot threes well unless we’re wide open. We have no offensive identity. Of course this game was going to be close.

    Shaka isn’t going to get fired for the same reason we’ve dealt with mediocrity in basketball and football for a decade. This program has never cared about excellence in athletics. Never. And it’s not going to change now.

    No one is shocked. Everyone is pissed. I might be amazed that there isn’t more apathy but no one is surprised.

  12. Just back from a road trip to Miami. We stayed south of fifth in south beach, outside the entertainment district. It was quiet and just what we needed.  Worked 3/4 every day. Miami Beach just declared an emergency - honestly we saw none of that and we were 3-5 blocks away.  
     

    Headed to Puerto Vallarta end of April for our first trip by air travel after being fully vaccinated.  

    RV trip to the Texas coast planned in April with my gal’s parents now all of us are vax’d.  
     

    Emerald Coast (orange Beach AL) offshore  fishing trip for my 16 year old in may.  

    Cozumel scuba trip with my boys this summer in June after we are certified.

    we are ready to get on with life. We were under a tremendous lock down for a year and haven’t done much but remote out door stuff. Loved it. But it’s time to move on.

      I’m hoping the variants don’t pierce through the immunity the vaccines give. And I hope people keep getting them.

    gonna take the remote work situation and use it to work from anywhere.  Time to catch up on seeing interesting places and people! 
     

  13. 8 hours ago, chemHORN said:

    I would agree accept for Cunningham.  He only played 10 minutes and this was his kind of game.  Scrappy and he could match their intensity.  Interesting enough in the same time period Cunnigham has 7 points in 47 minutes. Although all 7 points came in 1 game when you do the math he was about twice as productive offensively as Ramey over the last 3 games.  

    I thought the same. 

  14. 8 hours ago, justhookit said:

    Yeah, if he played Ramey’s minutes he would have been over 10 turnovers. Anyway, I was screaming at the tv to play Coleman and Jones at the guards with Kai, Brown, and Sims. But Shaka refused to do that tonight and basically all year. Instead we gave weird minutes to Hamm and Williams and too much time to Cunningham in a game where we were struggling to score.

    I genuinely wonder how a coach fails to see these things. It happens all the time.  You’re talking rotations, good points, I thought half way through the first half the answer as dominate the boards, reduce their opportunities increase ours and how many times did I see we send five back immediately? Apparently l saw less than what actually happened with zero offensive rebounds leading to points.  These aren’t complex reads, and I doubt I actually know more than Shaka but what in the wide world of sports ?? I’m dumbfounded. It’s the GDGD 5 yard out on 3rd and 7. Wtf??

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