HUH. I didn't think the market could go down with that big REPO bazooka gun.

I mean, manufacturing has been in contraction for seven months and no fucks given.

"Chicago PMI falls to 42.9, well below consensus"

That is a truly ugly number. Any reading below 50 is contraction. And that isn't even kissing 50.

I sort of understand why all the Gadget blogs went all SJW. If we had to rely on technology to write about - ALL THOSE BLOGS WOULD BE DEAD. It's freaking ridiculous!

It's the return of . . . ghost lots.

Well.... it's just one lot for now, so don't get too excited.

I got bored of this last year. The lots stopped growing and in most cases eventually disappeared.

So, when I heard about this new lot pop up at the end of a runway - I had to go out. It's a very recent development, and they were adding new cars while I was there. It seems like a multi lot.

They have a bunch of Hondas, some Audi's ( I don't like the 2020's - so I don't know what these are), a bunch of Subaru's, and a smattering of LandRovers. (probably 10)

Doormat frog.

He decided that he wanted to hang out and watch big screen TV inside. We couldn't figure out how he got in the house. But when I let him out - this is where he went and explains probably how he got inside without us noticing.

It wasn't me.

Field trip Friday.

There is an enormous amount of excitement in the aviation industry in Silicon Valley right now. Next month they are suppose to demonstrate a bunch of those VTOL's. (I'm going to call them drone helicopters for now.)

So.... today I got to tag along to see all the simulators they have at Moffett.

This one was a 180 degree simulator that you got to fly and land a VTOL.



Next was "Future Flight Central". Which was a 360 degree flight tower simulator which was set up to mimic LAX.











In this pod you got to simulate being a passenger.





These buildings are massive.



This is a replica of Vertical Motion Simulator. Because there is no way to get this all in one shot.



A control center for another pod where you could see what it felt like for a pilot.














Then - the wind tunnel!

Peak........ Amazon?

I am pretty loath to believe in peak anything. We go through fads. Sometimes they come back. Sometimes they don't. But when I heard this term being thrown around yesterday  I really had to think about it.

Maybe there could be a peak Amazon.

It seems like people who write about peak anything feel like the world is very black and white. You either have brick and mortar stores, or you have internet stores which will eat the brick and mortar stores. But, the reality is - no one solution fits all. Some things you buy online because it's easier, but you still want to see certain things in person.

Which is really how I think most people shop these days. I shop like a boy, but you still need to go out and browse things sometimes. I will shop anywhere that is the least hassle. The internet can never replace that. And for now it seems that Silicon Valley is making a plan to claw back brick and mortar by thinking beyond Amazon.

Went to an A.I. conference today. I feel like I'm going to have to put "they aren't coming for the jobs you think they are" on a loop.

I remain heavily skeptical it will make a meaningful impact one way or the other. All those people writing stories about this are doing so for sensationalism.

I think one of Googles Captcha challenges should be - mountains or molehills.

When Mr. S. and I leave the house, we leave the TV on for Lacy.  So she won't get lonely. She's an only bunny.

Mr S. has started putting on the Golf channel which he calls - "The grass channel". He doesn't golf, so it's purely so Lacy can fantasize about being on the grass.

Everyone's car sugar was low.

The SandHill show has been pretty sketch. The only reason I went today is because the last of my favorite restaurants is Los Altos. The rest of them closed. You can get dutch babies there and I don't know how long they will stay alive. So, if there are no cars you at least get a consolation prize.

To my amazement - EVERYBODY was out on a cold (for California) day. It was definitely the most well attended so far.

They have sort of been shutting these down all over the Bay Area because these are fast cars. And brakes are for sissy's. I'm guessing it won't be long before they shut this one down too. These people can afford expensive tickets. And the exit is two lanes. Not like Santana Row where you have one exit getting out. They already had the Sherrif sharking through this one. Canine and all.











This is the 2020 McLaren. But he had all the doors up - so Meh.







I just liked the they parked them according to age.

Kinda crazy today seeing people act like BOTS are not a problem on Twitter just because they want to shit on Elon.

People never cease to amaze me.

Wow - that is a lot of percent.

WeWork’s leasing activity plunged 93% in the fourth quarter after failed IPO attempt.

Now I understand why there is a weird undercurrent in the Valley right now.

It's a super confusing market.

All of a sudden there is almost zero housing inventory. I honestly never seen it this low.

Yet when I look at the houses that have recently sold - more than half sold at below asking. A lot -well below.

With numbers like that,  you'd expect a rate increase. It will be interesting to see what happens next. It feels like there was a lot of irrational exuberance out there. Let's see if it hold after the holiday.

8K TV's.

Every time I see one of these TV's I ask them why should I buy ones of their TV's if there is barely any 4k content. This year I got an answer!

The plan to let you scale up for make your own content. Enjoy!

Fisker.

I do really have to give Fisker props for working his booths every year. (He's sort of a car celebrity) But, I just don't get this at all.

It's a fine looking SUV. If there weren't already a million other SUV's on the road. And what happened to last years car?

WeWork was the pin that popped the bubble.

Nothing really gets done in Silicon Valley from October to January, so it isn't that surprising that this WeWork drama has been a nothing burger to date. But I think that is changing.

A lot of us have been trying to figure out if the next recession was going to be 2008 bad, or the Dotcom bursting bad. And it's definitely going to be more like 2000.

All of a sudden in The Valley people feel like they need to turn a profit. What a novel idea.  I don't know which recession that seems more like. Said in the most sarcastic way. Cough pets.com.

Also trash deals seem to be falling apart now because Softbank isn't keen to give out as much VC money.  Just a couple of days ago I told Mr S. that I wondered how They Valley was going to adjust without Softbank.

For at least a year I have been concerned about Softbank before any of this drama. They only started having problem in the Fall. Softbank was basically the only ones with money during the recession and they walked in here and had their way with Silicon Valley. They made some good moves early on with Alibaba and Nvidia. Softbank literally caused Nvdia's stock to double. Chip companies don't trade in the 400 dollar range. That's ridiculous.

And a lot of "Unicorns" seem to be reducing staff all of a sudden because you just can't keep losing money! I don't know what percentage of Softbank portfolio is filled with Lose to Win companies, but I'd venture it's "a lot of percent".

So..... now I guess we get to see what's real and not real I guess.

Bell VTOL/helicopter.

You are going to hear the acronym VTOL a lot this year. It stands for vertical take off or landing,

Bell was at CES again this year. But since I'd already seen it last year I was more excited about the working replica drones they had. I actually tried to get them to sell one to me.

I, for one, am excited about the start of earnings season.

Money - Losing Companies Mushroom Even as Stocks Hit New Highs.

"The percentage of listed companies in the red is close to 40%".

Because that is a LOT of percent.

Where bunnies roam.

I don't think I'm done posting CES stuff yet - but you know how this blog rolls.

We let Lacy out in the hall where we stayed. You don't have to worry about her getting to mischief out there.





This is Lacies hotel setup. Litterbox in the carrier and a collapsable wire cage where she can stretch out.