Brothers Reunited

Julius Heinrich Otto "Henry" Pieper and Ludwig Julius Wilhelm "Louie" Pieper, two 19-year-olds from Esmond, South Dakota, will rest in peace side-by-side by day's end on Tuesday at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in France, 74 years after their deaths on June 19, 1944.

The story of how the twins died and were being reunited reflects the daily courage of troops on a mission to save the world from a Nazi conquest, and the tenacity of today's living to ensure that no soldier goes unaccounted for.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/06/19/twin-brothers-reunited-74-years-after-wwii-death-at-normandy.html

Here Come the Price "Reductions"

We all know that price reductions are useful indicators.  For some time even overpriced listings sat until the market caught up with the asking price.  But now we are seeing real reductions.  Still late and small meeting the market half way but reductions.

Examples:

Tired of Vaca Photos?

A beaver created stream meadow.

Quaking Aspen.

there's an elk way in the distance.

British island fort up for sale

The price for the private island fort isn't too bad either, at £400,000 (US$535,000) – though admittedly residents need to take a boat or helicopter trip to shore each time they forget to buy the milk.

 https://newatlas.com/stack-rock-fort-for-sale/54975/

 

Actually looks like a good location.

Even More Photos from Vacation

Leadville, CO.  Don't let the name fool you.  This place was filthy rich in all kinds of minerals and metals. 

A real rock hammer.

They grow foxes big in Leadville.  Channel Islands foxes aren't as large as this guy's tail. 

Hiking At Altitude

Make no mistake.  Hiking at 9000+ feet is not like hiking at even 6000 feet.  It's still all good and you see things you won't see anywhere anytime otherwise.  Still the hiking part is a constant thing you need to pay attention to.  No casual behavior.  Everything is deliberate. 

Dillon Lake

Perhaps my favorite nature photo of the trip

Admit it.  I see stuff most where most see clutter.

You know this old soldier has seen many winters. 

Tesla and Vacation Pics Cont.

And thus it begins:

DETROIT (AP) — Electric car maker Tesla Inc. is laying off about 3,600 workers mainly from its salaried ranks as it slashes costs in an effort to deliver on CEO Elon Musk's promise to turn a profit in the second half of the year.
In an email to workers on Tuesday, Musk said the cuts amount to about 9 percent of the company's workforce of 40,000.

Tesla would not say how much money the layoffs would save, but said no factory workers would be affected as the company continues to ramp up production of its lower-priced Model 3 compact car.

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Wait until Elon finds out those "white collar" workers were the ones that jumped in and got the line restarted when something went wrong.
https://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2018-06-12/tesla-cuts-9-pct-of-workforce-in-bid-to-post-a-profit

 

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Day 3+ Breckenridge Colorado, we love a museum

Everybody was carrying.

Illusions of early US ascendancy. 

Transuranics! 

More Vacation Pics

Day 2 Monument Valley.  Anyone who has ever watched a cowboy or Indian or US Cavalry movie has seen this location. 

Behind the one sister is the "Three Sisters." 

Kitchen In Process

Far end side board

Dishwasher and sink under window

stove and hood between lots of drawers

Cabinet depth fridge

cupboards cupboards cupboards!

spices and oils easy access

stainless appliances wait patiently

"Back On Market" the new yellow flag

1018 Partridge Rd, Wrightwood, CA 92397

3 beds 3 baths 4,200 sqft, $620,000

This huge 3 level mountain home with tiered landscaping including mature apple, apricot and orange trees, sits on a 10,000 sq. ft. corner lot offering incredible forest views. Wrap around 1st and 2nd level Redwood decking. Front yard RV parking in addition to a 4 car garage with a dumb waiter that delivers groceries directly to the kitchen. It's garage level has a finished basement area with two separate rooms which could serve as an office or sleeping quarters along with a 3/4 bath, laundry and lots of storage. The kitchen and family room are on the main level with 2 bedrooms, 1 full bathroom and a Jacuzzi tub. The enormous master bedroom and game room, wet bar are on the second level along with an office, laundry center and full bath with its own Jacuzzi tub. A large sleeping loft sits above this area with a spiral staircase leading to it. Many large picture windows throughout the home. POOL TABLE AND MOST FURNISHING ALONG WITH TOOLS IN THE GARAGE REMAIN ! So much to see. 

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The only problem being that it was a great house last year when it sold for $400,000.  

When you see "back on market" think "couldn't get funded because of appraisal."   

Full disclosure.  I'd buy this home for anything under $360k no questions asked. 

Some Vacation Pics

Day 1 Grand Canyon Southern Rim tourist mecca

Add caption

Day 2 morning in a Flagstaff alley

Las Vegas Stratoshpere

Southern Nevada home prices keep rising, approaching all-time peak

GLVAR housing statistics for May 2018

LAS VEGAS – Prices for existing homes sold in Southern Nevada kept rising through May and are now approaching their all-time peak, according to a report released today by the Greater Las Vegas Association of REALTORS^® (GLVAR).

GLVAR reported that the median price for existing single-family homes sold in Southern Nevada during May through its Multiple Listing Service (MLS) was $295,000. That’s up 2.1 percent from the previous month and up 18.0 percent from $250,000 in May of 2017.  Click on the title above for more.

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 Las Vegas is booming again.  Spent two nights there last week and once again "the crane" is the state bird.  $295k for a median LV area house only to have to live in LV seems insane to me.  I equally don't understand how that is even remotely attractive to Miillenials.  I can attest to one bit of culture shock.  Going instantly from the Rocky Mountain resort/ski communities above Denver to the touristy parts of Las Vegas the physical fitness of the people on the street plummeted.  In local relative terms I went from Baccus to Adonis.

A Vacation of Contrasts