Getting to the Church On Time... 3 States Away!

Just back from our first BIG Supercharger Road Trip!   Everything went very well and the car was awesome (as expected).   I'll do a full write up in the coming days but in the meantime, here's some video clips that will give you a quick overview of the first leg of our trip:

First Road Trip

Even if you don't buy a Tesla for its "green" credentials (we didn't) you can't help but notice them.  Especially if you are the sort who like to go out into nature and stomp around (we do) admiring the creation.  Pairing those two together... and you have a day full of satisfaction that you are taking "leave no trace" to a whole new level.  Not smugness, no... not that.  But satisfaction.  

While hiking around my community is great for a fitness regimen that nature gets pretty familiar and, I daresay, tiresome.  We wanted to do make a mini-road trip out in the world before our big Summer drive(s) so we decided to take Serena on a big day trip up into the Northwestern quadrant of Pennsylvania.  Here's how it went...

Lady of the Night

If you were married to or dating an ugly person-- and who, in their right mind, would ever admit to that??-- I can imagine you'd try and optimize their appearance any way you could.  Certainly if you were planning a date night that included introducing him/her to your friends you'd try and lower the expectations in advance ("she's REALLY knowledgeable about the conflict in Crimea") and also pick a venue to play to their strengths ("you should see him BOWL, I mean, put him in a dark alley and MAGIC happens").

Fortunately for Model S owners, we don't have to hide our Teslas when daylight comes.  Nosiree.  This is a stunningly good-looking car.  Oh, she has brains, sophistication and a GREAT personality too-- but whoa, she's a looker too.  That doesn't mean you can't take her out in the dark though, check out m'lady after the sun goes down...

Skipping the Light Fantastic

Hi.  I'm Matt.  And I have a teenage son.  [Hi Matt!]

That's pretty much how every conversation should start for the period of time when your household is beset with teenageritis.  Surely somewhere there's a Parent-of-Teenagers-Anonymous support group.  (OH!  Is THAT what the "school PTA" is about??)  It's a communicable disease that is highly contagious even to younger siblings still rockin' single digit ages.  Worse still, the only known cure has an incubation period that can last well into your child's thirties.

  

There's really not much hope...  but despite the onslaught of hormones and ignorant rants, you can at least effectively treat the eye problems (or so I assume, because MY eyes don't continually deviate to the ceiling). Simply buy ONE TESLA (and call Elon in the morning) to temporarily inoculate yourself.   How does it work?  I'm glad you asked!

Chasing OUTAGAS

Quick post-- here's some dash cam video from last week when I "chased" Jake from state inspection to detailer.  Interesting to see how the regen triggers brake lights and such.

A Quiet Drive

Adding a car to your life is a lot more complex than something like a TV because of all the other layers involved.  As fun as it was to drive around with our "Zero Emissions" factory plate we were going to have to get Serena an actual legal license plate... but before that nifty factory plate came off I wanted to get some more pictures.  What I was looking for was a park setting.   This is what I found instead:

Trust Is a Many Splendored Thing

Within DAYS of finding out we were getting a Tesla our kids had already worked out a plan.  The same kids that can't clean their rooms without a detailed explanation of WHERE THE DIRTY CLOTHES GO had suddenly birthed the capability to land a human on Mars and return him/her safely to Earth using only Lego and rubberbands.  "We got this" they said, eyes twinkling and hands rubbing as they huddled in whispered negotiations.  I was not so deluded as to think OUR best interests were in their hearts-- no, they were trying to figure out how THEY would get the Tesla more often than anyone else.

A cornerstone of their plan was that I share the car with my beloved wife.  Treasure of my treasures, joy of my joy, and...  co-profiled driver of Serena.  But... but...

Oh Hail No! The Return of THE CURSE

Out with the old...  in with the ELECTRIC.

In the mega-manifesto-length-getting a Tesla series, I detailed the apparent curse that the Tesla license plate frame on the 300 came with (thanks again, Jake).  You can read about the curse by clicking here.  Well... I'd hoped that bringing an actual Tesla home would remove the curse.   But it may not have....

Coffee With the Cool Kids

Settling in with something new is always a little "disruptive".  But unlike a small consumer device, with a Tesla pretty soon everyone around you knows you have something new.  A Tesla is pretty "far out" and hard to ignore when parked in the Camry and Explorer laden lots about town.

Ours is a subtle grey.  I can't imagine the attention a red one would get... oh wait... yes I can.  "This, officer, is a Tesla.  T-E-S-L-A.  And here's my license."

Arrival of the Fittest

She's HERE!   It has been a very packed first week with "Serena".   Yep, we named our car.  It's the first time we've been nuts enough to do it-- and after a week, I must say, she's earned it.   This car has so much personality and is so lively, you can't help but think of it as more than mere machine.   That's not to say she's perfect but after a week it's hard to imagine ever buying another gas car.

Serena is a DEFINITE improvement to our quality of life and-- like all big improvements-- this one came to us by way of the Home Depot.