Water hardness

I was trying to find out whether I would benefit from using a water softener with my dishwasher.

First, I contacted my local water supply and they pointed me to this report:
https://www.roseville.ca.us/UserFiles/Servers/Server_7964838/File/Government/Departments/Environmental%20Utilities/At%20your%20service/Water%20supply/Water%20quality%20reports/EU_WaterQualityReport_2018_DigitalVersion.pdf
The report has a line that says the water hardness is 24 ppm if coming from the lake or 90-250 ppm if coming from groundwater. Based on my ZIP code, I was also told that my area is serviced entirely from the lake.

However, the appliances measure water hardness in degrees of hardness.

So I found this calculator:
https://www.lenntech.com/calculators/hardness/hardness.htm
I plug in 24 ppm and get 1.35 German degrees of hardness.

Over to the dishwasher manual and I see a line:
"Water supplies with a hardness level higher than 4 gr/gal (4 °d) needs to be softened."
Going by that it looks like I would not benefit from having or using a water softener.

2019 Acura RDX Tech SH-AWD review

Here's a brief review of the 2019 Acura RDX with the Technology Package and SH-AWD.  I was mostly drawn to the car for its seat comfort.  The Technology Package is one level above the base model.  I chose it mainly because I wanted parking sensors and leather seats.  Otherwise, the base model would have been adequate.

Features I like:

• Seat comfort.
• Headlight intensity -- illuminates the road very well.
• Quality of materials.
• Interior and exterior design.
• NSX inspired shifter/center console.
• Steering, handling, power.
• Ride comfort.
• Cap-less fuel filler.
• Option to automatically reset trip computer on refuel.

Features that are OK but that could be improved:

• The padding in the seat pan could be better so that it removes pressure from the low back.  Look at Volvo and Tesla, for example.
• Gauges could be made less busy.  No need for km/hr and mph at the same time in a digital speedometer.
• When switching between displays in the center, it would be better if they didn't shrink, then switch back to normal size after a delay.  And re-do the information to be less wordy.
• Better ambient lighting.  Map lights feel underpowered.
• Change to a touchscreen infotainment.  Existing setup is prone to hunting unless you look at the screen and at the touch pad, which means we're not paying attention to the road.
• Better implementation of rear camera.  Currently unusable in rain, leave camera on for a few seconds when switching from R to D, more accurate guidelines (lines don't match up with the where the car's wheels are).  (Advance trim would help with rain since it has a camera washer.)
• Move the BSI (blind spot indication) from the A pillars to the mirrors.
• Road departure warning is overly sensitive, especially on internal roads.
• Lane keep assist doesn't work very well.  It keeps asking for the driver to take control.
• Lane departure warning is too sensitive and keeps buzzing even when within the lane.  I was forced to disable it.
• Quality control issues.  Several rattles and issues with the audio system.
• Interior could be quieter.  I registered 90+ dB on the highway using the Decibel X app on my iPhone.   The quietest cars register somewhere in the mid 60's.  (Advance trim would help since it has acoustic side glass.)
• MPG. Fortunately gas prices are muted and will likely remain that way as more cars switch to hybrid/electric drivetrains.
• No way to turn the headlights off when the car is moving in the evening.
• The chrome pieces on the steering wheel, but especially on the center stack, can sometimes, depending on how the sun is hitting it, reflect blinding light directly into the driver's eyes.  Should be replaced with something non-reflective.
• Rear visibility, especially the sides is very poor.
• The parking sensors don't extend to the sides of the bumpers and only warn about objects directly in front of or behind the car.
• Software updates are over the air, but map updates must be done via USB and the upgrade process is kludgy and prone to failure, causing a lot of frustration.  I discovered that the system doesn't like the USB drive to be larger than 64GB, and that is must not be a Sandisk!
• OEM tires are noisy.

Tip: When you're on a call, the multi-information and navigation displays are covered by a message saying "call in progress".  To be able to view the displays, one has to hit the "back" button on the steering wheel.  Without that, it is not possible to view the trip computer or miles remaining, nor is it possible to view the map or access the navigation.

Problems I have had with the car

• Crackling speakers: Intermittent problem that I noticed since the car was new.  Not fixed.
• Squeaky tailgate: Happened around 5000 miles.  Fixed under warranty.
• Whistling when engine starts or shuts: Happened around 7000 miles.  Fixed under warranty TSB.
• Infotainment will prompt for update even though no update is available.  Fixed in D1.2.1.
• Rubber lining near the tailgate lock has a gap.  Fixed under warranty by adjusting the lining.
• Ticking sound when starting the engine.  Intermittent problem.  Fixed under warranty by adjusting the PCM bracket.
• Numerous rattles all over the interior started to appear after about a year.  Not fixed.
• When starting on a trip from home the infotainment system booted up and threw an error "Unfortunately, AcuraLauncher has stopped".  Did not happen again on the return trip.  Not fixed.
• Received recall notice from Acura to replace the fuel pump motor.
• Clock doesn't automatically adjust for daylight savings even though all clock settings are auto (detect time zone, set time, etc.).  Fixed by changing to manual mode for settings and, after some time, switching back to auto.  (Update: Continuing to occasionally see problems with the clock being off by an hour.)
• Intermittently started to get a warning for "Drive mode change unavailable" at the bottom of the infotainment display.  Not yet fixed.
• Parking sensors are being triggered in rain without any reason.  See video.  Not yet fixed.

Additional Info

• RDX videos on the Acura YouTube channel
• MotorTrend's long term review of the RDX
• 2019 RDX Maintenance Minder

Being positive vs peaceful to manifest good health

I often hear well-meaning friends and relatives say "be positive", which doesn't resonate with me because I don't believe in faking it.  I recently came across this video where Deepak Chopra says:

@ 6:15

It's not that you have think positively all the time.  You have to get in touch with your emotions, you have to share them with somebody that you love, you have release them, you have to express them, because if you repress emotions that creates its own biology too.

@ 8:30

A peaceful mind is more important than a positive mind.  Because a positive mind can be working really hard at it, can be stressful to be positive all the time.  But when you're at peace, that's a wholly different thing because all the biochemistry of anxiety disappears.