The Cost of the Stealth Van

Original cost: $17,000.00 give or take a few. (used-26000 miles- summer 2001)

Maintenance: $8000.00 an educated guess – includes three sets of tires, numerous tune-ups, scheduled maintenance, and a couple of Big Fixes.

Gas: $15,500.00 a ballpark figure based on some back calculations from miles driven, gas mileage, and price of gas.

License fees: $675.00

Insurance: $3600.00 approximately.

Total: $44,775.00

Days owned: 3010

Cost per day: $14.87 per day.

Miles driven: 177,000 or .26 cents a mile

The moral of this story is that even normal, boring, frugal vehicles are expensive. Either walk and save a lot of money, or buy an awesome vehicle so you can really enjoy blowing all your money on transportation.

Dumping Google.

I've decided to dump google as a search engine. I have a hard time believing that on 9/11/09 they did nothing with their home page to commemorate the terrorist attach that changed America forever. They change their graphics for things like M.C. Escher's birthday and the anniversary of the Civil Rights march in Selma Alabama - but say squat about 9/11. I'm checking out www.bing.com and www.ask.com as replacements. I also know about www.dogpile.com (all of which had memorials on their pages on 9/11)

do any of you have any other suggestions?

~M.E.

P.S. Yes, I realize that Blogger is Google. I've been pondering a move.

Crunching some Confusing Numbers in the "Cash for Clunkers" Game

My old van, a 2001 Dodge Caravan w/ 195,000 miles and an '18' on the government scale is on the top ten list of most traded in 'clunkers'. Worth $3500.00 on the purchase of a new vehicle with at least 22 mpg rating.

One of the vehicles I'm considering is the Honda CR-V. The semi-tricked out version runs about $27,500.00, after a skinny deal of about $1000.00 off the sticker price given by the dealer. (Plus TTL, but those remain the same, so I'll leave those figures out.) No other trade in money or deals will be offered.

This brings my van/CR-V trade deal to $24,000.00 with a 2010 model and the government cash-for-clunkers deal.

Lets look at something slightly different:

Looking at the Car Max site - with I typically use for real world used car values since I'm a Dave Ramsey fan, and have a hard time not letting someone else take the new car devaluation hit.

Here's a 2008 Honda CR-V that is tricked out like the new one I asked the dealer about. It's two model years old, and has 20K miles. ( History shows it was a 'fleet vehicle', which means a rental) The Car Max price is $20,998.00 Plus a drive to Indianapolis, where this example currently is parked. The website calculator says that I would get a $1250.00 trade in on the van.

This brings my van/CR-V deal to $19798.00 with the straight-up trade my old van for a newish CR-V.

One more comparison:

We looked at a Mazda RX-7 a couple of weeks back. Sticker price on that vehicle was about $27,800.00. The first 'deal' I was offered was $1,000.00 off the sticker price and $3000.00 trade-in for the van. That brings that comparable vehicle - brand new w/o the government program to $23,800.00.

Recap:

New Honda CR-V with $3,500.00 government money $24,000.00

New Mazda CX-7 straight-up w/ trade in allowance $23,800.00

Slightly used Honda CR-V without government assistance $19,798.00

To me, this sounds like one of those screwed up math story problems where you 'lose' a dollar while seeming to be getting the best deal. Can you see where the dealer is getting $3,500.00 from the government, yet I'm paying about the same price for the vehicle? Maybe the 'cash for clunkers' program works better when you think of trading a Ford F250 for a Prius, or something - but the math just isn't working for me.

PS: I still want a Volkswagon Tiguan. But it's the same kind of 'want' as when a little girl says she 'wants' to be a princess. Ain't in the cards.

~M.E.

Infections

I wonder how we live at all in our nasty, germ-filled world. How is it that the nasties that constantly live around us looking for the least break in our defenses to climb into our warm, nutritious bodies and set up their own shop don't just take over? I do understand - at least in layman's terms - the functions and working of my own immune system, but it is all still a mystery to me.

Hannah is susceptible to the staphylococcus bacteria. Her immune system, which works overtime attacking things like cat dander, molds, and mildew spores is asleep in the watch tower when it comes to staph. Little breaks in her skin will randomly become raging infections over night. This morning it is one on her face - the worst place for your average teen. Three weeks ago, it came up in razer rash on her leg. We have the whole drill down about avoiding the bugs. It doesn't seem to have much of an effect recently. This is the third one in less than two months.

So, here I sit, waiting for 9am, so I can call the doctor. Will it be just another phoned-in prescription this time? Will they make us go see the prompt care doc? Will we actually get to see our own family doctor ?(who has become as busy as a one-armed wallpaper hanger since managed care took over, and his partner retired...) Only time will tell.

~M.E.

Twice in the last few days I've been reminded that I should update my blog. I suppose that means I have at least two fans - or at the very least two people who use my posts to try and figure out what's clanking around in my head. I've been working on an entry about the artist Willem de Kooning - whom I've never understood but have recently taken a liking to - but those in the know realize that if I'm posting about artists it's my favorite form of escapism, and then they go snooping around to find what I'm escaping from.

But, I have found something worth writing about: a book. Yesterday whilst digging around at the Lincoln Public Library for a copy of the Rule of St. Benedict ( for some totally unrelated art research) my eye was drawn to a copy of a book titled I'm Fine with God... It's Christians I Can't Stand By Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz. I like Bruce and Stan. I've read their stuff on several occasions and rarely been disappointed. They write in salty, crunchy, little tidbits that are concise and thought provoking. Their books are set in friendly fonts with side-bars and interpolated quotes that make it easy to read a paragraph or two and come out with a thought to mull over until you can pick up the book again. They tackle rough ideas with grace and humility, and put smiley faces on the covers. They Rock even when I don't agree with them.

This book, I'm Fine with God... It's Christians I Can't Stand , caught my eye and instantly appealed to the misanthropic mind-set that I occasionally fall into. Several times in the last few months I've felt the sting of being 'out Christian-ed' by others of my own faith. The old quote from M Girl bubbles up in my mind:" If these are my Christian friends, no wonder I like to hang out with the heathens." The trouble is, I know where that road leads. If a faithful Christ-follower does that - especially without proper support and a super-solid base then it is pretty easy to slide on off to start acting and then thinking like one of those 'heathens'. So, I get back up and keep trying even though you all know that I've given up on being a NCL (Nice Christian Lady).

Back to the book: I haven't finished it yet, but I have found that their clear explanation of how Christians brought about the disdain of the rest of the American culture onto ourselves by imposing our morality, politics and family structures on others without first transferring our internal Faith in God pretty enlightening. Sections on paranoia, Modern-day Pharisees, and having our fringe be our front-men are well done. Now back to the Chapter titled: I'm fine with God... But I can't stand Christians who think science is the enemy."

I think I should buy a few copies of this book, and hand them out with encouraging smiles when I encounter brothers and sisters in Christ who make me feel like I don't measure up because I don't act, talk, or believe exactly as they do.

~M.E.

Homeschoolers: A Total Rant

You don't have to read this if you don't wish to.


No, really you don't.


It's an old rant, and you have better things to do.





It happened again today. I was contacted by another 'just moved into the area' homeschool mom. The moving van arrived three weeks ago from a state where the public schools suck, the private schools are expensive, and the homeschool community is big, vibrant, excellent, conservative, and constantly covered with sunshine and rainbows. I learned all of this after I told her about the pitiful by homeschoolers -for homeschoolers offerings we have here in the Springfield area. I immediately sensed the frown followed by the predictable "Well, when we lived in Utopia, there were hundreds of options...." blah, blah, blah.

Lady, that was then. This is now. You telling me how wonderful you had it does neither one of us any good. The answer to your dilemma is either 1) pack up your kids and move back to Utopia 2) drop-kick Junior, Sally, Mitch, Conway, Lucretia, and every ankle biter you have in the future into the Government School System, 3) win the lottery and put the whole crew into a private school, or 4) get used to it, and start becoming part of the solution around here instead of one of the people I have to listen to whining.

"Well, I don't have time to help start (fill in the blank of the program she misses most here...) I have three little ones at home!" So did the people that started the program you came from.

Yup. I'm tired of it. Time to find a new career.

~M.E.

Two Books

My Sunday School class is doing another one of those books studies on a recently popular Christian title "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan. I find the book depressing, and a few times I have found myself feeling as if there is no way I can be good enough to measure up, so why bother.

In antidote, I have reached into my bookshelf for another book purported to be on the same subject: God's enormous love for us, and our response to it. "The Ragamuffin Gospel" by Brennan Manning.

This morning I found this mighty example of God's grace: In "Crazy Love" Chapter 4 is titled ' Profile of the Luke-Warm' and tells all about how badly we Christians act toward God - because we don't love him enough to rely on Him, and that because of this we are obviously luke-warm and will be spat out of His mouth. Chapter 4 in "The Ragamuffin Gospel" is titled ' Tilted Halos' and describes how we poor in spirit people, who love God with all of our broken and sinful hearts, are nonetheless treasured in our imperfections by a God who is understanding and accepting of the foibles and baby-steps of His children.

The two chapters cover the same topic. One writer tells me that I don't measure up and it's my fault, and I should fix it or I will not be acceptable. The other writer tells me that I'm messed up and it's my fault, and I should fix it - but that God understands my heart, and loves me anyhow.

It might be the difference in the lives of the authors before they wrote the books. Francis Chan went from highschool to Bible college to Seminary to the teaching pastor possition at a church. Brennan Manning went from difficult home to the US Marines to the gutter and back before attending seminary and becoming an evangelist. A big difference is also evident in the pictures of the Authors on the covers. Mr. Chan is an attractive young man, and Mr. Manning is an older man with much life evident on his face.

It might be the difference in the audience the books are meant for. The back of The Ragmuffin Gospel headlines "Are you bedraggled, beat-up and burnt out?" and Crazy Love : " Have you ever wondered if you're missing it?" Is it the dichotomy of 'comfort the afflicted but afflict the comfortable?' I don't know.

It does, however, reinforce my prejudice against Pop Christian Books and love of the old (mostly dead) authors of generations before. My feeling is that The Ragamuffin Gospel will be read for years to come and that Crazy Love will be one of those books that will fade into obscurity as soon as the next flash-in-the-pan Christian Thing comes along.

But I've been wrong before. ~M.E.

I miss my web.

Panera. Free wifi. Like food for the starving.

I've been living for 8 days in the fog of the internetless. No online banking. No email. No blogging. No information about (enter topic here) at my fingertips.

Feels kind of like I've lost one of my senses. Call it the sense of data flow.

We might - maybe - get our hughesnet back up tomorrow night - or maybe the next day.

Back to the stone age with me....

No Net!

No new blog until at least Friday and possibly Monday - Our Hughesnet modem went Tango Uniform, and the new one takes five working days to receive. That also puts a stop to my news reading experiment. See you in a week or there about.

~M.E.

The Coming American Black Market

I remember all of the times when I hear about other countries - 'lesser' countries, that have thriving black markets. I assume that those cases are because the people value their things more than government currency, but I may be wrong. I felt like we lived in a superior society because we didn't resort to this. In the last few months, three things have come to my attention that make me think that we not only are losing any superiority we may once have perceived for ourselves, but that we may soon be living with a thriving black market society. Consider:

The Comsumer Products Safety Commission, in reaction to the lead found in toys imported from China last summer quietly passed Public Law 110-114 entitled the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 that essentially bans ALL items that are made for the use of children under the age of twelve from being sold or resold unless that have been tested for lead and phthlates - and have a sticker affixed proving so. This leaves resale shops, thrift shops and yard sellers with unfathomable amounts of perfectly good reusable items that must be dumped into landfills. The penalty for non-compliance is formidable - as much as $1,000,000.00 per occurrence.

Laws are being considered in several states that will impose sales taxes on individual parties that exchange goods and services for money. This would include yard sales, Craig's List sales, and selling your used lawnmower to the guy down the street. The government wants you to submit paperwork, and give them their cut.

Last month, a friend quietly told me that a compassionate doctor wrote a prescription for her - at a higher dose - for a drug that both her husband and son need to control a hereditary high cholesterol problem. It is the only dependable drug for their problem, and it is 'top tier' on their meager insurance - Nearly $100.00 a month per prescription. With a penstroke the physician broke the law, and saved the struggling family a whole month's worth of gasoline for the family car. With the choice of having money to buy necessities, or severely compromising our health, I can see where this may spin off to more than just an occasional 'family plan' occurrence.

Today I read of a new bill in congress that will severely hamper the small farmer from selling his own goods at local farmer's markets. Say hello to H.R. 875 The Food Safety Modernization act of 2009. What this will do is force anyone who produces food of any kind, and then transports it to a different location for sale, to register with a new federal agency called the "Food Safety Administration." Then they will be somehow inspected, regulated and taxed accordingly - and heavily fined for non-compliance. (oddly enough it seems that the bill's sponsor, Rosa Delauro D-Conn is married to a guy who list's Monsanto as a major client. )

What I see is our government turning us all into a bunch of criminals: Tiffany is going to buy a car seat from Rachel so her baby is in a seat when she gets stopped by the cops, but she won't check for the sticker, and she won't fill out the paperwork and send off the $.87 sales tax. With no way to be sure that you personally are abiding by all of the rules, it becomes moot. Doing what it takes to get along and giving up worrying if it is 'legal' becomes a way of life. The black market in kid's clothing, homegrown veggies and farm eggs, life-saving drugs, and lawn mowers becomes the norm. The government more and more is looked at as Big Brother waiting to swoop down and devour decent people and less like the protector of American justice, safety, and freedom.

~M.E.

kicking off the dust

Well, well. Look how neglected this place has become.

Time to reclaim my blog, though, because the shine has dimmed from the facebook experiment. Two drastic changes for the worse since I started spending most of my free computer time over there. Ugh. Can't find anything. I hate the look, and it's s l o w.

So, back to the archaic thing: a real Blog. Welcome any of you that have come over here to have a look because I redirected you from Facebook. Leave me a not so I know you were by. I'll start posting quasi-regularly again in a couple of days.

Cheers! ~M.E.

I know, It's been a while.

I haven't found the motivation to actually write anything recently. This time of year I have this ennui that comes with the short, gray days and specifically this year the lack of Christmas activities. There are no concerts to travel for, no big or little Church programs to do, and as far as I know no party invites. I really don't even want to try and put anything together myself, and I don't want to want to. Before you get all buggy-eyed and upset ( and you know who I'm talking to) no, you can't fix it. Some time in the end of February, or maybe earlier, when it is sunny and bright with snow, and the day light is lasting longer than 9 hours I'll find something that catches my interest and I'll find the inspiration and creativity that have deserted me in this gloomy winter. Until then I'll get along ok. I'll still smile and laugh - just a little less. I'll be happy with a day where I get the essentuals done, but it isn't likely I'll start any projects. If I do, they are just as likely to be abandoned. Don't take it personally. I should have been a hibernating animal. ~M.E.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was a day enjoyed and partly just endured as a quartet of people that are related by blood and love that aren't all at the top of our games right now. You ever have one of those? I know, I know - We have so very much to be thankful for - but the 'thankful' day on the calender just didn't fall on the right date this year. Very soon I hope there will be a day that gives us some truly good news and I will make a turkey and all the traditional accompaniments for a real thanksgiving feast.

We had a Thanksgiving Day shoot in the swamp today. It was fun, the weather was nice, and many plastic bottles were repurposed as targets. (Insert pix here later)

I also managed to cut my foot with a utility knife. Good news is that PromptCare wasn't that busy, and it wasn't serious enough to warrant transfer to the ER. I think the Dr. said he put in 8 stitches, but I haven't looked very close at it. It hurts like crazy so I'm awake at 2AM with an ice bag waiting for the painkiller to kick in. (not that 2AM and I aren't well acquainted, anyhow.)
~M.E.

Random.

1) Gas at $1.53 - It just proves that the people who make a living predicting the economy don't know what's going on any more than us ordinary folk. It almost seems like we're in the grips of some sick, evil creature. Oh, That would be Satan. Good thing we have the shield of God's Grace.

2) I found a sappy, sad love song from the 80's playing over the sound system at the grocery particularly distracting today. Made me long for trite stupid Christmas music.

3) A couple of years ago Meredith and I saw a White-tail Buck walking on a railroad overpass on the south side of Springfield. Today I saw another using the same overpass to get between wooded places on either side of the freeway. It was about a ten point. (in Illinois parlance - that would be a 5 point for you Michiganians)

4) I wish I had an 'off' button. I really, really don't want to have to resort to chemically induced sleep. 4 to 6 hours a night makes each day a struggle. From experience, it takes 9 to keep me in the best shape.

5) Here comes another quiet, unexciting Thanksgiving Day. The curse of the small family. But I hear from those that have large demanding families that the grass is NOT greener on the other side. Does anyone really have one of those Normal Rockwell holidays? After our girls are off on their own, maybe we'll go on vacation out of the country over Thanksgiving.

~M.E.

The Shallowest Generation

Go Read This:

http://www.financialsense.com/editorials/2008/1103.html

I don't agree with everything that this man has written, but his statistics are sobering. I certainly don't like his assessment that I should pay more taxes into the system, but I should certainly be putting more money into the bank and less into unnecessary 'necessities'. I think our family will also be looking hard at reworking our own funding for the retirement years. I know that as soon as I work myself out of my current teaching job, it will be time to get back into something with a pay check.

Oh, and someone please let me in on how to make hot links here..I couldn't figure it out.
~M.E.

Gas at $1.82

Never thought I'd see that again in my life. We're not going to go back to the way we were driving before the huge price surge last spring, though. Too bad for the oil companies, they left the prices up long enough for new driving habits to form - at least in our family. Have you noticed that grocery prices haven't come down yet? they told us that transportation prices drove them up. HHmm.

I drove the truck to the west side of Springfield yesterday without feeling guilty every mile for the first time in forever. At the current prices that trip costs about $5.25. When gasoline was over $4. a gallon it cost about 12 bucks. ( I took the truck b/c the van was in the shop.)

I have to be happy with these little things. We were still able to spend a little cash on a few splurges: make-up, chocolate, a new CD of music... God is providing all of our needs, and a great many of our wants. Even if the lesson from the brokerage statements are that we have to trust Him for our future.

OK, let's just leave it at that. ~M.E.

Edit: Spoke too soon, $2.08 all over town this morning. what magic happened over night to make all the gasoline in Spfld worth .26 cents more this morning? No, don't try to explain it to me, I don't really want to know.

Incoherent thoughts after the election

So, It’s over. Finally. We’ve elected a new president. What a long two years. Whadda you know? We’ve got the one who is a big bite out of the far left side of the crap sandwich served up to us on the ballot by the major parties. At the very least it’s not Hillary Clinton. I’m profoundly relieved about that. If John McCain was the best the Republicans had to offer, they deserved to be booted from power.

I read that the new President is going to be inheriting the worst economy in about 70 years. Is this really the worst economy since the Great Depression? Wasn’t that stint in the ‘70s with its double-digit inflation, massive unemployment and ‘the energy crisis’ pretty bad? Well, Barack Obama seems to think he’s the go-to guy with the right answers, and he can change all this and make us all happy again. I wish him – and his friends in the House and Senate – a great deal of luck. It will be interesting to see what they do with all of the marbles, now that they have them.

The beauty of this all is that in spite of our differences, and the fact that 55.7 million American voters did NOT get their candidate elected, there will be no rioting in the streets, and the lights will still turn on at the flip of a switch – even in the homeless shelters. America is a great country.

God bless our new president. No matter if we voted for him or not. I’m not about to go around like the Dems did in 2000 and 2004 exclaiming that they wouldn’t claim GWB as THEIR president. At least we can agree that the dude who WON the election IS the POTUS. Besides, I live in Illinois, and on the front page of my morning paper they are gleefully anticipating all of the perks and pork that will be coming our way. It might be win-win here. Hey, they wouldn’t dare not give Chicago the Olympics now, and all the cronies he bundles off to Washington will leave room for a few hundred of those laid-off state workers to get their jobs back – as long as they’re Democrats.

God Bless Michelle Obama and those two lovely little girls. They seem to stand up well under the spotlights, let’s hope the media microscopes are kind to them. Good thing is that the oldest is only 10, so she won’t have to go through those awkward teenaged years in the Whitehouse like Chelsea Clinton or the rather unfortunate Amy Carter. At least not the first administration. Maybe their Daddy will take a page outta Rod Blaggo’s book and make them stay in Chicago and have normal childhoods. Yeah, Right.

Pack up the campaign signs! Put away the pundits! Stop the constant polling! empty the mailboxes of political junk mail! Maybe we’ll even start getting some real news on the TV.

I do have one very scary thought to leave you with. It’s likely that Obama and this new Democrat Majority will have three supreme court justices to replace, and they will change the face of the High Court for long after we find out that they, too, are bums, and we disgustedly flush them from office.

~M.E.

There are just 4 'working days' until the Halloween party that I SO GENEROUSLY offered to let Hannah, Amanda, and Nicole host here on Halloween night. I keep thinking of more things I need to do to get ready. The weather looks like it will be clear and cold, so the party will be partly out doors - but it will also be partly indoors. I finished off the costumes Hannah and Meredith will wear - Meredith has her own plans, including working at the Corkscrew on Halloween. I think I'll just plan on attending as a wigged-out mom. HHmmm. I'd better get to work.

~M.E.

Moving Back Home

Some homeschooling friends of mine are moving back to Tennessee. By the way Tessa talks when she's in a group, you'd think that this was something they had planned to do at this stage of their life all along. Truly a lady that has the proverbial 'stiff upper lip'. In our EMail exchange another picture emerges. She's a 28yo homeschooling mom of three whose husband has lost his job, and they are cutting their losses here in Illinois, and moving back home - literally in with her parents. She is selling everything she can and planning on moving 'lean'. Most sadly, she is letting go all of her homeschool items, and plans on putting her kids in public school after the move. Tennessee is a tough school to homeschool in, and with their money situation they will both be looking for work.

So, I personally know this one story about the economic downturn knocking a formerly middle-class family several rungs down the ladder. I'm sure there are dozens, even hundreds more just out of my hearing. It has me spooked just a bit. Not so much personally because at least so far our resource flow is stable - but for our kids, and their friends, and my friends and, and, and...

~M.E.

Saturday

It's a lovely day.

One of those days where the weather is good, the talk is frivolous, and the items on the agenda are all about ease and entertainment.

Our friend - and the best uncle my girls have - Garrett is here from Florida, and it always great to have him around. I hope to lure him back into Illinois as soon as possible.

We went to run some errands, stopped at the new place where Meredith is working for a visit during the '10 wines for under $10.00' themed Saturday tasting, and are planning on eating the best steaks I've saved from the 1/6 of a cow we purchased last summer for dinner.

Trouble is, the more I try and forget all of the little irritations that are rubbing up against my life right now, the more I think about them.

I need to have a stern talk with myself, and get a little perspective.

~M.E.