A lot are writing about the end of the semester -- which don't get me wrong I am glad to be finally finished, but I experienced some new developments in garage saling this past weekend.
We had a very large sale at my home this past Saturday -- total there were 6 families that sold at our sale. Our garage sale was HUGE. Every kind of children's clothing, furniture, adult clothing, shoes, purses, books, you name it, we had it. I made a huge sign for the front of our home (we live on busy St. Louis Ave) and we started getting a steady stream of customers about 7 in the morning.
The day started out good and we were getting rid of tons of things, but this garage sale we all experienced something different than previous experiences with garage sales.
We had a total of 5, yes, I said FIVE different people/couples come up to us and ask us what our plans were with the clothing and other misc items after the garage sale. Since there were 6 families involved we couldn't speak for everyone, but honestly no one had really thought that far yet. In fact, most of us were hopeful that our 15 totes full of stuff would be gone by the end of the day. All of these people wanted to know if they could accept donations. Actually make that 3 people. The other two were with charitable foundations at local churches or Crosslines and knew poeple that needed these things. I was appalled by there balls. Especially those who were personally asking for those things themselves. COME ON PEOPLE! We had everything marked so incredibly cheap. My wife prices Gymboreee outfits my daughter outgrew for less than a dollar. Most stuff was $0.25 or less. Everything was priced to GO FAST. And yet, they still asked for our things.
That's why it kills me to see on craigslist people begging for stuff -- "single mom really needs things, can't pay much, any donations would help. God bless." God bless? GOD BLESS?? I'll show you God bless! Okay, so my attitude isn't really a servant of giving, it just seems people have no integrity anymore and aren't afraid to ask for anything. Go to our Wal-Mart and see 4 people with signs asking for money or anything (while smoking a cig). I know the economy is tough right now and yes, I do give and do donate, but don't expect it. It kind of takes the joy out of giving if you are begging for my things.
Am I wrong for thinking this way? We ended up keeping all our unsold things and yes, we do plan on donating everything -- to the Salvation Army.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Debt and FPU
Last week we joined a financial class at our church -- an 8 week Sunday 9AM morning class that promises to give us the tools to financial freedom.
The trend for being debt-free is on the rise, especially in churches, who have offered multiple classes over the last few years that boast "be debt free in one year." The invitation is appealing.
Debt is everywhere. I got my first credit card when I was 18 and at the age of 23 had to consolidate due to too many payments that I couldn't make. At 23, I had a personal loan for the amount of $8,000 to pay off all my credit cards. Since then I have paid off that loan, but now my wife and I have a Discover card that has about $800 on it. Not too bad, you say? Well American debt is on the rise. The struggling economy has called for desperate measures. It's not uncommon for me to be told that someone had to put groceries on a credit card just to be able to eat for the next week.
I hate hearing that, but I think there are two sides to every coin. As Americans we have become conditioned to think that we have to have more and that bigger is better. A smaller house isn't nearly as appealing as a larger home. We have become the most materialistic (and obese, but don't get me started on that) country. We think that we should have the right to have certain things: nice houses, brand new cars, new things, new computers, nice iphones, mp3 players, season passes to Six Flags, etc. The reality is here and is a slap on the face: while all those things are nice, they aren't what brings substance to life. We aren't entitled to everything that we think we are. You think if you work hard you should be able to "indulge" and buy those nice things. Most of us really can't "buy" anything. We are able to get "credit" to be loaned money to have these things. It's a false sense of reality. We don't own anything in our lives.
My wife and I started the David Ramsy plan half-way back when she was pregnant with our now 18month-old daughter. At that time we were bringing home almost $4,000 month and had NO savings or NO retirement or anything to show for it. We didn't even have two car payments, my wife's car was paid for so we were only paying $300.00 month for my car. Our house payment is $600. And yet, time and time again we were always short at the end of the month. Once we budgeted and started our savings plan we were able to put away one of my wife's full paychecks into our savings and we paid off some minor debt. We had almost $10,000 in savings when our daughter was born and after she was born padded it to another few thousand. Things have changed a lot since the recent events of my wife's pregnancy and having to pay $6,000 to Freeman for a basic birth and hospital stay. We also have to pay entirely for my wife's maternity leave. But our goal is still the same.
As we continue with this class we know that our priorities have shifted slightly, but we still want to be debt free (aside from our house) withine two years. We both have 8 year old vehicles. We go to garage sales and we rarely eat out. But we take long bike rides, go to the park, and spend time together as a family which is worth far more than material things can give us.
The trend for being debt-free is on the rise, especially in churches, who have offered multiple classes over the last few years that boast "be debt free in one year." The invitation is appealing.
Debt is everywhere. I got my first credit card when I was 18 and at the age of 23 had to consolidate due to too many payments that I couldn't make. At 23, I had a personal loan for the amount of $8,000 to pay off all my credit cards. Since then I have paid off that loan, but now my wife and I have a Discover card that has about $800 on it. Not too bad, you say? Well American debt is on the rise. The struggling economy has called for desperate measures. It's not uncommon for me to be told that someone had to put groceries on a credit card just to be able to eat for the next week.
I hate hearing that, but I think there are two sides to every coin. As Americans we have become conditioned to think that we have to have more and that bigger is better. A smaller house isn't nearly as appealing as a larger home. We have become the most materialistic (and obese, but don't get me started on that) country. We think that we should have the right to have certain things: nice houses, brand new cars, new things, new computers, nice iphones, mp3 players, season passes to Six Flags, etc. The reality is here and is a slap on the face: while all those things are nice, they aren't what brings substance to life. We aren't entitled to everything that we think we are. You think if you work hard you should be able to "indulge" and buy those nice things. Most of us really can't "buy" anything. We are able to get "credit" to be loaned money to have these things. It's a false sense of reality. We don't own anything in our lives.
My wife and I started the David Ramsy plan half-way back when she was pregnant with our now 18month-old daughter. At that time we were bringing home almost $4,000 month and had NO savings or NO retirement or anything to show for it. We didn't even have two car payments, my wife's car was paid for so we were only paying $300.00 month for my car. Our house payment is $600. And yet, time and time again we were always short at the end of the month. Once we budgeted and started our savings plan we were able to put away one of my wife's full paychecks into our savings and we paid off some minor debt. We had almost $10,000 in savings when our daughter was born and after she was born padded it to another few thousand. Things have changed a lot since the recent events of my wife's pregnancy and having to pay $6,000 to Freeman for a basic birth and hospital stay. We also have to pay entirely for my wife's maternity leave. But our goal is still the same.
As we continue with this class we know that our priorities have shifted slightly, but we still want to be debt free (aside from our house) withine two years. We both have 8 year old vehicles. We go to garage sales and we rarely eat out. But we take long bike rides, go to the park, and spend time together as a family which is worth far more than material things can give us.
Money and Career
When I was 8 years old my family (all 5 of us kids) packed up our station wagon and left our large home in New Hampshire. At the time I didn't understand why we had to leave all our friends and our family (most of my family is still located there). My parents sold everything -- including their $250,000 home and came to Missouri with a sack full of cash.
I didn't know it at the time, but my mom, who is a compulsive gambler, had borrowed thousands of dollars from her sisters and didn't pay them back so she ran from them by moving to Missouri.
We paid cash for our modest home in Carthage and bought everything -- including another vehicle with cash. It seemed like the high life. My dad settled into two jobs (again) and my mom stayed hom with us kids.
It took two years before the government caught on and we found out that the little law called "capital gains" would take everything -- home, cars, furniture, and just about everything. Pretty soon we were moving into the smallest home I've ever lived in -- a trailer home in a modest mobile park just outside of town. I remember thinking that we were now officially poor.
Since then my family has never recovered. As my siblings got older the legacy of the poor working class has continued.
I always prided myself on being the hard worker and not following in my family's footsteps, but looking back I realized I have set myself exactly like how they were. At 21 I bought my own house and worked two jobs, but I never really thought about preparing/investing in my future for providing for a family. I only thought about myself. When I met my wife she was in nursing school and her only ambition was money. Her mom told her "don't rely on anyone else but yourself." It was a great sentiment because she finished school and now we are living off of her income. Sadly enough I look back and this year marks my 10 year reunion. I tell my wife...what have I truly accomplished in the 10 years that I've been out of school? I don't have a degree or a career. I make no money. I stay home with my daughter while my wife leaves for work at 6:15 every morning. As a man there is no pride that exists in my being. I know that really I've accomplished nothing for myself or for my family.
However, there is nothing that I would change with my relationship with my wife and my daughter was the biggest blessing that we could've ever asked for. As far as love, I've accomplished more than I thought possible.
I am determined to finish my degree so one day I can say I have a "career" and then maybe I will be able to provide enough for my family. After that my life will be accomplished -- a loving family and a career.
I DO NOT plan on passing the legacy of my family onto my children or continuing it with myself.
I didn't know it at the time, but my mom, who is a compulsive gambler, had borrowed thousands of dollars from her sisters and didn't pay them back so she ran from them by moving to Missouri.
We paid cash for our modest home in Carthage and bought everything -- including another vehicle with cash. It seemed like the high life. My dad settled into two jobs (again) and my mom stayed hom with us kids.
It took two years before the government caught on and we found out that the little law called "capital gains" would take everything -- home, cars, furniture, and just about everything. Pretty soon we were moving into the smallest home I've ever lived in -- a trailer home in a modest mobile park just outside of town. I remember thinking that we were now officially poor.
Since then my family has never recovered. As my siblings got older the legacy of the poor working class has continued.
I always prided myself on being the hard worker and not following in my family's footsteps, but looking back I realized I have set myself exactly like how they were. At 21 I bought my own house and worked two jobs, but I never really thought about preparing/investing in my future for providing for a family. I only thought about myself. When I met my wife she was in nursing school and her only ambition was money. Her mom told her "don't rely on anyone else but yourself." It was a great sentiment because she finished school and now we are living off of her income. Sadly enough I look back and this year marks my 10 year reunion. I tell my wife...what have I truly accomplished in the 10 years that I've been out of school? I don't have a degree or a career. I make no money. I stay home with my daughter while my wife leaves for work at 6:15 every morning. As a man there is no pride that exists in my being. I know that really I've accomplished nothing for myself or for my family.
However, there is nothing that I would change with my relationship with my wife and my daughter was the biggest blessing that we could've ever asked for. As far as love, I've accomplished more than I thought possible.
I am determined to finish my degree so one day I can say I have a "career" and then maybe I will be able to provide enough for my family. After that my life will be accomplished -- a loving family and a career.
I DO NOT plan on passing the legacy of my family onto my children or continuing it with myself.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Crib Hunting
Not that anyone really cares too much about buying/selling cribs, I found this interesting due to a recent recall with Graco and Simplicity cribs.
Now that many of us utilize craigslist and ebay it makes it easier and cheaper to buy used/like new large items. My wife and I bought a double stroller with a carseat and two bases for $125 on craigslist and bought a like new, but used crib for $75 on craigslist. We are in the age of buying used due to tighter finances and a struggling economy so revenues like craigslist make it more affordable to buy larger baby items.
However, we just learned that recently several hundred kinds of cribs made by Graco and Simplicity have been recalled. This is scary for us since we really aren't sure what brand our $75 crib is and we know for sure our daughter's convertible crib is a Graco. It seems as soon as you buy something it is recalled for some reason or another.
The recent recalling is because of a number of deaths due to suffocation because the side rails on these particular cribs are able to go up and down and have been doing so at the hands of the older infants/toddlers.
The brand Simplicity has been the subject to many recalls and is no longer in business as of 2010, however many people continue to sell used cribs and must be aware of this potential health hazard.
You should take the advice of several websites that offer advice about what kind of cribs would work best for you. There are many different options available now with cribs. Some cribs convert into a toddler bed, some have drawers under the mattress, some have both sides that go up and down, the options are crazy. I'm a guy and all these options give me a headache.
The best way to find out subscribe to Consumer Reports website (it costs only a few bucks a month) and it has several in-detail articles that offer their own safety reports about a variety of cribs. They are also a great resource for just about any other product available on the market. I have used them for vehicle purhasing and camera purchasing.
We will probably just stick to the cribs we have, but pay extra attention for any possible problems. I want to say that a bumper helps, but this has been proven false recently too so I guess the only option is to watch your children sleep for the rest of their lives so they don't harm themselves in any crib (I'm being sarcastic here).
Now that many of us utilize craigslist and ebay it makes it easier and cheaper to buy used/like new large items. My wife and I bought a double stroller with a carseat and two bases for $125 on craigslist and bought a like new, but used crib for $75 on craigslist. We are in the age of buying used due to tighter finances and a struggling economy so revenues like craigslist make it more affordable to buy larger baby items.
However, we just learned that recently several hundred kinds of cribs made by Graco and Simplicity have been recalled. This is scary for us since we really aren't sure what brand our $75 crib is and we know for sure our daughter's convertible crib is a Graco. It seems as soon as you buy something it is recalled for some reason or another.
The recent recalling is because of a number of deaths due to suffocation because the side rails on these particular cribs are able to go up and down and have been doing so at the hands of the older infants/toddlers.
The brand Simplicity has been the subject to many recalls and is no longer in business as of 2010, however many people continue to sell used cribs and must be aware of this potential health hazard.
You should take the advice of several websites that offer advice about what kind of cribs would work best for you. There are many different options available now with cribs. Some cribs convert into a toddler bed, some have drawers under the mattress, some have both sides that go up and down, the options are crazy. I'm a guy and all these options give me a headache.
The best way to find out subscribe to Consumer Reports website (it costs only a few bucks a month) and it has several in-detail articles that offer their own safety reports about a variety of cribs. They are also a great resource for just about any other product available on the market. I have used them for vehicle purhasing and camera purchasing.
We will probably just stick to the cribs we have, but pay extra attention for any possible problems. I want to say that a bumper helps, but this has been proven false recently too so I guess the only option is to watch your children sleep for the rest of their lives so they don't harm themselves in any crib (I'm being sarcastic here).
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Why can't Spanish speaking people learn English?
Disclaimer: I am in no way a racial person. I do not consider myself to be any better or worse than any ethnicity that exists out there. This is just meant to be a rant on my soapbox and nothing physically violent will come from it.
I was 8 when I moved to Carthage with my parents. At that time I was extremely unaware of the two different kinds of Spanish speaking people: Guatemalans and Hispanics. I saw them in my school -- children my age who spoke very little English and who often translated for their parents.
It didn't seem like a big deal until I got older. Any job in Carthage it seemed like a desired quality would be Spanish speaking. No, not Hispanic of Guatemalan Spanish speakers, but biligual English speaking people. You had to be able to speak both English and Spanish fluently.
It didn't make any sense to me that people who were immigrants (sometimes even illegally) were being catered to. Anywhere you saw it, older Spanish speaking people relying on their children to translate or even do some kind of sign language to get their point across.
The language barrier is great and in some ways continues to grow, but I don't understand why we are encouraged to learn their language if they don't have to learn English? Doesn't that enable them?
My wife has witnessed this time and time again being in the medical field -- Spanish speaking nurses preferred over non-Spanish speaking. One of her close friends landed a much coveted job that she applied for over and over again and this girl speaks fluent Spanish. The hospital has used and abused her, sending her all over to translate and not paying her a penny more than her nursing salary. But in her particular area a lot of Spanish speaking mothers need a translator and she is demand.
The translators in her hospital get paid more than the nurses do. Both have a bachelor's degree, but the translators make significantly more.
Am I going in the wrong field???
Please don't misunderstand me, it is just frustrating that in some ways it feels like we are enabling the non-English speaking community.
My wife and I have been to Mexico 4 times. No English speaking Mexicans there -- they all spoke Spanish and we had to learn a few phrases in order to make our stay easier. If we went anywhere in the world we wouldn't be catered to. And why should we be? We would choose to live in the country that speaks French/Spanish/German/Portuguese we should learn their language.
Okay, I'm off my soapbox. Now I'm off to learn Spanish since that may help my marketability in this area and my starting wage may be greater.
I was 8 when I moved to Carthage with my parents. At that time I was extremely unaware of the two different kinds of Spanish speaking people: Guatemalans and Hispanics. I saw them in my school -- children my age who spoke very little English and who often translated for their parents.
It didn't seem like a big deal until I got older. Any job in Carthage it seemed like a desired quality would be Spanish speaking. No, not Hispanic of Guatemalan Spanish speakers, but biligual English speaking people. You had to be able to speak both English and Spanish fluently.
It didn't make any sense to me that people who were immigrants (sometimes even illegally) were being catered to. Anywhere you saw it, older Spanish speaking people relying on their children to translate or even do some kind of sign language to get their point across.
The language barrier is great and in some ways continues to grow, but I don't understand why we are encouraged to learn their language if they don't have to learn English? Doesn't that enable them?
My wife has witnessed this time and time again being in the medical field -- Spanish speaking nurses preferred over non-Spanish speaking. One of her close friends landed a much coveted job that she applied for over and over again and this girl speaks fluent Spanish. The hospital has used and abused her, sending her all over to translate and not paying her a penny more than her nursing salary. But in her particular area a lot of Spanish speaking mothers need a translator and she is demand.
The translators in her hospital get paid more than the nurses do. Both have a bachelor's degree, but the translators make significantly more.
Am I going in the wrong field???
Please don't misunderstand me, it is just frustrating that in some ways it feels like we are enabling the non-English speaking community.
My wife and I have been to Mexico 4 times. No English speaking Mexicans there -- they all spoke Spanish and we had to learn a few phrases in order to make our stay easier. If we went anywhere in the world we wouldn't be catered to. And why should we be? We would choose to live in the country that speaks French/Spanish/German/Portuguese we should learn their language.
Okay, I'm off my soapbox. Now I'm off to learn Spanish since that may help my marketability in this area and my starting wage may be greater.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Oklahoma City Bombing
Today marks the 15 year anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing. Most of us that are old enough to remember can remember the exact moment they found out about this devestating life changing moment that happened in the United States. In 1995 that was the largest act of terroism ever to occur. Unfortunately since then we have witnessed several other terrorist-like attacks with the largest being of course the attack on September 11th. For most of us that seems like a violent attacks on our land in our lifetime, but we really have been fortunate compared to most third world countries where attacks seem like a normal part of life.
A total of 168 people were killed during the Oklahoma City bombing some of them being children. I remember watching a special after the clean up of the bombing and a family was able to have closure because the authorities recovered one of their 6 year-old daughter's hands in the rubble. I was in the 6-7th grade when I heard this, but it made such an impact on me. I felt so thankful that I didn't have to experience my family members being completely destroyed and only having a body part left of them.
We all also remember the daunting story of the bomber, Timothy McVeigh, who showed no remorse for this actions. If you are really that demented you can watch the documentary made by MSBNBC that includes clips of audio from his confession. He goes into detail about his plan to kill many people along with his co-conspirator, Terry Nichols. Anyone who has kept up with this story know that the day of his execution, while controversial, was secretly welcomed by most and I know that some of us wish we could see more evil people also meet their doom.
I know it was a horrible event, but I think that it's entirely appropriate for students who were too young or not born yet to experience some of this painful tradegy. We need to be aware of these horrible things in order to fully appreciate the life we have been allowed to live (free of tragic occurrances). Hopefully most of us will be spared from the world's ugliness during our lifetime, but we shouldn't ever forget those lives lost from events such as the Oklahoma City Bombing.
A total of 168 people were killed during the Oklahoma City bombing some of them being children. I remember watching a special after the clean up of the bombing and a family was able to have closure because the authorities recovered one of their 6 year-old daughter's hands in the rubble. I was in the 6-7th grade when I heard this, but it made such an impact on me. I felt so thankful that I didn't have to experience my family members being completely destroyed and only having a body part left of them.
We all also remember the daunting story of the bomber, Timothy McVeigh, who showed no remorse for this actions. If you are really that demented you can watch the documentary made by MSBNBC that includes clips of audio from his confession. He goes into detail about his plan to kill many people along with his co-conspirator, Terry Nichols. Anyone who has kept up with this story know that the day of his execution, while controversial, was secretly welcomed by most and I know that some of us wish we could see more evil people also meet their doom.
I know it was a horrible event, but I think that it's entirely appropriate for students who were too young or not born yet to experience some of this painful tradegy. We need to be aware of these horrible things in order to fully appreciate the life we have been allowed to live (free of tragic occurrances). Hopefully most of us will be spared from the world's ugliness during our lifetime, but we shouldn't ever forget those lives lost from events such as the Oklahoma City Bombing.
1st Visit
We just got back from my wife's first prenatal visit. We got to see our little baby for the first time on ultrasound it was waving with its stub arm and we could see its little heart flicker. I was so glad to have seen all of this considering the circumstances and stress that have been surrounding this little fellow. All looked good and our midwife was very reassuring.
We also met with Susie, the financial aid lady who was extremely kind. She put us on a self-pay payment plan of a tidy little sum of $300/month for all the prenatal visits. She also gave us Freeman's hospital plan that is just for self-payers and is quite a substantial discount. We also have to have that paid for before we go in to have our baby.
Even though it has been scary with everything that is going on and the uncertainty of our future we do know that the Lord promises to take care of us and to take care of my wife and baby. We sold a vehicle to pay for the hospital bills and maternity leave so even though we are down to one vehicle we are getting by okay!
So I guess this is to be continued for the next seven months as my wife is 10 weeks and 2 days counting......
We also met with Susie, the financial aid lady who was extremely kind. She put us on a self-pay payment plan of a tidy little sum of $300/month for all the prenatal visits. She also gave us Freeman's hospital plan that is just for self-payers and is quite a substantial discount. We also have to have that paid for before we go in to have our baby.
Even though it has been scary with everything that is going on and the uncertainty of our future we do know that the Lord promises to take care of us and to take care of my wife and baby. We sold a vehicle to pay for the hospital bills and maternity leave so even though we are down to one vehicle we are getting by okay!
So I guess this is to be continued for the next seven months as my wife is 10 weeks and 2 days counting......
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
