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Archive for August, 2008

People and their Cars...

August 3rd, 2008 at 04:12 pm

One thing that has always struck me about my parents is that they have never spent much on cars.

2 exceptions.

They bought a brand new Toyota in 1981 or so. They've never bought a brand new car, before or since, but I don't think they regret it at all either. I ended up buying it from them when I was a teen and retired it when the engine gave out in 1999. The car got well enough use. (Almost 20 years. I would have driven it longer if it hadn't of just DIED one day. Well over 200k miles).

AND, my mom bought some really fancy car around 1997.

It was a car that was $50k brand new, but she found one a couple of years old for $20k.

Anyway, these were the car splurges my parents did over the years - one for each (the Toyota was my dads).

There's no other reason so obvious why they have been able to save so much over the years. They have never really spent much on cars. (I doubt any of their other cars cost more than $10k and they tend to drive them for a couple of decades).

So my mom tells me yesterday that she ran into a neighbor and my mom said, "Nice car!" I forgot what make she said it was, but something fancy.

They guy says, "Yeah, but it's OLD! It's an '05."

Pfffffffttttttt!!!!

Telling my family that an '05 is an OLD car? Puh-leeze.

My mom said, "Well my car (fancy as it is, mind you) is a 1995."

My mom said his jaw just dropped.

"Wow!!!"

Almost in a good way, like "I can't believe your nice car is 13 years old."

It actually looks rather modern.

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Of course, I notice this really in particular as a young person. You don't know how many people who have told me about their piece of crap 2000 or 2005 cars while I was driving a car from 1992.

I just roll my eyes.

Since we have 2 relatively new cars I haven't gotten it so much lately. (2001 & 2005 - might as well be brand spanking new to me).

But I am starting to notice this with the 2001 Ford. We have got about 90k miles on the Ford, and it seems like everyone I know is hitting 100k miles and freaking out. Time to buy a new car!!!!!

I'm just like thinking, are they kidding? This car is such a BABY to us.

Not planning on willingly trading up any time soon. No thanks. 5 more years at the least! (The car cost us a whopping $7888 in 2002. & it gets such stellar gas mileage it is going up in value all of a sudden. I wrote it off as worthless, suddenly it is worth $4k? So bizarre. Talk about a deal on a car. One of our better purchases, yes).

The 2005? I have 10 more years in mind (at the least). Since it is the newest car, by far, I have ever owned, I would have never thought of it as old. Wink

I guess this is a warning that the old car comments are coming for the 2000 decade of cars. Yeesh. IT was kind of nice for a while not having all my friends insult me so indirectly. (So whoa is me with their "old" cars, while my car was a decade older).

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Reminds me of another funny car story.

My in-laws have an old Geo MEtro (1990 or something??????) that their niece gave to them when she retired it. I have no idea what the story is on that - just know they ended up with it (though had never seen them drive it - they already have 2 cars).

Maybe they are saving it as a gift for BM some day or something. Seriously. They are kind of weird like that. LOL. (Whereas I'd sell it and invest the proceeds so I could buy a nicer car in 11 years when he turns 16. They are the types to save something for 16 years, yes).

I am kind of kidding, but as I said it, I start to wonder. LOL.

Anyway, I guess FIL has taken to driving it a bit more with gas prices (I didn't even know it still run!)

So some random guy asked him if he would trade his little old Geo Metro (teeny-tiny car) for his SUV. LOL. He was total serious - gave him an offer in the parking lot.

Honestly, it probably would have been a good trade. I am sure the SUV was worth far more than the car. Could have sold it perhaps?

Will never know I guess. Wink

It is just amazing to me. How many people I know who wouldn't get caught dead in anything but a SUV? Now reduced to such desperation.

Kind of sad really.

But yeah, not really feeling very sorry for them either. Hehe. It's nice to see some sanity return to the masses. Then again I still can't believe people are going so extreme. (It really is the desperation). From the SUVs to public transit. & little Geo Metros. I never would have guessed it. So bizarre.

& it is extra bizarre to have so many people who thought we were just cheap suddenly jealous of our little Ford subcompact. LOL. People are just so weird.

Insurance/Frugie Weekend

August 2nd, 2008 at 06:27 am

We've been enjoying a bit too much so am keeping it low key this weekend.

Tonight we went to a local park for the unveiling of their yellow brick road. We bought a brick last year with the kids' names engraved. They are just starting construction.

It was CROWDED, but they had an awesome spread. We had beef, corn on the cob, salad, hot dogs, etc. After the line thinned out dh went back for seconds. So we made out well. (Couldn't let that food go to waste anyway. I was actually surprised they had enough food, with some to spare).

They also had a cute little puppet show.

That was a good start to our attempt at a no-spend weekend.

BM is with grandma so dh will have to pick him up Sunday, and did buy gas today.

I think somehow I got out of the loop. Grandma always asks to keep the kids way too many days and I always say no. I was so busy with work I just didn't get very involved in the arrangements. Next thing I know BM will be gone about 90 hours. How the heck did that happen?

Oh well, I will try to enjoy the peace.

Next time I will pay more attention.

Of course, if I want him back Saturday, I have to say Friday. She always comes up with an excuse. Dh told me Sunday morning and she told me sunday night. Whatever. Soon enough he starts school and won't have endless days to spend with Grandma. & when the kids are older and she takes them both for a time, I don't think we'll complain. Big Grin

We'll go through this next weekend with LM though. She's taking him next Friday or something. I should demand him home Saturday, to be on the safe side... Wink

The weekend is my time for my babies. But it is nice to get more one-on-one time with them.

Anyway, tomorrow I will probably go to aerobics and dh has a long volunteer shift.

Sunday we'll probably go swimming and may get a free meal when we pick up BM. Another perk.

Gas usage will be high, but don't plan to spend any cash this weekend.

The credit card closes Sunday night and we have no more money to spend - so why we are heavy on the no-spend weekend. Which is fine. We have been enjoying a bit too much lately.

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We have our new e-mail set up and I put a lot of stuff up on Craigslist that I Was shocked to get NO responses on. I wondered in the back of my head, all along, if something was wrong with my e-mail. But a couple of interested parties did get through (though I made NO sales).

Anyway, my gut was right. Should have trusted the gut.

Anyway, yesterday I forwarded a paypal notification to dh from my ymail account, and happened to tell him over the phone, and he said he never got it. So I sent it again, and to my home e-mail. Never came through.

So dh called AT&T today and turns out the standard setting on the spam filter was high. It was so high that if dh e-mailed people and they wrote back it would go to the spam file (lost in space). !!!!!!!!!!!

Lord knows how many lost Craigslist sales we both had with that crap.

I feel better though. It explains MUCH. Dh uses another e-mail to post on Craigslist but said he generally replies to them using the ATT account. & many never got back to him.

I can't help but wonder how much more money he would have made this last month if his e-mail was actually functioning properly.

& me too!!!!!

I couldn't understand why no one would buy our strollers. I was wondering what the heck we would do with them.

Yeesh.

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As far as insurance, I generally do not shop around for insurance. I have had the same insurance since I was 16, (auto and home) and I have shopped around a couple of times.

I feel strongly there is more to an insurance company than good rates. (For sure). But I also have a strong loyalty to my company because it has always been the cheapest of any company I would consider. (Not that I shop OFTEN, but have a few times).

So I barely even bother anymore. I am one loyal customer.

We actually have State Farm, but they treat their long-time customers with multiple lines, rather well. People always have told me they are so expensive, but they shopping around proves otherwise.

Anyway, but today I received a quote from Mercury mortgage. Not sure how I feel about them on the home front, but have heard good things on the auto front. Dh used to have them, but when we got married, State Farm won on price. We consolidated our insurance.

I got an e-mail from my professional association today that Mercury offered 10% off auto insurance to its members.

What the heck? That's what I thought. Sounded rather promising.

Anyway, so I entered a bunch of information, and after the 10% rate cut they offered me higher auto premiums than we already pay.

Bah.

They also offered a multi-line discount if we added our home. But my State Farm loyalty discount, on top of that, blew them out of the water.

State Farm it is.

In the process, when I was looking up some of the limits on our policies, I noticed our auto insurance is going down again. My car insurance is due in a couple of months and they had already calculated it. 3% discount over last time. Woohoo.

So I did my good duty and shopped around a bit. But you can see why I rarely bother...

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Well, wish us luck, but I think we are DONE with diapers. Big Grin

LM has been doing amazingly well 24/7. Not that I expected it at all, but both kids just migrated to meeting this milestone at 3. Exactly 3.

LM hasn't soiled a diaper since his birthday 3 weeks ago. So dh told him if he made it through the 31st we would switch him to underwear at bedtime, and take down the safety gate from his doorway. (So he is free to use the potty at night).

He made that milestone today. Took down the gate. IT was a big day for him.

Not that we have been buying much diapers anyway, in recent months. But this is really quite a milestone.

I will be happy if I never see another diaper again. Big Grin

We had the diaper service so long, at $50/month, that it is just really nice to be rid of that expense. & though we have mostly been using disposables this year, and not spending much more than $20/month, it's just one less thing to buy.

Of course, there are plenty of other things the kids need, and where that money will go. There always is. More food. More education stuff. More dental care. Always something...

But I think officially our lives got a little simpler. Anyone with babies dreams of this day, right? LOL.

Big Grin


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