New Kitchen

Well we are probably less than 2 weeks away from closing on our new house. Well new to us. The kitchen needs some updating so we are going to remodel it right away. Here is a look at out colors and materials.
One change already has come to be. The floor. We are doing caramelized bamboo floor through much of the house but after doing some testing with a sample piece of flooring we decided it was too soft for the kitchen. I dropped my keys on the sample from about 4 feet up and it dented the flooring pretty badly. Last thing we need is to drop a can of soup on the floor and have a ring stamped on our floor. So we'll look at tile.

Everything else should be about right. A warm putty color on the walls, spice colored maple cabinets, nice rich brown laminate counters, and neutral tile back splash with bit of brown glass in the accent tiles.

We elected for laminate counters because our neighborhood is nice but not that nice and honestly we don't care for the hardness of granite. We'll have a bullnose edge on the counters so it'll have an appearance of stone without the cost.

Though not pictured I think we are going to go with bronze fixtures, knobs and pulls for our metal finish. It should go well with the other browns and warm tones we are working with.

I'm not excited about the construction but the end result will be nice and it'll be done early so we won't have to worry about dealing with it later.

House Hunting

We have begun the hunt for new house. We've been looking online, checking out open houses and even working with a Realtor. It's been about three weeks or so now and we've learned a lot.

1. Don't go by what the bank says you can afford. Even with tighter lending practices the bank will let you borrow more than you really should borrow. We could buy a very nice house, move in ready, in a great neighborhood, but then the house would be our prison. We'd have little money for going out, vacationing, etc. The house would rule all. That's no fun at all.

2. Evaluate the whole cost of purchase. We have a decent amount of money in the bank for a down payment but once you factor in moving costs, closing costs (yes I know you can probably get the seller to pay those these days, but still...), breaking our apartment lease fees, and other unexpected initial move in expenses, we'd not have as much to put down on the house as we initially expected. That means save more or pay points/PMI. There is a point of diminishing returns with saving more money VS paying the points, especially with interest rates so low, but right now time is still on our side.
3. Buy a house for the right reasons. Sure it's nice to move into that nice neighborhood and show off to your friends and family but will they really think so little of you if you move into a neighborhood that is more realistic for your means? If you answer is yes, reconsider your friends. The family is more complicated but I say give them the finger and live your life as it makes sense for you. And give yourself the finger if you were trying to show off by buying into those more expensive neighborhoods.

4. Don't be ashamed of your price range. There are a lot of houses out there that are over-priced. A LOT of people bought into those homes for the wrong reasons and are now in trouble or have been foreclosed on. If they bought more realistically they wouldn't be there right now. There are a lot of great homes in the lower price points that have been neglected because everyone was buying 'up'. These houses are still great but need a bit of work. If you can buy a $150K house, put $20K (out of pocket, not credit) into it over a few years and end up with a $200K house, then you've done a LOT better than someone who bought the $200K house.

5. Buy a house that will not tank you financially if one of you looses your job. In our case we both make decent money and we have looked at a mortgage financed only by one of our jobs. If one of us looses our job, and in this economy it CAN happen, we can still afford to pay the mortgage. Sure we could have pooled our income and financing and probably buy a VERY nice house, but then what happens when one of us looses our job? That's when the bank starts knocking on the door that THEY own.

There is so much more that I'm still learning about myself and what I want VS what I need in a house. Sure we might have to remodel the kitchen and rip up some floors. The positive thing is that we'll end up with a nice house in the end, but still have enough money to do the things we enjoy in life. One's quality of life shouldn't be determined by "The Jones'".

Comment on the Automotive "Bail out"

First, I hate the term "Bail-Out" here. The automakers have been asking for a government loan from day one, not free money. My issue is that it is misleading and makes people think that the automakers are asking for free money.

I've heard good arguments on both sides of this debate from car pundits (Carolla, Leno, Clarkson)who have a bit to loose but not as much as the automakers (I mean the men and women on the line) and the many businesses that support the automakers by manufacturing parts or providing services for the businesses and workers.

Do I think Ford, GM and Chrysler are all going to get their acts together and become new and great manufacturers? No, I don't. I honestly believe that there will be some terrible failures to readjust and one will fail or have to strip down so much that it will be a shadow of it's current state.

The 'Big 3' have dropped the ball and ignored the changes in the world economy. I've heard some suggest that the auto industry take some queues from the computer industry. So you have a few companies that make great engines. Some that make great transmissions. And then Ford just designs a nice shell for all those parts to go into. The past trend was to own or control as many steps in the chain as possible. Maybe that needs to change. The whole automotive world could be forever changed by what happens to the Big 3 in the next couple of years.

The problem isn't all the automakers. We had very fuel efficient cars in the 80's and into the 90s, but then everyone wanted giant SUVs with terrible mileage. The GEO Metro got nearly the same mileage as the Prius.* Sure it's a crap car but most people only need to commute from Point A to Point B. The Metro was considerable more affordable to produce with a simple and small 3 cylinder engine.**


However, you can't keep up with (in terms of image) the other Soccer moms driving giant SUVs or keep up with your sales rival driving the new BMW in your little fuel efficient GEO Metro. The only reason the Prius is acceptable in that regard is because "Green" is hip and cool right now. Even with it's greenness, maybe people still frown on it's looks.

The auto makers have plenty to be held accountable for, but us drivers are just as much to blame. We demand, they supply. Simple as that.

Two things need to happen. No necessarily both, but at least one or the other. 1) Oil burning vehicles need to become cost prohibitive to the mass majority. 2) Alternative fuel vehicles need to be affordable and exciting. Exciting is important. Top selling cars and trucks aren't top selling because they are boring. (I'm talking to you Prius.)

* - My research on the GEO Metro MPG varied greatly, but was in, on average, the 40-50 MPG range. The Prius is right on par with that MPG.
** - It should be noted that while the Metro was cheaper to make it also was lacking most of the safety features of today. It's unlikely that GM could make a Metro now at the same price and mileage due to those requirements.

Working from Home

Working from home is a new thing for me. Sure I'd occasionally work from home if I wasn't feeling well or other reasons I needed to stay home but was capable of working, but it's not the same. When you work from home, after hours because of a specific project or task, that's easy to say with, but if you are just working from home now and again, it's easy to get distracted from what needs to get done, because you can always do it tomorrow.

When you work from home full time things change. You don't have tomorrow to take care of those things. The work has to be done when it's supposed to be done. Even more so there is a pressure, whether real or imagined, that you have to work extra hard to show that you are indeed working. You are your own supervisor and you can be a tough boss.

Well that's how it is for me so far.

Additionally you never fully leave work. You work where you live, so your computer, your phone, etc are right around the corner. It's a strange thing. I do a pretty good job of separating my work life and home life, but this confuses that a bit. I could go grab a beer from the fridge. (I have not done that, but I could.) The bathroom is my own and really close. Lots of similar examples.

Leaving work at 5pm is going to be an important habit to develop now that work is in the other room. But it also creates an odd cabin fever. I have to get out more, which in itself is not a bad thing but it creates an interesting situation.

I feel fortunate that I've not fallen into the trap of having a TV in the other room, or playing games or other distractions. I was worried about those things but they've not been a problem at all.

At the end of the day it's simply getting used to having a new work habit. It's an unusual one for someone who has always worked in an office (not at home), but not a bad one. After one week I think I'm doing pretty good. Let's hope that continues to be the case.

Can I move on from politics now?

Looking at my posts for the last few months and I've been very political lately. Now that the elections are over maybe I can step off my soap box for awhile. But then what? What should I write about now?

Well I did move to a whole new state. Yes, I was living in Tennessee and now I'm in Nebraska. I'm a born and raised Nebraskan/Husker so the move back wasn't really a hard choice for us (my wife and I).

Our house is all but sold (just waiting on the closing). We'll probably buy again here in Nebraska but we are renting for now.

I'm working from a home office for the same company I worked for in Tennessee. I feel very privileged and gracious that my bosses felt comfortable enough to let me do this. It still feels odd but it will get easier and more natural over time. Hell I've only been doing it for three days now.

We have to fly back down to TN to pick up my car. I had to leave it there due to the fact that the Uhaul I rented ended up being too small and I had to pull a trailer with more of our stuff instead of a trailer with my car. It puts more miles on the car but it'll be in a garage most of the winter since it has summer rubber on the wheels and I work at home so I don't need to drive all the time, so the miles will not be a big issue.

I do know I'll miss driving my car though. It's SOOO much fun to drive. I'll have to get out every once in awhile, so long as the roads are clear. (winter and summer tires don't mix well)

Not sure if I'm going to try to fix my bike or buy a new one. My old Specialized Hard Rock Sport from 1992 is a bit beat up. It's not bad but it needs a tune up really badly. The last tune up really didn't help much either. It's just old. But new ones cost $400-500 for a good bike. I'm not going to buy a Walmart special. Ugh!

I'm waiting for a KVM switch (that's a Keyboard/Video/Mouse switch, which allows multiple computers to be connected to one set of keyboard/video(monitor)/and mouse.). I have two work machines plus my personal one. It's a pain how I have it setup currently. Once I have the KVM I'll be much better able to work.

Ok so that's a lot of miscellaneous crap, but it's not politics!

Obama a Socialist?

In the last week or so Obama’s tax plan has been compared to socialism. I personally do not agree, though I can see why some would say this. Frankly the more recent bail-out plan that both McCain and Obama voted for is much more socialist than taxing the rich a bit more.

The bottom line is this: The gap between the rich and the middle-class is huge and getting larger. Is this acceptable?

I say, “No!”

There have been numerous examples through history that show how destabilizing and how damaging it can be for a country when the rich tower too far above the rest. That was a major catalyst for the French Revolution. Or another way to look at it, do we become serf or slaves to the rich land owners, bankers, politicians?

Again I say, “No!”

CEOs are getting paid huge amounts in bonuses and other benefits, aside from their large six figure salaries. Middle-class wages, however, are fairly stagnate and benefits are cut regularly. I don’t agree with unions but they may have to come back to bring fairness into the equation. The rich are getting richer off the backs of the middle-class who are working just as hard as always, maybe harder, and getting less for their work.

Is Obama or his tax plan going to completely level the playing field? It absolutely will not. Most of the wealthy that would be affected by Obama’s tax plan will barely feel the pinch. Most of them can afford to pay tax advisers to find loop holes and other ways to avoid paying all the taxes they are supposed to anyway. Hell even we in the middle class do that! We look for any way to reduce our taxes we can. No one likes paying taxes, but the wealthy can certainly afford to do so much more than I. When gas prices jump, when food prices jump, when equity in our homes plummets, what are we left with? Living paycheck to paycheck wondering if we’ll have enough gas to make it to work tomorrow? Fearing that if your wife loses her job that you’ll lose your house? Having to go to a food bank for the first time in your life so that your children can have a decent meal? The wealthy don’t have to worry about that. They should be ethically and socially responsible and help those who need help. It should be their personal duty to spread the wealth. They shouldn’t have to be told to help but some have to be told.

To all those very wealthy who would be adversely affected by Obama’s tax plan:

• Do you really need more than a couple houses? I can understand a vacation home and your ‘regular’ home but why more?
• Do you really need a $100,000 car, in some cases multiple high-priced cars? A $30-40K car is pretty nice these days.
• What are you spending your money on anyway? Are you wasting it on silly toys and rare foods? Are you hording it away?
• Why is it so bad to give a bit more to help keep the country that made you so wealthy running well? Help educate the children. Help the less fortunate get on their feet and make something of themselves. Help make wages fair and equitable for all. These things would help the entire country excel. Isn’t that a good thing?
  

So finally, no I don’t think Obama is a socialist for his tax plan. It’s not like he’s taking all the money away from the rich and making everyone equal in a utopian middle-class. It won’t work. As long are there is money and man, there will always be a class system, but it does not have to be unfair.

Quick Thoughts on Final Debate

My mind is now made up. Here is how I saw the debate:

McCain: It's all about the Benjamins! Money money money, that's all he seemed to care about. Not in relation to the middle-class but in every case. When talking about Columbia he talked about all the money we can make from them but didn't give a shit if it was blood money or not.

Obama: Long term growth. Obama was looking at the long term picture, something that has been sorely lacking in Washington and the economy for awhile now. Invest now so that we can reap the rewards later. This is a sound and logical plan!

Body language was also important in this debate. Obama frequently talked directly to us the watchers of the debate. McCain did better this time on that front, but not as well as Obama. If McCain said something that needed correcting, Obama would smile and have a look of, "There goes grandpa again.". When Obama said something that McCain thought needed correcting he rolled his eyes and sighed a lot. Careful Obama I think you're making grandpa angry.

Respect. I know Obama respects McCain, you can hear it in the way he talks to him. On the other hand McCain does not seem to respect Obama much. Experience may be important but it's not what makes a great president. Bob asked the candidates to explain why their VP pick was better than their rivals, I thought, OK here is where the better man will shine. I was wrong, both did well, but I can't help but wonder if Obama going first set the stage for McCains answer. The fact that Obama didn't take any shots at Palin showed great diplomacy and respect. He certainly could have torn into her, especially comparing her against Biden, but he didn't. He let Biden stand on his merits. McCain did the same and I give him credit for that.

This was definitely McCains best debate. It was more focused and it felt like real information was shared with the voting public on what both candidates would do if they won the presidency. Despite how much better McCain did, he was overly aggressive, attacked constantly and came off angry and hot headed. I don't personally want that kind of person leading diplomacy for the USA, not right now. There are too many hot beds where that kind of personality could lead this country into more conflicts that we simply cannot afford.