This is perfect for all of us who shop online for the best deal. I wish someone would set something up like this for brewing equipment! When I was setting up my kegerator years ago I had to make a spreadsheet to add up everything and calculate total cost! For hockey supplies its all there!

Peace,
Tony

Then one day it just stopped running all together. The light would come on and that was it. Man, now we had to get a new microwave!

Hang on there just a quick second! Marrying into a family with a brother that used to take apart stuff like this for fun once again shows its worth. My brother in law took a quick look under the case and found a switch that was corroded out, faulty. He pulled that out, showed me what I needed to go get and where to get it.

Sure enough, after waiting a couple of days for the appliance place to get the part back in stock we are back in business!

The total cost of the repair came to less than five dollars not including the bit of gas it took to drive to the store. Had we bought a new one we would be out well over $100, and had we found a place to repair it we would likely have been out at least $50.

Looking inside to see where the problem was saved us a lot of money! Before we though out things like that it pays to look inside to make sure it isn’t something relatively easy to fix, like this was.

Peace,
Tony

Then the politicians of both parties saying they want to help out people defaulting on their mortgages. Keep them in their homes, they say. Its not their fault, they are simply victims of predatory lending. Really?!? Those lenders forced these people to sign on the line for a sketchy loan, huh? Held them down until they signed, I’m sure.

Come on. Where is the personal responsibility? Here we sit clipping coupons and pinching dimes to make sure we stay in the black and can pay our bills when they are due. We moved two years ago to a new city. Our bank was offering us a mortgage amount that was stunning, and we knew there was NO way we’d be able to pay that much back. So we went with a house that we knew we could handle and a debt from the bank that was far less than what they were willing to lend us.

So what happens to folks like us? We see huge failing companies being bailed out, a possibility of struggling folks being helped to keep houses they shouldn’t have bought in the first place. What about us? Why the heck did we go and be responsible, budget our money and live frugally? Where is our bailout?!?

Man, it is so frustrating to watch the news. I can feel bad for some folks, I really can, but to expect our money to help folks who dug their own hole… its frustrating. Dig them out and what will they do? Turn their life around, become fiscally responsible? Yeah, right.

I better stop, I can feel my ire going higher.

Peace,
Tony

To think it was twice that a couple months ago really makes me wonder about the whole process though. I’ll never admit to being an economist!

Peace,
Tony

Here’s the deal, I don’t care who you vote for so long as you go and vote. I haven’t met anyone who hasn’t had something to complain about in politics, economy, the state of the nation, or the progress of the war. People like to complain about ridiculous city statues, state policies and taxes. GO VOTE! You don’t like something VOTE about it!

If you don’t vote, you have no business complaining. If you are unwilling to vote, I don’t want to hear you complain. Think about this, too: your vote at the local level carries more weight than in national elections. You want to vote for someone who will do something to affect your life directly? Inform yourself about the city council positions and other local races.

It took me maybe an hour to familiarize myself with my ballot and who is up for election.

Peace,
Tony

Watch though, it’ll shoot up back close to $3 by the end of the week. I bet two growlers of my beer on it! Any takers?

Tomorrow is voting day, no matter what your politics make sure your voice is heard. If you haven’t found out what is going to be on your ballot yet, do so. Check your county website for a sample ballot, take a quick look at who is up for election and vote your choices. Your vote at the local level carries much more weight than the national level. Do a little homework tonight before you cast the ballot tomorrow! Prove the naysayers wrong, our population can make informed voting choices!

Peace,
Tony

Here is Val’s latest carving:

Heehee. No, we’re not leaving it in our front yard without us right there.

Yes, she did carve a couple more traditional ones that the girls drew. We had them draw on construction paper what face they wanted on their pumpkins.

Roasted pumkin seeds are also a good treat!

Peace,
Tony

NO.

I bought four buckets of the best sealer, the squeegee brush thing (or two), and pourable crack filler for well under $100. One day I filled the cracks, the next day I put the first coat, and as per the directions regarding a better seal, did a second coat the following day.

It looks really nice and it was pretty easy to do. I would highly recommend doing it yourself.

Peace,
Tony

It was teddy bear day so she got to bring her turtle along with. Look close at her eyes, for a girl who used to wake up at 8am, having daddy shake her awake at 6:50 was a bit of a shock to the system. She popped out of bed and tip toed out for her breakfast without waking sister.

I got her ready to go and we all made the journey to the school for her first day. She sat down at her desk and never looked back! The picture that I took of her at her desk was blurry otherwise I’d post that one too.

I picked her up this afternoon and she had a tired, glazed look on her face but was very chatty. I found out about the new friends she met, how her teacher read her stories, where she went for lunch, quiet time on the floor with the towel, a running game in gym with music, what she had for snack time and and and…

here is the after picture:

Certainly not much worse for the wear. She was dissappointed that she couldn’t ride the bus home though! I told her “we’ll see”.

And not to be left out, I had to take a picture of L in her backpack!

She starts preschool next week! My kids are growing up.

Peace,
Tony

Head over to my other blog, Brew Dad, scroll down to the contest, read the rules and post a comment! The contest will close in a week and a half, so there is time to get in. Its for a free something or another with a Guinness logo on it. NO, I am not giving away beer.

Peace,
Tony