"What a fool I was, what a dominated fool,
to think that you were the earth and the sky,
What a fool I was, What an elevated fool,
What a mutton-headed dote was I!
No, my reverberated friend,
you are not the beginning and the end."
"Without You", from the musical "My Fair Lady" by Lerner and Lowe
It occurs to me that the drum thumping we're hearing about "being green" is just a new way to sell us stuff.
I bought my first car of my own choosing in 1977. I bought my first brand new car in 1978. I have slavishly followed the introduction of new chrome trim, of slightly more horsepower, of new upholstery since well before I had a driver license.
I have spent, in a rough estimate, $117,800 in depreciation since 1977, plus all of the interest to have a few weeks of feeling like I had the newest, most up to date ..whatever.
Call it an even hundred fifty thou. To have six brand spankin' new GM cars and three brand spankin' new Ford cars that made me feel like I was the leader of the pack for a total of three months each, so twenty-seven months.
Five Thousand, Five Hundred, Fifty Five and 55/100 Dollars per month. $185.00 a day.
The point of this is that last week, I drove my twelve year old Buick to Dallas and back the same day. She achieved more than 28 miles per gallon on the freeway.
I paid $3800 for her, and she'll be worth $3800 tomorrow, next week and next year.
There is no loan, so she's costing me nothing, sitting out there in the car port. Just the insurance, which is only sixty bucks a month.
What do I give away by not having the newest, the most up to date car?
Fuel economy? Nothing.
Comfort? Nothing.
Gadgets? Nothing, once I install a new stereo into her.
Unique appearance? Find another one; I'm practically driving a flying saucer
Environmental emissions? Sure, my emissions aren't as clean as a brand new car - BUT I'm not consuming any new natural resources, or contributing to any new emissions related to the manufacturing process.
So, owning the car costs me nothing but the repairs, the gas mileage is equivalent to nearly anything sold newly, my safety features are up to date, my toys and features are up to date and this thing will NEVER cost me interest or depreciation.
And yet, the pull of the new car is so very strong.
But I'm done being a fool.
DJHJD
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Sunday, March 28, 2010
The Dark Side of Women
(a little story forwarded to me by my Dark Side gal pal Ruth)
A woman was in town on a shopping trip. She began her day by finding the most perfect shoes in the first shop and a beautiful dress on sale in the second. In the third, everything had just been reduced by 50 percent when her mobile phone rang.
It was a female doctor notifying her that her husband had just been in a terrible car accident and was in critical condition in the ICU. The woman told the doctor to inform her husband where she was and that she'd be there as soon as possible.
As she hung up she realized she was leaving what was shaping up to be her best day ever in the boutiques. She decided to get in a couple more shops before heading to the hospital. She ended up shopping the rest of the morning, finishing her trip with a cup of coffee and a beautiful chocolate cake slice, compliments of the last shop . She was jubilant. Then she remembered her husband. Feeling guilty, she dashed to the hospital. She saw the woman doctor in the corridor and asked about her husband's condition.
The doctor glared at her and shouted, "You went ahead and finished your shopping trip, didn't you!? I hope you're proud of yourself! While you were out for the past four hours enjoying yourself in town, your husband has been languishing in the Intensive Care Unit!
It's just as well you went ahead and finished, because it will more than likely be the last shopping trip you ever take! For the rest of his life he will require round-the-clock care. And he will now be your career!"
The woman, overcome with guilt, broke down and sobbed.
Then the woman doctor chuckled and said, "I'm just messing with you. He's dead. Show me what you bought."
A woman was in town on a shopping trip. She began her day by finding the most perfect shoes in the first shop and a beautiful dress on sale in the second. In the third, everything had just been reduced by 50 percent when her mobile phone rang.
It was a female doctor notifying her that her husband had just been in a terrible car accident and was in critical condition in the ICU. The woman told the doctor to inform her husband where she was and that she'd be there as soon as possible.
As she hung up she realized she was leaving what was shaping up to be her best day ever in the boutiques. She decided to get in a couple more shops before heading to the hospital. She ended up shopping the rest of the morning, finishing her trip with a cup of coffee and a beautiful chocolate cake slice, compliments of the last shop . She was jubilant. Then she remembered her husband. Feeling guilty, she dashed to the hospital. She saw the woman doctor in the corridor and asked about her husband's condition.
The doctor glared at her and shouted, "You went ahead and finished your shopping trip, didn't you!? I hope you're proud of yourself! While you were out for the past four hours enjoying yourself in town, your husband has been languishing in the Intensive Care Unit!
It's just as well you went ahead and finished, because it will more than likely be the last shopping trip you ever take! For the rest of his life he will require round-the-clock care. And he will now be your career!"
The woman, overcome with guilt, broke down and sobbed.
Then the woman doctor chuckled and said, "I'm just messing with you. He's dead. Show me what you bought."
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