cars

I have a hoarding problem it would seem when it comes to cars. We currently have three, and I feel conflicted with the idea of parting with any of them. Two of them are paid in full, but have had their fair share of repairs. The repairs on the surface seem expensive but when considering the prospect of a long term commitment to a car payment, I feel better about the short term pain than ditching a car all together.

Having older cars is the reason we have AAA membership. When people make the argument that everyone that owns a car must buy car insurance is comparable to forcing everyone to buy health insurance, they are being silly. Car insurance doesn't primarily protect the owner, it protects banks and strangers from the owner if minimum coverage is purchased. AAA membership is more comparable to health insurance, yet not everyone has AAA membership.

Anyways, J is nine months pregnant and it is winter, so I have had her drive our biggest and newest car, Dodge Journey. Normally, it was for weekends and family trips, so the mileage has been low. The longer we hold on to the Sebring and Neon as weekday cars, the longer we can keep the mileage low on the family car. Currently the Sebring has noise it makes that sound like it's going over a manhole. Nothing too worrisome, but I'll drive the Neon until money is more freed up to pay for the repair to the Sebring.

The Neon has had an expensive year. Last winter and spring, it needed new tires in addition to new timing belt, water pump and another matter that was a few hundred bucks. I had the $2000 in upkeep spread out over a seven month period, and I was thoroughly annoyed when I had a rear brake fall apart and become wedged in the wheel well.

Ever back out of the garage and coast? Well I wasn't coasting, and for a moment thought I had hit something. Describing the situation to a mechanic, he aptly suggested I get the car towed on a flatbed to the shop. I called AAA, and a regular wrecker came! I said that I had asked for a flatbed since the rear tire was stuck, so the dude called dispatch and relayed to me it would a significant wait. He then tells me that he can use dollies, but it took him nearly an hour to get them attached. Before he started, he had me initial and sign a form. It was raining so I didn't read it before signing. I read my copy inside my house, and he had marked that my car had preexisting DAMAGE! Dude filled out a new ticket without a fuss, but I swear he was trying to pull a fast one on me.

The repair to the car was more than a car payment, but less than 2, so I am not too anxious to get rid of the Neon for a car that can seat 6 like the Mazda5. Haven't driven a Mazda5 yet, but there's a good chance it will be the next car we buy... if we don't get another Dodge Journey, at least! Just love the Journey! Mileage could be better in a Mazda5, but the known qualities of the Journey make it seem a luxury worth the extra gas. We have a Journey and don't need a second. We have two paid in full cars that are covered by AAA, so we're fine until one hits the beyond salvaging point.

Yes, I'm a car hoarder, but I think I'm content with 3 at a time.

too much free time

Not sure where my time goes, but I have a fair share of free time. I used to blog a bit in hopes of filling content that could lead to pageviews and thus revenue from AdSense clicks.  Nothing worthwhile came of the blah. I have moments when I review stuff I wrote and wonder about its origins. If I consumed alcohol or other mindbenders, I'd be better able to explain my lack of memory or the fact that I've had reoccurring thoughts that I never acted upon.

My wife is nine months pregnant with our third child, and I find myself thinking I don't remember being around doing the previous two pregnancies aside from conception and delivery. I have reasons for my aloofness, but they are silly. I was trying to not feel the pain I felt when we had a miscarriage.

I love my children and appreciate them more given that we suffered the loss. I am hardly the best I can be, and I have not settled for being a second rate husband and father, yet I have my blah days where I am on cruise control of selfish interests of isolation.

It's Christmas, and I can safely say my Christmases as an adult have been better than those I had prior to my meeting J. Life is too short not to appreciate each moment, yet I find myself reflecting here. I suppose that it could be worse, like playing video games, watching sports, or another mindless thing that is like empty caloric consumption.

Just a reminder to myself that blog entries should exist reflecting upon AAA tow truck drivers, ImproveIt repairmen, random mouse in the house, reconstituting the crib, Garmin GPS failure, Skinny Dip, Richard Zacks, FM/AM radio failure, Mazda5s, letter of apology from CENLAR, and seeing family after 5 years  as though nothing happened to cause an estrangement.

Last thought of tonight: When I was at work the other night, the kids there had skateboards. I remember when skating wasn't cool.  

awkward segue

The definition of "affordable" varies depending upon one's available resources. A Coke is a Coke, but a generic cola is cheaper. I'm conditioned to love my Coke and to stick my nose up at the "knock-off" brands.

I didn't drink Coke growing up. RC or Big K were the brands of cola stocked in the fridge when we had something other than 2% milk, Old Milwaukee's Best/Natural Lite, eggs, butter, orange juice FROM CONCENTRATE and Parmesan cheese.

I remember  the contents of the old fridge vividly. I learned to stop looking and find other things to do than eat while my folks "slept" during the weekend.

I have avoided being online a bit of late. Things have happened that merit blog entries more so than other events sprinkled throughout this domain, but time isn't a luxury I have to reflect upon AAA tow truck drivers, ImproveIt repairmen, random mouse in the house, reconstituting the crib, Garmin GPS failure, FM/AM radio failure, premature car shopping (Mazda5 looks like a nice car for a family of five, doesn't it?), and threatening to sue CENLAR for mortgage fraud. I could easily do an entry about each of those matters, but a certain machine is old and slow.

I started a blog post which was to be about health insurance, but I lost focus since I started talking about my childhood and getting to the difference between Big K and Coke. The analogy I was working towards was essentially that the Affordable Healthcare Act was probably affordable to those in the beltway who think nothing of buying imported bottled water, thus consider tap water to be only good for flushing toilets and ban it for the good of all.

Winter weight gain

With winter in full swing once again, the familiar retreat indoors is without a second guess as to where to be warm and cozy. Being outside less means more time lounging upon the couch. The treadmill could be used, but I have a job which may make the treadmill seem like sleeping.

In all seriousness, who writes trash filler for those pesky AAA newsletters I get in my email? I mean they appear to have potential for relevant information only to be painfully dull through their redundancy of making common sense realities seem to be the result of deeper contemplation.

Rather than blathering about my mediocre days of productivity every day, I have borrowed thoughts from various articles I have found. Through borrowing, I have infused a floor for my blog's conversation in terms of being approachable and consumed.Winter is a time of weight gain beyond the holidays and the coldness outside. There's more things on TV and the days are shorter. During the summer, there's re-runs and a lack of sports to watch beyond baseball. Winter still has first-run programming and three professional sports seasons in full swing....

Getting ready for Tax Season

Every year, I look forward to tax season. Sure they can wait to be done until mid-April, but waiting until the last minute with respect to taxes is dumb. Taxes have to be squared away, so the sooner you do them the less likely you'll miss the date they need filed. Of course, most people have reasons for not doing their taxes until the last minute, but I am getting a return. I usually wait on the paperwork to come in by January 31, and start filing February 1st. Filing online is free if you don't make too much, but I usually like to look over the hardcopy forms and figure out my return before plugging numbers into H&R Block or Turbotax software that oversimplifies the process.
I got my W-2s, my 1099s, and statements regarding mortgage and student loan interest.
I didn't get a 1099 from Leapforce, since I didn't get enough $ to merit such a document. I am so weary of filing incorrectly, that research scenarios.  I will plug in numbers and make sure every penny I made is respectfully documented.
This tax season is jacked up, so I haven't been in a rush to dig for too much info on things not set into hardcopy file form, at least.
I've yet to call or set up an in person appointment with the IRS, but I'm well aware of the options that are available without having to pay big $, especially for something I can get for free. 

Trade-in Versus Private Sale

I get emails from AAA all the time. They're mostly about Disney vacations or other adventure beyond my financial priorities, and I delete them quickly. The other day, I gleaned the message and saw a few items worth noting.  One item was titled: Trade-in Versus Private Sale

We own three cars. When we got the Journey, I figured that the other two cars we had were worth more to us than we could get for them. Obviously, I didn't realize I'd lose my job and essentially have two cars sitting at home regularly, but I still feel as though having three cars makes sense.

First, the older two cars ARE PAID OFF, and have regular maintenance. I trust my mechanic, and I figure using the older cars until they cease to run or cost too much to repair to keep.

How much is too much?  I usually think about the cost of a car payment. If a car's repair will keep it going at a better rate in return of a car payment, then I figure it's worthwhile to get items fixed. Buying new tires is nothing to look short-term. One has to look at the history of the manufacturer's cars' longevity with regards to variable not limited to mileage.

The biggest fear I have for a car, is to have it die on the highway. We have AAA for that very reason.

Another consideration is the price of insuring the car. Insurance is affordable if you carry the minimum coverage allowed by law. It also makes sense on the cars that would yield a value less than the deductible upon being totaled. Why pay for full coverage if you won't get anything if you are in an accident?


Cars don't last forever. I always keep an eye on the classifieds to see what the going price on new and used cars is. I know I will someday need to replace one of our cars, so I like to gauge the market.
 
When the time came to upgrade our vehicle, we will either choose to trade in our current vehicle or selling it on our own. Craig's List makes the latter very worthwhile to ensure a higher resale amount, but the trade-in process is easier since the paperwork gets moved by the dealer and we wouldn't have to fix trivial matters that cause the "check engine" light to stay on.