My sister is very good at making the effort at seeing everyone when she comes to town. Better than me, she arranges to visit my brother and family in Bend. I probably wouldn't see them half as much if she didn't arrange these family gatherings. This trip was driving to see the family for dinner on Wednesday, river raft on Thursday then back home on Friday.
We stopped at the top of Mt Hood to meet at the adventure park, as some of us were coming from different locations and at different time commitments. Mt Hood allowed for long and short hang outs. My boys were able to eat our packed picnic lunch of Turkey and cheese sandwiches. Wander the park and look at the beautiful scenery while we waited for everyone else to join us.
My sister had car troubles. Radiator fluid drained out onto the parking lot asphalt while we chatted at the rendezvous site, which put a damper on her adventure, with the stress of whether the car would make it the whole way.
She and her husband picked up a bottle of anti freeze to pour in as needed. We arranged for the children all to ride in various other cars. My taking some and some going in the grandparent's care, so if the car she was driving did break down she wouldn't have to deal with children on top of everything else. It is a lot easier to hang out with a broken car if you don't have to entertain children.
The car made it to Bend where they dropped it at a mechanic for repair. A new radiator and $600 later the car was good for another few years of service to the family.
Wednesday night we had dinner with the family. My lovely sister in law cooked up a fettuccine pasta with sausages, and a caprice salad for dinner. The perfect dish for a large hungry crowd. We stayed late but my brother had to work the next day so eventually we all did have to head back to our hotel nearby.
In the morning I sent one of the boys to the front desk for ibuprofen so I could function for the day. I ended up skipping breakfast. Trev brought me up a little plate of food to nibble on once I felt functional enough.
We piled into the car around 11:00am to head to our meeting place for rafting. The facility had a big school bus to drive all the participants to the river, only 10 minutes away. Six rafts were heading out at the same time. Our family all would fit in one. There were nine of us going.
The raft trip was a two hour excursion down the Deschutes River. We had all done it before but it is a fun event, worth repeating. Trevor's eighth birthday was the last time we had done this rafting event. We had rafted the Rogue river out of Ashland, the last time. This year because of forest fires the rogue river was closed at this time, so we were lucky we had chosen Bend as our destination.
This rafting trip has only one serious rapid in the whole trip. Several small rapids to keep the excitement going and prepare you for the biggest one. Enough to get your heart rate going without killing yourself. I didn't have to paddle the first section, but one of my nephews decided he wanted to be at the front of the boat going through the rapids where the water splashes up and the thrill of being first into the fray is quite exciting. He passed his paddle to me and I had to get to work.
I have a big bruise on my thigh where I smacked myself with the T head of the paddle while the boat was tossed around going through the hard part.
The guide, Travis, was terrific. In one of the calm stretches, he had all the young teens sit up on the side of the raft on the pontoon, wrap their arms and legs around each other until they were tangled then gave a push to the center child and they all went into the water together. Laughing uproariously. Riley of course saw what was coming and opted out. The guide noticed the one dry smart child. He convinced Riley to play the game also. Riley very reluctantly allowed himself to be tossed overboard in good spirits.
When we went to pull Trevor back into the raft, he laughingly said "hold on, I am using the bathroom" . It took two to pull Trevor on board. My youngest nephew C, at age six, was not so enamored with the whole adventure. He was quite frightened by the tenseness of the rapids. He cried, but it quickly passed as the children jumped into the cool water to play in the calm afterwards.
My sister had to head back after rafting as the children's plane left for the East in the morning Friday. It would be the first time the boys flew alone. I knew I didn't want to do the drive back after rafting so arranged to stay one more night at the hotel.
There was a music festival in the park walking distance from the hotel. Fair food for dinner. Though being Bend it was no ordinary fair food. These vendors were high end fancy restaurants with amazing foods to taste.. Ice cream wasn't just ordinary ice cream, it was home made gelatoe in fancy flavors. The pizza stand had a brick oven right there cooking every pizza fresh.
I ordered Thai food, which was delightfully prepared, and shared my meal with Trevor so we could all try different options. The cousins went to the bouncy house for a frolic while the grown ups had one last night chatting and just enjoying living the beautiful summer night in the park with good loving family.
I walked back to my brother's home just off the park for an evening of conversation and good company which is rare to come by when we live over 4 hours from each other. I have to say Bend is a wonderful community. He and his wife have a home very centrally located. biking distance to everything. Their neighbors all know each other and say " hello" as they take their evening strolls. My brother spent over an hour watering his garden and showing me his plantings. I was impressed. I had had no idea he was such a green thumb. He garden is loved. It makes me motivated to put more into my still un landscaped back yard.
Friday, The last day of our wonderful adventure in sports paradise, the cousins came over to have breakfast and swim in the hotel pool for our last hours.
We eventually had to leave as the dog was waiting to be picked up from the sitter. .
Saturday, August 17, 2013
Monday, August 12, 2013
Kayak trip
Wow, what a whirl wind vacation. Took the family on a kayak trip around a wildlife preserve. We saw swimming in the water an otter and as we all pointed and waited for the other kayaks to catch up the otter became three baby otter heads to our delight, staring at us as curiously as we were watching them.A few minutes later our guide shouts out that a beaver just went under her kayak. The boys shouted that there was a snake in the water. Our guide told us that yes some snakes in our area do swim.
All sorts of birds flew by of all sorts of sizes. A blue heron flew up the estuary only to have us catch up paddling, so he flew on again. I can't name the birds we saw; Hawks, eagle, kestrel and a multitude of other birds. WE turned the corner to a beach and played in the water and ate our lunches of turkey and cheese sandwiches with peaches. The water play was a delight after sitting in the Kayake of over two hours. Thjis was a six hour experience my sister reserved for us all. I was a little leery of six hours, but she said she liked to push our limits and I was game.
The next leg was a bit more aggressive and dangerous. One leg of the island circuit was a stretch on the Columbia river. The tide was incoming and the wind had picked up. We were paddling with the current while being pushed back by the wind and tide. When a big cargo ship went by we turned into the wake to ride out the bumps, before straightening our course and continuing on. The water was not the smooth glistening surface of the protected estuary. The waves joggled the kayak. My partner was Rils, on this leg, for which I am grateful. He handles my stress the best in the family. I had not absorbed the fact we would be on the Columbia for a stretch. It is a mighty river that deserves respect and caution. It is extremely unpredictable and dangerous.
Trev was in his own Kayak as he is just too big to fit in the average kayak. Even then it was a tight squeeze. We tried to switch him out to a tandem after playing on the beach, but there was just no shoving him into the shared space. He had a blast though paddling and racing with his cousins.
On the big river though , there was no messing around. Our young guest, K, began to get sea sick from the waves of the river. Poor boy even threw up in his mouth, only to try and swallow it so he wouldn't make a mess. My sister offered to switch out and row with him in his tandem, which my young nephew was paddling with the extra weight, as K was having a hard time doing anything, feeling so ill, but the guide said no stopping on this leg. We had to just plow through and get off the river. If the wind picked up any more the waves would be too big for us novices. We were under pressure to continue. Our guide was awesome and stuck with the sea sick boy and his partner, encouraging them to try their best to continue until there was a safe beach to stop and rest and recover sea legs.
There wasn't anything I could do so I left the guide to handle the situation and continued on paddling with my heart thumping and my wish to just finish this dangerous leg and get back to the calm beautiful estuary where I could relax and enjoy my ride.
Once we made the turn to get off the river, the guide had us pull over to another beach for a rest and for K to recover his equilibrium again. More water play and horse play ensued. Then back into our Kayaks for the last leg of the trip. riley and I were a good team as we surged ahead of the crowd.
One reason I wanted to stay ahead is Trevor wanted me to hold stuff from his Kayak.He was all wet and wanted me to keep his stuff dry. He tried to pass me his binoculars in open water and was all whiny when I refused, afraid they would be dropped in the transfer and lost forever. I told him to hang on to everything until we hit dry land. He can be such a whiner sometimes. I surged ahead.
Shortly after taking the lead and heading down the beautiful quiet estuary for our last leg, Trev's voice could be heard beginning "One hundred Bottles of Bear on the wall" . He was not so romantically inclined to view nature. The excitement of the big river and now the quiet estuary did not hold him as it had on the first leg of the trip, when we all were admiring the baby otters and the birds, and Trev was trying hard to figure out how to paddle properly. Now he was an expert and ready to play.
We arrived back at our starting dock, having made a 9 mile trip around the island. I would go again in an instant. It was one of the best experiences I have ever had. It hit all my favorite buttons with friends and family and fun activities. The Columbia River part was a bit of a thrill seeker's stretch, but I know not to take that river for granted. Next time I might just do the down and back trip in the estuary instead of the full circle. Kayaking is a delight.
All sorts of birds flew by of all sorts of sizes. A blue heron flew up the estuary only to have us catch up paddling, so he flew on again. I can't name the birds we saw; Hawks, eagle, kestrel and a multitude of other birds. WE turned the corner to a beach and played in the water and ate our lunches of turkey and cheese sandwiches with peaches. The water play was a delight after sitting in the Kayake of over two hours. Thjis was a six hour experience my sister reserved for us all. I was a little leery of six hours, but she said she liked to push our limits and I was game.
The next leg was a bit more aggressive and dangerous. One leg of the island circuit was a stretch on the Columbia river. The tide was incoming and the wind had picked up. We were paddling with the current while being pushed back by the wind and tide. When a big cargo ship went by we turned into the wake to ride out the bumps, before straightening our course and continuing on. The water was not the smooth glistening surface of the protected estuary. The waves joggled the kayak. My partner was Rils, on this leg, for which I am grateful. He handles my stress the best in the family. I had not absorbed the fact we would be on the Columbia for a stretch. It is a mighty river that deserves respect and caution. It is extremely unpredictable and dangerous.
Trev was in his own Kayak as he is just too big to fit in the average kayak. Even then it was a tight squeeze. We tried to switch him out to a tandem after playing on the beach, but there was just no shoving him into the shared space. He had a blast though paddling and racing with his cousins.
On the big river though , there was no messing around. Our young guest, K, began to get sea sick from the waves of the river. Poor boy even threw up in his mouth, only to try and swallow it so he wouldn't make a mess. My sister offered to switch out and row with him in his tandem, which my young nephew was paddling with the extra weight, as K was having a hard time doing anything, feeling so ill, but the guide said no stopping on this leg. We had to just plow through and get off the river. If the wind picked up any more the waves would be too big for us novices. We were under pressure to continue. Our guide was awesome and stuck with the sea sick boy and his partner, encouraging them to try their best to continue until there was a safe beach to stop and rest and recover sea legs.
There wasn't anything I could do so I left the guide to handle the situation and continued on paddling with my heart thumping and my wish to just finish this dangerous leg and get back to the calm beautiful estuary where I could relax and enjoy my ride.
Once we made the turn to get off the river, the guide had us pull over to another beach for a rest and for K to recover his equilibrium again. More water play and horse play ensued. Then back into our Kayaks for the last leg of the trip. riley and I were a good team as we surged ahead of the crowd.
One reason I wanted to stay ahead is Trevor wanted me to hold stuff from his Kayak.He was all wet and wanted me to keep his stuff dry. He tried to pass me his binoculars in open water and was all whiny when I refused, afraid they would be dropped in the transfer and lost forever. I told him to hang on to everything until we hit dry land. He can be such a whiner sometimes. I surged ahead.
Shortly after taking the lead and heading down the beautiful quiet estuary for our last leg, Trev's voice could be heard beginning "One hundred Bottles of Bear on the wall" . He was not so romantically inclined to view nature. The excitement of the big river and now the quiet estuary did not hold him as it had on the first leg of the trip, when we all were admiring the baby otters and the birds, and Trev was trying hard to figure out how to paddle properly. Now he was an expert and ready to play.
We arrived back at our starting dock, having made a 9 mile trip around the island. I would go again in an instant. It was one of the best experiences I have ever had. It hit all my favorite buttons with friends and family and fun activities. The Columbia River part was a bit of a thrill seeker's stretch, but I know not to take that river for granted. Next time I might just do the down and back trip in the estuary instead of the full circle. Kayaking is a delight.
Monday, August 5, 2013
teen visitors
My New York sister is out visiting. She came up with my step mom for an overnight. The fair was in town so we went down to see the animals, and ride the rides, and ( my personal favorite) eat fair food. We had a blast. My step mom and I enjoyed walking the different booths and seeing the local art and 4 H submissions. I enjoyed the chicken barn immensely
I ordered Gyros and hot dogs and hamburgers and flannel cakes and ice cream. Of course I shared everything with the boys. I just like to have a couple of bites then pass it on. I even ordered food that my step mom could eat from a vendor, toppings for a salad. She has health concerns and is a very difficult person to feed. We have all figured out what she can eat and just take the matter into our own hands rather than have her try and figure out what is available that she can eat.
The boys climbed the climbing wall. Trevor did it barefoot, which was excruciatingly painful, but he had worn flip flops, which are not good for climbing walls.
WE watched the Derby, where cars battle it out by crashing into each other. We have decided my nephew is not Derby material as, for the second year in a row, he started crying when his particular favorite car crashed and was knocked out of the race. He totally misses the point of the smash up bash up being the fun part.
I got a call that one of Riley's old friends was in town and wanted to know if he could come play for a few days. He is dropped at the fair with suitcase in hand. Riley takes him to the car to leave his case and they come back for more rides and food.
We stay until the fair closes for the night. We all have a lovely time. A perfect day of sun and fun and family.
I ordered Gyros and hot dogs and hamburgers and flannel cakes and ice cream. Of course I shared everything with the boys. I just like to have a couple of bites then pass it on. I even ordered food that my step mom could eat from a vendor, toppings for a salad. She has health concerns and is a very difficult person to feed. We have all figured out what she can eat and just take the matter into our own hands rather than have her try and figure out what is available that she can eat.
The boys climbed the climbing wall. Trevor did it barefoot, which was excruciatingly painful, but he had worn flip flops, which are not good for climbing walls.
WE watched the Derby, where cars battle it out by crashing into each other. We have decided my nephew is not Derby material as, for the second year in a row, he started crying when his particular favorite car crashed and was knocked out of the race. He totally misses the point of the smash up bash up being the fun part.
I got a call that one of Riley's old friends was in town and wanted to know if he could come play for a few days. He is dropped at the fair with suitcase in hand. Riley takes him to the car to leave his case and they come back for more rides and food.
We stay until the fair closes for the night. We all have a lovely time. A perfect day of sun and fun and family.
car shopping
OK . We are big people. We are physically big people. Trev is over 240 pounds and six three and still growing at not quite 16. We do not fit in little interior spaces with sloping roof lines in the back and no leg room in the back seat.
Shopping cars is work. I find I like the boxy look to allow for the interior head room and I want cargo space for my work suitcase of samples and the case of molds. What I like and what Tom likes are turning out to be two different designs of cars. We both agree to better gas mileage. But for the space I need, I am finding I need a shape Tom thinks is a joke.
I looked at the Ford focus. I couldn't fit my clubs in the trunk without folding down the seats, let alone loading it up with my work cases. I did look at the Toyota Scion and the Cube (can't even remember the manufacturer) . The shape works. The cube may be ugly on the outside but when you get into the car the capacity for its size is amazing. Good gas mileage also. Tom asked if I was joking, when I sent him pictures of the cars.
I am going to look at Chevy's HHR and a couple of other cars as I try to find what I want. I know it is out there someplace. If I could just shrink my jeep and get the mileage, I would have my car. The other problem is having ground clearance. Many of these cars ride low. I am bottoming out on my low riding Taurus upon occasion. I would like to find something that can get down awkward driveways or gravel roads, as that may happen with some patients.
I am looking. I know when I see the car it will speak to me.
Shopping cars is work. I find I like the boxy look to allow for the interior head room and I want cargo space for my work suitcase of samples and the case of molds. What I like and what Tom likes are turning out to be two different designs of cars. We both agree to better gas mileage. But for the space I need, I am finding I need a shape Tom thinks is a joke.
I looked at the Ford focus. I couldn't fit my clubs in the trunk without folding down the seats, let alone loading it up with my work cases. I did look at the Toyota Scion and the Cube (can't even remember the manufacturer) . The shape works. The cube may be ugly on the outside but when you get into the car the capacity for its size is amazing. Good gas mileage also. Tom asked if I was joking, when I sent him pictures of the cars.
I am going to look at Chevy's HHR and a couple of other cars as I try to find what I want. I know it is out there someplace. If I could just shrink my jeep and get the mileage, I would have my car. The other problem is having ground clearance. Many of these cars ride low. I am bottoming out on my low riding Taurus upon occasion. I would like to find something that can get down awkward driveways or gravel roads, as that may happen with some patients.
I am looking. I know when I see the car it will speak to me.
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Car shopping
Tom told me my cars are getting to the point of being unreliable and I need to start thinking about a new car and what I want. I was overwhelmed by choices. No idea what direction to look and what I want and need. Good gas mileage and the rest was up in the air.
I took my jeep in for an oil change, finally, Tom told me when he brought it back over memorial weekend it needed some love after all the dust storms of Nevada. Went to my mechanic Not the Jiffy lube place but the real mechanic. I wanted him to look it over when the check engine light came on on Friday. Make sure it wasn't related to the accident on Thursday. He is also going to pop in the new side light box for free. I had already ordered the head light from the store before the service light came on. The store called and said the light was in and the car was still at the mechanic, serendipitous.
No issues with the car, thank goodness. He said there seemed to be no reason for the transmission light to be on. Just a fluke, needing a reset. He is going to take it for another drive this afternoon before calling me to pick the car up. While there I told him I was car shopping and what did he recommend.
He said hands down Honda is the best reliable car manufacturer out there.
He said if I like jeep to check out the Honda Element as a fun funky and roomy on the inside good size comparison with good gas mileage
He also listed other options depending on what I was looking for the Honda Accord, Element, CRV, Ridgeline (as truckish), Pilot as bigger but still getting 30 miles to the gallon.
He said the Acura TL was the high performance car in the Honda line, if you like Cadillac. He said the most reliable Cadillac is the CTS-V with its LS engine which is also the engine in the Corvette. He said he preferred the German cars for performance vehicles. His wife has the 323 and he has the M5. He says BMW is known as the million miles car for the performance cars.
I am going to check out his suggestions, especially the element. But all of them are possibilities He said $11,000 to $15,000 should get me a car with 30,000 on it and a great deal, 3 years old or so. He said 30,000 is just getting warmed up.
He also said he was a fan of Craigslist since I was shopping used. Loved to hear that. Now I have some helpful direction on where to go for test drives and to look at models. I feel much less stress.
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Car OOOps
Between keeping an eye on the construction going on at home and getting to my patients I had a busy day on Thursday. I was off running errands when I had a little fender bender. Waiting at a stop to make a left turn., waited and waited for the other car to go first. I finally decide to go but then so does the other car. I stop just at the beginning of my turn, when I realize she is coming, but the other car does not stop. Nor does it try to avoid me. Its like the Titanic hitting the ice burg. Everything in slow motion. neither of us going more than 5 miles an hour. I had stopped by the time she hit me. No air bags deployed.
My jeep has a hitch and pulley on its bumper reinforcing the bumper. All I get is a few scrapes and punctures and a broken light cover. Her impala is creamed on the corner and scraped all the way back to the back seat door.
She gets out of her car once she stops. She apologizes and says her foot got stuck on the gas. She is in flip flops. She begins to cry and tell me she has no license or insurance. She is on disability. She is in her husband's car without permission and is scared about what she is going to tell him.
I don't have collision on my car anymore. Tom canceled it less than a month ago. I know I am not getting my car repaired.It is not that bad anyway. I give her my phone number and name and with a little nudging and asking several times, she gives me her name and address. She has no phone number.
I don't think anything about calling the police. There was no altercation. She was asking me if she was going to get arrested. I am not one to call the police over a small fender bender as far as I am concerned. I am thinking they may not file with insurance as she will get in trouble. I know I am going to repair my damage myself.
Later in the afternoon I get a call from the woman asking me to come to her home to speak to her husband. He does want to file with insurance even though it will get her wife in trouble. I ask Trev to go with me just to have someone with me. The address is not in the best part of town.
The husband speaks little English. He is not happy. I give him my insurance card and ask him for his. he refuses. He doesn't want to give me any information. I look at his wife and she tells me it probably would be a good idea to call the police. So I do. I dial 911 and explain that we had a fender bender and the other party does not want to give me their insurance information.
Trev and I hang out sitting on the hood of my car, in front of their house, until an officer swings by. The husband cooperates and gives up his insurance information for the officer. The officer asks me why didn't the man want to share his insurance. I told him I had no idea. I figure the man might not know how insurance works. Perhaps he thought he could file with mine and not report the accident to his insurance or the fact his wife was driving his car without a legal drivers license. Insurance doesn't work that way. Each party files with his own company and then the companies duke it out. I am not even stressed as my car isn't getting expensive repairs. I have already decided to put the incident behind me.
I don't want to hear from everyone that I should have called the police in the first place. I just thought that the police have better things to do then handle a small fender bender. Next ding I will call the police. I just hated getting that woman in trouble more than she already was. I didn't want to see her cuffed and hauled away. She was already a basket case over what to tell her husband about his car. I totally got that concept. If I had done damage to Tom's car, well, I would be panicked also.
Riley walked round my car to see the accident wounds. He didn't even see the damage at first. I had to point it out. It is close to the area he dented himself, backing out of the garage, and his dent is worse. Just scrapes and the broken light cover for mine. He even poo pooed the scratches once he saw them as nothing.
.I stopped at the car store and ordered a new head light unit. I have to get the whole unit, I am told. They don't just sell the covers. $32 and a little sweat and my car will be fine again. .
I head home and get on the computer to file my report. I need to alert my insurance that they may be contacted. Turns out that since I was the one making the left I am the most at fault, 60/40 even though she may not have been competent to drive. I would have been 100% if she had a license. I told the agent I thought maybe 50/50 since she said she was on disability and I think she might not have been competent to drive. And she told me her foot got stuck with her flip flops. He said we may not even hear from the other company if she was a disqualified driver. We would know in a month or less. If we haven't heard in a month then it is over without issue. otherwise my insurance will pay a portion of their repairs and I still move on.
He said my premiums may go up, but then maybe not. I have renamed my Jeep ' Tank". Tank was good to me.Tom always complains we are over insured but I am a big advocate for insurance. I happen to use mine occasionally, so it is well worth every penny.
tom told me yesterday he wants me to think about what I want for my next car. He says it is getting time to replace my cars. At the moment I feel good about driving my old beater cars. When a ding happens there is no stress. If we get cars that I have to worry about every scratch, well that is just not me. I also don't want to freak out if my boys are driving my cars and make mistakes from inexperience.
If Tank didn't get such bad mileage I would continue driving him all the time. The 1997 Taurus, though, has begun to have health issues, and needs some loving expenses, which we don't really want to spend the money on. So looks like Santa might be giving me a new car. I will take advice on what I should go look at. Just remember Tom is the engineer. I could care less about all the hoops and whistles. good mileage and four doors will do it for me. Tank will still take us on the family trips. He has the most room and capacity with a bike hitch and a roof box. and all wheel drive for those snow vacations. He has payed for himself, by keeping us safe several times .
As soon as Tank gets a new head light I am taking him to a car wash for a treat and pampering..
My jeep has a hitch and pulley on its bumper reinforcing the bumper. All I get is a few scrapes and punctures and a broken light cover. Her impala is creamed on the corner and scraped all the way back to the back seat door.
She gets out of her car once she stops. She apologizes and says her foot got stuck on the gas. She is in flip flops. She begins to cry and tell me she has no license or insurance. She is on disability. She is in her husband's car without permission and is scared about what she is going to tell him.
I don't have collision on my car anymore. Tom canceled it less than a month ago. I know I am not getting my car repaired.It is not that bad anyway. I give her my phone number and name and with a little nudging and asking several times, she gives me her name and address. She has no phone number.
I don't think anything about calling the police. There was no altercation. She was asking me if she was going to get arrested. I am not one to call the police over a small fender bender as far as I am concerned. I am thinking they may not file with insurance as she will get in trouble. I know I am going to repair my damage myself.
Later in the afternoon I get a call from the woman asking me to come to her home to speak to her husband. He does want to file with insurance even though it will get her wife in trouble. I ask Trev to go with me just to have someone with me. The address is not in the best part of town.
The husband speaks little English. He is not happy. I give him my insurance card and ask him for his. he refuses. He doesn't want to give me any information. I look at his wife and she tells me it probably would be a good idea to call the police. So I do. I dial 911 and explain that we had a fender bender and the other party does not want to give me their insurance information.
Trev and I hang out sitting on the hood of my car, in front of their house, until an officer swings by. The husband cooperates and gives up his insurance information for the officer. The officer asks me why didn't the man want to share his insurance. I told him I had no idea. I figure the man might not know how insurance works. Perhaps he thought he could file with mine and not report the accident to his insurance or the fact his wife was driving his car without a legal drivers license. Insurance doesn't work that way. Each party files with his own company and then the companies duke it out. I am not even stressed as my car isn't getting expensive repairs. I have already decided to put the incident behind me.
I don't want to hear from everyone that I should have called the police in the first place. I just thought that the police have better things to do then handle a small fender bender. Next ding I will call the police. I just hated getting that woman in trouble more than she already was. I didn't want to see her cuffed and hauled away. She was already a basket case over what to tell her husband about his car. I totally got that concept. If I had done damage to Tom's car, well, I would be panicked also.
Riley walked round my car to see the accident wounds. He didn't even see the damage at first. I had to point it out. It is close to the area he dented himself, backing out of the garage, and his dent is worse. Just scrapes and the broken light cover for mine. He even poo pooed the scratches once he saw them as nothing.
.I stopped at the car store and ordered a new head light unit. I have to get the whole unit, I am told. They don't just sell the covers. $32 and a little sweat and my car will be fine again. .
I head home and get on the computer to file my report. I need to alert my insurance that they may be contacted. Turns out that since I was the one making the left I am the most at fault, 60/40 even though she may not have been competent to drive. I would have been 100% if she had a license. I told the agent I thought maybe 50/50 since she said she was on disability and I think she might not have been competent to drive. And she told me her foot got stuck with her flip flops. He said we may not even hear from the other company if she was a disqualified driver. We would know in a month or less. If we haven't heard in a month then it is over without issue. otherwise my insurance will pay a portion of their repairs and I still move on.
He said my premiums may go up, but then maybe not. I have renamed my Jeep ' Tank". Tank was good to me.Tom always complains we are over insured but I am a big advocate for insurance. I happen to use mine occasionally, so it is well worth every penny.
tom told me yesterday he wants me to think about what I want for my next car. He says it is getting time to replace my cars. At the moment I feel good about driving my old beater cars. When a ding happens there is no stress. If we get cars that I have to worry about every scratch, well that is just not me. I also don't want to freak out if my boys are driving my cars and make mistakes from inexperience.
If Tank didn't get such bad mileage I would continue driving him all the time. The 1997 Taurus, though, has begun to have health issues, and needs some loving expenses, which we don't really want to spend the money on. So looks like Santa might be giving me a new car. I will take advice on what I should go look at. Just remember Tom is the engineer. I could care less about all the hoops and whistles. good mileage and four doors will do it for me. Tank will still take us on the family trips. He has the most room and capacity with a bike hitch and a roof box. and all wheel drive for those snow vacations. He has payed for himself, by keeping us safe several times .
As soon as Tank gets a new head light I am taking him to a car wash for a treat and pampering..
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Voting old draft
I found this in my draft box. It must be from last fall or something. decided I could put it out there as I just got a new local ballot today, to vote on the school district board new members. very controversial at the moment as they don't know quite how to balance the budget and are thinking of closing schools.
Mailed the ballots yesterday. Dropped them in the special ballot collection boxes stationed by our city center. Our old town had a drop box on the steps of the local mayor's office. It all seems very Mayberry; The old black and white TV show about the cute little town.with Andy Griffith as the sheriff.
I do love that our state has mail in ballots. I used to order absentee ballots in College and kept to that format for most of my life. The convenience of not having to stand in line and being able to take my time in the comfort of my own home made the process so much less stressful.
In the years I was in Seattle, in the late 80's, my roommates and I would walk up to the voting location, near our home, and go into one of those curtained boxes. There was never much of a line. I would stand in front of the contraption used to punch the holes in the voting card. It was a hastle to get a new card if you miss punched one hole. I liked to take my time. But there would be people waiting to vote by the time I came out. Voting at home is so much easier.
Tom doesn't like the voting at home. He sees the opportunity for too much fraud. People voting for their elderly relatives or friends or stealing the ballots out of boxes. That doesn't happen at our house. Tom and I don't even show each other how we voted. I may solicite an opinion from Tom but the final decision is mine on my ballot.
Riles asked how I voted. I told him it is a personal choice. I told him I could discuss issues with him or people, but I would not say how I filled in the little circle in the end, though from our discussions, he can surmise my choices. The boys are supposed to come to school having followed some of the issues. They will be discussing the elections this week. I have a feeling we might not know the results for a few days if even that soon.
I have a friend who only casts her vote based on women's issues, the right to abortion. That is her most important above all else choice. I didn't argue, but there are so many more issues to worry about. Abortion was not my main concern above all else. If I tried to put in order the list of issues, I would start with the economy. Break that topic down into subsections of the price of oil, the decline of coal power plants, the natural gas pipeline, housing costs, the bail out debt, government taxes at all levels, the EPA interferance, mismanagement of National forest lands, not treating for the Japanese Beatles, or allowing for natural burns to occur causing massive fires due to the overgrown underbrush. The economy list of issues is long and overlaps the environmental issues and the EPA's overbearing fanatical approach, making it almost impossible for manufacturing to survive in this country with out doing something illegal.
Next issue might be education, health care, social security, welfare, the debt. So many other issues are as important if not more so than whether one woman can have an abortion. There is still the morning after pill, now available over the counter if you are over sixteen. Should tax payer dollars be spent on abortion? I can see preventative measures and health care for the poor as part of the health care package. I know someone who had six abortions. Now tell me the sanity in that. She had them all on tax payer money. Abortion was her birth control.
A civilized country, where people can afford to follow the rules, is a country of wealth and prosperity. We give generously when there is the ability to give. Suck us dry and we have nothing to give. Suck us too dry and we take. Give free hand outs and who wouldn't take it.
Women's issues are only going to be important when we can afford to have just a "woman's issue". Every minority wants their own cut of the pie. Can't we just live our lives in private? Do I have to vote on people's sex lives? Do I have to decide what decisions you and your doctor are allowed to make? These issues should not even be in the public sector. You want to level the playing field? Take away the benifits of marriage so no one need fight over special rights someone may have over another. It is more of a marriage penalty anyway. Combined income knocks married couples into a hire tax bracket. I am not on this earth to judge anyone's choices. First and foremost I would like to have a job to help feed and house my family. A strong economy will help towards that goal.
Communities support each other only so far is their own homes and families can afford to help. Watching Sandy this week only emphasizes how important it is to have a strong vibrant economy and resources. We need people who can think quickly and out of the box. Have a system in place that can leap to the aid as needed but stay out of the way. The concept of the National Guard is brilliant to me. Volunteers trained and ready to go when call upon. Red Cross has similar staff; people who are trained for the crisis and how to help, ready to go into hazard's way. The Red cross is a private sector sponsored program. Our taxes support the National Guard, but our free will supports the Red Cross.
If we could target directly programs through our taxes, I wonder if we would be so frustrated with our government. I doubt we would fund the IRS, but we wouldn't need to if I could tell the government how I want every dollar of my tax dollars spent, what programs I want sponsored. If I was strong on defence or the arts or planned parenthood, break down my taxes into the areas I want supported . Wouldn't it be great to take out all the graft. Someone abuses the funds and the next year I choose not to sent any money their way. It irritates me that the only control I have is over the $1 that I can choose to send to the Presidential campaign. Why only that one program? Why are't there dozens of boxes to check to send multiple dollars the way I want my money spent.
Bad roads? check the box for transportation or infrastructure. Just like paying your telephone bill or the cable bill, the tax bill would be targeted. In this modern day of technology, you could log on to your tax account and specify what you feel are your priorities. Give us our choices back.
Mailed the ballots yesterday. Dropped them in the special ballot collection boxes stationed by our city center. Our old town had a drop box on the steps of the local mayor's office. It all seems very Mayberry; The old black and white TV show about the cute little town.with Andy Griffith as the sheriff.
I do love that our state has mail in ballots. I used to order absentee ballots in College and kept to that format for most of my life. The convenience of not having to stand in line and being able to take my time in the comfort of my own home made the process so much less stressful.
In the years I was in Seattle, in the late 80's, my roommates and I would walk up to the voting location, near our home, and go into one of those curtained boxes. There was never much of a line. I would stand in front of the contraption used to punch the holes in the voting card. It was a hastle to get a new card if you miss punched one hole. I liked to take my time. But there would be people waiting to vote by the time I came out. Voting at home is so much easier.
Tom doesn't like the voting at home. He sees the opportunity for too much fraud. People voting for their elderly relatives or friends or stealing the ballots out of boxes. That doesn't happen at our house. Tom and I don't even show each other how we voted. I may solicite an opinion from Tom but the final decision is mine on my ballot.
Riles asked how I voted. I told him it is a personal choice. I told him I could discuss issues with him or people, but I would not say how I filled in the little circle in the end, though from our discussions, he can surmise my choices. The boys are supposed to come to school having followed some of the issues. They will be discussing the elections this week. I have a feeling we might not know the results for a few days if even that soon.
I have a friend who only casts her vote based on women's issues, the right to abortion. That is her most important above all else choice. I didn't argue, but there are so many more issues to worry about. Abortion was not my main concern above all else. If I tried to put in order the list of issues, I would start with the economy. Break that topic down into subsections of the price of oil, the decline of coal power plants, the natural gas pipeline, housing costs, the bail out debt, government taxes at all levels, the EPA interferance, mismanagement of National forest lands, not treating for the Japanese Beatles, or allowing for natural burns to occur causing massive fires due to the overgrown underbrush. The economy list of issues is long and overlaps the environmental issues and the EPA's overbearing fanatical approach, making it almost impossible for manufacturing to survive in this country with out doing something illegal.
Next issue might be education, health care, social security, welfare, the debt. So many other issues are as important if not more so than whether one woman can have an abortion. There is still the morning after pill, now available over the counter if you are over sixteen. Should tax payer dollars be spent on abortion? I can see preventative measures and health care for the poor as part of the health care package. I know someone who had six abortions. Now tell me the sanity in that. She had them all on tax payer money. Abortion was her birth control.
A civilized country, where people can afford to follow the rules, is a country of wealth and prosperity. We give generously when there is the ability to give. Suck us dry and we have nothing to give. Suck us too dry and we take. Give free hand outs and who wouldn't take it.
Women's issues are only going to be important when we can afford to have just a "woman's issue". Every minority wants their own cut of the pie. Can't we just live our lives in private? Do I have to vote on people's sex lives? Do I have to decide what decisions you and your doctor are allowed to make? These issues should not even be in the public sector. You want to level the playing field? Take away the benifits of marriage so no one need fight over special rights someone may have over another. It is more of a marriage penalty anyway. Combined income knocks married couples into a hire tax bracket. I am not on this earth to judge anyone's choices. First and foremost I would like to have a job to help feed and house my family. A strong economy will help towards that goal.
Communities support each other only so far is their own homes and families can afford to help. Watching Sandy this week only emphasizes how important it is to have a strong vibrant economy and resources. We need people who can think quickly and out of the box. Have a system in place that can leap to the aid as needed but stay out of the way. The concept of the National Guard is brilliant to me. Volunteers trained and ready to go when call upon. Red Cross has similar staff; people who are trained for the crisis and how to help, ready to go into hazard's way. The Red cross is a private sector sponsored program. Our taxes support the National Guard, but our free will supports the Red Cross.
If we could target directly programs through our taxes, I wonder if we would be so frustrated with our government. I doubt we would fund the IRS, but we wouldn't need to if I could tell the government how I want every dollar of my tax dollars spent, what programs I want sponsored. If I was strong on defence or the arts or planned parenthood, break down my taxes into the areas I want supported . Wouldn't it be great to take out all the graft. Someone abuses the funds and the next year I choose not to sent any money their way. It irritates me that the only control I have is over the $1 that I can choose to send to the Presidential campaign. Why only that one program? Why are't there dozens of boxes to check to send multiple dollars the way I want my money spent.
Bad roads? check the box for transportation or infrastructure. Just like paying your telephone bill or the cable bill, the tax bill would be targeted. In this modern day of technology, you could log on to your tax account and specify what you feel are your priorities. Give us our choices back.
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