Aftermarket Mods And The Incredible Shrinking Value....

It never failed.  Throughout my three year tenure as a car salesperson, I would routinely see young folks bring in their cars to trade, cars that were tricked out with all manner of aftermarket wheels, dams, skirts, spoilers, sound systems, custom interiors, all of which amounted to thousands of dollars.  Soon thereafter I would witness the look of abject shock on their faces when told that the ten thousand dollars’ worth of mod work they had done amounted in little more than a one or two thousand dollar trade in.

Sorry, but while it may be appealing to you, the notion that many other folks are going to want a 1991 Acura tricked out to the gills is a fairly imaginative one.  It just isn’t going to happen.  If you insist on making such sweeping alterations to your vehicle, then be prepared to hang on to it for a very long time, or to receive very little in the way of cash for it if and when you decide to sell it.  Don’t look at aftermarket parts as an investment that you will ever recoup.  At the end of the day, pouring your money into the fire is only a slightly less entertaining proposition than attaching them to your car.

That being said, can you modify your car and not take a financial beating later on?  Of course, there is no law that says “Thou shalt leave thy car stock”.  Make some changes, and make it uniquely yours.  The trick is to not make any change that you cannot undo when the time comes to trade in the old sled.

Among the car modifications that won’t hurt (and may actually help) the value of your car:

Rims or custom wheels of high quality and appropriate size.  Let’s face it; most stock wheels are pretty darn ugly.  A nice set of custom rims can improve your car’s overall aesthetic quite nicely.

Navigation systems.  These are becoming almost standard equipment, so the addition of such is a welcome one.

DVD players, sound systems, or satellite radio.  See above. 

Leather seats.  Aftermarket leather is in many cases nicer than stock leather interiors.  A well done leather finish can add much in the way of appeal and value to your car.

Sunroofs or moon roofs can also add value, provided they were installed by a qualified tech, not your cousin Bubba and his three magic hammers.

Of course for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction, and the fact is that most mods done to cars nowadays are fiberglass monstrosities that would make the T-Birds from GREASE roll over in their collective cinematic graves.  Just a few of the more infamous:

Overpowered stereos or boom box systems.  If they are that obnoxious at the stop light, who actually thinks normal people would want to pay cash for the privilege?

Aftermarket superchargers or turbochargers.  You only install these for one reason.  How do you say “rode hard, put up wet”?

Loud exhaust systems and lowered suspensions, because they violate not only good taste but most likely the manufacturer’s warranty.

Paint jobs of an unusual or textured finish.  This makes it all but impossible to repaint or touch up or match in the event of an accident.

Some also suggest avoiding illegal window tints, however, most tinting can be reversed or removed for a nominal cost.  My last car had illegal tint, but the police ignored me for three years….until the evening before I went out and traded it.  Fortunately the cop had a sense of humor and let me off…it is a fairly useless thing to get ticketed and fined for.

So enjoy your car, make it your own, but don’t go so far that somebody else cannot eventually make it their own as well.

Water Clean Up

Take A Hike, Buster (The Benefits Of Walking)

Turn on the TV at pretty much any time day or night, and you will see numerous commercials for the latest guaranteed get-fit plan or device.  Guaranteed to burn off the extra pounds in less than 90 days for the low low price of only $19.95.  Granted most of these are fly by night operations (how many AbFlexes or Ab Blasters from the early 90’s are still around today?).

I won’t even discuss the so-call miracle diets where you can eat whatever you wish and still watch the weight fall off.  There are just no short cuts for getting in shape, either be prepared to part with some sweat or forget it.

That said, you don’t have to sweat a LOT to get the job done.  Out of all the exercise programs out there, the single most effective way to get yourself in better shape is by simply putting one foot in front of the other.

Yes, that’s right children, walking.  Nothing beats just getting out and putting yourself in motion for a half hour or so every day.  Don’t believe me?  Well, consider: I went to college for four years in a small town where our cars stayed parked for most of the week and we walked everywhere we went.   A year after graduation I was sporting a tummy that made me look six months gone with a lawn mower…..all because my lifestyle went from “Come on, guys, it’s just a stroll across town!”  to a more leisurely “Honey, have you seen that remote?   Oh and while yer up, get me a sammich!”

Walking is one of the most simple and effective ways to lose weight, remain in shape, and maintain your general good health.  Walking at a brisk pace for a period of 20 to 30 minutes three times a week increases the oxygen intake to your blood and strengthens your heart.  It also improves your blood circulation and decreases blood pressure (which for some of us is a major blessing). 

You can also burn up to 100 calories per mile.  There are other ways to burn off a similar number of calories in a fairly short time, but knowing that kids might be reading this, I believe I shall postpone.

Walking also slows down and holds off problems such as arthritis and joint diseases, as well a building stronger bone structure to reduce the likelihood of osteoporosis developing.  If you fear becoming a hunched over old man as much as I do, this is good news.

I would also mention that walking helps relieve both constipation and menstrual pain, but I don’t think we need to go any further than that. 

I will go on to say though that walking helps you sleep better, releasing endorphins that are a natural tranquilizer, reduces the risk of breast cancer, and increases overall energy levels.

If you’re a cheapskate like me, it also means that you do not have to buy a lot of expensive equipment, just a comfortable pair of walking shoes.   If you can maintain that thrice weekly schedule, replace your shoes every five or six months to ensure the best possible support for your feet.

Walking is also unique from other exercises in that it is actually social…you can do your walking with family, or a friend, groups, actual packs, or whatever suits you.  And anybody can do it, because it does not require a special ability or drive.  We all walk every day; it is just a matter of making it a priority.

Walking is not hampered by weather.  You can go outside on pretty days, and if it is raining, you can go to a mall or indoor track.  Many shopping malls have early bird hours for folks who want to come in wand walk before the shops open for business.

So get out and walk, I’m right behind you…..as soon as somebody helps me out of this chair…..

Flooded Basement

To Protect And To Serve....Really?

I respect law enforcement, I really do.  How can you not respect those men and women in blue who go to work every day not knowing if they will come home to their families every night, and doing so for a salary that is remarkably low given the inherent danger involved.  It is not a job for the faint of heart, as this author discovered after actually applying to our local county force and backing out of the process before it was final.  I concluded that I just didn’t have whatever “oomph” it required to become a law enforcement officer (who couldn’t grow up watching ADAM-12 and not at least think about becoming a cop?).

Not that I don’t find it fascinating.  Detective work looks as though it would be a challenging and rewarding career, as does forensics (I never missed an episode of QUINCY, either).  Combine that with SWAT teams or other special divisions within the force and you are looking at a career that is rife with possibilities.

Unfortunately, to get there you have to work your way up through the ranks, and unlike other rank based organizations, such as the military, too many of the bad apples turn up and remain in those bottom ranks, namely, the street cops and others that interact most directly with the public. And this is where law enforcement as a whole gets a bad rap.

The last time I was pulled over was in Duluth GA, for speeding (45 in a 35 zone).  I went to court in the vain hope that maybe the ticket could be reduced or thrown out.  After meeting with the solicitor, it was agreed that I would pay the fine but that no points would be applied toward my record or insurance.  I thought I had accomplished something, but when the judge came in and started hearing cases, it became obvious that everybody in the courtroom was offered the same deal.  It was easy to conclude that all these tickets were given out in the name of generating revenue, not looking out for the safety of the town’s citizens. 

Upon closer inspection I discovered that the road passing through town drops from 45 to 35 for a whopping half a mile, then goes back up to 45.  The patrol units line up in literal hordes right there in that brief stretch and are able to nail “speeders” by the dozen.  That half mile stretch was a veritable money machine for the town, more commonly referred to as a speed trap.

That said, I am not a huge fan of the radar gun.  Despite being the victim of it a time or twelve, it just annoys me that we pay any salary at all for guys to sit in their cars by the roadside and shoot fish in a barrel, most often not somebody who was intentionally breaking the law, but rather increased their speed momentarily and accidentally.  I used to drive around a lot during the day and I discovered something….if you spend any amount of time at all on the streets, you will see more than enough moving violations to satisfy anybody’s quota.  Get out and do some work and stop spending your days lounging in your car by the side of the road like teenagers cruising back in the 80s.

I’ve also become a huge fan of dashboard cameras, as it does an admirable job of stifling questionable behavior.  There’s just something about knowing you’re being filmed that makes you act your best.  Now if they would only figure out how to put such cameras on motorcycles…that might have prevented my unfortunate run in with an officer who found it necessary to pull me over and make up a charge on the side of the road.  I doubt he would have pulled such a stunt if he knew it would be on permanent record.

And then there was this morning, as I was driving to work; I was passed by a police unit, way out of his jurisdiction (obviously on his way to work), doing about thirty miles per hour over the posted speed limit.  I don’t care if you drive fast, but if so you had better be on a call, as in displaying some blue lights…otherwise you are just breaking the law.

Clearly, law enforcement has its issues, namely with young largely uneducated officers who obtain a badge and a gun and instantly see themselves as their precinct’s answer to Dirty Harry or Lethal Weapon’s Martin Riggs.

Perhaps the notion of raising the standard for police officer candidates should be revisited.  The number of officers on the street is important, but the quality of those officers means a great deal as well.

Dallas Community Center Closed Due To Water Damage....

A broken water pipe in the Wesley-Rankin Community Center in Dallas, TX sent water flooding through the ceiling and walls, closing down a federally funded Head Start program as well as an administrative building following the recent February ice storm.  While there is no current financial estimate of the water damage, the center’s director of development, Sarah Squires, said it was “substantial”.

The Center’s administrative offices were closed and the Head Start program was relocated following the flooding, which occurred late last week.  The school lost office furniture and equipment, books and computers, with damages to contents alone estimated at nearly $100,000. 

Part of the problem, says executive Director Gayla Naves, is that with preschools, everything is low to the ground and as such, much more susceptible to even minimal flood waters.  “So we’ve lost everything. Unfortunately the water main broke over our supply closet. All of the curriculum is gone. And to a school, that’s one of the most precious resources.”

The school and center were closed at the time the pipe burst, but a passerby noticed the water coming out from under the door and called authorities.  Apparently a pipe to the hot water heater broke after a door to the utility area on the roof blew open during the recent ice storm, exposing the piping to bitterly cold temperatures for an extended period. 

Squires said that they hope to have the building, which also houses food programs and senior citizen activities, will reopen by the beginning of June.  The Wesley-Rankin center is an outreach ministry associated with the United Methodist Church that has been serving West Dallas for more than 75 years. “We’re not going to let a little water slow us down,” Squires said.

Repairs may be complicated by the fact that the 23 year old building may require significant work to bring it up to current building codes.

Is Summer camp A Thing Of The Past?

Many adults have fond (or not so fond) memories of going to summer camp when they were kids.  The chance to spend a few weeks each summer away from your parents, in the company of others your own age…it was almost a rite of passage.  The summer camp was immortalized on film in the Bill Murray comedy MEATBALLS as well as the FRIDAY THE 13^TH slasher movie franchise.

You don’t hear as much about summer camps anymore….at least I don’t.  And since I have three children you’d think the subject would have come up at least once in the 19 years I’ve been a parent.  Day camps, sure….drop your child off in the morning and pick them up after work…no problem.  But pack up your kid and send him off into the great unknown for a period of weeks…..they still do that?

Yes, they do, and thousands of kids go every year.  And it is something to consider, because the experience provided can be one that will have long lasting effects.  But first of all, you need to ask yourself some questions.

What do you want your child to glean from the summer camp experience?  Do you want them to learn new skills?  Become more social?  Develop more self-confidence?

Are there any special interests your child wants to explore?  Are there any limitations, socially, physically, etc, that should be considered?  And do you want a very structured organization or a situation where your child can learn and proceed at their own pace?

You do have your choice of what type of camp to send your child to.  You can opt for a coed camp, or all boys, or all girls…and that’s pretty much it.  Coed camps obviously allow for a lot of interaction and mingling…..whether this is a good thing or not is your call.  

Sleepaway camps provide an environment that is structured for daytime and evening activities.  Depending on how far you want to get into it, you can choose from programs ranging from a week to the whole summer.  It is up to you to decide if your child is ready for a sleepaway camp experience, not to mention how much the experience is going to cost you.

Camps may also vary in size from less than 100 kids to nearly 500.  Will your child do better in a smaller or larger setting?  If your child requires more personalized attention in certain areas such as confidence building or athletic skills, a smaller camp with more one on one interaction may be your best choice.  If your child is already quite adept and confident, then they may need the larger situation to take full advantage of their abilities and talents.

Camps also present a variety of activities for your child to participate in, although there are camps that specialize in one specific activity, such as horseback riding, tennis, sailing, or wilderness training.  Look into what is most appealing for your child, and whether or not they want to concentrate a whole summer on just one thing or be exposed to a variety of possibilities.

You also want to consider where the camp is located.  Some parents feel like they are doing their kids a disservice if they don’t send them as far away as humanly possible.  If the camp meets your expectations, needs, and budget, it really shouldn’t matter if the camp is located in the same town.  The single most obvious benefit of distance is that the child cannot just come back home if they wish, thereby requiring them to ride out and find ways to cope with less than desirable or challenging situations.

Once you have identified the general goals for your child, and the budget you have to work with, you can then begin narrowing down your list of choices for the right camp.  Take a look at the most promising candidates and ask yourself a few questions.

How long has this camp been operating, and what is the age and experience level of the camp director?

What are the camp’s goals and philosophy and do they translate well with the experience you want your child to have?

What is the schedule like?  Structured?  A lot of free time?  A reasonable balance of both?

What is the camper to counselor ratio and what is the experience level of the counselor staff?

Of course other details figure into your decision, such as cost, but it should be possible to narrow down the best bet for your child.

It’s almost spring, so start planning now for your child’s summer camp adventure!

Basement Flooding

Choosing Movies For Your Child - What Is Appropriate?

If you have children, you have no doubt been on one side of the other in the never ending debate about what movies are suitable for children and which ones are not.  Some parents insist on following the much heralded movie ratings system (established by the Motion Picture Association Of America) to a “T”, while others make choices independent of outside influence.  Some are accused of being too liberal with what their kids are allowed to watch, while still others are labeled as being overly protective (if not borderline paranoid).

Of course no one wants to expose their child too early to unhealthy messages or imagery, but there is no hard and fast rule to determine what is and is not acceptable at a given age.  My kids all saw JAWS by the time they were four (growing up with that being their father’s favorite movie, it was kind of hard to avoid), and yet none of them are afraid of the water.  In fact, they can’t wait to get to the beach and go swimming.

By the same token, I let my 13 year old daughter watch SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, and she was reduced to tears during the first half hour.  I had long held that SPR should be required viewing, yet didn’t take into consideration that perhaps my daughter wasn’t prepared to process such graphic images, made all the more horrible by the fact that they actually occurred.   

I’m a big proponent of being involved in your kids’ lives, to the point where you know if they are emotionally able to handle heavier subject matter.  Many more sophisticated teens have been able to recognize the social and political themes which serve as the subtext for films such as George Romero or David Cronenberg, while to a small child, these films would be over their heads at best, and violating experiences of horror at worst.

It becomes a matter of determining just what your child can effectively process, and are they able to distinguish fantasy from reality.  If a movie such as THE LION KING or BEAUTY AND THE BEAST gives your child bad dreams, they are probably not ready for a HALLOWEEN or FRIDAY THE 13^TH marathon.

Sometimes, the kid knows on their own what they can handle.  I was thirteen when I saw my first R rated movie (ALIEN, 1979), and I knew I could handle the movie despite my parents’ objections.  Getting over the hurdle wasn’t easy, as I asked, begged, coaxed, and bribed them for three months before they gave in.  Even so, it would be two years before I would see another R rated film (HALLOWEEN II, 1981). 

If your child wants to see a movie you have questions about, consider the idea of sitting down and watching it with them, being available to answer questions, or call the whole thing off if it does get out of hand.  I had to do this with my oldest daughter and TOY STORY (2003), which I personally wouldn’t have found objectionable, but I had to deal with her being afraid of the living baby doll head.   Of course when she wanted to go see TOY STORY 2 years later, I gave her no end of grief over that.

Of course the argument isn’t limited to movies with scary or violent content.  There are also those films with nudity or sexual content, and here is where the waters get really difficult to navigate.  Should children be exposed to erotic imagery?  There are those who will automatically say “no!”, they are not prepared to handle such images.  Others may conclude that human sexuality is a natural, beautiful thing and not wish to shield their children from what they see as a perfectly natural act. 

In the end, there is no single, defining procedure by which to make a decision.  The ratings system, for this author anyway, is a dismal failure, offering no clear cut reasons as to why a movie is given a certain rating, and usually resulting in filmmakers having to butcher their artistic vision in order to receive the rating they hoped to achieve. 

As with any activity, the best thing to do is to be involved in your child’s life, know their strengths, their weaknesses, their personalities, and do your job as a parent to determine what types of subject matter they can handle and what types should be avoided. 

Arizona HIgh School Cafeteria Begins Water Clean Up After Spill

We all remember high school lunches, and we all remember that they weren’t exactly anything that were ever going to win any culinary awards, but things got taken to a whole new level at Highland High School in Arizona this week, as cafeteria staff had to make meals from whatever they could following damage from a burst high pressure pipe  on January 1. 

As water clean up procedures began, the food service "disaster" team held an emergency meeting Jan. 2 to develop the plan and set up the temporary cafeteria, said Debbie McCarron, food-service director for Gilbert Public Schools.

Students ended up eating in a makeshift cafeteria in the school gymnasium, dining on $2 reduced price lunches of cold pizza or cold sandwiches. The school kitchen was a near total loss, and food service staff only had two days to figure out a way to feed the school’s 2900 students.

Other schools in the district donated equipment, including heating and refrigeration units.  Breakfast and lunch are prepared at nearby Greenfield Junior High and brought over to Highland for serving.

For the first two days of classes, Pizza Hut provided 1500 pizza slices a day, and the food staff made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.  Since computers were out due to the damage, no charge was made for the meals.  Students also had access to cookies and beverages, and the staff hopes to make other choices available in the coming days.

 Despite the challenges, food staff had the cafeteria up and running on Jan. 3, when students returned from the winter break.

"It's going marvelously well," said Principal Domonic Salce. "The kids have adjusted quite well."

State health inspectors have been monitoring operations.  The district has added portable hand-washing sinks in the gym, McCarron said. Four serving stations are in each corner of the gym, which is about two-thirds the size of the cafeteria. "It's been amazingly smooth," said Patty Narducci, Gilbert's secondary supervisor for the food and nutrition department. Tables and chairs have been set up on a temporary plywood floor sealed with paint so as not to ruin the basketball court. Extra electricity also had to be brought in, McCarron said.

The mini-gym is used daily for PE classes, athletics and events. Some events have been cancelled, and classes have been moved, Salce said.

"It's been a lot of shifting and adjusting," Salce said. "We hope that the dining area will be available soon. We'll cross our fingers that that is sooner rather than later."

Local water damage restoration providers have been brought in to assess the damage and begin clean up operations in the cafeteria.