Are You Skipping Car Washes?

According to an article in the Detroit News it appears that high gas prices have caused drivers to pinch their pennies and have their cars washed less frequently. Car wash owners in the Detroit area believe their revenues are 30 percent lower than normal. I never realized it, but winter is when car washes make enough money to get them through the slower parts of the year. When I think on it, it makes sense that winter is their busiest time with all of the grime on cars from winter driving. The decline in revenue has caused many car wash owners to raise their prices in hopes to stay in business. The Detroit News has a poll going on that lets you place your vote on whether or not you are getting your car washed less this winter.

21-Month-Old a Natural Drummer

Julian Pavone's father, Bernie Pavone, noticed his drumming talent when Julian was just three-months-old. While Bernie was practicing the drums Julian took a turn with the sticks. Julian has a cd in the works entitled "Go Baby" and recently performed at a Cleveland Cavaliers game. I viewed a video of Julian playing the drums and was quite impressed. My 19-month-old doesn't even have the motor skills it takes to handle a drumstick properly, let alone beat out any kind of rhythm. My son did enjoy Julian's skills and showed me by boogying to the beat. There is also a website for Julian - www.littledrummerbaby.com to promote his bid for the Guinness Book of World Records as the youngest drummer and show off his talents.

Why is Our State Legislature so Expensive?

I read this article over the weekend in the Detroit News and I specifically declined to comment on it. I just did not want to get everyone upset on a Monday morning. The problem, is that since I first read the article it has blitzed across the AP Wire and keeps popping up in every paper or website I visit. The main point of the article is that our state legislature is extremely expensive when you look at the number of members versus the annual cost of $100.4 million. 21 states have a larger legislative body than Michigan yet we are No. 6 in the nation as far as cost. Legislators have not increased their pay since 2001-2002 (how kind of them) and their salaries are currently $79,650. In addition to that base pay they also receive $12,000 for meals, lodging, and other expenses because, hey, you can't afford to pay for stuff like that when you only make $79,650 a year.

Our state lawmakers are regarded as a full-time legislature, but the House only met 110 times last year and the Senate met 113. A quick calculation of an average work year for an employee came up with 250 working days in a year. That is 50 weeks (figuring two weeks vacation) times 5 days per week (a lot of folks work more than just 5 days a week) to come up with a ballpark figure of 250 working days per year. Our state legislature works less than half of that and makes full-time money.

Anyone getting angry yet? Just like any good infomercial - wait there's more! Lawmakers say that a lot of work gets done outside of the actual legislative sessions. Well, a lot of time is spent on raising campaign funds anyway. The House and Senate members raised about $5.3 million last year.

So, while the state's economy bumbles along and companies (that want to stay in business) cut costs and employees, our state legislature works part-time at passing legislation for much more than they should be paid. Thank goodness that any future pay raises must be put before the residents of Michigan in a general election. If the legislature is ever stupid enough to put that on the ballot they ought to be ridden out of town on a rail.

Well, that is about all of the politics I can stand this morning. I just want to ask one more question. Does our state government exist to serve the people or do “we the people” serve the government?

The Last Snow

I know that I posted about how spring was “just around the corner” last week and then a bunch of you had ice and snow (over a foot in northern lower Michigan). Well, we haven't had a significant snowfall in southwest Michigan since before Christmas. This morning I awoke to a skiff of snow that was just enough to get our 18 month old excited. So, wouldn't you know it, we were outside playing before 9 o'clock this morning. We threw snowballs at our shed, filled up the bird feeder, and made about a dozen trips around our backyard with me pulling his sled. He was pretty cold with rosy cheeks and nose, but he still did not want to come inside. I bribed him with a chance to watch a video and promises of going out again later.

We just had to get out and enjoy what could be our last bit of significant snow until next winter. I warmed up with a nice steaming mug of cocoa while he drank his milk. It sure was nice to be outside, even if it isn't spring yet. :)

Super Sale on Detroit's Super Bowl Items

If you will be in Detroit anytime soon, you might want to stop by Ford Field for an assortment of Super Bowl XL memorabilia. Banners that hung from street-poles to volunteer jackets and much more will be available for purchase. Until now, the volunteer jackets have not been available except to volunteers and other committee members. Proceeds from the sale are to benefit local Super Bowl-related charities. The sale starts today, Monday (3/6/06) at 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. until March 31 or the items are sold out. There are no online sales (which stinks if you don't live near Detroit) and it is cash or credit cards only. Call 313-262-2006 for more information.