It reads:

gee-thanks, originally uploaded by -SPK.

You could spend $9,999,818.88 more without increasing shipping.

Wow, thanks.

I wonder how many people have taken advantage of that!

Financial health, or financially unhealthy?

I read an interesting article in the LA Times today about how Americans are tapping their home equity (the value in the home vs. the loan owed to the bank) to pay for things like credit card debt, trips, etc.

The article was more informative and didn't take any sides. Here are two quotes that made me angry and realize that people will say anything to make money.

"If you paid your mortgage off, it means you probably did not manage your funds efficiently over the years," said David Lereah, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors and author of "Are You Missing the Real Estate Boom?" "It's as if you had 500,000 dollar bills stuffed in your mattress."

He called it "very unsophisticated."

Anthony Hsieh, chief executive of LendingTree Loans, an Internet-based mortgage company, used a more disparaging term. "If you own your own home free and clear, people will often refer to you as a fool. All that money sitting there, doing nothing."

That's when it hit me, what the problem is: Education. Lack of it. Let me back it up with facts:

You have a $300,000 mortgage and are paying 6.5% for 30 years. Your payment includes principal (the $300,000 the bank gave you) and the interest (the money the bank makes when you borrow). Your payment? $1,896.20

That's made up of $1,625 of interest and $271.20 of principal in the first month of the loan. Yeah.

See, mortgages are structured so the bank makes most of their money in the beginning of the loan and much less at the end. So, what do banks want you to do? GET ANOTHER LOAN!

What would happen if you did not get another loan, rather - you put an additional $200 towards your mortgage every single month?

What I didn't mention yet is that when you pay extra on your mortgage each month, that extra goes directly towards your principal and since the bank's interest is just a percent of principal - over time you pay less in interest. But how much less?

How does $103,450 sound in savings? Yep. And your reduced the length of your mortgage by 6 years and ll months.

Here's the breakdown for you non believers: Your extra $200 per month ended up being $55,200 and because you didn't pay interest on that amount, you saved $103,450 in interest. (your $300,000 is always the same)

I guess you are now "a fool" and "very unsophisticated".

See, the real issue here is that people have not been educated on finance. In most high schools, kids are not taught simple finance. Balancing a check book, loans, interest, taxes, investing, etc.

When I was buying our house, I lived on this web site. Karl's Mortgage Calculator, and I can honestly say, it was the first and so far the last time that I actually donated money to a website that asked for it. I heard Joe Biden say something that I think really fits here: "...don't tell me what your priorities are -- show me your budget and I'll tell YOU what your priorities are."

"Scrubs" suprise

What is this? Is this blog becoming the "feel good blog"?? I liked this a lot.

It's December 1st and we are in the holiday spirit at the Kaine house!

This is a MUST WATCH!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1127514394


Thanks Brenda for sending it to us.

What is better?

What is better?, originally uploaded by -SPK.

Here is a sitemeter screen shot for my blog, if you can see about half way down the person was searching for "what's better big or small nipples". How lucky was he that he got to this blog?

What makes you ask that?

Here is a funny and R-rated story of a fellow blogger, jkirlin.

http://jkirlin.blogspot.com/2007/11/submitted-for-your-consideration.html

Watch what happens when an autistic man sings the National Anthem and gets the giggles half way through.

It happened at Fenway Park in Boston. I'm so proud of the crowd - truly cool.

Kaitlyn's Koins

Kaitlyn's Koins, originally uploaded by -SPK.

There were so many coins that they got bored putting them in their piggy banks. Poor girls.

Kahlua & Cream Experiment

Kahlua & Cream Experiment, originally uploaded by -SPK.

This week I saw this video on reddit.com that inspired me to take these shots. You put Kahlua (they used Tia Maria) on a saucer and add cream. The alcohol reacts with the Kahlua and almost looks like it boiling.

I hope you like! Please make sure to look at the other three in the set as they are all so different!

Here is the video if you want to check it out:

http://www.5min.com/Video/Tia-Maria-and-Cream-Experiment-122626

Ahhhh, a good ol' politician at work

This is really funny until you think about why it's funny. Because its so damn near real!

Autumn snowfall

Autumn snowfall, originally uploaded by -SPK.

We enjoyed our first snowfall in Easton this weekend. In this photo, I used a 150mm lens and focused half way between me and a beautiful Oak in her autumn colors across the way. Hope you enjoy it.

She fell asleep eating popcorn and watching the race

She fell asleep eating popcorn and watching the race, originally uploaded by -SPK.

Frost (not Robert)

This morning everything was covered in a thick layer of frost and when Paige got up and looked out the window, she thought that it snowed!

I ventured out with my Sigma 150mm macro lens and snapped a few pictures of a few blades of grass and some flowers just CRUSTED in frost.

Finishing the basement....

Click on the picture to advance forward...

Halloween Pictures

Click on the picture to advance forward....

Talk about EXTREME sports.

These dudes are sick!!!

Rust

Rust, originally uploaded by -SPK.

This was taken in Maui about 100 yards from the ocean in the front of an abandoned house. It is the driver side door of an old Honda Accord that was apparantely left there to rust away.

Here is another angle.

Some SICK DRIVING here

Rain Heroes from FUROBOT on Vimeo.

Tell me this doesn't look like Stanley Hudson from "The Office"

English just isn't enough

Even though there are hundreds of thousands of words in the English language, we still could use some more. Here is a list of words not in the English language that have great meanings:

Kaelling - Danish: a woman who stands on her doorstep yelling obscenities at her kids.

Pesamenteiro - Portuguese: one who joins groups of mourners at the home of a dead person, apparently to offer condolences but in reality is just there for the refreshments.

Okuri-OKAMI - Japanese: literally a "see-you-home-wolf". A man who feigns thoughtfulness by offering to see a girl home only to try to molest her once he gets in the door.

Jayus - Indonesian: someone who tells a joke so unfunny you can't help laughing.

Spesenritter - German: a person who shows off by paying the bill on the firm's money, literally "an expense knight".

Kamaki - Greek: the young local guys strolling up and down beaches hunting for female tourists, literally "harpoons".

Kanjus Makkhicus - Hindi: a person so miserly that if a fly falls into his cup of tea, he'll fish it out and suck it dry before throwing it away.

Giri-GIRI - Hawaiian pidgin: the place where two or three hairs stick up, no matter what.

Pelinti - Buli, Ghana: to move very hot food around inside one's mouth.

Dii-KOYNA - Ndebele, South Africa: to destroy one's property in anger.

Hanyauku - Rukwangali, Namibia: walking on tiptoes across warm sand.

Tartle - Scottish: to hesitate when you are introducing someone whose name you can't quite remember.

Vovohe Tahtsenaotse - Cheyenne, US: to prepare the mouth before speaking by moving or licking one's lips.

Prozvonit - Czech and Slovak: to call someone's mobile from your own to leave your number in their memory without them picking it up.

Hira Hira - Japanese: the feeling you get when you walk into a dark and decrepit old house in the middle of the night.

Koi No Yokan - Japanese: a sense on first meeting someone that it is going to evolve into love.

Cafune - Brazilian Portuguese: the tender running of one's fingers through the hair of one's mate.

Shnourkovat Sya - Russian: when drivers change lanes frequently and unreasonably.

Gadrii Nombor Shulen Jongu - Tibetan: giving an answer that is unrelated to the question, literally "to give a green answer to a blue question".

Biritululo - Kiriwani, Papua New Guinea: comparing yams to settle a dispute.

Poronkusema - Finnish: the distance equal to how far a reindeer can travel without a comfort break.

Gamadj - Obibway, North America: dancing with a scalp in one's hands, in order to receive presents.

Baling - Manobo, Philippines: the action of a woman who, when she wants to marry a man, goes to his house and refuses to leave until marriage is agreed upon.

Dona - Yamana, Chile: to take lice from a person's head and squash between one's teeth.

Oka/SHETE - Ndonga, Nigeria: urination difficulties caused by eating frogs before the rain has duly fallen.

Pisan Zapra - Malay: the time needed to eat a banana.

Physiggoomai - Ancient Greek: excited by eating garlic.

Baffona - Italian: an attractive moustachioed woman.

Layogenic - Tagalog, Philippines: a person who is only goodlooking from a distance.

Rhwe - South Africa: to sleep on the floor without a mat while drunk and naked.

Shvitzer - Yiddish: someone who sweats a lot, especially a nervous seducer.

Gattara - Italian: a woman, often old and lonely, who devotes herself to stray cats.

Creerse La Ultima Coca-COLA EN EL DESIERTO - Central American Spanish: to have a very high opinion of oneself, literally to "think one is the last Coca-Cola in the desert".

Vrane Su Mu Popile Mozak - Croatian: crazy, literally "cows have drunk his brain".

Du Kannst Mir Gern Den Buckel Runterrutschen Und Mit Der Zunge Bremsen - Austrian German: abusive insult, literally "you can slide down my hunchback using your tongue as a brake".

Tener Una Cara De Telefono Ocupado - Puerto Rican Spanish: to be angry, literally "to have a face like a busy telephone".

Bablat - Hebrew: baloney, but is an acronym of "beelbool beytseem le-lo takhleet" which means "bothering someone's testicles for no reason".

Vai A Fava - Portuguese: get lost, literally "go to the fava bean".

Rombhoru - Bengali: a woman having thighs as shapely as banana trees.

Tako-NYODU - Japanese: a baldy, literally an "octopus monk".

Snyavshi Shtany, PO VOLOSAM NE GLADYAT - Russian: once you've taken off your pants it's too late to look at your hair.

via

Just the two of me

Taken at the Forks Elementary School as the girls played. We just chatted a while then went about our way.