Archive for the ‘Mindless Rambling’ Category

In my travels across the Internet I came across the Accelerated Retirement of Inefficient Vehicles Act. I read it a few time to make sure I really understood what it was saying. They call it “cash for clunkers”. The way it works is they give you a voucher to put towards the purchase of a new or used fuel efficient car; you in return hand over your vehicle for them to CRUSH. If they were really after true clunkers, fine no issues. The problem is in what they define as a clunker, any SUV or truck that gets less than 18MPG. That means my beloved Jeep Wrangler would be on the list of cars to crush. I pity the person that tries to take my Wrangler off of me. The Jeep defines our lifestyle and she is going to be sitting in my driveway for many years to come.

SEMA is opposing an effort by lawmakers to have this included as part of the economic stimulous package. Please visit their site, read about what lawmakers are trying to pass and support their efforts opposing this legislation.

Anyone that knows us knows that we like the open road and the road less traveled is where you are most likely to find us. We love the back roads and in our travels have found that is where all the great scenery that takes your breath away is hidden. Vacations are not about speeding down the interstate making good time, they are about taking the slow route, stopping and enjoying the beautiful scenery and smelling the fresh air. In my travels over the years I have jumped on more airplanes than I can count on my hands and feet. I would sit in the airplane looking down at the ground and wonder what all I was missing. Over the years I have started taking road trips and filling in the gaps. I have been guilty of saying why fly when you can drive now my feelings are completely opposite. If you can drive, do it! Stay off the main roads, don’t look at the clock, don’t plan every trip to the last minute. The planet we live on is amazing and needs to be seen and enjoyed, not looked at from 15,000 feet.

When we first came to the US two years ago we started collecting magnets for every state that we’ve driven across. These are the states that we have traveled together, states that we traveled alone and before we met don’t count. In the two years we’ve been to the US we have visited 18 states and we are looking at adding seven more by the end of 2009 to make it to the half way point.

Here’s the states we have traveled so far. These are on our fridge as a constant reminder of all we have left to see and enjoy.

A comment left for me last night reminded me that my poor Jeep blog has been very neglected since our last move. No surprise to those that know us but we have been on the move again. We are once again back in Bentonville and have no idea how long we will be here this time.

My poor Jeep is sitting in my parents driveway in Memphis covered for now, we didn’t want to bring both cars until we knew exactly how long we were here for. The current plan is that we might go and pick her up at the end of January, I miss her!!

Come summer I will be back to posting full force and we are already trying to decide where our next road trip will take us. There are even talks that our Jeep is going to be hooked up to the back of an RV!

I think I just experienced the fastest month in history. It turned out to be a month of two’s. Two sick kids, two sick adults, two moves, two cars breaking down and two trips to Memphis and one cabin being rented. Shane ended his contract in Bentonville and we moved out of both the apartment and the cabin and are temporarily in Memphis.

Not long after we got back from Vegas our Yukon, who has serious jealousy problems about no longer being the one and only, broke down when I was out with the kids. When I would put my foot on the gas the ABS kicked in and was bringing the car to a halt. First I called Shane, then AAA and then Shane again to get him to come and get us. This was just after we had packed the car to take things home to Harrison the next day. Shane had to run home, unpack the Jeep, then come and get us. We had already taken our second car seats home the previous weekend so before the Yukon could be towed I had to take both of the kids car seats out. I finally found out what it takes to get strange looks in Arkansas. Stand in front of a Walmart with two kids and two car seats. Anyway, our lovely Yukon kicked the ABS in for the tow truck driver but would not repeat the fault for the service guys. Now our lovely Yukon has an electrical problem and the buttons that control seat position have reversed themselves.

Our next breakdown was in Conway Arkansas the very next weekend. We brought our daughter to Memphis to spend a week with my parents and on the way back to Bentonville stopped at a gas station in Conway to pick up a bottle of water so I could make Ethan a bottle. Shane goes in, Shane comes out and the car won’t start, battery was dead. Yet another call to the AAA and a few hours later we were finally on our way again.

The next weekend we moved out of the apartment in Bentonville and the following weekend we moved out of our cabin in Harrison. The cabin is rented out right now and my parents will be retiring there in just over a year. We love our little log cabin but the reality is that 1300 sq ft and two bedrooms isn’t big enough for four especially when our little guy is so against sleep. We will be building a house in Harrison that is better suited to us. Right now we are in Memphis helping my parents get their house ready to sell and trying to decide where to spend the winter.

Last week the Jeep ended up in the shop due to a shot battery harness and battery. Thank goodness for factory warranty!

That is a brief version of the past month. We have hardly had time to sit down. Moving out of one house is bad enough but moving out of two is a pain in the rear. All our furniture is in storage in Harrison, only computers, clothes and a few toys moved with us. Thank goodness for furnished apartments!