“If you are what you eat – then I’m fast, cheap and easy.” ~ Unknown

Here’s a yummy looking option.

Found it here (along with the recipe).

Shall we start with the weather?  If weather dot com is to be believed – we will be doing the triple-digit dance starting tomorrow.  Ugh.  So, our happy little mild spring will be officially a pleasant memory after that.  A friend of mine recommended her weather man – he was predicting much cooler temps than mine.  I may take her up on that recommendation!

The squash baby has grown!  So has it’s companion spinach planting…  I’m not sure how well the spinach will do, but it’s nice to see it’s trying it’s best.

We also have tomatoes, a pepper plant and cucumbers planted.   A couple of pots have flower starts in them.  We have no plans to eat flowers, even though at least a couple of the varieties planted are considered edible.  I just like the color.

As of this Sunday, Smith and The Jones Girl have been hitched for six years.   Boy that went by fast.

I was one of those kids who’d get all excited over the bean growing in the milk carton full of cotton that we’d plant as a group project in kindergarten.  I even looked forward to my son getting the same assignment when he started school a few decades ago.  So even though I know these plants will sprout and eventually grow up, I still get a big thrill over the first sightings of the whole process working again.  I mean really – how amazing is it that this earth is just so well-designed that we can stick a seed in dirt and it will grow food for us? Or, in this case one of us – the other of us here hates squash…which sort of amazes the squash lover.  What’s not to love here?  This is a yellow crookneck.  Garden space is limited since we’re doing container gardening so I picked the one I look forward to the most.

Smitty wanted to grow spinach too, so we’re giving that a try.  It’s also sprouted, as are the tomatoes.  We planted some already-sprouted cucumbers and peppers too.  So, yeah – not a great big garden, but hopefully a decent salad.  And of course a cheap thrill for at least one of us to watch as it all starts growing.

Good Music takes many forms, and often the music that attracts us tells a story we identify with.  A Good song will stand the test of time that way – and each generation can make that very same song “new” simply arranging it a little differently.

For instance:  Back in the 1930s-40s, there was a singer known as Leadbelly* (Huddie William Ledbetter). “Leadbelly” was known for his excellent 12 string guitar work, and would best be described as an American country blues musician. One of the songs – a good song! – written and performed by Leadbelly is the song “Cotton Fields”. This song would eventually be recorded, performed and popularized by many artists, including Creedence and the Beach Boys.

Notice the difference in this song accomplished simply by it’s arrangement.
Cotton Fields by Creedance Clearwater Revival

Cottonfields – Beach Boys, August 15, 1969

An example of this same principle:

The song Midnight Special. Although it is unknown who actually wrote this song, the best arrangement of the song is by Leadbelly.

Here is a clip.

And then:

John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater followed this same arrangment

Did you know that Leadbelly also recorded “The House of the Rising Sun“?  That song was much later identified with Eric Burton’s “Animals”.  Many of today’s “Baby Boomer” generation, no doubt, believe that Mr. Burton wrote the song, but it was actually written in the early 1930s by an unknown author.

Listen to how Eric Burton made the song his own.

Here’s another song not easily pigeon-holed into one “type” of music, the Gregg Allman-penned “Midnight Rider“. This is an outstanding example of blending elements of country, blues, southern rock, and even a bit of soul – and then applying excellent musical skill in performing the song.

Last but not least – no blog post about music by me would be complete without something about the Master – Waylon Jennings. (Hey, my blog, my favorites!)

Waylon Jennings wrote and recorded a song entitled  “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way?” Johnny Cash, another artist who brought his own style to his music, talks a little about it in the intro… (This is from The Highwaymen Tour).

Notice the outstanding steel work in the middle and Waymore’s distinctive guitar playing to round the song out.  Waylon, like so many successful artists down through the generations, “got” that good music is a good song, and what you as the artist bring to that song. He stayed true to his instincts, and eventually he told a story that people listened to, were entertained by, and came to love.

Yes, a good song is a good song and it will stand the test of time, and be made “new” with each artist’s style.  Whether you want to call it Country, Rock, or something else…good music is good music.

*”Leadbelly” died of Lou Gehrig’s disease 1949.

In these economic times, what should a parent do to plan for their child’s college costs? One solid planning tool and, in my opinion, one of the safest options is an old fashioned “whole life” plan.

Whole life insurance?

That’s kind of expensive, isn’t it?

If a person needs short term life insurance in large amounts, well, yes it is expensive.  But you are looking for a means of funding college tuition, so you may find whole life insurance expense to be very reasonable and … once again, safe.

The key is maximizing the cash value while at the same time providing insurance on the breadwinner (that’s the parent) to assure its completion. That is to say, should the parent die, the life insurance proceeds helps to pay for the college tuition and if the parent lives, the cash value of the policy helps pay the college tuition when the time comes for your offspring to leave for college.

The concept is pretty simple!  I know of no other concept that matches this one for safety and certainty.  The outcome is insured, what a person plans for is what will happen – essentially eliminating the element of risk associated with many other options for college planning. This does not mean other plans do not have their place, but purchasing a good whole life insurance plan is, to my way of thinking, the easiest and safest way to get what you want;
and for your child, that means a good start on meeting their future college tuition costs.

May I show you how this will work for you?

Long a cherished principle of the tax code in the United States is the concept that employee benefits are not taxed. In other words, the employer received a tax deduction but the employee was not taxed on the premiums paid for health insurance. It was almost sacred. It was not something to be toyed with.

As health insurance premiums have gone up, this almost sacred principle became more and more important. Imagine if you had to pay taxes on the premiums paid for your health insurance at work? What would this mean for you? An increase in your “wages” and a marked decrease in your take home pay. Those with families would be hardest hit. With insurance premiums often being between $8,000 to $16,000, or even more, … what is your tax bracket?

If your tax bracket is $28%, and your employer is paying out $16,000 per year for your premiums, it means that you will pay additional taxes of about $100 per week.

So let me see if I have this right. Health insurance premiums have gone up at an alarming rate. We are not going to do anything that anyone has demonstrated will solve the underlying problems causing that inflation. I know! Let’s reduce the amount of money people have. That should fix it.

What do you think?

Those running Washington these days continue to amaze me at their lack of understanding of basic principles. The statement that brokers are not needed for people to buy health insurance because they can buy airplane tickets on line, shows a remarkable lack of understanding. It would be comparable to saying that “you don’t need an attorney”, because there are all types and manner of self-help legal books. “Just go online and fill out the right form”.

The most recent example demonstrating conclusively for anyone with the ability to connect two dots is how the ones in power managed the Medicare Advantage program. They managed to take a program, fairly simple in design, and complicate it beyond any but the most educated person’s ability to dissect. I said complicate, not make better. The ones answering the phones could not answer the simplest of questions.

And then there is the many state sponsored programs over the years. Worker’s Compensation, Earthquake Insurance, Flood Insurance and on and on and on. Not one of these programs have been what anyone with any insurance knowledge would consider successful.

Well, I guess you know what I think of this position from people who wouldn’t know enough to get out of the street if a semi was headed right for them. So what do you think, dear reader? Do you think that brokers should be removed from the process of helping you choose your health plan? Why or why not?

When we were young and silly, we had a joke amongst our group. At a restaurant, as we were finishing up and getting ready to leave someone would invariably ask “did you leave a tip?” And then some smart-alek amongst us would say – “oh, right, let me borrow your pen – and then write a note for the waitress – ‘plant your corn early.’” We thought ourselves quite amusing. And yes, someone would leave a real tip.

I thought of that this morning when I noticed that a couple of my tomato seedlings had sprouted! Mixed with the excitement of something actually GROWING, I worried that perhaps I am off to a rather late “start” for seeds. Fortunately, the growing season in California is a fairly long one – so hopefully it will be long enough for these.

Speaking of tomatoes – we have seen a LOT of those fun hanging tomato growers this season in our travels about the area.  So far, no actual tomatoes, but they’re very popular this season from the looks of things.

This kit also looks like a really nice option!

Product description from Gardner’s Supply (click the picture to go to their web site)

Organic Tomato Success Kit, Terra Cotta
Our Tomato Success Kits have helped thousands of gardeners — from beginners to experts — grow big crops of delicious tomatoes. These foolproof kits are now even better! With the addition of an all-organic growing medium, your tomatoes will be tastier and more nutritious than ever before. It all starts with our patented self-watering planter. Our own field tests prove that tomatoes grown in these success kits out-produce garden-grown plants by 30% or more, with fewer disease and pest problems. These kits include everything you need for a bumper crop. The heart of the system is our patented self-watering planter with a 4-gallon reservoir that lets you enjoy self-watering convenience, while your plants receive a steady flow of water and nutrients all season long. A strong, rust-resistant steel support cage clips on to prevent plants from toppling. We also include 40 quarts of OMRI-certified Organic Self-Watering Container Mix; 1 lb. of our Organic Tomato Fertilizer, and a sheet of red plastic mulch to speed ripening and help boost yields. Add the optional Cage Extension for extra-tall tomatoes Optional Casters (sold separately) make the kit easy to move There is no more convenient or foolproof way to grow your own delicious harvest of organic tomatoes — we guarantee it! Kit includes our Self-Watering Planter, Tomato Yield Booster Mulch, one Tomato Support Cage, 40 quarts of Organic Container Mix, 1 pound of organic 5-6-5 fertilizer (contains peanut meal) and a top-fill tube with water level indicator; tomato plants not included Organic Container Mix contains responsibly-harvested Canadian peat, limestone, perlite, beneficial mycorrhizae and sea-based compost (contains seaweed and ground shrimp shells) Self-Watering Planter: 26″ L x 19-3/4″ W x 10-1/2″ H Tomato Cage: 15″ W x 22″ D x 31″ H with 7″ legs (38″ overall) Rust-resistant cage clips prevent toppling Gardener’s Supply Exclusive

Ever since I entered the insurance business (1978) I have seen term life insurance get less and less expensive. This was due to many factors, but the largest factor is term insurance is for … well a “term”, that is a set number of years and then people did not keep it. With advances in medical science, people lived longer and so the result was that the insurance companies could sell term life insurance for less … and the product was still profitable. It was a win-win, the consumer got the protection they needed and the insurance company also made money. Life was good.

Other things that affected this trend was the earnings insurers made on their investments. They did not need to earn so much on the insurance, because the cash flow earned them money on their investments.

Now … I bet you know where I am going with this, and you’d be right. The investment side has not been so rosy of late, and I am now starting to see some of the major insurers RAISE the price on term life insurance.

Keep in mind that if you purchase a policy – you lock in the rate for the length of the “term”, which could be 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 years.

If you’ve been thinking about your need for insurance, now is a good time to act on that thought. I still have some carriers who have not raised their premiums as yet. Give me a call or send me an email and I’ll get you a price. I think you’ll be surprised at how affordable it can be.

I enjoy sewing. I know. Not everyone does – but likely even if you don’t, you know someone who does – and they might be like me and would gladly sew a small project for you for fun, or just for the pattern. See, you go buy them the pattern and fabric – and they make you the object but they get to keep your pattern.