Jim Gaffigan on the holidays. Not suitable for young kids, but very funny.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Monday, December 17, 2007
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Thursday, November 15, 2007
New Car et al
For those of you who remembered, we were looking at buying a new car. Well we did it. We bought the 2007 Toyota Rav4 you see pictured above. It was the last 2007 on the lot so we got a great deal on it (several thousands off sticker price). We are happy with it so far.
These last few weeks have been crazy. As you already know, Kim's stepdad passed away last month. What you don't know is that Kim's grandfather passed away just 4 days prior. Yes, Kim lost her grandfather and stepdad in the same week. We went to her Papaw's funeral on a Saturday in Tampa, got on a plane in Orlando on Sunday, and went to Theron's memorial in Idaho on Monday. To make things more interesting, her grandfather, Phil Williamson, Sr., died the same day Kim started her new job. It has been stressful, but God has been good all along. We appreciate all of you who prayed for us.
Life is slowing coming back to normal (whatever that is). We're all looking forward to brighter days ahead.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Theron M. Bradley, Jr., 1/27/47 - 10/26/07
On Friday, October 26th, 2007 at 10:45am, our lives changed. Theron Michael Bradley Jr., Kim's stepdad, finished his race and battle with brain cancer. He was diagnosed with the disease in early March 2006 at which time the doctors gave him only a year to live. He fought well and lasted 18 months. He was a very special person to both Kim and I. He was kind, generous, patient, incredibly intelligent and very funny. You always had a good time around Theron. There are so many memories I have of him - too many to list here, but I'll include a couple.
It's because of Theron that I am such an Apple lover now. He sent us our first Apple computer in 1997. A ripping fast (lol) Apple MacIntosh 7200/90. When we tried to get connected to the internet using Boone Online, we encountered some problems. We loaded all the software that Boone Online had supplied us to enable us to go online, but our computer kept freezing up every time we tried to log in. To make matters worse, Boone Online's resident Mac expert was on vacation that week and there was no one else to help us. So I called Theron, our "friendly Apple tech support" as he liked to call himself. He spent probably 4 or 5 evenings (after working nearly 12 hours at "the site") engrossed in discovering the culprit behind our computer gremlins. Turns out that Boone Online's software loaded a version of PPP that our computer didn't like. I would never have discovered this problem on my own, but Theron would not rest until he figured out what the problem was. He took this approach to nearly everything he did.
Theron was a very intelligent man. He knew something about everything. You didn't dare challenge him to a game of Jeopardy - you would lose, big time! He knew alot of geological facts about Yellowstone National Park. We've visited the park with Theron on several occasions. He used to love giving us tours and information about the different areas of the park that we passed through. He held degrees in Math, Physics, Nuclear Engineering and Law. He worked for the Navy and the US Government for 30 years, designing nuclear powerplants for aircraft carriers and submarines and overseeing nuclear facilities in Idaho. He was NASA's Chief Engineer (THE Chief Engineer) from 2002 to 2004. However, through all of this he was humble. He never once made me feel inferior to him on any level. He was a great example to me on how to treat others.
I'm really going to miss Theron. He was a believer in Jesus, His death and resurrection. It was a great source of joy for me to know that Theron was a top scientist in his field and yet still had faith in Jesus. Too often, these two positions are mutually exclusive. I know that one day I'm going to see Theron again. I think he's probably in heaven now learning about all the cool sites and landmarks (such as they are) so that when we get there, he can give us a tour. I look forward to that day.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Consumed
This may strike some of you as funny considering my last post, but it's time for us to purchase a new car. Our Ford Freestar spends too much time at the dealership (our last service visit lasted 1 week) not to mention the poor gas mileage we get with it. I've looked at nearly every vehicle that might possibly suit our family (I even looked at a used Mercedes Benz wagon, LOL). We only have 2 kids but occasionally Kim needs to haul around another little screamer (or 3) after gym, homeschool co-op, church, etc, so third row seating becomes a necessity. What we want is a larger mid-sized wagon with optional 3rd row seats that gets decent gas mileage. These vehicles are called crossovers - a blend of wagon, car, SUV, minivan, etc. Unfortunately, crossovers happen to be the rage right now so trying to find an affordable model is proving to be elusive. I have it narrowed down to 2 main vehicles that we are considering:
2007 Kia Rondo
2007 Toyota Rav4
The Kia is the least expensive of the two vehicles but also feels riskier, both tactilely (is that a word?) and emotionally. It's not a bad vehicle; in fact, Kim and I were both pleasantly surprised after driving it. It feels cavernous on the inside thanks to the high roofline. It's spunky 4 cylinder engine is adequate(162 HP) only. It's performance is better than a bus, to be sure, but I certainly wouldn't want to run time trials up Pike's Peak with it. Handling is tuned more for the cushy interstate ride rather than for carving up mountain roads - which only makes sense for a vehicle in this class. The interior is neither inspiring nor insipid. There's plenty of soft touch plastic throughout the cabin to remind you that you are not in the penalty box for buying Korean. The Rondo can be optioned with a fold in to the floor, 50/50 split, 3rd row bench seat. With the seats up, cargo space is akin to what you'd find in the trunk of a hard top convertible - not much if any! But with the seats stowed into the floor you have the same amount of space as what you'd find in a mid-sized SUV. Add in the optional roof racks, and you're ready to vacate with the Griswalds. To sum it up, the Rondo is boring but so practical that you are willing to withstand it's hum-drum personality (and exterior quirkiness). And the price is right. The sticker price is just under $19.4K and there is currently a $1.5K cash back offer. Factor in our trade, and it's the value winner for sure.
Too bad for the Kia, but I had to go out and drive the Toyota Rav4. The Toyo's VVT-i 4 cylinder engine has better performance, both of the seat-of-the-pants variety (166 hp, feels like more) and of mpg figures (21/27). It seemed to have more useable power when you needed it - I think that has more to do with Toyota's VVT-i technology rather than pure hp/torque numbers. The steering was a bit too assisted and numb, but I was comparing it to my Mazda Protege5, which is superb in that department. The turning radius on the Rav4 is phenomenal. You should have no problem navigating through the shopping cart obstacle course known as the Walmart parking lot - autocrossing for mommies (would that be mommy-crossing?). The Rav4 is also offered with an optional fold into the floor 50/50 split bench 3rd row seat. Again, add the roof racks and you're not really giving up the space from the minivan for those long trips. What really stands out is that the Toyota has a solid feel to the sum of it's parts, something I don't remember getting from the Kia. The Toyota felt more like a unit rather than thousands of parts working together in unity. Price is more than the Kia, but at $24.4K list price, you feel as if you are getting what you are paying for.
The question is: can we really afford what we would rather have? Early financial indications say no (thanks in part to Toyota not offering ANY incentives on the Rav4). So maybe we'll end up with a Kia after all. After WEEKS of internet research (I'm sure you guys have noticed my absence here in Paradise) I'm ready to get past this consuming decision.
2007 Kia Rondo
2007 Toyota Rav4
The Kia is the least expensive of the two vehicles but also feels riskier, both tactilely (is that a word?) and emotionally. It's not a bad vehicle; in fact, Kim and I were both pleasantly surprised after driving it. It feels cavernous on the inside thanks to the high roofline. It's spunky 4 cylinder engine is adequate(162 HP) only. It's performance is better than a bus, to be sure, but I certainly wouldn't want to run time trials up Pike's Peak with it. Handling is tuned more for the cushy interstate ride rather than for carving up mountain roads - which only makes sense for a vehicle in this class. The interior is neither inspiring nor insipid. There's plenty of soft touch plastic throughout the cabin to remind you that you are not in the penalty box for buying Korean. The Rondo can be optioned with a fold in to the floor, 50/50 split, 3rd row bench seat. With the seats up, cargo space is akin to what you'd find in the trunk of a hard top convertible - not much if any! But with the seats stowed into the floor you have the same amount of space as what you'd find in a mid-sized SUV. Add in the optional roof racks, and you're ready to vacate with the Griswalds. To sum it up, the Rondo is boring but so practical that you are willing to withstand it's hum-drum personality (and exterior quirkiness). And the price is right. The sticker price is just under $19.4K and there is currently a $1.5K cash back offer. Factor in our trade, and it's the value winner for sure.
Too bad for the Kia, but I had to go out and drive the Toyota Rav4. The Toyo's VVT-i 4 cylinder engine has better performance, both of the seat-of-the-pants variety (166 hp, feels like more) and of mpg figures (21/27). It seemed to have more useable power when you needed it - I think that has more to do with Toyota's VVT-i technology rather than pure hp/torque numbers. The steering was a bit too assisted and numb, but I was comparing it to my Mazda Protege5, which is superb in that department. The turning radius on the Rav4 is phenomenal. You should have no problem navigating through the shopping cart obstacle course known as the Walmart parking lot - autocrossing for mommies (would that be mommy-crossing?). The Rav4 is also offered with an optional fold into the floor 50/50 split bench 3rd row seat. Again, add the roof racks and you're not really giving up the space from the minivan for those long trips. What really stands out is that the Toyota has a solid feel to the sum of it's parts, something I don't remember getting from the Kia. The Toyota felt more like a unit rather than thousands of parts working together in unity. Price is more than the Kia, but at $24.4K list price, you feel as if you are getting what you are paying for.
The question is: can we really afford what we would rather have? Early financial indications say no (thanks in part to Toyota not offering ANY incentives on the Rav4). So maybe we'll end up with a Kia after all. After WEEKS of internet research (I'm sure you guys have noticed my absence here in Paradise) I'm ready to get past this consuming decision.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
