Odds & Ends

Surly and I had breakfast together yesterday morning so we could get caught up on some things and maybe come up with a plan to help each other out with our projects. He's been collecting parts for his Sportster project and he's about got everything needed to build a motorcycle. I like what I've seen so far. We don't always see eye to eye on projects but I think this one is going to hit the bulls-eye. I don't know if he'll have a picture up yet with the new tank but definitely check it out. I'll be helping him build some pipes and whatever else he needs welded. Should end up being a real nice scooter.

Dorkpunch has an account now with Donors Choose. He's a middle school teacher in rural Idaho who, like most shop teachers, is doing an awful lot with an "awful lot". That is, the budget's real slim and he's teaching a variety of subjects. And from what I've seen through his blog and his comments here, he's most deserving of a little bit of your help. It's really easy to make a donation. All it takes is a couple of minutes and a credit card or a Paypal account. You'll receive a receipt so you can deduct it from your taxes and you'll be helping out the kind of teacher we need more of. Doesn't need to be a lot of money. Believe me, every little bit helps.

A couple of quick facts as seen in an article in the Wall Street Journal last Thursday:

The median net worth of American adults is less than $45,000.
Almost a third of American adults have a net worth of less than $10,000.

Other than college kids & monks, it's hard to imagine being an adult and not having a net worth greater than the value of a decent used car. I suppose if you drop out of school and have zero skills, having nothing wouldn't, or shouldn't, come as too big a surprise. Likewise, the headline story in the NWI Times was about heroin addiction in the region. Probably not your best investment choice when it comes to building assets. But a third of all adults with a net worth of $10K or less? Makes you wonder what's going on there and what's going to happen to them when they are my age.

As always, I'm pitchin' education as the solution but eventually personal responsibility has to come into play. In spite of all the money that's been thrown at poverty over the years since Johnson's Great Society and the War on Poverty, doesn't seem like much progress has been made. In fact, it seems that we've regressed quite a bit. Just food for thought.

Heading over to the high school in a little bit to judge some welding plates. My replacement is taking a couple of students to a welding contest and he had the contenders weld some plates. The top two of my picks will be going to the contest. I'd be willing to bet they'll also have a net worth of more than $10K only a couple of years after graduation.

Have a good week and enjoy the roller coaster weather we'll be having.