Things we have no control over...

We're finally seeing a small decrease in the price of gas, but I'm afraid it's only temporary and before long, the price is going to be driven up again. By this time next year, I suppose we might be facing prices close to $5 a gallon (and I'm talking about Texas, here).

Personally, I am feeling the impact of the rising prices... not with just gas but with everything else. Amazingly, just because the price of crude oil/gas has gone up, everything else has gone up as well. Here's what I determined... It all begins with gas resources.

Gas companies raise prices which results in an increase in shipping cost. Therefore, all stores and namely, grocery stores have to increase THEIR prices to meet the shipping cost and still make a profit. So, as consumers, we're experiencing the brunt of it. We're at the bottom of the food chain. You'd think with all the rising prices, we'd all get a little bit of extra income to balance it all out. Inflation... you've heard of it, right?

Gas companies raise their prices because they want a profit - simple as that. I don't want to hear the gas companies blaming other countries for raising their prices. Exxon Mobil alone posted a PROFIT of $11.7 BILLION in the fourth quarter ALONE of 2007. I repeat... $11.7 BILLION profit! That's the largest profit ever recorded by ANY company in history. Sadly, after doing some research, I discovered that Exxon Mobil is based in my very own lovely state, Texas - up in the Dallas area (Irving, to be exact). None of that foreign company or foreign oil/gas resources excuse - they don't apply! If Exxon is doing so well, it would be safe to assume the other companies are flourishing as well. Pathetic.

People are all in a frenzy worrying about gas prices. They're trading in their trucks and SUVS for sensible vehicles that have good mileage. As a result, dealerships are facing horrible losses, especially those that don't really manufacture vehicles with good gas mileage, namely Ford. US-based airlines are on the brink of bankruptcy too, if they haven't filed yet. Only Southwestern Airline is booming - but that's because they took a risk years ago of buying bulk fuel ahead and locking in their prices. They're paying what fuel cost years ago, not what it cost now. Smart.

I've gotten tons of emails urging people to buy gas from specific companies or on specific days. With enough people coming together and acting all union-like, gas prices are sure to drop!!! *Gasp!* Let's go! Yeah right, like that's going to work. People, it isn't going to work and the gas companies know it. We need gas. In Economics 101, it's simple. We have a need and they supply it. So therefore, they're in control and we have no choice but to buy at their prices. Where else are we going to get fuel for our cars? We might be able to find other ways to energize our homes but as long as we got a country full of cars running on gas, we don't have a choice.

I suppose we're faced with the age-old question... should fuel be regulated by the US government, or even the state governments? There are lots of pros and cons to this. When it comes to this, I remain undecided. It might be good to have the government regulate the cost, keeping the gas companies (especially Exxon) on a leash so they don't go out of control on raising their prices. However, if gas prices dipped way down below, we might not benefit from it because the government might want to make a profit off of THAT.

Profit, schmofit. The world's a crazy place. Must we add the headache of rising fuel cost and of course, the rising cost of EVERYTHING else in the US? Give us a break.

Pure-Breds vs. Mutts

I had a discussion with my dad the other day. We have different opinions on what type of pets are better... pure-breds or mutts. It all started when my family's pet died last week. She was getting pretty old (about 10 years old); she had arthritis in all 4 of her legs and had a huge tumor around her liver and spleen. My mom decided to put her down.

Two days after Happy died, I stopped by my parents' place after work. I hung out with my sister until my parents got home from the store. When my dad got home, he went into the kitchen to make some lunch. I decided to sit in the kitchen to keep him company and chat with him. While we were talking, he expressed sadness over losing Happy but was content with the idea of not having to take care of a pet. After 25+ years of having pets non-stop in the home, my dad was ready for a break.

We were sitting in the kitchen discussing animals (mostly Happy) when the news came on. Every Friday at 6pm and every Saturday at noon, the local news showcases a pet from the local shelter in need of a home. I took full advantage of that and pointed out how cute the little puppy was. The biggest selling point was that it would only cost $20 to adopt her.

My dad scoffed at me and said "she's a mutt." I could have kept my mouth shut but decided that I wanted to voice my opinion. If you know both me and my dad, you know we have the same personalities and we're both stubborn. I sat down next to my dad and casually asked him "Are you telling me that Happy was better than Frosty?" Happy was a pure-bred Scottish Terrier and my dog, Frosty, is a 2 year old Lab/Chow mix. My dad said no, but pure-bred dogs are better. I asked him to tell me why. He danced around the answer but eventually came to the conclusion that pure-bred dogs are better simply because they're pure (and expensive).

Honestly, I have to complain about that. Whoever thinks that pure-bred dogs are better compared to mutts has to be incredibly moronic. Sure, they'll net you a whole lot of money if you decide to breed them off and if you're a dog-show loving type of person, you might want to enter your precious little Sparky in the show in hopes of winning the award. But other than earning you money and winning an award, how are they better than mutts?

I think it's terrible that people are out there breeding dogs (and cats? I haven't actually heard about breeding farms for cats but it's possible) while there are thousands of dogs and cats being put down everyday because they couldn't find a home.

My own dog, Frosty, was found off the streets. He was wandering alone in an area with lots of shops and warehouses when someone I know found him. He was 12 weeks old at the time. The guy brought Frosty to a picnic we were having that day and asked around if anybody wanted a puppy. I hadn't planned on taking Frosty home, but I was keeping an eye out and hoping someone would take him. Ultimately, I knew that if no one would take Frosty, he'd end up at a shelter and some months later, if no one adopted him, he'd be put to sleep.

If you've ever looked into Frosty's eyes, you'd know how I felt that day. I couldn't leave Frosty's fate in the hands of another person so I took him home. And I do not regret it. He's the sweetest dog in the world and he's definitely equal to (if not better) all the pure-breds out there.

Bob Barker wouldn't have to remind everybody to spay and neuter our pets every day after the "Price is Right" if people would just go out and adopt more animals.

So do me and the thousands of cats and dogs a favor.... next time you want a pet, PLEASE check out a local shelter and adopt one instead of spending $600 on an animal that might end up giving you a headache.

I'll like you better for it.

Bits & Pieces

Well, I guess it's about time I wrote another blog. It's been almost a month. It seems that as the months go by, the less and less I write. I hope this isn't a permanent fixture in my blog future. I hope to keep writing for as long as possible, and certainly more than just a couple times a month.

I guess I could attribute the lack of blogs to my being busy. The funny thing is, I wasn't really up to much but it feels like I was busy. I spent the last couple weeks just hanging out, watching movies and sleeping in. Of course, I did a couple of errands here and there and went out of town once or twice. My kids were home recently for a couple of weeks so they kept me busy.

My son turned 2 two weeks ago. We celebrated by taking him to Chuck E Cheese for a couple of hours. Then there was a small party a couple days later.

I've had a tough couple of days recently. It seemed like my world was about to crash down around me; mostly due to my stupid mistakes and others due to circumstances I couldn't control. Starting around mid-June, my streak of bad luck started. I lost my purse. Then 4 weeks later, after buying a new purse, new wallet and getting new cards, I lose my purse again. This time, with my Sidekick in it. So, I had to get another one. Let's just say that from that point on, I just kept suffering from mishaps. The biggest stress of all was school. My entire life, I had never received an F on any of my assignments until now. I received my very first F on a research paper. From there, I kept getting F's after F's on each section of the research paper. I was furious, upset, angry and stressed. After a couple of weeks, lots of emails to the dumb professor (who I sincerely believe is biased), and lots of editing, I'm happy to say my final draft received a B. I ended up passing the course. Hooray!

Last week, I got a job interview... finally! It's all thanks to P. She found the job, got the job and her boss needed more people. Thank God P thought of me. What a nice friend. Because of her, I was able to get a full-time job. And you know what? I hate to admit it but at 26, this is my first full-time job. All other jobs I've had were all part-time.

Having a full-time job is satisfying. I actually feel a little better about myself now. Maybe now I'm worth something. Let me tell you, I hate my job, but I'm proud of the fact that I HAVE a job. I've only been working a couple of days so I'm still trying to get into a routine. Getting up at 6am after a full summer of waking up at Noon or past, it really sucks.

Maybe my getting a job (finally) means something. Hopefully, more good things will come in the near future. I'm hoping it's my state paralegal certification. This means a better job, more money and doing something I like. I took the test approximately 4 weeks ago so I should be getting my results any day now...fingers crossed!

I guess I oughta focus on improving my blog a little bit. Lately, it's just been like a sporadic diary, giving details of my life. I have thoughts and opinions so I guess I should make good use of them and put them into blogs. So keep a look out, more's coming soon.... I just don't know when.