Daycare Rant

The rules of daycare have long gotten under my skin, and it seems like it's only getting worse.

I recognize that child care is hard. I also understand that its a business. But I think its total crap that they can just decide to not watch my child AND I STILL HAVE TO PAY THEM.

The reason for this rant is because of the snow storm this week here in St. Louis. My daycare decided to close early on Thursday and open late on Friday. Admittedly, the roads were bad Thursday afternoon, but they had been cleared by Friday morning. Regardless, if your entire business model hinges on letting your customers go to work, you had damn well better find a way to let them go to work. And if you aren't gonna let me go to work, even though THAT'S THE ENTIRE PURPOSE FOR OUR BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP, you shouldn't charge me for it. I can't think of another reputable business that can agree to provide you a service, and then decide to only provide 70% of your service in a given week and still charge 100% for it.

This is extra irritating because we just got off of a holiday break where this same daycare decided to give themselves off Christmas Day and New Years Day (which is reasonable) and also give themselves off a half day each for Christmas Eve and New Years Eve  (which is not). They'll also recently decided that they need to take off President's Day, which I also don't have off. A daycare spring break can't be far off.

Daycare providers - you are not schools. You do not get to take snow days, or teacher-in-service days, or any holidays beyond New Years Day, Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. You are economy enablers. You let people go to work. Now would you please just let us work already.

What's In Your Garage?

In the wake of Winter Storm Q, I gazed out the window to see numerous cars up and down our suburban street, all with several inches of ice and snow piled atop their windshields.

My neighbors all have a garage. Like mine, it will fit two, albeit small-to-medium-size, cars. Why then, are the streets littered with compact sedans covered with ice? In short, because these folks have elected to fill their garage space with something other than their car(s).

I counted 9 cars on the street. That's minus the trucks, which don't fit in our tiny garages.

What on earth are you storing in your garage that’s worth more to you than your car? Glad you asked. Here’s what my neighbors value more than their automobiles.

One family has elected to place a couch in their garage. I’m not sure if they’re using it as a bonus room. If so, it would be one cold/hot bonus room. If not, I’d value the couch at around $500. Much less than the late-model Camry that’s sitting under two inches of ice. Oh, they also have an amazing Air Jordan cardboard cutout from the 90s. I can understand why you’d want to protect that sort of memorabilia.

Our next-door neighbor keeps a large assortment of lawn equipment in his garage. It’s a bit ironic as he enjoys watching his grass top ankle-height in the summer before breaking it out. Since he’s not keeping an assortment of antique, restored lawn tractors, I’d value his collection at a maximum of $2,500. Again, much less than the Toyota and Volkswagen sitting in the driveway.

The folks across the street take the cake. They don’t like going outside to empty the trash. So, they store their trash can (alongside a massive supply of Coke) in the garage. Yes, they value their trash over their new Honda Accord. Serenity now!

Here's John's garage. Though he gets a pass because he just moved.

If you’re keeping your car on the street, take a moment and consider that decision. It’s out in the open to the sun, sleet and wind. Kids on bicycles (maybe even kids just off their training wheels) probably pass it daily in the summer. Do you shower it with grass clippings (and potential rocks)? Assuming you have a garage, what are you prioritizing over your car?

I cannot think of anything that, economically, should be stored over a car in a garage. Well, maybe a restored Space Invaders cabinet over a rusty old IROC-Z. And, if you’re hanging onto an old IROC, you don’t rock.

The Weekend I Watched 21 Hours of T.V.

I had just about given up on television. Aside from sports, there was nothing worth watching...or so I thought.

A couple weeks ago, AMC ran The Walking Dead marathon. After seeing the first two seasons are on Netflix’ streaming service, I scrambled to DVR as much of the series as possible. I’ve made foolish investments in DVR space before. (I’m looking at you, Terra Nova.) My expectations were a bit low. (Before we go any further, I guarantee there are no spoilers in this blog.)

Here is the principal cast from season one.

I watched the first episode of The Walking Dead on the iPad. Then I watched the second. Pretty soon it was past midnight and I was hooked. Since I’d DVRed season two, I resumed my Walking Dead feeding frenzy on the big screen. My wife walked by and uttered something about it being gross. Yet, three hours later and she’s saying, “Well, Shane does have a point. I mean Rick is being too nice.”

We caught up to the most recent season three episode several days. That’s 28 episodes. If you fast-forward through the commercials, each one is around 45 minutes. Yeah, 21 hours of television. My word! Thankfully we started this binge on a Saturday. And, I thought I was done with T.V.

So, how did this show suck me in when this genre has been done to death? (pun intended) There are gobs of zombie movies. Plus, a number of terrific post-apocalyptic flicks. Video game publishers have been cashing in on the zombie obsession for years. (To prove how crazy we've gone for zombies, watch this commercial. Yeah, that's real ammo for real guns. The bullet tips are green. Wouldn't want to mix them up with your other bullets.) In short, this series is different because it takes you from point A to B and shows you the choices made to get there in agonizing detail. Allow me to explain.

A lot of futuristic tales depict despondent, callous humans obsessed with survival. But they don’t show you who they were, or how they got there. The Walking Dead does this wonderfully. At the beginning, it’s the humans vs. the zombies. Any surviving humans band together. It’s a given. Joining a group of survivors has a pretty easy entrance exam: don't be a zombie. (FYI: props to the writers for never referring to them as zombies.)

Pushing forward, supplies become strained. Getting more becomes a greater risk. I mean, Hornady Zombie Max bullets don't grow on trees. As you can imagine, humans begin to turn on one another. The Walking Dead makes this transition flawlessly. In a series that prides itself on top-notch zombie makeup, the humanity takes center stage.

Don’t get me wrong, the zombies and effects are awesome. There is a lot of violence. Just a heads up if you’re thinking of watching this with your children.

If any of this interests you in the least bit, sit back and enjoy the ride. Like I said, the first two seasons are on Netflix. I’m sure you could also find them in the video store. The show is currently in the second half of the third season. To fully catch up, you’ll probably need to watch the listings closely and DVR the third season to date. Trust me, it’s worth it. The worst part of the experience will be once you’ve fully caught up. Then begins the weekly waiting.