Mid Term Elections

So, election time again, and here in New Jersey, the race is not for a Governor.  In fact, Christie seems to be shaking things up.  It's been interesting to watch as Republicans again try to take back some power for our representation.  They are suppose to be representing us, right?

What do we "the people" want?  To live peacefully, in security, to not run out of money before you run out of month.
SAVE NEW JERSEY,... ONE DOLLAR AT A TIME

energy competition

Like many of you, I recently got a letter in the mail informing me that my current electric energy company, JCP&L, now had competition in my area and I could opt out and opt into a different electric company, saving me a fraction of a cent on each kilowatt used.  I found it very confusing and realized just how ignorant I am about what I am paying on my electric bill.  I was also being offered a Target gift card of either $75 or $150 depending on a 12 month or 36 month contract, promising to pay the fixed rate for every kilowatt used.
This prompted me to pull out a few old electric bills and try to make sense of them.  I am used to seeing electric bills anywhere from $75 a month to $150 month, depending on my use, or so I thought.  I think the electric companies have different rates for different times of the year.  Also, lots of taxes and misc. extra charges I have no idea what they are.  I tried calling JCP&L for some clarification so that I could figure out if the switch really works for me, but was put on hold for over half an hour and finally gave up.

I could use the Target gift card, especially with Christmas coming up, and I could also use the savings on my electric bill. What I really would like is to have houses built in energy efficient ways, passive systems as well as taping into "free" energy sources, wind power and/or solar power and have a non existent power bill.  I understand there are whole cities in the United States that run on "free" energy.  I'd like to put that savings into my pocket, "One Dollar At  A Time".!

Board of Directors

After numerous conversations over several weeks, as well as several glasses of wine, we have our charity in place, complete with a President, Cindy, and a Vice-President, myself. Cindy and I have talked at length about how we plan to raise money for this charity, as well as how we plan to spend the money in charitable acts. We have some ideas; we would like to help people on a one to one basis survive these tough economic times. Perhaps buying dinner for a family to put on their table or a new winter coat for the kid that otherwise would only have a sweatshirt to keep him warm.

We are now at the point of choosing a Board of Directors. We believe that gathering together a small pool of people, complete with thier own preferences and life experiences, will enable us to fine tune what causes speak to our hearts. We are looking for someone(s) that we respect, that have a generous and helpful spirit, and will just plain be fun to be around. As we fill our Board and through many more conversations, (and glasses of wine) we hope to have a cause revealed to us. I will keep you posted as to how we succeed in this pursuit.