This past Tuesday, I attended the Civil Air Patrol meeting to fill out paperwork and to observe the meeting. In weeks past, I wrote about my first impressions, and a follow-up. The Boy’s interest and enthusiasm haven’t waned, so it warranted action on my part. If a teenager is chomping at the bit to join an organization that offers leadership training and discipline, you’re sitting on a golden opportunity!

Upon arriving, I am greeted by two of the most active parent volunteers. They are very friendly and eager to make a good first impression. I was whisked away to a separate room to fill out the application and to make payment.

The annual dues vary by state. In Florida, it’s $44. There is also a one-time fee you pay to the squadron your child joins. For what they promise, this is an incredible value. $44 and your active participation buys leadership training, discipline, self-confidence and community service opportunities.

You also receive the following items:

• Leadership textbook
• Aerospace textbook
• “Air Force blue” uniform
• Belt
• T-shirt
• Membership card

The parents are still responsible for C.A.P. insignia, shoes, the BDUs (battle dress uniform), boots for the BDUs. The local Army-Navy surplus store offers a discount to C.A.P. cadets on all purchases, not just C.A.P. related ones. Your local store may also have a similar policy.

Some activities are done every week like the opening and closing of every meeting. New cadets are indoctrinated and more advanced cadets continue their training. There is a classroom lecture every week on a topic that support the core values of Civil Air Patrol. Some weeks, they have PT, or physical training. Last week, all the cadets ran 2 miles. This week, they reviewed marching drills and cadences.

There are also activities and field trips on Saturdays. This week, the cadets went on a tour of the Coast Guard base. Almost every organization that meets regularly will also have social events like a holiday party and picnic.

This particular squadron meets at a municipal airport. It definitely adds a sense of authenticity to the experience. The Boy’s account and my own observations give me confidence that this is a worthwhile activity.

Others celebrating today:

• Scarlett Pomers
• Anna Nicole smith
• Jon Stewart
• Judd Nelson
• Ed Harris
• Alexander Godunov
• Paul Shaffer
• Joe Dante
• Randy Newman
• Berry Gordy, Jr.
• Brooks Atkinson

Look it up on famousbirthdays.com.

I didn’t do the last grocery run, and I didn’t do a scorecard. This week, I purchased 67 food items at the supermarket. 5 items contain high fructose corn syrup. The usual suspects were there, but there were a few surprises. As you know, I am continuing to expose the products that contain this substance and highlight the ones that do not.

This week’s scorecard features some obvious culprits, a surprise appearance in some foods, and one surprise absence.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Busiest Shopping Day of the Year

At 5am on Friday morning, I was happily asleep. I have never been out shopping on the day after Thanksgiving, and I don’t plan on braving crowds like that without a really good reason (like a Dream Theater concert). I avoid crowds whenever I can. The closest I ever got to a Black Friday shopping experience was through my friend Val.

A few years ago, Val was drawn out by the $99 deal on the digital camera she had been wanting. This was enough to lure her to the Target parking lot at 5am. She reported that several shoppers do this every year! Every year?!!?!?!?!!??! Retailers are always doing plenty to feed this by conjuring better deals and opening earlier and earlier.

It is becoming an American tradition. People are lined up as if they are about to start a race. This is just another brand of rush for a particular type of adrenaline junkie. Perhaps it’s the promise of unadvertised deals on Black Friday that keep people coming back year after year.

E-Commerce To The Rescue

I often retreat from retail during the month of December. If I want to buy something, I’ll buy it online.

Shopping online has transformed our lives. It’s easy, safe, and convenient. We have access to just about anything we would want and at great prices too. E-commerce has changed our lives and I’m sure it has changed yours:

• It saves you time - Ever think about how much time it takes to go to the store? You will be as shocked as I was when I discovered that it takes 40 minutes just to buy a stick of butter at the grocery store.
• It saves you money - Shopping online saves you money. In many cases, you don’t pay sales tax. You don’t use gas to go to the store.
• It’s safe - credit card information is encrypted online. It’s far less likely that a human will see your credit card number when you shop online. There is actually a bigger risk when you whip your card out at the store. The holiday shopping season also sees an increase in retail crime.

What About Shipping Costs?

Shipping costs are negligible when compared to your time. Shipping is often a point of contention, especially if the shipping costs approach or even exceed the cost of the item, or if the item is shipped locally. Shipping is cheaper than you think.

The cost of shipping is recouped by the deals you can score by shopping online, not paying sales tax (most of the time), and saving yourself a trip to the store. Every time you start your car, it costs money. It takes a significant chunk of time to go to a retail store locally. There’s more to it than the round-trip time. You have to park, walk into the store, find the item, check out, and walk back to your car. It took me 40 minutes to buy a stick of butter once. The supermarket is a mile from my house. You’ll save even more time by avoiding holiday crowds.

If you shop on Amazon, you can sign up for Amazon Prime. For $79 a year, you get unlimited free 2-day shipping on most items. Upgrading to overnight shipping is only an additional $3.99!

Shop Online

At our my blog, Renee And Elliott, we’ve set up a Shopping page just for you. When you shop at our partners’ sites, it doesn’t cost you an extra penny and it helps us out. You might even save money, or something more valuable, like your time.

21st Century Dad has a defined focus. Off-topic posts are counter to that desired focus. However, as a blogger, I’m always itching to express my thoughts. My mind is always processing something.

21st Century Parenting

This is Renee’s blog. I have written a few posts, but it is largely hers. She addresses some of the same topics I do, but from a mom’s perspective.

Renee and Elliott

We bought the domain www.reneeandelliott.com a few months ago with only a hint of a purpose. Now it’s a venue to share with our friends and family as well as a repository for off-topic posts. It’s your opportunity to get inside our heads and learn about what makes us tick.

The off-topic post is too tempting when you only have one blog. That’s why we created reneeandelliott.com. It’s a safe haven for the “monkey mind” - swings from tree to tree or thought to thought. It’s our attention-deficit playground, and we invite you to play.