Random Thoughts, Part 3
Posted: Monday, May 25, 2009
by Dianne Lehmann
Artisan Jewelry from SyZyGy
Bait and Switch
My husband, Bernd, has begun a search for affordable term life insurance. We both have whole life policies, but they have a declining balance and as we get older, they will pay out less and less when we die. There is a side fund attached to the policies that, if we had been financially able to contribute to it, would have made a nice retirement account. But sadly it has, more often than not, been used to pay for the primary policy.
Our beef is, if their rates are so darn reasonable and the best in the industry, why not just be up front about the conditions and provide an accurate and truthful quote in the beginning? What could it hurt if you are genuinely competitive? And it would be so much less irksome. It's no fun thinking you are getting a good deal only to find the real deal is a lot less attractive. Kind of like, you know, when the wig, the bra and the girdle finally come off. I know what you are thinking, but I'm not really talking about cross-dressers here. My step-dad married my mom anyway.
Bernd has done a little more research, talked to some more people and found that the new, 40% higher quote is still relatively low and he will most likely go with that one, which he also finds to be somewhat irksome.
Then there is the whole we-just-opened-this-bright-shiny-new-gas-station-and-we-are-going-to-give-you-really-cheap-prices-in-the-beginning-and-then-sock-it-to-you-once-you-get-in-the-habit-of-buying-your-gasoline-from-us thing. How stupid do they think we are?
We had one of those bright, shiny and new gas stations open up in the commercially zoned property right at the front of the complex in which we live. We have continued to use the station we always use, which is precisely 11.2 miles from our house. Their gas prices are always lower than anyone else's. So there.
Recreational Vehicles
Have you ever looked at the names that the manufacturers of recreational vehicles give to their products? They are fanciful, charming, emotive and all together unrealistic: Four Winds, Horizon, Sun Voyager, Kountry Air, Southwind, Weekend War, Prowler, Monaco , Mountain Aire, and more. You get the idea. They create idyllic visions of far off places that are so much better than where you are right now and the desire to just get on the road and go. But let's be real.
I feel that if manufacturers named them more accurately, there would be a lot less possibly not so disposable cash spent on them. There would be a lot less of them cluttering up the road, cluttering up driveways (and have you seen some of the special garages people have built to house the things?) and a lot less gas guzzled (well okay, maybe that isn't such a valid argument after all considering how little these things are used as evidenced by our daily walks around where we live). Consider, instead, something like this: the I Paid Way Too Much For It Fifth Wheel, the It Just Sits Around Gobbling UP Insurance And Maintenance Money Trailer, and the Gee We Thought We Would Use I A Lot More Than We Do Motorhome.
Euphemisms
This article would seem to be about calling things as they are. Guess I should look at my life and see why this is bothering me so much right now. Well, that's not really true it always sort of bothers me. Guess I just get bothered easily.
Regardless, I got an e-mail from my sister recently in which she mentioned something about how the death of our father affected our mother's attitudes about some things. But she didn't write, "after Dad died." No, she wrote, "after Dad passed." Now I know what she meant but the thought occurred to me, "passed what?" The point of no return maybe? Some folks say, "passed on." But passed on what, a good deal? Now that would be sad.
We have all sorts of ways to pussy foot around and come at it sideways in stead of taking the mask off and actually saying the words dead, death, die, dying, etc. Why? What difference does it make? We all know what is meant. Does "kick the bucket (can anyone tell me why this one stands for the word dead?)," "expired (as in a carton of milk maybe, yeah, that can be nasty)," "pushing up daisies (as if the dead had nothing better to do oh wait, maybe they don't)," or "six feet under," really make anyone feel any better. Well, okay the funny euphemisms might get a giggle or two after a sufficient amount of time has lapsed since the loved one "went to sleep with the fishes," but come on, why not just say it like it is?
I'm not insensitive, really I'm not. But if those words are such a problem, why are they even in the language? Many words have fallen out of usage over the years for one reason or another. Why not these then?
Some More Things I Have Learned
You really can't always get what you want, but that should never stop you from trying.
Whining and complaining will quite frequently get you want you want, but will not make you well-liked. (Bernd runs into this quite a bit as an optician. He rarely gives in, but his boss does. He and I both think it just reinforces bad behavior.)
Horses would really rather just get along with you than eat you. That's a very good thing as they are very much bigger than we are. Well except for those funny little miniature horses. Who thought that was a good idea? As far as I'm concerned, that ranks right up there with those Munchkin cats with the two inch long legs.
I should really stop talking about horses because I am making all my friends a bit crazy.
Anyone who is willing to listen to you tell the same story for the fifth time is a good friend and you should keep them.
I'm probably not going to stop talking about horses.
It's always a good idea to end your article with a paragraph that sums up what you have written and reinforces your main points. Oh well.
This Article has been viewed 372 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
Top-level comments on this article: (2 total)Nicely done. An insightful look at what you think of and how you think of it. Great job.Hi Michael.My sister once told me when I asked her what she thought my one main fault might be that I think too much. This was a long, long time ago and I've given it much thought [:)] in all the intervening years and decided that I think just enough . :) I can't seem to help it anyway.Thanks for reading it and for the nice comments.Have a great day!Dianne
hi dianne,this was a neat article, filled with different sidelines. it was fun to read.i always say "passed away" when referring to my parents. i believe in life after death, so i believe they have passed on to that other life. even after 20 years, i cannot say "my mother died" without feeling the pit of my soul ache. it still aches, when i sa passed away, but it seems more respectful to me.so, that's why i say it, anyway.i hope you are having fun with the horses.my best to you,sueHi Sue.Oh, you know, anyone can say it however they like. And you should do what comforts you the most. I really wasn't "complaining" about it. I just don't always understand the need to sugar coat things. That's my fault. Do you ever watch "Bones" on Fox? I sometimes think that the character, Temperance Brennan, and I have a few things in common. :)When my dad died just a few days before my 17th birthday, it was the absolute worst thing that ever happened to me up to that time. All the people around me issued platitudes and used euphemisms and it occurred to me that no matter what anyone said, he was still just dead. It annoyed me more than perhaps it should have. And possibly your way is more respectful ... at least to those who have lost a loved one.I am indeed having fun with the horses. I got to help give one a bath yesterday. She didn't really like it all that much and was happy when we were done. She was dancing all over trying to get away from the spray of the hose and then from us as we shampooed her. So I learned even more about anticipating a horses moves. This horse, as it turns out, is a kicker and can kick back with both her hind feet with very little warning. I emerged unscathed from the experience.Thank you, Sue, for reading and commenting. I hope all things are going well for you. How's the transportation issue?Hugs,Dianne
We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.