Before Woodstock there was ZIP to ZAP!

Forty years ago this weekend was the rock festival which defined a generation and which has become a major part of our national culture, especially since most of us who have any sort of direct memory (or like me, could only buy the album) are now approaching or have reached the age of 60.

Wow! And this from a generation who 40 years ago lived by the mantra “Don’t trust anyone over 30.”
While I was being reminded of Woodstock, another more obscure rock festival (and using the term loosely) came to mind. It predated Woodstock by 3 months but perhaps helped (at least in the upper Midwest) set the stage for what was to come.

I’m referring to “Zip to Zap”, an unlikely event held in an unlikely location—Zap, North Dakota on May 9-11, 1969. I remember this event and the build up to it. I was a high school senior in Grand Forks, North Dakota. I couldn’t go to the event 350 miles away because that was the weekend of the state track meet in which I was competing. (Yeah, like my parents or the parents of anyone else I knew were going to let me go!).
Zip to Zap was the brainstorm of a student at North Dakota State University who first wrote about the idea in the campus newspaper. The idea was picked up by the University of North Dakota campus paper and soon spread to other campuses in the Midwest, eventually even being reported by national media.

It was promoted as an alternative Spring Break to the long, expensive travel to Daytona Beach. Note here that most spring breaks are in late March or April and this event was scheduled for mid-May. Well, it’s just too damn cold in North Dakota to do an outdoor event like that until May.

The townspeople of Zap were enthusiastic about an event like this in their town of 250 people. They readily agreed to host it. More than 2500 college students and other assorted young people from across the Midwest poured into Zap for the event. Trouble started when the only 2 places in town with liquor licenses both overcharged for and ran out of beer very early. And of course, as so often happened during that era, the trouble and violence was attributed to “outside agitators”.
Near riots ensued and there never was much of a rock festival. A few scruffy bands which wouldn’t even be classified as good bar bands were scheduled. Revelers went to nearby Beulah and Hazen in search of more beer where “rioting” supposedly took place. A few angry souls took it upon themselves to trash a tavern in Zap and set it on fire (although some reports say that it was left overs from a demolition project which were burned as a bonfire in the street that night to warm participants in sub-freezing temperatures). Ultimately the Governor called out the National Guard to quell the “rioting”.
Zip to Zap was the lead story on NBC and CBS news on Saturday. Damages to the town were estimated to exceed $25,000 and were ultimately paid by the student government groups at NDSU and UND.

And that is the short-version of the Zip to Zap—an event which helped put North Dakota “on the map” and which “foreshadowed” Woodstock.

Health Care Conspiracy Solved--It's Soylent Green!

(I’m not sure why I feel compelled to insert a warning here but the following is a result of the overactive imagination of the writer and too much time spent on Google—please place tongue firmly in cheek, suspend belief and hopefully be amused).

Yesterday, curious about the controversy surrounding Pres. Obama’s Healthcare proposal (which has been dubbed “ObamaCare” a term more convenient to use) I decided to do some research. One of the primary objections revolves around Section 1233 of HR3200 “Advance Care Planning Consultation”.

I read some of the comments and concerns that have been expressed about Sec 1233 including how this section authorizes “Death Panels” and euthanasia. And I downloaded the entire 1000+ pages of HR3200 to find and read Sec1233 where it is buried on pages 424-434.

Then I did a little further research online. (You know, it’s amazing what you can Google and all the incredible information you can unearth—think Roswell and Area 51). And today I must admit to you that I am appalled.

The first thing I’m appalled at is how investigative reporters like Beck and Hannity and Limbaugh; even Maddow and the most trusted news reporter in America, Jon Stewart have failed to uncover that which is waiting right in front of them to be discovered and disseminated to all of America. This is a conspiracy of incredible proportions.

We can’t just view ObamaCare on the surface or singularly. It goes far deeper. It permeates government and economic and environmental policy in America. The insidious danger of Sec1233 is what Dr. Robert Langdon in “The DaVinci Code” termed the “keystone”—that upon which all the other elements of the conspiracy depend and that which “unlocks” the despicable nature of the conspiracy.

The first element is that everything associated with this diabolical, comprehensive initiative is about people. A wonderful concept. It’s all about PEOPLE!


It starts with the emphasis that has been put the last 2 or 3 years on the environment. The most popular buzzword in business and government has become “green”. Everything has to be green. Obama’s primary goal for “Cash for Clunkers” is so that inefficient vehicles will be replaced by those that are more “green”. Alternative fuel vehicles are “greener”. Wind and solar energy are “green”. It’s all about GREEN!

But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. This did not originate with Pres. Obama. In fact, he may even be an unwitting dupe of a plot which even more thoroughly permeates the fabric of our nation and society than any of us realize. Remember, it all comes down to GREEN. Consider the evidence which goes all the way back to the early 1960s.

Consider this (and bear in mind that ads for this “green” product were on TV in the late 1950s)

In the early 1970s the first ecology movements were underway in the U.S. This went so far as to engage children’s television characters in the propaganda by cleverly incorporating “green messages” into programming such as this one:


And now we come to 1973. Interesting, the year I graduated from college. There was a blockbuster movie which was shocking in its surprise ending and message. It starred Charlton Heston and featured Edward G. Robinson in his final role (a telling finale to a grand career). “Soylent Green”. A frightening premise. And yet, the words “Soylent Green” have endured in our vocabulary gaining meaning and acceptance—eventually co-mingling with other environmental uses for the term “green” so that both have come to be accepted as part of the language and as viable concepts.

Considering these irrefutable facts (Hey! You might think that they’re “refutable” but I guarantee you that if Sarah Palin came up with this stuff that she’d consider them “irrefutable facts”!) The conspiracy has slowly gained a “sub rosa” momentum until all of the elements have come into place in 2009—economic crisis, pollution, diminishing and ever more expensive oil and a health care crisis.

Corporations have bought into this.

And now, inexorably everything has come together. We have new food sources:

Management plans and priorities are being put into place for the future:

And finally, the healthcare element poised in the halls of the United States Congress, proposed by a radical new administration in the White House which will bring everything to fruition.

As the plan gains momentum a bandwagon effect is anticipated.

And ultimately we’ll be addicted to the nutritional properties of this wonder product. A product which is the result of patient, long-term planning and waiting for the “perfect storm” politically, economically, environmentally and socially so that it may be successfully implemented.

There you have it. This is a sordid tale but it is one that needs to be told. I hope that you are now as convinced as I am.

Finally, I have read Section 1233 of HR3200. It deals with consulting people on Advance Care (living wills). It spells out that which needs to be discussed with a patient so that their wishes can be clearly articulated and put into a legal format. It’s something that is commonly done and is a beneficial thing for patients, their families and medical professionals. I did one nearly 4 years ago prior to hernia surgery. It was discussed with me by a practitioner in a preliminary appointment prior to the surgery, I stipulated my desires in a “worst case scenario”, signed it, had it notarized and provided a copy on the date of the surgery. It’s another form of “due diligence” as far as I am concerned and there is nothing insidious, nefarious or evil whatsoever contained in the provisions of Sec1233 no matter what many who have succumbed to some of the most ridiculous of propaganda (especially from the former Gov. of Alaska) on this may think.

Law & Order: Take Back the Night

Last Tuesday was the “National Night Out”. It’s billed by organizers as “America’s night out against crime.”

This event is held nationwide and according to the group’s website, it is “celebrated” in over 15,000 communities including my own city of Vista, California.
(North County Times Photo)

One of the things that kind of bugs me a bit is that, at least in the San Diego area, communities mainly hold a citizen’s walk against crime often dubbed “Take Back the Night”. They usually march on a street in a neighborhood with the highest crime in the area. In Vista, they walk up my street, right in front of our apartment. Of course, the walk is held starting at 5 p.m. and in early August that’s not night! Most of the walkers wouldn’t be caught dead in our neighborhood anyway.

I know what the crime statistics say about our neighborhood. But I don’t see it. Although a tagger nailed our mailbox sometime in the last week. If I see anything at all it’s what I would term “crimes of fashion” from some of the get-ups that the kids wear who walk up our street to get to school each day.

Mostly what I see are hard-working families who are just getting by. Granted there are a lot of young men wearing what some see as “gang apparel” but again I think that a guy who’s 5’6”, 150 lbs wearing XXL plaid shorts that come halfway down his shins and a XXXXL white t-shirt than comes most of the way down to the bottom of his shorts is committing one of those “crimes of fashion” more so than being a gang-banger. And long ago I gave up any notion that kids on skateboards are nothing more than hooligans. It’s just a means of transportation now. (By the way, Moms all over Vista wonder just how they keep those t-shirts so damn snowy white).

My wife is always reminding me that just a couple blocks up the street the neighborhood changes dramatically—but I’ve never really experienced it nor do I necessarily believe it. I just keep seeing these young families pushing strollers in the evening or walking home from the 99 Cent Only store with their bags or walking their dogs—everything from chihuahuas to pit bulls. And both of those critters tend to walk their owner rather than the other way around.

(North County Times Photo)

So this year there were 250 people trooping up the street, talking, waving signs and gawking. It was preceded by a phalanx of cops on bicycles, a couple of motorcycle cops and a couple of “black and whites”. With the exception of the bike cops it was about what they usually use for a traffic stop around here.

Now the bike and motorcycle cops were going up the street at a pretty good clip ahead of the marchers as if they had to clear traffic so that they could get this thing done. At this community relations event, one of the bicycle cops stopped in the middle of the cross street a half block from my balcony. I watched as he “blocked” the street with his bike and shouted at the lone vehicle approaching the stop sign. “Stop! Stop! What’s the matter with you!” he shouted as the pickup stopped 10-12 feet away. “You can’t turn here. Go back or wait!” Yep, real good community relations.

These folks seemed to be in a hurry to march up the street, turn around and come back, almost as if they were running a gauntlet and taunting all of us miscreants who live along Citrus Ave. I kept waiting for a chant of “Hell no, we won’t go!” but that was from a different era.

One of the goofy things around here is that the population is a good 2/3 Hispanic. I’m often referred to as the “lone Gringo” by my non-Spanish speaking, 100% Hispanic wife. But people are reasonably friendly even though we have a bit of a language barrier. All the babies and toddlers bring out the “inner Grandpa” in me and are a source of amusement. The kids in our apartment building are typical laughing and shrieking for no good reason other than they’re alive just like any other kids.

So, the “parade” passed by and about a half hour later came back. I don’t think they wanted to “take back the night” because it was still broad daylight and they seemed eager to get done and maybe to go out for pizza (that would have been the only way they were still out after dark) before disappearing into their gated enclaves.

We do get some occasional excitement though. I woke up early on the 4th of July and happened to spot a police car slowly rolling up the street just a bit before 6. I was sipping my first cup of coffee and waiting for the newspaper when another police car came along. Then 2 more. No lights. No sirens.

Then officers were heading for a duplex about 2/3 of a block away. It kind of reminded me of a scene from “Tombstone”. Handguns were out and being brandished in that 2 handed grip. Shotguns where being cautiously waved as if the deputy were expecting a quail to flush any second.
I got out my camera and started taking a few pictures as the police began calling for people in the home to come out, hands-up. I was thoroughly ready for gunfire and was glad I had stayed on my balcony rather than go moseying up there like a true “lookieloo”. Anyway, apparently the person they were looking for wasn’t around because after about 45 minutes the cops were gone. I had to wait until that night for my 4th of July fireworks.

Here’s the bottom line. So we’re the street that the march against crime comes down. So there are more brown people around here than anything else. So there’s probably some gang related stuff that goes down. We love this neighborhood. We’re not the types to go live on the other side of the highway down in the gated communities with their Lexus driving pretentiousness.

Besides, this place keeps life interesting.

Cheap Bastid: Let's Get Spicy

Over the weekend, I did a couple of dinners which would have been really nice to write about today. But. But, I didn’t take any pictures of them.

Both of them owed their special taste to spice blends. And I love playing around with blending different combinations of spices. Like pretty much everything I cook though, I’m getting more and more simplistic and minimalistic. But I still thought that today would be a good day to talk about how spices are a minimal investment which can make a big difference.

I just cleared out the spice cupboard and count 30 different spices that I have on hand. Now there are a few that aren’t used that often like File or Curry but they’re nice to have. Plus, I have a half dozen different peppers (in addition to black). I’ve got pasilla, chipotle, cayenne, green, habanero and chili flakes (not to mention sriachi, habernero and jalapeno sauces). We like things with just a bit of kick to them!

So I just “consulted” the cookbook I wrote for my kids 2 Christmases ago. There’s a section on “Kitchen Basics” where I list the spices needed in setting up a kitchen. There are 15 of them. Here they are:

Spices (*= must have)
Salt* Coarse Black Pepper* (not fine)
Garlic Powder* Onion powder*
Ground Oregano* Paprika
Cumin Basil
Cayenne* Ancho chili powder
Chipotle chili powder Ground Mustard
Ground Ginger All spice
Thyme

Notice that there are only a half dozen “must haves” and you can do quite a bit with them. But if you want to get more creative, you’ll have to add to the selection.

I have 2 spice blends that I’m never without. I always keep a batch on hand. One is really basic and the other is really well known. I’m going to give you the recipes and bear in mind that the “quantities” are “parts” so that no matter how much or little you’re making you can keep the proportion. Plus, customize these to your own taste!

Basic Spice Blend
1 Kosher salt
1 Coarsely ground black pepper
1 coarse garlic

That’s it. It’s that simple and that basic. Use it on all manner of different things that you’re cooking—especially on the grill! And if it’s “too” much anything, just change the “formula” a bit. (1/3 of the blend as salt can be a bit much for a lot of folks—including me).

Emeril’s Essence (yep, that Emeril)
6 parts Paprika
2 parts Salt
2 parts Pepper
2 parts Garlic Powder
1 part Onion Powder
1 part Cumin
1 part Ground Oregano
1 part Ground Thyme
1 part Cayenne or Chipotle

I use these 2 spice blends all the time. And I do variations on them. Here’s an example: Friday night I grilled a couple of 1 ¼” boneless loin chops. All I did to season them was 1) a thin skim of oil on each side, 2) a light sprinkling of the “Basic Blend” and 3) a small pinch on each side of the chop of thyme and rosemary. Plus, I did some summer squash "planks" seasoned with "Essence" and we had a great meal. It smelled great and tasted even better.

Saturday night I did a Tri-tip on the grill. I used a blend that I call “Sweet Heat”.
Sweet Heat
3 parts Paprika
1 part salt
1 part chipotle/cayenne
1 part garlic
2 parts sugar
1 part cumin

I put really heavy coating on the meat and rubbed it in. Then I seared it on the grill (about 3-4 minutes per side on a hot grill). I removed the meat, set the grill for indirect (turned off one of the burners), wrapped the meat in foil, put it down on the cool half of the grill and left it alone for about 40-45 minutes. It came out tasty, juicy and tender and I served it with fresh, homemade Chimichurri. We’re having left-overs tonight--tri-tip sandwiches with horseradish and cheddar cheese on French rolls (4 for $1 at the dollar store). We’re having left-overs tonight.

There’s a couple of things I have discovered in seasoning food. One is that probably our favorite spices are garlic followed by cumin. Another is that there is such a thing as too much oregano (one night I got carried away and made green mud instead of red spaghetti sauce). And yes, there is such a thing as “too hot”—and our tolerance of “spicy heat” is pretty high. And, it’s really hard to get a good “lemon pepper”—it’s even hard when you make it yourself.

Now there are some who will argue that you should use fresh herbs. And I don't disagree with that--fresh thyme is better than dried for example. But it's also a lot pricier. And this is for those of us on a tight budget who want some flavor and panache. I can normally get about 80% of the flavor for about half the cost and I'll take that deal (most of the time).

So, have fun. Here’s a way to build flavor without building cost. Experiment. And, oh yes, one last little secret—write down the spice blends you create so you can remember it if you want to make it again.

That’s the Cheap Bastid way. Eat good! Eat Cheap! Be grateful!

On Running, Running Commentary and Staggering to the Finishline

Carolyn loves to run. She has since high school 30 years ago. I, on the other hand, decidedly do not enjoy running. I have since high school 40 years ago.

Carolyn ran track in high school with a degree of success. I ran track in high school—well enough to qualify for the state meet in 1 event as a junior and in 3 events as a senior. I even declined an invitation from my college’s track coach to run track (he wanted me to switch from the 440 to the 880—no way!).
When we met, I let Carolyn sweet talk, convince, coerce (take your pick) me into running with her. She’s not real fast but she can run forever. She has had a love affair with running for all of these 30 years. On the other hand, I hadn’t run since 1969 but I plodded along with her, trying to keep up and not be a “wuss”.

I even got to the point where I could plod my way for 5K and where my “base” run was about 2 miles. Not real good for a “serious” runner, but not bad for a 50-something trying to get back in a little bit of shape and not “look bad” to my “life’s partner”. I mean, I got so that I would check out running routes from my hotel on my weekly business trips.

When I say running, it’s only in the “technical” sense. My idea of a run was a 12 minute per mile pace. Old fart pace. Plodding, snail-like. I had to measure my breathing, maintain constant internal “monitoring” of heart and respiration. If I went anaerobic, I was dead (figuratively). My ability to recuperate and keep running was minimal at best. (By the way, I discovered that a slow version of “Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy” is a great “metronome” for pacing. You just keep the same turn-over rate and vary stride length slightly to speed up or slow down). That’s a far cry from 50 second quarters when I was 17.

But, I got used to it. Even kind of enjoyed it. What I enjoyed was slimming down a bit and having more energy and knowing that I could go out and put in a couple of miles before or after work.

So I ran for about 6 months. We even entered a 5K just to see if I could do it (winning was defined as finishing it in that 12 minute pace or better). I was so slow that the winners in my age group could have done a 10k in the time it took me to do 5K. Then 6 months later I had double hernia surgery followed by an angioplasty and it was about 4 months after that before I started running again—starting all over again.

We’ve got some really good running routes where we live. We just have to leave the apartment, cross a major street at the light and we’re a couple of blocks away from one of the biggest butt-kicking hills you’ve ever seen. It’s about 6/10s of a mile bottom to top and a 10% grade all the way up (real slow “Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy”). Then it levels off followed by what we call the “escalator” for the last 200 yards that’s even steeper to what we call “X” because there used to be an “X” painted across the center stripe at the crest. This whole route we call “Walt’s Mountain” because it took me so long to “master” it—be able to go up it all the way, recuperate, go on to X then back down again. All told, it’s about a 2 ½ mile route.

Anyway, I started to slowly get back in shape. And the following October we entered another 5K. We’re in the parking lot stretching and getting ready to walk over to check-in. Another runner, a guy about my age with the scrawny, muscley legged look of a serious runner combined with matching running shorts and top and a pair of new really pricey shoes stopped and looked over at me. Then he said, “I’ve never seen that before. Getting ready for a race and smoking a cigarette at the same time!” I laughed and said, “Yep, and I’ll have another one just as soon as the run is over.”

So the run/race begins. I’m plodding along, feeling comfortable. Running a good pace. “Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy” playing in my head, keeping me on pace. Carolyn’s running next to me and we’re about a mile into the run when she says, “I’m going to speed up to try and get a good time, OK?” “’K, bye,” I gasped. And she increases her turn rate and starts to pull away. After about a half mile, I can’t see her anymore which is too bad because I love to see Carolyn run. She’s definitely not some girley-girl runner. She’s smooth. She looks and moves like an athlete.

Now this 5K was a combination walk/run with the runners starting 5 minutes ahead of the walkers. I’m not the last of the runners by any stretch of the imagination and I’ve even managed to pass a few (and obviously I’ve been passed too but not by too many—slow runners start at the back of the pack you know).

But now I’m hearing footsteps. I peek over my left shoulder. I see pink. The Energizer Bunny? No, it’s a lady. Dressed from top to bottom in a pink jogging suit. About to pass me. Walking. Shit.

She pulls even. But doesn’t pass. “What! Is she toying with me?” I ask myself.

“Good morning!” she says, full of energy. “Good morning”, I manage to grunt.

“I entered this because today is my birthday,” she comments. (“Oh God,” I tell myself, “She wants to talk.”) “My whole family’s here,” she informs me. “That’s great,” I gasp.

She’s walking along, moving easy, stepping it out and swinging her arms (she’s also probably 15 years younger than me).

“Oh, there they are!” she exclaims, waving and smiling, “have a good run! Bye!” And she accelerates past me like I’m standing still swinging over to the side of the street to the waves and high-fives of 2 sons and her husband, then keeps on going slowly leaving me in her dust.

By now, I’m 2/3s of the way through the 5K—a little over 2 miles into it. Ahead of me is a father and son. The son is about 12-13 and dad is around 40. Dad has on cut-off jeans and low cut tennies. The kid has on baggy shorts and ragged running shoes. Both have sweatshirts tied around their waists. They run. Then slow and walk. Then run some more followed by more walking. I’m constantly running and barely catching up. Finally the Dad motions for the kid to go on ahead and stops running altogether. He quickly falls behind. The kid continues to run and walk.

I come abreast of him. He wants to quit. I can tell because I’d just as soon quit too, but I’m not going to let Carolyn see me walk or let her have bragging rights. I know it’s only about a half mile to go. I gasp out to the kid—“Hey come on, you can do this. Keep going, you’re doing great.” He maintains his jog just ahead of me. We’re doing the final corner with the finish about a quarter mile ahead. I was going to accelerate and “kick” from here to the finish but decide to keep this young guy going.

“You can do it!” I tell him. “Keep up with me!” And I stretch out just a bit, picking up speed. “Go, go, go”, I manage to gasp out encouraging him. He looks over his shoulder and picks up his pace. He crosses the finish in that gangling gait that kids his age have.

(That's me in 1969 running a 440 in high school!)

I kind of smile to myself as I cruise across the finish. I know I could have taken the little crapperhead. Carolyn’s just past the finish, grinning at me. Like I’m some sort of hero. My time is 3 minutes faster than the last 5K I ran and Carolyn’s is about 4 minutes faster than mine.

Now for the treat. We get our t-shirts! $20 entry gets you the treat of a 5K run and a t-shirt. Then walk back to the car, open it up, reach inside and get a cigarette.

“Ahhhhhhh, that’s good.”

Now we’ll go home and listen to Bill Cosby’s monologue “Track & Field—Mile Relay”—my favorite all time Cosby (or any other comedian) monologue.

Cheap Bastid's Fish Stick Tacos

If you're looking for fancy, gourmet, foo-foo, yuppie food this ain't it. Cheap Bastid is all about getting creative and making good food--cheap. Stick with me. You might like it.

I’ve been wanting to try my version of this Sam the Cooking Guy inspired recipe for a while. Finally, I found some on special at Stater Bros. which I thought might be able to meet the Cheap Bastid criteria of good but cheap.

I love fish tacos. I never had them until I moved to SoCal 11 years ago. Most of the time, I’ve had them at Rubios which is a franchise where fish tacos are a signature dish. I’ve had them in Tijuana where all manner of different kinds of fish find their way into tacos—once even having marlin tacos. Guy Fieri recently featured a San Diego hole in the wall restaurant’s fresh fish tacos (ahi ahi, halibut, etc.) on “Triple D” and Bobby Flay recently did one of his “Throwdown” shows in San Diego on fish tacos, going head to head and getting his butt whupped (as usual).

Hey! I lived in the Midwest for 30-some years and I’d kill for walleye or perch tacos or just a huge platter of walleye or perch filets, fries, slaw and bread like I used to get at Schartner’s in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin!
So, how can you put out a decent fish taco as inexpensively as possible? That was the question for the Cheap Bastid. Go to any fish counter and you’ll discover that fish is pretty expensive whether you’re looking at salmon, halibut, thresher, tilapia or even catfish. About the cheapest you’ll find is $6 a pound! So here goes. I think you’ll enjoy these.

Cheap Bastid’s Fish Stick Tacos
Frozen fish filets or sticks (1 filet per serving or 2 sticks)
Corn tortillas
1-2 cups shredded green cabbage
½ cup diced onion
½ cup diced tomato
1 lime cut in wedges
Sauce:
2 tbsp“Miracle Whip” type salad dressing
½ tbsp lime juice
Hot stuff (chipotle, cayenne, habanero)
Pop the fish sticks/filets in the oven (the Groton’s I used said 17-19 minutes at 425 but that gets them a bit too crispy so I would suggest 375 for about 12 min, then flip them over for another 5).
While the fish is in the oven, cut up the onion and tomato and shred the cabbage. Mix the sauce. Put the seasonings in the sauce a little at a time, sample and adjust to taste. Don’t just dump hot stuff into it, burn your tongue and then blame me for making it too hot! I’ve made that goof too many times to count. But, you’ll need a bit more seasoning than usual so that you can taste it through the “mayo” and lime. I ended up using chipotle, cayenne AND a dash of habanero sauce but maybe I’ve got a leather tongue compared to most people. By the way, if you prefer, use sour cream mixed with chipotle or cayenne instead.

Let the filets/sticks cool for a few minutes. Then pop 2-4 tortillas into the microwave for 20-30 seconds to soften them. Put a filet (or 2 fish sticks) in the tortilla, spoon a healthy dollop of the sauce on top along with some onion and tomato and cabbage and enjoy. Squeeze some lime juice over the mix, wrap the tortilla over the top and you’re ready to enjoy!

Cheap Bastid Test:
How’d this do with the Cheap Bastid budget? The fish sticks, on sale, were $4 for a package of 10—and that’s the best deal I could find. So it cost 40 cents per taco for fish. I spent $2.50 on a dozen tortillas. (Here’s a lesson for you—Cheap Bastid ended up making separate trips yesterday for tortillas and limes because I forgot to get them when I was doing the regular grocery shopping. The limes cost the same but I spent $1.50 MORE on tortillas than I would have otherwise). That means each tortilla cost about 20 cents. The rest added about a quarter per taco. Tomatoes are $.77 a pound, cabbage is $.49 a pound and onions are $.49 and limes are 10 for $1. Let’s add a quarter per taco for these and a dime for the sauce, OK?

So, I spent 95 cents per taco. They’re $1.89 at Rubios. Not bad. But I ate 3 and so did Carolyn. That means we spent $5.70 which compares to $11.34 at Rubios. OK, not bad but it’s more than other “heartier” meals that Cheap Bastid makes. On the plus side, these were pretty good fish tacos, excellent for a warm summer evening and a bit of a treat. Give ‘em a try.

That’s the Cheap Bastid way. Eat good! Eat Cheap! Be grateful!

Cash for Clunkers--A Penny Well Spent

Late last week, the Cash for Clunkers (Car Allowance Rebate System) was at risk of running out of money. So many people had used it, there were so many “pending deals”, and the website dealers use to request reimbursement is so cumbersome that there was a great concern that there would be more buyers wanting to take advantage of the program than there were funds available.

So, on Friday the House of Representatives quickly passed and sent on to the Senate a bill which would triple the Cash for Clunkers program from $1 to $3 billion (or from 250,000 vehicles to 750,000).

Some have questioned the program as throwing good money after bad and being another government bail-out boondoggle. I happen to think that it’s a pretty good thing.

Let’s try to put Cash for Clunkers in context: Take 3, $100 bills and put them on a table. Put a penny next to them.

The $300 represents the amount of money allocated by the government for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (if memory serves it was somewhere around $900 billion). The penny represents the $3 billion proposed for the Car Allowance Rebate System (Cash for Clunkers).

Over most of the last year we have had a succession of bad economic news. Trillions have been spent on bail-outs. All of this is money that Americans perceive as coming out of their pockets with little, if any, benefit.

Most people are like me. They see banks and other mega-financial firms being bailed-out to the tune of billions if not trillions of dollars with absolutely no benefit to individuals other than the fat-cat bankers who continue to get their million dollar bonuses. We see banks being rewarded for participating in the fraud that convinced many to take out mortgages that they shouldn’t have resulting in the “meltdown” which has had disastrous consequences.

And many see the bailouts of GM and Chrysler and think that they we get to pay for companies who through their own bad management went down the tubes and let the government bail them out.

So what are we getting for our “penny”? Trade in a gas guzzler and get up to $4500. Pretty simple. The dealer and the government will take care of the paperwork. Just as long as the vehicle being traded gets an EPA computed 18 miles per gallon or less in combined city/highway mileage and the new vehicle being purchased gets at least 4 mpg better than that. It’s a bit more complicated but that’s the gist of the program.

So, what are the benefits? Quite a few, actually.

A benefit for the “average” person. The person driving an older vehicle can get a government rebate which can be 2 or 3 or 4 times the trade value. It’s not a million dollar bonus like if you’re a fund manager at Bear Stearns but it’s not bad.

It gets less fuel efficient vehicles off the road. This is ostensibly what Pres. Obama proposed to do in the first place. Even the “minimum” fuel economy improvement (from 18 to 22 mpg) represents a bit over 20% improvement in fuel economy. So let’s assume you’re currently driving 300 miles per week (about average for most people), and you pay $2.70 per gallon. At 18 mpg, you’re spending nearly $45 and at 22 mpg you’re spending almost $37. The savings come out to $468 per year in fuel costs. And that’s just for a 4 mpg savings.

$4500 is a bunch of money! If your “clunker” is paid off, the $4500 you save can amount to nearly $100 per month in lower car payments depending on your credit (it might be less and it could even be more). But, let’s use $100—that would be someone with B- to C+ credit. Over the course of a 60 month loan, that’s $6000. That’s real money that hasn’t come out of the buyer’s pocket. That’s the insurance premium for many people. Or, for others, it’s a couple of week’s groceries per month. And it can get even better if the leverage from the $4500 makes the debt to equity equation more favorable to a buyer and results in a lower interest rate.

Dealers are benefiting! Reports coming out last week said that new car dealers were seeing the best traffic that they’ve experienced all year. That’s good news when industry estimates have been showing the projected volume of new cars to be about 10 million this year—down from about 14 million 2 or 3 years ago. Dealers are selling more of their new car inventory. That means that they’ll get out from under some of the interest payments they’ve been making on aged inventory (“floor-plan”—the cost of maintaining inventory). That means that sales people will be earning a bit more—and auto salespeople don’t make a whole lot of money to begin with. That means more potential business in the parts and service department. That means more people keep their jobs at auto dealerships.

Lenders are benefiting! Auto finance companies like Ford Motor Credit and GMAC will be doing more business. Credit Unions will be writing more loans.

Auto Salvage Companies will benefit. All those clunkers have to be destroyed (even vehicles that are in good enough shape to be resold). Their drive trains cannot be salvaged and must be rendered inoperable by the dealer. But salvage companies will generate income from the program.
A lot of those SUVs sold in the 90’s and the first 4 or 5 years of this decade will be coming off the road. Some to be replaced by “cross-overs”. Others by hybrids. Still others by sedans. That’s a good thing too. Hopefully people are getting it figured out that vehicles are not lifestyle or status statements. They’re a means of transportation.

Many of these vehicles will be paid for. Others won’t (such as those purchased used in the last 4 or 5 years). But the amount of the CARS rebate will mean that many of those owners of financed clunkers will be able to pay of the amount that they’re “upside down” (to use an industry term—another term for it is “buried”) and be able to successfully finance a new car.

Cash for Clunkers is just for new cars. There has been some speculation that it may also be extended to used vehicles but there has been no change on the website. There is a crucial difficulty with extending a program like this to used vehicles. That difficulty is the condition of the vehicle.

The condition of a new vehicle is known. It’s new. The condition (and the reconditioning) of a used vehicle is an unknown with one exception and that is manufacturer’s Certified Pre-Owned vehicles. Manufacturer’s programs only deal with their own brands and have rigorous standards which the vehicle must meet and which must be disclosed to the buyer—typically along with an enhanced warranty from the manufacturer. Perhaps this may happen in the future with the CPOV.

So, again as far as I’m concerned, this is a good program. It’s about time that with all the bail-outs that the average person has something which can directly benefit him or her. This program does that. Out of all the hundreds of billions that have been spent on toxic assets, etc. this “penny” is one which has the potential to generate a return and is a “penny” which is being well-spent. To the U.S. Senate: Approve the additional $2 billion!