Adventure Phoenix

RedBox Kiosk

A few weeks ago my wife Jessica introduced me to the ‘RedBox’.  If you haven’t heard of it before, its probably one of the smartest inventions I’ve seen recently.  I throughly enjoy being able to walk to my local Walmart and pickup a DVD for $1 per rental.  What is even better is that I can go online and reserve movies to make sure they are available before I pick them up.

And for all of the iPhone lovers out there, there is an application called RedBox Pro which gives you free DVD rental codes.  I paid $2.00 for this little application and I have saved a few dozen dollars or more thus far from rentals.

For everyone else who does not have an iPhone to access the great promo codes, use breakroom that will give you 1 free rental per credit card number.

I hope you get a chance to check out this sweet little system.  I have been able to save hundreds of dollars so far by not renting movies on Comcast OnDemand!

Have you ever felt like your life is a series of unfortunate events?

I hear this phrase all too much in my friends lives. The other day a close friend told me her bank account has gone negative for 3 months in a row and there is nothing she can do about it. I honestly felt bad a moment of empathy for her but immediately realized that she chose to make the money she made. In fact, every great decision she has made has lead her down the path she is currently facing. It was honestly her best thinking.

Com’on think about it. Would you make a bad decision intentionally? Would you CHOOSE to take a wrong step, to make a wrong turn, to fall down, and the list goes on and on? Every choice we make is our best thinking at work.

What makes a person great is HOW they choose to see a bad situation!

On Monday night, my wife and I finished our 7th class at Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. For those of you who have never attended this class, GO NOW. DO NOT pass GO, DO NOT collect $200, stop what you are DOING a GO. Make this happen NOW. Seriously, this is a class that WILL radically change you live!

Anyways back to topic, Jess and I got home around 9ish, cleaned up a few things, did the dishes, wrote a blog, and we went to bed. An ALL too typical evening. Then around 4:50AM I started dreaming about my furnace burning. I remember this distinctly because I jumped out a bed, yelled FIRE, there is FIRE. JESS do you smell the burning.

I ran down stairs to see what was going on. The darndest thign happened. There was NO smoke. In fact, on my first and second floors, I couldn’t smell anything burning. However the house was irry quiet. Normally, I would hear my blowers and fans running to keep my house’s tempature balanced. So I walked up the three flights of stairs, heart still pounding and there is it again, I smelt smoke.

The funny thing was that my wife was still sound asleep. I yelled again and she just said, you’re dreaming, go back to bed. Frustrated at the smell getting more intense and now noticing that my top floor was extremely hot. About 84 degrees and the bottom two floors are in the low 60s I wondered if it was the furnace.

Then I remembered my dream. I ran downstairs again practically jumping over the rails and into the furnace room. I discovered my furnace had overheated. Yep, thats right, a device that generates heat overheated. Truly ironic in my opinion. At this time, I grabbed my cell phone and noticed it was 5:13AM. I knew my dad would be about to go for his morning walk so I called him. At this point, I noticed the blower wasn’t running anymore. When he picked up I explained that I think my furnace blower unit was melting and it no longer functioned. I asked if he would swing by and he said he would a few in an hour. I turned off everything in the house to prevent any more damage.

Well, around 6:30am he arrives (by the way, my parents live about 1.17 miles from me, I measured it .) and inspected the unit. He also agreed that it had melted.

Now, I don’t know about you but I started wondering how much this would cost. I jumped on the internet and started researching. I discovered that I might have to replace my entire furnace. Oh lord, fear set in at the fact that I might have to shell out another $2k on replacement of this unit.

Like most, I lost focus and immediately went to the side of fear. I have always been taught that F.E.A.R. is acronym meaning False Expectations Appearing Real. But when faced with a couple grand in unplanned expenses, those thoughts and memories seem to fad.

I called my repair man and he came out promptly. Good thing b/c it was the coldest day so far this year and my house was already at 58 degrees and dropping.

Between the time I called the repair man and when he arrived, I had a sudden realization. I remembered tha because I was in the Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University I had set aside several thousand in an ‘emergency fund’. Up until this moment, I had thought of an emergency fund a truly crazy. I mean, who honetly puts money in a box and keeps it for a day when an emergency comes. Its almost like hoping an emegency comes.

But I followed the advice of the class and put the money in my ’sock drawer’.

When the repair man arrived, he quickly discovered the problem. My blower unit for my house had completely melted into a hunk of plastic. So, I had him make the repair and then he gave me the bill. Ya know the cool thing about having cash in hand for an emergency? Well, when I got the bill, he had loaded up taxes and all kinds of fees. I told the guy I can charge this to a credit card which would cost him all kinds of fees. So I asked, would you cut out the tax and knock off 3% of the total cost if I pay in cash.

The guy smiled and immediately took the cash at almost a 13% discount. (tax in TN is very high!)

Everyone wins in that situation and CASH is KING!

So the next time you have an unfortunate event, I ask you to consider this. What really is going on? And HOW much of what is going on is FEAR?

With love and respect,

I am a person who has a belief that honesty and integrity will win above blind obedience. I prayed that God will protect this country with what is about to happen. Now, much like a parent’s love of their child and that same parent will discipline the child when it has created disruption.

The more I have watch take place this year in the media, I have discovered and proved one great thing about how the media controls the week minds with ideas that counter fact and truth. TV Stations like CNN and MSNBC broadcast lies to promote their agendas.

What saddens me is the 51% of American’s who fell for gossip and misguided truths only increases my belief that God is going to discipline and challenge us over the next few years.

To prove my point, there is an amazing video running on the internet boasting on the fact that the majority of Obama supporters live in blind obedience and would rather let the media dictate their choices.

I strongly encourage you to take a moment to watch this video and see what our society has become so blind in the choices they make at large.

Stand up and make an educated choice,

I know there are alot of artist out there that are cringing to my drawing but hey – i’m a computer nerd, not a artist! In either case it does show you my idea. As I have discussed in previous blogs called Defining a new future…I am going to buy some land within the next 15 months, build a small structure (as shown to the right) within the next 24 months, and sell my house and build/pay cash as I build the primary house within 36 months.

The structure shown right is a 2 car garage with a second story of about 2200 sq ft of a loft style apartment. This structure is estimated to be around $65-70k to build primarily due to the simply structure and no walls except for the exterior.

After I finish my house in 3 years, I will turn this building into an office in the future but for now it will become my studio apartment for my wife and I to live in.

I want to do this 3 stage process so I can earn and pay cash for each stage without borrowing any debt. Withing 3 years I can offically say I will be 100% debt free and as Dave Ramsey says “Live like no one else.”

Recently, my wife and I have made this a very major priority and our goals are set pretty hard in stone.

Now I am sharing this with you so that “WE” can be kept accountable to our goals. One thing I have learned is that having written goals is great however if people don’t hold you accountable, whats the point. Plus when you have friends and family sharing in your journey, you get serious encouragement from the people that surround you daily keeping you moving foward.

So, now you know apart of our 3 year goals of radically changing our lives. How many of YOU are willing to step up and be different. Have NO debt and change the way your family lives in the future.

For those of you keeping track, our current debt is down to $32,281 and dropping fast! We will be selling our car within the next 30 days and applying the earnings from the vehicle to the outstanding debt. I hope to have dropped our debt by another $11k. So stay tuned to our journey of living like NO one else so later we can live like no one else!

With absolute respect,

Are you tired of paying ridiculous television cost to watch the shows each and every month? Have you ever asked yourself if there was a better way? A way that would radical reduce your monthly bill if not totally eliminate the need for spending to watch the shows you must watch.

During the last few months I have became obsessed about the idea of dumping Comcast and other TV related expenses. However I haven’t had much luck until a few months ago when I discovered AppleTV. At first I purchased a Mac Mini to watch my television shows. This was very exciting as it allowed me to completely remove my Comcast bill to the tune of $190 a month.

Shortly after I purchased an AppleTV box. This is probably one of the coolest devices I have ever come across. The basic concept of AppleTV is a tiny computer wrapped up into a very simple interface that works directly with your TV.

The quality is absolutely amazing. AppleTV took me about 2-3 minutes to set up and what makes things even more amazing is that AppleTV integrates directly with YouTube and Flickr. I can’t even tell you how awesome it is to sit in bed and watch my TV shows without a computer, a remote, just a small clicker device that controls the AppleTV. Truly remarkable.

For all of you out there that are wanting to eliminate Comcast and other TV bills…I highly recommend that you research and purchase the AppleTV box. I promise you will be much happier than you can even imagine. The savings in monthly bills alone should make you a believer but the simplicity to watch and buy what you what when you want it will radically transform your television experience.

Seeking great alternatives to pointless payments!

Have you ever been involved in a wreck? Well what about two wrecks 1 week apart? Well, I find it truly amusing how two separate well meaning customers from Allstate could run into my parked vehicle.

Let me first say that both individuals who hit my car are extremely honest, helpful and were truly apologetic when they hit my car. In fact, they have bent over backwards to help me out.

However, Allstate has NOT been as helpful. They have done everything short of telling me off during the resolution of this mess.

The story starts back three weeks ago with customer #1 who hit my car. They backed into my vehicle in their driveway and so we took it to the insurance company. At first glance, one would assume that there was only a few hundred in damages. Primarily scraps on my bumper and a scratched tail light.

The second customer ran into my rear end, trashing my bumper while I was parked at a stoplight waiting to turn right. However, much like the first accident, there was very little noticeable damage. The majority of damage happened inside inside the bumper.

The first wreck had over $1800 in damages. I got 3 quotes and all of them were within that ball park. The second wreck exceed the first by $2300 in damages. But the very well meaning Allstate paid out $1037 for the first wreck and a whopping $513 for the second wreck.

What that means is that I am out over a grand in damages because Allstate refuses to cooperate. What makes matters worse is that I have a damaged car barely hanging on while driving. I still have yet to received the second check and thus I can not got my car repaired.

So upset, I took my car to a body shop and told them to get me a rental car and fix my car now. I was very upset at Allstates and the body shops attitude. Of course there is more drama behind the scenes than what I am sharing but regardless, the body shop finally gave me a car to drive. After 2 weeks since the second accident, I am starting to get resolution.

The good news is that the body stop will handle everything from this point. But what I wanted all my readers to know is that I have had a HORRIBLE experience thus far and we still haven’t had a single ounce of resolution.

I strongly encourage you to consider this, “Are you in good hand?” consider that when you’re insurance comes up for renewal!

One thing is for sure, the best way NOT to grow a business is treat the ‘third party’ of your client like crap. To me, the best way to win customers in the insurance world is to be overwhelming helpful to the third party. I mean, if Allstate treated me with respect, I can’t even tell you how much I would be promoting them not instead of giving my honest opinion. ALL insurance agents out there, think twice before you disrespect a client or a client’s third party!

Radical Transformation happens in many forms. Being courteous is at the top of my list.

Honestly seeking the truth,

For those of you that haven’t had the opportunity to read the book called “The Shack”, I highly recommend you purchase a copy.

Yesterday while at church our pastor read several excerpts from the book. Though it does not have the best biblical perspective at all times it DOES have a great value when looking at the book as a whole.

What is most impressive to me is the fact that a man (father) can show emotions in a positive manor without loosing his manhood. Society wants men to believe that we are NOT emotional creatures and as such we are to hold this inside.

I LOVE how Mac, the man character, longs to see his daughter again and how devastated he was at the lost of her at age 6. This is a tragedy that turns into greatest when we consider that life is more than the time we spend here on earth!

I know I haven’t been as faithful recently in promoting books to read so here is one that I read nearly two years ago that I want everyone to join me in this quest and pick it up. I personally believe that no matter where you are in your life, with or without some tragic event, this book will find you and change your future.

For those of you interested in listening to the sermon, visit http://www.harpethcc.com/media/teachings/ and click on the sermon dated “11/09/08″ At the time writing this blog, it was not yet available so please check back soon!

With tender respect,

One of my life’s dreams is to buy some land, build an office, home and greenhouse to grow my own food. More recently, Jessica and I have discussed this in depth and it is now in our 2 year plan to buy land and start building. Today I started researching how to build a greenhouse, what all is involved, and how to most efficiently grow vegetables. What I came up with is a very unique idea. I kind of stole it from a group of scientist who created a donut like device that can split atoms. Now, these scientist’s device is nearly 18 miles in circumference. Truly crazy the size of this device but my little greenhouse will be about 100 yards in length. A much small version of the atom splitter. I know alot of you are thinking I’m crazy but here is the problem with a standard greenhouse. CO2 builds up at the top and cold air falls to the bottom. During the summer time, this isn’t a big problem but during the winter, this becomes a significant problem as freezing can occur. Most solve this by adding fans in the roof and sides. However one significant problem is that the air only flows one direction. In a donut like greenhouse the air would flow around much like how an inter tube in your tires works. This would create the most efficient means to balance air, keep the CO2 or Oxygen from building up in any particular area. It also creates a very efficient flow as one can walk in a circle and harvest the fruits/vegetables they need. I will be providing sketches very soon so please read my future blogs if you’re interested in how this will work out. Also, if any one knows of property available in Tennessee about 45-60 minutes from down-town Franklin, I am definitely interested.

Moving forward with a hopeful future,

I don’t know about you but one of the hardest things as a child is to learn when you are free to make your own decisions. What I mean by that is making a decision that goes against what your parents believe or have taught you.

Let me give you an example. Recently, I have become very interested in politics. This is a sticky subject for anyone who is passionate let alone opinionated.

During this evolution of studying the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, I have learned some very interesting facts. Things that have truly upset me and learning what other people believe is true upsets me even further. I had one of my close friends tell me that a certain political figure was ‘like Jesus’. That statement alone upset me and I went off. They said it with such certainty that I was appalled. No one is like Jesus. We are made in the image but we fall so short of him its not even funny. Then to compare someone who has a proven track record of anti-Christian and anti-Biblical concepts is just remarkable.

To say all that, my dad is a massive support of McCain. I am not. I like the guy. I am sure he means well but I have serious doubts about his core values. Regardless to say, I voted for McCain only to vote against Obama.

This has led me to ask one simple questions. When are we free from our parents decisions and allowed to make judgments of our own without criticism? In short, never. The bible calls us to honor our parents. However honoring and having a different opinion are drastically two different concepts. I have and seek to always honor my parents in every way possible. Even though I strongly disagree with their opinions. I believe this realization is what defines our separation from being a child to becoming an adult.

With all that being said, I felt it totally approperate to place a picture of my father and I in this blog. My dad was about just over 27 years old in that photo. Its crazy to think that I am 27 writing this blog and I found myself wondering if my dad had the same relaization about his parents.

With open arms and tender love,

The other day I had the privilege of getting to know one of the families of our church. One of my greatest joys in life is getting to know the ‘real’ person rather than just what people project or want others to believe.

During this time we discussed many topics but one of those stuck out in my mind today as I write this article. Not to get to political again but I strongly agree with the notion that we MUST become energy independent however its NOT the governments who should take this on – its you and me. WE as individuals should become independent of what holds us down.

Have you ever thought about eliminating the need to pay for power or water or even telephone? Well this has been on my mind lately and one of which that came up in conversation the other evening.

How would YOUR life change if you didn’t have to worry about paying for electricity again? It sounds like a fairy tail wish but seriously what would it look like if you could reasonably afford to go ‘off the grid’ as its called and be energy independent from the power company.

In studying how power works and more importantly alternative resources to power, I have come to a single conclusion that with a reasonable investment it can be accomplished.

Right now, I have decided to adopt two methods for powering my house. The first is wind power. Unfortunately in Tennessee we do not receive nearly the wind that some of the mid-west states receive but we do have enough wind to power about 70% of my future family needs based on what the typical American family of 5 consumes on a daily basis. With that being said, there would need to be some other alternative source of power which at this moment appears to be a gas generator.

Like I’ve said before, I know most of you think I am crazy to be thinking like this however I merely ask the question, why should I be crazy if I want to eliminate the need to pay someone else to live on this planet. After all, wasn’t the planet given to us freely in the first place so living on this God given earth should be free as well. At least that is my dream that I am putting together.

To get more specific, the wind power turbine would not be the common 3 bladed turbine. I am planing on buying a Helix Wind Turbine as shown to the right. This is the most efficient way to generate electricity from wind. In fact, this multi-tiered unit generates about 4-5 times more power than a typical 3 bladed wind turbine. If I lived in the mid-west, theoritically could power about 90-100 homes however in Tennessee I should be able to power about 70% of my home at peak usage and 150% of my home at normal usage.

So how much would freedom from paying the electic company another dollar be worth to you? Just to give you an idea, currently I spend about $200 in the peak summer for power and $120 during the off season. That averages a little over $1700 and increasing. So would you spend $10k today to live the next 30 years without another bill? Doing the math, 30 years at my current usage, I would spend $52800. That doesn’t fact in an increase in my usage, inflation, and other variables that I can not control.

So I end this blog with a single question… I am crazy for wanting to eliminate my dependance on paying for electricity or are you crazy for continuing to pay thousands a year and growing to something that you will never get back?

Oh yea, for those of you asking why I didn’t consider Solar Power…simply put the cost to recovery is about 4-8 times longer than what I can recoup from wind & gas power sources. And secondly, Solar Power is a good technology however biological solar power is a far more efficent use of the sun’s amazing power. If you want to know more about that, drop me an email and I’ll give you a short video explaing what the future holds in that upcoming industry!!!

Seeking a future of complete freedom!,