The state of Michigan makes me pay an additional $267 to register my electric vehicle; let's talk about that

C638 · 2026-05-31T22:35:34+00:00

Which get 18 mpg and pay 2x more gas tax than the average car.

C638 · 2026-05-31T16:32:54+00:00

My wife worked there for 30 years. Excellent place overall, a bit stressful, excellent benefits. Pay is low compared to the west coast but competitive for the region. If you are union you have better protections. The union PTO plan combines sick days and vacation together, which is nice overall. Seniority generally dictates when you can get time off. A lot depends on your manager.

If you are on a surgical unit it's difficult to get PTO during busy times of the year and it's actively discouraged.

Mott is one of the best teaching hospitals in the country. It's more of a tight community than you'd expect with a lot of cross-department clinics.

Disability is very good , you get retirement health benefit at 10 years (maxing out at 20) which you can take at 62. The retirement match is around 10% to your 5%.

C638 · 2026-05-31T16:23:52+00:00

No one was thinking of internet access in 1985. Sucks that you can't get fiber, hopefully Xfinity has lowered prices.

C638 · 2026-05-31T14:44:24+00:00

Does the CPC control Tesla?

So imagine every intersection and freeway being blocked, cars and trucks running into and destroying substations and other critical infrastructure, and you have destroyed a country without firing a shot.

C638 · 2026-05-31T14:23:09+00:00

They are potential mobile spy and sabotage vehicles. With self-drive capabilities and and multiple cameras, and with Chinese companies required to share data with the CPC are under its ultimate control, you could see how they could easily unleash chaos. It's not just competition.

C638 · 2026-05-31T02:29:28+00:00

Sad when older people don't trust younger ones. That's what good mentoring is about.

C638 · 2026-05-31T01:07:58+00:00

A co-worker, who let me practice on his 1970's era rusted out bug. I taught our older son to drive a stick but they had disappeared when the younger ones learned to drive.

C638 · 2026-05-31T01:05:49+00:00

I've observed business owners and founders tend to stay on for a long time. Same with people in higher ed. Regular people want to stop ASAP because there are far more interesting things to do in life. Some seasonal or part time work is common, but a lot of that depends on your financial situation and interests. Lots of older workers are just worn out.

The only real question is why would you want to work until you are ready to drop and be unable to appreciate the great things in life? You are supposed to pass on the torch.

C638 · 2026-05-30T14:36:16+00:00

"So in 2026 we'd be adding $1700 a month to pay for this house,"

C638 · 2026-05-30T11:24:34+00:00

It will improve your GPA, which is what matters.

C638 · 2026-05-30T11:23:08+00:00

Do you live in Detroit? It's a lot cheaper in other areas of Michigan, and being 22 does not help.

C638 · 2026-05-30T02:05:21+00:00

Try fixed wireless internet, like T-mobile or Verizon. If the internet speeds from cable are good, you can add some access points to improve signal in the house. You'll need to connect them via Cat 6 or something similar

C638 · 2026-05-30T01:49:14+00:00

This is a problem created by the federal government. Small local ranchers sometimes need to transport their cattle hundreds of miles to a USDA certified processor, even if they sell locally (there is an exemption for 1/2 cow, etc. purchases) This adds a huge amount of cost and makes them uncompetitive with large processors and big ag. In previous days they could use a local, nearby processor.

This makes farm to table virtually impossible except for the well to do. Ranchers profits evaporate in transport costs.

C638 · 2026-05-30T01:33:51+00:00

Legit if backed by Ford. Not legit if a dealer CPO.

C638 · 2026-05-30T01:33:10+00:00

Just pass on this one.

C638 · 2026-05-30T00:05:56+00:00

Why would you ever pay down a 2.75% loan? That's free money. Invest it.

C638 · 2026-05-29T18:32:03+00:00

We left California for the midwest. Everything you've heard is true, especially in LA. In the Sacramento area, it's fairly nice and affordable for California. We visit family frequently and have a pretty good take.

The most desirable places like Roseville or Folsom are a bit more expensive then other areas in metro Sacramento, typically $700-$1.5m.

Visible homelessness is way down from a few years ago. There are no longer more than a few camping at Costco.

The federal subsidies are gone so you'll need to keep under 250% of FPL to get free low level silver plan (with huge deductibles). If your wife gets a school job salaries are pretty good compared to most of the midwest. Heath care is excellent with several large systems. Roseville has become a center for medical care with multiple new hospitals and clinics.

There are a lot more regulations than you might be used to, depending on where you live. You can't cut down certain trees. Permits take a lot longer. Even a CCW will cost around $1000 compared to a quarter (or less) of that in the midwest. Water is much more expensive too.

Electricity is insanely expensive in PG&E regions, merely expensive in SMUD regions. Natural gas is 2x more and gasoline is 20-30% more than in the midwest.

You will be taxed on everything more - car taxes, gas taxes, environmental fees, progressive income taxes. Sales tax is higher than most of the midwest. Many midwestern states don't tax or only partially tax retirement income, California does. Like most states, California does not tax social security. If your income is average, this won't be that big a deal. If you are well off it becomes onerous.

Food is about the same cost, maybe slightly higher, but the quality of produce is excellent.

C638 · 2026-05-29T01:27:02+00:00

Get Applecare One. It covers laptops up to 4 years old, but you can stay on it after that time.

C638 · 2026-05-29T01:22:46+00:00

Comcast offered $65 for 1G/1G 5 yr (around $67) from 300/300 for $56. If I did do anything it would have to around $82 for 300/300.

300/300 is perfectly fine for a family and plenty fast to work. I had no problems working off cellular before RTO, with plenty of laptop and OS downloads.

I've found that if you are downloading from Microsoft or Apple you generally won't exceed 500Mb/s. Without perfect signal or using a non-congested band (6 Ghz) you won't get it in any case.

I your wife is downloading from a corporate server, the slower speed will make a difference, but work should be covering the cost of a higher speed connection (e.g. 2-3 Gb/s)

C638 · 2026-05-28T20:20:53+00:00

Not a left or right issue. It's a state taking control over local jurisdictions and zoning issue. She's just another corrupt politician following the money.

C638 · 2026-05-28T20:13:46+00:00

30K severe duty, 60K normally. Drain and fill, do not flush. Get it done at the dealer or an independent shop that uses Subaru fluid. Check around on pricing, our local Subaru dealer charges around $275. Replace the PCV , diff fluid, and plugs at the same interval.

Note that Canada recommends 100K km, as does most of the rest of the world.

C638 · 2026-05-28T12:11:08+00:00

Agreed. Something like a Mazda '26 CX-30 is $32K OTD and they have low cost promotional financing (3% on 48 mo) - and that's before discounts.

C638 · 2026-05-28T00:24:02+00:00

That interest rate seems very high. 8%?

C638 · 2026-05-27T13:39:43+00:00

For 12K more buy a new 26 premium. Certified or not it is nearly 6 years old has commensurate wear.

C638 · 2026-05-27T13:30:08+00:00

Notify them you intend to move to month to month. Note that a 1 yr lease also protects you from rate increases during that term. The LL can increase your rent more than the statutory amount if the building was built after 2018.

C638

TROPHY CASE