More on Higher Education

Good post from The Simple Dollar about whether college is really necessary for everybody.

The simple answer? No.

Hey, I said it first...even if he does go into a little more detail :) He fleshes out the options well, and also talks about the dilemma for parents about whether to encourage/make their kids go to college if they haven't yet discovered where their talents lie. He makes the point that for these kids (which may well be the majority of high school graduates), going to college isn't necessarily the only--or the best--route to finding out.

The last line sums it up well: "The point is that college isn’t the only answer, and to force your children down that path can deny them the opportunity to spread their wings." [Side note: Neither Matt nor I feels even remotely like our parents forced us to go to college. On the contrary. It's just an interesting question, and one we've pondered as we've come to the realization that we'll most likely have kids some day.]

More "Ask And Ye Shall Receive"

I noticed on our Comcast cable internet bill this month that the promotion which had allowed us to pay $19.99 a month for high-speed internet since we've been here had apparently expired, leaving us holding a $58 bill for this month. Emboldened by past successes in calling companies and asking for a financial break, I did the same here and spoke to a nice woman who found us a new promotional rate of $24.95. She also asked if there were any affordable apartments in Reston which took cats, and so we spent some time running down those possibilities. People helping people; that's what it's all about! Moral of the story: it always pays to ask! As my dad would say, "The worst they'll do is tell you no."

UPDATE: I just did the same thing with our Progressive car insurance policy, which inexplicably went up $100 since our last payment six months ago--despite the fact that our driving records have been completely clean (mainly because we don't drive much!) and have always paid in full. A little scouring by a phone representative yielded some insight as to why that was (mainly the fact that they recalculated their rates in June, so not much to do with us personally) but she also transferred me to an account specialist, who combed our policy and found a speeding ticket that should have rolled off our account (luckily for us, they only look back two years!). That brought our 6-month premium down by $77, or a drop of over 10%. I'll take it!

As a side note, I have been thrilled with the customer service and user-friendliness of Progressive's representatives and website; while we've never had to use them for an accident (knock on wood!), they certainly have me feeling confident in them if we ever had to. I'm all for a company that's still willing to invest in a little goodwill, instead of gouging me for every penny they can.

Berkeley Springs: Tari's Inn and More

We recently took off for a couple of days to rest and rejuvenate in the unbelievably charming town of Berkeley Springs.

We stayed at Tari's Cafe and Inn, which proclaims proudly, "We ain't the Ritz, but we make up for it in food and service." And so they do.

And for $53 a night, we couldn't have been happier with our little love nest. The first night our room was comfy, but faced the street and was a little loud. The second, we switched to a much quieter interior room and slept like babies.

It also had a giant old bathtub, which was a lot of fun.

Tari's is also a restaurant with three separate seating areas (the cafe, the bar, and the gallery), and we loved it all. In a time when we were both feeling a little worse for wear, it was wonderful to have a change of scenery, and somebody else doing the cooking and cleaning. At the same time, we enjoyed the predictability of being able to just go downstairs and eat, rather than trying to choose where to go.

And the food was OUTSTANDING. While there, we sampled their crab cake sandwiches, crab fondue (I have been on a crazy shellfish kick lately, a passion I've discovered only later in life as my mom is fatally allergic), portabella bisque, tomato and arugula bisque, and garlic herb fettucine, among others. We also had a marscapone cake for dessert one night. And the best part? None of the meals cost us more than $30, including drinks and dessert. We felt like we were back in the midwest!

The bar at Tari's

The staff there were also incredibly friendly and knew us well by the end of the trip. And Berkeley Springs is a beautiful little town with old churches, a stone castle, natural warm springs, and a variety of homeopathic and natural food stores. We loved it!

Some more images from the trip:




To quote one of our favorite songs: I think it was just what we needed.

College, the Darker Side

Something else Matt and I were talking about this weekend which subsequently showed up in the NY Times (are they following us?!) is the idea of college--how when we were growing up and in high school, it was promoted with a kind of elitism that suggested that kids who went to college were just better, smarter, more responsible kids than the "townies" who hung around and got steady jobs. When really, as we look around at our peers who did or didn't attend, the only difference, for the most part, is that we're in more debt, and perhaps having a slightly more difficult time adjusting to the work world than they. College itself seems to me like it promotes a kind of social ADD--don't like a class? Drop it! Don't like your major? Change it! Didn't budget your money well? Borrow more! And this is all done under the guise of "getting a good education," "investing in the future," and with the blessing of those in charge (who, obviously, stand to benefit from convincing kids to a) stay in school and b) borrow money while they're there. All the better if they're around longer than four years!). However, it's especially poor preparation for a real job: in which you can't switch to another "section" if you don't like your boss, and nobody cares if you're bored or not learning anything.

We also noted that college artificially extends adolescence into the years of early adulthood which were traditionally associated with working a job, getting married, buying a home, and having children. And for some people, like us, it seemed to initiate a phase of adolescence that, being raised by hardworking, self-employed, and somewhat stricter-than-many parents, we hadn't had in the first place. "College kids" are treated by society as just that, with a kind of indulgent forgiveness not typically shown to 18-year-olds who are instead entering the full-time job market--a position that is much more difficult, and quite possibly more noble, than that of the coeds who spend their weeks partying and drinking. (Not that everybody spends college doing this; I worked an average of thirty hours a week while carrying a double major and came out with debt in the mid five figures to show for it. So college wasn't really destructive to me in a social sense, but financially, it could have been better.)

The article opens by talking about a study which showed that males in college are more likely to have committed a property crime than their peers who are not in college. I'm not surprised, and I would bet that a similar trend exists for substance crimes and especially sexual assault. Having staffed the rape crisis line in a college town that is constantly plagued by one high-profile campus rape or another, I can say that there's something about the college atmosphere that promotes that kind of predation.

The most relevant portions of the article are below:

"During adolescence, the prospect of attending college was positive. The researchers found that college-bound youth were less likely to be involved in criminal activity and substance use during adolescence than kids who weren’t headed for college.

But college attendance appears to trigger some surprising changes. When male students enrolled in four-year universities, levels of drinking, property theft and unstructured socializing with friends increased and surpassed rates for their less-educated male peers.

The reason appears to be that kids who don’t go to college simply have to grow up more quickly. College enrollment allows for a lifestyle that essentially extends the adolescent period, said Patrick M. Seffrin, the study’s primary investigator and a graduate student and research assistant in the department of sociology and the Center for Family and Demographic Research at Bowling Green State University.

College delays entry into adult roles like marriage, parenting and full-time work. Instead, college students have lots of unstructured social time. Other studies have linked unstructured socializing or “hanging out” with higher levels of delinquency and risk taking."

The full article is here.

So what's the answer? Only that college itself isn't going to miraculously land you a good job, or make you a good person; that if you're not careful, it can do the opposite. That perhaps it makes more sense to look back toward more traditional vocational/apprenticeship training, which was clearly focused toward an end (a productive, successful job), as opposed to glorying in the increasingly self-indulgent means. And an education which focused on efficiently obtaining useful skills, rather than racking up a predetermined number of credit hours (and an undetermined amount of debt) might better serve society at large and our college students.

Whole New Image

I was interested to read this article on the NY Times this morning, which depicts Whole Foods' attempt to keep pace with the economy by billing itself as a bargain place to shop. Just yesterday we were at Whole Foods looking for rennet to make cheese (note to other rennet seekers in the Washington DC/northern Virginia area: we did find it, for $1.89 per 8 tablets, at the P St. NW Whole Foods after unsuccessfully trying a couple of other grocers in DC), and while at the checkout, I noticed a sign in the window depicting a sundae made from frozen strawberries, ice cream, and shortcake, which read "So affordable, now you can have sundaes even on Mondays." I laughed and pointed it out to Matt, who had noticed several other check-out-our-low-low-prices signs throughout the store as well. As the people in the article point out: Whole Foods can claim that you get what you pay for, because their items typically are very high-quality. We also love their generous samples ("Whole Meals"), though those were disappointingly absent from our latest foray. But a bargain, they're not.

Unfortunately, without a local co-op, they're our only option for things like bulk grains, and possibly certain specialty items like rennet; ditto for the homeopathic remedies we're coming to love. So we'd hate to see them fold. But their prices on these kinds of items are higher than we used to pay at a co-op, and Whole Foods doesn't have price-lowering options like purchasing a membership or working for a discount. Their prices on items like organic produce are almost always higher than comparable items at Trader Joe's or even a place like HyVee or Safeway. So unfortunately, this latest marketing attempt is pretty transparent as just that.

Looking Back

This past week marked the one-year anniversary of our move to DC. (We've also been in Reston eight months now--a two-thirds majority of our time out here--crazy!) Here's what we were up to exactly a year ago today.

So...it's been a whole year since we first packed up our newlywed selves and moved further from our homes and families than either of us had ever imagined doing before. In the process, we've created not just new homes in the physical sense (though we have, and please note the plural), but a whole new idea of home--one based on our own decisions and commitments, rather than those we were born into and raised with. (Though at times, they're very alike.) We've learned to both lean on and support each other; but we've also learned that, should that ever waver, our previous support systems are still strong and intact as well. Distance hasn't lessened them a bit. That has especially come to bear in recent days, and it reminds me of the charge issued by our pastor to our families at our wedding.

Will you offer prayers and understanding, and will you do all in your power to support them in their relationship?

Will you accept Matt and Katie into each of your families, as one of your own?

Will you celebrate Matthew and Katie's marriage with them, standing beside them in rough times, yet never standing between them?

Our families--now family--stood and answered, "We will."

And they have.

Thank you.

A Bulgur Breakfast

After a little bit of an absence, it seems right that I come back with a post about food. In this case, we're talking about breakfast food. While we loved oatmeal all winter, for its heartiness and convenience (and cheapness), facing a bowl of it in the summer (especially when we've made the effort to get up and go running) is a little less appealing. And we love Kashi Heart to Heart, but it's expensive and a little highly processed for our taste. Thus Matt had the brainchild of hot cereal served cold: not oatmeal, which would be unappetizingly gluey, but cooked bulgur (which is a little processed, but still has a great nutritional profile), with milk and a banana. And, of course, for some of us: brown sugar.

Here's how we do it: The night before, we boil a cup of water (which takes about five minutes), throw in a half cup of bulgur, put a lid on it and turn off the stove. By morning, the cereal is cooked and cooled and delicious. The flavor is sort of neutral and nutty, the texture is very pleasant, and it's sort of like a softer take on Grape-Nuts. Make up a batch of cold-brewed coffee while you're at it, and you have a breakfast that just cooks itself while you sleep! Even more beneficially, it does so with very little energy (from you or your appliances). And bulgur costs us about a dollar a pound in bulk, even organic, and being that a serving size is only a quarter cup dry, it lasts us a long time!