-- 13:16 UTC

So, been a bit since my last post, but life has gotten...  Squirelly?

Had a string of "wtf"s since July.  Wife needed dental work really badly,
(tooth extraction).  That was a whole fiasco in and of itself, getting a
dentist who could do it.  Turned out, she needed an oral surgeon.

Then after that, the transmission in my car went.  That was 3K down the
drain.  Ok, fine, I got a new tranny.  Got car back on Thursday, then
turned on the AC, all good.  Friday afternoon comes along (Mornings, don't
need AC right now), and hear a loud hiss, and hot air.  $400 down, just to
get AC back.

Fast forward 2 weeks, wife gets the dental surgery, which is another
couple of hundred.

The following week, leaking pipes in the basement.  Repair?  Another $400.

Like, ok life, I get it.  You can stop now.

On top of this, past few months have been tighter than I'd like,
money-wise, and I've been pinching pennies along with the wife to make
sure we stay in a good place.  However, a relative is living with us, and
she is super into impulse purchasing.  To the point that making her bills
is what is causing all sorts of crunch in our budget.  Like, she will drop
$60 on getting nails or hair done, then the next week, will tell us she
needs $125 to cover prescriptions this month.  Neverminding that her dog
is a breed that *must* be groomed professionally, and often goes without.

I've taken to booking the grooming and paying for it, because I felt bad
for him.

It feels like she just doesn't care about the financial situation in the
house.  I don't mind her living with us, or even us covering her bills.
It's family, and I get that.  But, there's got to be some give-and-take
here.

That being said, I ran the numbers on fixing my current commuter bike, ie
new handlebars (Which would need a new shifting and brake system), bottom
bracket replacement, cassette and chain rings, etc etc.  To get it to the
point I can ride comfortably, every day, it was coming up near $500.

So, I decided to do a no-interest for 12 months deal, on a new bike.  I
figure, if I commute every day (Not just the super nice ones), I come out
ahead on gas and car maintenance.  Already told the wife once this van is
paid off, we're not buying a new car, and will just use her aunt's (Who is
staying with us) for everything.  If she needs it during the day, during
winter, I'll bus into work if I'm not prepped for biking it (I hope I am).

Given my math, I should have an ROI just in gas, in 172 days.  This also
means, I have to pay off the bike before 12 months is up, or else I get
slammed with interest, which would push that ROI date out.  Regardless, I
got a new bike, and I'm happy with it.  And it should save some money down
the road.