The NYT asks the perennial question and provides one of the standard answers: "To have someone else cook dinner." I cook for my wife every Sunday, so today is no exception, though I always try to do something especially geared to her tastes on Mother's Day. (Today, for example, we are having pan-seared Tilapia, a potato gratin, some veggies, and fresh strawberry pie.)

The NYT story also references a Wishlist.com survey on the topic, which found that a small percentage of moms “would love to receive a car, money or a weekend away.” Well, we finally bought a new car, and our purchase happened to coincide with Mother's Day. The Chevy Malibu gets good reviews, and it suits our large family. The gas mileage is decent (33 mpg on the highway), since we went with the four-cylinder rather than the V-6. And the folks at Brent Brown Chevrolet in Provo were very, very motivated to sell, without being obnoxious about it. If you are car shopping in Utah Valley, talk to Brett Applegate, who was excellent.

Given that I have blogged about car shopping during the financial crisis (here and here), I feel obliged to offer some concluding thoughts on that topic. First, contrary to the idiosyncratic and ill-informed opinions of one of our commentators, we received all of the substantial discounts discussed in my previous post -- and more -- even though we were paying cash. No, I am not a crack negotiator. You would get the discounts, too. And I highly recommend saving up and paying cash, if you can swing it.

Second, I was planning to wait for the "cash for clunkers" program to make its way through Congress, but now that the details are emerging, it's quite probable that we would not qualify on this purchase, since we were getting rid of a compact car in favor of a mid-size. Not only would we be required to increase our fuel efficiency, but under both the House plan and the Senate plan, only vehicles getting 18 miles per gallon or less would quality for trade-in. If the plan becomes more expansive than I anticipate, we still have another fairly old car that I wouldn't mind trading for a new, compact, commuter/errand car, like the Honda Fit.

By the way, I wonder whether manufacturers would continue to offer rebates if the "cash for clunkers" program passed. In our case, the dealer took $3,500 right off the top in rebates and dealer incentives, and I would not be surprised if those evaporated (or were substantially reduced) if Congress stepped up to the plate. By substituting tax dollars for manufacturers rebates, we would simply be giving an additional subsidy to the automobile companies, not a bailout for the rest of us. This substitution would also call into question the behavioral assumption underlying the proposed program -- that people just need a small boost to trade in their old cars. If money were the issue, those people should already be trading in their old cars. Of course, this is a program that also has been widely criticized for its misguided environmental aspirations, so this seems like a good time to re-think the idea.

Third, this is a great time to buy because dealers are more interested in market share than profits. This is especially true for the American automobile dealers, which are looking to cut a substantial number of dealers. I never worked out whether it would be better to purchase a car from a marginal dealer, but I assume that someone on the cusp of extinction would have a great incentive to close sales.

In the end, we purchased a car that we would have been perfectly happy to walk away from, but one that is a substantial upgrade over our previous seven-year old vehicle. And the fact that we closed the sale on the day before Mother's Day made it all the better.

Now, back to the kitchen!

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This year, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day seems to have been absorbed into the Inauguration Day anticipation.  I think that's fine and probably fitting.  Although we can't be sure, we can speculate that the election of an African-American man to the office of President of the United States, arguably the most powerful position in the world, must have been one possibility Dr. King was considering in the "I Have a Dream" speech.  Though I think we all wish the Dr. King could be in Washington, D.C. tomorrow, not thinking of him tomorrow will be impossible.

I take MLK Day very seriously, and we actually have an MLK party each year, complete with a birthday cake.  I'v even blogged about it before.  Today, I only have one tidbit to add. 

This election day, my 92 year-old white grandma went to the polls and voted for Barack Obama, who she knew to be an African-American man.  My grandma spent the first half of her life in towns in East Texas that don't show up on most maps.  I don't think she went to school past junior high.  I don't think she's ever had a black person in her house, or shook a black hand, or sat next to a black person on purpose.  My grandma is the most wonderful person I know, but she lived most of her life around people who said (and still say) things that would make your hair stand on end.  But something happened, and she voted for Barack Obama.  Now, maybe she voted for him because he was the only Democrat left standing or because of some other reason, but it doesn't matter.  I'm from a place where every courthouse has a water fountain and a metal plate on the wall next to the water fountain, where the "colored" water fountain used to be.  Public buildings have two women's restrooms on every floor and one men's because the building at one time needed three separate restrooms.  In four decades, less time than for all of these remnants to be replaced, Barack Obama has been elected President -- because people like my grandma voted for him.

Have a great MLK Day.

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That's not my idea of a good time -- being afraid of heights, I couldn't even make it to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and watching that camera shot looking down from the faux Arc de Triomphe made me woozy -- but I admire the careful planning that went into this stunt ...

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After a very difficult fall semester, I am recharging my batteries. A trip to Temple Square in Salt Lake City was part of the plan ...

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NYU's Nouriel Roubini has been a consistent and delightful prophet of doom for years.  His Twelve Steps to Financial Disaster from last winter are classic, famous, and kind of scary seeing as he looks way more right than wrong.  Scary is seasonal, and it seems the market for Roubini paraphenalia is one of the few up these days -- here is a Halloween mask to start your collection (ok, so it's free ... but then again, people are lending money for free to the U.S. Treasury!).  I hope Nouriel's business, RGE, takes this as a prod to start a merchandising operation.  The Stimulus We Need.

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We had a wonderful hike on Timpanogos Trail to Emerald Lake today.

The trail was surrounded by wildflowers ...

and waterfalls ...

and snow ...

and mountain goats!

Can you see them?

By the end of the day, I was exhausted, blistered, and sunburned.

We finished the day with dinner at the Foundry Grill at Sundance. On the way down the mountain, my wife and daughters were singing "Perfect Day" by Hoku, and I had to agree ...

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Today is a state holiday in Utah. We are commemorating Brigham Young's entry into Salt Lake Valley in 1847. Many people will be going to parades and barbecues. We are planning to hike Mt. Timpanogos.

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We just returned from the Stadium of Fire in the Lavell Edwards Stadium. I would have preferred watching football, but this was a great show. We were enthralled by the sky divers who opened the show.

My 17-year-old son immediately took to the idea. "I want to do that." I see ROTC in his future.

More photos below the fold ...

Half of the field was occupied by a stage and spectators, but dancers soon filed the other half. This is usually the time for me to find a restroom or get some food, but these young women (and a few young men?) were absolutely fun. They did a seven and a half minute tribute to the Summer Olympics, acting out every sport. I can't tell you where the flags come in, but this should give you a sense of the pageantry ...

Somehow I had never seen the Blue Man Group live in concert. They had only a small role in tonight's program, but they were very clever and entertaining. This was their opening ...

No one should have to follow BMG's "Rock Concert Movements" and "How to be a Megastar," their homage to choreographed dance moves. But, of course, the headliner for this show was Miley Cyrus. Aside from a few signs like "We Love You, Hannah!" references to Hannah Montana were non-existent. This was mostly about Miley's new album, "Breakout." If Miley's Vanity Fair photos were not sufficient notice that she is trying to shed the bubble gum image of Hannah Montana, she just screams I'm breaking out! Even her fans didn't know the words to these new songs, so they just jumped and screamed, too.

Ok, enough about Miley. The best part of the evening was the massive fireworks show, which rained ashes on us and probably took several years off of my life. But it was spectacular.

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Hiking Y Mountain is popular most summer days, but especially so on the Fourth of July. We arrived at 6:00 am to avoid the big crowds. Here are two of my sons standing on the Y ...

While we were up there, the balloons took off again ...

It's a beautiful day in Happy Valley!

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Thus begins America's Freedom Festival in Provo ...

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Last week I met a person about my age whose father was killed in Vietnam. The father never saw his son, but the son had come to terms with the fact that he would never meet his father. Now with several sons of his own, my friend understands that he missed out on some of the experiences that he was giving his own sons, but he recognizes that the life he might have had with his father could have been different in some negative ways, too. Among other things, his father was a heavy drinker.

Another vicarious memory of war.

In the throes of grading, I am still sifting through these memories. Courtesy of National Geographic, a photo for the occasion ...

After living in Madison for five years, Memorial Day evokes another memory ...

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I had no idea it was this complicated.

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Easter is a religious holiday around our house, but I enjoyed WaPo's Peep Show 2. This was not the most elaborate entry, butt it cracked me up.

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I know the holiday season is here.  Not just because the prospect of writing (and grading) exams is looming large, and not because my local shopping mall is completely tricked-out with festive decorations.  I know it's here because I've been on a desperate hunt for various hard to find toys for various family members.  My nephew wants a raccoon Webkinz.  My local toy stores have lots of Webkinz.  They have dogs, they have bears.  They even have a very cute penguin.  But no raccoons!  And my niece wants a "Bulls-eye Ball" game.  I didn't even know what a Bulls-eye Ball game was, let alone where to find one!  I prefer to support my local retailers when I can, but I have to admit that Amazon and eBay have saved me this holiday season!

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The Boston Globe notes that holiday parties are a potential minefield for lawsuits, and hence provides some tips, courtesy of Bryan Cave LLP, for businesses seeking to avoid being blasted.  Below are some of the tips:

"Avoid salty foods such as chicken wings because they may result in excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages.

Consider having adequate security.

Make employee attendance voluntary.

Check relevant insurance policies for possible coverage.

Set the tone with a series of pre-party memos. Memos should note that the party is a business-related function, and they should also remind everyone of the company's anti-harrassment policies. Pre-party memos should suggest that everyone should give gag gifts and provocative decorations a good leaving-alone.

If party plans call for music, tell the band or DJ, "No slow dances."

And after the party, investigate all harrassment complaints."

I especially like the pre-party memos, and though I have been to my share of holiday parties, I have never actually seen such a memo.   And of course, while some of these tips seem obvious and even a bit over the top, there is always that memorable office party story floating around suggesting that even in business settings, with people who are otherwise extremely professional, there are those who do get carried away (and inappropriately so) at holiday parties.

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