Nuclear Fusion and Finances

Charlie and Deborah treated us to lunch and a visit to the American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The drive to the museum was beautiful. We thoroughly enjoyed the scenery, but I was distressed to be told upon our arrival at the venue that much of the ground across which we drove had been a dumping ground for radioactive waste.

While we were given the history of the “City Behind a Fence”, as the top-secret nuclear bomb project site was called, I couldn’t help but be distracted by my sadness for the thousand farm families displaced to build the facility -- with some having only two weeks notice to vacate land that their families had farmed for generations. That’s little more notice than we had before being hit by Hurricane Katrina.

I’m ashamed to admit this, but I know very little about the history of nuclear energy or the atom bomb. I tune out most things that have to do with violence -- or start imagining myself and my children in the scary situations-- so I miss a lot in history lessons. And if I were a scientist, I’m sure I would be more into natural science, like botany. Not that my “wing-it” approach to life would lend itself to me being a scientist.

I had a hard time enjoying the exhibits, even though they were pointing out all the good things that have come out of nuclear power research and development: x-rays, for example. Maybe if our tour could have started with a talk on all the good things that have been invented using nuclear technology…

This event was organized by the East Tennessee Chapter of the Antique Automobile Club of America, in which Charlie is a judge and automobile restoration grand champion award winner. This group of old car lovers regularly hits the road in their beautifully restored cars of yesteryear and cruises through and to scenic and historic venues. Many of the members of the club are as antique as their cars, as is the case with the membership of a great number of non-profit organizations. The events are good ways to introduce children and grandchildren to the glories of the American automobile’s past.

Charlie has tried to interest Richard in becoming a member of AACA. Richard’s 1989 Bronco II is a classic. It looks pretty good for its age, and it still runs pretty well. Also, Richard has a lot of experience in restoring old things. In fact, if we could get back even half of what we invested in our Nixon-era house and boat in New Orleans and our Clinton-era RV, we could about recoup our Bush-era losses in our retirement portfolio.

We are now in the process of fixing up our Reagan-era house in Coker Creek, and are at a critical decision time. I’d dearly love to remodel the kitchen; although, as you can tell, our outdated kitchen doesn’t stop us from preparing whole cafeteria lines of food. We estimate that, even with Richard doing all the work himself, an optimistic estimate of the cost would be over ten thousand dollars.

Our magic carpet RV will never take us on another adventure without a new diesel engine. Estimated cost is ten thousand dollars. Our second Clinton-era vehicle, my van, has almost two hundred thousand miles on it, so it may be the next thing to go. The cheapest cars cost at least twenty thousand dollars. Add to these realities that travel ain’t cheap, and I can’t go more than three months without seeing Scott’s family in Mississippi without feeling like I’m going to die.

I don’t know if you’ve ever thought about this, but in a conservative investment portfolio, it takes a million dollars to generate fifty thousand dollars. If you’ve invested in tax-deferred annuities, you have to pay taxes on your money as you take it out of your portfolio. That would leave you with probably less than forty thousand dollars, if you had a million dollars in your portfolio in the first place.

Our experience tells us that the amount of money you can spend on a hobby with an engine is endless. Fixing up a classic car may not be in the cards for a family on a fixed income in today’s economy.