When I started college, we still used slide rules. Before I graduated, I was using this "incredible" 4-function calculator with fixed decimal which I picked up for only $45 (probably $250 in today's dollars):

I've still got it, and it still works!

Bits for August 2010

Woo Hoo!!! California just extended the term for the carpool sticker on my 2002 Prius for 4 more years!
Two beers are now officially better than one
Donate rice to the needy while answering vocabulary questions (put that high school English class to good use!)
Artsy use for toilet paper rolls.
Even though it's still not primarily their fault, Democrats are going to get trounced in the November elections due to the increasingly bad economic news. But as each day passes, they own more of it.
Eating berries may activate the brain's natural housekeeper for healthy aging
Yet another blow to personal privacy.
Strange photo. Possible explanations.
"When Doctors Admit Their Mistakes"
Men: calculate your sex appeal. My score: 24.
A review of the Verizon/Google internet access proposal
An animated map showing the 2,053 nuclear explosions that took place around the world during the 20th century.
This year's hurricane forecast. Kinda scary.
Top 10 plays from the 2010 NBA Finals.
A hair salon for a part of your body that doesn't see the light of day.

Student loans have become a tremendous burden to the U.S. economy (snippet):

....Americans owe some $826.5 billion in revolving credit, according to June 2010 figures from the Federal Reserve. (Most of revolving credit is credit-card debt.) Student loans outstanding today — both federal and private — total some $829.785 billion, according to Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of FinAid.org and FastWeb.com. “The growth in education debt outstanding is like cooking a lobster,” Mr. Kantrowitz says. “The increase in total student debt occurs slowly but steadily, so by the time you notice that the water is boiling, you’re already cooked.” By his math, there is $605.6 billion in federal student loans outstanding and $167.8 billion in private student loans outstanding. He estimates that $300 billion in federal student loan debts have been incurred in the last four years....

At least Americans are still getting educated.

15 Reasons Housing Is Going From Bad To Worse

1. Record low home sales- New home sales are now at their lowest on record, and existing home sales began a steep decent in July. (And this is the busy time of year. Wait until winter.) 2. New home sale construction is also near record lows. There is already an excess of houses. (This is actually a good thing- but it does tell you how bad things are.) 3. Demand for mortgages is at a 13 year low. (Showing that low interest rates are insufficient to stimulate demand.) 4. Foreclosures are at record highs. (And getting worse.) 5. Repos are at an all time high. (See #4.) 6. Banks are writing off a massive amount of debt. (And they are going to be writing off a lot more before they are through.) 7. Record delinquencies- more than 10% of all Americans are behind on their mortgage. (Hence #4.) 8. Banks have significantly raised their lending standards. (Low interest rates aren’t useful to people who don’t qualify.) 9. Home prices are still too high and out of line with what people can afford. (Especially upper end real estate. With reduced income and no “wonky” financing, the McMansion market is being killed.) 10. With 28% of all households having one adult currently looking for employment, unemployment levels are high. (And unemployed people don’t buy homes.) 11. Bankruptcies are on the rise. (See #10 and #15) 12. Even Obama is bearish on housing. (Business Insider found a great “grumpy face” of the president for this one.) 13. Tax credits pulled home sales forward- shrinking current demand. (And future demand as well.) 14. Fannie and Freddie could be up to $5T in the hole. (You know, I doubt I’ve typed $XT more than a dozen times in my life. That’s a big number.) 15. U.S. economy is drowning in debt. (As well as many Americans.)

Thanks, George Bush. You definitely left a lasting impression on all of us.

Hold on to your hats. Real conservatives support legalization of pot: