Jazz Packing!

For all my friends wondering about how good a Honda Jazz really is, I've made this post linking to some practical "real world" examples of how you too could put to use the great storage, comfort and flexibility of a Honda Jazz.

So, how much ________ can you pack into a Jazz?  Generally, the answer is a lot.

Tattslotto & Human Behaviour

I love the idea of winning the lotto.  I only buy tickets maybe three times per year, but when I do I am absolutely convinced I'm going to win (don't worry, I understand the reality and the odds, but it's nice to dream).

Usually, I've already worked out what/how/where/when/why I'm going to spend my immense winnings.

But I was listening to the Freakonomics podcast recently where I heard about Prize Based Savings accounts.  Basically, if you put money in to the savings account, you are entered in the draw to win prizes.  The prizes are typically in the form of extra money deposited into your savings account.  I'm not sure whether these are high interest rate accounts, or if they have a lower interest rate and use the difference to form the prize pool... but it got me thinking.

If you regularly played the lotto, how much money would you have after forty years of putting that money in the bank, rather than in the lotto.  And how does this compare to any winnings you are likely to have earnt from the lotto during that time.

Using this handy interest calculator from ASIC, I was able to predict that if you put $15 per week into the bank (I'm assuming an interest rate of 5% per annum) then you would have $96,605 after forty years.  Do you think you would have won that much back from the lotto during the same time?  Possible, but not likely.

Of course this needs to be adjusted for inflation, etc... but it's worth thinking about.

School drift sets alarm bells ringing

School drift sets alarm bells ringing

I've often shared my thoughts about private vs Government school choices for parents and this article in The Age reminded me of the debates I've had with friends and colleagues in the past.


While I'm not a parent, I can see the parent's dilemma.  I suspect most parents would do whatever they could to give their children the best opportunities in life.  And for many, at least those who can afford it, that choice seems to be private education.


This worries me on two levels:

• Does it actually make a difference?
• What about those left behind?

Read on to find out my thinking.