The Millionaire Cashier

Believe it or not this is another story about Costco.  I do not work for them. Yes, I love their chicken and I did eat most of one last night, but I don't work for them. However, it can be a really good thing to work for them.

The article I recently read was about Tony Barzar, a 60-year-old cashier in Arizona, who started working for them in 1986, forty years ago. His 401k has over a million dollars in it. Costco's philosophy is to keep workers and pay them well which reduces the amount of money they have to pay for training new employees.

He is currently working part-time and still makes $32.90 per hour. He's also very good at his job. Although over the years he's been offered management positions, he's very happy doing what he does and has declined the promotions.

In 2009 his family bought a three bedroom house with a pool and they've traveled to Europe twice in the past decade.  He also has pretty good health insurance from the company.

According to Costco there are thousands of employees who have over a million dollars in their 401k account which is pretty impressive.  The first year turnover rate for employees is only 7% which is very low.

Two important things here: Saving money in a 401k does add up to a lot of money and there are some pretty great companies who do treat their employees very well.

A Nun Who Runs Marathons

Sister Stephanie Baliga works at Chicago's Mission of our Lady of the Angels, but she came close to being an Olympic athlete.  When she was a student athlete at The University of Illinois she was the sixth fastest freshman in the nation.  When she fractured her ankle as a sophomore she decided to dedicate her life to God.

For the past 15 years she has run in the Chicago Marathon to raise money for the their food bank. She has helped raise $2.6 million for the food bank.  She said, "We serve 400 to 500 families every Tuesday and we send about 300 deliveries to senior citizens each week. It's totally changed my life."

This year she is running with 200 others from their Mission and their goal is to raise $500,000.  Other members line the marathon route with funny signs such as: "Run Like You're Being Chaste," "2/3 of God's Name is Go," and "May God Have Mercy on Your Soles."  They have already raised close to $200,000 before the marathon.

There are times that one person make a very big difference in the lives of many.

A Repair Shop For You?

When you think of a repair shop, do you think of a car or computer repair shop? What if there were repair shops for anything you needed repaired and it cost nothing? Yes, it really costs nothing.  In 2009 it began as a free event, "A Repair Cafe" and today it is global non-profit organization with 59,000 members, almost 4,000 repair cafes, and 850,000 things fixed each year.

What an incredible idea! It gives people the opportunity to work together and get things fixed that are of sentimental value or in bad condition. It extends the life of things you want to keep. You don't have to give throw them out-how great is this!

The way it works is that you bring your item to a repair cafe and a repair export will work on it for you. The experts find it very rewarding helping people and fixing something that needs to be fixed. They get to show someone how to fix it.

Who has repair cafes? The Netherlands, The United Kingdom,  Australia, New Zealand, Italy, and The United States which has over 250 repair cafes spread across the country. How do you find a repair cafe near you? Click on the link below to check it out.

https://www.repaircafe.org/en/community/

"Have You Forgotten?" (25 Years Ago)

HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN?

Country singer Darryl Worley released a song, "Have You Forgotten?" in 2003 which became a number one song on the country charts. Today, September 11, 2026, is the twenty-fifth anniversary of the attack on our country. In New York, Washington D.C., and Somerset County, Pennsylvania about 3,000 people lost their lives that day.

There are times in each person's life that are unforgettable: weddings, births, new houses, new cars or new jobs or promotions. On the other side, there are the difficult days that we wish we could forget.

Three years ago, I blogged about this day with pictures and stories from two scrapbooks I made with my 11-year old daughter about this day and the days and weeks following it.  The time I spent with her working on it was special and each 9-11 I spend 30-60 minutes going through each page of those scrapbooks to remember what happened. 

Tuesday, September 11th is one of those days that millions of people wish they could forget. On this day and the following days in 2001, there were so many amazing things that happened that we should always remember them too. The number of heroes are impossible to mention, but on 9-11 remember some of these stories and people:

Some of the best known heroes were police, firemen, rescue personnel, and the passengers of Flight 93 who fought back and stopped their plane from killing more people in Washington, DC. Some of those passengers names are well known, Todd Beamer, Jeremy Glick, Mark Bingham, Tom Burnett and flight attendant Sandy Bradshaw.

Howard Lutnick, CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, lost 658 employees that day and donated 25% of their profits directly to those families, over $180 million dollars. He also promised jobs to any child who lost a parent and more than 50 of them have been hired over the years.

Victoria Cross Kelly, the Deputy director of the Path train system, stopped the trains from entering the World Trade Center and is credited with saving 3,000 to 5,000 people that morning.

Elevator mechanic, Chuck Costello Jr, 46, of New Jersey had four kids.  A couple blocks away from the attack, the Navy veteran ran towards the building because he knew his experience would be helpful. He worked with rescue personnel to get people out of elevators and survivors referred to him as, "The elevator man." His body was found several months later.

Welles Crowther was 24 years old and he worked on the 104th floor of the South Tower. He tied a red bandanna around his face that many survivors will never forget. Known as "The man with the red bandana," he was a volunteer firefighter and he took charge and gave people instructions. He found a staircase and kept carrying people and led two groups to safety, but he never made it home.

Amy Sweeney, 35, was a flight attendant going from Boston to Los Angeles that day. She immediately started talking with personnel on the ground when the hijacking took place.  For twelve minutes she gave detailed information and seat numbers of the hijackers. Fellow flight attendant Betty Ong was doing the same thing and providing invaluable information to authorities on the ground. Their last moments was Amy communicating that something was wrong and the plane was too low.

Rick Rescorla was born in the UK and served in the British Army and in Vietnam.  He was a security guard and became Vice President of Security for Morgan Stanley in the South Tower in 2001.  After the attack in the World Trade Center in 1993, he warned people that the next attack would be in the air.  He ran so many evacuation drills people complained about him.  On the morning of 9-11 he ignored the announcement for people to stay at their desks and he's credited with leading almost 2,700 employees to their safety. How did he do it? He had a bullhorn and he sang Cornish and Welsh songs to keep the line moving.  He made one last sweep to make sure no one was left behind. Unfortunately, he was the one left behind, but he will always be remembered by thousands of survivors and their families.

One of the most incredible stories was the 500,000 people who were evacuated from Manhattan by boat in nine hours. About one hundred fifty ships of all kinds picked people up and helped get them home. It is the largest maritime evacuation in history.

Lastly, every story about 9-11 should include the incredible people in Gander, Newfoundland. When United States airspace was closed on that September day, thirty-eight jetliners heading to The United States were diverted to Gander, Newfoundland. (A total of 250 were diverted to Canada) With a total population of 9,600, the people of Gander took care of over 7,000 stranded passengers for four to five days.  The passengers started a foundation for scholarships for their kids and to date has raised over $1 million dollars to thank them for their generosity.  The award-winning book, "The Day The World Came To Town" by Jim Defede is an amazing book to read. 

The key chain below I bought at the gift shop at Ground Zero in Manhattan and my keys are on it. I always tell people when you go to New York you need to visit Ground Zero and always remember the whole story of 9-11. 

How Many Diners Have You Visited?

I grew up in New Jersey which is fondly referred to as "The Diner Capital of the World." There used to be over 600 diners in the state, but now it appears there are "only" around 450 diners in New Jersey.  They say that it all began around 1870 in New Providence, Rhode Island.  A guy named Walter Scott noticed that around 8 pm near the train station there was nothing open so he loaded up a wagon which was moved by a horse and put in it...hard boiled eggs? Yes, and coffee, sandwiches and donuts.

In the early 1900's New Jersey had some of the best roads in the country and diners were located right off the highway.  Diners provided good food at reasonable prices and were very popular in New Jersey. Times have changed and many diners have been bought out and their menus have also changed drastically.  The menus used to have many, many pages and that has been cut back to a much smaller amount to be more efficient.

Diners used to be open 24 hours a day, but there are only 16 of those left in New Jersey, one of them being The Clinton Diner in Clinton, New Jersey which used to be very close to where I lived.  I've eaten at this diner a number of times since leaving New Jersey and it's train cars and this monster burger are a couple things it's none for.  They do serve a lot of good food also.

                

I recently read an article in the Fairleigh Dickinson University Magazine about a couple who met on campus and live in Bergen County, northern New Jersey. They decided to visit all the diners in New Jersey and currently are at 325 diners with 125 to go. Why would they do that?

Here are some of the things they said in the article:

"We're just doing our part to support these diners, these small businesses in the state as we bond and travel."

"I call it a vacation without a suitcase."

"We're not comparing, just enjoying."

"There's such a nostalgia to diners, and they're near and dear to many, many people."

The couple has been married since 1984 and their diner travels have led to them being on some television news shows, throwing out the first pitch at a Somerset Patriots minor league baseball game and filming a scene in an upcoming gangster movie where they appeared in a diner.

Working in the magazine delivery business for many years I have visited a lot of diners in New Jersey and I've eaten at a number of them too.  How come I never got to throw out the first pitch at a baseball game?

MY FAVORITE RIDER COMMENTS FOR AUGUST 2026

Her birthday is coming up this week and I asked her what she's going to do. She said, "Well, I'm 46 and I really don't have birthday parties anymore, but if you give me some weed, money, or coffee that will work."

The pharmacist has no kids, so I asked, "Do you have a dog?" He replied, "I barely remember to feed myself, that wouldn't be a good thing."

Married for 58 years I asked what the secret of a successful marriage was and he said, "Shut up! Don't continue to upset the other person."

I asked the couple married three years how they met. She said, "We're actually cousins by marriage. My aunt married his brother. We both use to babysit a lot of the kids in the family." Me: "Have you gotten a lot of flack from your family?" She: "We' used to, but one still calls us "Crazy 1 and Crazy 2."

I asked the young couple from Mississippi, "How long have you been dating?" She said, "About three months, but we're definitely going to get married and see all fifty states."

What does she do for a living? She said, "I do por_. Chat, about 3-4 nights a month."

I said to the two sisters from Idaho, "You know when you're driving someone from Idaho it would be nice to get a potato." She: "I gave the last one out at the hotel." Me: "You're going to be in my blog with that comment."  She: "I never dreamed of getting such recognition."  An hour later a young guy added, "It sounds like something people from Idaho should do."

The attorney is moving from New Zealand to Australia, "We call it crossing the ditch."

Visiting Colorado they decided to walk forty minutes to get coffee. She: "Because of the concert we waited in line for an hour and a half.  I can't have caffeine and they didn't have decaf so I had milk."

He builds the insides of Amazon facilities and told me, "There is a secret location they have in New Jersey and even if you guessed where, I can't tell you."

The die-hard New York Met and New York Jet fan kidded, "If the planes carrying The New York Yankees and New York Giants crashed on their first road trip I wouldn't mind."

"You always have a choice. I don't believe in coincidence." After spending ten years in jail for drugs and other offenses he changed his life and has a good job, plays in a band and is a music producer.

I asked if he was a sports fan and he said, "I'm not really a fan of anything in life."

The experienced flight attendant said, "I'd rather deal with the peasants(joking) in the back than the people up front." 

"My husband and I had a processing business for 42 years turning animals into meat and we've been married 53 years. Sometimes I wonder how I had the time to work a full-time job and also raise three kids."

Bartender: "I always try to give people my best and leave them better than they were before."

 MORE RIDER COMMENTS                       

A caregiver for forty years she said to me, "My job is everything, I love it."

She: "I have silver shoes and I know how to have a good time."

Married for 54 years I asked the woman from Nepal, "What is the secret of a successful marriage?" She said, "In my country women must compromise."

Married for 36 years I asked him the secret of a successful marriage and he said, " Don't fight, arguments are not personal and don't let them drag on."

She: "My best friend in Seattle bought a mannequin and kept it in the car to avoid the extra taxes(tolls) as a solo driver for five years. She would put different hats on it or sunglasses and saved thousands of dollars."

He stumped me with two money trivia questions: "Who is on the $500 and $1,000 bills?" Although they are no longer printed the answers are, "President McKinley is on the $500 and President Grover Cleveland is on the $1,000 bill." 

I told the two couples they now had better luck being in my car and the guy who said he was a "man of leisure" said, we're taking three different planes and they may all crash."

She: "I always smile to people because you don't know what people are going through."

He: "I had to learn how to relax. I'm very outgoing, but when I'm under stress I stay away from people. Don't isolate yourself and when someone asks you to do something with them that you really don't want to do, do it."

He: "When I was a kid my mom used to go to a wig store that had mannequins. I used to call it "The head store." 

Talking about a past rider who was a cancer researcher and was concerned about her impact, my rider said, "Fulfillment comes from seeing impact."

He: "I built humanoid robots in Norway and unmanned drones here."

She found love at work and said, "Love happens when you least expect it."

I asked the chef for many years, "Do you have chef dreams?" He: "All the time, sometimes I wake up sweating. I don't have the food ready or don't have enough ingredients. My next job is going to be on an oil rig."

She: "When I worked in a bakery I gained a hundred pounds."

I asked, "How do you like Colorado?" She replied, "It's actually kind of nice."

The rider can no longer drive and told me, "You guys have taken care of me for ten years."

I asked the guy what he did for work and he said, "I have about 200 jobs. It's really about ten jobs."

"My sister(hair stylist) had mannequins around the house and they always scared me in the bathroom."

"My friend has about five mannequins that he draws on for fun."

She: "I became a massage therapist after going to an energy healing class my mom couldn't make."

Her unique name was "Lyric" and I asked how she got the name. She said, "My mom liked it from an old movie she saw."

When I asked a Marissa(my daughter's name) how she was named Marissa, she said, "I don't know, I'll call my mom now." Her mom said, "I just liked the name."

I PICKED UP RIDERS FROM

Italy, Guatemala, Philippines, El Salvador, Afghanistan, Micronesia, India, Ireland, Mexico, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Cuba, Soviet Union, Germany, Nepal, Columbia, Ukraine, Ghana. 

UNIQUE OCCUPATIONS:

Formerly built humanoid robots and unmanned drones.

Director of Property Management building Amazon facilities

Aircraft Fueler

Director of Marketing United Airlines

HR Air Force

Former Town Planner

Owner of in-home diagnostic testing for epilepsy

Realtor, manager of cafes, and plays roller derby

Top Teamsters Manager and Recruiter

Optician

Female attorney from Columbia

Business Owner Satellite Imagery and Representative of the Philippines Government

WHAT RIDERS SAID ABOUT ME AND MY CAR

She: "Neatest Uber experience. We enjoyed our experience with you so much! I love the sheet you gave us with your favorite quotes. We were laughing so hard at them at the bar! I can't wait to show them to my family back in Mississippi. Quite the comedic relief! We will continue to share stories about you!"

Wiping tears from her eyes, she said, "It's nice to know that there is humanity in the world."

"This is a beautiful thing to see. You just don't see something like this very often."

"This is a collage of humanity, it's very special.  I always wished there were people out there who did things like this. Thank you so, so much. Can I give you a hug?"

"It is insane. It's so sweet what people did. I love when people come together to do something."

The young guy said, "This car really tells a story. It's kind of magical and shows everyone is different. I wish I had something to add to the history."

"This is beautiful what you've turned this into. I never expected this in an Uber, it was such an experience. Best of luck with all your adventures."

"You make people happy, I feel happy."

He: "The ripples you create spread far and wide."

"This is a great way to start my day. It really lightened up my mood."

"I can feel your life energy."

"This is well organized."

He: "You're going to need a bigger museum."

She: "I know I was meant to be in this car."

He: "Incredible, your granddaughter is so lucky."

"This is not what I expected."

"I've never ridden in a car museum."

"This is freakin' amazing. I love the set-up.

"This is the most memorable ride-you're awesome."

"Your car reminds me of the Jingle trucks they have overseas with a lot colors and things hanging."

"I love your collection."

"I love your drive."

"This is the funnest ride I've ever had."

She: "You have to come back to Colorado Springs-people here need to see this."

"It would be awesome if you were my driver again."

"This was such a pleasant surprise."

"Great conversation."

"I had a great time."

"This car beats the best Uber car I've been in."

"This was so much fun"

"I love your vehicle."

"This was a fun ride."

"This was the most entertaining ride-awesome."

 "Lovely to have ridden with you. I'll remember you."

"I'm looking forward to seeing you again-awesome."

He: " This is tenacious, to consistently keep this going takes dedication."

The Red Sox fan said, "Love you, thank you. Keep doing what you're doing."
"That would be awesome if you were my driver again."

"You're the guy with the coolest van."

"Amazing, you're doing good work."

"This is the best Uber ride I've ever had."

"I really appreciate your car, I wish I could contribute."

"Thank you, that was so nice."

"Have you ever been a tour guide?"

"After 43 years, how do you keep the spark?"

He: "You probably shouldn't tell us which bills are the most valuable."

"One of the coolest rides I've ever had."

"My friend used to have a cab with pictures of his riders on the ceiling."

"Thanks for the tour.  I love your car."

Words that riders said to describe the car: "Dang", "Wow", "Wild", "Curated", "Super cool","Crazy" "Magical".

MY RIDERS GET MORE THAN A RIDE

Several years ago I posted a few separate blogs from riders commenting about me and their experience riding in my car and I made comments about the comments. With my museum expanding to 80 countries represented in my car and pictures of over 50 riders, the comments I receive are always posted on the bottom of my monthly rider comments list. (That list will be out in two more days with over 60 comments including these below)

This is my way of thanking them and highlighting them this month after giving almost 200 rides on the five weekends in August.

My story on "The Sunshine Girl" appeared in the last blog and although she thanked me for being an inspiration with this drawing and sunflower pin, it really was her.

She: "Neatest Uber experience. We enjoyed our experience with you so much! I love the sheet you gave us with your favorite quotes. We were laughing so hard at them at the bar! I can't wait to show them to my family back in Mississippi. Quite the comedic relief! We will continue to share stories about you!"

The young couple from Mississippi were adorable and below is their picture hanging in my car. Her enthusiasm will be shared with young and old couples alike.

Wiping tears from her eyes, she said, "It's nice to know that there is humanity in the world."

"This is a collage of humanity, it's very special.  I always wished there were people out there who did things like this. Thank you so, so much. Can I give you a hug?

Two different riders, both women, brought up humanity which is a very common word used in my car.  I make sure riders understand that this is about them, not me. They get the credit for what they have shared for many others to enjoy and these two women on different rides understood my message. The second young woman lives in Charleston, South Carolina where I used to drive and she is a very dedicated nurse. Thank you, for doing what you do!

"It is insane. It's so sweet what people did. I love when people come together to do something."

People coming together is what this rider understood, it's an effort by many people. Sometimes it takes a village and sometimes it takes a museum in an Uber.

The young guy said, "This car really tells a story. It's kind of magical and shows everyone is different. I wish I had something to add to the history."

"This is beautiful what you've turned this into. I never expected this in an Uber, it was such an experience. Best of luck with all your adventures."

Two different young men enjoyed the ride and this was their view.  People are surprised and they realize this is something very special.

She: "I know I was meant to be in this car."

I've talked with riders about this a lot. Sometimes they are running late or their car broke down, or they are having a very difficult day.  I refer to the dentist a few months back who was wiping tears away because she had lost a close uncle and she said, "I wish all my friends could be here in this car talking with you." Sometimes things happen for a reason and I want my riders to feel special, because they are.

He: " This is tenacious, to consistently keep this going takes dedication."

"This is well organized."

Two more guys commenting on my organization in the same month.  It's the first time I've heard the word "tenacious" used, but I appreciate the compliments.

He: "The ripples you create spread far and wide."

The bartender was very moved and said a number of things, but this was key. I told him about the Scott Adams quote that I love, "Remember there's no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with not logical end." I am very confident that my riders will think about what they saw in my car and it will have some impact in their lives and the people around them.