Apocalypse

That's good advice. If I can help it, I don't plan on moving out of the region. I already have my foot in the door with the company I'm interning at and they have all but guaranteed me a job when I graduate. Not to mention that we have a bunch of different plats that are opening around the time that I graduate. I'm in engineering, and these places will definitely need engineers when they open up. Being close to my family is more important to me than a pay raise. Gotta have your priorities, you know? Family is at the top of mine.

But at this time, I believe I'm just gonna try and tough out the fuel costs for the time being. Once I get finished with school, I'll retire the truck to being a play thing and to be used when I need it. I'll buy me a decent little commuter car for going to work. I will be able to pay for my school no matter what I do with the truck, and I will have some money for a house down payment no matter what I do with the truck. If I sold it, however, I would just have more money for the down payment. The way I see it though, the car payment on a truck later will be more then the car note on a little commuter. So eating the fuel costs now could cut costs later. We'll see how it goes however. Thanks for all of the opinions guys. I really appreciate it and it helped a lot.

HOHN

Sprinter gave good advice. Were it not for the fact that I can bounce around a lot within my current company without relocating, I'd have followed it.

Besides, I plan on staying with Cummins until the tell me they won't have me anymore.

jh

96_12V

First off Sprinter - sorry for the situaiton you are in. This isn't fun to face, and I applaud you for helping others avoid a possibly very trying situaion that you have (unfortunetly) had to live with for many years.

That said - I really hope others here will take his advice seriously when thinking about a house. Fact is, my parents started off small, and still live in a house that's *just* adequate, even though they likely could afford more space, prestige, location, etc. It's a priority system at work here, and while this is a little hijack on the thread, it's so immediatly important I could not resist emphasizing this.

All these home mortague defaults we're all reading about now? Folks, there are many situations that are leigit, but the truth is that too many people extended themselves waaaay to far, and the banks bent over a little too far backwards, and it hurt both populations. Now it's hurting others as well, with values dropping. Please consider what's needed in a house, verses what is just wanted. Perhaps making do with a little less really will yield great results in the long run. Maybe we don't need everything now. Maybe, just maybe, working for something is worth the sweat and patience.

sorry - off rant now. Just though it was a good thing to think on...have a good one.