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Costs Going Up Since Pandemic

By Lorie Ham

The cost of everything seems to have gone up during the pandemic. According to an NBC News Consumer article in March of 2021, Price Index data for the month of January found that the cost of food eaten at home rose 3.7 percent from a year ago — more than double the 1.4 percent year-over-year increase in the prices of all goods included in the Consumer Price Index.

a rising bar graph with an arrow following the stacks

Everywhere you go now you see higher prices—whether it be at the fast food drive through, picking up groceries and other supplies, or getting take-out from your local restaurant. A shortage in workers, a shortage in products due to temporary shutdowns of businesses, and a higher demand for some products due to a change in lifestyle caused by the pandemic, are just some of the many reasons for the spike in costs.

Another area that has seen a significant price hike is in building or repairing a home. The cost of lumber alone has gone up significantly. According to the Trading Economics website, since last spring lumber prices have risen more than 180% as the stay-at-home lifestyle has encouraged homeowners to expand or remodel their existing dwellings, and low mortgage rates exacerbated the home-building spree. The sustained rush of lumber buying caught sawmills and wholesalers by surprise at a time when Covid-19 restrained production, pushing prices up to record levels.

According to an article on the e2Value website, the pandemic has brought about an increased demand for home improvements/remodeling and a focus on outdoor areas of the home. Because people have been traveling less, they are spending less so they have more money to do these improvements. They also have more time to do the work themselves rather than bring contractors into their homes.

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) produces a quarterly Remodeling Market Index to assess remodeling activity among its members. The 2020 Q4 results showed significant increases over the 2020 Q1 results.

Chuck Bohn, one of the owners of Reedley Lumber, has seen this all first hand. “The building material that by far has increased the most has been lumber. The price of lumber overall has tripled in about 14 months. Lumber prices are based on supply and demand and the pandemic hurt the supply side in several ways, mill shutdowns, trucking shortages, etc. The demand increased, more homes being built because of low inventories of existing homes, [and] do it yourself home and yard projects increased greatly.”

Other building supplies have gone up in price as well. “If you leave lumber out of the equation I would estimate a 15-20% increase on hardware and other building materials,” continues Bohn. “Steel products have gone up considerably but maybe not all pandemic related. We saw a lot of steel price increases due to trade issues before the pandemic started.”

Unfortunately, the rising costs aren’t a trend that will be changing any time soon, even though more things are opening up. To be prepared for the high costs of repairing your home due to an emergency, make sure you have the insurance coverage that you need. Give Mennonite Insurance a call and we will be glad to help 559-638-2327.  Or find out more information about what types of insurance you may need.

Co-Insurance: What Does This Mean for Property Insurance

Vic Alemania of Mennonite Aid Plan explains how coinsurance affects the settlement amount on a loss. Vic also notes that coinsurance for property policies is completely different from coinsurance in health insurance policies.

To obtain the full policy benefits, your policy coverage limits must be at least the percentage (typically 80%, 90% or 100%) of the full replacement cost required by the coinsurance clause of your policy. The example in the video below is the easiest way to understand coinsurance.

Fresno County Blossom Trail Celebrating 33 Years

By Lorie Ham

cherry blossoms

The Fresno County Blossom Trail is one of the most beautiful sights you will find in the San Joaquin Valley of California, and this year it celebrates 33 years. According to the Blossom Trail website, blossom season begins in February and runs through March, or early April. When you travel this trail, you will find orchards full of fruit trees bursting with blossoms.

The Blossom Trail is a self-guided 60 mile long motor or bicycle tour organized by the Fresno County Blossom Trail Committee, a partnership between the County of Fresno and the Chambers of Commerce in Sanger, Kingsburg, Reedley, Orange Cove, Selma and Fowler, to celebrate and feature the beauty of Fresno County’s agriculture and a few historical points of interest.

cherry blossoms

The blossoms come in white and various shades of pink (some are almost red) and are found on almond, plum, apricot, peach, nectarine, apple, and citrus trees. The Blossom Trail has been named one of the top blossom attractions in the world by British Travel Magazine, and has been featured in many other magazines and newspapers through the years. It is estimated that this free showcase brings more than 20 thousand visitors to Fresno County during the concentrated 4-5 week period of beauty each year.

Each season starts off with an opening ceremony held at one of the cities involved. This year’s ceremony was hosted by Reedley, but due to Covid, it was done virtually. Some other events are up in the air as to whether they will still take place this year, including the Annual Blossom Days Festival and Car Show, and the Orange Cove Blossom Festival.

One of the events sadly not happening this year is the Annual Reedley Lions Club Blossom Trail Bike Ride, but they hope to be back in 2022. For the Bike Ride you can choose to take either the 60, 40, 20, or 10-mile route. The 10-mile one is considered the “family fun run.” The 60-mile route takes you up Elwood Road through Wonder Valley. Even though there isn’t an official event this year, you can still go out on your own, or with family, and enjoy riding through parts of the trail.

cherry blossoms

Another fun event each year is the Blossom Trail Train Ride, which takes place in early March, and this one is still happening! “The Blossom Trail Train will be running the first three weekends of March from 10-5, with Reedley Rail Fest on the third weekend,” shared Sean Batista from Hillcrest Farms in Reedley. You can find the details and purchase your tickets on the Hillcrest Farms website.

There is also a Blossom Trail Bus Tour put on by the Sanger Chamber of Commerce each year. According to Tammy Wolfe, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Sanger District Chamber of Commerce, it is an amazing day of wine tasting, shopping, and good food. While this event will sadly not be happening in 2021, Sanger also has the Blossom Trail Run that is a 10k run that will be held virtually this year from March 1-April 4. More information can be found on the chamber website.

While sadly many events are not taking place in 2021, it is never too early to plan to visit the Blossom Trail in 2022. In the meantime, you can enjoy the virtual events, and go out and enjoy the trail on your own, whether on your bike, driving, or walking parts of the trail. Check out the Blossom Trail website for a map of the trail, and to keep up to date on whether more of the events will be going virtual this year, and if others might still be happening in person. You can also follow them on Twitter @GoBlossomTrail.

If you do check out the trail, you are encouraged to share some of your blossom photos with the Fresno County Blossom Trail through their website, and you can share them with us on the Mennonite Insurance Facebook page.

Celebrating Pi Day

By Lorie Ham

On March 14, it will once again be Pi Day. But what exactly is Pi Day? According to Wikipedia, it is an annual celebration of the mathematical constant π (pi). The reason it is celebrated on that particular day is because 3, 1, and 4 are the first three significant digits of pi. The House of Representatives recognized March 14 as National Pi Day in 2009.

Pi is one of the oldest and most recognized mathematical constants in the world. It is the ratio of any circle’s circumference to its diameter. Its value is approximately equal to 3.14159265, or 3.14 for short.

The earliest known official or large-scale celebration was organized in 1988 by physicist Larry Shaw at the San Francisco Exploratorium. Staff and the public marched around one of its circular spaces, and then ate fruit pies. The Exploratorium continues to celebrate to this day.

Timeanddate.com has several suggestions for celebrating this unusual day, which include eating pies, baking pies, having a pi recitation contest, and watching the 1998 movie by Darren Aronofsy called Pi.

Among the many who celebrate Pi Day, NASA celebrates every year. On their website they offer 10 different suggestions for celebrating, which include making and eating space themed pies! PiDay.org offers resources for teachers who want to celebrate Pi Day in their classroom, math tutorials and videos, and even pi merchandise! One thing that Chiff.com suggests is to include other round foods in your celebration such as pizza and donuts, and not limit yourself to pies. You can also celebrate with meat pies. There are also pi songs all over YouTube, and there are pi trivia games.

While some suggestions such as pi recitation contests and Pi Day marathons, will mostly appeal to the math fans in your life, on Holidays Calendar, you can also find some more unusual and messy ways to celebrate such as pie drops. Pie drops are an activity in which people drop pies from the top of a building to see who gets the biggest splatter. For even more ideas, check out Wiki How.

However you choose to celebrate, I think in times like these we should celebrate every chance we get! I am not really into math, but I think I might celebrate this year anyway by eating my favorite kind of pie, chocolate! You can find an easy recipe here on the Pioneer Woman website!

Please share with us on our Facebook page how you plan to celebrate this unusual day!

Reading During the Pandemic

By Lorie Ham

According to the online literary magazine LitHub, 35% more people are reading during the pandemic, which makes a lot of sense. Reading is something safe and fun that you can do at home. Thanks to libraries, and the ability to buy books online, you may not even need to leave your home to get a new book to read. Books can also be a way to “travel” to places you have never been to, learn new things, and get to know the perspectives of others.

But how do you decide what to read? There are many sources out there for book recommendations. There are Facebook groups for all genres of reading where your fellow readers share about the books they’ve discovered. There are online magazines and blogs such as LitHub, where you will not only find reviews and book lists, but also author interviews. If you are a mystery fan, Kings River Life has book reviews and giveaways every single week. Goodreads is also a great resource for finding new book ideas. In addition, they provide a way for you to keep track of what you are reading, your reading goals, and connect with others who like the same type of books you do. You can also find book reviews on Amazon, and they have book lists with suggested reading.

Once you have picked a book to read, there are also many choices when it comes to getting the book. Of course, there is Amazon—they have a great selection and good prices. However, if you are looking to support an independent bookstore there are options there as well. One great option that brings together independent bookstores from all over the country and makes them searchable in one place is Bookshop.org. If you are on a budget and looking for used books, check out Abebooks.com. Abebooks also makes bookstores all over the world searchable, focusing primarily on used books.

If you are an ebook reader, you really should check out BookBub! Sign up for a free account, set your reading preferences, and then get sale prices on ebooks that match your likes sent to your email everyday! Some books are even free.

Speaking of free books, there’s always the library. Most libraries are now offering curbside services where you can order a book sent to your nearest branch, and then when it arrives they will notify you and you can safely pick it up curbside. If you are an ebook or audio book reader, you don’t even need to leave your house! You can check out both formats right from your computer, phone, or tablet, through various aps. The Fresno County Library uses both Overdrive and Libby aps. Check out your library’s website and social media to see what they have to offer. Most library websites also have book suggestions for all ages, and some are even doing virtual programs.

Do you have a favorite book you have read during the pandemic or favorite place you like to get books? If so, please share on our Facebook page—maybe it will be just the book someone was looking for and didn’t know it!