New Chariots of Fire..

This is one of the coolest stories I've read in a while.  Being in a certain profession in the medical field, I just think that it is great that this athlete will be allowed to compete in the Olympic games.

A ban on Pistorius, 21, competing against able-bodied athletes, because it was feared that he might gain an advantage from running on his carbon-fibre blades, was thrown out by an historic legal decision that marked the end of a long quest for acceptance by the South African.

It is ludicrous to have thought that this man would have an advantage against able-bodied runners. 

I am so happy for Oscar, and will be rooting for him this summer.

Hypermiling in My Old Subaru (or "Life in the Slow Lane")

Well the price of gas has hit the magic $4/gal mark for regular in Syracuse, well, $3.999 to be exact. After the last fill up, I decided that I was sick of getting about 20 mpg or about 260 miles per fill up out of my old Subaru (a 2000 Forester). I decided to start trying out some basic techniques - I wouldn't let the engine rev above 2000 rpm if I could help it. I would maintain a speed of no more than 3 miles over the speed limit, and no more than 60 mph. I wouldn't accelerate into red lights, and would not idle the engine (except at traffic lights).

I've traveled 245 miles since my last fill up, and the results so far are promising. I still have a 1/4 tank to go! Normally about 250 I had to seriously consider which gas station I was headed towards. I'd say that the techniques that I described above have increased my mpg (city + hwy) from ~20 to up around 24. This means that I am getting about 20% better gas mileage! I'll know for sure, if I can squeeze the (13 gal x 24 mpg) 312 miles out of this tank. Pretty amazing results, if you think about it. 20% fuel economy improvement equals a free tank of gas out of every 5 regularly scheduled fill ups. This week I have some maintenance scheduled that should help boost the mpg even further, as there is a problem with the vacuum line in the fuel system (Damn "Check Engine" light!).

To recap, here Balogh's rules of the (expensive) road:

• Don't let the engine rev above 2000 rpm, if you can help it. (You can pick your own number depending on make and model.)


• Maintain the speed limit, or no more than 3 mph above. Top speed of 60 mph. (This is tougher than it seems...)


• Do not accelerate into red lights or stop signs. (I do a lot of coasting now.)


• Do not allow car to idle (except at stop lights).

I challenge my readers to go out and give it a shot. Let me know how you do. For those who do not have a fancy onboard computer that figures out mileage, here's how you do it:

Mark down miles on odometer upon fill up. You have to fill tank the entire way for this to work. The next time you get gas, fill the tank up completely again and note the new number on your odometer. Save your receipt from the gas station. Now you're ready to compute mpg:

(newest odometer reading [minus] old odometer reading) e.g. 109,635 - 109,392 = 243 miles.

Divide this by the number of gallons on the last fill up, e.g. 243 miles [divided by] 12.2 gal = 19.9 mpg.

Back Yard Nature in Syracuse

There's nothing like seeing a wild animal in real life. Nature shows are great, and the footage available is impressive (see the Planet Earth series for example). However, I prefer the rarer "close encounters" with animals off the screen.

This spring, I've have the luck of being in the right place at the right time, right outside my front door. Several weeks ago, just after midnight, I ran out to my car to get something. As I stepped out the door, I noticed a deer out of the corner of my eye, slowly walking towards the road. At the same time I heard a car coming up the street (don't worry, this story has a happy ending...) Instead of the car barreling down the street and reducing the deer population by one, it saw the deer and slowed down. The deer froze in my front yard. The driver made a few noises like he was calling his cat, and the deer nonchalantly walked away from the car - and right towards me. I stood motionless, thinking "I can't believe how big this animal really is." The deer passed right on the other side of the bush in front of me - stopping when it caught my scent. I was less than five feet away. Time slowed to a stand still, and my heart was racing. I was eye to eye with a glorious looking doe. After one hour 15 seconds - the jig was up. The deer saw me and did its best imitation of a cartoon character, spinning its legs in place before barreling out of there.

A week or so after that while locking up, I noticed another doe walking up from the side of my house. I stepped out and watched one deer after another come around the side of the house and head for the woods across the street. Six does passed by - this time at a stones throw. Funny thing was each one stopped - and looked both ways(!) - before crossing the road. The big mommas and the little babies all knew to check both ways before venturing over the blacktop. Pretty incredible to see adaptation in action.

The last little encounter might not be much to write home about, but it was still a wonderful break in my day. Around dusk, I headed out side and heard a little commotion on the side of the house. I saw a plump little brown body scurry under the garage. I waited and watched as a beady little head popped up out of the hole - a woodchuck. He and I entered a staring contest of sorts. He trying to figure out if I were there to do him harm, and myself thinking "I can't believe that that little bugger lives under my garage!"

All of these little glimpses of nature have stuck with me. They made me feel alive.

Appreciating the scope and diversity of the animal life on this planet is important. I'll be sure that my children have access to nature videos, books, and the like. However, just as importantly, I'll take them out in the yard, and show them how wonderful our local "critters" are.

[photo via Wikipedia]

Gratuitous Asparagus Shots

From the last post:

Earth Day Wrap-up

I guess I am supposed to spout the obligatory quote that “every day is Earth Day” in my household. But for those who are interested, here’s what we did in the Balogh household yesterday:

• Filled up the compost bin with the grass and leaves from the spring clean-up. (This year they’re shredded, so I expect a quicker composting period.)
• Experimented (and succeeded) in making homemade organic hot oatmeal. Not too hard actually. I guess that I can stop buying the pre-packaged stuff now.
• Walked from campus instead of taking the bus.
• Gazed admiringly at my asparagus rising tall in my garden. (Does this count? Maybe under meditation…)
• Attended Earth Day festivities on campus.
• Spent time with my parents. Planted the first of my family veggie garden with my dad - peas, beans, kale, luffa (what the heck, why not!)
• Tried to solve Costa Rica’s food security challenges with a urban agriculture program a la Cuba (Term paper #1)
• Tried to find solutions to China’s sky rocketing demand for automobiles, and oil by exploring a car-sharing program (Term paper #2)
• Brought my wife some flowers out of the garden.

Not that impressive of a list, but I plan on expanding it this weekend with a group clean up of trash in our neighborhood with my friends, and hitting the farmer’s market this Saturday.

I am officially not an "upstate blogger" anymore

Yes, it's my own damn fault for neglecting this blog and neglecting my hometown. But I have to admit that I was a little bummed not to see my blog listed in the Post-Standard's aggregated feed of local bloggers.

With my limited time on the computer (not doing school work, that is) I've tended to be more of an avid blog-reader than a blog-ger. There's been many things worth commenting on, if only I had a few more hours in the day. Their all old news now, and not worth revisiting.

A topic worth writing about is what transplants and college students think of Syracuse. I've had the pleasure of meeting a wide variety of people who, for whatever reason, have made their way to Syracuse to get their college degrees. I've made friends and acquaintances from far away places - Pakistan, Kenya, Jamaica, Dominica, India, Korea, France, and beyond. Yeah, they complain about the cold. Yes, the snow too. But it's hearing the things they do like about the area that is the thing that makes me happy to have grown up here. They rave about the scenery. They like our many local parks, lakes, waterfalls, and natural places. The endless (well, nearly endless) supply of fresh clean water. The inexpensive homes on comparatively large plots of land. The local schools. Access to brilliant minds and speakers.

They bring with them their strong ambition, and their work ethic. They take the bus, bike, or walk to school. They bring a piece of their home countries with them, meeting for tea, taking in foreign films, raving about how great their home town is. I find myself raving about Syracuse too. I want to sell them on living here.

I want to add their cosmopolitan and world-traveled voices to Syracuse. I want their enthusiasm and zeal to wear off on other Syracusans. I want my children to have wonderful conversations about foreign lands, and other ways of life. I want them to appreciate the wonderful gift of abundant fresh water, by speaking to someone who grew up with little of it. I want them to know that Islamabad is not just a place on a map, or a news item, but a real place where a chain-smoking, tea-slugging, dry-humored Fulbright Scholar comes from.

Mostly, I just want my friends to stick around for a little longer.

Its been an amazing experience going back to school. I've learned a lot about the world, and a bit about a corner of the city that I never really frequented other than basketball games. I've also learned a lot about myself, and my hometown, in the process.

damn, it feels good to write again...

Empty Pep Boys Building Finally Finds a New Tenant

This one has a local flavor, but is a big deal in our little corner of the world. Bob Niedt reports that the long empty Pep Boys in Westvale Plaza has found a new tenant.

Here's some of my thoughts on it from the Geddesblog:

Don't even get me started about what used to occupy this space prior to the Pep Boys Automotive that was in and out of their faster than one of their oil changes. I loved the old Genesee Theater, and still can remember the sticky feeling on my shoes to this day. China Pavillion was in the rear of the theater, and dinner and a movie were always a good date. (Hey I was in high school, chinese food and a cheapie movie were a big deal back in those days!) Yeah it was cold in the winter, and the movies were a few weeks past their prime, but the place had character. All you have to do is look to the newly renovated Palace Theatre in Eastwood to see what the Genesee could have become too.

Never-the-less, the Genesee closed it's doors on Sept 16th, 1996. Pep Boys did the same 3 years later in 1999. Can you believe this building has sat here for 6 years without a tenant? Pep Boys should be sued, and as a repayment for the community, have to dig up every brick and sticky floor tile from the landfill and rebuild that theater. (on second thought, maybe someone should just redevelop that area - heh heh)

Well, it's now sat empty for 9 years, but will be empty no longer...

...the new Solvay store, in Westvale Plaza, will carry name-brand items -- Sony, Eddie Bauer, Ralph Lauren, for example -- discounted at least 30 percent to 35 percent off standard retail prices.

Everything in the store is new, but discounted because the manufacturer pulled them from retail chains for newer models, different packaging or the items didn't sell well. Stock runs from clothing and household items to consumer electronics, sports equipment, outdoor furniture and more.

Oneida Indian Nation spokesman Mark Emery said the store is expected to open in early June and will employ up to 25 people.

Well, its no sticky floored cheapy theater, but it seems like a good business. Hopefully she'll stick around a few more years than the Pep Boys did.

At least we don't have to see that damn eternal light bulb burning anymore.

Dreaming

Don't know where it came from, but here's where I got it.

Reform vs. Revolution

This topic deserves more than one measly blog post, so I hope to expand on the idea over time. Right now, it's just a way to sort out the thoughts in my head that have been swirling around since I returned to college to study environmental policy.

The idea of reform vs. revolution comes up frequently in contemporary discussion about environmental concerns. The typical "image" of a environmentalist in the 1970-1980's would have mostly likely been described as a Greenpeace activist chasing off a Japanese whaling ship, or a radical ecologist chaining themselves to a tree to prevent deforestation or destruction of a endangered species habitat. How would you describe today's environmentalist "image"? I guess that the idea conjures up a Prius driving (or a bike-riding), organic and local food eater, working to become more sustainable and "off the grid", who may or may not write a passionate blog, disgorging his soul out over the keyboard to his "community" of like minded readers.

Perhaps the image is different to you. (if so please comment on what you believe the image to be. Please base it on action, not ideals.)

The question raised in reform vs. revolution, is what is the best means to achieve our goal of "saving the environment"?
Reform:

• Should we attempt to reform the system that we live in? (In my case the capitalist, representative political system.)
  
• Would we be best served by changing the habits of consumers to make them more sustainable?

Reformist argue, there is no sense in fighting the system we live in, we'd be better off in compromising some of our principles to achieve changes in the habits of our fellow citizens currently unaware or uninterested in environmental issues. Many would describe themselves as "realists".

Revolution:

• Capitalism is the root of many of the environmental damages inflicted over the past 200 years. The government in its current form is ineffective in dealing with these problems. Why should we attempt to reform these corrupt systems when they are a major reason that we are in this mess in the first place?
• Is our goal to become "more sustainable" yet still not truly sustainable? Can we really grow our way into sustainability?

Today, many "revolutionary" environmentalists espouse going "off the grid", or dropping out of society. Anti-consumerism permeates the mission: frugality, strict conservation, 100 mile diets, no new purchases for a year, etc.

At this point in the discussion, we are not going to choose sides or make judgments.

I'll close with a few mental exercises. Compare the following:

a) Someone who sells their car, and walks, bikes, and takes public transportation everywhere they need to go.

b) Someone who drives a hybrid 30 mins each way to work, to a government think tank job which helped write the law that improved mileage standards by several mpg over the next 10 years.

-----------------------------

a) Someone who puts up solar panels, and changes to LED lighting and minimal use of electricity in order to get off the grid.

b) The Walmart executive that made getting consumers to switch to CFL's from incandescent bulbs a top environmental policy.

-----------------------------

a) The person that votes for a Green Party candidate

b) The person that votes for the candidate judged "more environmentally friendly" in the main two political parties.

Thoughts are welcome.

UPDATE: It's amazing how ideas or memes spread through the internet. I was sent this post randomly today. It's asking questions along the same lines that I proposed:

http://www.planetthoughts.org/?pg=pt/Whole&qid=1869

.

More on Walkaways

I was predicting people staying put in their homes, "walking away" from their obligations:

The first groups truly did leave their home, packing up family and belongings and moving in with relatives and friends, leaving behind empty shells of homes in their wake. It was rumored that in Detroit, 10% of homeowners stopped paying their mortgages in the prior month. In an unwinding clusterfuck, never seen before in this country - financial institutions losing liquidity, stock values plummeting, nest eggs evaporating, even credit unions folding - people began ignoring their obligations, but staying put in their homes. Even families that had the means to make payments stopped doing so, seeing it as a fools errand.

This post puts a different approach/perspective.

I got an agreement of sale today from a realtor looking for a prequal on a shortsale , the buyer lives next door , he has a current mortgage for $800,000 on a home he purchase in 2005 with no money down , the home he has under contact is right across the street from his present home , the offer is for $500,000 and it looks like the bank will accept it

The borrower plans to buy it as a primary , once he moves in , they will stop making payments on the $800,000 loan that they have with CW
He qualifies full doc and has a 770 FICO , he figues letting his credit tank is not a big deal when he is lowering his mortgage debt by $300,000 .

Explanation (via Atrios):

Someone owns a house with a mortgage they either can't afford or don't want to keep paying (maybe it's about to go up, or maybe they just don't want to keep paying it). They plan to buy the now much cheaper house across the street, and since they have good enough credit someone might be happy to lend them the money. After moving to the reduced rate home across the street, they plan to mail the keys of their old house to the bank.

ESF Adds 23 kW Photovoltaic System / Willow Project

Via WTVH:

It's another feather in SUNY ESF's "green" cap, as one more portion of the campus switches over to solar power. On a chilly Friday morning that reminds us all where we live, the switch was thrown on another chunk of solar panels at the College of Environmental Science and Forestry. This latest 23-kilowatt system is mounted on the side of Baker Laboratory and is part of an overall $29 million rehabilitation project using the latest in green construction practices. This past summer the first photo-voltaic array, a 15-kilowatt system, was installed on the roof of nearby Walters Hall. The flat panels are maintenance-free once installed and do not need full sum to operate efficiently. The 2 systems combine with a fuel cell to provide 20 per cent of campus power needs. It's more than smart business practice at this college. President Neil Murphy says the green technology market is worth about a trillion dollars a year. "It's increasing at a rate of 25 per cent a year," Murphy said. "And so it's important to the institution from an educational standpoint, to meet the needs of that industry, but also to reflect that industry in our practices to the local community," Murphy said. Next on ESF's agenda, possible installation of a geo-thermal system. Raising underground water for heating in winter, and cooling in summer.

Watch the video here: WTVH

I am so happy to attend a school that is walking the talk. Getting 20% of the college's power from renewable energy is no small feat.

I am really interested in their biomass programs. I look forward to learning more about this project. Check this slide out from their Willow program:



And a close up of the three year growth:



Amazing work. I know that my college experience will provide me with a wealth of information, and articles to inform our community. 23 days until I am a "student" again.

Taking Things to the Next Level

Republished from Groovy Green. (Originally posted 7/3/07)

After some deliberation and discussion with my friends and family, I've decided to go back to school to pursue my masters degree in environmental science. I have been writing about peak oil and environmental issues since April 2005, and have been making adjustments to my lifestyle, and encouraging others to do the same. Blogging has opened many doors for me, and I have made valuable friends and contacts in the process. The whole process has inspired me to take my informal education via internet, books, and conversation to the formal masters level.

There is no doubt in my mind that we will face a myriad of challenges in the coming years. Climate change, coupled with declining energy supplies, will present a host of problems we have not faced in the past. I believe that these exigent challenges will require leadership and direction, something that I hope to provide to my community and region.

I relish opportunities to help educate others on ways to reduce their impact on the environment. If I can convince one other person to conserve electricity, eat locally, or reduce their waste, I have effectively doubled my ability to do the same. Groovy Green has allowed me to extend my reach to an even larger audience, and I am thankful for every reader that has read our work.

I realize that helping business and municipalities reduce their impact could allow me to have an exponentially greater impact. Helping readers and friends start composting is a great step towards reducing waste - helping a food processing plant do the same thing is the "next level". Replacing all of the incandescent bulbs in my home with flourescents is a great step towards conserving electricity - helping a municipality roll out a subsidized CFL bulb program that reaches 10,000 area residents is the "next level". Promoting the local farmer's market in the company newsletter helps encourage 50 people to increase their food security - helping an area supermarket chain procure food primarily from local growers could help improve the food security of thousands.

I realize that I want to be up there, on that "next level" making the largest difference that I can make.

When I was considering whether or not I should go back to school, I did a little mental exercise where I pictured what "a day in the life" would be like after I gained employment after school. This essay came about from it:

I ride my bike or take public transportation to work. My office travels with me in the form of a laptop and several paper files. I have an early a.m. meeting with management, where I'll pitch my proposal for the upcoming summer hours-shift and telecommuting. Mid morning there's a meeting scheduled with building maintenance regarding the industrial hyper-recycling program to ensure we are on track to meet our goal of halving our solid waste, and to make sure that we've renegotiated with local recyclers for next years contracts. They'll give me a tour of the new bio-waste digesters under construction, and give me notes on how the non-toxic cleaning solutions have been performing.

I'll check financial statements from our utilities over lunch to see how the conservation methods we've employed are paying off. Later I'll draft an email to the CFO encouraging re-investment of that savings into additional panels for the solar array - now producing a modest 5% of all our energy needs, and providing insurance against rolling brownouts.

Though 7 months away, I've set aside two hours in the afternoon to research heating options for the facility this winter. The biomass pellet boiler seems our best choice, and I need to begin a list of contacts for a supply contract. Perhaps we'll be able to provide delivery to employees if the logistics can be worked out for financing and supply. "Guarenteed Heating" would be a benefit that could attract high caliber workers in the years to come. Our company's investment in the local CSA brought us big dividends last summer when grocery store prices spiked on imported foods. The participation rate is now 60% and growing for the upcoming season. Productivity levels have been running at all time highs, despite stagnant wages. Workers have been less concerned with raises since the economy began slowing - most are happy to be working at all. Instead of taking advantage of the situation, the company providing flex-time employment at full benefits for a larger workforce means workers have more time at home and increased job satisfaction. I must convince the board to approve the guarenteed heating program - we'd become one of the top employers in the city for sure.

My meeting with the city council is next week. I'll be working with them to try to attract a component factory to the area, as the high cost of shipping and import have begun to eat into our budget. Relocalizing component production will add jobs and increase the tax base, both are very needed items as of late. Hell if PILOT programs were approved in the 00's for shopping malls, I think we have a good chance at approval for one for the component factory. I'll have to remind them that we purchase 100% of our power from the municipally owned local hydro station brought back on-line 3 years ago.

Other projects that I have been working on, include the Smart-Jitney program. Despite persistent gas prices in the $5-6 per gallon range, it got off to a slow start. Not all projects have caught on like the ones that I've mentioned previously. I do believe that we can reach a critical mass this summer, allowing the jitney program to become sustainable and financially viable. Too many people still hang on to the "personal freedom" aspect of auto travel, and are willing to devote a large aspect of their dwindling discretionary income to keep driving to work each day. Running a smart jitney program to the suburbs could keep many of these cars off the roads.

Another initiative that appears to be gaining steam is the Local-Bucks program. Our company is now the number two purchaser of Local-Bucks, second only to the university. Employee groups voted down options to get a portion of salaries paid in local bucks twice in the past 2 years. We pushed ahead with the program, paying out year end bonuses and increasing incentive pay in L-B's. Those who participate in the carpool program receive 30 L-B per week (a $33 value) to help offset the maintenance and upkeep costs, as well as provide an incentive for participating. Any worker who helps reduce our company's energy costs or waste stream can see bonuses of 100 L-B or more. We also subsidize employee purchases of the local currency, by providing a higher exchange rate, $0.85 per L-B vs. the standard $0.90 per L-B. This encourages employees and managers to keep their spending among local retailers, and increases dollar circulation in the community. Three of the four lunch vendors now take Local-Bucks, and the increased availability of the currency has doubled the number of shops and service providers on our street, revitalizing a previously direlect area of the city. There's rumors that landlords of these buildings have begun to take partial payment of rent in L-B (hey, what's better a vacant store front, or one that is paid for in L-B's?). Hopefully our business will be able to take payment for our goods in L-B's in the near future. This would allow the currency to come full circle. In any case we are proud of our support to the program.

Beyond the expansion of the solar electric panels, some other plans that I'd like to see enacted:

A water catchment system and wetland (a green roof wasn't feasible due to the inability of our roof and walls to handle the increased weight)

A geothermal heating and cooling system (waiting on tax credits and regional pipe manufacture)

The Natural Light project - to increase sunlight penetration into the building (architects and environmental engineers will need to be brought on to move the project forward)

I realize that many of these ideas may be naive, and over generalized. However, this was merely an exercise to look at the potential good that could come from obtaining higher education, and a new career path. I do believe that many of the ideas in the essay are worthy of consideration and implementation.

I welcome your thoughts about continuing education, and my essay above.

BEEF!

My wonderful friend Meg, who was never the same after I lent her my copy of "The Omnivore's Dilemma", ordered and arranged to pick up a side of local grass-fed beef. We purchased it from the same woman at the farmer's market where we've been getting our local grass fed chicken and beef, and delicious local pork - Sweet Grass Farms.

We split the side of beef among 4 couples. Here are the 3 shares that she took with her after we divvied it up at my place:







Each family got an assortment of steaks, stew beef, ground beef, soup shanks, roasts, and misc. beef parts. 80 lbs. worth. As you can see, the meat is vacuum sealed in freezer bags which should prolong the freezer storage, and each cut is labeled.

We are excited to dig in! Anyone know any good roast or soup recipes?!?

Walkaways

No one at the top saw it coming. Business leaders, agency heads, fed presidents, nor the US president had a clue. Funny thing, no one at the bottom saw it coming either. Three and a half weeks was all it took, twenty four days. Sure, I guess one could argue that the signs were there - increasing foreclosures, decreasing job creation, stagflation pushing up food, energy, and living expenses, while the housing crisis deflated personal asset values. The election debacle, leaving neither side happy, a congress and presidency destined to do little for the average citizen.

It started in Detroit, though some in Miami and Southern California would disagree. It's tough to define the beginning when a movement has no leaders, no goal, and no direction. Hell, it doesn't even have a "branded" name on the evening news that sticks yet.

As the housing crisis deepened in the fall of '08, many fixes were enacted by the fed and by congress, most helping no one, a few helping to prop up multinational banking institutions enough to keep the earnings cycle rolling along. After ***redacted*** was sworn in on January 20th, and the 111th congress took over the reins, it was clear there would be no more easy answers, no more quick fixes. Discontent ratings were high, but not yet above last years historical ranges. The stock market managed a meandering 8% decline last year. Things were bad, but there began to be a whiff of something stranger in the air. People had been struggling hard to hold on to their homes, working to refinance or join government programs to lock in interest rates. Scrapping to make payments and keep food on the table.

Then the March foreclosure data came in, and all hell broke loose.

A 1000% increase in Detroit, and eleven times more foreclosures in South Florida and in pockets of Southern California. People had stopped struggling. They walked away.

The first groups truly did leave their home, packing up family and belongings and moving in with relatives and friends, leaving behind empty shells of homes in their wake. It was rumored that in Detroit, 10% of homeowners stopped paying their mortgages in the prior month. In an unwinding clusterfuck, never seen before in this country - financial institutions losing liquidity, stock values plummeting, nest eggs evaporating, even credit unions folding - people began ignoring their obligations, but staying put in their homes. Even families that had the means to make payments stopped doing so, seeing it as a fools errand.

The banks weakened further. Amounts over the $100k FDIC limit were another casualty. The dollar fell off a cliff as foreign holders ran for the door. Three and a half weeks later, things had ground to a halt. 75% of mortgages were delinquent according to the following month's report.

"WALKAWAYS!" someone spray painted on the side of a house in an exurban housing development.

An accusation? A curse? A subversive rallying cry?

The great walking away had begun.

Last Years Resolutions

I was reminded of of this article (by one of our editors), it is my goals for 2007. I figured I'd repost it, and then go back and let you know how things turned out, and how they look for the future.

-------------------------------------------------------

Back on the Wagon by Stephen Balogh

12/28/2006

It's so easy to slip.
It's so easy to fall,
And let your memory drift,
And do nothing at all.

(Kibbee, played by Weir)

I have realized just how easily, over the past 6 months. Gone was the urgency I once felt, gone the cloud of doom hanging over my head. Life just became "too busy" again. Too much of the real world got in the way of my post-peak preparations, and sustainability projects. While reflecting on 2006, I became acutely aware of how the rest of the world can drift idly busily by, without considering peak energy, global warming, and other approaching problems. I think that is what we (who write about peak oil) sometimes fail to grasp when we are exasperating about why we cannot convince others that trouble is approaching and preparations need to be made - the world is just too damn busy to deal with these things.

New Years is a time of reflection, a time of redemption and of optimism. We take time to give our thanks for the past years graces at Thanksgiving and overindulge into the end of the holiday season. But, New Years is different. The new year gives us that blank sheet of paper to start writing those resolutions for the next year. Despite the trials, tribulations, and unfullfilled ambitions of the prior year, January 1st allows us to look forward to another year and another chance for us to live the life that we truly want. The writing of goals resolutions helps us sort out all of those random nagging thoughts in our heads, and gives us a framework for moving forward.

Of course I tend to err on the side of optimism for my resolutions: drop 25 lbs., wake up early each morning, give up sweets, and save a substantial amount of money, etc, etc. This years resolution will be slightly different - for me it is not to be "too busy".

Its a conundrum, I know. How to get all of the countless things that need to be done, done, without being "busy". To be not "too busy" to get things done for the future, not "too busy" to make my lifestyle more closly match my ideals. Not too busy to enjoy time with family and loved ones.

This year I realize that time is growing short. How many more New Year's Days will I get filled with the prosperity and promise that I feel now. I fear not too many.

I re-read Kunstler's The Long Emergency over the past week. I read it this time as a much different person than the first time I picked it up, many moons ago. It is still a good kick in the butt and slap up side the head for me. I will not take up your precious time debating what I do and do not agree with in the book, but will say that I am now officially "back on the wagon". The urgency's back, the weather forecasting a few black clouds on the horizon. But, I refuse to give up my optimism while I still possess it. I refuse to give in to doomerism, and inertia. I know that there is plenty that I can do know to make my life much more bearable in the future, no matter what shape it may take.

I'm going to keep my life less busy, using the KISS principle. I've boiled my resolutions down to three sections:

The Essentials

A Roof Over Our Heads:

There are two very different paths that Mrs. B and I are considering taking. Lets start with the most drastic and least likely. That is, attempting to find a house sitting/long term low to no rent situation, and selling our home. This would carry a long list of pros and cons, as well as one big "if". If we could find a long term (6 months to a year) arrangement, it would allow us to pay off our current mortgage with the sale of our home and use the value remaining to put towards our other obligations. It would free us up to tackle our still substantial student loan debt, and could allow us to become debt free with in a short time frame. Keeping that big "if" aside, it would also force us me to pare down my belongings and get rid of much of the clutter in our life. A year or two with slightly less freedom, or should I say security in owning our own home could reap huge dividends in the freedom we could experience owing nothing to no man.

The second and more probable path is hunkering down in our present location (which both do like, but don't love) and becoming more serious about our sustainability efforts. This would include making extra payments in order to own a larger proportion of our home and to pay down (off?) our mortgage as quickly as possible. In this case the student loans would become secondary as making sure that we own where we live takes higher priority. Staying put would also mean a rededication of resources towards projects that we had originally put off for later. #1. A secondary home heating system to be able to weather natural gas price hikes and shortages. #2. Insulating our walls and replacing the remaining first generation windows. #3. Generating some portion of our own electricity with room to expand/scale it up. How we plan to do that has been covered in other posts, and I am sure that I will revisit the topic in more detail if it is the path that we choose.

A Full Pantry and a Means to Fill Our Bellies

What ever the roof over our heads looks like, we have to figure out how we are going to keep the cupboards full. I plan on giving greater emphasis on maintaining our pantry. Starting with a one month's supply of food, that doesn't just consist of pork and beans, soup, and bottled water. We'll strive over the month of January to store a month's worth of good hearty staples - food that can be rotated in and out of the pantry, but maintaining a long shelf life.

Another food related goal that I would like to work on in 2007, is to look beyond the home garden and supermarket for reliable sources of food. Don't get me wrong, I love my garden, and plan on expanding it in the spring, as well as adding fruit trees and bushes as a edible landscape. However, I am realistic that as green as I want my thumb to be, the garden will only be able to provide a small percentage of the food my family will consume. Besides my time should be spent treating patients and earning an income through those means, than spending countless hours trying in vain to be a suburban farmer. So I will be looking beyond the garden, to developing stronger relationships with the local farmers at our Regional Market, and in our immediate area. I have already met a great lady who we get a majority of our meat from, but it wouldn't hurt to find another local source. Finding a local dairy farm is a must, as well as someone we could count on for locally produced potatoes and vegetables. I enjoyed my CSA last year, but it was high on variety - too much for us less adventurous eaters. Perhaps we can find a way to make bulk purchases of organic veggies to share among friends and family and have a more "a la carte" co-op. The goal will be to know these farmers on a first name basis and develop a good bond with them to ensure continued access to healthy local food.

Community

2007 is the year the I'd like to break out of my shell and enter more "in real life" situations in my community. There are many progressive thinkers in my area, and while I enjoy the geographically diverse group of friends and acquaintances I have now on the internet, I look forward to trying to engage some of the people in my neighborhood. I'd like to retool my "relocalization" piece, and get it published in the Syracuse alt-weekly. I am going to resume writing on my local blog and start looking for allies in the local business community.

I will also continue to write for my company's newsletter, and hope to make inroads into management in order to make more broad positive changes in our environmental impact. In writing this small column 1-2 times a month, many people who I assumed had little interest in the environment and sustainability have come up to me and told me how they appreciated my tips and looked forward to them.

In Groovy Green's end of year poll: What Is Your Top Green Resolution for 2007? I voted for "convince others." I believe that this is the most important difference I can make. Yes, "be the change you want to see in the world" is an important mantra. I will be more diligent in 2007 in improving my lifestyle and becoming more sustainable. But as I strive to improve my life, I realize that it is important to share all the tools and tricks with others, for in convincing one other family to do the same I will have made twice as much impact.

Working on these essentials, a roof over my head, a full pantry and expanding my community connections will take up a fair bit of time, but I am determined on not getting "too busy" to lose sight of the finish line and lose focus. Happy New Year everone!

Destiny USA and OnTrack

The discussion about what to do with the OnTrack local rail system has been reignited over the past few weeks. Michael Bragman wrote an op-ed in today's paper, pleading for city and county officials not to give up on the beleaguered train. He believes that control of the project should be given to the New York, Susquehanna, & Western Railroad as a way to speed the completion process of the Park St. bridge, which would link OnTrack to the Regional Transportation center. This project has been funded and abandoned several times.

I posted several years ago - believing that the connection to the Regional Transportation Center would be the push that OnTrack needed to get moving again. I also called for any Destiny USA expansion to be required to include an expanded mass transit program. Bragman fails to mention any link between OnTrack and Destiny USA in his op-ed. I believe that this is an omission of a large piece of the puzzle. No self proclaimed "green" hotel or mall should be given LEED certification, in my eyes, if the primary access to the site is by automobile.

From my post:

The connection to the transportation center is a key step that must go forward to improve ridership on OnTrack. Hotels in the downtown area would benefit, as those taking Amtrak or the bus into Syracuse would have a direct, and cheap way to get to their hotel. Next, if you could get the train to extend to the airport, we would really encourage a larger ridership and a much more accessible city. As an aside, no DestinyUSA plan should be drawn up that doesn't include using public transportation using light rail, and given the proximity of the R&D park to both the Airport and Transportation Center, this seems like a great time to start talking about the expansion of OnTrack.

Congel would be crazy not to push for an expansion of OnTrack to Hancock International. What an easy way to fill rooms at the proposed hotel? For example, a sustainability or green building conference could be held at the hotel, with participants flying in to Hancock, taking OnTrack to Destiny USA and the hotel. Or regional attendees could come into town via Amtrak and catch the commuter rail to their final destination. During their free time, they could use Centro or OnTrack to venture down to have dinner and drinks in Armory and downtown, or catch an SU game up on the hill. Better yet, a regional transportation pass could allow them to jump on the Connective Corridor and attend a play at Syracuse Stage, an art exhibit at the Everson Museum, or a Crunch game at the War Memorial.

Destiny USA could sponsor the train, and power it with biodiesel, keeping the project fossil fuel free. New York, Susquehanna, & Western Railroad could get the tax breaks, to keep the trains running on time and to upgrade and maintain station integrity.

Bragman goes on to dream of a Montreal Line via the CSX rails up through the northern burbs, Oneida Lake, the Salmon River and points northward. I think that this is a wonderful idea. Though, the opinions I've heard are that CSX is stingy with its freight lines, and tends to hold up commuter and long distance trains for its freight trains. Boston appears to be grappling with this very issue now.

What I dream of is more local. What about a resurrected trolley line running north and south along Salina Street? One end could reach the Destiny USA project, then come down Solar Street past the inner harbor, before making a turn towards Salina and making it's way past Clinton Square and into the Centro Station downtown. Future expansions could extend the rail line further south along Salina St. allowing for a quicker trip into the city from the South Side as well as boost to revitalization efforts in the South Side neighborhood. The line would help connect the Little Italy section of North Salina to downtown, a transition that has been lacking, and slowing the regrowth of the North Side.

The same could be said for the lack of connection between the North Salina St. area and Hanover Square. The two are separated only by a few blocks. There happens to be a large highway interchange that presents somewhat of a physical barrier, as you must pass underneath the elevated highways to get from one neighborhood to the other. I believe that the barrier is more a mental one than a physical one. That stretch of sidewalk at first glance is a long, lonely and empty one. Just foreboding enough to compute as a distance that should be driven when in fact it is less than 1/2 a mile.

A streetcar line that runs along this route would be an attraction in itself. Who in Syracuse has ridden a streetcar, besides those who are old enough to remember the last gasps of the early 1900's lines prior to the dismantling to make room for the automobile, or those that have traveled to places like San Francisco?

I think that it is time for us to ask more of Robert Congel than a sparkly new "green" hotel and more shopping options. Congel has a great opportunity to show that Destiny USA can be a part of our county, our city, and our community. I hope that he'll consider linking the mall expansion and hotel with Hancock International, the Regional Transporation Center, downtown and the SU Hill, and sit down with the newly elected Mahoney administration and become part of the OnTrack discussion.

Why Can't Syracuse Get Themselves One of These...?

Erie, PA:

Mike Batchelor invited the heads of 46 charities into his downtown office for one-on-one meetings to personally deliver the news. Nearby, on a small table, sat a box of tissues. Mike Batchelor accepted a $100 million donation from an "Anonymous Friend" to benefit Erie charities.

And then he proceeded: A donor had given a staggering $100 million to the Erie Community Foundation, and all of the charities would receive a share.

That was when the tears began to flow -- and the mystery began -- in this struggling old industrial city of 102,000 on Lake Erie, where the donor is known only as "Anonymous Friend."

Batchelor, president of the Erie Community Foundation, has been sworn to secrecy and will allow only that the donor worked with the organization for years to identify deserving recipients before the announcement over the summer.

Is the donor dead or alive? No comment, Batchelor says. What is the donor's connection to Erie? No comment.

What could Syracuse do with $100 million? I think that we could do a lot - starting with the near west and south side. If anyone has $100 million they'd like me to oversee. I'll get started on that right away...

Any idea's what you'd like to see done with $100 mil? NYCO, is that your hand up?

CNN via Americablog

If you've been wondering where I've been...

I've been stumblingupon:



go check my blog out over there, jakdmsy.stumbleupon.com

(*you know your stumbleupon addiction is bad when you start neglecting your own blog!)

Oct 15th 2012

I just renewed our lease on our apartment for another year, at a 15% increase. Demand for quality rental property, inflation, and my unwillingness to start a relationship with a new (and possibly shady) landlord made the decision to re-sign easier. I am hoping that my efforts to help our landlord renovate the home and bring up its energy efficiency will pay off in defrayed costs. Jim and I replaced the dinosaur of a boiler in the basement last fall, after I talked him into a pellet/biomass boiler with the capability to burn wood pellets, corn, or recycled paper. Jim had to move back in to his rental property after he could no longer hold on to his mortgage on his primary residence. Given the property tax increases we've faced to keep the schools running, I'm not sure that my monthly rent will help defer even half of his current payments on the 2 family house - so, again, I don't begrudge him the bump in the rent. Another 15% next year, and we'll be considering "consolidated housing" ourselves. Many of our friends and family have had to do the same, moving in together, or back in with family to help keep a roof over their heads.

It's amazing how quickly public perception can change. After the "consolidated housing" meme hit the cover of Time and Newsweek eight months ago, the stigma was lifted, and what was a terrible housing market became even worse as a flood of young professionals, families, and struggling friends gave up their homes and moved in together. Aging baby-boomers welcomed their families back in with open arms, as their meager retirement savings are now a shell of their former selves. (A good number of privileged people are also a "shell of their former selves" as well, as dreams of 5 day a week golf and winters in Florida have faded...)

Our winter preps are nearly complete, many of the changes pragmatic rather than aesthetic. Windows with no appreciable solar gain have been taped off, packed with old newspapers and draped with heavy blankets. We keep at least one window in each room uncovered for natural light, but keep furniture and beds against inside walls to fend off the cold. We could afford to heat the home to 68 degrees all winter, but we decided as a household that daytime heating would be keep at 65 degrees and nighttime temps allowed to drop to 62. The little things like sealing out all drafts, additional insulation on the windows, and our project this winter to seal around all pipes and insulate electrical outlets will allow our house to hold onto that heat longer and reduce the heating portion of our budget. We also fill large bladders of hot water at night and keep them below (and sometimes in) our beds to stay toasty at night.

Our back hallway was left uninsulated, and now has been converted with shelves to a cold locker for food storage. A few more nights in the 40's and we'll be able to unplug the refrigerator for the winter. A few old beer coolers help keep food and drinks just above freezing, rather than their prior function of keeping things cold. Why spend nearly half our electricity bill on a refrigerator fighting against the warmth of our house, when the temperatures outside supply plenty of cold dry air. We've also commandeered a small section of the attic to hang our curing meats. Italian and Hungarian sausage, and cured hams hang from the rafters - our great grandparents would be proud (but not necessarily surprised) that we've rekindled the practice. An ultra-efficient freezer hums quietly in our friends' basement, holding pre-packaged cuts of beef from our fall purchase of a locally raised, grass-fed cow that we were able to split amongst four families.

We've also put our small backyard garden to bed for the winter. I picked the last of the winter squash, putting it up in the basement for a few weeks worth of meals. I kept a small bed of greens and beans at our apartment, getting quite a bit out of the 80 square feet that used to be a decorative flower garden along the side yard. Not knowing if we'd spend the summer here, I didn't want to invest too much in to our rented plot. The fresh green beans and seemingly endless supply of kale helped add plenty of green to our dinners.

Our main garden was grown at my parents home, with my father, his neighbor (a surgeon), and I, getting our hands dirty and expanding our "farmlet" to nearly a 1/3 acre. I suggested adding a long mounded row of potatoes, and an extra plot of beans to dry, and the fruits of our added labor included 150 lbs of potatoes, and a fairly impressive sack of dried kidney and navy beans which should store nicely for the winter. And, when mixed with the corn we've purchased from the farmer's market should provide us with a good source of protein. If I were living there we'd add a chicken coop for our own fresh eggs and meat, but I don't want to add any additional chores to my father's list, especially a daily trudge out in the cold to feed and water them. Besides, with the number of people skirting the "backyard chicken law" - there is a surplus of fresh eggs in the community.

School's been back in session for the past month and a half, and the kids seem to be adjusting to the changes. After 3 consecutive increases in property taxes to pay for the additional cost of heating the schools, and fueling the fleet of yellow buses, the school board voted to combine elementary and middle school bus trips, and increase "winter break" from 1 week to 1 month. There had been talk of going to a 4 day school week, but so far, the 5 day a week tradition has held. All after-school and extra-curricular activities have been canceled, including nearly all sports. Parents have volunteered for transportation to keep some teams like soccer, basketball, and baseball going. Football programs were cut at all but the larger schools, or those that could raise the funds to purchase equipment. Austerity budgets also cut many of the art and music programs, and many are even cutting foreign language classes. Unfortunately, many schools' curricula have contracted to lifeless "teach-to-the-test" programs designed to keep the federal aid coming in. Many parents have pulled their kids from school, preferring to homeschool them and provide a well rounded education. "Tag-schooling" also developed as a way for kids to socialize while being taught at home. This "you're it" style of rotating students to different homes, allows kids to stay with a group of friends - while not overwhelming a single parent to do so. Mothers and fathers take turns hosting classes, and split up teaching time during the day, pooling the educational background of the parents as well as reducing the individual burden. Who knows if this will just be a fad, or will hold promise as an alternative method of teaching.

With no kids of school-age yet, I participate in education by heading up the "Johnny and Janey Appleseed" program at the elementary and middle schools in my immediate neighborhood. We pool together money each spring and fall to purchase bulk orders of vegetable seeds and fruit cuttings to distribute to each family. I spend one weekend with a group of parents to divvy up the seeds in to family size packets, print out planting brochures, and instructions on how to compost and maintain soil. We hand them out in a informational meeting that we hold each Tuesday night in April, where we give a short presentation on the amount of food that each family is capable of growing. For those families that can't make the meetings I do a last ditch round of in-class education for all grades K-6 on how to plant a seed, keep plants free from weeds, and when to harvest. Then I tell them the story of Johnny Appleseed, and turn them loose to plant the seeds in any patch of dirt they can find in their yard. I noticed that this year's meetings were nearly double the size of last year's, filled with new parents who were shocked when they were able to harvest tomatoes, zucchini, and beans from seeds they didn't even realize their kids had planted.

It's strange, things are grim, and people have a real sense of insecurity about the future. Gas is expensive, but not yet unaffordable. There haven't been any real shortages of fuel, demand destruction has been stronger than expected. The job market is drying up, and there are many more out of work than even a few years ago. People have less "work", but more work to do feeding their families. Families and community have grown stronger. Crime is up. Morale is down. Government is inept. The ramifications of peak oil have begun to permeate our community. There are large defeats and small victories each day. Food is more expensive, less available - yet more people care about making sure every child gets fed than when our cup overfloweth. Leaders emerge out of people who never thought they had it in them. The elderly are in many cases neglected, in others revered for their knowledge of frugal practices. Things are worse than many expected, better than others thought. We haven't collapsed (yet), we haven't persevered either. We're floating down shit creek with a few paddles. A few less than we need to turn this ship around. I am both happier and sadder than I have ever been in my life.

Life goes on. Although it's rough, I feel more alive than ever.

Grooming The (Gen Y) Consumer Generation

As I prepare to head back to school, I've been thinking about how interesting it will be to interact with the next generation of students. Many of them will have grown up with the ability to log on to the internet and gain instant information, the ability to contact friends and family at a moments notice, and an overall different perspective on life. Not that I am that much older that they will be, but 10+ years is difference enough to grow up with a completely different set of ideas, beliefs and interests.

I came across a blog post that gives me pause, however. I wonder how many of these students will have spent a lifetime being groomed to grow up and be consumers.

This past weekend I had the occasion to visit a dorm at George Washington University. I hadn't been in a dorm in years and was shocked at how nice it was. Each room in this particular dorm had its own kitchenette and bathroom. Some rooms have their own washer and dryer. Apparently, this is the norm. When I was in college we were crammed into tiny rooms with no amenities and sharing a bathroom with 6 other girls was the norm. We shared the laundry room with the entire dorm.

Apparently, today's college students have grown up with certain standards and aren't going to lower them just because they are in college and away from the comforts of home. In fact, they expect those comforts to follow them there. When deciding where to go to college, dorms and dining halls play as much a part as do the classes and football team.

(emphasis mine)

Not that I can deny being on the cusp of some consumerist ideas when I was in college (free gift for signing up for a credit card!, etc.), but the trials and tribulations of college are what made it part of growing up into an adult. You had to share a bathroom and kitchen with others on your floor, you had to keep it reasonably clean, and you had to wait in line to do your bi-monthly load of laundry (yes - we were gross in college).

Just to make your blood boil a little more: (via LA Times)

The trend toward the four-star dorm is a convergence of several factors: a generation of students who have grown up sharing neither the bedroom nor the bathroom with siblings, parents who are accustomed to high tuition costs and don't object to paying a few hundred more per month for better accommodations, and universities competing for enrollment and using posh new residence halls as marketing tools.

Callaway Villas, in College Station next to Texas A&M, is a gated ACC complex of three-story town houses plus a 16,000-square-foot clubhouse, a resort-style pool, basketball courts, a sand volleyball court and shuffleboard. Living units have faux-hardwood floors, ceiling fans and, for those light sleepers, white-noise generators.

And take a high blood pressure pill before this one: (Washington Post)

Some have given single rooms to students not used to sharing. Others have offered maid service and microwaves. Now they're giving them a larger space on which to lay their heads. At AU, the move toward double beds came after complaints by students that the twins were too small and too childish, said Rick Treter, director of residence life. When a dorm designed with suites of larger single bedrooms was built, the double beds were the ticket.

Yeah, yeah, I know that I am a little too young to sound like Grampa, "in my day we walked 4 miles uphill to school both ways..." But I can only imagine that these amenities add to the yearly increases in tuition, and a few months on to the students loan payback time frame. It also adds to the phenomenon of "I don't care how, I want it now!" The unrealistic view that we can have something for nothing.

Kunstler rails against this way of thinking:

The Las Vegas-i-zation of the American mind is a pernicious idea in itself, but it is compounded by another mental problem, which I call the Jiminy Cricket syndrome. Jiminy Cricket was Pinocchio's little sidekick in the Walt Disney Cartoon feature. The idea is that when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true. It's a nice sentiment for children, perhaps, but not really suited to adults who have to live in a reality-based community, especially in difficult times.

The idea - that when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true - obviously comes from the immersive environment of advertising and the movies, which is to say, an immersive environment of make-believe, of pretend. Trouble is, the world-wide energy crisis is not make-believe, and we can't pretend our way through it, and those of us who are adults cannot afford to think like children, no matter how comforting it is.

Combine when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true with the belief that it is possible to get something for nothing, and the psychology of previous investment and you get a powerful recipe for mass delusional thinking. As our society comes under increasing stress, we're liable to see increased delusional thinking, as worried people retreat further into make-believe and pretend.

College is supposed to be difficult. It's supposed to be uncomfortable. It is supposed to be a community event. Yes, it's supposed to be fun too. But most of all, it has to get you ready for the real world. The real world where you might not be able to afford an apartment with a washer and dryer in it, maybe not even in the building! The real world where you might have to live on mac and cheese and peanut butter sandwiches to get your start. The real world where it's easier to collaborate with family friends and neighbors to tackle a problem, rather than on your own. Where it's better to solve disputes rather than retreating to your solitary room.

But I guess that is the "real world" that I entered out of school. The "real world" of today is more about ringing up a new flat screen TV on your charge card at 24 1/2 percent, living in an apartment that you can't afford, on a salary that barely pays your student loans, even though you've stretched them out for 20 years.

Sigh. [/rant]

Life Imitates (Pink Floyd) Art

Via reddit.com and here

Pink Floyd - Animals cover here.

Quick Post - Little Gem Diner Closes for First Time Since 1955

You have to love the reporters comments, something to the effect of, "Everyone knows about the Little Gem Diner, whether it's for the eggs or other breakfast material..."

I loved late nights at the Little Gem growing up. I feel bad for the owners and patrons, and hope that they can get back on their feet soon.

Video report here:

http://blog.syracuse.com/wtvh/2007/09/fire_damages_docs_little_gem_d.html