baloghblog

Update on utility bill after efficiency upgrades

2012-01-22T20:40:00.001-05:00

After receiving my last National Grid bill, I just have to brag, ahem, I mean share how much we are saving on our heat and electric. (The above average temps have helped too.)

"This past month we used 375 kWh and 76 therms, down from 105 therms and 562 kWh last year (also after the energy efficiency upgrades).

Dec 09: 122 therms
Dec 08: 153 therms

So we are at about 1/2 of our usage from 3 years ago. Not too shabby!

En-tech Associates handled all our upgrades: furnace, hot water heater, sealing, insulation (cellulose in walls and attic).

En-tech

Repost: Grooming The (Gen Y) Consumer Generation

2011-04-19T18:33:00.003-04:00

Ed note: I saw that someone had recently accessed this post, thought that it was worth reposting. Also, after having been back to school for several years, I am happy to report that SUNY-ESF still bears the hallmarks of a quality college education - good professors, students with no money, strong brother (and sister-) hood, and a great sense of community. No deluxe dorms here, well maybe not yet... we'll have to see how the new dorms look from the inside.

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

Posted originally in 9/07:

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]

Local conference this weekend - Biophysical Economics

2011-04-13T00:08:00.003-04:00

Come visit the ESF campus to listen and participate in discussions about energy, the economy, and the environment.

Schedule here. What is biophysical economics? Start here.

Farmshed Local Food App

2011-04-07T16:17:00.002-04:00

Here's the link. Go try it out and see what you think! Local food information for all of CNY.

Baloghblog approved!

Life

2011-03-18T09:39:00.004-04:00

A note to anyone who still might read this. I'm still alive. You know - Just life happening.

Enjoyed a beautiful day with the family yesterday outside in the sun. Went to see some doggies at the dog park with Anna. Thinking about getting a boxer.

Had my first major speaking gig this week. I talked peak oil to a bunch of (mostly stunned) Air and Waste Management people at their annual conference. Working on a Ph.D. at SUNY-ESF... (deck chairs on the Titanic? Maybe - but I love the research, and as long as I can afford to do it...) Doing research for a non-profit based out of Switzerland. Still trying to fully recover from my ankle surgery. Trying the pool, and raking old stuck-on leaves as therapy. Gave up Facebook for lent for the second year in a row. I really only miss the ability to share my random thoughts. Otherwise, the only time I realize it's gone is when I take my cell phone out and stare at it absent-mindedly for no reason before I put it back in my pocket.

A little late to this party, but this is the music that keeps me moving lately...

foreign born: vacationing people

Merry Aliso Beach from Abner Albino on Vimeo.

The New Pornographers:

and...

My left foot (ankle)

2010-10-05T00:27:00.000-04:00

Arthroscopy for OCD. No, the other kind. Laid up for a few weeks. Man I am bored with the couch. Too spaced-out from the meds to do much real thinking. Just spaced out enough to consider starting up my blog again.

We'll just have to see about that.

Messy!

2010-03-05T15:58:00.001-05:00

Anna loves her sweet corn… but, sweet potato? More on the walls than in her belly!

Somebody's obsessed with snow

2009-12-09T09:29:00.000-05:00

It finally arrived last night!

Anna 11 Months

2009-10-22T10:00:00.000-04:00

Let's get Old Old Fashioned

2009-10-22T09:55:00.002-04:00

Frightened Rabbit - Old Old Fashioned (Live @ (Le) Poisson Rouge) from Ray Concepcioñ on Vimeo.

I'll turn off the TV
It's killing us who never speak
There's a radio in the corner
It's dying to make a scene
So give me soft, soft static
With a human voice underneath
And we can both get old fashioned
Put the brakes on these fast, fast wheels
Oh let's get old fashioned
Back to how things used to be
If I get old, old fashioned
Would you get old, old fashioned with me?

Put the wall clock in the top drawer
Turn off the lights so we can see
We will waltz across the carpet
1-2-3-2-2-3
So give me the soft, soft static
Of the open fire and the shuffle of our feet
We can both get old fashioned
Do it like they did in '43
Oh let's get old fashioned
Back to how things used to be
If I get old, old fashioned
Would you get old, old fashioned with me?

So give me soft, soft static
We won't need no electricity
If we both get old fashioned
We won't have to rely on our memories
Oh let's get old fashioned
Back to how things used to be
If I get old, old fashioned
Would you get old, old fashioned with me?

Anna @ 9 months

2009-08-30T20:36:00.000-04:00

"Local" lunch

2009-06-27T14:06:00.001-04:00

Fresh peas, garlic scapes, local eggs - make a great fried rice!

Momma's Day

2009-05-10T11:07:00.000-04:00

Happy mother's day! From dada and the little lamb that made this day
a day to celebrate.

Help a student out? Please take my survey...

2009-04-13T12:45:00.000-04:00

I am conducting a survey for my Social Science Survey Methods class on participation in green energy programs offered through your utility. This survey is completely anonymous, and takes only a minute or two to complete.

Whether or not you participate in this type of program, I'd appreciate your help:

Click Here to take survey

New Layout

2009-04-10T08:20:00.003-04:00

Playing around with a new template for baloghblog. Tell me what you think, or if you are having problems viewing anything.

And, since I haven't put up a pic of Anna recently:

Still waiting for that Gerber Baby or Carters contract...

A win-win for oil companies

2009-04-10T07:15:00.002-04:00

1) Stop investing in exploration and development now to save money when the price of oil is low.
2) Create increased shortages in oil production 3-5 years out.
3) Reap record profits as oil prices skyrocket.

Hmmm... this peak oil thing doesn't sound too bad for oil companies. (At least initially.)

It ain't all about peak oil...

2009-03-29T07:47:00.001-04:00

http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2009/0413/096-sachs-semgroup-goldman-goose-oil.html

When oil prices spiked last summer to $147 a barrel, the biggest corporate casualty was oil pipeline giant Semgroup Holdings, a $14 billion (sales) private firm in Tulsa, Okla. It had racked up $2.4 billion in trading losses betting that oil prices would go down, including $290 million in accounts personally managed by then chief executive Thomas Kivisto. Its short positions amounted to the equivalent of 20% of the nation's crude oil inventories. With the credit crunch eliminating any hope of meeting a $500 million margin call, Semgroup filed for bankruptcy on July 22.

But now some of the people involved in cleaning up the financial mess are suggesting that Semgroup's collapse was more than just bad judgment and worse timing. There is evidence of a malevolent hand at work: oil price manipulation by traders orchestrating a short squeeze to push up the price of West Texas Intermediate crude to the point that it would generate fatal losses in Semgroup's accounts.

[snip]

Meanwhile the futures markets had gotten wacky. On June 5, with no news catalysts, oil futures spiked $5 a barrel, the biggest one-day jump since the outbreak of the first Gulf war. The next day, on no news, the price jumped another $10 to $138. Traders say that in the days leading up to the $147 peak on July 12 there was the smell of blood in the water. "We just kept bidding the market higher," one trader says.

The level of "alleged" corruption by these "too big to fail" banks and Goldman Sachs (which seems to be a government sponsored enterprise) is staggering. Even peak-oilers have to admit the price rise was not solely due to supply/demand issues.

Story found and discussed here: http://cryptogon.com/?p=7726

My first trip outside!

2009-02-08T13:41:00.002-05:00

I'm not so sure about this whole thing...

Yea! I love the fresh air, and what is this giant lamp? I love lamp.

Me and my Dad

Where solutions to our energy dilemma will come from...

2009-02-05T23:41:00.002-05:00

My new office:

It's temporary, but it is nice to have a place to get my work done. Now if I could just get my hands on a nice big grant...

Dr. Balogh does have a nice ring to it...

Sent from my iPhone

Anna/school update

2009-02-05T23:33:00.002-05:00

She's getting bigger each day. She's starting to make a lot of cooing
sounds.

Today was the first day that she "found" her right hand. It
immediately went in her mouth. She loves her stuffed animal friends,
and her kicking-bopping gym (don't ask!)

She is such a blessing. We couldn't be happier.

School is going well. I've started work on my thesis. About ten months to go.

I'm looking forward to spring and getting outdoors. I can't wait for Anna to lounge in the green grass and check out the trees, the sky, and the great big world out there beyond our four walls.

FYI, we went with the g-diapers with the flushable inserts. So far, so good.

Pic of Anna

2008-12-28T15:25:00.000-05:00

For those who are interested:

Anna Fiducioso Balogh

2008-11-23T20:04:00.002-05:00

11/19/08 @ 4:06 p.m. 6 lb. 10 oz.

Mom and baby are doing well. We couldn't be happier!

Great Timing for the Carousel Mall Expansion

2008-09-10T08:28:00.004-04:00

Image by Hackintosh (under a CC 2.0)

As the hulking monstrosity that is the Carousel Mall expansion grows from a pile of steel beams to a structure with more discernible features, this article comes out in the NY Times:

A Squeeze on Retailers Leaves Holes at Malls

In larger shopping malls, operators have not yet had to resort to giving away their space to attract tenants, but most landlords are facing mounting challenges these days. Vacancies are up, retail sales have been disappointing, and long established chains like Mervyn’s, Linens ‘n Things, Boscov’s and the Sharper Image have filed for bankruptcy protection, raising the specter of more dark spaces with fewer potential tenants to replace them.

Some 6,500 chain stores are expected to close this year, the largest number since 2001, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers, a trade group. When stores close, neighboring stores may be entitled to exit or to have their rent lowered.

Congel has kept tight-lipped about who or what would be going into the expansion space. Which store will anchor it? How many other clothing or specialty retailers are out there? Will a majority of the space sit with plywood covers painted in murals of DestinyUSA dreams? Will Congel figure out a way to attract good restaurants, and keep them profitable?

More from the article:

The vacancy rate for regional malls is 6.3 percent, the highest since 2002. Though mall rents rose by 0.2 percent from the first quarter to the second, all retail rents are down when inflation is taken into account, Mr. Chandan said. New centers that opened in the first half of this year were just 62.8 percent occupied, on average, compared with 72.1 percent for those that opened last year, he said.

(emphasis mine)

I won't spend too long pointing out the obvious - that workers real wages are stagnant while food and energy costs are soaring. Consumer confidence in the economy is poor and keeping people at home. Even the dollar, which is strengthening, is bad news for Carousel. Canadians' reduced purchasing power and high fuel costs may keep them north of the border.

All bode poorly for the new space.

Bob Neidt of the Storefront column and blog at the Post-Standard writes on the same topic. Answering a letter from a reader, he supposes that some of the retailers in cramped spaces may want larger digs in the new expansion (Apple Store, Best Buy, etc.) But he worries about those "holes" too.

We've been so frustrated with the lack of detail about anything new possibly coming to the expansion -- I haven't been calling it "Destiny," either -- we've been dwelling on the potential vast emptiness of the expansion. Maybe focusing a little too much on that...

Will Carousel turn in to a microcosm of the Central NY area? Little to no growth but additional sprawl? Will tenants flee the central (older mall) to the new eastern burbs, like city residents fleeing to Fayetteville/Manlius? Will we see Driscoll and Congel offering redevelopment funds for the vacated core of Carousel?

Surely this is tongue in cheek. But one does have to wonder what the future of Carousel Mall holds.

As long as they get a Ruth's Chris in there, I'll shut up about it. (heh heh)

LeRoi Moore is Dead

2008-08-19T22:08:00.002-04:00

A sad day. I haven't been to a Dave Matthews Band show in a while, but I have to say some of LeRoi's sick jams were near ecstasy to me.

Here's a fine example from Woodstock 99. See from about 5 min on. (We danced our asses off to this one...)

Damn. I feel slightly nauseous. The world lost one of its finer musicians today.

Photo of the Day - 8/18/08

2008-08-18T21:32:00.000-04:00

[when you're old]

Photo of the Day - 8/17/08

2008-08-17T21:50:00.003-04:00

[not a redwood - just a tall old growth tulip?]

pic taken at Round Lake in Green Lakes State Park

Photo of the Day - 8/16/08

2008-08-17T21:49:00.000-04:00

[moment of zen]

Photo of the Day - 8/15/08

2008-08-17T21:46:00.003-04:00

[tropical blue-green in good ol' Syracuse]

The Gold Bandwagon

2008-08-15T07:56:00.003-04:00

This is not investment advice, only rambling thoughts from a economic ignoramus.

I wanted to buy in to the gold rush. I kept reading it on all of the doomer websites, and from other conspiracy theorists. I just never made the call to my broker or joined an online gold purchasing site. I pictured having physical gold on hand (for emergencies).

The goldbugs got screwed over the past few weeks. The market is buying dollars again, after the Euro zone has started to contract. Some kind of intervention may or may not be taking place. Regardless, this chart gave me pause.

Looks very bubblicious to me! I am no economist (believe me, other than listening to CNBC on Sirius, and reading Mish, I have absolutely no training in economics), this is not investment advice. I do know what a "double top" in a market is, and I think that that is a picture perfect version of it.

Like the X-Files, I still want to believe. Perhaps there is a magic number on that chart that will start to look attractive to me and to other investors. I'll let you know if I hop on the gold bandwagon. I just feel bad for the few doomers out there that might have been suckered into dumping a fair bit of their life savings in gold, only to watch 21% of it evaporate since March.

Photo of the Day - 8/14/08

2008-08-14T23:18:00.002-04:00

(new life)

I'll be away from the computer for a few days... Going camping.

Photo of the Day - 8/13/08

2008-08-13T21:42:00.003-04:00

(you have to give Wegmans kudos for bringing in the fresh local food)

Photo of the Day - 8/12/08

2008-08-13T07:04:00.002-04:00

(summer's day)

playing around with the new features...

Photo of the Day - 8/11/08

2008-08-13T07:00:00.002-04:00

"mornin"

Photo of the Day - 8/10/08

2008-08-13T06:55:00.002-04:00

"as far as the eye can see"

Photo of the Day - 8/9/08

2008-08-13T06:51:00.003-04:00

UPDATE: Note to self. Make sure you don't start a photo of the day prior to going on vacation. (especially when you can't figure out the "future post" on blogger)

"ghosts"

Photo of the Day - 8/8/08

2008-08-08T08:03:00.006-04:00

I bought a new digital camera yesterday. I love it. So I'll try to put up a new picture each day (and see how long I can last at it.) Here's the first.

[black-eyed susans in the front garden]

"The Noise" Has Left Syracuse, Now Finds Its way to Wisconsin

2008-07-23T19:57:00.002-04:00

Having been tormented myself by "the noise" in the town of Geddes last winter and into this summer, I feel this couple's pain. That said, for what ever reason, I haven't heard the noise in weeks. Perhaps it's vacationing in Green Bay for the summer?

Green-Bay Press:

For two years now, the Ehrfurths have been enduring an annoying, persistent noise in their home — a low, motor-like rumble accompanied by a vibration. They can't figure out what's causing it, and it's been a challenge getting others to believe them because the problem starts and stops.
They've lived in the house at 2048 Mary Queen Road for 42 years, and it's only been the last two years that it's been a problem.
"It's like there's a semi parked right outside with the engine running, but when you look out, there isn't one," said Leona Ehrfurth, 76.
And it quits at the most inconvenient times. Like when they bring city officials, acoustic experts or news reporters into their house to experience the problem.

It all sounds so familiar... Ehrfurths, does it sound like this (mp3)?

Peak Oil Preparation Revisited: What's Enough?

2008-07-01T22:27:00.008-04:00

As I sit here, taking a break from life, far, far away from home...

The beer tastes cold and crisp, the warm sun being replaced by a cool breeze from off shore, and the birds are circling lazily on the updrafts. All feels well for the time being. But, like a distant rumble of thunder and a flash of light on the horizon, a feeling of uneasiness nags at me - a soft pang of guilt rolls into my subconscious.

"What have I done over the past 3 years to prepare for what approaches over the horizon?"

"What could I have done that would have been 'enough'?"

The answer to those questions appear to be not enough and it's never enough.

So in order to come to grips with those thoughts and emotions, I'll do what I always do to work through overwhelming periods in my life... I'll make a list. What should I do to fulfill my dreams, and to keep my feet planted firmly on the ground? Where should I be now or in the near future?

I should be in a home with a low mortgage payment and taxes, perhaps one I've designed myself, more likely one that I've made changes to, to suit my family's needs. It should be in walking distance to the grocery store, shops, and services. Public transportation should be convenient and my friends and family nearby. I should know my neighbors' names within 3 homes on either side. My plot of land should be manageable and I'd enjoy the bounty of a small productive garden and a range of fruit and nut trees.

Ideally, my home would be extremely energy efficient and insulated, and require only a small wood stove to keep us warm through the winter and several fans to keep us cool in the hot summer. This 'dream house' would include a small solar array to provide enough power for the lighting in each room, to run a high-efficiency chest freezer, the coffee pot, the computer, a stereo and occasionally a small LCD TV. The grid would supply the remaining electricity to power the refrigerator, stove, dishwasher and washing machine¹. A solar hot water heater would provide hot water for showers in the summer, and an on-demand hot water heater would do the same in the winter, as well as radiant floor heating for the bedrooms in the winter, for the nights that the wood stove just won't cut it. Homemade insulation inserts would complete the heating (and cooling) system - fitting snugly in the windows. The clothes dryer would be a fading memory, replaced by a clothesline in the summer and a highly efficient centrifuge and drying racks/lines in the winter.

Our basement would contain an extensive pantry with non-perishables, jarred fruit and veggies, cooking oils and vinegar. A cold cellar would hold a large sack of potatoes and squash, as well as a few bushels of apples to last the winter and spring. The cool sanctuary of the basement would also transform from a hibernation den in the winter to a family sleeping area in the hot muggy summer nights. Beds, blankets and sleeping bags would come out on the 90+ degree days, as we took advantage of the geothermal cooling.

Plants in every room of the house would improve air quality, provide medicine, herbs for cooking, and natural air fresheners.

Our garage would be well organized and contain a variety of well cared for and functional tools. Gardening tools would hang on one wall, wood working and assorted electrical and plumbing tools on another. A variety of reclaimed hardwood boards, pipes, clamps, screws and the like, would make emergency trips to the hardware store a thing of the past. Aged wood would sit stacked and dry in its rack. Bins for recycling and reuse would make taking the garbage out a snap. Our trash pick up would consist only of a single 30 gallon trash pail that is taken out once every two weeks². The remainder would be stacked, sorted, reused and recycled. Paper recycling would be minimized as the flow of junk mail would become a trickle. Cans, plastic containers, and jugs saved to become planters and short term storage of dried non-perishables. No plastic bags would enter our waste stream, due to our diligent use of reusable bags. Food scraps would be more easily composted in our new bin system, which is supplemented by twice weekly pick-ups of used coffee grounds from a local coffee shop.

I would wear three hats at work: a part-time medical provider, a part-time environmental/energy consultant, and a part-time stay at home dad. I enjoy all three jobs, the medical care provides the bulk of our income, the environmental work satisfies my technical and creative side, and having time at home a few days a week with the family is worth the foregone income, and allows my wife to continue working.

We live simply, minimizing non-essential purchases, saving cash for large purchases, camping trips and trips to see the relatives. Our monthly bills are low, and our savings comparatively high. Our small obligations mean our 3 month emergency fund could probably stretch to half a year, and our stocked pantry shelves and freezer protect us from food inflation and any shortages of essential goods. Half the freezer holds vacuum sealed veggies and fruits from the summer months, the other half holds beef and pork from a local farmer cut into small packages. Freezer jam, a stash of chocolate, and homemade pudding pops (yes a necessity) fill in the empty spaces. The refrigerator looks decidedly bare without the usual containers and bottles of processed food. Sure a few bottles of condiments are still on the shelf, but mostly fresh fruit and vegetables, cheeses, homemade yogurt, milk and juice - along with some glass left over containers take up the shelf space. This week's pizza dough is making its second cold rise. Now that food is expensive, not a bit goes to waste. Bones and grizzle get turned into stock. Leftover veggies, rice, beans, etc. find their way into the "Saturday night special" - a rich and spicy soup.

In the bathroom, two plastic buckets sit under the counter. Turning a small dial diverts the sink water into the first bucket. The second goes over the shower drain to collect water while the shower water heats up. Natural and biodegradable soap and shampoo sit on the rack. The reuse of greywater compliments the rainwater collected off of the front and back gutter downspouts. The front collector is just a large watering can used to keep the front flower and herb garden watered, and in the back there is a rain barrel with a stopcock and drip hose threaded through the garden. During dry spells the gravity fed system keeps the veggies irrigated. The recent addition of an outdoor shower allows greywater to directly soak through our lawn and into the roots of the fruit trees.

Ideally our transportation would consist of a fancy new electric car, with an on board recharger for longer trips. However, I'd be very happy with a small gas-sipping car that is little used. I'd really like an electric assist bike to navigate the hills around our house. The bike would have range enough to make it to the store, and would have an attached cart to haul the kids or supplies.

We've made (or have started to make) many of the changes listed above. However, many things remain on the to-do list. Some cost more money than we have at our disposal right now. Most, however, require just time and dedication to complete.

It's my goal to list our projects publicly on my blog. One - to show others what we're working on and two - to give myself a bit of motivation.

I'd welcome your thoughts and ideas on this issue. What did I forget? What else are you working on? Please leave me a comment, or contact me at steve AT groovygreen * com.

¹ It is my belief that the number of years to a disruption of the power grid are measured in decades. Even if power were to become "inconvenient" I believe that the appliances mentioned could be used intermittently, or worked around.

² As the price of fuel continues to climb, twice weekly trash pickups may become the norm.

RIP - George Carlin

2008-06-23T07:35:00.003-04:00

A sad day. The loss of a great comedian/philosopher.

I bought a car yesterday

2008-06-13T17:29:00.004-04:00

Nope, it's not a hybrid.

Nope it's not the Chevy Volt I wanted.

I bought this beauty for what I think is a good price. A good solid reliable car.

She's (aren't all cars shes? Oh wait, maybe that's just ships) a 2007 Toyota Corolla. 24K miles. Rated at 27/35 mpg. But I figure the way I've been squeaking mileage out of the Forester, I can get 40+ out of her.

The Subaru will be retained for shorter trips to the park and ride, and snowy winter days. That car has treated us really well, but you know that it's time for a new car when you can't trust Bessie to get you from point A to B on a vacation trip. Plus we will save $85+ bucks a month in gas.

We are happy with the decision. Not ecstatic, but with the economy the way it is these days, I think that practical is the way to go.

If you were wondering, the Honda Civic Hybrid was $23.5K, the Prius $24k+, with a 4 month waiting period. No test drive available. (Man, that's faith - to buy a car without test driving it!)

You Load Sixteen Tons, What Do Ya Get?

2008-06-12T11:47:00.001-04:00

On the Erie Canal? 8.7x more fuel efficiency!

Cross-posted at Groovy Green

Falling out of favor after the interstate highway system was built, the Erie Canal is still an appealing option for transporting large loads. With diesel prices at the $5 per gallon mark in New York, the canal is looking more appealing for smaller loads too. Of course it has a large competitor to overcome. It is tough to forsake the convenience and speed of delivery by tractor-trailer. However, if you can afford to wait, you can afford to ship a higher weight.

Syracuse Post-Standard:

According to the federal transportation department, shipping by water is far more energy-efficient.

In a tractor-trailer, one gallon of fuel is needed to transport one ton of freight 59 miles. On a barge, the same load will go 514 miles on a gallon of fuel.

[snip]

Today the canal is used mainly as a recreational waterway.

But the tide may be turning for the canal's commercial use, said Carmella Mantello, director of the state's Canal Corp.

"The canal is slower, but it's fuel-efficient and it's greener," Mantello said. "One barge can carry the equivalent of 60 tractor-trailers."

"Hopefully, we're beginning to see a trend," Mantello said.

Last year several large tanks, bound for the Northeast Biofuels plant in Volney, were shipped from Virginia to Fulton along the canal.

"All forms of transportation are essential for the success of the biofuel plant, but the canal is definitely energy-efficient and has a small carbon footprint," said Stewart Hancock, speaking for the ethanol plant.

(emphasis mine)

Again, time is money and I don't believe in this "gotta have it now" age, that the Erie Canal will be booming again in the near future. However, having kept the barge system maintained all these years in the face of declining use, may have been one of the state's saving graces as we begin to feel the effects of peak oil.

[pic found here]

The numbers don't lie! Hypermiling works!

2008-06-10T15:12:00.003-04:00

UPDATE: signed up here for a cool way to track mileage after a fill-up. Here’s my badge:

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

Here's some recent stats from my attempt at hypermiling.

5/19/08:

303.8 miles on 12.93 gal = 23.5 mpg (a little lead footed...)

5/23/08:

272.7 miles on 10.15 gal = 26.9 mpg (getting better...)

5/27/08:

330.0 miles on 11.57 gal = 28.5 mpg (best mpg to date!)

5/31/08:

294.4 miles on 12.47 gal = 23.61 mpg (what happened!?!)

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

Total 1200.9 miles on 47.12 gallons = 25.5 mpg Average

Some thoughts/experiences: Using the A/C makes a big difference. Also, on hot days, I notice that the cooling fan is running nearly constantly - that must use a bit more gas than normal. I imagine that I could squeak out a few more miles by going 55 instead of 57 mph, but for some reason - my right foot is a Sammy Hagar fan. The boxy shape of the Forester + drafting behind tractor trailers and busses = a jostled ride. Don't know if drafting is helping much. Much harder not to idle when the temperature is 95 and above. I have to admit cheating a little on that one.

I got an oil change last week and put in a new air filter which should help things. What's not helping things right now is a sticky caliper on the front left disc brake. It's on the to-do list to fix. I imagine that it is reducing my mpg by 2-5 as it is an intermittent drag on acceleration.

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

For those wondering, here are the EPA estimates for the 2000 Forester (Revised lower this year):

Gas Price Chart - Up 3x in 6 years

2008-06-05T11:59:00.003-04:00

Click for larger image
(via gasbuddy.com)

Garden 2008 Pics

2008-06-02T22:25:00.003-04:00

It's that time of year again. My dad and I put in the rest of the veggies on this glorious Monday.

There's nothing like working in the garden with my dad. I look forward to it every year.

A smattering of gas prices in the area

2008-06-02T21:30:00.004-04:00

Just because it's been a while, I figured I'd throw up some recent gas prices

($4.05 is with carwash)

click here for a blast from the past (2 years ago)

Hey Syracusans, Time to Pick Up the Rock Ourselves

2008-06-02T07:41:00.003-04:00

This Sean Kirst column is the best metaphor that I've seen for the inaction in the Syracuse area. Go read it.

Funny to think that the problem was solved not by a driver who bothered to pull over and take time to pick it up, but people who regularly walk "everywhere" and don't drive.

[image via Flickr static416]

Coming Soon to a Gas Station Near You: Half Gallon Pricing!

2008-05-29T08:31:00.001-04:00

I posted this at Groovy Green, but for those of you that only come here...

A sign of the times.

Post-Standard:

New York state Agriculture Commissioner Patrick Hooker today announced that gas stations with non-digital fuel dispensers can apply for half gallon pricing, since older equipment cannot compute prices in excess of $3.999.

Signs advertising fuel prices must still advertise the price for a full gallon of fuel, but the price displayed on the pump would be half the per-gallon price.

Amazing to think that the manufacturers of those fuel pumps couldn't imagine a world where gasoline cost more than $3.999.

Coming soon?:

[This is a badly photoshopped picture of a gas station sign that I took when I thought that gas at $2.25/gal was expensive. And no, it wasn't $2.25 per 1/2 gal of ice cream, heh heh]

New Chariots of Fire..

2008-05-16T23:02:00.003-04:00

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")

2008-05-13T22:48:00.002-04:00

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

2008-05-11T00:37:00.001-04:00

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

2008-04-23T08:51:00.002-04:00

From the last post:

Earth Day Wrap-up

2008-04-23T08:45:00.000-04:00

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

2008-04-21T20:50:00.003-04:00

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

2008-04-21T20:25:00.002-04:00

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

2008-02-16T23:09:00.002-05:00

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

Reform vs. Revolution

2008-02-15T13:17:00.008-05:00

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

2007-12-29T23:13:00.000-05:00

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

2007-12-22T15:39:00.000-05:00

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

2007-12-21T15:58:00.000-05:00

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!

2007-12-17T07:51:00.000-05:00

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

2007-12-12T22:39:00.000-05:00

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

2007-12-11T08:19:00.000-05:00

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

2007-11-18T10:36:00.000-05:00

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...?

2007-11-13T07:42:00.000-05:00

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...

2007-11-08T08:11:00.000-05:00

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

2007-10-15T22:44:00.000-04:00

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

2007-09-24T20:32:00.000-04:00

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)

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

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

Kunstler rails against this way of thinking:

Sigh. [/rant]

Life Imitates (Pink Floyd) Art

2007-09-13T21:32:00.000-04:00

Via reddit.com and here

Pink Floyd - Animals cover here.

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

2007-09-13T12:35:00.000-04:00

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

Vaca

2007-08-26T01:52:00.000-04:00

I spent the week in Martha's Vineyard. Absolutely beautiful. Saw The Samples in concert, with 70 other lucky souls at Outerland. Here's "Feel Us Shaking" from the show. Intimate and acoustically perfect.

It's Coming...

2007-07-10T06:56:00.000-04:00

If I could figure out how to get this blog to play the Jaws attack theme - da-DUNT.... da-DUNT. I'd do it. For some reason TPTB started letting peak oil out of the bag yesterday. Gone are the forecasts that pushed in 20-30 years out in to the future. The type that rang out "It's 2007 and alls well..."

Nope now we've gotten this:

World will face oil crunch ‘in five years’
By Javier Blas, Commodities Correspondent
Published: July 9 2007 13:25 | Last updated: July 9 2007 13:25
The world is facing an oil supply “crunch” within five years that will force up prices to record levels and increase the west’s dependence on oil cartel Opec, the industrialised countries’ energy watchdog has warned.
In its starkest warning yet on the world’s fuel outlook, the International Energy Agency said “oil looks extremely tight in five years time” and there are “prospects of even tighter natural gas markets at the turn of the decade”.

and this:

Oil experts see supply crisis in five years
By David Litterick in Chicago
Stormy outlook : oil producers will be unable to increase production in line with demand and prices cold soar
The International Energy Agency has predicted a supply crunch in the world's oil markets that could send prices soaring and place a severe dent in global growth.
In a report that painted a bleak outlook for the global economy, the IEA said spare capacity in oil production would dry up over the next five years, even as demand continues to jump significantly.

I thought that I'd feel a great sense of satisfaction at being vindicated about the timing and impact of peak oil. I figured I'd think to myself, I was there in the beginning writing and reading about this, getting prepared, learning about solutions, etc.

Last night, that wasn't what was on my mind though. I kept thinking, 5 years is a really short period of time. We better get a move on things.

More coming soon on my personal plans.

[pic via EGMbrooks]

Lyrics

2007-06-28T22:57:00.000-04:00

My latest iTunes purchase is Boxer, by The National.

Lyrics from Fake Empire:

Stay out super late tonight picking apples, making pies
put a little something in our lemonade and take it with us
we’re half-awake in a fake empire
we’re half-awake in a fake empire

Tiptoe through our shiny city with our diamond slippers on
Do our gay ballet on ice
bluebirds on our shoulders
we’re half-awake in a fake empire
we’re half-awake in a fake empire

Turn the light out say goodnight
no thinking for a little while
lets not try to figure out everything it wants
It’s hard to keep track of you falling through the sky
we’re half-awake in a fake empire
we’re half-awake in a fake empire

Listen to MP3 here (Pitchfork)

Cleaning Up Syracuse's Front Doorways

2007-05-24T21:21:00.000-04:00

Cross-posted from Cleaning Up Syracuse blog, at Syracuse.com:

The recently released Brookings Institution report refocused attention to the downtown revitalization effort. Sean Kirst's article in yesterday's paper very elegantly summed up the report and how we can move forward:

To change Syracuse - to really change the patterns draining strength from the region - we need to dare to begin thinking in that way. The simple truth is that these big Upstate cities essentially operate like old eight-cylinder Buicks. Reform has usually meant tinkering with the engines, but in the end - no matter what you do - those engines are obsolete.

We need leaders who are ready to start trying out new models, and citizens with the courage to at least contemplate the switch.

Central New York, in many ways, remains a fine place to live, and the Brookings report is right: Syracuse has great potential. But it cannot and will not revive unless we all make a commitment, on some level, to be part of the change.

I hope that this blog will grow to be "part of the change".

Imagine instead of entering downtown Syracuse via corridors of abandoned warehouses, deserted sidewalks, scrub brush, and crumbling walls you were greeted with a welcoming atmosphere, with signs of growth and hope. Where you were met with a proud "Welcome to Syracuse - [enter upbeat motto here]" sign as you came off the exit ramp into downtown. Where sidewalks were lined with lamp posts and trees.

The crumbling and decaying buildings that separate the west side of the city from Tipp Hill and the burbs create not only a physical barrier between two areas of city, but a psychological one as well. I love the hand painted "warehouse district" signs stapled to the telephone poles along West Fayette Street, a sign that there is a spark of pride in that neighborhood - A rally against the destitution that has plagued that area. The city should tap into that energy, and help break down those psychological and physical barriers. Right now West St. is cutting that area off from the vibrant Armory Square area. I am not proposing the city re-route West St., but it certainly could work to make it more pedestrian friendly. How about an elevated cross-walk on Fayette over West? Or widening sidewalks and extending crossing times? How about a similar effort such as down by the Inner Harbor, with new sidewalks, lightposts, and landscaping extending down from SU's Warehouse to South Geddes St.? It has been proposed in the past, but how about letting some of Delavan Art Galleries' finest paint a mural along the sidewalk underneath the train tracks? There are many ways that we could stoke the optimism and growth of Armory beyond its current boundaries, into the Near West 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.

The separation between SU Hill and downtown has been discussed ad nauseum. "Should 81 be torn down?" is a question that I have been hearing since the 1980's. Let's just stipulate that it will not be torn down, and look at other psychological barriers to movement from the University Hill to downtown. I believe that the barrier is much taller than the height of the 81 overpass. How can we encourage people to travel down the hill after SU games, or to head into the city for dinner and drinks, and perhaps take in a concert? I think that we need to encourage a mixed re-development of this area. When I drive down Adams or Harrison, or look on the overhead view from Google Maps, you know what I see? Parking. Tons of parking lots. Oh, and a few buildings. The path from SU Hill to downtown has been designed for the auto, and not the pedestrian.

Lets imagine walking under the 81 overpass, past Harrison Center, to a new row of restaurants, coffee shops, walk-up apartment buildings all on the sidewalk, hiding new parking buildings behind them. The Oncenter hotel, doesn't stand alone, but instead is incorporated to this new "Harrison Square" area. Pedestrians walk from an evening at the Everson, to sip coffee on sidewalk tables. Residents of the renovated Hotel Syracuse Condos spend warm summer evenings walking down to do some window shopping. Now you've given people a reason to walk downtown from the hill. Employees in the Axa towers now have a great spot for lunch. People who live in the Pioneer Homes have a reason to cross Adams St. and the Near Southside can become more incorporated into downtown. 81 doesn't even cross your mind anymore.

Cleaning up Syracuse must go beyond keeping litter off of the roadsides. We must clean up these vital entryways into the downtown area, and encourage the type of growth the Brookings Institution spoke about. Let's treat these three areas (W. Fayette beyond West Street, The Northside-Hanover Square connection, and the newly named "Harrison Square" area) as the welcome mat to downtown. We as a city can overcome both the physical and psychological barriers that stand in our way.

My Local Supermarket Responds to Questions Regarding Melamine in Food Supply

2007-05-14T16:20:00.000-04:00

I wrote to my local grocery store - Wegmans - to see how they intended to keep melamine and cyanuric acid tainted food off of store shelves. They tend to be a very proactive store, that prides themselves bringing local products, and had a organic food section prior to it becoming mainstream.

After waiting for several days, I was pleased to get a response to my inquiry today. I have replicated the letter in full, below.

I hope that our readers take the time to write to their supermarkets and groceries to ask them the same question. To me it is unconscionable that these poultry and pork products that may contain poison have been allowed to enter the food stream. I will gladly publish any responses that you get back.

Without further ado, here is their response:

Hello. Thanks for your e-mail. We can certainly understand your concern about the possibility that some products could be implicated in the tainted wheat gluten/pet food recall and thank you for contacting Wegmans. Pardon the length of this e-mail but I think you'll agree there are no short answers and we want to be thorough in responding.
Our food science and quality assurance team have been keeping us up-to-date on this very complex situation almost daily, since the original pet food recall, and will continue to do so as necessary. We pride ourselves on providing concise and accurate information to our customers in a timely manner.

The issue has caught us, and the entire food industry, by surprise. This is the most current information we have about the product(s) in question, but new information becomes available daily. We are monitoring the issue very closely and staying in close contact with our supplier partners.

I'd like to share with you what our suppliers have told us:

Chicken

Mountaire Farms (Wegmans' fresh chicken supplier)

"Mountaire Farms does not directly feed our poultry any wheat gluten, rice protein, or any other high protein ingredient sourced from China. This applies to both the broilers and the breeder stock. We also do not incorporate into any of our poultry diets any of the raw materials from the pet food industry that have been recently contaminated with the identified adulterants."

Murray's (Supplier of Wegmans Food You Feel Good About Chicken)

"Please rest assured that Murray's chickens receive a 100% antibiotic free vegetable diet comprised of corn and soybean meal. The corn used to feed Murray's chickens is grown in Eastern Ohio, South New York and Pennsylvania. The soybean meal is from Iowa. None of the grains used to feed our chickens is ever imported."

Pilgrim's Pride (Wegmans' rotisserie chicken and frozen IQF supplier)

"Pilgrim's Pride's flocks are fed a wholesome mixture of corn, wheat, and soybean meal, all of which are sourced in the United States. Pilgrim's Pride does not import any corn, wheat, wheat gluten, soybean meal or rice ingredients from China."

Perdue

"Our feed formulations are developed by our company nutritionists, and all of the protein ingredients are from the United States. We have standardized quality control procedures for all of our ingredients and finished feeds, and have full-time feed quality control associates in each of our feed mills. In light of recent news stories, we have also begun a program of random sample testing of our feed ingredients to ensure no traces of melamine found....Perdue does not have any chicken flocks in Indiana, nor have any Perdue flocks anywhere been affected."

Wegmans Eggs

Wegmans' own egg laying hens are fed a corn and soybean meal diet. Much of the corn is grown on our farm; the rest is grown locally in New York State. The soybean is sourced domestically. Flaxseed used in the Omega 3 diet is imported from Canada. Wegmans Egg Farm does not import any of the ingredients recently identified in the pet food industry as having been contaminated, nor do we import any feed ingredients from China. This also applies to our breeder stock.

Turkey

Plainville

"Plainville Farms' turkeys are fed a wholesome vegetarian diet consisting of corn, soybean meal, vitamins, minerals, proteins, and oils. No meat, bone meal, animal fats, or wheat glutens are procured or added to our feed. All of our feed is either produced on our own farms or sourced from suppliers with the U.S."

Fish

The only fish carried by Wegmans that is grown in China is (farm-raised, frozen) tilapia. Tilapia does not require as much protein as other species, and we have been assured by our supplier that the protein used is free of the contaminated ingredients recently associated with other recalls. (Wegmans' Director of Seafood Operations Carl Salamone was in China when this story hit the media and got this information directly from our supplier.)

Farmed Raised King Salmon

Taplow Feeds (feed supplier for Creative Salmon, our supplier of farm-raised king salmon) "This letter confirms that none of fish feed supplied to Creative salmon contain any contaminated wheat gluten." The only wheat products used in the feed formulation are from Canada and are certified organic.

Frozen Salmon

Aquagold Seafood (supplier of frozen salmon)

"Cultivos Marinos Chiloe certifies that all the protein sources, including Fish meal, Soy Bean Meal, Wheat Flour, Wheat Mids, Corn Starch, Gluten Meal, Shrimp meal, Feather Meal and Fish Oil, that we use in our Salmon feed production, are not purchased from Chinese suppliers.

In response to the recent Melamine events, we are implementing a testing and monitoring program to ensure that our feed supply does not contain Melamine." (Wegmans clarified the last sentence. It means that they are confident with their current feed. But since they've never had to test for melamine in the past, they are now implementing additional testing and monitoring procedures to ensure that there won't be a problem in the future.)

Fresh Farm-Raised Atlantic Salmon

EWOS Canada Limited (this company owns MainStream, supplier of farmed Atlantic salmon, and produces and supplies its own feed) "EWOS Canada Limited does not and has not used wheat gluten as an ingredient in the feeds we have supplied to you [Wegmans]. As such, there is no exposure to the issue of contamination of melamine coming from wheat gluten originating from China."

Hogs

(It's been reported that pet food contaminated with melamine may have been mixed into the feed supply of a limited population of pigs in California, North Carolina, South Carolina, New York, Utah, and possibly Ohio. None of the pigs entered the food supply.)

Hormel (Wegmans' supplier of fresh pork)

"The purpose of this letter is to assure you that none of the hogs used by Hormel Foods Corporation are raised in any of the locations implicated thus far, and thus, have not been affected by this issue."

Aliments Breton Foods Canada - duBreton Meat(supplier of Food You Feel Good About pork)

"Aliments Breton does not use grain that comes from China in any of its feeds. Aliments Breton never used any grain from China in its feed manufacturing process, (nor) plan to use any. Pigs produced by Breton farms and processed at duBreton Meat are fed by Aliments Breton feeds." (It is forbidden to import into Canada any grain or grain by-product from any country, except for corn, soybean or soy meal. To do so, one needs a Canadian Wheat Agency permit.)

Fresh Mark (supplier of Wegmans' hams)

"We have diligently investigated this issue with various government agencies, our food safety consultants, suppliers, and the American Meat Institute and can confirm no raw materials procured by Fresh Mark were from the population of animals that consumed the contaminated feed."

Cattle

Meyer Natural Angus (supplier of Wegmans FYFGA beef)

"Meyer Natural Angus does not use any wheat gluten and/or rice protein concentrate in any beef feed products."

Bakery Products

Wegmans' Bakeshop

All of the vital wheat gluten used in the production of baked goods is sourced within the U.S.

I hope this helps to answer your questions. We appreciate your feedback and your business. Food Safety is a top priority for Wegmans for both our customers and our employees and their families. We're doing our best to stay on top of this issue and will continue to do so.

Thanks for giving us the opportunity to respond.

Wegmans Consumer Affairs Team

I think that this is a very thorough response, and I am satisfied with it. I am happy to learn where the farms are located that provide the store with their meat too.

Lewis Black on Earth Day

2007-04-26T21:58:00.000-04:00

Via Greenthinkers:

Highlights -

Diane Saywer: "...Is your pole thinning?"

Black: "It's a shame cars don't run on cognitive dissonance."

Garlic is easy

2007-04-25T08:21:00.000-04:00

While perusing the farmer's market last fall, and buying some garlic bulbs from a nice farmer and his wife I noticed berry containers filled with less than perfect garlic bulbs (a quart of them) for $1. I asked what they were, and he said "they're seed garlic" and handed me a wrinkled photocopy of planting and growing instructions. So I plunked down my dollar, and took home my garlic "seeds". I put them in the ground in an area that we are transforming after the installation of a patios, figuring if the grass seed wouldn't take that late in the season, I might as well put it to use. Here's what has been coming up this spring - 21 garlic plants.

I plan on mulching them this afternoon, to prevent further "erosion" from the hill. I read up on harvesting them, and it looks like by mid July I should be ready to dig them up. When planting garlic, think of them like a tasty tulip. Drop them in in the fall (right side up!) and by summer you'll be enjoying them.

Quick Post - Thoughts on cleaning

2007-04-24T09:01:00.000-04:00

Isn't the definition of an "environmentally friendly" paper towel: a dish rag?

That is all. Back to your regularly scheduled lives.
(pic via Karen Hibbard Art Project)

Final Backyard Update

2007-04-19T18:12:00.000-04:00

The tree guys came (TreeLanders) and did a quick and thorough job on our 3 trees. Beautiful evening light now streams in the upstairs and basement windows. We made the right decision.

Now I have to remove the mulched stump pile and put in topsoil and seed and we'll be good to go!

Backyard (Spring!) Blogging

2007-04-19T18:08:00.000-04:00

Blogging in January:

Blogging this evening:

No comparison!

Update on driveway

2007-04-16T18:48:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to give a quick thanks to the Colonel (my Dad), and to Andrew Bozo of Professional Lawn Care and Snow Plowing (my plow man and classmate) for helping me clear out that mess.

If you are in the Syracuse area, and are looking for a good snow-plower, email me and I'll give you his phone number. He also does complete lawn care and landscaping.

Freaking snow.

Aaron's thoughts on knowledge

2007-04-16T15:07:00.000-04:00

I've been meaning to put in a plug for this post since I first read it.

are we past peak knowledge?

Speaking of trees

2007-04-16T15:01:00.000-04:00

I was stuck at home today. No not the nor'easters snow on the roads, but the accumulation of it over the past 24 hours on my trees. Here's why:

I will never underestimate the value of a good chainsaw, and the ability to use and maintain it. That reminds me...

Note to self: buy a chainsaw, and learn how to use and take care of it.

Ode to a Tree

2007-04-11T07:15:00.000-04:00

I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth's sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

-- Joyce Kilmer

This is my big backyard tree, which as of next week will be no more. I imagine it will be campfire wood for local campers. I hate to see such a big tree get cut down, but in this case it is old and 1/2 of it is sick, and it is smack dab in the middle of our back yard. I knew it was eventually going to need to be cut down the day we bought the house.

So I figured, hell, this is my blog, and if I want to have a tribute to a big tree. I can do it.

Organic Cotton

2007-04-09T22:12:00.000-04:00

How much is a F*ing yard of this stuff, and should I be telling people to go buy it?

Barneys New York is giving consumers an added incentive to buy its pricey products: The retailer is donating a percentage of all sales to One Percent For the Planet, an environmental organization. Barneys partnered with organic-cotton company Loomstate to launch an exclusive apparel line this spring that includes a $145 organic cotton hooded Henley sweatshirt and a $125 organic cotton halter dress with flower print.

Gag me with a luffa. I am so sick of organic fashion.

Hwerf.

[/soapbox]

Blog Roll Updated

2007-04-07T19:23:00.000-04:00

It's always a sad day when you have to delete people from your blog roll. There are so many blogs that I have enjoyed reading over the past 2 years. Yes I know, people come and go, but unsubscribing from bloglines is like raiding the closet and having to throw out your favorite old sweaters and shirts - even though you don't even wear them anymore.

Blogging is tough sometimes. There are so many things to do in a day, finding something interesting to comment on is not always at the top of the list. I've been guilty of abandoning baloghblog for weeks at a time. I am sure that there will come a day that I will have to give it up all together.

That still doesn't make me feel better about permanently deleting a link to a writer that I kept up with. Like saying goodbye to someone that you've met at a conference, or on the opposite side of the country or globe, knowing you'll never see them again.

Weird, huh? This sentimentality. However, I can't imagine what I'd do if some of my favorite bloggers permanently threw in the towel. Aaron? Ianqui? Sharon? NYCO? Liz? Atrios? The first-draft gang? Some day I suppose it will happen.

Jeff, has been torn away from his personal blog to "greener" pastures. It's a shame, but I don't blame him in a way. If I could get paid full time for this type of gig, I would find myself in the same situation. Pat was a great writer that hung up his laptop. Liz seems to be working her magic more in the real life than the digital one (hmmm... there could be something said for that.)

There are new writers out there that I seem to find each day. Many are very talented and I hope that they keep up the writing. This blogroll purge needs to stay a once a year (or two?) event...

Cammuso = Right on the Money

2007-04-01T12:32:00.000-04:00

The Sunday Post-Standard's opinion section regarding the Bigger Better Bottle Bill being dropped (I won't bother linking as their links expire within 2 weeks):

Because he budget deals were cut behind closed doors, the public has to assume the bottle bill was used as a chit in some longer negotiation. What it was traded away for we may never know.

Once again, business interests trump ecological common sense in the NY State government. I have to reiterate that this is a real let down right out of the gate, Governor Spitzer.

See more of Frank Cammuso's brilliant political cartoons here. *including this other take on the BBB

birthdays/getting older

2007-03-28T12:31:00.000-04:00

This card is a perfect example that my wife truly knows me (and a reasonable representation of my birthday night!):

Syn-gas Plant Revisited

2007-03-26T15:10:00.000-04:00

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

So I stand corrected, after reading the Sunday Post-Standard, I see that the syngas facility slated to be built in Dewitt has come out and said that no carbon sequestration will be done at the plant for at least 10 years. This is the amount of time they believe that it will take for a cost effective method of carbon sequestration to be invented.

Therefore I change my baloghblog editorial opinion to against the plant.

No plant should be built in that location without a full (or nearly full) carbon sequestration solution.

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

Now that I've made that opinion clear, I need to hear how we are going to heat our homes when the gas stops flowing from Canada. Believe me, at some point it will. Or at least it will become unaffordable to the point that it is no longer a viable source of home heating for a large portion of the population.

Phil contacted me by email and wanted to know why I am doing the dirty work for the syngas plant by not initially opposing it.

My question to him and others is a practical one: Please tell me how we are going to heat our homes.

It is a grave concern of mine. More so than the difficulty in powering our vehicles to get from A to B, the ability to keep our homes heated through the cold NE winters is life threatening. Yes, syngas is unknown and possibly environmentally devastating. So is deforestation (see Haiti, Easter Island), coal furnaces (see 1800's), and we're going to need more than pellet stove retrofits (unaffordable to many on fixed incomes) to solve our future heating needs.

I took a flight recently, and when I was flying over the Central New York area, you know what I saw? A lot of homes - that's what I saw. A lot of homes, occupied by a lot of people. A lot of tendrils of white smoke coming out of those homes, each representing a furnace burning most likely natural gas. A lot of natural gas. We have a huge infrastructure in natural gas piping to a majority of the urban and suburban area.

Maybe it's not time for a syn gas plant yet. There is abundant (though declining) Canadian gas available to us. It is relatively cheap. I am certainly not for a plant that does nothing to sequester its carbon, and pollutes at a level on par with a coal fired electricity plant. But the thought keeps creeping into my head, "how are we going to keep all of these people warm through the winters?"

Changing Your World - A Little at a Time (and Contest!)

2007-03-08T23:31:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted from Groovy Green:

I feel pretty good today. That's pretty odd, considering it's peak doldrum season here in the northeast, in a city that just received 4.1" of snow this moarning, bringing our season total to 117" glorious inches of the white fluff. (yes, that's my front yard one week and 8 inches of snow ago).

Why I feel good is for the following reason: I sat in on a "mission committee" meeting at my company today. At least I thought that I would just be sitting in on it, but it turned out that I had top bill as a presenter on "how we can make changes at [company x] to reduce our environmental impact". I soon found out that I had the plenty to talk about. The 20 extemporaneous minutes flew by. I dived right in to the "low hanging fruit" in our company, and the committee and I decided on 4 goals to reduce our waste, conserve materials and energy and reduce our carbon emissions. I'll get back to those in a minute. First, what I want to point out, is that I told a few anecdotes today, based on information that I've gathered reading blogs, environmental magazines and articles in newspapers, and have seen in news reports. These were things that I thought that everyone had been at least exposed to, or at least have been given a chance to ignore. Boy was I wrong. The committee members faces lit up as I rambled off a few things that they could do to reduce their energy consumption at home.

reduce phantom loads - first defined phantom load. Let them know how all of the electronic devices are sucking a steady (though small) stream of power 24/7, 365 days a year. Then I told them how they could get rid of it - power strips, unplugging equipment when not in use. The jaw dropper to them is that the microwave clock uses more power during the year than the actual operation of the microwave.

a computer left on is like steadily burning 2 60 watt lightbulbs - one for the monitor and one for the computer. I taught them to put computers to sleep when not in use, and at least to turn it off at night.

conversion to CFL bulbs - a few members were aware of this, but I did notice a few pens jotting it down.

lastly - that "green power" is a choice in our area. I go with Green Mountain, which adds about $8 or so to my bill and would add only $8-12 to an average household to get 100% renewable energy (small hydro and wind). No one at the table had heard of this. This was a perfect wrap-up to my talk, and I am glad that it popped into my head at the last minute. "Now that I've gotten you feeling guilty about wasting electricity, here is a way that you can feel better while you cut back on your use..." I explained how the program worked and how they can easily sign up for it.

As you can see this meeting focused on electricity and ways to conserve energy. As "energy" goes, electricity seems the easiest for people to grasp, and most likely there is the most "fat" to trim out of that section of the household's total energy use.

Here are the 4 goals that we came up with:

Get large "blue bin" recycling containers for our office / post reminder notes on garbage cans. I was shocked to find out that we are not as diligent at recycling as I thought. There are large containers for shredding (and recycling) confidential paperwork in our office - due to HIPPA laws anything with someone's initials has to be shredded, meaning about 60%? of our paper is recycled. That leaves all of the office memos, calendars, etc, that we could improve on.

Make an announcement on Friday afternoons to make sure that everyone shuts down their computer for the weekend. (This may also be on a a daily basis.)

We will be incorporating education on reducing vehicle miles driven into the orientation process, and encouraging time management into grouping travel to appointments.

We will be joining in the "These Come From Trees" guerrilla public service announcement. Placing stickers on the paper towel dispensers in the bathroom and in the lunch room. I'd like to see one on every ream of paper too (or at least above the "copy" button on the copier.)

Yes there are many other things that we could be doing to reduce our companies impact, and we did touch on some of those. (I heard complaints about styrofoam coffee cups mentioned, as well as the lack of recycling in the lunch room.) Like I said, I could have gone on for an hour or more once those ideas started spilling out of me. This was a decent first step in the right direction, IMHO.

I realized two things today at that meaning. #1. I sure have been reading too many blog posts about the environment. #2. Yes, it is important to "be the change" in order to inspire others to do the same, but it is equally important to get out there and inspire! Yes it's impressive to get your household impact down to 1.7 planets, or whatever measure you choose to impress your on-line buddies with, but how much impact on the earth can you have by convincing others to make a change? How far into negative planets does the scale go? How many tons of CO2 can you personally stop producing? Now, compare with the amount that you could reduce by making sure everyone turns their computer off each night before leaving the office? In a big office, that's a lot of computers, and a lot of coal being shoveled into that energy plant.

Now, it's your turn. Leave me a comment [over at Groovy Green] with what you are doing in your place of employment, church, friendship circle, bowling league, or other group of people that are in "your world". Make sure to leave your email info in the box so I can get in touch with you. I'll randomly draw from the commenters and send you our groovy copy of "Green Design".

aurora borealis in Geddes tonight

2007-03-06T22:50:00.000-05:00

I was able to take some pictures of a beautiful Aurora Borealis over my home tonight. Here is a sample, and more pictures and my exposure settings can be found at geddesblog.

click picture to enlarge

Where Do All Those Miles Come From?

2007-03-05T07:24:00.000-05:00

Cross posted from Greenthinkers:

Like a good book on reeling in your household budget will tell you, you have to know where your money is going to prior to determining where you can make changes. In this light, Eric Boyd - the Digital Crusader, kept a log for 3 months and 3 days to see where all those miles on his car were coming from.

I kept records from Monday October 16th, 2007 to Tuesday December 19th, 2007, a period of three months and three days. During that time, I got in my car 258 times, traveled 1278.6 miles, filled my gas tank 4 times, and made my girl friend think I was obsessive-compulsive about record keeping :-). Each of the 258 records consists of the date, where I got out of the car, and a reading from the trip odo.

What an interesting idea. One that maybe more of us who purport to be environmentalists and live "green" lifestyles should do. How else can we know where to cut trips from? Maybe I'll get my Palm Pilot set up to help me track the same thing for a month. Who knows, maybe a "miles travelled budget" will be easier to tackle than the home finances.

Here are a few of Eric's conclusions: Hit the jump for his full "experiment" and his results.

In terms of climate change and sustainability, the car remains my second biggest contribution, after air travel. Surprisingly, if I biked to work three days a week, I could conceivably save about 20% of my total miles. If I also used public transit for the rest of my Journeys, I'd be getting close to cutting my miles traveled in half, without sacrificing much of anything in terms of the real convenience of a car

Business Idea

2007-03-04T17:41:00.000-05:00

What to do with the Marble Farms building on Grand Ave.

Local Thoughts

2007-03-04T16:34:00.000-05:00

Well, there's been a lot of things going on in the Syracuse area in the run up to the spring. Here are some of my random thoughts.

DestinyUSA's green bonds: hmm. I guess I wasn't keeping up with this story as closely as I thought that I was. I thought that the idea was that the green bonds would go towards stage III of the expansion, and the current mall expansion (stage II) would be built by conventional methods. The use of "green building" techniques on the mall expansion is a good thing, but I'll believe it when I see it. The definition of DestinyUSA changes about as often as I change the oil in my car. Speaking of oil, I have to mention that this mall expansion is a tremendous waste of money, resources, and effort. The only part of Destiny that I have supported from the time it was announced was the R&D Park. Even that was flawed from the start with the eminent domain fiasco.
Synfuel factory in Jamesville: I wrote a piece wondering if Peak Oil would reverse NIMBYism a short while ago. This was based on a proposed coal to gas factory to be built off of Rock Cut Road. Some were not pleased with the fact that I didn't immediately oppose the project on a "environmental" basis. Groups are, as I predicted, lining up to block it. I am not even sure that I support the plant itself, but have to ask the question, "how are we going to heat our homes in Central New York if the gas stops flowing from Canada? (or even stops flowing predictably?)" Do you think that there are enough trees to burn? (There aren't.) Don't you think that coal furnaces will return as a primary method of heating homes? (They will.) Do you think that we could grow enough corn or switch grass to turn into pellets to burn in an efficient burning stove? (I don't know, but it seems like we'd need to get planting.) My point is that there are no easy answers to these issues. We need to stay warm, and there are far too many of us to all live comfortably while burning biomass to heat our homes. Which would you rather see in the future? A technologically advanced syngas factory. Dirty? Yes, but able to sequester carbon. Or, a resurgence of coal based individual heating systems in homes. Tons of coal delivered all throughout the city each day, producing tons of CO2 in the air, and tons of coal ash in the basement.
Shoveling sidewalks: Enforcement is easy. And fines could help balance school budgets. Pay someone to drive around and give tickets to homeowners who do not comply with maintaining their own sidewalk. Neglect of sidewalks in front of city or state owned land is just as criminal. Tenants should not be responsible for their sidewalks, deadbeat slumlords should be. What, are we going to have to wait until a school-aged kid gets mowed down to solve this problem?
Armory Square site for the sewage treatment plant. Uggh. What is there to say? The powers that be see fit to put a treatment plant in the most successful and developed area of downtown. Treehouse all the way baby. The cacophony of voices rallying to oppose the plant is deafening [sarcasm]. Man, I know that it's cold out, but where are the business owners and people living downtown? I only partake in a few cold beverages, and go out to dinner once a month in Armory and I am pissed. Sean Kirst and 5 people on his forum are the only ones that care about this? I'm curious to see who turns out for the council meeting on the subject on March 14th, public comments March 21st.

Well, that's enough rambling for now.

Local Post: Sean Kirst's Thoughts on Blogging

2007-02-27T16:46:00.000-05:00

I caught this through News Tracker this afternoon. Interesting thoughts, on citizen journalism and a columnists thoughts on local bloggers.

I'm ready for the next meeting... It should have been after the chili cookoff the anti-thesis to Dinosaur at the Fair.

(In)voluntary Simplicity

2007-02-26T08:14:00.000-05:00

Our dishwasher broke today. Instead of a spectacular failure, the machine ended its life in a slow and steady leak of suds over the past week(?), surfacing in buckling floor tiles and a drip that we could not place. Alas, repairing the floor, and tiling the kitchen is a story for another day.

I did the dishes tonight by hand, in a sink full of sudsy warm water. There are two parts to that statement that are out of the ordinary in my home. First off I hate doing dishes. The second is that we were doing dishes in the sink. I have always felt vindicated by an article I read, or was it a blog post (Ask Umbra?) that stated that a dishwasher was much more efficient than human hands in using heated soapy water to clean dishes in both energy, and water usage. That was all I needed to hear. In went the dirty dishes, out they came sparkling and clean (for the most part). No remorse here - that is what the machines purpose was, and it could do the task in a way (efficiently) that could make me feel better about the decision to use it.

However, as my fingertips turned to soggy raisins, and I passed the dishes to be rinsed to my wife, we came to the same conclusion - we'd think twice about reaching for another clean glass or plate, knowing that an extra dish to clean would be the result. That made me think: no matter how efficiently that old dishwasher cleaned my dishes, and how much water it saved over doing them manually, I had probably filled that dishwasher many times over with dishes that shouldn't have needed to be washed in the first place.

This simple epiphany could be applied to many other things in my life that were made easier by "efficient machines". How many extra trips car to the store have I taken based on its efficiency of transport. How often would I travel to the store if I were carless? How many clothes have I washed (and dried) after only a few non-strenous hours of wear? Would I be so quick to wash them if I had no washing machine? How much food have I found spoiled in the refrigerator, despite its efficient "crisper" drawer? Or, for that matter, the amount have I allowed to get "freezer burn"?

Ridding myself of these very helpful and necessary* machines is not in the cards. Nor would I want it to be. However, this bout of involuntary simplicity has taught me that some of the most efficient machines that we own may actually have been providing us with more work to do.

UPDATE: After further thought on the subject, I could take my reasoning a step further. Despite the increased efficiency of the dishwasher, the end result of its use is not only the purchase of a new machine to replace it, but also an entire kitchen floor. So, one could argue, all of the gains in energy savings, and reduced water consumption were wiped out by the need for a new floor (which it self will carry a high embodied energy and water use in its production.) Certainly the hand washing of my plates and glasses wouldn't have led to the purchase and installation of a new floor.

And another step further than that: All of the time and effort that the dishwasher had saved us in labor, was surely offset by the labor we will need to use to repair our floor.

I am reminded of Thoreau:

But lo! men have become the tools of their tools. The man who independently plucked the fruits when he was hungry is become a farmer; and he who stood under a tree for shelter, a housekeeper. We now no longer camp as for a night, but have settled down on earth and forgotten heaven.

(*necessary to maintain my marriage vows!)

pic by ktanriover

originally posted over at groovy green.

New Widget in Sidebar

2007-02-23T08:11:00.000-05:00

Scroll down to see my new CFL bulb widget, that shows how Syracuse ranks with other cities in the US in the purchase of CFL bulbs and their CO2 reduction. Let's get buying Syracuse!

Syracuse Real Food Co-op Video

2007-02-21T20:27:00.000-05:00

This video makes me doubly wish that a) I lived on the southeast side of town, or that b) I wish the Real Food Co-op would open up a western burb store!

Update: What about here for their western expansion?

Smart kids! Via their blog

Links to my articles up this week

2007-02-21T20:01:00.000-05:00

As you can see, I have been invited to do a little freelance writing at Greenthinkers.org with Scott and his team. I hope you come by and read me as I join in the fun over there...

Indiana Subaru Plant at Zero Landfill Status

2007-02-19T22:34:00.000-05:00

I was fortunate enough to be invited to Indiana to tour the Subaru Assembly plant which for the past 3 years has been at zero landfill status. It was amazing to see the sprawling facility, and it's rows and rows of machinery and workers, and realize that not one bit of waste had to be taken from the facility to a land fill. Achieving over 95% reuse and recycling rate, the remaining 5% is incinerated in a energy producing plant in nearby Indianapolis.

I drive a Subaru, and have been pleased with the safety that it has provided my wife and I in the bad winter weather in upstate, and it's reliability has been great. It makes me even more proud to drive a Subaru after realizing the companies commitment to reducing their environmental impact.

We co-wrote a piece for Groovy Green Magazine:

Several members of the Groovy Green team recently visited Subaru’s automotive manufacturing plant in Lafayette, Indiana. For nearly three years now this plant has produce zero landfill waste. That’s right, 100% of the by products produced from fabricating Subaru vehicles in Lafayette are reclaimed. How has Subaru been able to achieve such a dramatic accomplishment while other car manufactures are still taking trips to the landfill? At its core their strategy is simple and straightforward; Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. With those words as a mantra and with a willingness to challenge the notion that building cars is inevitably a wasteful process, Subaru has become a great example of what a company can realize if it believes in doing the right thing.
Located on a beautiful tract of land just NW of Indianapolis the 832 acres of the Subaru campus was designated in 2002 as a National Wildlife Federation Wildlife Habitat that’s home to deer, coyotes, bald eagles, beavers, and Canada geese. Tom Easterday, Senior Vice President, Subaru of Indiana (SIA) proudly talks about the company’s commitment to building cars in a more environmentally friendly way. Subaru’s mantra is: “Eliminate environmental risks of our operations.” What’s striking though is that when he talks about the accomplishments of Subaru from being the first ISO 14001 certified auto assembly plant in 1998 to the first assembly plant to reach Zero Landfill in 2004 is that he gives most of the credit to the floor level employees, or associates, as they’re called. It appears much of the greening of Subaru has been because of this “bottom-up” initiative – where the drive to reduce environmental impacts permeates all levels of the corporation.

Click here for the full article.

Havidol

2007-02-19T08:26:00.000-05:00

Cross posted from Groovy Green:

Just caught wind of this, this morning:

Via Yahoo News (Reuters):

A media exhibit featuring a campaign for a fake drug to treat a fictitious illness is causing a stir because some people think the illness is real.

Australian artist Justine Cooper created the marketing campaign for a non-existent drug called Havidol for Dysphoric Social Attention Consumption Deficit Anxiety Disorder (DSACDAD), which she also invented.

But the multi-media exhibit at the Daneyal Mahmood Gallery in New York, which includes a Web site, mock television and print advertisements and billboards is so convincing people think it is authentic.

From havidol.com -

SELF-DISCOVERY THROUGH HAVIDOL
HAVIDOL helps sufferers see that no matter how much they have, more is always possible.

Patients have reported feeling:
renewed interest in themselves

increased ability to spend

higher risk tolerance

better quality consumer decisions

improved social attention-getting skills

return to former self esteem levels

supplementary stamina levels

augmented vision

a surge in well-being

Click more for the hilarious side effects. And if you hate those pharma ads like I do, you have to check out the full site.

Adverse events may include:

Mood changes

Muscle strain

Extraordinary thinking

Dermal gloss

Impulsivity induced consumption

Excessive salivation

Hair growth

Co-dependency with inanimate objects

Markedly delayed sexual climax

Inter-species communication

Taste perversion

Terminal smile

Oral inflammation

Very rarely users may experience a need to change physicians.

Terminal smile? Heh heh, that is my favorite.