The Sunday Morning Muse, May 27, 2012

It's gonna be another hot one. 90 degrees? And it is only May. This morning the weather guy on TV mentioned about conserving energy as Ozone levels are up and some people have a lot of trouble with that...breathing problems, coughing, shortness of breath.  On the screen was the usual list of "tips" about not filling your car with gas during the day, reducing vehicle use and lawn mowing.

I remembered last week on a similiar day, listening to a guy on the radio who said, "Who cares? I pay my electric bill! Crank it up baby!  I want that AC on!"  He scoffed at the notion that any of the above "tips" will
do any good at all. Not when you have places like China, he said, who do whatever they want.

Hmmm. If everyone thought like him would the world be a better place? If everyone DID conserve, just a little bit, would the world be a better place?

Seemed simple to me. Think globally, act locally. Our air is so bad here where I live, it is always in the top 10, if not the top 5 of worst particle pollution categories. Maybe it is like a piss in the ocean to try to help a tiny bit by, say, not filling up with gas today, or keeping the AC on 75. But I'm going to do it anyway. It can't hurt.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes...

Doing anything different these days to cut costs? I read this today. It talks about how people are buying more fuel efficient cars... cutting back on groceries.. fixing shoes even.... instead of buying new ones, etc.

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As I sit and think about it.... my big change is that I say NO to myself a lot more. You see, I've got it easy. I answer to no one, so if I want to buy something I buy it. I want a new computer. But... I never did spend my "stimulus" check on it as planned. I'm sure there will be a tipping point... like when this computer scares me enough with it's slowness.... or gets a virus or something.... and I'll have to open the wallet. But... not just yet.

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I tried to "eat off the land," a bit. It's not working out. I picked lettuce from the garden.... blueberries, and greenbeans. The timing is all wrong for a really great salad. The celery didn't come up.... and peppers are still weeks away from being ready. How did people eat a decent salad way back when? So I bought peppers. And borrowed some carrots. It's a start. Spent three dollars on my favorite salad dressing. :(

I've also tried to "live off the pantry" a bit more. There's always a forgotten box of rice or can of soup to eat. Frozen veges are always in my freezer, thoughI should put dates on them. I remember these old friends of mine had a world war two era top-lift-type freezer in their basement. They were quick to use the stuff frozen on top.... but to DIG TO THE BOTTOM just didn't happen. When they finally cleaned out the thing... I believe they found elderberries from like 1983.

One other thing I did was take over 90 dollars in coins to the Coin Machine thing at the grocery store. What a ripoff.... they take like 8.9 cents on a dollar for a "fee." So I was out 8 bucks! I justified it by not having to count it all myself. I'm worth 8 bucks. Easy. And I now have over 80 dollars that was previously on my closet floor in a bag, in my pocket.

Wake Up People

"We have found the weapon of mass destruction in Iraq. It is oil. As long as the oil companies control our government Americans will continue to pay and pay, with our lives, our fortunes our sacred honor."

Dennis Kucinich

How Much Does Your Trip Cost

Does anyone hate the phrase 'pain at the pump' as much as I do?

I just walk away from the TV as soon as I see the graphic or hear the mindless chattering about what station has the "cheapest" gas. There IS NO FRICKING CHEAP GAS.

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It costs me about 4 bucks a day to drive to work. I say that simply as a statement. People have it worse than me. See what your commute costs:

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If the link doesn't change, here is a handy Trip Cost Calculator based on gas mileage and a few other factors like proper tire pressure and whether you go 65 versus 55. (No word on 75.)