Easy changes to be more green

response to original post which is here
Just wanted to give everyone an update to some easy changes we've been making to be a little more green.
1. Just changed my power bill to 100% wind energy.  It actually saved us 25% since we were on a month to month plan.  It was only 2/10ths of a cent more than the cheapest traditional power plan so how could I not? 
Yearly savings $300-$350
2. Signed up for curb-side recycling.  Almost half of our weekly "garbage" can be easily recycled.  All I had to do was call our trash company.  They come to pick it up for the first time tomorrow.
Yearly cost $48
3. Last month I started taking a sack lunch to work 4 days a week(I let myself go out for a long lunch 1 day a week wherever I want).  Fast food isn't very healthy and all those bags and containers end up in the landfill.  Plus it gives me more down time during my lunch break since I am no longer wasting half my time driving to lunch places and back.  Of course I'm saving money too.
Yearly savings $500-$600
So there you have it.  3 easy changes.
Yearly differences: net $750-900 in savings, 50-60 fewer trash bags in the landfill, and all our electricity will come from renewable sources.  More changes to come so I'll keep everyone posted.
Thanks for the read.

US leads all in per capita incarceration rates

I found some eye-opening and disturbing statistics at The Center for Economic Policy Research which had me thinking about a previous post discussing ways to close the state budget gap through prison reforms.  The US has the highest per capita incarceration rates in the world.  The CEPR estimated that states and local govs could save over 14 billion a year if the rates were dropped to 1993 levels.  You know those same govs that are threatening to shut down schools and hospitals.  We shouldn't have to wait for a fiscal crisis to treat people better, but for some of us it takes a crash before we take notice.

"The Land of the Free......?"

Thanks for the read.

It aint easy being green

It ain't easy being green.....
Why? I don't really know. So much of it seems like common sense to me, that it is hard for me to understand why it has taken all of us so long. We have the technologies, we just don't have direction. There is really no set definition for "green" living, which makes it hard to know what to do. It also covers so many things, big things, things that would take a change by industries and governments.

We need reasons we can all agree upon. I don't know if global warming is true or not. Seems like there are smart people on both sides of the fence. So lets drop it as a reason as to why we should clean up our air. When you are jogging and a semi-trunk drives by, you can tell. It gets hotter and the air gets sticky and it gets harder to breath for a second. No one wants to breath exhaust fumes so lets keep more of it out of the air. It doesn't matter to me if it does or doesn't cause global warming. How is cutting down air pollution a bad thing? Same goes for water pollution, have you ever ordered water at a restaurant and thought to yourself "man I hope there is extra pesticide run-off in my glass." Instead of arguing about the huge-can't wrap your head around scientific studies, lets focus on the things we can agree on.

More recycling, reusing, and re-purposing. I challenge you to spend an hour walking around your city/county landfill. I've been to my county landfill probably half a dozen times, it is a life changing experience. Until you go for yourself, it is really hard to understand the amount of trash we all make. We already have regular garbage service that comes to the where we live, so its not like it would be hard to recycle. How is less trash in the landfill a bad thing? It's not just throwing our cans in a big tub, it's finding new uses for common things; and buying used instead of new.

Reducing our consumption. I'm not saying we can't have the stuff we want, but maybe we should all just take an extra second to think about how much of it we need. It's really about being frugal with what we have. It involves thinking ahead about what we will use during the day. My brother started carrying his own water bottle around, and that alone probably keeps him from buying a dozen water bottles a week. That's money in his pocket and fewer empty bottles in the trash.

Finding other sources of energy. We need clean, safe, and renewable energy. You can't look at pictures from the gulf and think "that looks clean and safe." Listen, I realize that a huge part of our energy needs are met by oil, but eventually it will run out. It may be 20 yrs.... it may be 200. It really doesn't matter. The point is this, as there are fewer sources of easy to reach oil we have to seek out more difficult sources. Like the bottom of the gulf, which if there is an accident, becomes a big problem. Same goes for coal, eventually it will run out, and it puts chemicals and smoke in the air when we burn it. So it's really a question of whether we will be pro-active or re-active.

We need to start doing something... anything. The problems will only get bigger the longer we wait to get serious about them. Making small changes can make a big difference. If all 300 million Americans decided to make it on 10% less: gas, electricity, junk food, trash..... that would be like 30 million people using 0. That is something we could really do and it would be a difference in the landfill and in our wallets.

Thanks for the read.

All eyes on Texas

"The eyes of Texas are upon you" is how the song goes.  But for now its the other way around.  All eyes are on Texas.  The major players in college sports are all making their case for the Texas Longhorns.  The Big 10, the SEC, and the PAC 10 are all trying like mad to bring in what would be a crown jewel to their conferences.
Why Texas?  Its all about the Benjamen's baby.
Texas is the largest university in the nation's second largest state and commands eyeballs in 4 of the top 15 most populous cities.  UT is a powerhouse of revenue and expects to be in the top 25 in every sport.  Not only that, but Texas is a world class university in education as well (read that as, a large and generous alumni base).
Its not the Big 12 fault really,  its just that UT has outgrown the conference.  The haves and the have-nots are further apart in sports than they have ever been.  Texas is making money on its athletic program, the rest of the Big 12..... not so much.  Texas A&M athletics lost $16 mil last year.
If it were up to me I would go to the PAC 10.  Orangebloods has a good story on all this.  Basically, Texas, A&M, TTech, Colorado, OU, and OK St. Would join the existing PAC 10 schools.  With the 6 already mentioned joining Arizona and ASU to form a South West division and the other 8 (USC, UCLA, CAL, Stanford, Oregon, Oregon St, Washington, and Washington St) forming a Pacific region.  That's a lot of eyeballs and a lot of dollars (somewhere in the $20 mil to each school range).  Not to mention how great its going to be for the fans.
The other options just don't make a lot of sense for UT.  The SEC doesn't offer much in the way of TV sets.  Where as the Big 10 has the major metro areas, but why give the Big 10 a southern foothold in recruiting?
The fact is that Texas could just go independent if it really wanted to.  There is already some serious talks going on about a UT sports network and Texas had $138 mil in sports revenue last year.  But, I really like the PAC 10 fit.  It seems like 4, 16 team super-conferences are the logical end to all this.  An East Coast(ACC- some Big East), a Midwest (Big 10- some Big 12- Notre Dame), a South East(SEC- some Big East) and a West(PAC 10 - some Big 12).  Sounds like this would simplify the BCS system as well ;) yeah right!
Until it all shakes out Texas will be strutting its stuff and the rumors will be flying in every paper and blog.  I don't think UT is in any rush,  they hold all the cards, and they will make the decision that makes the most sense for them.  I'll still watch the games no matter where they end up.

Thanks for the read.

Israel's Fiendish Plot

The bellow post is from Little Green Footballs blog, link to blog is here
Just wanted to pass along some good information.

Evidently, a lot of people out there really think there was a huge need for the supplies being brought to Gaza by the Turkish “peace activist” flotilla. People have even posted comments at LGF complaining about the evil Israelis, whose blockade has been starving women and children to death.
Except, in the real Gaza, in this universe on planet Earth, women and children really are not “starving to death.” And one big reason why: the aid provided to the people of Gaza by Israel in the last two years.
Here’s a summary of last month’s activity in this rather massive relief program:

Weekly summary of the Gaza crossings: 16-22 May 2010
- 523 truckloads (13,517 tons) of goods were transferred to the Gaza Strip.
- 938,127 liters of heavy-duty diesel for the Gaza power station, and 645 tons of cooking gas were delivered.
- 281 Gaza residents entered Israel for medical reasons via the Erez Crossing.
Weekly summary of the Gaza crossings: 9-14 May 2010
- 637 truckloads (14,069 tons) of goods were transferred to the Gaza Strip.
- 810,209 liters of heavy-duty diesel for the Gaza power station, and 897 tons of cooking gas were delivered.
- 781 Gaza residents entered Israel for medical reasons via the Erez Crossing.
Weekly summary of the Gaza crossings: 2 -8 May 2010
- 714 truckloads (17,060 tons) of goods were transferred to the Gaza Strip.
- 1,535,777 liters of heavy-duty diesel for the Gaza power station and 293,796 liters for transportation, and 917 tons of cooking gas were delivered.
- 370 Gaza residents entered Israel for medical reasons and 93 entered Israel for other reasons via the Erez Crossing.

Yep, those evil Israelis, committing genocide against the innocent Palestinians, through the unusual method of giving them large amounts of food, electricity, medical services, and other necessities. Diabolical.
(Hat tip: marjoriemoon.)

Tri Tales

So I've been focusing on some last minute training for a triathlon that I was doing on Memorial Day.  I was hopelessly under-trained and proud of it but I figured it couldn't hurt since I haven't done a tri in almost 2 years.  So after a couple of weeks off I am returning to the blog-o-sphere.

The race went OK minus a few set-backs.  I got down there with plenty of time to spare.... maybe too much time.  I spaced out sitting under a tree for 75 minutes waiting to start.  Only to look up and see my age group already in the water ready to start.  I ran to the dock, but couldn't get through the next wave in time to get to the start.  Of course I passed the timing mat which started my time and then was forced to stand on the dock for a 5 min penalty for being late.  That put we swimming with the next group, which all had different cap colors and made it look like I was way behind.  I got through the swim, ran to transition, grabbed my bike, and headed out.  I made it 2 miles from the staging area when I had a flat in the rear tire at the bottom of the hill.  No problem.  I took out my spare tube, grabbed the tire tool, and reached for my pump....... which was sitting back at the transition area.  None of the race volunteers had a pump, so I grabbed my bike and started running back in my bike shoes.  3 blocks down I found 2 bike cops who had a pump and are more than willing to help. Great! I get to work on taking the tire off and in my excitement the tire tool slips and I get a spoke underneath my thumbnail.  Now I am bleeding.  I am very great full to those two officers and I returned the favor by filling out the "citizen in distress" paper work.  First name..... tick tick tick Last name...... tick tick tick.  Oh well, it's not like I was going to win the thing anyway.  The run went smoothly except for the sunburn on the arms.  All in all I had a great time.  Another tri coming up in 3 weeks...... maybe I should go for jog before then????

Thanks for the read.