But I've jumped on a greener bandwagon. There are a few reasons. If you know me, you know that I'm a "path of least resistance" guy, or as I've sometimes heard it described: lazy. So, am I going to go out of my way to milk an organic cow for my cereal? No. Am I willing to put an extra few bucks into the hands of a farm that has taken on the more difficult path of keeping their cows healthy without hormones and feeding them grains without pesticides? Hell yes.
We were buying flats of 32 bottles of water per week. I've seen the documentary on "the Great Pacific Garbage Patch" and it made me concerned on a number of levels. (Warning - video NSFW)
First, that's just one known patch of refuse in one spot. Imagine the managed landfills and how much we produce. Plastics were the future in the 1960s, but they're the present now.
Anyhow, I hate preachy stuff, but this information put things in perspective for me; kind of like Supersize Me did with food marketing and consumption. Alas, that's a worth a whole other post.
Point is, with minimal research and effort, I figured that I could easily buy a water container and use that over and over instead of buying a whole flat of the same old problem every week. My part, with very little overhead, is saving 32 bottles a week from hitting garbage island. It's made out of food-grade stainless steel, fits in car cup holders and on my bike's water cage, and unlike a plastic or aluminum container, it has no liner. That makes it dishwasher safe, too.
That worked out pretty well, so I decided to do the same for coffee, since I drink a 16-oz cup every day. Starbucks uses a paper cup, but it's waterproof, which most likely makes it not a recyclable product. The plastic lid and paper sleeve are, but the cup itself is highly doubtful. So, I found a coffee cup from Aladdin that is not only dishwasher and microwave safe, but it's also made from recycled plastic bottles! Win/Win/Win. That's five or six more containers per week NOT headed to a recycling bin thanks to me.
We've been pretty conscientious about recycling in general at our house. We have a compost bin, and we recycle everything our local hauler allows. So, we'll typically fill our recycling bin each week, but rarely put out a full trash can. While I do have to think about it a little every time I want to discard something, it's not that hard, and I feel better about how we're living in general.
February 15, 2010
February 12, 2010
Updating Windows? Check This Out
I made the move to Windows 7 back in August when they released their RC (release candidate) for free. I had just built a new computer and needed something for a few months, so the timing was perfect. Over time, I installed the applications I normally use to see how they'd work with 7. I found no real problems.
Around that same time, Microsoft offered an upgrade for $50 as a pre-order. It's a testimony to my laziness that I only used that upgrade this past weekend. (The RC was good until March, then they'd have forced my hand.) The worst part about doing a complete Windows upgrade or buying a new PC is setting it up the way you like it. To that end, I was very excited to find Ninite.
Click that link and you'll arrive at the main page, which lists a ton of common, free applications. Most of the stuff I use is on there. What's the big deal? You just check off the ones you want, then they create one file that installs all of those packages. Bloody brilliant. Here's mine, if you're interested.
Around that same time, Microsoft offered an upgrade for $50 as a pre-order. It's a testimony to my laziness that I only used that upgrade this past weekend. (The RC was good until March, then they'd have forced my hand.) The worst part about doing a complete Windows upgrade or buying a new PC is setting it up the way you like it. To that end, I was very excited to find Ninite.
Click that link and you'll arrive at the main page, which lists a ton of common, free applications. Most of the stuff I use is on there. What's the big deal? You just check off the ones you want, then they create one file that installs all of those packages. Bloody brilliant. Here's mine, if you're interested.
January 25, 2010
Objects of My Desire
I have been covetous.
It started with our printer. I had one from the 90s that no longer connected to anything and another with degraded print quality that could have been cleaned, but I opted to get rid of it instead. In place of those, we got a new HP scanner/printer that operates on our wifi network, too. It's pretty sweet - three computers can scan or print wirelessly.
A few years ago, I went through a similar tech upgrade. I had a Palm Pilot and upgraded to a Sony Clie since I already had a Sony digital camera and could share Memory Stick media between the devices. The Clie has gone by the wayside as it's bigger than an iPod and does a lot less. The camera was state of the art when we got it, but now I realize that I would benefit greatly from image stabilization. Oh, and Panasonic is making one with a stabilized Leica lens and it's waterproof!
On our last trip, we decided not to take any tech with us. We had film cameras (not digital) and no laptops or smart phones or anything. I'm still not ready to pony up for a data plan ($30/mo.) since I'm surrounded by wifi and computers all day. On the other hand, I think I would be more reliable with dates and appointments if I could get a Palm-like device that would fit easily in my pocket. So, it's been suggested that I look into the iPod Touch. I can't justify the price of that without the phone (especially considering it'd be another device to carry). Catch 22 - I'm still thinking this one over. I suspect that either Verizon will have to acquiesce on its smart phone data plan requirement, or I'll have to figure out a viable VOIP solution for the Touch.
Last summer, I built a new computer for music recording and game-playing. That turned out great, and my plan was to use the old computer as a home theater PC (HTPC) for our nice, new television. That old PC is, indeed, old. While it does work, it reminds me of why I pushed to build a new one in the first place. Using it as a HTPC is just frustrating. So, while it's totally impractical, I have had the urge to build a whole new HTPC on the cheap.
Here's another thing - I sold my old Free Agent BMX bike a couple of years ago and scored big. I only decided to sell it because I didn't foresee using it again. Since then, I've had really bad seller's remorse and an urge to ride a BMX bike. Traditional BMX bikes have 20" wheels, while an average mountain bike runs 26" wheels. There have always been 24" BMX bikes (cruisers) and there are a few companies that make 26" BMX bikes, too. Anyhow, I think I've narrowed it down to these:
It started with our printer. I had one from the 90s that no longer connected to anything and another with degraded print quality that could have been cleaned, but I opted to get rid of it instead. In place of those, we got a new HP scanner/printer that operates on our wifi network, too. It's pretty sweet - three computers can scan or print wirelessly.
A few years ago, I went through a similar tech upgrade. I had a Palm Pilot and upgraded to a Sony Clie since I already had a Sony digital camera and could share Memory Stick media between the devices. The Clie has gone by the wayside as it's bigger than an iPod and does a lot less. The camera was state of the art when we got it, but now I realize that I would benefit greatly from image stabilization. Oh, and Panasonic is making one with a stabilized Leica lens and it's waterproof!On our last trip, we decided not to take any tech with us. We had film cameras (not digital) and no laptops or smart phones or anything. I'm still not ready to pony up for a data plan ($30/mo.) since I'm surrounded by wifi and computers all day. On the other hand, I think I would be more reliable with dates and appointments if I could get a Palm-like device that would fit easily in my pocket. So, it's been suggested that I look into the iPod Touch. I can't justify the price of that without the phone (especially considering it'd be another device to carry). Catch 22 - I'm still thinking this one over. I suspect that either Verizon will have to acquiesce on its smart phone data plan requirement, or I'll have to figure out a viable VOIP solution for the Touch.
Last summer, I built a new computer for music recording and game-playing. That turned out great, and my plan was to use the old computer as a home theater PC (HTPC) for our nice, new television. That old PC is, indeed, old. While it does work, it reminds me of why I pushed to build a new one in the first place. Using it as a HTPC is just frustrating. So, while it's totally impractical, I have had the urge to build a whole new HTPC on the cheap.
Here's another thing - I sold my old Free Agent BMX bike a couple of years ago and scored big. I only decided to sell it because I didn't foresee using it again. Since then, I've had really bad seller's remorse and an urge to ride a BMX bike. Traditional BMX bikes have 20" wheels, while an average mountain bike runs 26" wheels. There have always been 24" BMX bikes (cruisers) and there are a few companies that make 26" BMX bikes, too. Anyhow, I think I've narrowed it down to these:
Haven't even thought about new drums in a while...
January 15, 2010
Action City Limits
Just kidding - I'm talking some ACL here, but the Austin variety. I've always liked that show, and it doesn't matter who is playing; I'm usually in for at least a few songs. When it's a group I actually like, it's easily my favorite live music show.
A short list of bands that I think would be perfect in that venue:
Here are some of the bands they've had recently that impressed me:
St. Vincent
The Decemberists
Arcade Fire
And you can find lots of older footage on YouTube. I recommend it.
Here's the very first episode. Awesome.
A short list of bands that I think would be perfect in that venue:
- Radiohead (loved the free webcast show from the end of their last tour)
- Portishead (almost as fun to watch as they are to listen to - the Live @ Roseland DVD will suffice)
- Slint (would love to get a close-up view of the drumming and strumming)
Here are some of the bands they've had recently that impressed me:
St. Vincent
The Decemberists
Arcade Fire
And you can find lots of older footage on YouTube. I recommend it.
Here's the very first episode. Awesome.
January 14, 2010
Terrorism Begins at Home
Watching Good Morning America whilst burning off some anxiety this morning, I saw the story of an older politician and his young girlfriend. Apparently, things didn't work out between them, so he had her killed, then went to a cemetery and slit his own wrists. Tragic story, but missing a key component: it wasn't reported as terrorism.
There were warning signs, apparently; a pretty clear agenda by this psychopath, and he carried them out even further than anyone would have suspected. Next, this horrible story is carried nationwide on the major networks, which reminds us that anyone can snap at any time. Classic terrorism.
We don't hear about the heroic, coalition-building efforts of a senator that passes a droll bill to curb corporate pollution, but we do hear every bit of information on a politician who killed his girlfriend. It's not a shock to me that people in other countries think we're crazy. We kill our own fairly frequently. Our representatives are just as dangerous as their constituents.
Somehow, we're able to live with street gangs in our towns. Police do their best to curtail gang impact, but in general, we just know it's a part of our society that probably won't go away. On occasion, gang activity spills into the civilian world, and someone innocent dies. I've not seen the same fervor toward eradicating gangs as I have around "terrorism". In fact, we hardly ever see gang activity equated with terrorism, and it's the very definition. The main difference is that the Latin Kings have not openly stated that they want to bring down the U.S., I guess.
We go through weeks or months where a neighborhood is terrorized by a mugger or rapist before he's caught. That's terrorism.
Gacy, Kaczynski, McVeigh, Klebold, Kazmierczak, Rader (and plenty more) - all domestic terrorists. Worse yet, like with the politician, we see every grisly detail of the murders, the murderers' lives, and how helpless each victim was. Terrorism depends a lot on PR.
I guess this post came up after hearing the debate on whether profiling should be allowed for security measures. What would that profile be? Would it include "pasty white nerd"? How is that even remotely American?
There were warning signs, apparently; a pretty clear agenda by this psychopath, and he carried them out even further than anyone would have suspected. Next, this horrible story is carried nationwide on the major networks, which reminds us that anyone can snap at any time. Classic terrorism.
We don't hear about the heroic, coalition-building efforts of a senator that passes a droll bill to curb corporate pollution, but we do hear every bit of information on a politician who killed his girlfriend. It's not a shock to me that people in other countries think we're crazy. We kill our own fairly frequently. Our representatives are just as dangerous as their constituents.
Somehow, we're able to live with street gangs in our towns. Police do their best to curtail gang impact, but in general, we just know it's a part of our society that probably won't go away. On occasion, gang activity spills into the civilian world, and someone innocent dies. I've not seen the same fervor toward eradicating gangs as I have around "terrorism". In fact, we hardly ever see gang activity equated with terrorism, and it's the very definition. The main difference is that the Latin Kings have not openly stated that they want to bring down the U.S., I guess.
We go through weeks or months where a neighborhood is terrorized by a mugger or rapist before he's caught. That's terrorism.
Gacy, Kaczynski, McVeigh, Klebold, Kazmierczak, Rader (and plenty more) - all domestic terrorists. Worse yet, like with the politician, we see every grisly detail of the murders, the murderers' lives, and how helpless each victim was. Terrorism depends a lot on PR.
I guess this post came up after hearing the debate on whether profiling should be allowed for security measures. What would that profile be? Would it include "pasty white nerd"? How is that even remotely American?
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