Devices such as the Nook and Kindle have been around for a very long time.  They offer convenience but have many limitations over paper backs.

Benefits

1. No paper used to produce the book. (Environment Benefit)
2. Can carry many normally heavy books in the palm of your hand.
3. No recurring production costs. Once made into an ebook, which I don’t think costs much or takes much time when computers are used to type books in this modern age.

Limitations

1. You cannot lend them.  Sure you can lend some to others with the same book reader, but just for a limited time.
2. You cannot donate / sell them when done.
3. You cannot fill your library with them.  Okay…so unless you are rich and have a library you need to fill with first editions of rare books, you may not see a real need for a physical book.

Why?

Back to the original question…..I don’t know.  Perhaps it is because we are paying for the convenience?  or more likely, the middle men are greedy. I hear that authors make very little on a paperback and likely don’t make any more on eBooks.

To make matters even worse, often times the paperback costs the same price as the eBook.  For me, I want to go Green for the sake of the environment.  This is the reason I bought my Kindle.  Not to mention that the entire 7 book Harry Potter collection takes up virtually no space on a shelf or my Kindle.

The biggest hesitation I have is that I cannot lend the books to friends and family, or donate them when I am done reading.  Resale value of eBooks is not very high. LOL.  Now I did buy my mother a Nook for Mother’s Day which would have allowed me to share, but she promptly sold it and bought yarn with the proceeds.  She also does not pay for any books and found the Nook worthless.

eBooks should be $2

I heard that an author gets only a small portion of a book sale. Since there is virtually no cost to make an eBook, why not get rid of the middle men and make eBooks economical as well as convenient!

Going “green” to save the planet does not always put more “green” in your wallet.

Now there are some cases when you can actually save money such as rechargeable AA batteries, but for the majority of recycled products you buy, you actually pay more.

Why is that?

You would think that if products were made from existing products the cost would be cheaper.  For example there is no cost for raw materials and in many cases the recycled material is already in the form needed for the recycled product.

Companies are slow to embrace, charging consumers more for the “new” thing.

Not sure it does cost more to produce a recycled product, but I would not doubt it is because companies have not invested in the necessary equipment.  This is the reason Hybrid cars are so expensive and take so long to deliver to the customer.  There is a bottleneck in some part of the manufacturing process.  Hopefully is not on purpose.  Did I tell you I am a bit of a conspiracy theorist? :)

A local Honda dealership was handing out information sheets showing why is was “not worth going green.”  They based it on the cost of the vehicle and available units on the lot, using the current price of fuel and longevity of the rechargeable battery to show that it would not be any cheaper to by a Hybrid Civic over the conventional Civic.  This was such a disappointment.  How many prospective buyers of a Hybrid were convinced it was not worth it?  It comes down to the failure of Honda to meet the demand for the Hybrid Civic and mass produce it at a reasonable cost.

Successful Product Launches?

Here are a few that have made media attention…

• Reynolds Wrap introduced a 100% recycled option for aluminum foil.  Why did they not replace the existing product?  Are people concerned that recycled products are dirty?
• Glad recently announced to have reduced the amount of plastic used in ALL of their garbage bags without compromising the product.  Great work Glad!
• Deer Park announced several years ago now I think, that they reduced the amount of plastic used in their disposable water bottles.  Much better, but why not install water dispensers using the trucked in spring water and stop making disposable bottles?
• Recycled Batteries have been around for a very very long time.  I remember the “yellow” ones, NiCad, from years ago.  They were weak and took a very long time to charge.  Batteries today home much more power and some even can hold a charge for months unlike the traditional ones which start discharging as soon as you remove them from the battery charger.  I would have to say that recycled  batteries have personally saved me lots of money over the years, especially now since they are widely produced and the novelty of them has past. Much like the Compact Florescent bulb.  At one time very expensive and now very cheap to produce and purchase.  True that we have moved on to LED bulbs because they don’t contain mercury, are even more energy efficient, and produce less heat.

Getting Local

So I am from NY, not the city, but upstate.  Over the years the number of products that can be recycled had improved.  I remember as a child on a few plastics, I think only #2, were recyclable.  This may have been due to the rural area I grew up in, or the limited demand for recycled products of the other plastics to not make the collection profitable, but one thing was always great……

5 cent bottle redemption!

Why cannot something so simple be implemented everywhere?

Not only would more people recycle to get back the nickel they spent when they bought the product, but it also reduced the number of recyclables in the trash cans.  If you did not want the nickel, there were many others going through recycle bins and trash cans eager to redeem them.  Not to say this is idea, but it was a win for the environment and a win for the person struggling to eat on the street.  Not to mention countless schools paid for trips with can and bottle drives.

The nations capital

One wonders why DC does not have a bottle redemption, or at least place recycle bins near community trash cans along the streets.  Heck, just paint half of them blue, slap a recycle logo on it and just maybe, people would carry that can a block further to recycle it.  As it stands now, unless you are in a very limited area around the Mall or Golden Triangle, there are no recycle bins.  Even those were just installed within the last few years.

While we should not need to “pay” people to recycle, installing bottle redemption machines at local grocery stores would seem to help.  They could operate much like a change machine either dispensing cash or a redeemable coupon for money.  The crushed output from the machines could then be emptied into the stores recycle bin for recycling.

Why Not?

So my question is…why have the local environmental groups not made progress in this area.  It seems like such a basic “need” which would not take much to implement.

Google lovers…Check it out!

https://play.google.com/

The last time I was looking at the refurbished products on the Apple store site I was considering an iPad 2. It was $50 less than the new ones. I noticed that there was now an option to pickup refurbished items in the store.

Check Availability

After entering my zip code, I selected a nearby store and was provided 16 March 2012 as the availability. I clicked on another store with the same result. I thought… Hmm, odd how the stores are all getting stock of the same refurbished item on the same day.

Release Date

A few days later, the new iPad was announced and go figure, the release date….. 16 March 2012. So, when I was looking at a refurbished MacBook Pro and a MacBook Air, I again noticed a store pickup option. I did not expect the availability of both to be the same date. So this could be a coincidence, or could be the date the models get a refresh.

Going to wait

Needless to say I’m going to hold off and wait until at least March 27th to see what is “in store” for Apple :)

While I cannot go into much detail since there was a police investigation initiated, but how do thieves sleep?  I guess it all depends on how you are brought up, but there is no way I could steal anything and not feel so guilty about it.  I have witnessed quite a few things over the years “grow legs and walk off.”  Something as cheap as an Ethernet cable.  If it were me, each time I used it, I would feel guilty.  Is the guilty feeling really worth a $5 Ethernet cable?

Caught in the act

The local police spotted the thieves and they have been apprehended.  I am hoping that my computer is among the retrieved and still functional.  There was no forced entry..so who knows, if they were not caught in the act…how many offices would have been ransacked! Can you really be that stupid?  Besides the moral implications, the thieves pretty much have ruined their lives as they will likely be fired and not be able to get a job.

Changes

So…quite a few changes are being initiated.  Machines will be locked down to hopefully prevent theft in the future.  I also plan to secure my backup drive.  Thankfully my backup drive was left and still functions.  Being a Mac, my computer was backed up and it will be easy for me to import all of my profile settings, applications, and files if it is necessary to get a new computer.

Why are we required to buy a data plan for a smart phone?  That is like saying that your all in one printer / fax / scanner being required to send faxes.  Okay, so that is not a great analogy, but I think you get the point.  While you may have a DVD/VCR Combination at home, that does not mean you will be watching a VHS tape this weekend.

When I purchased my first iPhone, I was on T-Mobile and was unable to use it as a phone, but it functioned quite fine as a iPod touch (with phone capability).  After a year I decided to take the “brick risk” and free the phone from AT&T.  I used it for 3 years on T-Mobile before upgrading to a new phone and switching to AT&T due to a customer service issue with T-Mobile.

Pre-Paid Monthly No Contract Plans

When looking to get a local number I checked out the monthly cell phone plans.  I really did not want to have a contract for 2 years and was happily surprised to discover that it cost less money per month without a contract!

Why is that?

• No discount on phones
• Lower data plan rates

Hmm..that list was much smaller than I thought it would be.

Reasons not to sign a contract

• Lower monthly rate
• No contract
• No data plan requirement

WiFi is Everywhere and Free!

Once in a while I do wish I had a data plan, but at the current prices, have not even considered it.  You can’t use a GPS function without it, but that just means you need to plan your route and print a map or get a GPS for you car which does not have a service charge.

Unlike data plan restrictions and rate increases, the number of free WiFi hotspots seems to be increasing.  Businesses realize that customers want the convenience and competition has dictated the need.

FiOS Expansion Halted?

I have heard rumor that the expansion of FiOS has stopped.  Service providers are focusing on wireless Internet access at high costs over the faster, lower priced hard wired cable and phone company connections.  Sure, satellite will always be an alternative to Cable TV, but will we have any options for Internet access in the future?

Help from the FCC?

I believe it was the Federal Communications Commission that has required GMS phones to be unlocked.  While it does take a little prodding from them, you will be provided unlock codes when available.  While I don’t believe it, AT&T claims there are no unlock codes for iPhones, though you can buy unlocked iPhone 3Gs for $350, 4G for $550, and 4Gs for $650 from a provider or Apple directly.

Why does the government not step in a stop the rapid increase in data plan rates and the tightening data use restrictions?  I am convinced there is price fixing going on between the various carriers. I also believe they have worked out an “understanding” to require those who purchase a “smart phone” to buy their expensive slow data plans.

Should we lock in on an Unlimited Plan before they are gone?

For now I am happy I am not locked in, but as the data plan costs go up and the amount of data is being reduced, I wonder if I should quickly lock in a low priced unlimited data plan before they are gone.  Not many companies still offer them, or if they do, they “throttle” down your data speed the more you use.

Free WiFi seems to be abundant, and someone near  you on the bus probably has a Data Plan you can mooch if you need to :)

I have been keeping track of my volunteer contacts since 24 March 2007.  This was also the time I started to volunteer at the National Zoo and the National Air and Space Museum.  It is amazing that I have been volunteering for such a long time.  I have been in DC for about 5.5 years now, since Sept 2006.

186318

The number of people I have interacted with during my volunteer activities.  I thought a a goal of 1 million was not going to be such a big feat since 1 million dollars seems like nothing to some individuals, but it has taken a long time.

Breakdown

• 140611 Air and Space Greeting
• 1150 Air and Space Education
• 37383 Zoo Interpreting
• 49 Tours at Zoo
• 4315 Washington Area Bike Association
• 2859 Other (National Park Service, Zoo Special Events)
• 1412.5 Hours
• $135 in tour donations

My initial goal was 35 years, and I was able to lower that to 25 years based on a larger subset of data.  Based on a rate of 102 per day, it is going to take me 21.8 more years.

~21.8 years to go

While it does seem like a long way to do, I do enjoy volunteering and look forward to “clicking” 1 million times :)

~ 8000 Miles

• 6331 Miles on my Road Bike
• 1518 Miles on my Cyclocross Bike
• ???? Miles using CaBi (Capital Bikeshare)

1 Crash

Well, I would not really call it a crash.  I was side swiped by a car changing lanes from a stopped position.  Being observant of your surroundings at making sure you have an escape route along with learning basic avoidance maneuvers can really help keep you safe.

2 Falls

One was because I decided to drive over a bridge joint in a parallel direction, and the other was because of black ice.  The first could have been avoided, but the second, was totally unforeseen and unavoidable.

363 Days a Year

That is an estimate, but I ride my bike practically every day to work and to the National Zoo on Saturday and Air and Space Museum on Sunday.  The only days I don’t ride my bike are when it is either raining very hard when I head out in the morning, or if it is very cold with a chance of freezing rain.

Fun Rides

While my main use of a bike have been transportation, I have had a chance to go on some fun / fundraising rides recently.

• 2011 Air Force Classic Crystal Ride ~63 Miles
• 2012 WABA VASA Ride ~69 Miles

I am looking at doing the Air Force Classic again this year and have been anticipating open registration for months.  While I don’t plan to travel for a Gran Fondo, I am hoping the one that was scheduled for DC in 2011, will actually happen in 2012.  I would like to get out in the scenic countryside and enjoy the ride as opposed to staring at a cue sheet dodging cars which tends to happen on rides based in the DC Metro Area like the VASA Ride.  The Air Force Classic was on a closed course, but was an 8 lap route which became a little mundane.

Bike Education

Since Dec 2010, I have been teaching adults and children how to ride bikes safely in conjunction with WABA and Georgetown University as a hobby.  I need to thank the cranky residents of Georgetown for routing the GU Dupont Circle shuttle buses off local streets onto major roads.  The extra time it took to get to work sparked my switch to the bike for commuting and I have never gone back :)

After daily tracking on Fedex…my stickers finally arrived from California via an online print site.

Design

So I have been telling people for a while now that my bike is a true “natural gas vehicle.”  I am more so when consuming products containing lactose.  LOL. Okay, that was too much information.    Fifty miles per burrito seemed about right.

I went searching for a sticker to that affect that I could put on my bike.  I came across one that was pretty plain, but got the point across.  They were $2 each with a high shipping charge. While there was a decent discount when I added 50 to my cart, it did not seem worth it since my goal was to hand them out to friends, colleagues, and random bike commuters that I joined waiting for the light to change.

Vehicle Fuel Economy

I modeled my sticker after the one you see on new vehicles at the car dealership to give a little more realism to my idea.  I was torn between an Eco-friendly theme and a food inspired one.  I was looking to make a small label, about the size of a return address label, which could be easily affixed to a bikes top tube.

More uses

So I was doing some thinking and realized that they can be affixed to skate boards, wheel chairs, those 2 wheeled, now clearance priced Razor Scooters, runners, walkers, and electric vehicles.

Want one?

The bargain shopper I am said, why order 100 when you can order 2500!  So I have about 2499 extra ones to give away.  Well actually I have about 10,000 total since my sticker is meant to be cut up into quarters to be the right size for a bike top tube which is where I envisioned them going.  Kind of like how a new car has a fuel economy sticker on the window at the dealership.

So, if you want one, let me know and I will send you one or two if you have a friend.  It would really be cool to see these all over the country / world as I have no monetary motive, just a good sense of humor / environmental vein :)

The sticker

Here it is….

“Passing on your left”

Proper trail etiquette dictates that when you are passing someone, usually from behind, you always pass on the left side and provide an audible signal to that effect.   Since bells are required in the District of Columbia and many other states, a simple “ping” is all that is needed.  Of course, saying “Passing on your left” will help those unaccustomed to the bell signal.

Tally

Here goes. The list of those who signaled they were passing when approaching from behind.

Cyclists

Yes  7  33%

No  14  67%

Runners

Yes  0

No  11   100%

One runner had to stop because my dog was in the way and shook his head in disgust as he continued running.  Hmm…had you let me know you were coming and passed on the left and not the right, you might not have been inconvenienced by my dog.

Moral of the story

When you are passing someone in a car, on a bike, in a stroller, or jogging, kindly signal that you are passing and always pass on the left side. :)  Not only will it make your trip more enjoyable, you will avoid 99.9% of crashes t00!