Outside

Today Big J and I went to visit an Amish greenhouse. Pretty impressive. They had the biggest tomato plants he or I had had ever seen and had quite a variety of plants. We bought four eggplants and four jalapeno pepper plants. Those were the two rows in our garden that didn’t take from seeds. After we got back I transplanted the veggies and Big J did some yard work across the street. As I was walking around outside, I noticed all the flowers in bloom and decided to grab the camera. Here’s what I captured:

eggplant row

our country garden

strawberries

Little J's garden: green beans

pink peonies

roses

peek-a-boo

peonies

 

The ‘volatility’ of greed

Gas prices here have jumped about 10¢ since the last time I filled up (I fill up–yes all the way up–between two and three times a week thanks to my lovely commute to school and work). And yet crude oil prices are down on the mercantile exchange. I did a little research and the most reoccuring explanation was contributed to the increase of refinery margins or spread increase. What that means is that even though the price of crude went down, the cost/value of the finished product went up. Things that affect the spread could include increased labor costs, increased transportation costs, etc. Apparently last week there was the threat of a strike at a U.S. refinery (The United Steelworkers) that caused this raise. But there seems to be a settlement in the working that should lower prices again.

So what this all means is bullshit. Valero is seeking to avoid labor concessions and instead said it would close refineries if workers walked out. And their strong-arming affects prices nationwide. And the retailers of gas aren’t innocent either. The average cent per gallon markup at the pumps can be anywhere from a couple of cents to a dime. (That SUV ain’t looking so hot anymore.) And all this comes soon after the announcement (again) of record profits for Exxon Mobil (they broke last year’s record by a paltry $5 billion) at $45.2 billion. Number 2 man Chevron increased the size of their pockets as well. Chevron went from $18.7 billion in 2007 to $23.9 billion in 2008.

Isn’t anyone else a little disgusted by all this? I would LOVE to lower my individual gas consumption. Last summer we contemplated moving to the city that my university is in to lower our fuel expenses. Hell, we’d have had to pay rent (something that is not a current expense) but it still would’ve been lower than our combined fuel expenses. (By myself I was averaging about $120/week on gas during the summer.) But until we finish school, riding our bikes to work isn’t an option, and neither is a new, fuel-efficient car.

So my question isn’t when are our federal lawmakers going to set price caps on gas. That would make oil companies pull out of the continental U.S. faster than they wanted to in Hawai’i when they instituted caps on the price of gas (Hawai’i no longer has the caps). My question is: when are they going to bring back the electric car that was already in production over ten years ago but that car companies (yes, the Big Three) say are in the ‘developing’ stages of technology? C’mon Mr. President, shake the lobbyists out of Washington a little faster!

 

Green Revolution

One of my favorite aspects about the hour or so drive to and from school is listening to the radio. Specifically, NPR. It’s how I stay informed with current events and often gives me that “Ah-hah” moment when things are put nicely, categorically, into context. That happened today as I caught part of Terry Gross’s interview with Thomas Friedman, a very lively columnist for The New York Times. Friedman has a new book out, but the interview is not centered on capitalist propaganda (also known as advertising). If you have a half an hour to spare (which face it, if you’re puttering around on the internet and reading this blog you probably have that time) I recommend listening to the interview. Highly comical and full of irony. My favorite quote of Friedman’s (from memory) is: “What planet are you from???” The interview deals with a topic that is becoming increasingly near and dear to everyone’s heart:  conservation. The link:

Terry Gross Interview with Thomas Friedman

Enjoy!