Virtual Bible School

Vacation Bible School is a great idea - unless you're a working parent.

It's tough to tackle carpools, cranky not-old-enough siblings and schedules. Yet, most churches around here do daytime sessions.

A church en route to my work was offering an evening Vacation Bible School this week, one my preschooler could even attend. Yet I did the math.

5:30 leave office
6:00 arrive at daycare
6:30 arrive at VBS
8:30 pick kids up
8:45 home
9:45 battles continue over bedtime...
7:00 am fight over wake ups

(repeat)

Of my 30 minutes between pickup and VBS, every minute would be spent commuting. Which meant that we'd be eating takeout or cheese and crackers in the car, neither of which are appealing. Coupled with a forecasted excessive heat watch this week, and my husband and I did something I never thought we did.

We ditched the church. And went online.

Earlier this summer, I'd signed up for a virtual Vacation Bible School based on the recommendation of another blogger. I thought it would be at the very least an option for activities during the week.

Instead of plays and group games, we watched videos online and did coloring pages. Instead of baggies of goldfish crackers and juice boxes, we had cooking activities that tied in with the day's lessons. Instead of being constrained to a five-day period, we've dropped in activities as interest arises. Crafts are coming, as are the rice krispy treats that are part of "Day 5" activities. (Not sure about the theological aspects of marshmallows, but what the heck.)

Yes, I miss the idea that my kids will miss out on the camaraderie of being at a traditional Vacation Bible School. But with $3.79 gas, a heat wave and overly tired children, I'm glad to know there are alternatives out there, too.

Little green lies

Want the truth about going green? It's not easy. In fact, it's a lot of work.

You have to think consciously and cognizantly and be a responsible grown-up about your actions. You have to think beyond yourself to the generations ahead of you. You think about the generations today, and the wildlife around (and not so around) you. It's a hefty responsibility. And maybe all you wanted was a clean toilet!

Whew. It's little wonder we start slipping into little green lies. With the mounting pressures of the world around us, being environmentally responsible can start to take a back seat.


So like everything we do with good intentions, we start to slip a little.

Maybe it's too cold outside or you're too rushed to run back to the car to grab your bags for your grocery shopping. One time won't hurt, you reason. (Yet the average person uses enough plastic bags each year to use up a half-gallon of gas each, the plastic manufacturing industry admits.)


Maybe it's the Styrofoam cup you grab at the cafeteria because you were there, you were thirsty and you didn't keep a cup at your desk that day. Just this once, you figure. (Yet there's no Styrafoam recycling for at least 100 miles around the Indianapolis area, according to earth911.)

Maybe it's the 100-calorie pre-porportioned treats you bought at the grocery store, paying far too much for because you didn't want to make the time or the hassle of buying a normal or bulk-size package and counting out the baked chips or cookies yourself. It's more convenient this way, you rationalize. I don't have to think about it. (Yet people tend to overindulge on the "just this once" 100-calorie packs, adding to weight gain and the amount of trash consumed.)

Maybe you decide to run through the drive-through just this once. After all, I had a long day at work, the kids are cranky, and so am I! (Yet Central Massachusetts University found at that the average McDonald's drive-through window, vehicles spent more than 37 hours combined idling each day. One hour of idling burns about a gallon of gas. Do the math.)

Maybe it's just another little green lie we tell ourselves.

Visit the APLS Blog Carnival, hosted by Cathy at VWXYNot? on Jan. 22 for more contributions on the games we play to talk ourselves in and out of green decisions.

Making the most out of your gas savings

Last week, I was pleasantly surprised to fill up my gas tank for under $35. As gas prices have plummented in recent weeks - by more than half the peak prices we saw this summer - the temptation exists to drive more and relax about our overall use.

But wait. There's this little thing called "Supply and Demand." If we as a society drive more, gas prices are certain to rise again.

Instead, I usrge you to show the same sensabilities and restraint you showed when you were paying $4.25 or more a gallon this summer. And take advantage of these savings to reinvest in other energy-saving and environmentally friendly measures, such as:

• CFL bulbs for your home
• Weather stripping
• Green cleaning products
• Power strips (and use them to shut off power to items not in use!)

Or, save up for:

• Edible landscaping
• A compost bin
• Energy-efficient appliances
• A hybrid (ha!)

Monday morning musings

Random thoughts this Monday morning:

• After a disappointing experience with try to go berry picking at Alpine Berry Farm in Batesville, our Saturday plans evolved to a trip to the Franklin Farmers Market, located at the Johnson County Courthouse. I’m thrilled to see it doing as well as it is…a month and a half ago, this area was completely under water.
• I love going to the farmers market, but how many times do I have to tell my child not to run off with random produce to wash them in the bathroom?
• Good Morning America this morning discussed its Carpool Challenge, touting that it can save consumers $3,000 a year. I’m all for carpooling – but what really are your options when you children to take to day care?
• Speaking of challenges, I am actually sticking to one. My plan for July was threefold: reduce or eliminate plastic bag usage, limit extra computer screen time and load up on water at the office. So far, my plastic bag count is seven. It did help that we got reusable bags at our work. Now, my husband’s car has a few bags on the passenger seat, ready to use.
• It’s five months and four days until Christmas. If you haven’t already, sign up for my Have a Handmade Holiday challenge and create one gift this holiday season.

Have a great week!

Charity in a gas-strapped world

This morning I looked at the day's schedule and lamented that I have a board activity to go to. Not that I don't care. It's just at $4.19 a gallon, every mile becomes scrutinized.

I've written before how non-profits are hurting due to rising gas and food prices. But here's also where they are hurting: in volunteers. It gets harder and harder to justify costs. While people I believe want to make a difference, they also want to conserve and make the most of their miles.

So here's a thought: Virtual volunteering. Many, many organizations around the country post their needs for virtual volunteers at volunteermatch.org. (There were more than 2,200 possibilities when I searched today.)

You can, from the comfort of your home, do such things as:

• Web design
• Write grants
• Plan events
• Host a baby shower
• Design a MySpace page
• Make breast cancer lapel pins
• Create lists for fund-raising
• and more.

Even if you don't have the cash for gas, consider making a small difference by helping out at home. Your seemingly small effort could make a big difference in someone's life.

Golf carts? Go for it…

Golf carts are going beyond the green these days to become a greener alternative to your car.

More and more people are toying with this mode of transportation beyond the golf course. I’ve seen it just blocks from my house, even though we’re far from a grocery store or other retail and about a mile from the nearest gas station.

Several Indiana towns allow golf carts as alternative forms of transportation, and others are debating the safety. Four states actually have on their books laws against golf-cart usage on public streets, according to the Indianapolis Star.

If a cart has safety lights, then why is this any more of a safety concern than the casual cyclist, or someone on a scooter?

Writes Star reporter Tim Evans:

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does not recognize golf carts as on-road vehicles, so they don't have to meet the same federal safety standards as automobiles. McGwin said he isn't opposed to expanding the use of golf carts but said safety must be addressed. That includes requiring operator training and seat belts.

…Dennis Rosebrough, spokesman for the state Bureau of Motor Vehicles, concedes the law is unclear. He said the BMV's stance is that golf carts cannot be registered with the agency, "so, in theory, they should not be on the roads."

So why are bicycles allowed to share those same roads, but not golf carts?

According to the Associated Press, citing studies reviewing U.S. emergency room records, 1,000 Americans are injured each month while riding golf carts.

Males aged 10 to 19 and people older than 80 had the highest injury rates….
falling or jumping out of carts accounted for the largest number of injuries, 38
percent.

Only half occurred on streets or residential property. The report continues:

... golf cart injuries are hardly an epidemic. According to the database from which the studies were derived, there were 35 times as many injuries blamed on bicycles in 2006, and golf carts were also far outstripped by injuries blamed on vacuum cleaners, roller skates and swing sets, among others.

Cyclists must ensure they follow safety rules, whether it’s proper hand signals, reflectors or helmets. With a little common sense on the part of the riders and similar safety features for golf carts, there’s no reason why this mode of transportation shouldn’t be an option. In Gas City, Indiana, the Star reports:

Carts must be equipped with head-, tail- and brake lights, a windshield and a triangular slow-moving-vehicle emblem. Drivers must be at least 16 and provide
proof of insurance when they register their carts each year with the police department. The carts may not be used on state highways and may cross them only
at designated intersections with traffic lights.

Still, if you’re looking to save costs, you’ll need to weigh the cost of acquiring a cart with the benefit of the gas you’ll save over the long term. According to the Star, golf carts can be found for as little as $2,500, and can cost about 3 cents a mile to operate.

If you’re looking for something a little more upscale, there’s the Neighborhood Electric Vehicles, which retail around $8,000, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

The vehicles run on batteries, carry license plates, and can be legally operated on thoroughfares with speed limits up to 35 miles per hour – at least for now.

Before you hop on board the golf cart trend, make sure it meets your lifestyle. If you’re currently facing a heavy commute, live long distances from retail, your church or workplaces or other places you often frequent, or have small children, this might not be right for you just yet.

Not ready for a golf cart? Find other ways to save gas on your commute and daily living.

Is oil a 'divine gift'?

Today's opinion page in the Indianapolis Star includes an interesting letter. In it, the writer recaps the story of the man trapped by a flood and offered rescue three times. Each time, he refuses, stating God will rescue him. At his death, he questions God, who replies that he did provide the assistance, but that it was refused.

This writer takes the analogy and applies it to the American oil crisis:

I liken this to our complaining about the cost of gasoline and about OPEC. God
provided the bounty. All we have to do is go after it. But we waste time looking
at other sources, making silly excuses, when his supply was right in our
backyard all along.

(You can read the complete letter here.)

It's an interesting theory, that oil is a "divine gift" that we can use for our benefit. But I have to wonder, is it not then like many other gifts we may have been given by the higher power of your choice, that we might squander it?

Your thoughts?

When are gas prices worth it?

Gasoline prices have forced our family to make tough choices, particularly of late. It's influenced the jobs my husband's applied for. It was the reason I turned down a part-time teaching job at the local college's off-site location - 50 miles round-trip wasn't worth the pay. And it was the deciding factor in whether to attend my grandmother's funeral. Drive to Wisconsin and get a hotel or feed the kids for a few weeks. You make the call.
It's a realuty of today's rising gasoline prices. Even at $2 a gallon, my husband and I were already making choices about what was worth the drive and what was not.
But there are some things, even with our strained budget, that are still worth the drive at $4 a gallon.
My short list:

• My amazing endocrinologist, 40 miles away. There's no one in the metro like her, and I refuse to can her because of the drive.
• Along the same lines, my new PCP, so I can get access. Hopefully, I won't have to see either of them often.
• On rare occasions, a drive to what my toddler has dubbed "the horse farmer's market" (the organic year-round farmers market at Traders Point Creamery. Have seen plenty of cows and chickens, but no horses.)
• About as rarely, a drive to Fresh Market to stock up on bulk goods such as dried fruits and spices.

What is worth the drive for you?

Turn off your $@%# car

Gasoline prices are jumping 30 cents today to $4.21 a gallon, and people are jumping too.

My co-worker came in with the news - she's signed up for a text message update on gas prices - and, being currently in a single-income household, I went to go fill up my tank.

I did find a station relatively close to my office that was still under $4 a gallon. The problem is that everyone else seized the same opportunity to get out of the office. Lines were starting to snake around the building, and cars scooted back and forth as people jockeyed for the "next" pump.

Here's the irony: In racing to get a relatively cheaper gas price, you're wasting gas money.
Turn off your $@%# car! Idling engines waste more gas than turning them off and back on again. If that's not reason enough, you release less fumes into the air - particularly important in the summer months, when we struggle with Ozone Action Days in our city. And, it's always worse on the air quality to fill your gas tanks up in mid-day, when temperatures are higher.

So here's my plea: Exhibit a little patience today, or any day you see the gas prices rise. Turn off your engine and wait a minute. And hold off on using drive-throughs and other gasoline wasters. A little common sense can make a big difference.

Fill 'er up and fund mass transit

On NPR today I caught the end of a story discussing fuel prices and the growing demand for mass transit. In several cities there are active discussions of whether to raise gas or other taxes to fund mass transit, whether it's trolley, light rail, bus systems or other methods of transportation.

In Indianapolis, we're faced with crappy public transportation. We have a bus system that can't get people to hospitals or many jobs. No carpool lanes. Few bike lanes. People are as glued to their cars as they are their Steak 'n Shake. Perhaps a gas tax, in this instance, could pay off in spurring development of mass transit.

It's an idea that's finally being explored here. The Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority is holding a series of public meetings later this month to discuss the concept of what they call a "mass transit starter system."

What do you think? Is it worth a few extra dollars each time you fill up for the long-term gain of better mass transit?

Prices at the pump do make a difference.

I stand corrected.

Last week, I lamented the seeming lack of real change on the part of American consumers. If the preserving our environment for future generations wasn't enough of an impetus to make a change, surely gas prices would be, one would think. Turns out, it's true.

This morning's news discussed how gasoline usage in March experienced the sharpest decline ever recorded: 4.3 percent compared to March 2007. And that was when gas was several dimes cheaper.

My weekend guests commented about how traffic seemed lighter this year, even with one planning to cope with traditionally heavy traffic headed for the Ozarks and the Indianapolis 500.

And this morning, I realized I would have to work two hours to make up for the half-tank of gas I'd just put in.

So consumption habits are changing. I stand corrected.

If you're looking for other ideas on limiting your gas use, check out these sites to get started:

• iReporters change lifestyles to dodge hefty gas bills
• The Top 10 Ways to Reduce Your Gasoline Consumption (Read related comments on Digg)
• How can I reduce gas consumption?
• Top 5 Ways You’re Needlessly Adding Weight to Your Car
• Top 4 Ways You’re Wasting Gas When You Think You’re Saving It
• iReport: Pain at the pump

$4 gas, and what have we learned?

Gas yesterday hit the big 4-0-0 in Indianapolis

Techincally, it's $3.999 (is that little 9/10 of a cent to make you not feel so bad?). Who knew I would ever live to see $4 gas.

The sad thing is, other than being broker and everyone I know whining more, little outward changes seem to be happening. Yes, some stores' sales are down, like Target and Lowe's, but little widespread change in our habits is occuring yet. The highways are still cluttered, but the grocery stores are empty on the way home from work, when people could instead be piggy-backing their errands onto their daily commutes. People are still planning road trips for Memorial Day weekend, and the farmer's market, which features locally produced goods, truly wasn't that busy last weekend.

So the question is, if we're scrimping to make ends meet as the media tends to report, where are we making the changes? And are we honestly doing it in real ways that make a difference? What have we learned? And what real changes will you make?

Killing the planet, one Diet Coke at a time

I love my Diet Coke. I admit my addiction fully, though I’ve cut back in recent years to the equivalent of four cans each day (well within the safe caffeine limits for pregnancy, in case you’re curious).

Yesterday, though, we celebrated Cinco de Mayo in our office. Each of us sat around a table with a can of soda, which we dutifully poured over a disposable plastic cup of ice (No. 6 notwithstanding).

It got me thinking: Are we killing our planet, one Diet Coke at a time?

While I religiously recycle at home, even allowing a bag to build up in my car rather than toss in a trash can, we only offer can recycling in our office, and no plastic or aluminum can recycling at our main campuses for the company I work.

So, what is worse: Pop in plastic or cans? The reality is both use a tremendous amount of resources.

According to Earth 911 and the Pacific Institute:

• Gossing your plastic bottle wastes approximately .00034 barrels of oil each time. “Producing the bottles for American consumption (in 2006) required the equivalent of more than 17 million barrels of oil, not including the energy for transportation,” writes the Pacific Institute Web site.
• Tossing your can “wastes enough energy to keep a 100-watt bulb burning for almost four hours or run your television for three hours. Tossing away an aluminum can wastes as much energy as pouring out half of that can’s volume of gasoline,” writes Earth 911.

While I’ve yet to find direct comparisons of energy resources used, the fact is clear: By not recycling plastic bottles or cans, we’re contributed to the high energy prices we’re complaining about.

According to earth911:

Last year 54 billion cans were recycled saving energy equivalent to 15 million
barrels of crude oil - America’s entire gas consumption for one day.

Right now, Americans recycle less than one-fourth of the bottles they use. Just think: If we recycled every soda and water bottle, we could conserve the equivalent of our nation’s entire gas consumption for four days.

Think about that the next time you reach for your 3:00 caffeine fix.

3 gallons of gas

I realize this is a diversion from the typical environmental blog posting. But it's an issue that's dear to my heart.

As we all know, gas prices are hitting families hard. It wasn’t long ago that we complained about $2 a gallon. Now, it approaches $4.

While skyrocketing gasoline prices impact our own budgets, it harms those in most need of help more.

The furniture/household item delivery program at Fresh Start of Indiana, an organization devoted to getting domestic violence victims back on their feet, is facing cutbacks due to rising gas prices. The Indianapolis-based organization has had to reduce the number of furniture deliveries to their clients due to the increase of gas prices. Every increase at the pump hampers the group’s ability to help domestic violence victims get a “fresh start” in life with the simple necessities of a home.

I realize we are in challenging times, but I urge you to consider donating the cost of three gallons of gas, or more if you are able, to Fresh Start of Indiana's furniture/household item delivery program . You can do this by supporting the “3 gallons of gas” campaign.

Visit http://3gallonsofgas.blogspot.com to how to help. Together, we can make a difference for families in need in central Indiana.

Gas tax suspension: Will it make a difference?

John McCain wants to suspend gas taxes for the summer months. Pardon my skepticism, but it’s too little, too late.

"Because the cost of gas affects the price of food, packaging, and just about everything else, these immediate steps will help to spread relief across the American economy,'' McCain will say in today’s speech, Bloomberg reports.

Yes, I’d like to shave 18.4 cents or so a gallon off my gas prices, but truthfully, with gas prices at $3.50 a gallon, does 5 percent off matter? Big Oil, obviously, is still making its heavy profits at the detriment of the poor worldwide, who are facing rising gas prices a challenge to affording commuting to work, or worse, purchasing food.

So what can us “little guys” do? Practice conservation. If each of us takes little steps towards reducing our fuel usage, we can make a true difference.

Making real change in gas consumption

Gas this morning hit $3.49 a gallon, a record in Indianapolis. Which means in about 48 hours I’ll get another “stick it to the gas companies by not buying from Exxon” e-mail.

These kinds of e-mails make me nuts. First, there are no Exxon stations here; second, the stations that are here do very likely buy from Big Oil; third, a one-day hold on purchases just means you’ll have to buy the next.

Want real change in your gas prices? Consider doing some or all of the following:

• Trade in your SUV. And if you can’t, be smarter about when and where you drive.
  
• Avoid drive-through banking, restaurants or other services. You’re just burning gas while you wait. Park the car and go inside. You might burn a few calories instead of gas that way.
  
• Switch your schedule or route and avoid rush-hour tie-ups. A few minutes can make a difference.
  
• Move or change jobs, if needed. We found that when we moved to the other side of the metro, we saved enough in gas each month to make up the difference in our mortgage. And that was when gas was only $2 a gallon (the good ol' days.)
  
• Watch your speed, your air filter and your tire pressure. All affect your mileage. You can even do my dad’s trick and keep a log of mileage on the odometer and how much added to the tank. If your mpg is going down, get your car looked at.
  
• Carpool or take the bus, if you have that flexibility.
  
• Ditch the gym membership and the drive back and forth. Get a bike or a pair of tennis shoes instead, and enjoy your weather in the spring and summer months.
  Piggyback your errands into one trip, or at least to and from the office.
  
• Got a Netflix membership? Watch something online instead of having it mailed (and save the USPS the plane fuel from shipping).
  
• Buy local. We don’t need grapes from Argentina. Enjoy the seasonal variety of locally produced produce, and help the little guy in the process.

More later. I'm just getting started!