Cheered by the holidays

I hope that your holiday was a festive one. For me, the best part of the past three days (including today) was having some time for myself that didn’t involve work. I love my job, but regardless of my fondness for work, it’s still nine to 10 hours of my day that is spoken for, not given to rare multiple choices of things to do.

For instance, having the leisure to prepare dinner Christmas night, with my wife, without time constraints, or feeling the usual crush that accompanies typical work nights was refreshing. We whipped up a wonderful meal of Farmer’s Pasta, a recipe courtesy of Food Network star, Giada DeLaurentis. This combination of four cheeses, pancetta, and creaminess, made it the perfect kind of Christmas comfort food. In addition to this great dish, I threw together killer Caesar Salad, another DeLaurentis contribution to our Christmas. The key here was the dressing, flavored by anchovies, fresh squeezed lemon juice, and Dijon mustard, superior to any supermarket concoction.

In addition to some wonderful food, which included this morning’s breakfast of locally-produced sausage from Maurice Bonneau’s Sausage Kitchen, now relocated to lovely downtown Lisbon Falls, along with some awesome Mimosa’s, and my own version of the traditional omelette, Miss Mary and I have enjoyed the luxury of time together, which might be one of the best parts of the holiday season—spending it with those you love.

This was our first Christmas in 25 years that our son, Mark, couldn’t be with us. That was tough because Mark possesses a larger-than-life presence that is particularly noticeable when not around. We managed to satisfy ourselves with two phone calls, one where he and I talked Celtics’ basketball like we would if he and I were sitting across the table from one another. This completed another circle in our lives, as the year he was born, a quarter century ago, was Mary and my first Christmas away from family. Mark was just six days old at the time, and we spent Christmas 1,500 miles from our extended families.

One of my favorite activities associated with having no constraints on my time, is the luxury of being able to devote hours to reading. As a lover of books, reading time is always hard to come by most times during the year. Despite demands on my time, I always have two or more books going at once, managing to plow through 40 to 50 books per year. Yesterday, I was able to finish Diane Roberts’ Dream State: Eight Generations of Swamp Lawyers, Conquistadors, Confederate Daughters, Banana Republicans, and Other Florida Wildlife. The Roberts book is one I meant to read back in 2006, during our final spring baseball trip, following Mark and his Wheaton teammates as they spent another 10 days in the Florida sun, prepping for what would be a season of magic.

The four springs that Mary and I spent in Florida, along with two prior forays—a Disney trip when Mark was 12, and one extended weekend in November 2005, unwinding after the completion and launch of When Towns Had Teams—helped formulate some understanding of the Sunshine State that extended beyond the typical Fodor’s, or AAA tourist propaganda. Roberts’ book brought an even more complete tearing away of the false façade that creates the accepted mythology of tourists, and even residents that has become Florida, dating back a century, or even further.

Speaking of books and publishing, Sara Nelson, who is Editor-in-Chief at Publishers Weekly, was on C-Span2’s Book TV, talking about book and the nature of bookselling. Nelson said that book sales, like all retail, were down this holiday retail season. However, while publishing as we all know it will inevitable not stay the same, she writes on her blog “…that in the long run, …when the dust settles – and it will settle– there have always been stories, people to read them, and people to produce and disseminate them. Whether those stories (and people) will be part of large corporations, whether the stories will be measured in pages or bytes, and whether there will be hundreds of thousands of them produced every year—well, that we’ll have to see.”

For me, the single most telling trait about someone’s intellectual acuity is whether they read, or not. In my way of seeing the world, reading is essential to being able to sort and sift information in the midst of the snowstorm of white noise buffeting all of us in society. Those who haven’t developed the skills that are only acquired through reading, aren’t capable of critically conducting the required sorting of scarce pearls from the mass of swinish faux factuality.

Bait and switch Barry

As candidate Obama, our next president never missed an opportunity to tout that he was going to be an agent of “change,” transforming forever the old ways of governance. If you have been keeping score at home, the candidate who would be messiah has fallen far short of what he proposed, if his appointments are any indication of what’s in store for the first 100 days, and beyond.

The recent appointment of Tom Vilsack, former governor of Iowa, and friend of Big Corn, as Ag Czar, is just another example of Barry being Barry.

Vilsack has a reputation as being a schill for agribusiness biotech giants like Monsanto. In fact, Vilsack regularly flew on the Monsanto jet, while governor. Because of his ties to Monsanto, and Cargill, proponents of sustainable agriculture are none too pleased by Obama’s appointment.

Both Obama and Vilsack are supporters of corn-based ethanol, which Robert Bryce, in Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of “Energy Indepence," condemns as a scam. Other critics of ethanol, like Lester Brown, from the Earth Policy Institute, recognize that corn as fuel guarantees severe hardship to 2 billion of the world’s poorest people, who depend on corn as a food staple.

It’s not just environmentalists that have concerns about corn-based ethanol. Dennis Avery, director of global food issues at the Hudson Institute, a conservative think-tank in Washington, D.C., has concerns that are remarkably similar to Brown's. Avery, like Brown, breaks the issue down to its most basic element—food or fuel?

From a paper that Avery published, he lays out the issue as such:

"The real conflict over cropland in the 21st century," wrote Avery, "will set people's desire for biofuels against their altruistic desire that all the children on the planet be well-nourished." He continued, "The world's total cropland resources seem totally inadequate to the vast size of the energy challenge. We would effectively be burning food as auto fuel in a world that is not fully well-fed now, and whose food demand will more than double in the next 40 years." Avery says that even if the U.S. adopted biofuels as the antidote for imported crude oil, "It would take more than 546 million acres of U.S. farmland to replace all of our current gasoline use with corn ethanol."

That's a significant amount of acreage, particularly when you consider that the total amount of American cropland covers about 440 million acres.

Michael Pollan was recently interviewed on NPR and spoke to the Obama appointment of Vilsack.

Pollan’s issues with Vilsack run to his embrace of corn-based ethanol. Pollan is concerned that corn-based ethanol production for fuel will continue to drive up food prices.

He indicates that the key in developing a national biofuels initiative is utilizing crop waste, trees, and grasses that don’t compete with the food supply. Pollan made the point that Stephen Chu, the former Nobel Prize winner, and new Secretary of Energy, is a “fierce critic of corn ethanol.” Actually, Chu is far from being a “fierce critic” of corn as a fuel, as Tom Philpott points out at Grist.

Chu apparently views corn as a “transitional crop” to cellulosic ethanol, which is 5-10 years away from viability.

Given Obama’s appointment of Vilsack, you can be sure that we’ll continue being forced to fuel our cars with gasoline tainted with ethanol, which robs me and others of about 5-10 percent of our fuel efficiency.

Choosing the proper rubber

The final weekend before Christmas, it appears that retailer’s plans of deep discounts and other enticements to consume have been foiled by the weather, at least in the northeast. A significant winter storm is chugging its way up through New England, this one promising whiteness and wind, on the heels of the previous mayhem brought by sleet and ice.

Each successive winter of my life, I marvel at the lengths that news stations go to frighten the masses at the mere hint of winter weather. Of course, given the evolution of the human race, enamored by technology, yet increasingly incapable of storing up a few cans of Campbell’s Soup to warm up on the wood stove when the power flickers and fails, it’s small wonder that these same fools descend on supermarkets for water, Wonder Bread, and toilet paper in the event that the power goes out.

Speaking of power outages, apparently the natives have grown restless in Massachusetts. A news report on NECN reported residents of one subdivision blocking the exit of Unitil power crews from their subdivision without restoring power to every home. Apparently one woman jumped aboard a truck and refused to leave until her electricity was turned back on. Probably being unable to finish her online shopping for the holidays drove her to this level of desperation.

When I came of age during the late 70s, mounting snow tires on the rear-wheel drive (RWD) vehicles of the era was standard practice. Living in Maine, it was a given that it snowed and if you wanted that behemoth of a sedan to be able to leave your driveway, let alone carry you to your job, then a good set of snow tires was a necessary investment.

The first car I owned was a ’74 Plymouth Scamp. I’m convinced that those of us who learned to drive on RWD cars, like my Plymouth, never acquired the false sense of security that plagues many younger drivers, and unfortunately, some of the older idiots occupying the ditches each and every storm.

Not only did we learn some basic safety rules of driving in the snow—proper following distances, don’t lock up your brakes in a skid, slow-the-fuck-down when it gets slick—we also had a sense that you made basic preparations for a winter of driving through a Maine winter, like tires.

I’ll be the first to tell you that I learned the intricacies of winter driving by trial and error, and plenty of mistakes. That first winter, I skidded off the Freeport Road, on my way to Pineland Center to work, cresting a hill and continuing straight off the other side of the road, so maybe my initial attempts at winter driving mastery were tentative. A passing pickup was kind enough to stop, back up, and pull me back onto the road.

The cars of that era were nothing like today’s vehicles, which practically drive themselves, which allows our current crop of motorists the freedom to concentrate on their cell phone calls, text messages, and work their doing on their laptops as they traverse our highways and byways.

Once I joined the world of FWD motoring, I accepted the wisdom that the newer vehicles no longer needed snow tires to get through our winter snow and ice. The all-season radial was now the choice of many drivers. Oh, there were still those that understood that while all-season tires were ok, they were far inferior to four winter tires, particularly if they had an aggressive tread design to funnel ice and snow out of the grooves. Studs were even better.

Approaching 200K on my 10-year-old Taurus, I upgraded to Ford’s newest version of their utilitarian Taurus brand this past spring. Refusing to buy-in to the environmentalist claptrap and eco-propaganda that foists hybrid jokes like the Prius on consumers, I bought another American-made Ford. The new Taurus is a joy to drive. Powerful, with a new design, and an interior cabin built for tall drivers like me, I don’t regret my purchase at all.

With the approach of the snow season, and recognizing the inadequacy of my all-season Continentals, a fine three-season touring tire, I began investigating my options for motoring through another Maine winter. A long-time fan of the Michelin tire line, I had my sights set on scoring a foursome of the new Michelin X-Ices, a topnotch tire that approximates studded versions of winter tires. Unfortunately, due to Quebec’s mandating that all cars have snow tires after November 15, there were no Michelins to be had.

I’ve been a customer of Lee’s Tire in Brunswick for nearly 20 years, dating back to my Central Maine Power days, when they provided tire service for our truck fleet. Unable to secure my Michelins, the recommendation was for a studded tire, particularly when I mentioned the amount of time I spend hurtling up and down the interstate, often north of Augusta.

I’m running four Nokian Hakkapiliitta 5s, a top-of-the-line studded snow tire. These tires, made by a Finnish company, are incredible. My first test was an icy storm that found me driving home from Skowhegan after dark. While most of the drivers were creeping along at 35-40 on I-95, I was able to maintain a steady speed of 55-60, and probably could have pushed it harder if I wanted to, without any loss of traction.

I think Quebec’s policy is a good one, although it’s caused shortages here and north of the border (including a new rash of crime--tire/rim theft). While you can find skeptics galore at various forums, criticizing the province’s mandate, they most often are drivers that haven’t experienced the superior handling, and in particular, the ability to stop that you have with winter tires that just isn’t possible with all-season tires. Granted, you can compensate by driving slower, allowing proper following distances, and planning ahead, but most drivers no longer even think about doing that. As a result, many drivers running all-season varieties of tires find themselves in a skid, and not knowing how to steer out of one, they are headed off the road, or possibly worse, into the path of an on-coming snowplow, or tractor trailer.

There's a a saying that goes like this--"It's not about the car, it's about the driver." I'll take it a step further. Being a good driver helps, but being a good driver, and investing in the best tires for the road conditions increases your odds of making it through the winter safe, and free from harm.

Take it from someone that’s a good winter driver, once you buy winter tires, you’ll never go back to running all-season tires in the winter again.

Weighed down by ice

The last major ice storm to hit Maine and other northeastern regions of the U.S., and Canada was in 1998, and now is known merely as Ice Storm ’98. A month shy of its 10 year anniversary, much of northern New England got whacked again, with severe icing, trees down, and significant power outages across large swaths of Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts.

The ’98 storm brought with it nearly four continuous days of steady freezing rain, and drizzle. The 2008 storm, while it brought significant icing, was for a much shorter duration. Still, large pockets of outages remain, after two straight days of around-the-clock work by local utility crews, and large numbers of reinforcements pouring into New England, from points south.

It’s interesting reading some of the reports about this storm, and comparing it to my own recollections of 1998. With this one, large population centers—the Seacoast in New Hampshire, and cities like Worcester, in Massachusetts—were hit, as well as significant portions of southern Maine.

In ’98, our home went eight days without power. During that stretch, we spent time in a “warming center” provided by L.L. Bean, where relatives worked. Additionally, showers were commandeered at work, and elsewhere.

While this storm has significant numbers of customers without power, the damage to trees and power lines seemed more extensive, 10 years ago. I remember hearing reports, and seeing photos of the large pylons that carry high-tension lines through southern Quebec, collapsed from the weight of the ice.

Yesterday, I happened to catch part of a MPBN call-in show, where Sara Burns, the president of Central Maine Power was answering questions from callers. Like in ’98, many callers questioned the company’s response to the storm, wondering why they couldn’t have their power restored instantaneously. In other quarters, utilities come under fire when customers question what appears the selective nature of power restoration. This is now common whenever severe weather, or other disasters strike us. Technology has a way of making petulant children out of us, particularly when we’re inconvenienced in the slightest way. In 1998, I thought people's better natures were on display. This storm already has stories that indicate that just a decade later, we're less likely to come together, and instead look for ways to hedge our own bets.

Having worked for CMP for nearly 10 years, I’ve experienced several major storms, although I had left the company prior to 1998. It’s never fun to be out for five, or six days straight, particularly when you know your own family and loved ones are without power. I have nothing but admiration for the men and women who risk life and limb out in the worst of conditions. This current storm had crews starting at 5:00 am, and working until 10:00 pm, getting seven hours of sleep (which when you’re running on adrenaline, like happens during storms, you tend to get more like three, or four). They’ll continue with that routine until the majority of customers are back online.

As much as we’ve grown accustomed to flicking a switch and having the power be there, we also live in a section of the country where ice storms and severe weather happens. No matter how much maintenance trimming is done (Burns said the company spends $20 million per year on this), heavy ice and falling branches are a distribution system’s worst enemy. Compounding the issue, in my opinion, is the amount of resistance that power companies in northern New England get from folks who think that trimming is a bad thing (except when a tree falls across their service line).

I watched a tree crew do some fairly aggressive trimming on our road this past spring. They cut a large swath of overhang on the major roadway bordering our property. I viewed this as a good thing, and realize that it may have spared us from having a longer outage this time (we were only without power for about 10 hours).

Technology affords us many advantages compared to our grandparents. For most of us, our way of life has changed dramatically from those who lived 60 years ago. At the same time, we’re much less likely to take well to no television, batteries running down on our laptops, and no heat coming from our baseboards.

While some would argue that life today is superior, and I’d concur, when things happen, like the ice storm in 1998, a wise person takes stock, and makes provisions. While I didn’t get a generator, like many did, after being without power for a week, or more, I think I’m much better prepared in small ways, or at least I like to tell myself that I am.

Fellow writer/blogger, Margaret Evans Porter, lives in New Hampshire, and has been writing about coping with her own lack of creature comforts and the things we so often take for granted, on her blog.

Mild temperatures surely allowed significant progress to be made yesterday, and I hope that many homes that have been without electricity since the weekend, have it soon, as I know all too well what you start to feel like, and how cranky you start getting after three days, or more, without power.

Auto bailout redux (giving them what they want)

During the past several weeks of Big Three bashing, the media has amplified the regular drumbeat of criticism against the carmakers--that they have not been producing what American consumers wanted.

Like many other myths that are perpetuated because most people are too lazy to do a little investigation, the idea that Americans somehow want little shoebox cars, powered by rubber bands, after years of buying SUV's and full-size pickups seems preposterous at best. Yet, that never stops the media from running this out at every opportunity.

Let's look at the numbers, however.

While certain drivers think that driving a Toyota Prius is worthy of a gold star, sales of SUVs and pickups have bounced back. As gas prices have plunged, so too have the sales of hybrids. Keep in mind that in 2005, SUVs outsold hybrids 23 to 1. Even with an uptick in 2006, why hybrid sales increased by 28 percent, they only accounted for 1.5 percent of all cars sold in the U.S.

An interesting read on the subject of energy independence that's worth reading just because it runs counter to so much of the blather coming from all media corners is Robert Bryce's Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of "Energy Indepence," which I happened to review at Working in Maine.

If Congress wants to ensure that GM, Chrysler, and Ford survive, they might want to reconsider mandating hybrids, and plug-in electrics, like the Chevy Volt.