Practical environmentalism -- doing the math on the costs of food production

Lots of people are enamored with the idea of eating locally produced food as a way of saving energy.  It turns out that it often isn't true.   

Locally produced food can end up tasting better, especially if you buy it freshly picked from a farmer's market and happen to live somewhere awesome like Califormia where crops can grow easily.  However, it's a mistake to assume that the energy costs are substantially lower, or that what works in San Francisco would work in New York. 

This op-ed piece breaks down the energy costs involved in food production.  It turns out the vast majority of cost is incurred in preparation... your grocery runs and the fuel required to cook the food.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/opinion/20budiansky.html

I really wish environmentalists analyzed things like this more often. 

The end of Yescar

Yes, it appears that it's finally time to say goodbye to this priceless* piece of early 1990s Japanese engineering:



Despite years of repeated attempts by the manufacturing-marketing complex, I never internalized the message that cars are vital signaling mechanisms for status and wealth, and that I should go deep into debt simply to acquire one.  Instead I bought something cheap and expendable that could be dented and scratched by underskilled parallel parkers on the streets of San Francisco, leaving me with piles of money to spend on other way more fulfilling things like traveling around the world for months at a time. 

However, my hardworking car with nearly 200,000 miles to its name has finally crossed some sort of threshold.  Perhaps it was the combination of having to tape the sunroof shut to prevent leaks during the winter and having to deal with dead A/C in the summer.  Perhaps it was frustration at having to solve too many 3D puzzles in order to fit large art projects into it.  In any case, it was time to move on and get something new. 

I now have a reddish-purple 2004 Scion xB.  I like the combination of lots of cargo room, compactness of body (it's almost 2ft shorter than my current car, allowing me to squeeze into spaces that only Smart cars, Yarises and Minis tend to get), and really good mileage.  It's also a toyota, so it's very reliable.  It's a nice blank slate.  I want to make some interesting vinyl patterns at Techshop to transform it into something unique.  I guess I didn't internalize the manufacturing-marketing complex's message that I could become unique by purchasing any one of their wide array of standardized accessories.  Oops.

*Also, yescar is for sale for $1444.  I have complete paperwork including from prior owners.  No accidents.  I have one potential buyer already, if she likes the price.  :-)

[health] Muscle-building for easily bored geeks

The vast majority of my exercise now comes from indoor rock-climbing.  There's a gym about 5 minutes by car from my house.  In terms of atmosphere and focus, rock climbing is one of the geekiest sports out there.  It tends to be more collaborative than competitive and has a heavy intellectual emphasis.  Climbing routes are called "problems", which you must "beta", or solve from a technique perspective, to get to the top.  It's a giant 3D puzzle that you solve using your body.  In the process of solving the puzzle, you are strengthening a wide range of muscles.

I have an extremely hard time reliably integrating things like exercise into my life unless they're fun.  Weight rooms are never able to hold my attention for more than a few minutes.  Yoga is more useful than fun, so I tend to do it only occasionally, like when my body is aching.  However, rock climbing offers continual and varying challenges, and seems to keep my mind engaged.  In the past I used the videogame Dance Dance Revolution as exercise.  While it was fun, it was pure cardio and didn't do much muscle-building.  Rock climbing manages to hit balance, cardio, and strength at the same time.

Now I do about 1.5 hours of rock climbing three times a week, and I force myself to piggyback some time in the rock gym's weight room to work out muscles that aren't hit by rock climbing.  All in all it's been going well.  I've picked up a few pounds of muscle in the process, though that has plateaued in the last month.  I've paid a lot of attention to pre and post workout nutrition; since I'm an ectomorph I have to give myself a ridiculous amount of protein and carbs around workouts. 

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Rock climbing geekery:
 
It took only a couple of months to reach the point where I was doing 5.10c and 5.10d routes, but progress has been very slow over the last three months.  I'm now doing some 5.11a routes, but not reliably.  Perhaps I should remember that skills often progress along a punctuated equilibrium model.  My bouldering has improved somewhat over the last month though.  I'm finally able to do some V3s, though I still can't do many V2s with steep overhangs.