Saving the environment… the expensive way.
The wife and I had been talking for a while now about what we were going to do when our truck went off lease.  Our lease vehicle was a 4 door 2005 Chevy Silverado Z71. In all honesty it was a great truck. It seated my family of 4 very comfortably, was pretty luxurious on the interior by truck standards, but was still a truck when it came to fuel economy.  It was rated 15 city, 18 highway when I drove it off the lot.  I averaged around 14.75 mpg for the lease term. That’s expensive when gas gets up to $4 a gallon like it did back in 2007. But, truth be told we really liked the truck and it did things only a truck can do for you. Hauling garbage, mulch, towing a trailer to pick up expensive old woodworking machines…. ah hobbies.
My thoughts had varied wildly from week to week on what I wanted to replace the truck with. A good friend drives a first gen Toyota Prius and I loved the geek / environmental factor with the car. Fuel efficiency is great with that car, even if he drives it like a go cart stuck on WOT. We have a 1998 Honda Accord, and when it came down to it, having another small car just didn’t sit right with the wife. Providing the Honda lives on, she’s probably right. We liked the truck, we’d probably be very happy with another.
I briefly looked into buying a Jeep Wrangler.  Open top, rugged outdoor vehicle, stupid simple mechanics. Holy crap total bottom floor fuel economy.  I just couldn’t in good conscience buy a vehicle that got worse gas mileage than the truck I was replacing.
Since the existing lease was with Chevrolet, I was probably going to get the best deal there as a returning customer. I wanted something with better mileage (easy when you are getting 15), but I didn’t much care for the current lineup of Chevy’s. They have the hybrid Malibu (a good looker), but it’s a “lite” hybrid. It only has a very small electric motor that shuts off the gas motor at stoplights giving a very modest 2 mpg increase for city estimates. It costs 4k for the package though, making those extra 2 mpg very expensive. It comes well optioned though, so probably at least half that cost is in the vehicle options. Still it’s not a lot of value for technology.
They also have a hybrid Tahoe SUV that I briefly talked to the wife about.  It’s a more traditional hybrid similar in function to the Prius. The 2wd model gets 21 mpg city / 22 mpg highway, and the 4wd gets 1 less mpg in both conditions. But sitting at 54k it just seemed very expensive.  We’re in the middle of a huge financial crisis in the United States right now. Is this really the time to purchase a luxury vehicle?
The dealership we leased the truck from had started contacting us about a replacement vehicle. They were not pushy or anything, just offered to answer any lease turn in questions or new vehicle questions. Bryce was the salesman’s name, pretty nice fella. I asked him about the current GM hybrids, the Malibu or the Tahoe. He didn’t have any, and would probably have to order them. I asked him to send me some info on them anyways, and he said he would. (I didn’t get it… )
Fast forward 4 months… This financial crisis is hurting the banking industry a lot. GM’s financial unit, GMAC is the company we had our lease with.  GMAC had to classify our truck as an asset even though it wasn’t in their immediate possession, and it wasn’t very “liquid” at all. They are trying to buy back as many leases that they can, and get out of the leasing business all together for now. They aren’t currently offering leases on any vehicles, at least in my area. That means you buy it baby. Bryce from the dealership emailed (finally a salesman in the electronic age) an offer on Saturday morning. It was enough to make me stand up and say we needed to stop by and talk.
Later that afternoon we drove down to the dealership on our way to lunch. We test drove the Malibu, and it’s really a pretty nice car. I could live with it easily. It was the 6 cylinder car, as he didn’t have any hybrids in stock.  Drove nice, comfy, and averaged about 24 mpg during our 16 mile drive (little interstate). I next stared at a Avalanche, and it’s a pretty truck. The previous two versions of the Avalanche are all wrapped in plastic and very angular. They look like total shit if you ask me.   The new one, however, is a sexy beast. They have almost eliminated all the plastic and it looks 1.1 million percent better. But, and it’s a big double wide butt with two pitch forks and a devils tail, the fuel economy is WORSE than my existing truck. It’s EPA estimate is 13(!?) city / 18 highway. WTF? are we devolving here? (Not really, the EPA changed the testing procedures to reflect more “real world” driving). Sticker on that bad boy was 48k, and then an additional 5k for the fancy 24″ wheels and tires they put on it. Ouch. I briefly walked over to a Tahoe to look, and it was a sexy bitch as well. Very nicely equipped it stickered at 54k. Did you feel my ass pucker? We might have lost an office chair were it any closer.
Briefly talked to the wife about the options we saw. We wanted to check the offers on each model as it varies quite a bit. The cash rebates on the Malibu were 2.5k, the Avalanche was 3k, and the Tahoe was a whopping 7k. Made the Tahoe cheaper than the Avalanche.  Things were starting to get interesting. Combine the lease offer, GMS employee pricing (thanks grandma Brooke, love you like a .. uh, fantastic grandma!), the cash rebates, the federal hybrid car tax credit, and now we are talking some pretty decent music. I asked him if he could find a hybrid Tahoe so we could see the exact price in case what I saw on the website wasn’t correct, and in a couple minutes he had a print out of one from their other location in town. It was a red one, stickered at 53.3k. The hybrid models come loaded with a lot of features, and there’s really only a handful of options from the factory. The major ones being the sunroof and the rear seat DVD system. This truck had both, so I was pretty confident on the price. We sat forever while the number cruncher looked over the details and requested us to take a look with him. We looked at the end result and looked at each other and nodded that we could do that.
So Bryce was in a good mood, and I asked him to find us one in white or silver. He said it would be next week, and I told him that’s fine, we’re in no rush.  Next week came early, Monday at 3pm. He called and said he has it, and I can come take a look. We load up in the truck after work and head down to the dealership to drool over it.  It’s a pretty truck. Two wheel drive, the two main options and it’s the exact color I wanted, Summit White. I looked her over pretty thoroughly, and grabbed the checkbook.
Totally unexciting part here… it took a grueling 2 hours to get the financials worked out. First surprise was they were offering a loan with a whole percentage point higher than I got quoted on Saturday. I told them that was higher than I got quoted (extra 35 dollars a month is noticeable), and after a little back and forth between the finance guy and the general manager they lowered the rate to what I was quoted. Second surprise was the general manager calling into the finance guy’s office saying I was going to owe an additional $1320 for the early lease termination. Hold up there, Chachie. Excuse me? Shouldn’t someone have said that before I stepped in to sign paperwork? Yes, I think so. I look the fella right in the eye and said with all seriousness, “I don’t like what’s going on here.” He apologized and went to go talk to Bryce and the general manager. Apparently they got things worked out, cleared up, and I wasn’t on the hook for anything.  Finally get stuff signed, squared up, and I get the keys. Lets get the f out of there.
First drive in any new car is pretty exciting, and this one was no different. I’m going to post a review here shortly, but so far after 3 days, I’m very pleased. Is it going to save the environment? Naw, but it has more capacity, and it’s more efficient than what I did have. The wife likes it, and I like it, so we’re good.
March 26, 2009
Posted in: Hybrid 
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White House to plant a Victory Garden!
Awesome news. The White House will have a Victory Garden. This is fuzzy, green, good news. I love it. Eat the View had a been working on a petition to get this done. It’s a awesome idea, and I hope it gets a large write up and following. Maybe some updates from the staff that maintain it. I’m not a big political guy, but rock on O’bama’s.
On our own garden front, we’re expanding. Rapidly. I’ve got seeds of tomatoes, carrots, and leeks started. They have sprouted and seem to be growing very well. I ripped out all the bushes in the front yard so I can plant lettuce, spinach, and other leafy greens in the front yard. This took a little talking to the wife about, but she’s on board.  We’re also having a flower bed of herbs rather than… well flowers. Maybe a few flowers to keep things interesting.  Planning on planting some tomato plants on each corner of the house. We’ll log which corner grows better tomatos. Two of the upside down tomato planters on order for another tomato growing test.   Probably load those up with cherry tomatoes. Peas are in the ground, and so are the first few spinach seeds. Both planted in the raised bed we built last year. We’ll be building a second raised bed very soon.
Our rental property is currently vacant… I might throw some tomatoes over there too. Can’t hurt I suppose. I’m itching for spring. Bring it baby.
March 18, 2009
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Weekly weight summary - 3/7/09
Pushing 218.0 this weekend, and I’ve reached a milestone. I’ve lost more than half of my goal weight, 44lbs down with 43lbs to go. Feeling good, pants are getting loose, and my shirts are fitting much better.  Folks at work have noticed the smaller me, and that’s more motivation. Only bad thing right now is I’ve got a craving for a huge bacon cheeseburger. I’ll be traveling to KC next week. Last time I managed to lose weight on the road, and I’m hoping I can do the same this time.  Be careful with food intake, and use the exercise room at the hotel. Wish me luck.
March 7, 2009
Posted in: Diet / Health, News No Comments
Going green… Step 2, Recycling
Recycling. Seems like a big idea, but it doesn’t involve a lot of work. It’s so easy everyone can, and should be doing it.
We are fortunate enough to have curb side recycling that comes once every 2 weeks. It costs $5 per month to participate. When you sign up they send a ginormous rolling bin to your house, it must be 120 gallons. They accept paper, cardboard, metals, glass, and plastics (1’s & 2’s). That gets about 75% of our recycling items. Plastics 3-7’s go in a separate tub that about once a month we take to a plastic recycling center on the southside of Indianapolis. This gets all of our plastics in the house, and the same place also takes paper/cardboard that I don’t get in our normal recycling.
Before we started recycling we threw away THREE 30 gallon bags of trash to the curb every week. Now we average one 13 gallon trash bag per week, and I like that improvement a lot. What I don’t like is my trash day being on Thursday. Since we’re home all day on the weekends that’s precisely when we generate the most trash. Since I don’t change the bags as often now (they aren’t filling up!) the bulk of the trash sits there through the week. It gets stinky. I may try some odor eating garbage bags I saw that just came out.
It’s been so successful at our house I’m going to try and get the wife to help me go around the neighborhood this spring and show people how to sign up. I also need to find a way to pretty up the huge bin on the side of the house. It’s an eyesore for the neighbor, and I don’t want him thinking recycling means ugly. About the only thing I can’t recycle is LO meat pieces, citrus rinds (I generate way too much for the compost pile), and odd ball scraps of trash.
Speaking of Composting… that’s step 3.
March 4, 2009
Posted in: Green, Recycling No Comments
Country Fried Bacon
Yeah, I did it. Read about it here. It was ok, nothing to write abo… errr. I mean it was way exciting!
I need to detox now. All this goodie two-shoes eating has spoiled my stomach. It can’t handle this kind of grease intake anymore. :)  I guess that’s a good thing in the big picture.
March 3, 2009
Posted in: Bacon No Comments
I’m overweight!
As of today’s weigh in, I’m 219bs. This is an upgrade in condition from “obese” to merely “overweight”.  I’m at a calculated BMI of 29.6.
Woot! Kiss my ass exercise, I hate you! I still have to buy a new belt, and I’m wearing a pair of blue jeans I haven’t worn since my son was born. They are silvertabs, remember those? muhahaha…
Next level is “normal” @ ~183 lbs. /Robert Deniro Voice On “I’m coming for you asshole!” /RDVOff
March 1, 2009
Posted in: Diet / Health, Hacker's Diet No Comments
The Diet…
So I’ve talked a bit about dieting. I shall explain what I’m doing, and what are the goals for myself as well as the family.
At the first of the year I decided to change. I was tired of being a fatass. It sucked, and still does suck. So I started Googling diets.  I browse through all the latest fad diets and are you f’n kidding me? Cabbage soup? WTF come on people. That’s not sustainable, or healthy.  I needed something that was both. I’m cooking for 2 adults and 2 kids, and I’m not going to cook separate meals. I need to keep the kids full, healthy, and interested. A good friend I work with suggested the Hacker’s Diet. We’re both geeks, even though his geekiness trumps my own (and most CONUS), I was immediately interested. It’s simple, makes sense, and it doesn’t restrict the food you eat. Boiled down it’s just watching calorie intake. Food in, waste out. CNN had a story, and it seems to fall in line with the authors findings. It’s not rocket science, it’s calories. So I downloaded some apps for the iPhone to track calories. The first few days I was shocked at what my calorie intake was. My calculated intake to maintain my weight was 2400 calories or so. I was exceeding that thinking I was eating better than I ever had. And I was.. Those gigantic ceaser salads are still loaded with calories. It’s insane. I put myself on a 1500 calorie per day diet. No, I didn’ t consult a doctor.  I’m sure he would have told me, “lose weight fatass.”
It’s been 2 months now of this diet.  It was hard at first. It took about 3 weeks for my stomach to finally give up the growling fight and accept that was all I was going to feed it. Weight loss has been swift and noticable The more I lose the more focused I get. My high weight mark was 260lbs last year. I’m currently sitting at 222.  Most all of the initial weight loss was done without exercise. Just watching what I eat, and really focusing on calories. I kind of hit a plateau for the last 2 weeks or so, and stayed at 223. This totally pissed me off, and was motivation for another change…
There’s a gym in my office building on the first floor. I’ve walked by it almost every work day with out going in once, for over 5 years. I finally woke up and joined last Friday, 2/20/09. They are not open on the weekends, but that’s ok. I plan on taking those days off from structured exercise. Spring is coming soon and there’s plenty of work to do outside.  The goal is workout 30-45 minutes every day except Wednesday. I usually try to work at home one day a week or more, but I’ll need to get into work to do the gym. 4 days a week should help motor the weight off. My goal weight is 175lbs. I haven’t been that weight since high school. Hopefully I can get most of the way there by my birthday at the end of July. The wife’s goal weight is 180, and I think she’ll look great there. Kids just need to have good food intake at this stage, they grow so fast you can feed them almost anything.
So specifically what do I eat, and what do I avoid?
Eat : Vegetables until you puke! Cauliflower is awesome, and steamed LO’s are great to pack as a lunch the next day. Carrots, lots and lots of carrots. Broccoli,spinach, lots of lean meats like chicken, turkey, pork, tuna, and my favorite, salmon. Water, lots and lots of water to flush out your system. Sunflower seeds and raisins for snacks. All the major fruits: apples, oranges, pears, grapes, bananas, and kumquats (my current favorite snack). I eat a lot of beef jerky as well, which is probably bad for my sodium intake. Eggs! I eat lots of homemade egg drop soup. I’m trying to eat more vegetables in season this year, should taste better.
Eat carefully : Potatoes (I could eat pounds of roasted / mashed potatoes), pasta, rice, and lentils. OJ and fruit juices, red meat, salty snacks, bacon (I live for bacon), cheese, milk, butter, and another favorite, olive oil.
Avoid : Breads (not worth the calories to me), sugars, HFCS , sodas, vitamin water (this fooled me into thinking I was drinking healthy), ice cream (sob!), pastries of all kinds including cakes, cookies and such. Pretty much anything that comes in a box.  Biscuits and gravy… oh lord that makes me hungry.
That’s my diet in detail. It’s nothing sophisticated, or complicated.  Just watch the f’n calories, get a little sweat from exercise, and drink water. My obvious exceptions are the days we celebrate some Bacon Fun, but for the most part we’ve been following the diet pretty strict. I need a new belt, and that makes me super happy.
Thanks,
N.
February 26, 2009
Posted in: Diet / Health, Family, Hacker's Diet No Comments
Going green… Step 1
So last year when I decided to go “green” I wasn’t sure what to do first. But over at TreeHugger they have some basic guides. I also purchased thier book, and read it over a weekend. I wanted to start off slow, and slowly build into the process. Grab the low hanging fruit they say.  The first thing we tackled were CFL bulbs in the house. We had about 5 scattered through the house, and they were old and outdated. I was a bit worried until I saw that they had made several advancements since I bought the originals. Better colors, faster response times, and most important cheaper price.  So we first made a list of all the bulbs we had, and what types so we could pick them up at the hardware store.   I was surprised to find we had 65 bulbs in the house. Holy crap, this is going to be an expensive first step. We bought them in two trips over the course of a month. Total out lay was rougly $220.00, a pretty decent investment. I’m happy to report they have been in operation for 8 months now with out a single failure. Thank goodness.  When they do go bad though, a few places will recycle them. I’m glad they do because there’s some nasty mercury in there, don’t toss them in the bin! You can look here to find out where to recycle them.
There have been reports of CFL’s causing headaches. Before you drop a couple Ben Franklins on a mess of them, I’d advise buying a couple and putting them in a light you use a lot to give yourself a test first. We didn’t have any problems here thankfully.
Next up, Step 2, which was recycling. I’ll go into more detail in another post.
Thanks,
N.
February 25, 2009
Posted in: CFL's, Green No Comments
Homemade baconnaise…
Proof that with hard work, pork fat, and love, you can make anything. Delicious.
N.
February 24, 2009
Posted in: Bacon No Comments
Changing it up…
Changed up the site a bit. There’s only like 4 people who ever see, so it’s not that big of a deal. But it’s new, it’s exciting… it’s a break from work! Gah, I need one. It’s been pretty busy lately. We’re down one man, permanent like, and the other is out medically. We’ll manage, but it’s making me want a vacation desperately.  Even just a nice weekend off would be great. The wife is on a killer project as well, and she’s working all kinds of crazy hours.  The OT pay should help easy my pain….
We’ve got some ideas to spend the money a bit greenly. We would like a tankless water heater, and some more garden space.    I’d really like to expand the garden to the front yard as well. Pretty much any lawn space I can exchange for garden space is a win/win in my book. On the garden menu this year is lettuce, beets, carrots, peas, and plently of others. It’s still so cold out I just haven’t got into the garden fever yet.  It’ll come.
On the weight front. I’m sitting at 222.5. I had hit a bit of a plateau for 2 weeks, and that wasn’t acceptable. I have been walking past a gym that sits in my building at work for 5 years or so. Last Friday I grabbed the wife and signed us up. I will not be on that plateau for long!  We did our first workout today, about 30 min of hard walking. The treadmill eats my feet, I’ll have to do some research on that. I hate exercise, but I think this is the right life choice, or life hack if you will. Hopefully all these little life hacks add up, and I keep this family healthy. I’ve been following Giyen on her blog following the story I first saw on CNN.com.  Pretty good reading there.
N.
February 23, 2009
Posted in: Garden, Green No Comments