I've been really keen on the notion of getting a fryer grease diesel car. I thought about taking it to the next step: a vegetable oil powered home generator. Now that would be sweet. Cheap running car, no utlities that is frugal. If you were to live in an area with well water, it would be almost nothing exspense-wise.
My monthly expense rundown: (bear in mind these quotes are for my local living expenses)
Total electric utilities - $200
Gas expenditures - $140
Water bill - $30
Total = 370
In one year these can be in ballpark of $4000 . Can you imagine what you could do with that money? In a five year period you could potentially save 20K. Mind you, it would it would take a slightly different lifestyle. You'd have to spend a good chunk of time hunting down fryer grease & oil, and later purifying & store said fuel stuff. But wouldn't it be worth it? Think of what you could do with the savings. For a family of four, the projected five year savings estimate is $35,000. A 15 year year plan could put you at over 80k in savings. Imagine what that cash could do wisely invested.
Friday, May 05, 2006
the hamster effect
Sometimes I wonder what I've gotten myself into. A student said she was going to say I did something to try to get me into trouble. Of course she didn't say it to me directly, she bragged to another student. This student in turn told a teacher. Said teacher told me. I told the office. Nobody, other than me, seemed worried. Gee, it's only my career, why worry? This could also be construed as they have so much faith in me it is a non-issue. I might be too much of a pessimist.
In 1993, in high school, I was witness first hand to what a few girls with mailicious intent can do to a teacher. A girl lied about an incident ( I was there and saw what happened) claiming a young, first-year male teacher made an inappropriate advance. She had three friends who were in that class back up her story. He was on the front page of the newspaper and was on "administrative leave". He was guilty before he even went to trial. I don't want that.
This is the first time in four years I've seriously considered a career change. In two years, I'll have a degree in forensic biology with a concentration in criminal justice. Perhaps I should just go into law enforcement. I could work for the state's crime lab. In law enforcement, you can beat the hell out of them if they are non-compliant.
In 1993, in high school, I was witness first hand to what a few girls with mailicious intent can do to a teacher. A girl lied about an incident ( I was there and saw what happened) claiming a young, first-year male teacher made an inappropriate advance. She had three friends who were in that class back up her story. He was on the front page of the newspaper and was on "administrative leave". He was guilty before he even went to trial. I don't want that.
This is the first time in four years I've seriously considered a career change. In two years, I'll have a degree in forensic biology with a concentration in criminal justice. Perhaps I should just go into law enforcement. I could work for the state's crime lab. In law enforcement, you can beat the hell out of them if they are non-compliant.
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
paradigim shift
I am well aware I put myself in the situation I'm in. Broke, out of shape ect. I'm more than willing to work my way out of this rut. It just seems so daunting a task.
I see a certain amount of futiity n my job these days. Nobody ever seems to get better. They all get in trouble again and come back to me again. I work them to no end, they still can't behave in class. I was a complete jerk when I was their age too. I did just mean things I regret to this day. Like in 4th grade when we were getting crushed in baseball, a little girl named Amanda hit a one in a million shot and got a home run. That should have been her moment of glory....should have been. When she rounded second base, past me, I tripped her. She skinned up both her knees and her forearm. She liked me quite a bit and it made her cry. My punishment was I had to sit out the last of the game and get silent lunch. .
As an adult, I feel a certain deep remorse for that act. I appologized and she accepted, but we were never really good friends after that. I felt like the status quo. Just ruining someones wonderful, shining moment for the sheer fact that I was mad that it wasn't me. Like keying someone's band new car the day they get it, or running through a sand castle at the beach. I deserved to be hated, and I was.
The funny thing about being a hated outcast, it makes a very nice chitinous shell around your emotions. My personality was tempered by years of abusive relationships. I think my fall from grace was in 8th grade. I tried to be good, to be a good, God - fearing little boy. 8th grade was not a good year for me. After being in private school for three years, I was sent to the worst school in the area and the kids just ate me alive. It was the most miserable time of my life. Then my Grandmother died. I was keeping the faith. I knew God was testing me and I had to stay strong, just like Job in the Bible. Then she died. I prayed and prayed and cried and prayed some more. I wanted to make sense of it all. Then it hit me.There is no sense to be made. It isn't fair and it never was. Good has absolutely nothing to do with anything. Well, yes it does. Good is important, but that has nothing to do with churches or books that contradict themselves.
The some of kids who made my 8th grade experience pure hell were church goers too. God didn't tell them to treat me nicely. God told them to beat me up for my lunch money. Obviously God wasn't talking to both of us. My conscience was talking to me, and they either ignored theirs or never had one. When you pray, it is an emotional wash cycle. You feel better and cleaner, until you go out to play again and soil your conscience.
I spent 30 years wanting to believe in God. Maybe there is a God and he got mad and quit. He only wanted Sunday off and we couldn't even give him that. So he said I ain't doing 7 days a week. This place can go to Hell as far as I'm concerned. And it has.
Maybe God is just our conscience. That little nagging voice that tells us if we're doing the right thing. Just listen to your conscience and you'll do just fine. What about those with no conscience to speak of?
I see a certain amount of futiity n my job these days. Nobody ever seems to get better. They all get in trouble again and come back to me again. I work them to no end, they still can't behave in class. I was a complete jerk when I was their age too. I did just mean things I regret to this day. Like in 4th grade when we were getting crushed in baseball, a little girl named Amanda hit a one in a million shot and got a home run. That should have been her moment of glory....should have been. When she rounded second base, past me, I tripped her. She skinned up both her knees and her forearm. She liked me quite a bit and it made her cry. My punishment was I had to sit out the last of the game and get silent lunch. .
As an adult, I feel a certain deep remorse for that act. I appologized and she accepted, but we were never really good friends after that. I felt like the status quo. Just ruining someones wonderful, shining moment for the sheer fact that I was mad that it wasn't me. Like keying someone's band new car the day they get it, or running through a sand castle at the beach. I deserved to be hated, and I was.
The funny thing about being a hated outcast, it makes a very nice chitinous shell around your emotions. My personality was tempered by years of abusive relationships. I think my fall from grace was in 8th grade. I tried to be good, to be a good, God - fearing little boy. 8th grade was not a good year for me. After being in private school for three years, I was sent to the worst school in the area and the kids just ate me alive. It was the most miserable time of my life. Then my Grandmother died. I was keeping the faith. I knew God was testing me and I had to stay strong, just like Job in the Bible. Then she died. I prayed and prayed and cried and prayed some more. I wanted to make sense of it all. Then it hit me.There is no sense to be made. It isn't fair and it never was. Good has absolutely nothing to do with anything. Well, yes it does. Good is important, but that has nothing to do with churches or books that contradict themselves.
The some of kids who made my 8th grade experience pure hell were church goers too. God didn't tell them to treat me nicely. God told them to beat me up for my lunch money. Obviously God wasn't talking to both of us. My conscience was talking to me, and they either ignored theirs or never had one. When you pray, it is an emotional wash cycle. You feel better and cleaner, until you go out to play again and soil your conscience.
I spent 30 years wanting to believe in God. Maybe there is a God and he got mad and quit. He only wanted Sunday off and we couldn't even give him that. So he said I ain't doing 7 days a week. This place can go to Hell as far as I'm concerned. And it has.
Maybe God is just our conscience. That little nagging voice that tells us if we're doing the right thing. Just listen to your conscience and you'll do just fine. What about those with no conscience to speak of?
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
the car racket
I think Paul had a great idea. Clean up old beaters and sell them at a premium. I'd like to do biodiesel cars, but whatever makes money would be cool.
Coke Blak = Me Yak
I had an impulse to buy a bottle of Coca-Cola Skat, I mean Blak last Sunday. I like a lot of coffee-flavored things. Ice cream, frappacino, and those frozen drinks the book store sells. I was kind of intereste to see what a coffee-flavoed soda would taste like, and I sure found out......it tastes like ASS! I would not be surprised if a few shallow graves were dug outside the Coke Co. R&D facility after this tasty little treat was unveiled to the board of directors. It seems like a frat prank gone wrong. I have to believe they just gave up on this one. It suxs. Quite possibly the worst things I have ever ingested. I could not finish an 8-oz bottle. It was as if pure evil had been given a flavor, and that flavor is Coca-Cola Blak. Now, if you will excuse me, I need to go boil my toungue.
Monday, May 01, 2006
Grease monkey fun
I forgot that being a cashier can be fun. A guy came into buy boxes and after the price quote he asked if they were lined with gold. I said no, but I fill them to the top with happy thoughts. My co-worker thought I was hilarious at least....
U-Haul rentals are also fun. People are mad as hell when they go to rent a moving van and find the prices outrageous. Renting a UHaul truck for two days is much cheaper than buying a box van or hiring a moving company. Still people expect certain things for free.
Working with the public reaffirms my long-held belief that I hate people. Loud, ignorant, insensitive, selfish, over-bearing people that walk around with a sense of entitlement and a chip on their shoulder. The type of people who walk around, acting like everyone owes them something. They all rent UHauls.
Although the job itself is rather simple, I can see where it would be trying. But not everyone is horrible, I met a very nice older woman that works as a prison guard that had a nail in her tire. Seems kind of odd that she would wear make-up to such a job. Hmmmmmmm.....
On the exercise front, I'm always wanting to try new things to improve my results. The sad part is, I've not really been doing this long enough to notice any real results from anything. I am becoming more aware of my general nutrition. I'm chugging down a lot of water, milk, multivitamins, and protien powder. I'm hoping for the "6-month difference" and the "one-year wow-you're-not-the-same-person pictures". I'm pretty serious, and I'm doing what I know how to do, but I don't know how great my long term results will be.
U-Haul rentals are also fun. People are mad as hell when they go to rent a moving van and find the prices outrageous. Renting a UHaul truck for two days is much cheaper than buying a box van or hiring a moving company. Still people expect certain things for free.
Working with the public reaffirms my long-held belief that I hate people. Loud, ignorant, insensitive, selfish, over-bearing people that walk around with a sense of entitlement and a chip on their shoulder. The type of people who walk around, acting like everyone owes them something. They all rent UHauls.
Although the job itself is rather simple, I can see where it would be trying. But not everyone is horrible, I met a very nice older woman that works as a prison guard that had a nail in her tire. Seems kind of odd that she would wear make-up to such a job. Hmmmmmmm.....
On the exercise front, I'm always wanting to try new things to improve my results. The sad part is, I've not really been doing this long enough to notice any real results from anything. I am becoming more aware of my general nutrition. I'm chugging down a lot of water, milk, multivitamins, and protien powder. I'm hoping for the "6-month difference" and the "one-year wow-you're-not-the-same-person pictures". I'm pretty serious, and I'm doing what I know how to do, but I don't know how great my long term results will be.
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