Total Loss

On Monday, October 11th, I was involved in a front corner to front corner collision in my 1997 Honda Civic.  Everyone involved (me, the other driver, a passenger in the other car) was able to walk away with nothing but the shakes, but both cars had to be towed away.  The other driver turned left from the eastbound side of Imperial Hwy towards Poplar, across three lanes of westbound traffic.  I was in the right hand lane, traveling through the Poplar intersection and we struck, my front driver's quadrant on his front passenger's quadrant.   His airbags went off, but mine didn't (I must have braked and turned away from him to hit on the corner instead of head on.  The Brea Police officer who responded told me that a left turning car is almost always at fault in that situation as a vehicle traveling straight through an un-signaled intersection has right of way over a left-turning car from opposing traffic.  The one issue that might complicate this judgment is that the middle lane had stopped as traffic had backed up to the edge of the intersection in the middle lane (the right lane was still clear).  They might decide I had a responsibility to slow down in that case, and might be partially at fault.  If I were instructing a teenager to drive, I'd probably tell them the same thing.  Cars are stopped?  Slow down, even if you think you know why and think the reason doesn't apply to you.

Tuesday morning, I was sore as hell, with joint, back, and neck pain.  I got in to get a physical exam/manipulation, and to my relief was told that it appeared to be "just" soft tissue damage.  They didn't even take x-rays.  That was a relief.  My car got towed to a repair yard to get inspected for a repair estimate.

Wednesday I was told that the insurance company wasn't going to have the vehicle repaired as the cost estimate ($4,200) exceeded the wholesale value of the car (probably around $2K).  I'd known that was going to happen, so had begun to put myself in car-buying mode.  I cleared all my belongings out and released it to the insurance company for their inspection process.  At some point the claims adjuster for the accident will decided if I'm at fault at all and wave all, part, or none of my deductible.  At the same time, an inspector will decided how close to the bluebook value my car was and make me a cash settlement offer on the vehicle.

In the mean-time, I'm renting a car to get around (insurance benefit) and have begun the car shopping process.  I'm a green sucker, I guess, but I'm looking to purchase a hybrid.  My mother owns both the first and third generation Prius, so I'm biased towards that.  At the same time, the supply is horrifically constrained.  I went by Longo Toyota, the largest Toyota dealership in the world (sales volume), and almost every one of their Priuses were pre-sold.  They had the exact model/color I was looking for available, however (a pre-sold vehicle was pre-sold to someone who didn't qualify for financing).  We'll see whether that's a good thing for me.  The demand means they get the sticker price.  Perhaps I can go through a service (credit union's Autoland or Costco) and get something better.

The supply constraint has me re-thinking whether the Honda Civic Hybrid might be a better buy for me.  The comparable models (Prius III with Navigation vs. Civic Hybrid with Navigation) have about the same sticker price.  I'd almost certainly be able to get a better price on the Civic, and they have a 1.9-2.9% finance special on it.

I'm trying to focus on the positives of the experience.  I nursed my car along for 12 years and got great value from it.  I was in an accident which totaled two cars (probably), but hurt no one.  I've got a job and financial cushion which allows me to not panic at the thought of getting a new car.

I'm a pretty lucky guy.

Bus Ride Continues

The transfer was trivial, but my buddy Google Maps had me do it at a random stop instead of the Fullerton Transportation Center. Not a big deal, except that the A/C is so strong I need to pee. I can hold it an hour. Or get off near a fast-food place and get back on in 15 minutes. Again, not a big deal.

You did know you can plot a trip in Google Maps then have the route given to you using public transportation, didn't you?

So far, the ride is pretty stress free. I can concentrate on other things and let someone else drive without small-talk.

And so the blogging continues.

Public Transportation

How much does gas have to cost before the public invertigates public transportation? For me the experimental price is $4.25/gallon. That's what orangecountygasprices.com told me was the cheapest non-Arco station around. Bleh.

Can I afford it? Certainly. In fact, the roads have been significantly less congested, making driving much easier. But it's the principle. I have the freedom, the money, and the time (especially today) to explore the option. Shouldn't I do it?

The trade-off is obvious: 30 minutes vs. 120 minutes for just the first trip of the day. Perhaps I can catch up on podcasts and blogging on the way? :-)

I'm headed down to Costa Mesa, Los Alamitos, and back to north-OC today, all places within walking distance of a bus stop. So I spent a little time making sure I'd be able to return, confirmed the routes, packed for the day, and set off.

Lesson one: Be early if you can help it. I didn't scout out the first stop properly and ended up having to jog with my pack the mile to the Brea Mall where the first transfer was. And juuuust made it.

The running for buses took me straight back to my childhood, when my family was car-less. I hated running for buses then, but now... I still hate it.

The Sunday bus is uncrowded, air-conditioned, if a touch spartan (no cocktail service, no DirecTV). $3 for the day-pass vs. over $20 via the IRS mileage compensation formula.

My transfer is coming up, so I'll sign off for now. [snappy bus-riding line goes here]

And It Doesn't Even Rain Here That Often

Spent a couple evenings eating dinner with P and her parents, due to her reduced mobility. During a wide-ranging discussion, I wondered aloud about the viability of creating a garden designed specifically to be viewed during rainy weather. This immediately morphed in my mind into an environment that was designed to be more beautiful during rainy weather, effectively using the falling water to transform buildings and sculptures. For example, the falling water sluicing off of roofs in intricate curtain-like patterns. Or channeled into gravity-based fountains and water sculptures.

I swear I've seen this before, but I have no idea what it's called. I called it a rain garden, but apparently, a rain garden is a man-made depression designed to soak up rainwater runoff from man-made impermeable surfaces. Not what I was thinking of.

Perhaps I'm thinking of the way rain sluices off of of slanted roofs. Or Japanese rain chains (external link to video). I'm thinking of all the ingenuity that was put into medieval fountains turned to making sculptures out of channeled rain.

Why can't I figure out what this is called? I can't imagine I'm the first person to ever think of this.

Michael Pollan

Michael Pollan is the author of The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World and The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals.


Here's his talk at TED, March 2007:

Sustainable Agriculture

Last month, I read an article on Salon, Organic Farming: Not sustainable? which brings attention to the critique that organic farming might have a larger ecological footprint than conventional farming. It's frustrating in it's muddied viewpoint. In fact, I wonder if that's intentional.

Much clearer (including it's point of view) is Can Biodiverse Farming Feed The World?

I thought I'd point out some animal-agricultural partnerships which are worth thinking about.
Old, New 'Factory Farming' - The Food Programme - BBC - Radio 4

Joel Salatin of Polyface Farm, traditional, management-intensive fish farming in the Dombes region of France, Bob Orskov on rice/duck/fish farming in Vietnam. Yields are higher when incorporating animals.

More on rice/duck farming on BBC's Rice Bowl Tales. Instead of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, the farmer uses ducks to do the same thing. So the rice is organic and the farmer doesn't have to buy the expensive inputs.

Richard Cizik

Fresh Air interview of Green Evangelist Richard Cizik.

Richard Cizik is the vice president for governmental affairs of the National Association of Evangelicals, a lobbying organization that represents 45,000 churches. He is a conservative Christian who preaches the message of environmentalism from a pro-life perspective. He talks about creation care in relation to the threat of global warming.

This is the group that Ted Haggard used to be the head of. Haggard had to step down after he was accused of hiring a gay prostitute for sex and using him as a source for methamphetamine.

Why has it taken so long for the evangelical movement to pay attention to stewardship and poverty?

Glossary:
Calvinism
Dispensational Theology


Interesting stuff, but not mainstream in the Evangelical movement. Reason to be optimistic?

Detroit Hype

What's up with the hype surrounding Chevrolet's Volt? After killing the EV1, an actual production electric vehicle, why is GM getting "Green cred" for producing a concept car with a blue-sky production date?

Here's a Wired article discussion how Detroit is about to leapfrog Japanese makers with plug-in hybrids.

GM's Chevrolet Volt and Ford's HySeries Drive, unveiled as concept prototypes for the first time last month, leapfrog current hybrid designs and could put pressure on Toyota's popular Prius by offering consumers better value.

Shocking. Buried on the second page are

Honda and Toyota are also considering production plug-in hybrids...

Oh, so the Japanese are considering it too. So why the hype about Detroit leading the way? A PR decision by the companies? Concept cars? Why does it make sense to believe that Japanese automakers wouldn't lead the way on plug-ins just as they led the way on production hybrids over a decade ago and with fuel-efficient vehicles in general three decades ago? In fact, projects to convert the existing production Prius to a plug-in already exist.

Dave Alexander, a senior analyst at ABI Research, believes battery technology will not advance enough in the next two or three years to suit commercially viable plug-in hybrids.

Nick Cappa, a spokesman for DaimlerChrysler, is also skeptical, saying plug-in vehicles would require "a significant leap in battery technology." He said his company has not committed to commercializing the technology because of the concerns about battery weight and reliability.

Why give creedence to a 2010 production date if the battery technology doesn't exist!?


New pet peeve: Green Hype.