Books I've Read Since Starting this Blog

In addition to my Environmental Literature list, I'm starting this list: Books I've Read Since Starting this Blog. (Note: Books are listed from most current at the top to my earliest reads at the bottom.)

• When You Are Engulfed in Flames, by David Sedaris
• Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace...One School at a Time, by Greg Mortensen and Oliver Relin
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, by J.K. Rowling
• Chi Running: A Revolutionary Approach for Effortless, Injury-Free Running, by Danny Dreyer
  
• Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World has Never Seen by Christopher McDougall
  
• The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett
  
• Into Thin Air, by John Krakauer
  
• Touching the Void, by Joe Simpson
• A Thousand Acres, by Jane Smiley
• Not Buying It, by Judith Levine
• Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-free Productivity, by David Allen
• Into the Wild, by John Krakauer
• Jesus Land, by Julia Scheeres
• The Tortilla Curtain, by T.C. Boyle
• Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides
• Bargaining for Eden, by Stephen Trimble
• North and South, by Elizabeth Gaskell
  

Good stuff, huh? I know I've been enjoying them. Some more than others, of course, but for the most part all of these books have been excellent reads. I think in addition to these two lists I will also add something down the road that constitutes my top 25 favorite books or something, but that will be at a later date. What are some of your favorite books that you have been reading lately? Any recommendations?

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Idealism as the new Realism

A friend of mine sent me a link to an article about re-thinking the current free-market economic system called A Revolution in Spirit, by Benjamin R. Barber. This article is particularly poignant for both the times America is facing and also for me personally as I am in the middle of my Voluntary Simplicity Course and rethinking my own identity as a consumer. The main theme of the article is stated nicely here: "The issue is not the death of capitalism but what kind of capitalism--standing in which relationship to culture, to democracy and to life?" and it goes on to say:

"Refashion the cultural ethos by taking culture seriously. The arts play a large role in fostering the noncommercial aspects of society. It's time, finally, for a cabinet-level arts and humanities post to foster creative thinking within government as well as throughout the country. Time for serious federal arts education money to teach the young the joys and powers of imagination, creativity and culture, as doers and spectators rather than consumers."

I'm all for that. There has never been a better time than now to rethink the mindset that America has been propelling for upwards of thirty years. I'm also a fan of these suggestions:

"Recreation and physical activity are also public goods not dependent on private purchase. They call for parks and biking paths rather than multiplexes and malls. Speaking of the multiplex, why has the new communications technology been left almost entirely to commerce? Its architecture is democratic, and its networking potential is deeply social. Yet for the most part, it has been put to private and commercial rather than educational and cultural uses. Its democratic and artistic possibilities need to be elaborated, even subsidized...For far too long our primary institutions--from education and advertising to politics and entertainment--have prized consumerism above everything else, even at the price of infantilizing society. If spirit is to have a chance, they must join the revolution."

It wont be easy to make these changes, that's for sure. But in a society where identities are shaped by what you purchase and consume and the divide between the rich and poor continues to separate itself, why not seriously consider some alternatives? I want to make something of my time here on Earth that is worth more than the demarcations of trash that I can produce as a consumer. "We elected a president committed in principle to deep change. Rather than try to back out of the mess we are in, why not find a way forward?"

This article addresses some great issues; more than I can portray here. I challenge you to read it and really think about it. What does capitalism mean and how can looking at it a little differently change the ways in which our society, economy, and culture are fueled?

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A Not-so-amazing Amazing Idea

Do you ever have those days when you have an amazing idea? Then you realize that the idea wasn't that great, but you're still really proud of it?

I have been trying to reduce my plastic consumption. It's nothing drastic, but I am trying to pay attention to what kinds of products I'm purchasing. Packaging is an issue, but so is buying so many of the products that are out there from toothbrushes to toasters. One thing that's easy to do is stop using plastic grocery bags, which I have done. The next logical step in that process is also to stop using the plastic bags that stores provide for putting produce in.

Deciding that it's okay for your tomatoes, apples, and oranges to roll around in your cart takes a little bit of getting used to. And what about things like broccoli? I got some little mesh bags that have a drawstring at the top for putting in produce. I find that I only need a couple and when they're full, I can let my apples roll around a little bit. So far this plan is working nicely. The only "problem" I've run into is what to do with the lettuce. That flimsy plastic bag seems to keep it so clean and fresh and keeps the rest of my groceries dry. (The misters always seem to go off right before or during my lettuce picking experience.)

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When I get home, I like to wash and chop up the lettuce first thing and mix it all back in the plastic bag so when it comes time to making salads to take the work the next day, I just have to reach in and pull out a handful. But I'm trying to use less plastic, so this plan is no longer viable. Solution? I had two half-full bags of tortilla chips. I dumped one into the other, rinsed out the bag and let it air dry. By the time I got back from the store and prepared all of the lettuce, the bag was clean, dry, and ready to go. It still smelled a bit salty, but what can you do?

Now I have a tortilla-chip bag full of chopped lettuce. When my friends open the fridge they laugh and think it's a little silly, but I'll tell you what, my lettuce has never stayed crispier!

Tip: Throw in a paper towel with the lettuce before wrapping it all up in the bag. This keeps the lettuce crispy and rust free by soaking up extra moisture in the bag. Then, clean something up with it when you're done with the lettuce, or save it for the next batch.

Tortilla Chip Photo

A Little Ute Pride

Many of you readers know that I was in the University of Utah marching band. I was in it for 4 years and went on some amazing trips. I got to go to the Fiesta Bowl when the Utes were the first "BCS Busters," went to three more bowl games after that, and went on countless trips in between for both the football team and the men's and women's basketball teams. I also met a lot of amazing people and made some of the best friends I will ever have...It also paid for a lot of school. :)

This year proved to be another great year for the Utes with the Sugar Bowl and then soon after that the Ute Marching Band was invited to play in President Obama's Inauguration parade. The Marching Utes were the last band on the route, and though it would have been a wonderful opportunity to be there, I really enjoyed watching my friends be part of the pomp and circumstance of that day.




Oh, and lest we forget, way to go UTES in beating "the school down south" in overtime last night. GO UTES!

Winter Inversion Blues

Here in good ol' Salt Lake City, as well as other surrounding valleys in Northern Utah, we have been suffering from an inversion for a while now. I have received Red Air Quality alerts from the Department of Environmental Quality for the past seven days in a row. The air is soupy, and you can smell the muck and pollution in the air.

Photo Courtesy of Tom Smart, Deseret Morning News

The air quality system is based on red, yellow, and green burn days. Green means wood burning is allowed, yellow means a voluntary no burn, and a red light means no burning at all. You are also asked to drive as little as possible during yellow and red air quality days because cars contribute significantly to the area's air pollution. The health implications of Red Air Quality days are also significant. Health advisories go out saying that "sensitive people with respiratory disease or heart disease, the elderly, and children should avoid heavy or prolonged exertion. Everyone else should reduce heavy or prolonged exertion."

Does this sound really bad to anyone else? There are several areas in the state of Utah (Utah, Salt Lake, Davis, and Cache counties being some of them) that do not meet the current federal health standards for fine particulate (PM2.5) pollution, but it doesn't take a scientist with fancy recording tools to know that the air outside is unhealthy. Just take a look out your window, or go outside: it's pretty difficult to not notice the smell of the smoggy air. So what exactly is an inversion?

Several factors contribute to what are known as "surface inversions." Lower angles of sunlight that are present in the winter time do not heat up the earth's surface as well as they do in the summer. When the sun goes down, the air that is closest to the ground gets cooler than the air that is higher above the ground (which is opposite of normal air flows and weather conditions because generally the higher into the atmosphere air goes the colder it becomes, hence the name "inversion"). Since air is a poor conductor of heat, the air that is closer to the ground stays colder during the day time as the air that is further away warms with the rising of the sun. Also, since cold air is heavier than warm air, it stays down in the valley and the warm air floats on top, acting as a lid to the cold air. Then, in a valley that is surrounded my mountains like many of the valleys in Utah, air flow is prevented by the mountains and the hot air "lid" which traps not only cold air but also the pollutants that we emit.

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Right now, an atmospheric high pressure is parked right over many of the Western states, including Utah. As long as this atmospheric high pressure is around, storms are thrust around the high pressure. Storms are useful for pushing out inversions as the air flow and wind that they bring with them disrupt the inversion and clean out the valley of the cold/warm air dichotomy as well as the trapped pollutants.

Surface inversions cannot be prevented, however the pollution that is trapped in them can be, or at least greatly reduced. Carpooling with coworkers, combining trips, avoiding unnecessary driving, and maintaining you vehicle are easy ways in which to reduce the pollution that is caused by cars, a major contributor to inversion pollution. For other ideas on how to improve air quality in both your car and other ways, check out the Utah DAQ webpage.

A Small, Unrelated Rant for this Amazing Day

In the midst of this historic day I find myself in the midst of overwhelming frustration. I took the day off from work for two reasons. (Originally, I was going to be working from home, but as events have unfolded the work has just not been done.) The first was that my car's check engine light is on so I am at my parents house where the trusted family mechanic is just down the street to fix my car today. My registration is due this month so it's important to get this fixed. His shop is a busy one and though I called a week ago about my car, today was the first day he could fit it in.

The second reason I am home from work today is that it is Inauguration Day. I do not own a television, nor do I have internet at my house, so I am spending the day at the 'rents watching the inauguration festivities and waiting for my car to get better. What an amazing day! Besides President Obama's inauguration speech, I think my favorite part was John Williams' Air and Simple Gifts performed by musical giants Yo-Yo Ma, cello, Itzak Pearlman, violin, Gabriela Montello, piano, and Anthony McGill on clarinet. I hope you all caught it.

Now, I am awaiting the start of the inauguration parade. I am a proud former member of the University of Utah Marching Band which was invited to march in parade. I hear they are third from the last and the parade is an hour or so behind. That's what CNN says anyway. So while I am sometimes patiently and sometimes very impatiently waiting to see if I can find my friends in the band for the parade (complete with herald trumpets, which only brought out for these special occasions and I myself have only seen them once during the Fiesta Bowl parade in 2004), I get a call from my mechanic.

It's the O2 sensor. Okay, no big deal. The part costs about $85, plus labor. It's a little lower than I was expecting, so I'm happy.

Still waiting for the parade to start. Another call from the mechanic. Maybe my car is done already! No. The mechanic tells me I don't want to hear from him right now. I don't want to hear from him right now because my model of Honda Civic doesn't use the regular, standard Honda O2 sensor. It uses a different one that has an extra wire that costs $449.

What!?! My mechanic tells me that he's sorry. He says he can just reset the computer and try and get the check engine light to go off. If I can drive it for about 35 miles and the engine light is still off it might pass the registration tests. But he doesn't think the light will stay off. I am thinking that this is something that needs to be fixed anyway. I am thinking about how O2 sensors work and that it's not only important for my car and it's own fuel economy, but it's also important for the environment. In Japan, cars must have new O2 sensors every two years to make sure they are getting the best fuel economy and the cleanest emissions possible. My mechanic tells me over the phone, as I'm weighing my options, that it is recommended that all cars get new O2 sensors every 60,000 miles, but no one does because they're so expensive.

Well, I'm chalking this one down as an expense that is both economical and ecological right now. I could have my mechanic turn the light off, hope it stays off for my emissions test, and then wait until next year to get a new O2 sensor. In the mean time, the fuel I would be wasting without an effective oxygen-to-fuel manager and the harm that causes to the environment...well I don't know what the exact numbers are, but just getting the darn thing fixed will probably be worth it in the long run.

But at least the parade has started now. President Obama's high school band from Hawaii is marching by right now. I'm sure those kids are ecstatic to be there today. The Ute Marching Band is supposed to be third from the last. Until then, I will enjoy what the rest of the nation provides for the parade.

Jumping on the Simplicity Bandwagon

With all of the efforts that seem to be going on around me of people taking their lives back-to-basics, I'm making some changes of my own. Inspired by Andree's "buy nothing new" resolution, the start of the Voluntary Simplicity class I'm participating in, as well as the book I'm currently reading, Not Buying It by Judith Levine, I have decided to forgo getting the internet in my home.

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I moved into a new studio apartment not more than a month ago. My previous 2 residences have all had free internet available. After going for a year and half without having to pay for internet service, I am reluctant to sign up with any company that is going to make me shell out $30 to $50 for something I've been able to take for granted for so long. Now that I've been in my new apartment for several weeks without any internet access, I find myself getting back to doing the things I really love to do. I've read two books in the last two weeks, gotten caught up on my ever-long to-do list, spent some quality time with my guitar almost every day, exercised regularly, enjoyed the company of close friends spontaneously getting together, and have cooked several excellent meals while listening to my favorite music.

In light of all this merriment of enjoying the things that really make me happy, I am going to try going without the internet. I still have plenty of ways to access the things that require my online attention such as paying bills, my banking information, email accounts, and all other various online "needs" by staying a little late after work, using my lunch break wisely, or by heading down to the local coffee shop. It's easy to fall into the habit of coming home, dead-dog-tired, and logging on to email, Facebook, and the ever expanding realms of Hulu to watch all of my favorite TV shows (I don't have a television either, and haven't for a couple of years now), or even blogging after work. Then before you know it, it's practically time for bed to start the whole mundane process all over again. Well, I've had enough of that.

So this is my experiment. In this time of fast-paced technology, can I take a step back and lead a simpler life of not being plugged in to Goolge constantly to satisfy my want for impulse information? Can I realize the importance of taking the time to call my mom for cooking tips and recipes, rather than searching for them online? Can I relax and enjoy the fact that I'm not constantly available on whatever chat program of your choice? That's what my cell phone is for, isn't it? I think so. I've already begun to realize the benefits of the disconnected life and am savoring it.

I don't have a set goal; maybe I should. Three months? That sounds good. Done. We'll see how I feel in April.