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| Monday, August 24, 2009 (22:51:00) - Hot Babes, Bikinis, and Rednecks, Oh My!!! |
It’s not a complete night until the police have been called!
I’ve been out of pocket lately with my blogging and especially stories about hanging with Brian in Cincinnati. That’s partly because he’s been in South Africa and I’ve been trying to hang out more in Chillicothe. When the opportunity to ride out and hang with Brian presented itself (actually, I had to turn down other invites to do so), I just had to do it.
I mounted my trusty steed, aka the old girl, aka the police cruiser, aka the old hog, aka the beast (right Corndog?) and headed into the sunset. Yes, I actually rode into the sunset. It does rise in the east and set in the west and Cincy is west of Chillicothe afterall!
The temp was a cool 80 degrees and the cloud cover kept the sun from blinding me. It didn’t keep the sun from glowing, providing some of the most beautiful scenery imaginable. Most of the ride from Chillicothe to Cincy is through farmland nestled in rolling hills. The ride is so much fun that I don’t know if it’s the ride that pumps me up or the prospect of the night’s forthcoming hang!
By the time I got there, I was singing “So Far Away” by Crossfade loud and proud and riding through the streets of downtown Fort Thomas. I pulled onto Brian’s street and rolled to the end of the road for the easier u-turn in a round-about and then back up the hill to his house. The old girl was anxious too and gladly lifted her skirt to show off her underbelly. Brian said he was gonna nap, but the ruckus musta woke him ‘cause he and Bekah (his housemate) both came out front to greet me.
We exchanged greetings and made out way inside. I kinda wanted to pre-game (I think Bekah already had), but figured I would be better off if I eased myself back into the game. Plus, we were going to pick up Andy and I wanted to have my wits about me.
A quick shower and change of clothes and I was ready to make a night at Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club listening to the stylings of Leroy Ellington and the E-Funk band.
It’s always a good time at Ludlow Bromley’s. Brian really likes playing there and I really like hanging there. The place is packed in the summer and since the air was set to be moderately cool, there would be even more people there. On any given night before, there were anywhere from 150-250 people there eating, drinking, and dancing. On this night, there were more like 250-350 folks getting their redneck groove on!
My initial plan was to wear one of my favorite shirts. I even ironed it at Brian’s (packing on the motorscooter can wrinkle clothes)! But when he presented me with a gift from South Africa, that shirt went back on the hanger.
Brian found the coolest shirt ever and thought of me, saying “I saw it and knew you had to add it to your offensive shirt collection!”
And he was right on the money! This shirt at first looked like Range Rover apparel. It was brown with a green oblique circle on the front. At first, I didn’t think much of it. Then I saw a pair of the best words in the English language. They summed me up to a tee!
Right there, plain as day where you would expect to see ‘Range Rover’ read ‘bush lover’!
Talk about a conversation piece! I was so excited. And I just couldn’t hide it!
Andy and I helped Brian unload some schtuff and immediately went to the bar. Now, this is a big bar. There’s at least 30 yards of it arranged in a square. We had to circle twice to find a spot to order a drink.
On the second circle, we heard “ANDY!!!”
It was one of Andy’s old girlfriends. He introduced me to Layla, Kayla, Shayla, I don’t remember what the hell her name was. But in about 15 seconds I had a special name for her.
I shook her hand and said, “Hi, my name’s Mike and I’m a bush lover!” while pointing at my shirt with the other hand.
“Too bad I don’t have one of those!” she proudly exclaimed.
Now I know exactly what she meant, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to set the tone for the night.
“What, do you have some other type of plumbing?” I asked. “I know, you’re a he/she. Come on Andy, let’s find a table to eat at and take the he/she with us!”
She declined. We bode her farewell and reinitiated our search. Just after we completed our second full lap around the bar, someone called my name. It was Bekah and she had found the best table in the place. It was right up by the dance floor and next to the water. We could dance, watch others dance (which is what Andy did all night), or just cool off with the breeze coming in off the water. We found our server and ordered food and drink just in time for the band to crank up.
I’ve exulted on the sounds of Leroy Ellington and the E-Funk band before. They were just as much fun to listen to as any other night, so I’m not going to go into a diatribe of boastful brazin ostentation on their musical or showmanship virtues. You can read a previous post about that.
Instead, I’m going to tell you stories about cute girls that were dying to take my hat, the ‘best friend’ female basketball players, the acting trio, fat pawn, hoverers, a raging azzhole we’ll call Clay, and Debbie’s tiff.
When Brian’s not playing on a song, he’ll come out to the table we’re at and have a drink. It gives me a chance to cool off if I’d been dancing or introduce him to some new friends. I had just finished my dinner and was starting in on another Miller Lite when Andy, Brian, and I noticed three babes walk on over to the dance floor followed by a couple of chody looking guys.
One blonde and a guy wearing a red shirt and some motocross shorts had the makings of a couple. He was either drunk or a retard, ‘cause she was working so hard for his attention it was almost sad. I’m all for making women work for me, but this display was borderline pathetic. There comes a point where the hot girl is no longer interested in the guy who won’t fall all over her and gives up. This ordeal was past that point and led me to believe that this girl might just have self-esteem issues.
The rest of the group had their sit together. The other (and hotter might I add) blonde and the short brunette with thighs that’ll make the Colonel’s mouth water were keeping the fun loving oriental guy company. Oriental guy, as it turned out, wasn’t as chody as I had initially thought. It’s too bad he didn’t follow the hotter blonde and smokin’ thigh girl over to me. I would liked to have met him.
That was more of an afterthought than anything else. My attention was on this girl with the killer thighs, her blonde friend, and why they were leaning down next to me.
“We want a picture with the cowboy and his hat!” one of them said.
“Oh, that’ll cost ya! I’m not a free piece of meat! Ok, but just this once.”
Evidently, that wasn’t enough for the ladies and they wanted a picture wearing the hat. Not one to pass up an opportunity to make girls do twirls, I gave the hat to the head attached to those killer thighs and while holding her hand made her do a couple of twirls. I was hoping that she would spin around fast enough so that little bikini cover-up skirt would fan out and display more of her fabulous legs, but she spun slow.
We posed and oriental boy took another picture, or maybe it was low self-esteem blonde. I dunno. I just know that I wanted my hat back!
I thanked the girls or allowed them to thank me and sat back down. I got thigh beauty’s Facebook info in hopes she would post the picture and I could share them with you all here. But, she hasn’t.
They departed just in time for Brian to make his way back to the table. I felt bad for him for about two seconds. The feeling subsided when a brunette and a blonde, both wearing sleeveless tops and skintight jeans eyeballed a couple of chairs at our table. We invited them to sit with us.
They did.
The blonde was having a good time! The brunette reminded me of myself when I have to be the designated driver. I love my friends, but being sober around them when they’re drunk is an ass whoppin’!
The blonde got up to dance, puke, I really don’t know and I asked the brunette how they knew each other.
“We play for the same basketball team,” she explained. She said they were in college and played on the team together. It coulda been UC. I don’t remember. She was cute, but bored me quickly.
Throughout the night, these two girls were blowing off guys and getting a little too familiar with each other. They were either full blown carpet munchers or attention seekers. Girls like that are either as queer as a football bat, or are dying for the attention of bipeds with penises. I’m not quite sure which it was with these two, but Brian’s convinced it’s the former.
“You guys don’t see what I do from up on the stage,” he explained. We believed him. I got out on the dance floor and tried, but the curtain on that show must’ve fallen.
I returned to my perch to suck on a can of the sudsy stuff just as a group of try hards started hovering around these three girls. It was two blondes and an exotic brunette I would later learn was Iraqi that were awkwardly being stalked by four or five guys with short pencil beards. You know the type.
These guys were just standing there watching those girls dance in an awkward creepy sorta way. Well, I actually though it was funny, but I’m sure they were creeped out. As a matter of fact, I know they were. These guys would just stand there and not move until the girls had their backs to them and then they would creep up and start grinding on their legs and rumps like the girls were going to lift their skirts and screw them right there on the dance floor.
I couldn’t stand it anymore. I got up and blocked the hoverers. I danced with the girls for a couple of minutes and invited them back to our table. I hoped the hoverers would go away and these girls could go back to having fun.
It turned out that luck was a lady named Bekah. Bekah walked through the group of hoverers on her way back to the table and met the suave and debonair hunk man named Clay. Clay was decked out in his white jean board shorts, bandana, and sleeveless Orange County Chopper t-shirt. They exchanged pleasantries and he followed her somewhere.
We made small talk with the Iraqi and her friends. The Iraqi told us how they went out tonight with a plan to act out certain roles. They started drinking and all plans were abandoned. Some girls can have so much promise, but they get drunk and open their mouths and all hope just flies away like a little birdie that heard the farmer’s shotgun.
One of the girls in this group was like that. She just got back from 8 months/minutes/years (I don’t care) in England. She was engaged to a Welsh dude. She started talking to Brian and I about how we’re in the best country. We explained that we were both world travelers and know exactly what she’s talking about. Evidently her 8 months in English speaking England made her more of an authority on how foreign cultures perceive Americans than Brian and I who have been to a dozen foreign non-English speaking countries each because she just wouldn’t shut up and quit trying to convince us. Brian’s break was over and I magically had to go to the bathroom. They weren’t there when we returned.
But Bekah and Clay were. Evidently, Clay said something to Bekah about motorcycles and she took the opportunity to pass him off on me. “Mike’s got a couple of killer bikes! Mike, which one is it that you rode out here?”
I explained to him that it was an old HD police cruiser and he couldn’t have been more clueless. A look of fear came over his face. Before she could find out his story was a façade, he exclaimed how great riding was and changed the subject.
I coulda told her that anyone who wears a sleeveless OCC t-shirt, bandana, and white jean board shorts and hangs out with a bunch of pencil beards was a poser. But I enjoyed watching her squirm. Turns out that he invited her on his boat with him and his pencil beard posse. She said it was such a gentlemanly “So you gonna come on my boat or what” invitation that declining was nearly impossible. His azzhole status was confirmed when he replied with a “Fuck You Then!”
Clay and his pencil beard posse hovered for a little while longer until Bekah danced with sultry singer’s chode fiancé. I thought for sure that was going to lead to a fight. I was torn between sticking up for Bekah or letting chode boy get his ass kicked. Andy and I decided it would be more fun to pull Bekah out of the fight and let chode boy get stomped by the pencil beard posse.
Instead, Clay just stormed off and pencil beard posse followed him.
It was then that a random chick, slumpbuster at best, was walking around looking lost on the dance floor. Brian made a comment about her and I figured that since he’s been out of the saddle for some time that he wanted her to join us. I brought her over and introduced them. He made small talk with her and before you know it, wisped off to blow his horn.
Now, I’ve been fat friended before, but never fat pawned. He pawned her off on me and I was stuck. She was all alone and I was stuck. I could see Andy rolling in his chair over her shoulder as we talked. There’s taking one for the team and then there’s being tossed in the middle of the coliseum with the lions for sport. I couldn’t bail fast enough.
Our night of frivolity was coming to an end. The band was all done and the place started to clear out. I decided that I party enough with these guys I should help them with the gear.
I was rolling an amp out to the van when this guy ran past me and full speed. I thought, “that was weird!” Then two officers followed him, to which I thought, “this is gonna be interesting!”
He was tackled just as his feet hit the parking lot. This could not have felt good. He was in shorts and I know he left some skin on the pavement.
But, that wasn’t enough for our hero. Oh no way. He had more resistance left in him for the man.
And the man had a little show stopper known as the taser in store for him. I know this because I heard a zap-zap and a moan followed by a “Why did you tase me? I didn’t do anything wrong!”
Then he got desperate. “Debbie, we can work this out! I’m sorry Debbie! I didn’t mean it!”
Johnny Law and Debbie didn’t think so and our hero got a free ride to the iron bar hotel.
All in all it was a good night. I hung with some old friends, made new ones, and enjoyed some great music. Hell, even the police were called! |
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| Friday, August 21, 2009 (21:12:25) - Twisted DNA |
Motocross was coming to Chillicothe last Friday and my plans for the night unexpectedly opened up. I hadn’t ridden the bobber in a few days and was itching to. What better way to spend the evening than take a nice little ride out to the Ross County Fairgrounds and watch kids ride dirt bikes!
I mounted my new girl and headed out that way. Riding the bobber actually worked to my advantage as I was able to just roll in the back and bypass any fees. I guess they thought I was with one of the race teams or something.
I parked her next to some crotch rocket and found my friends. One of my buddy’s girlfriends has a kid that races and we hung out near their family and friends. It was a good time.
The last race was a doozy. I was actually a quad race. There were no less than three spectacular spills, with one occurring on the last lap as the rider crossed the finish line.
Little did I know that I would share a similar fate later.
I mounted my iron steed and began rolling out of the fairgrounds. Only problem is that everyone else was trying to get out at the same time. I sat in traffic for a while.
That 3” BDL primary and clutch is not very forgiving. In traffic that thing can really wear you out. I found myself coasting down hills and holding it in with my right hand at stop signs.
I made my way out to SR 104 and headed south towards downtown Chillicothe. I knew I would face some construction that I didn’t see on the way up. I took a detour that ended up being a few miles longer. I figured that the detour wouldn’t do anything for me southbound.
Now if you’ve never been on a rigid frame bike with a stiff DNA springer front end, you can’t fully appreciate suspension. There is some suspension in the seat, but that’s it for the rear. The front end is super stiff and feels like it’s bare tire mounted on some rods rolling on the road.
Those little bumps and potholes you pass over in your cushy cages or mounted on your softail’s plush king/queen seats feel like being body slammed by John Cena. I love it! I just have to take it in small doses.
SR 104 in front of the prison in Chillicothe is enough of a pothole/construction bump dose to last me for a while, a lot longer than the few minutes I spent on it. I was getting beat up fo sho! That beer I was headed to get at The Dock was looking better by the second.
Then it happened. Traffic came to an abrupt stop because some turd decided to slow to less than 2 miles an hour to make a turn onto the freeway ramp. I didn’t sweat it. I had plenty of room and could stop pretty easily.
What I didn’t have was experience braking on that bike when rolling over extremely rough roads. I didn’t know or even consider that braking hard over large bumps and through potholes would do any damage. I knew it wouldn’t be fun, but as it turns out that was the least of my concerns.
I applied the brakes, front and rear, and felt the pounding of the rips in the asphalt. Out of nowhere, the bobber began pulling hard to the left and I couldn’t control the throttle. I also had little to no front brake and the back of the car that had stopped in front of me was not looking like a place I wanted to be.
I was going to hit the car in front me. I had two choices. I could let the bike float into oncoming traffic or try to steer her off to the right. I chose the right.
I finally got the throttle closed. I don’t why it opened up. I can only guess that the twisting of the front end pushed the right grip further from me. When I was set to be open 1/3 throttle the relocation of the grip increased it to like 1/2. Panic set in for a split second until I was able to let go. You have to also remember that the throttle and front brake are on the same side, so I had to roll off the throttle while applying as much front brake as I could.
I also had a load of rear brake applied. I didn’t want to lock her up and go into a skid. Compounded with the lack of steering control that would’ve made a bad night much worse.
Finally on the side of the road, I got off to survey the issue. I was shaking and in traffic at 11 pm. It was bad. Then I saw the damage to my bike and it was very ungood.
At first, I thought that a bolt has simply come out of the front brake caliper mount and the force of the caliper smacking the back of the rear fork bent the front one. I was wrong. After some research and further surveillance, I found out what really happened.
The front brake was heavily applied as the bike rolled over a hard bump. The front wheel became airborne for a split second, but long enough for the brake to lock up the wheel due to no resistance. When the tire made contact with the pavement the brake applied to on the right side of the front end (single disk setup) and the momentum of the bike was too much for the DNA springer front end to handle. It just gave up and let the momentum of the bike and the brake twist the front end to the left. When that happened the right front fork bowed in and snapped the brake caliper mount. Since the brake was applied, the caliper swung all the way around the disk and smacked the back of the rear fork. The twisting effect on the brake line bent the fitting and started leaking fluid resulting in loss of braking.
I was very lucky that a friend was close. Once I figured the bike was no longer rideable, I called said friend and asked him to pick me up. I pushed the bike to a BP a hundred yards down the road.
I just sat there in disbelief head in my hands. I was in no mood to deal with the people that were walking by and talking to me about how badass the bobber was. I tried to remain polite, but was sure that my disdain was showing.
My friend finally arrived around midnight. I got home and loaded up the trailer. Once I made it back to the BP, I loaded up the bike. She was all loaded up and I got in my Expedition to head home.
The clicking sound I heard when I turned over the key told me that fate wasn’t done laughing at me yet. Well, it could be worse. I could be on a gurney.
The battery’s been replaced in the Expedition, the bobber is in the shop, and I’m alive to ride another day. I’m off to Cincy on the old police cruiser. Gonna see some old friends and enjoy some great live music. I sure hope this weekend is better than last!
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| Monday, August 17, 2009 (22:35:09) - Our Voices Do Matter! |
It looks like our grassroots efforts are starting to pay off. The White House is backing down on its stance/push for the public option in health care reform. They’re listening. Our voices are being heard.
This is Democracy in action. Well, we’re more like a Republic, but you get my meaning. Retirees, full-time moms, businessmen, and people that would otherwise not get more involved in the political process than casting a vote are showing up in droves at Town Hall Meetings nationwide. They’re voicing their opinions online (and getting SPAM from the White House in return), by phone, by letter, and in person.
We’re taking America back and I couldn’t be prouder.
But, I’m sad that there are people still people who don’t think they can make a difference. Remember the story of Susie Weakly from a couple of weeks ago? Well, that saga continues. I got into an email exchange with her sister, Casey shortly after I posted my last blog.
I’m going to share it with you here with some more of my thoughts that I didn’t share with Casey. For those of you that feel as passionately as I do about involvement in the political process, you’ll find some of this humorous and sad. For those of you on the fence, I hope that you are inspired to take action.
Here we go!
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Casey Weakly in a Facebook email with the subject line “Stupidity”
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Let's get one thing straight.... Your passion is your passion. Her passion is her daughter and nothing will change or interfere with that. There are people out there who choose to work and continue with their normal life after having a child. She and I are both not that person. Her only focus right now is loving and teaching her daughter. Nothing else is of major concern right now. For the moms fighting these battles with young children...Congrats to them. But for the ones that take the time to sit in the floor with our kids, read books, introduce them to the world of animals and nature outside, and make our life completly and 100% about them, we just don't find it our #1 priority to call some number and express our opinion about something we have no knowledge and really no interest in. Ask her to call about child abuse, animal neglect...She would be the first one on the phone. People like you are the reason people like me don't get involved in this stuff. If we don't know anything about a matter and Heaven forbid don't agree with it, we are called out and made to feel like shit because we don't have your passion. Why don't you use all the time you're using to make a HUGE deal about this and call some one out you don't know much about, to worry more about your passion and direct it at someone who gives a damn!!!! |
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Mike Newbern
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Are you calling me stupid? Seriously? You don't get it. You just don't get it. Sad reality is that you're too pigheaded to even try to understand what I'm saying.
It can be done. You can raise a child, show him or her love, and be politically active all at the same time. I have a friend that is doing it right now. He, his wife, and his six children have been to a tea party with me. He went to DC with me last week and took his teenage son with him. Talk about education! You can't buy that kind of education and you sure as hell aren't going to get it by sitting in the floor reading Cat in the Hat to your kid.
I had a whole bunch of other stuff I was going to type, but that's all in the blog I wrote. I figure if you didn't read it then, you wouldn't now. I would just be wasting time.
BTW, you made the blog! Congratulations! Some people never get that honor. You might find this one a little more scathing though, as I doubt I can hold back like I did last time. You and poor little Susie may want to hide your eyes! |
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The stuff in the blog I was specifically referring to is that you don’t have to share my opinion or interest in the topics that I find important. I would like for you to be open minded and listen to what I have to say so that you can develop your own opinion about its importance. But in the end, if you don’t understand how important it is and/or see how each side of the issue impacts us even after you listened with an open mind, I have failed.
I seriously think that any rational, sane person with even a minimal level of intellect will understand how my side of any issue is right. No, I don’t think I am perfect or never wrong. I just don’t go around running my mouth about stuff I don’t know about.
I’m also offended for the friend of mine that I referred to in my reply to her. She is insinuating that he and his wife love their children less than she or her sister do. Actually, I’m a little pissed.
Never in anything have I written did I make susie feel like shit. Nor, did I do it to Casey. But, in response to the insinuation that my friend doesn’t place his children #1 in his life, I will.
That has got to be one of the most asinine comments I have received in a long time and I do get some doozies. The more and more I think about that, the more and more I am sad for her children. They are going to grow up thinking that they only way a person can show love is to constantly shower someone with it. They are going to become needy little bitches whose self-esteem relies on how other people treat them.
A vagina is not a clown car! Nor is it some place for you to produce that little burping doll you always wanted as a child. Human beings are made there you retards. There's way more to raising a child than playtime and diaper changes.
Yes, they need love and affection and parents should give it to them. But, they also need to be taught self reliance and social awareness. They need life lessons they can and can’t get from some Dr Seuss book you read to them on the floor.
There’s a time and a place for everything. They need to be taught that the playground is not the only place to stand up for what you believe is right. They need to be taught how to balance life, work, and play.
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Casey Weakly
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| Don't worry about me man. I don't really give a shit what you or your political buddies think. I was just saying you need to use all of this negative energy for better use than sitting here on facebook talking about us. Kinda makes me proud though. I live to get under people's skin and I have really accomplished that with you. I have other things in my life that are more important to me than politics. I don't know anything about it and I really have no interest in learning about it either. I think the times we live in are really sad but there is nothing that I, you, or your group of hippies will ever be able to do about it. I don't knock you for being passionate about politics. That's great!! Just don't hate on people who aren't. There are alot of things I wish I could make people believe in but some people just don't give a shit. They have their passions and I have mine. That's what makes the world go round. If we all cared only about what you cared about then we would be a one sided, pigheaded america and that's not where I want to live. I hate the president and I really hate the illegal immigrants but there is not a damn thing I can do about it but vote. That's what I do and I'm happy with that. In the mean time I'll take care of my kids, all the animals I can, and all the problems the good Lord sends my way. By the way, we prefer Fox in Sox |
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She has no clue how far off her hippie comment really is. Silly, clueless girl. She also has no clue how pretentious she sounds trying to use ‘pigheaded’ in a context that makes no sense.
I guess it’s true what they say, some women do belong in the kitchen baking cookies and making lemonade.
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Mike Newbern
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Don't give yourself that much credit, honey. You're not that important. I experience this from people all the time, not just you or Susie. I'm just using the two of you as an example.
My audience is also way bigger than my FB friends.
Still don't get it. And that's the reason for the subsequent blog. |
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And she still doesn’t get it. I am not saying you’re wrong for not having the same values I do. I am saying that you’re wrong for thinking your voice doesn’t matter and then giving up on any social/political awareness.
I’m not “hating on” the Weakly sisters for not being passionate about politics. I’m calling them out for blaming their lackadaisical attitudes on their inability to do anything in our political process. Call it for what it is. They just don’t care.
For those of you that do and are active, I say thank you and please continue to be. We can and will take our country back! I have faith in all of you and our system. |
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| Wednesday, August 05, 2009 (21:25:00) - Solar Is Not a Viable Means of Baseline Power Production |
Solar Is Not a Viable Means of Baseline Power
One friend of mine said to me, “I like that big battery in the sky.” If you’ve ever been underdressed on a really cold day and happen to walk under a cloud of shade and then into some blazing sunlight, you know firsthand the power of the sun. There’s a lot of potential energy that makes it to planet earth in the form of light from the sun. Harnessing it is a different story.
For the purposes of this discussion, I am not going to address how sunlight is used to produce electricity. If you are ignorant or curious, there’s a great article at www.scientificamerican...power-work. Actually, that article is a great explanation from Chemist Paul Alivisatos on how to generate electricity from sunlight. Of course, Google and Bing work wonders as well.
The great thing about solar is that the process of capturing the light and transforming it into electricity emits no pollutants. The sun will be around for a very long time and will provide enough energy to meet our needs many times over. Kinda makes it seem like a win/win, so why am I not singing solar’s praises over the hills and everywhere?
Because it’s expensive. Yeah, I know sunlight is free. It’s the harnessing that’s expensive. It’s so expensive in fact that the average solar panel will barely pay for itself during its average life expectancy.
North Carolina State’s Solar House serves as a good model. This house is small. NCSU estimates that the 3.6 kW PV (PV = photovoltaic) system supplies about half of the house’s energy. It doesn’t store power in batteries as it is connected to the grid.
Tracking the Sun: The Installed Costs of Photovoltaics in the US from 1998-2007, a study from the Environmental Energies Division of the Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory states that current costs of installed photovoltaics is $9 kW PV for small systems less than 2 kW and $6.8 for large systems greater than 750 kW, with no incentives. It is key to note that the study also found prices for installed photovoltaics remained steady from 2005-2007. Even assuming a slight drop in price to roughly $6.50 kW PV, the power panels on that house would cost $23,400. Take it off the grid and the price goes up to account for batteries. Add a single room AC unit and any installed price doubles.
Let’s assume that the average power bill for the NCSU Solar House without the assist of solar is $100/month. That’s an estimated savings of $50/month with the $23,400 solar panels installed. You would recoup your investment after 39 years of operation. That’s right kids, it would take you 39 years to get your investment back!
And that’s being conservative. If your house isn’t designed with solar in mind, you have a particularly rainy year, or your neighbor plants a tree that blocks the sun from your house you can expect your savings to be lower than 50%. Heck, you may not even see a return on your investment in your lifetime.
Some producers of solar powered hot water heaters suggest that your $5000 investment will pay for itself in 3-5 years. Seriously? Even if you get 100% water heater power from solar, you have to have started with an $80/month water heating bill alone! My entire electric bill is barely $100/month in the coldest months of the year!
“But it’s more environmentally friendly, Mike! You said yourself harnessing solar produces no pollutants.”
Yes, I did say that the act of capturing light and transforming it to electricity produces no pollutants. I did not address manufacturing processes required to produce the solar panels. Solar panels are made of gallium arsenide, which requires a chemically intensive manufacturing process, or silicon wafers, which require a thermodynamically intensive manufacturing process.
Gallium arsenide (GaAs) is a compound of metallic gallium and the notoriously poisonous metalloid arsenic. GaAs is produced using several different methods the first two of which are the crystal growth using a horizontal zone furnace (Bridgman-Stockbarger technique) where Ga and Arsenic vapor react and deposit on a seed crystal at the cooler end of the furnace and LEC (liquid encapsulated Czochralski) growth. A couple of other methods of producing GaAs include chemical vapor deposition reaction of gaseous gallium metal and arsenic trichloride which conveniently gives off chlorine gas and wet etching which gives off arsenic acid. But that stuff is used mostly in celestial applications like spacecraft.
It’s the silicon wafers that we’re concerned about as they’re more popular in earthly applications. Silicon is widely available normally bound in silica sand. Extracting it requires temperatures around 1700 degrees. Bonding it to form the panel can be done at a much cooler 1300 degrees. The average silicon solar panel has to make electricity for two years just to make up for what was used in production. Using our current environmentally evil coal to produce the power used to make the panels will more than negate the zero emissions solar advocates brag about.
“What about solar use on a large scale, Mike?”
Well, I’m glad you asked.
Solar panels take up space. Lots of space. I mean loads of space.
A typical solar panel produces 50 mW/sq inch. Let’s assume that you get peak production 5 hours per day. That’s 250 mWH/sq inch per day or .00025 kWH/sq inch per day.
I use 1000 kWH per month, or 33 kWh per day. That means to get all of my power needs from solar, I would require a panel 132,000 square inches large, roughly 916 sq ft or .02 acre. That doesn’t seem like a lot, but when you translate that to what you would need at a solar farm, it is quite a bit more.
There’s this phenomenon known as I2R losses. As electricity travels over power lines, power is lost. It is lost in heat through power line resistance. Operating power lines and grids at high voltages reduces these losses. That’s why a lot of power lines have a 1,000,000 volts running through them. Some lines even have up to 2,000,000 volts running through them. Anything higher than that and corona discharge negates the low resistance efficiency. Corona discharge is also dangerous and generally hazardous to human health.
The Climate Technology Program estimated in a study in 2003 that I2R losses across power lines from power station to end user was on average 7.2% in the US in 1995. For the sake of argument, let’s assume that technology gas improved and average US losses are down to 5%. That means that now, I need a 965 sq ft power grid to power my house.
This doesn’t account for spikes in my electric use caused by starting appliances or by increased usage of certain appliances. To account for these spikes and safely provide my energy needs, the power company usually supplies me with 1.5 times what I normally use. That 965 square feet is now nearly 1500 square feet or .03 acre.
Oh and did I mention that I am single and am home very little. An average family of four can easily use up twice as much power as I do. Decision Data Resources reported that as of 2008, the Nashville, TN economic market had a population of 1.4 million. That’s 350,000 households. A solar farm would have to be 21,000 acres of solar panels alone just to power the residential needs of Nashville. Braidwood Nuclear Station, Exelon’s newest power generating station supplying power to Chicago, is capable of providing power to 2,000,000 homes and only takes up 4,500 acres. And that’s one of the largest in the country.
While solar may sound great, the technology has not progressed to a point yet where it can be a viable means of baseline energy production. It has a place in augmenting power supply needs and will work well on a residential basis for homes that are in remote areas far away from the grid and/or homes that see an abundance of sunlight. Furthermore, since the cost hasn’t decreased significantly in the past two to four years, I doubt that it will ever be a viable means of baseline energy production. |
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| Tuesday, August 04, 2009 (00:16:40) - Complacency Will Be the Death of Democracy |
Last week, I traveled to Washington, DC to rally in support of the Department of Energy Loan Guarantee for USEC, Inc’s American Centrifuge. I work for USEC, Inc and my job somewhat hinges on this loan guarantee. That’s partly why I was able to take a day off from work and hop on a bus to DC Thursday night.
However, that is not the main reason why I am so vocal about this issue. This issue is bigger than my job. I’ll find work even if USEC, Inc goes under.
I believe in nuclear power. I believe in maintaining a domestically owned and operated enrichment plant. It is good for stable energy prices and national security.
But, I’m not writing this today to convince you that this Loan Guarantee deserves your attention and support. Instead, I am addressing my concern for an obvious complacency and lack of involvement in our legislative process. I am very surprised at the number of people who just don’t care.
This whole enlightenment of mine began last Thursday when I posted an event on Facebook asking people to call the White House and the Department of Energy in support of the Loan Guarantee. In the event’s description, I gave a brief overview of facts and where the situation was at now. I also provided some links so folks could jumpstart their research.
The overwhelming response I got was that people were not going to make the phone calls, signified by replies of ‘Not Attending’. That in and of itself is not an issue for me. If you don’t agree, I would expect you to respond in kind. However, if you do support nuclear power and agree that we should keep a domestic supplier of uranium around, I would hope that you would at least do some reading and make a two minute phone call to the White House.
So, I posted on those people’s walls asking if they supported nuclear power.
I got several folks telling me that they do, but that they didn’t have enough knowledge of the subject to render an opinion. Fair enough. I should’ve written my description better. I should’ve captured their interest in the first sentence. Then maybe they would’ve read the description and taken an extra couple of minutes to do the necessary research and render an opinion. I failed there.
But, it’s the handful of folks that said stuff like they were too busy today, took and made ‘too many phone calls at work, lol’, or that their ‘little ole opinion didn’t matter’ that shocked me.
To the first two people, I would say that I really wished they cared and try to offer information in an effort to pique their concern. That would be the end of it. I would consider myself a failure for not rallying them in time to make a difference on this issue.
But the third person and our subsequent discussion is the real stickler for me. She said that her number one priority was her child’s well-being and that she didn’t get into political stuff. She just chose to live her life because her opinion really didn’t matter for much. For sake of understanding, I’m just going to post the entire discussion changing the names of the posters to protect privacy.
| Quote: |
Mike Newbern
| Quote: |
| Are you anti nuclear power? |
Fri 07-31-09 at 12:33pm
Susie Weakly
| Quote: |
| no just never put to much thought in it. |
Fri 07-31-09 at 4:33pm
Mike Newbern
| Quote: |
| Energy is a huge issue right now. It deserves your attention as much as healthcare reform & bailouts. I really wish more people would pay attention. |
Fri 07-31-09 at 7:20pm
Susie Weakly
| Quote: |
| i just live my life. It's not that i don't care cause i do. But i have not ever been much into politics and news and global warming. There is nothing that i can do about things like this. My daughter has all my attention right now. My one little opinion is not gonna make a difference in anything. Not trying to be bitchy or anything like that but i don't pay attention to this stuff. |
Fri 07-31-09 at 8:11pm
Mike Newbern
| Quote: |
Too many people feel the same way about their little ole opinions. Ironically it's a self-fulfilling prophecy. Our opinions do matter & the louder they get, the more they matter.
Ignoring your daughter's future needs & well being makes taking care of them now worthless. |
Fri 07-31-09 at 8:53pm
Susie Weakly
| Quote: |
| I understand your passion on this subject. My husband thinks nuclear power is the way to go. I don't get myself worked up about these matters. That is just how i am. But i don't ignore anything about my daughters needs now or future. nothing that i do for my daughter is worthless. I live for her. I am sorry i don't see things the way everyone thinks i should but I am more concerned about the illegal immagrants coming over to this country bringing disease and getting whatever they want. But when it comes to my little girl i think of the shitty world we live in right now and so scared for her. But i never ignore her needs or wants. You feel the way you do and i feel the way i do. We live in america we have the right as individuals to have our own opinion on things. |
Fri 07-31-09 at 10:05pm
Joe Jones Fri 07-31-09 at 10:29pm
Susie Weakly Fri 07-31-09 at 10:38pm
Tom Smith
| Quote: |
| Man you are something else. I have kids and everything but one thing you don't do is bring up something about someone pride and joy (KIDS). That is just wrong dude. |
Fri 07-31-09 at 11:25pm
Joe Jones
| Quote: |
| dont know who the dude is but go on about your business P... some folks aint worth wastin your breath on. D |
Sat 08-01-09 at 4:27pm
Susie Weakly
| Quote: |
| i agree. But when it comes to amy thats when i become defensive. |
Sat 08-01-09 at 4:44pm
Joe Jones
| Quote: |
| GRRRRRR go get em P lol I understand that one ! |
Sat 08-01-09 at 5:06pm
Mike Newbern
| Quote: |
Susie,
I am not just passionate about this subject. I am passionate about a lot of social, economic, and political issues.
I am also passionate about our children and ensuring that they have a future and are socially aware enough to be able to take that future in the direction they decide is best for them. We should teach our children and let them lead the way. Until they can, we should work to ensure that we are setting them up for success, not failure.
Now, you indicated that you are concerned about illegal immigration. You also said that when it comes to your your little girl, you "think of the shitty world we live in right now and so scared for her." That's social/political concern. You made it sound like you had no social or political awareness and could care less about it because you were focused on your child in your first reply. |
Sun 08-02-09 at 10:07am
Mike Newbern
| Quote: |
More for Susie:
Fear is good. It motivates us to take the issues that we think are important and work to remedy the problems we face today and lay a solid foundation for the future of our children. Simply being concerned is not enough.
Get active. I'm not saying you have to take two days out of your like and travel to Washington to see our legislators. Phone calls and emails take very little time and can work wonders. At the very least sound off at the polls.
You can do more than you think in less time and with less effort than you might know. Don't sell your voice short. It matters. They will listen. |
Sun 08-02-09 at 10:10am
Mike Newbern
| Quote: |
Tom,
She opened the kid issue, not me. And I'm not saying anything about her child. I am expressing concern for her lack of involvement and complacency because she thinks she doesn't matter.
Those are completely different deals, dude. |
Sun 08-02-09 at 10:12am
Mike Newbern
| Quote: |
Joe,
You're right, some people aren't worth wasting their time on. You, Susie, and Tom are not in that category (well at least not yet;) ). That's why I am coming back to this. |
Sun 08-02-09 at 10:15am
Mike Newbern
| Quote: |
Listen people. Your voices do matter. Our politicians will listen. I've seen it first hand.
Don't sell your importance short.
Our government was designed as one by the people, for the people, and of the people. We need to get back to that. Too many special interests and lobbyists are influencing our elected officials in ways that we don't agree with. Grassroots efforts work!
We sounded off months ago at Tea Parties and the lawmakers are listening. Obama may still be far left, but his Bluecoat Democratic buddies are starting to turn. Our voices are being heard. Our work is paying off.
You can help, if you choose. It doesn't take much time or effort. A phone call, email, letter, or even an office visit can work wonders. |
Sun 08-02-09 at 10:21am
Susie Weakly
| Quote: |
| mike i am glad that you are so passionate and aware on these subjects. I do care what is going on in this country and around the world. I don't want anyone to think that. It's just i am not never have been one to watch the news and get into the whole political scene. My husband talks about things all the time. But the whold thing about illegal immagrants is you don't have to be up to date on issues u see it everyday. What upset me is when u said ignoring my daughter future needs and doing something now is worthless. It sounded like u were saying i didn't care about her or her future. That is my first and foremost concern. All i said is that she gets my full attention. I think that is just a mommies place. No i am not smart about all of the matters that i probly should be. But i just don't understand alot and don't like thinking about it. I know ignoring them won't make things go away. But it is people like u who do care enough (not saying i don't) that can get points through. |
Sun 08-02-09 at 3:24pm
Mike Newbern
| Quote: |
Go back and read what I wrote. Take a deep breathe like you do when you discipline your daughter and read it with no emotion. You'll find that statement is a fact and not a reflection on how I think you are raising your daughter. You'll see it as a plea.
Like the illegal immigration issue, you don't have to be up on foreign policy to know that our dependency on foreign oil is affecting us. How much have gas prices fluctuated in the past week, month, or year? We face the same dilemma if we don't sever our dependency on foreign energy sources. Losing our only domestically owned uranium enrichment facility will do that. Do you really want your electric bill to fluctuate like pump gas prices do?
For your sake, I hope the people like me that do care enough to get our points through share the same values as you. Otherwise, relying on us worthless. Just look at the mess special interests got us in to. |
Sun 08-02-09 at 3:50pm
Susie Weakly
| Quote: |
| i totally understand your point on depending on other countries for oil. I listen to my husband. He is up on all the matters. I personally don't think we should depend on other countries for oil and i think we should worry more about the kids and families that are suffering in america. Maybe i am a little up to date on certain things. It is mostly on we should take care of america before anything else. I guess i am one of those people who just live in the moment. I am a very happy person i have a wonderful husband and little girl. I can see your point on things, let's just stop talking about this please. I want to be Fri 07-31-09ends on here and not have to debate with each other everytime we log on. |
Sun 08-02-09 at 4:40pm
|
It’s this complacency that got us here in the first place. We have a government that’s trying to take over private health care and tell us when we should die. One of our top three auto manufacturers is now owned by the government. A racist is about to be confirmed as a Supreme Court Justice. And we have a far left radical president in office that is starting to lose support of his own party.
We have all of this because the American people ignored the signs. They ignored the truth. They didn’t look past a platform of change to see who was really running for office. The vast majority of people I spoke to that voted for Obama said that McCain was too much like Bush and he screwed up the country for the past eight years and yet they had no concept of what Obama stood for. There were also those that wanted to elect Obama just to have a black president. Well, if those people had taken a little bit of their time to do some research, they would’ve seen what he was all about.
And for those of you that think our voices don’t matter, they do. Just look at what the tea parties of Tax and Independence Days did for us. The politicians are starting to recognize that they average American is a moderate conservative.
Please get off your ass and get active. You don’t have to take a day off work, ride on a bus for 20 hours, and spend all day walking the halls of the capital building to make a difference. If you are so inclined, our lawmakers are in recess and will be in their home offices for much of the month. If you try, you may be able to make a visit, shake their hands, and give them your opinion face to face.
A simple phone call, email, or letter that may take two minutes of your time works wonders and may be all it takes. |
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