Power-down

I can't say I'm a big fan of the Starbucks Coffee Company. They often figuratively and literally leave a bad taste in my mouth.

Lights out

However, on this night, at Earth Hour, they're setting a good example. Here in suburbia, every other business seemed to be lighting up the night sky. Certainly downtown, it was much more obvious.

Although there was a city-wide drop in power consumption of some 8%, the main point of it all is awareness. For my part, on Saturday night I would normally have just one lamp and the TV on in the living room, and maybe one kitchen light. So it didn't make too much of a difference for me to head out for a walk.

I'm not sure how many of my neighbours were participating, or if they just weren't home. In one non-representative row of 16 homes, I counted only two with lights on during the event (one with seemingly all lights on, as if in protest). At the end of the one hour, five more were lit up, leaving nine which were probably empty all evening.

In the Drink

It's been a long winter, with much more snow fall than in recent memory. I suppose I've been fortunate to have been out of town during the major storms of the season, and also to have someone contracted to shovel my sidewalk and driveway.

No Parking

Even managed to avoid the chaos at the airport, although there were massive snowbanks which dwarfed the regional jets.

Snow Barrier

Now that the snow is finally melting away, I've been thinking a lot about water recently. Also been reading more about it in the news. Not sure if I or the media are just paying closer attention, or if we're now seeing more and more indisputable signs of a true global crisis, as many have warned before.

Beating a Retreat

The solution will not be a technological quick-fix, but much more difficult, massive societal change. And flying jets on biofuel won't cut it either.

World Water Day

It turns out today was World Water Day. Been hearing about Earth Hour for months, yet didn't hear a word about something arguably much more important, until it was almost over.

Hybrid

A new contender for favourite rental car of all time.

2008 Toyota Prius

The good:

• Terrific fuel economy - 98 miles on 2.37 gallons = 158 km on 9.0 L = 5.7 L / 100km = 42.0 mpg


• Pretty good power - no trouble accelerating up to 65 mph, while going uphill, and easily coasting along at 75 mph, charging the battery, while going downhill. You'll just have to ignore the high whine of the CVT (and the lack of a tachometer).


• Silent [WARNING: link NSFW] - battery mode is only good for a few miles, but perfect for parking lots, stoplights, and bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Rear View

The bad:

• Awful rear window visibility - the big spoiler bar across the rear window is a huge distraction, which alone guarantees I will never buy this model for myself.


• Complicated, distracting touch-screen controls - just asking for trouble if you need to adjust anything while driving.

42.0 mpg!

The quirky:

• Dashboard mounted. tiny gearshift lever - only Drive, Reverse, and Battery. How does CVT cope with snow?


• Rear-facing camera for Reverse - sorely needed because of the poor visibility. Also beeps annoyingly when backing up.


• P button to Park - the rental company had to add a label to remind drivers to use it.


• Unintuitive features, which make the owner's manual mandatory reading. Like the power switch (and keyless operation), and the odd exterior buttons for the door locks.

Paradise by the Dashboard Light

All in all, it does grow on you, but while fun to rent, it's not a keeper. Some improvements over my previous Prius experience, but also more quirks and drawbacks than before. If buying, I still would probably look at a more "normal" car like the Camry Hybrid instead.

2003 Toyota Prius (Swedish trim)

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Unfortunately, I missed the parade this past weekend. Missed it in Toronto (where I was), Pittsburgh (where I had been), and Chicago (where I might have been).

I sometimes have a dangerous wish to be stuck somewhere interesting, and to be able to go exploring for an extra day, at airline expense.

For example, if I had an extra day in the Pittsburgh area, I might go and visit Fallingwater, or Punxsutawney Phil, who correctly predicted six more weeks of winter (which should have ended last week).

Of course, as always, sometimes you get what you wish for. Like a broken radio which results in three hours of purgatory in the East Satellite Terminal.

Taxiway

It's a miserable day to be driving. More miserable than usual if it's your living. A recent study makes startling claims about the life of cab drivers - 77 hour work-weeks at $3 an hour [Minimum wage in Ontario is currently $8 an hour].

I'm hearing some awful stories today. A lot of time is spent idling in the "holding pens" I've seen at the airport, waiting behind hundreds of other cars, for a fare which may be far out of your way, and take many more hours, for not that much money at all. The pricing model is also geared towards cheap customers or small groups. Crazy runs to Montréal or Ottawa are actually a lot more common than you'd think.

Rising fuel costs can only be making things more difficult, especially with antiquated city by-laws which forbid using small cars such as the Prius for taxis and limos.