Surprise

This is on the sly...


Because my mother doesn't have internet access right now, I can post these pictures of her birthday present without too much fear that she'll see them.



The pattern, which I adjusted a little bit, comes from Stephanie Japel's wonderfully hip book Fitted Knits. Stephanie's blog, Glampyre, is also amazing. She's not only an inspiring pattern designer, but a geologist, a custom yarn dyer, a seamstress and a mom. A girl after my own heart.

We opened The Foreigner last Thursday (that link is to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park's website; there are a few production photos up now). It seems to have been received well, but I made a vow a couple of years back not to read reviews until after closing. Although a bad review is only one person's opinion, it's amazing how much it can unravel your self esteem. So...while I have a hunch that the buzz might be good, I'll just stay away to be safe. In any case, we are having the time of our lives with this comedy, and I'm so grateful to be here doing it.

On other fronts, it's looking like upon my return to Ashland I will be trying to downsize from my lovely Jetta, Horace, into an older Benz that I can hopefully pay off in full up front. We'll see how it goes. But if I do end up in a vintage Mercedes, it will be a new and slightly different world of biodiesel use (I may have to change hoses from rubber to synthetic, etc.), with more careful attention and DIY repairs on my part. But Janis will be proud.

SPRING IS SPRUNG! June will be busting out all over before we know it. Where does the time go?

--Nell

Bio Pick-Me-Up

Thought I'd better go ahead and make a post about biodiesel, since that's what I came here to do.

And more specifically...the necessity of testing fuel (yes, a plug for Fleet Fuel Testing, but a worthwhile one).

In Ashland, Oregon, where I live, there seems to be a big underground culture of home fuel brewing. Which is awesome. Depending on the raw materials you're using, you end up with a wonderful, renewable fuel for 70 cents to $1.50 a gallon. And this fuel is an excellent solvent, so it helps clean your engine and lines at the same time. Some studies even show it to out-perform diesel #2 in certain situations. And all you need to create it are a few simple tools and some time and experimentation.

However...

...there is a chance that something could be a little off in your brewing. And before you put the fuel to use, you need to be sure that it's not going to damage your engine. That's why testing is so important. Gasoline and Diesel fuels are kept in spec by tests done at refineries. They've mastered the art of making fuels that are clean and engine-ready...and not biodegradable (although Diesel is susceptible to water and microbial contamination). So why shouldn't we perform simple tests on our home-brews and local products? It's a small price to pay for reliable fuel performance.

The other reason that testing is so important (and I know I've gone off about this before) is that making sure that Biodiesel is in specification helps build a good reputation for Biofuel. There are, in my opinion, two main reasons why this alternative fuel has not been explored more:

1) Many people assume that the oil required to process Biodiesel must come from crops that need to be grown on thousands of acres of land that we need desperately for food crop production.

2) People have seen less-than-perfect Biodiesel destroy engines.

The first problems can be addressed with simple facts: Biodiesel can be produced from many different kinds of oil crops (including algae, which reproduces at a remarkable rate and can be grown in standing vertical tanks), as well as from waste oil, which is normally just thrown out.

The second problem will take some more doing. We are so used to filling up at the pump, letting cars sit for weeks at a time, being able to drive with ease in all weather without regard to the condition of our fuel. This is a huge benefit of gasoline -- you just don't have to worry about it. It's so convenient. But Biodiesel is a way of life. You make modifications to your schedule to get out to that pump that's ten miles down the road. You bring 5 gallon containers with you to fill up, and they're damn heavy to lift (*benefit: biodiesel can be stored almost anywhere since it's far less volatile than gasoline). You end up spending extra money on the fuel (unless you're home-brewing), because although it's relatively easy and inexpensive to produce, it's still so difficult to market. And you pay a little extra to test it, for your own sake, and for the sake of the fuel itself.

But I take pride in all of this. The inconveniences amount to a small sacrifice that I'm willing to make for the sake of...yes...the planet.

--Nell

Late Night Rumination

I finally joined Facebook. With my real, full name.

I know that this shouldn't have been such a difficult thing to do. But I like anonymity. What if I was contacted by or became tempted myself to contact people from high school? What strange and buried memories, secrets, embarrassments would rear their ugly heads? Would I lose that bizarrely comforting nostalgia if my first crush sent me a message to say that he's married and has three children? I don't want everyone to know what I'm doing or thinking or where I am all the time. 'But,' I thought, 'might as well jump on the damn band wagon.' Create a few cyberspace tattoos that I'll regret. It's all part of growing up in the 21st century.

There's a good chance I'll cancel it...

But, being a voyeur at heart, I will enjoy it in the mean time. What do we lose with this new networking? What do we gain? Will we ever be the same? Politicians 20 years from now will have to scramble to explain the bongs and beer cans and lascivious slogans that are plastered to their profiles right now...

Computers were little more than first a source of entertainment and then a marginally helpful tool for most of my youth. I was reprimanded in high school because for awhile I refused to type papers up -- I preferred to hand-write them.

I know that it's useless to resist the tide here. There's no point in going back. And it's silly to write about this, because most everyone has. But I still can't help being surprised by the feeling that we've fallen unquestioningly into something that we don't fully understand yet. A uniquely human pattern, and one that's gotten us into trouble many times before.

Must my Encyclopedia Brittanica lay fallow forever?
-N.

Dilly-Dallying

Today we are undertaking a run in the hall with a small audience. To stave off the nerves, I thought I'd come here and ramble for awhile.

On the morning walk with the dogs, I noticed how comfortable I felt moving through this new city. We traveled a lot when I was a kid -- I spent so much time in hotel rooms, motel rooms and guest houses, that it was sort of the norm.

My roommate and I talk all the time about exploring more of this country. I am certain it would be a form of political and environmental activism to familiarize oneself with the different landscapes, climates, and attitudes here -- and perhaps it is our duty to do this, as Americans with the freedom to move as much as we like. In the 1950s, everyone took to the new highways like mad, in their big station wagons and cadillacs, enjoying the plentiful beauty of the United States, because they could easily do so for the first time. Now, our road trips are usually of the practical sort; occasionally we head out for fun, but more commonly it's to get from point A to point B.

That kind of wandering exploring -- I want to do more of it. And I'd like to do it without the use of gasoline. Take in the sights of America, the national parks, small towns, monuments, lakes, rivers...the world's biggest ball of string. It would be good to remind myself what I'm fighting for.

-N.

The Local Views

Overlooking Kentucky and the Mighty Ohio

Clearly, I am finding it difficult to post regularly now that I am working full time. However, I am dead set on getting something up here at least twice a week.

We celebrated on Sunday night after our first stumble-through of the The Foreigner. It's always a relief, and as our amazing director Ken Albers says, 'These are rehearsals to survive. You don't have to do anything but be standing by the end of the day.' And to tell the truth, while some things are difficult at this early stage ("seeing text on your retina" -- again, Ken) we've been having a ball.

Monday, my day off, I took the pups and we explored Mt. Adams. Here are a few things we saw.



A panorama of the river and across, from near the top of Mt. Adams.



Houses -- these seem to typify the style on Mt. Adams. Many of them are very old, dating to the mid-late 1800s.



On the edge of Eden park, I came upon this crumbling bridge, leading to nowhere. The parking lot and modern road right next to it could be a summation of what you'll see up here. Very very old structures surrounded by super-modern architecture. In the west, I think it's less common to see things like this. Yes, in San Francisco and tucked away in places in Los Angeles, but in Cincinnati, this strange juxtaposition seems to be everywhere. Being a newbie, I'm still fascinated by it. In Manhattan it's certainly present, but everything is so overwhelmingly crammed there, that I'd never really appreciated it.

Best to you all, and thank you for reading,

Nell

FUEL!

Here's my latest recommendation:

The Fuel Film

I saw what I believe was a rougher cut of this in the winter of 2007, and it's simply the best movie around about Biodiesel and fuel independence and sustainability. Josh Tickell, the writer and director of The Fuel Film, is essentially the foremost expert on Biodiesel in the country, having driven thousands of miles in his "Veggie Van" on his own biodiesel. He's a scholar, an activist and an extremely brave person, and it was his book From the Fryer to the Fuel Tank that inspired me to quit it with the gasoline and move over to biofuel. I just ordered his other title, Biodiesel America, so I'll probably be blabbing about that on here when it arrives and I gobble it up. Unfortunately, I won't be able to see The Fuel Film for awhile, as it's only playing in select theaters for the time being. Josh's history is pretty amazing, and although the movie encompasses a lot of excellent science, solution and testimonial, his personal story is in some ways the most important part. If you have interest in seeing this amazing film, check out the site; there are showings in Santa Monica, CA right now, with upcoming dates in WA, NY and a few other places.

I've been car-less for almost a week, and I can't tell you how nice it is! I feel healthier and happier walking up these hills to the theater. Soon I'll be running them, I hope, with the little terrier muts in tow. They had to put on their sweaters for the first time today...there's a dusting of snow, and it's crisp and clear. Lovely!

--Nell

On the Absence...

...oh, it's been so long.

Getting myself and two dogs to Cincinnati ended up taking most of my time over the last two weeks. It was an incredible (nerve wracking) adventure, and I am glad that we are here and settling in and won't have to do it again for another couple of months.

Rehearsals began for The Foreigner on Friday the 13th, with an incredibly well-cast bunch in the miraculous hands of Kenneth Albers (who was in the original cast in Milwaukee and was a friend of Larry Shue) and a capable and courteous stage management team. I feel rusty and scared, but I think that I'll pull myself together and have a wonderful time with this. It's such a funny, dear play.

There is no recycling here at the apartment, though! So...I'll have to figure out how to get around that. I've already located a paper bin along a trail that leads to the theater. The plastics and aluminum will prove more difficult. But this might fortify my Reusing abilities.

Cincinnati is a surprisingly striking and beautiful town, for the most part. Its sister city is Rome, I am told, because both are built upon seven hills. I have the fortune to be staying on one of said hills, Mt. Adams, which looks out over the Ohio river and into Kentucky, which is just a bridge-walk away. There are wonderful museums within walking distance for me to explore, and being on the edge of Eden park has made taking the dogs out a breeze.

More later. Glad to be back...

Nell