Cocoposts

Record Heat and Power

 From the San Francisco Chronicle - record temps require lots of grid juice for cooling.  

With triple-digit temperatures turning California into a kiln, the state could set a record this week for the amount of electricity it uses.  Managers of California's electrical grid on Tuesday warned that the state could break the record set two years ago, when an intense heat storm baked the West Coast for nearly two weeks. 

Meanwhile, Allison Arieff talks air conditioning design in the New York Times and gets extra points for making the larger community design connection.  At the end is the question that has been dogging me since the late 70s.

Acknowledging the challenge of cooling in hotter climates, Sun Frost proposes installing a very small air conditioner within a very small area, like the insulated space around one’s bed shown here.

Great. You may be cooler, but now you’re claustrophobic.

... its execution speaks to a larger issue: a general lack of innovation. Instead of re-imagining what an air conditioner could be (something portable, something that took a different form, something that ran on an alternative energy source), they simply took the existing form and shrank it.

This seems to me indicative of so much that’s happening right now with other big-ticket items like homes and cars. Lower gas prices, for example, do not solve the problem of decreasing supply and increased demand for oil. Home designs that neglect to address things like natural light and ventilation are not contributing to quality of life, let alone reducing heating and cooling costs.

The gas/driving issue requires a tremendous commitment to not only alternative fuels but alternative behaviors (i.e., walking, carpooling, mass transit); as for housing, the challenges are formidable, yet a quick look back to vernacular precedents like shotgun houses that encourage ventilation, and window orientation that encourages passive heating and cooling, would help point things in the right direction.

What is everyone waiting for?

Wilderness Truths

Nathan Small blasts Jim Scarantino on Haussamen's blog:

 Unlike Mr. Scarantino, many responsible local citizens and organizations ranging from the League of Woman Voters to the Las Cruces Homebuilders Association support more than empty promises -- they support a plan that can actually bring the dream of permanent protection to reality, a plan that will bring prestige to our county and community and the positive economic development that will surely come with it, a plan that will safeguard the rich habitat and wildlife diversity that lives in places like the Organ Mountains and Broad Canyon, and a plan that is tried and true -- in 24 areas in New Mexico and in 44 states. They support wilderness.

Tesla's Waterline

Sean Olson in the Albuquerque Journal describes the fate of the taxpayer funded waterline that was to have served the new Tesla flying electric carpet plant.  Now that Tesla isn't coming, you'd think there wouldn't be a line.  Wrongo. 

See, the water line is more important to local fortunes than Tesla.  Just like the public infrastructure extended to the westside Eclipse site, that they will never occupy, was more important than Eclipse.   

Land values - its about the land values. 

Sean gets through the whole story without mentioning the elephant and the 800 pound gorilla in the room.  Dancing.    A lot of people in this little burg have their nut in speculative real estate and at least one of them is a County Commissioner (Hint: the one that drives a Bentley and owns the Tesla site).  I guess because he doesn't happen to sit on the Authority board right now, this doesn't need mentioning.  Except it really does need mentioning.

The leaders assure us that it is all a good thing.  Other companies will come along and policies will protect us from the sprawl development that will want to hook into the line.  Like that's worked before. 

I think they expect us not to notice we've been had. 

That means there will be no service to homes in a SunCal development beyond those zones until growth on the West Side catches up to or reaches the SunCal development.  Businesses, on the other hand, would have immediate access to the water if SunCal builds the water and sewer lines ....

What happens if neither one occurs? 

Oh, don't be so doomy gloomy!

Flying Cars

Albuquerque Journal notes that the flying electric carpet company, Tesla Motors, won't be coming to Albuquerque. 

Our city was a pawn in an "economic development" chess game.

Schwarzenegger, during Monday's news conference, said it drove him “absolutely insane” that Tesla planned to build the 4-door sedan in New Mexico.

Just crazy about New Mexico, Schwarzenegger is!

Nobody here is happy about the news - least of all Albuquerque's business boosters.  But Fred Mondragon, Marty's economic development guy, assured the New Mexico Independent that "Nobody is going to go out and shoot themselves because Tesla isn’t coming.” 

Someone may want to drive an electric WhiteStar sedan over a cliff, however.  Don't hold your breath for the day. 

The County Commissioner, at least, has vowed to get back his dime. 

But Tesla may not have heard the last from Albuquerque. Cummins said that he and his partners are talking over their options for recouping their $300,000 investment in the car company. “Now that they’re definitely not coming, we’re going to have some serious discussions,” he said.

Gonzo

David Carr in the New York Times  reviews the new documentary by Alex Gibney about Hunter S Thompson. Thanks for the link, Ink. ""

Thompson, whose defects of character could occupy a separate ZIP code, was not just an original, he was also a patriot and a romantic. Working from the far reaches of the culture and often lucidity, Thompson, who died in 2005 at 67, changed the way that much of America thought about itself, in part because his version of journalism threw a grenade at the bland convention of formal balance and straight reporting.

“As a journalist Hunter never seemed to get trapped or hoodwinked into the phony balance,” said Mr. Gibney, ...As read by Mr. Depp in the film, Thompson suggests that objectivity was for suckers, a way to allow evil to triumph: “It was the built-in blind spots of the objective rule and dogma that allowed Nixon to slither into the White House in the first place.”

Cocktail Friday

  With a Sunday Cubano Update.  There are few things that a bottle of champagne won't help. 

Trying to avoid the news this morning because it made me too angry yesterday.  I can't hear that ridiculous voice without flying into a rage.  I scared my neighbor  yelling my disapproval of government spying, imprisoning and torturing. 

The animals are used to Mama's "speeches".  Toastmasters for the crazy.  Loud enough that the old dog could hear me and scuttle out of the room.  

This morning's article (and photos) in the San Francisco Chronic about east versus west cocktails are just what the doctor ordered.  Here's the part I especially liked:

Drinking locally

If gas prices keep soaring we might be headed right back to the 19th century when it comes to supplies, but for the time being bars here and in New York have access to just about any ingredients they want to play with, so it's interesting to look at what kind of drinks they choose to make. I asked a handful of bartenders on both coasts if they'd like to share an original cocktail recipe they believed represented their home city. (...)

Nouveau Carre

Makes 1 drink

The formula here is adapted from a recipe by Jonny Raglin, head bartender, Absinthe, San Francisco. It shows its creator's abilities to knit together some very complex ingredients and bring them together harmoniously, without leaning on citrus or fresh fruit.

• 1 1/2 ounces Herradura añejo Tequila
• 3/4 ounce B&B liqueur
• 1/4 ounce Lillet Blanc
• 4 dashes Peychaud's bitters
• 1 lemon twist, for garnish

Instructions: Combine the Tequila, B&B, Lillet Blanc and bitters in a mixing glass filled with ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Add the garnish.

The Final Ward

Makes 1 drink

Adapted from a recipe by Phil Ward, head bartender, Death & Co., New York. The classic Last Word is made with gin, maraschino, Chartreuse and lime juice. Here the whiskey replaces the gin, and Ward changed the citrus from lime to lemon.

• 3/4 ounce Rittenhouse rye whiskey
• 3/4 ounce Luxardo maraschino liqueur
• 3/4 ounce green Chartreuse
• 3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice

Instructions: Combine ingredients in a mixing glass filled with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Land Don't Move

Albuquerque is not running out of land. We are running out of money, water and oil but not land.  Land is still there.  Same land the Indians grew corn on and Spanish herded sheep over. Just look down. Land don't move.

It can be consumed and racked by bulldozers and building, the soil poisoned or paved over, but the place will still exist. And the people in place now may either love it and not plan to leave, or own it and don't want to sell it at a loss.

But there is a popular assumption that developers will go elsewhere if they can't get what they want.  They will stamp their expensive shoes on marble and, essentially, threaten to move all that SunCal land to Valencia County if they don't get TIDD's.

The slowed economy and the long emergency are hard news for land flippers who have enjoyed the housing boom and status quo.  They will try whatever they can to make the bottom line, including arguing that remaining regulations, like impact fees, are burdensome. 

Planning - Not Just for Commies!

Willamette Week notes that Portland is updating their long range plan.  An excerpt:

"How do the last big Portland plans—from 1972 and 1988—hold up? Pretty well, considering all that can change over decades. Aside from grumps like Cato Institute fellow Randal O’Toole, who believes “government planning always fails,” most consider Portland’s planners some of the best. But here’s where their crystal balls fell short:

1972

On TV: Fat Albert, Munich Olympics

Typical plan sentence: “Automobile traffic is noisy, smelly, and dangerous.”

Grade: B. Ambitious and concise. Hostile to cars and tall buildings.

GOALS:

• “Keep the Willamette River free of pollution.”
2008) River still full of shit. Fish still full of PCBs and mercury.

• “Reinforce the Oriental restaurant concentration along NW Fourth Avenue with additional entertainment facilities.”
2008) Are strip clubs “entertainment facilities”?

• Calls for major emphasis on public transit, and downtown “traffic-free” districts where private car traffic and on-street parking are “eliminated.”
2008) Cars are banned…during parades. This year’s Plan drafters call the transportation goals of 1972 “unrealistic.” Transit ridership is 50 percent lower than the 1972 goal.

1988

On TV: Matlock, Iran-Contra

Typical plan sentence: “These are aspirations for greatness, aspirations that, if adhered to, can be achieved. This is how great cities come into being.”

Grade: C. Less ambitious yet more grandiose. Made peace with cars and development.

GOALS:

• “Establish a World’s Fair committee.”
2008) Still time to bid for the 2020 Olympics.

• “Recognize that parking is an important element in the transportation system.”
2008) So much for 1972’s going “traffic-free.”

• “Provide year-round shelter for the homeless.”
2008) No—but we’ve got a 10-Year Plan for that, too.

• Develop “public restroom facilities such as pissoirs.”
2008) Not yet—but you can pee in City Hall after dark.

• Study “alternative fuels for transit.”
2008) TriMet still burns diesel. Some gas stations pump biofuels.

• Build a public aquarium as a major attraction.
2008) Go, Fish.

• Promote the growth of the brewing and distilling industries.
2008) Portland has 30 breweries—more than any city anywhere. Cheers!"

(Thanks for the link John Hooker.)

Carlin RIP

Some people see things that are and ask, Why? Some people dream of things that never were and ask, Why not? Some people have to go to work and don't have time for all that.  George Carlin

NYT's Mel Watkins obituary calls George Carlin a "splenetic curmudgeon".

Still, when pushed to explain the pessimism and overt spleen that had crept into his act, he quickly reaffirmed the zeal that inspired his lists of complaints and grievances. “I don’t have pet peeves,” he said, correcting the interviewer. And with a mischievous glint in his eyes, he added, “I have major, psychotic hatreds.”

Village Not For Sale - Mostly Sort Of

The Village of Los Ranchos de Albuquerque Mayor says the Village's rural character is not for sale and film production will no longer be allowed in residential zones.  Story in the Albuquerque Journal.  

Funny that.  Seems to me that multiple major political fundraising events held in the Village have been more disruptive to more people.  Huge bush parties at private homes, including the Mayor's, disrupted rural character more than film crews.  Swarming secret service men and presidential motorcades put a harsh on the rural mellow more than once by screwing up traffic city-wide and closing major streets. 

I guess that will be a problem for Mayor Abraham only if President Obama comes to the Village.

Crisis Deniers

Part Next - The Subdivision

The sky was pink when she pulled the big black SUV over to get the mail.  She looked up at the mountain out of habit but couldn't see either horizon from here anymore.  She used to really enjoy that view. Sometimes picking up her mail was the longest time she spent outside all day.  

Now garages faced the street on two sides.  To the south was a huge power line corridor and on the north was a concrete channel where the arroyo used to be.  It was painted with oblong spots of gun metal gray that covered the graffiti. She got a perverse thrill out of seeing fresh bright colors on the wall in the mornings.  It testified to some life in the neighborhood. There were otherwise no views except from the second floor windows of the house on Lot 3.  The master bath toilet.

The subdivision sign he'd had designed for the entrance was an illuminated stucco monument to the formerly visible western horizon.  The distinct hills were represented by little bumps across the top.  Is that supposed to be a dinosaur? a niece asked.  Kids rode it, wrote on it,  and destroyed the lone locust tree - a remnant of required landscaping. 

She had asked him back then why he couldn't change the lot layout, platted by the previous owner, and get some nice custom home sites with views. If he filed a new plat, she thought to herself, he might be required to put in sidewalks.  Maybe she could get him to save those three pinon trees by the arroyo. 

But he said it would cost too much cash and time for revisions and resubmittals.  Months of money.

What's your hurry?  You have the money.  What's a few months?  The lot lines you draw are set in stone.  Lot layouts last lifetimes.  You could leave a legacy! 

His eyebrows went up.  La de da my legacy!  Then he shrugged.  Gotta watch the bottom line.  Buy you a margarita? 

Unreal Side

Jim Scarantino, writing for the Alibi, says high gas prices are all Udall's fault.  We can drill our way out of this.

Udall’s biggest contribution to rising energy prices has been keeping domestic oil and gas reserves inaccessible. He has repeatedly voted against opening the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) to energy development. He has fought to keep every inch of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) closed to exploration and production. The consequence of restricting the nation’s energy supplies in the face of constantly rising domestic and global demand is upward pressure on price. It doesn’t take a Nobel Laureate to connect those dots.

Dr. Housing Bubble Blog coincidentally had this about that.

Some want to continue to drill for more oil as if saying, “vote for me and you can continue frolicking in your F-150s and Hummers as if the world hadn’t changed!” It is absurd and economically speaking, drilling off shore would only decrease prices by chump change measured in cents but apparently, this is logic that jives with a large portion of our population. This is probably the same segment of the population that thought lower interest rates on housing and easier lending standards were excellent ideas.

And eliminating building restrictions will solve the housing crisis.

... at the lemonade springs where the bluebird sings in the Big Rock Candy Mountains - Harry McClintock

Watching Tiger Golf

A fact that surprises some is that I love watching golf.  My idea of being perfectly comfortable involves getting horizontal with a beverage in hand on a Sunday afternoon while enjoying an excellent view and live music.  Or golf. 

Golf courses are a despicable waste of water, land and petrochemicals.  But I like the way they look on TV. I like the fact that every course is unique.  Each hole is different.  Weather and landscape are integral.  I like the crowds getting quiet and the polite clapping.   I like the calm green views and the live aerial shots from the blimp. 

When Tiger is playing, it is almost too exciting.  I was going to say, when someone like Tiger is playing, because there are other great golfers, but there is no one like Tiger.  I can't nap when he plays.
I listened to the play-off yesterday on the radio at work - cursing my computer for not livestreaming.  I was neither horizontal nor with beverage.  The big sound of the club swing swooshing was enough. 

LP at NMFBIHOP summarizes the US Open nicely.

Sudden-death playoff.  Woods wins. But everyone gained an immense amount of respect for Mediate.  The 158th-ranked player in the world stood toe to toe to Woods for 18 holes Monday.  Sure, Woods' knee was aching and obviously troubling him -- but this is the man with 13 majors.  He is undeniably the best golfer in the planet and well on his way to being undeniably the best golfer ever.  And Mediate played next to him and, unlike so many others, never blinked. In the end, he just wasn't as good as Tiger Woods. But Mediate shouldn't feel bad -- no one else on the planet is either.

Still Here with Beer

When I don't post, the friends who keep tabs on me through this blog imagine I've (finally) been abducted or, you know, can't get out of bed. 

One said, "You've finally stopped blogging?"  She sounded somewhat relieved and this has strengthened my resolve to never quit. 

I went north with Big Dog for fathers day.  We walked in the woods and thought a lot about Dad.

There is wireless at Steamworks Brewery in Bayfield but I find it impolite to blog while toasting fathers with a fine fresh beer. 

Decision Desert Rock

Sounds like a western. Desert Rock Blog says the region broke federal standards for ozone yesterday.

NMFBIHOP notes that the EPA will make a permit decision on this new coal plant (and you already know what it'll be) on July 31. Read about it here at San Juan Citizens Alliance.

Interesting date to choose for the decision -  Lammas - the Pagan thanksgiving.  Some harvest.