Romeo Lunch 5-21-08

The Romeo group had a great lunch today at the New Bridge Café in Chelsea, which is highly rated by the Phantom Gourmet. Our special guest was Mary Corcoran who now resides at the Lighthouse Nursing Care Center in Revere and just celebrated her 82nd birthday (see Mary’s address below). She was accompanied by her aid Penny M. and on behalf of the group, Joe Pignatiello gave Mary a bouquet of flowers.

Mary Corcoran
Lighthouse Nursing Care Center,
Room 106, 204 Proctor Avenue, Revere, MA 02151

As always, the conversation was tops and ran the gamete from high gas prices to crashed computers. In addition, Joe P. told us a story of a ski trip he made to Italy in the 1980’s where he spent some time in the local jail. The local police made a derogatory remark at Joe’s group. Joe understanding Italian, replied back “Stupido”. The police beat him and threw him in the clink. It took the US Consulate to give Joe a “Get Out Of Jail Card” before he was able to rejoin his group. However, all was not lost since he ate like a king when his cell mate’s wife brought a full course meal each day.

The menu choices at the New Bridge were steak tips, pork, lamb and baby back ribs as well as Italian fare and sandwiches. The meal was just delicious and the service was outstanding. Prices were very reasonable and it would be worth a second trip back someday soon. However, no dessert or coffee is served although there is a well stocked bar.

The Romeo’s in attendance were Jim Terlizzi, Joe Pignatiello, Joe Balsama, Joe LoDuca, Joe Lapiana, Steve Winter, Ed DeSchuytner, Paul Girard and Mark Ryan. Jim Sicuso also stopped by to wish Mary well. A picture of Mary and Joe B. is above. Other pictures can be seen on the Picasa website. http://picasaweb.google.com/markryan312/RomeoLunch52108

Dream Machines

With the price of gas going through the roof, I have been looking up information related to alternative fuels and experimental vehicles hoping to find a future car that would run on air or water and be pollution free.

In a short time, I found quite a lot of info on the web by using the Google Search Engine. Google is a great modern research tool for the general public. It sure beats going to the library and looking through the card catalog index and hundreds of books. I listed some of the web sites below for future reference in case anyone wants to look at the sources.

Through a Google search I found that YouTube also has some great videos on future cars and innovations that are being carried out by enterprising experimenters in their home garage or basement. These guys have invented all sorts of gadgets related to getting better mpg (miles per gallon) on traditional and modified gas engines.

One such innovation is the Weed Wacker Bike where the inventor attached a gas powered weed wacker to a bicycle. He then put a small airplane propeller on the end. The weed wacker propeller pushed the bike along a straight road and provided about 200 mpg. See the link ….. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7h7AmVPpaEY

Another innovation was the Water Powered Car. This takes water and breaks it down to Hydrogen and Oxygen which are used as combustible fuel in a modified gas engine. See the link …. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIgOn1kRw5s&feature=related

Cars with diesel engines can be modified to burn filtered french fry or vegetable cooking oils. This is a great way to recycle this waste product from restaurants and to reduce the use of regular diesel fuel. However, one of the side effects is the car exhaust smells like French fries and makes you hungry. See the link …. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0WTkpQbv1w&feature=related

Another alternative is Biofuel or Ethanol made from corn or soy beans. Presently, unleaded gas at the pump has 10% Ethanol. Some hybrid cars can burn 85% ethanol mixed with regular gasoline. The problem with ethanol is farmers are growing less corn for food and more to make ethanol which consequently drives up the price of food corn. Farmers in the Amazon Basin are also clearing large areas of Rain Forest to grow soy beans that can also be used to make ethanol. This leads to more global warming and other ecological problems. However, a company in Medford, MA is developing a way to make ethanol from corn husks. That way the corn can still be used for food. See link ….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_ZLSzuQFTE

How would you like to get over 3000 mpg. New experimental cars have set new records for mpg and distance. See the link …. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FY59yD7fsYE&eurl


You can also see other information about fuels and cars at the government web site … http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/findacar.htm Here you can find cheap gas prices by zip code, hybrids, mpg, money saving tips, and experimental cars that give extreme mpg.
Also, look at the US Dept. Energy website for future alternative vehicles. See the link …
http://www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/vehicles/index.html

Arbor Day - May 2008

Arbor Day – Tree Planting Season
Although tree planting is a tradition for Arbor Day, you can plant most trees from spring to fall. The planting is quite simple even though there may be specific directions for one type or another. I have had the most luck with the following method. Dig a hole about twice the size of the root ball. Add some compost to the bottom of the hole. Remove the fabric covering the root ball or cut slices in it if it is biodegradable. Place the tree root in the middle of the hole with the top of the root ball level with the top of the hole. Half fill the hole with a mix of potting soil, mulch and native soil. Flood the hole with water to the top. Wait for the water to settle and then fill the rest of the hole with the soil mixture slightly mounded around the tree trunk. Water each day for first week and then at least once per week, especially during dry spells. Add fertilizer periodically near the root ball and later out to the shadow of the tree crown. Pruning the tree once per year helps tree growth and flower blossoms. Trees grown within their climate zone are quite hardy and will last many years. For a sample of the types of trees available to your climate zone see the following web link: http://www.fast-growing-trees.com/Massachusetts.htm
Recently I purchased a couple of Cleveland Pear Trees to plant in the front yard. This is a non fruit bearing hybrid tree that has white flowers during the spring with deep green leaves all summer which turn dark scarlet red in the fall. The tree grows well in zone 5-8 and resists damage from extreme snow, ice and wind. It grows 3-4 feet per year and when mature 30 feet tall and 20 feet wide in a semi perfect oval shape. I looked around for a good purchase price and found the following variations for a 6 ft. tree (online nursery $129, local garden nursery $69, Lowe’s Garden Shop $19, and Home Depot Garden Shop $15). Most reputable dealers have a return policy that allows you to return the tree, if it dies within the first year.

National Bike Month (May 2008)

As a young boy fifty years ago, I lived in the city in a triple decker apartment building. Most of the kids on my block had bicycles that we would ride each day around the neighborhood bouncing up on the sidewalk or following one another in a parade.

We were always doing something with the bike. Adjusting this or that or trying out some new riding trick. One bike craze was to fasten a stiff playing card next to the spokes of the back wheel. As the wheel turned, it snapped the card and made a loud sound like a motor cycle. Some bikes had horns and lights built into the frame while others had attachments like bells, whip antennae or fox tails that flapped in the wind. Daniel Boone Raccoon Hats were also in fashion. The bike with all its attachments was your pride and joy.

Over the years, I taught my children to ride bikes and to enjoy them as I did. I showed them how to repair a flat tire, tighten the spokes, adjust the seat and put on all sorts of attachments. We took the bikes on short trips around the neighborhood or transported them by car on camping trips. We rebuilt old bikes and also bought new ones.

Now that I am retired, I have had the opportunity to take short bike trips with my grandchildren and pass on some bike information to them. A few years ago we took a trip to the Break Heart Reservation in Wakefield. The tarred trails are quite hilly and although the older grandchildren enjoyed riding fast up and down the hills, the younger ones were more cautious.

Presently, I am exploring some trails around town to ride that are not too taxing for me or the grandchildren. The bike rides take us along side streets and sidewalks with little car traffic and end at a destination that we can explore. I have mapped out a few bike rides around the neighborhood and have listed them on Google Maps. You can see some bike routes by going to Google Maps and then typing in (Bike Routes , Name of Town, Name of State) http://maps.google.com/

Since May is National Bike month, it would be appropriate to get out the old bike and take a trip. In the Boston area, it is also Bay State Bike Week, May 12-17, 2008. You can join in on the fun with a bike ride in Boston. All the details are at the link: http://baystatebikeweek.org/

With the price of gas for the car approaching $4.00 per gallon, people are looking for alternative methods of travel. Maybe the old bike can get you around town instead of the car and at the same time save you money and be good for the environment.

If you want to explore other bike trails around the area you can go to the following web sites for trail maps or road directions. Click the links below:

Resources:
http://www.pedaling.com/index.asp - Trails and Resources around the US
http://www.trails.com/ - Free Trial Memberships (Some info w/o memberships) Maps
http://www.localhikes.com/MSA/MSA_1123.asp Local Hikes and Bike Trails
http://www.bikely.com/listpaths Find a trail with Google Maps
http://www.fellsbiker.com/riding/ Middlesex Fells Trails & Maps
http://trails.mtbr.com/ Mountain Bike Trails and Maps
http://www.mapmyride.com/ Local rides and Google Maps

Digital TV

I have been doing some research on the new free digital TV that will be broadcast starting February 17, 2009 throughout the United States. That means free TV without paying a cable bill. To learn all about this, go to the Radio Shack website: http://www.radioshack.com/home/index.jsp then select Research Library and then Learn About DTV. (You may have to copy these web addresses and paste them into you browser. I keep getting Active X Error message when I try clicking directly from email).

To get free digital TV, you need an antenna and digital TV set. If you don’t have a new digital TV you can use your old analog TV with a converter box. The converter box will change the digital signal to an analog signal for the old TV set. All of this is now available. There are stations now broadcasting free digital TV and you can buy digital TV sets for as low as $150 (Best Buy) http://www.bestbuy.com/ (Select Television then Tube TV) and an omnidirectional antenna for $60 (Radio Shack) http://www.radioshack.com/home/index.jsp and a converter box for $60 (Radio Shack). In addition, the U.S. Dept. of Commerce is giving out 2 free $40 coupons per household for the purchase of a converter box. You just have to apply online at: https://www.dtv2009.gov/ . There is a high demand for the coupons and the present wait time is about 30 days.

I have a new digital TV and a directional antenna in my RV Travel Trailer and presently I can receive 23 digital stations and 21 analog stations without being attached to the cable company. After February 2009 I won’t receive any more analog stations but will receive more digital stations as they come online.

To find out more about how to select an antenna, go to the web site http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx
Here you will see that the antenna types are color coded to designate whether they are omni directional or single directional as well as the distance of the sending station. If you type in your address at this site, you get a map of your street area and the optimal directions to orient your directional antenna to receive the best signal. You need to select the stations you would like to receive the most to determine what type antenna to choose and which direction you need to turn it. For stations that are nearby, you can instead select an omnidirectional antenna that does not have to be turned and will receive signals from nearby stations in any direction.

Before you cancel you cable subscription, make sure that the free digital TV stations are the ones you want to watch. There are no premium stations (HBO, Cinemax, etc.) on free digital TV. Also, do your homework to make sure that the free digital stations are available in your area. Decide if you are going to put the antenna inside your apartment or outside on your roof? You also need an additional converter box for each TV set, VCR or DVD device that receives a direct TV signal.

Welcome Back

I started a new blog today since my old blog was deleted by Blogger with no apparent explanation. However, I will try to keep the new blog simple with no blogger violations. In the future, I would appreciate an explanation, so I can immediately comply.

Again, the reason for this blog is to express my point of veiw on current topics of interest. Recently, I have been reading a lot about environmental topics and the Greening of America. Consequently, my blogs have been along those lines. However, I am also interested in other topics that are listed in my profile.

If any readers would like to comment on any of the blog topics, they can just send me a comment or email. Hope to hear from you all.