Month: June 2009

In our backyard, we have a pond. It’s a cement pond, as Jed Clampets from the Beverly Hillbillies would say, but it’s as good as any regular pond. As I grew up near the water, I always enjoy it. There is a fountain in the middle of the pond which sprays the water up in the air all day long. It cuts off sometime in the night and then it seems really quiet.

I always enjoy the pond and it seems to calm me down. There is something about water that makes me feel at home. I enjoy the animals that make their home in the water and they seem to get along together. The ducks stay together and the turtles float around with their heads stuck out of the water. You may see a snake once in a while, but don’t be alarmed as they usually go on their way. I am going to try a little fishing this year; I’ll let you know how that works out.

Being as that I care about our earth and its environment, I tend to keep track of many issues related to energy, pollution, and our atmosphere. One of the big debates in our world is the making and use of ethanol. Ethanol is a corn based product that is turned into a gasoline additive. While many people agree it’s a good thing to reduce our use of fossil fuels, this may not be the best solution.

One of the problems associated with ethanol is that there are many negative effects. The use of farmland to grow the corn needed reduces the production of food. This in turn raises the price of food and has a great effect on the poorer people in the world. Another problem is the destruction of woodland to increase the farming area. This wholesale destruction of our forests has an unknown impact on our climate.

While I am glad that people are finally starting to realize the problems we face in the energy field, I think we need to further investigate our solutions. There are many aspects to everything we do and each thing needs to be considered carefully. I do not have the answers to our problems myself, but I would join with anyone who wants to sit down and try to figure them out.

One thing that many people do not know about me is that I collect aluminum cans. I will tell you how it started. I have been known to drink a beer or two in my time and one day I noticed how many empty cans I had lying around. I knew about the scrap yard as I had been there many times. The idea hit me that I should take my cans in for money. That idea has paid off!

I am lucky to have enough room in my garage to store the cans until I have enough to take in. my buddy Richie drinks a lot and he saves his cans for me. Between my beer cans, Richie’s cans, and all the soda cans from the kids, I have collected up a lot of cans! I bag them up and take them to the scrap yard every couple of months. The last time I went I received $38 dollars for my trouble. That’s not a lot, but it is enough to buy a few more cases of beer! I think I’ll keep on collecting and making those few extra dollars!