Tesla Battery or Powerwall------Missionary's Position

Unfortunately, I spend too much time being entertained with various discussions on sustainability and all the hype that goes with it. But I also like messing with sustainable ideas and efforts offered by others. Then, of course, I obviously entertain myself by writing about all this crap. I don't think for catharsis, maybe intellectual interest, maybe because I care, not so much for myself as I am now older than dirt and none of this stuff will likely mean jack to me---other than I find it entertaining, but for my future connected family. Ya, ya, the plight of man is entertaining.

So along comes the new Tesla battery that one Mr. Musk thinks will change the world. Now I am not the sharpest knife in the drawer (I just learned I may be the leper with the most fingers) but any jackass can figure out this thing, this Power Wall, is nothing short of hype, and real good hype if you will,

 So I am sitting here thinking that just maybe I can get a kick-ass battery pack that will allow me to go off grid again but in pricing the contraption I learn a couple bits of alarming info. First off, the single battery which produces 10 KWHs cost a pleasant $3,500. I also learn the average home uses close to 25 KWHs a day (even though I use less than 10). So the average home would have to have 3 of these suckers to even cover electricity for one day. Now, it might cover me for a day but here in Wisconsin it is not that unusual to have 4-5 days sunless. Then what?

To top it off, I now have lead acid batteries that will cover me for a couple of days as long as we do not do the wash or vacuum---which we do not like doing anyway. These led acid babies only cost $800 and the fancy Tesla pack is over $10K. Clearly, even though they clam to be 10 KWH, we all know the efficiency of the unit is probably in the low 90s--throw in the inverter and it is even lower. In addition to the $10K cost, there is for most people a huge installation fee and of course for the average dude they have to have $30,000 worth of PVs to power up the $10,000 worth of batteries.

Then somewhere I read the production of these lithium batteries is more "green" than the lead puppies. Why hell, they both rip the living Jesus out of the landscape. It is modern technology and all of it is based on consumption of resources and fossil energy. Up a fat rats ass it is green. Is it better in the long run than natural gas---maybe, just maybe. One would have to take a real hard look at the math. You want to see something green make a candle out of hog fat and ashes.

When I heard this system, both the PVs and the battery, would power India I almost laid down on the ground and soiled myself. If it is  $40,000 to set it up in this country can one imagine how much it would cost in some remote village? Then they would have to deal with the complexity of it all, Parts? These techno-triumphalist drive me nuts. Truth is, it doesn't even work in this country. I suspect it is just another fun toy or hobby for a few rich people. Get the price down to $3,000 for 30KWH and I still might do it---interestingly.

Catching and Eating Local fish

 I like to think it is possible to be LOCAL in our food production. Many now call this relocalization  The implication of the project is to develop a local food source that is not hinging on bringing food long distances when in fact most foods can be grown, caught, or "found" locally. It is a noble cause it would seem in that we get rid of a dependency that may, at some point in out lives, not be workable. I mean, getting farm raised fish from China makes little sense no matter how one looks at it. Hell, the are fed human fecal mater as are the shrimp from the Mekong Delta. It is simply about distance and energy use---and quality.

Yes, if the fish are raised here they will probably cost more but we will at least be offering jobs and there will be some rules as to how they are raised. I still refuse to buy the ones raised here due to the use of chemicals and to the genetic manipulations that end up in the wild populations. Far as I am concerned it is damned hard to find a fish that is not in some way damaging to fish populations from over-fishing or is polluted from antibiotics or had it's DNA altered.

The only option is to search out lake-caught fish right here. The only problem seems to be they are not really easy to catch or there just are not many of them. I know some yahoos claim I am just a shitty fisherman but this is not true. I am a dedicated angler with considerable skill and an attractive demeanor. Not many fish are brought home, that is true. In some cases because I release them thinking there are not many and they need to be returned for future fisher types to enjoy. Here and there I bring some home as a way of having fish in our diets.

I see this as being sustainable but also realize that if every jackass who fished kept all the fish caught most of the lakes would be devoid of fish in short order. I now believe many fishermen return much of there catch and fish only for the relaxation and the pleasant outing in a wonderful setting.

Things turned a little different the other day. It seems we, Dennis and I , visited a particular flowage to find a sign that stated, with out hesitation, this body of water was being managed for Walleyes, and in noting this, stated the Black Bass were eating all the fry. As result the bass were fair game and could be kept in great number, no limit! While this appeared to be silly because Bass are a great deal more exciting to catch but thought to be less exciting to eat.

We hit the water with our new (used) fishing rig, and it ain't no canoe. I was forced by family members to move to something more stable as I have in the past few years had some inappropriate time in the water as a result of falling, colorfully, from the canoe. Seems they did not want to see a headline in the local paper stating, " Elderly man found floating in local pond." It turned out the hot tip we had received put us in touch with numerous Large Mouthed Bass. Out of the need to protect the Walleyes, and to fill my gullet, and be sustainable and relocalized we kept six  bass out of the forty or so we caught. While it is a secret, these are some of the finest fish we have consumed in a mighty long time.

I know the nice thirty year old boat is not real sustainable but it is already manufactured and will take no more energy but the motor will and does. It is a four stroke so there is less smog spewing form it. However, we are relocalized and those fat fish, like most of our food, now comes from Wisconsin.

Local Individual Tries to become Middle Class Using Solar Powered Wacker

Some years ago I received a weed wacker from my mother's estate. For many years I have been unable to find a use for it in that I had few weeds worth wacking and the noise it made was socially disturbing. While it was electric in propulsion, it still put out quit a din rather like a leaf blower or a Nazi Panzer division. It also tended to launch small particles much like an electron accelerator
. .

Basically, it was fucking ridiculous in that there really didn't seem any need to wack weeds, particularly if an occasional toad got whipped into a froth. We were living a lower middle class life style at the time and while it was hard getting around the old appliances in the front yard, the biggest problem was dealing with the guilt of having one more energy consuming appliance doing some senseless act for the pure pleasure of accommodating a comfortable middle class life style.

I was already some sort of wack job, so it sat idle. I even tried to sell it in a yard sale but no one was willing to lay down good folding money for the nice unit. $10 was just too steep. Somewhere along the line, we set up a photo-voltaic system which we use to power our home. We wanted to be  sustainable types and drop off using fossil fuels which are clearly killing our planet (even if Ted Cruz doesn't think so, or every other dip-shit conservative). We did manage to get our electric consumption down to less than 5 KWH per day compared to the national average of 25.

Well, yesterday I ran into the wacker while getting out the electric lawn mower and realized, like the mower, I could power it with electricity from the batteries thus converting my lawn care to complete solar power. Talk about sustainable. Most importantly, by trimming the lawn around the side walk I could begin to approach middle class, or at least maintain our lower middle class status.

It was necessary to gear up for the event, or was it armor up, due to the obnoxious viperous hissing the rig created and to prevent the loss of eyes from the high velocity stones flying about. I noticed the outfit did start one really great cat fight across the street as they panicked from the approaching Fokker D7 dive bomber. My closest neighbor pointed out this was the first time she had seen me clean my side walks and wondered what was going on. I told her I was trying to go middle class which brought a look of bewilderment---what about the old cars and the moonshine still? .

After 20 minutes of wacking off the vegetation---and some minor injuries, I took some time to cipher over my effort toward being Middle Class. I sincerely wanted to be sustainable in my pursuit because, after all, if my middle class position was not sustainable, what is the point?

As a deep green thinker, or is it Dark Mountaineer, there was a real need to get serious---being middle class is a lofty goal and deserves in depth thinking. Right off I hit walls, threw up red flags, did the Sweet Jesus jumping across the tundra on a rubber crutch expletive. Why hell, that Fokker probably took a barrel of oil to produce, not to mentioning the fabulous volumes of fossil fuels  to build the PV system. My God, it was no different than the electric car that took 30 barrels of oil to make and who knows how many more barrels to make the roads on which to drive the things. I just learned that it takes more oil to build an auto than it will burn in its life time. Boy, it is hard being sustainable and just as I was getting into it, this middle class thing may have to be reconsidered.

 I was thinking it might be best just to burn off my yard a couple times a year---that has a nice paleo feel to it. A goat might be sustainable. So much for being a wack job.