We can continue as our group of folks and if sometimes folks need to take a break, so be it. Let’s keep it doable and fun.

i am here. loving this, protecting the little bit of earth that i can… buck up babe, i got your back… life goes on… yo ho…

The OTEP graphics are amazing. Thanks for the heads up.

Absolutely, G-ster, go on strike, but you have to forbid the rest of the gang, too weak from hunger to stand, from crawling to the nearest Burger King or McFoul.

Hey, if you have any free time, check out Otep’s team page. I know, I’m like the big Otep fan now, but seriously, there is some heart stopping images on their team communications page. – The G-ster

In my house, I am the dishwasher. I was just wondering, do I have an energy saving setting that I might not have been previously aware of? Does anyone know about this setting? If I am too old a model, can I be converted? Come to think of it, I also operate as the family drive through, which makes me wonder, if I refuse to feed anyone one or two days out of the week, how much carbon will I be reducing? Also, if I refuse to be the drive through, I also won’t have any dishes to wash, which further lightens my carbon footprint. Perhaps this option should be added to the current challenges? - The G-ster

Methane challenge? Nay, I have no idea of which you speaks. Verily. - The G-ster

So what about the methane challenge? What do we do about that?

Heavenly light from above, we call on thee to give us guidance and not to give us headaches, to keep our path lit when we treadeth forth into the valley of the shadow of darkness, to keep us safe yea even thou we fear we have stumbled into the canyons, verily into the high and insurmountable walls of the carpet covered cubicle.

Don’t know how to get used to it. Try a scarf over the light? Learn to like the taste of tylenol? I’ve felt the same sort of thing, but finally decided I had to give it a try. And now am too slothful to change back.

Elmcorners: I can’t stand those new bulbs. Sorry, but the ambiance is for shit. Does anyone else have this issue? It’s like hanging out in a mall. My new place has a bunch of the bulbs already in place, and I actually took some out and replaced them ‘cause I couldn’t stand the yellowish glare. How’s that for being a planet hater? – The G-ster PS What’s a pound?

I like the idea of “stretch your gas”, but don’t know if I’m organized enough. And sometimes I’m broke, and only put in like ten bucks, and then that throws everything off. Let’s think on the particulars. – The G-ster

5 on the General League Leaderboard. You go!

Rockers: thanks for the feedback and ideas. We’ve got something in the works based on this. Keep up the great humor and Rockers Rally Action.

Birdman, Thanks for clarifying for us. I like the idea of adding the “doing it already” option. In terms of working it into the carbon rally model, what about adding a few points for years one has been doing something? And perhaps specify that the scale does not nec. reflect the actual carbon pounds saved, but is more bonus points? One could accept a challenge, and then click another button for bonus if they’ve been doing something for say, longer than Carbon Rally has been up and running. (Just how long is that, in fact?) Plus, this might be a good way to encourage people to hang in there with a change, to see how it adds up. And we’ll all just have to live with the fact that it won’t be exact, and, gasp, someone who’s been vegetarian for 20 years will get the same credit as someone who’s been doing it for, say 6.

On another note, I’d like to propose a challenge for us in Seb Town Rockers. Just a thought. No points. Try it out, see if it works, and if it does we could propose it to Carbon Rally at large. Really simple: Look at a month where your driving patterns are similar to now (i.e., work months if back teaching), and how many days between filling up at the pump. Try going one day longer. Anyone game?

Hope everyone’s well.

this earth is beautiful; green, lush, and there at our finger tips. i am grateful for that…. i see the mess i have created, but i swear in my own way i am working on it. no points, no matter…

There was an energy saving supplement in our paper today. In it they touted some high efficiency bulbs that would fit the crazy sockets we have in the ceilings in several rooms. Right now these sockets take small spotlight type bulbs that use 50 watts each. When we turn on the kitchen lights, it’s 600 watts. Taking bulbs out makes the place too gloomy.

However, the new bulbs that would fit these sockets only use 12-15 watts, a good deal, except they cost 11 pounds each. For a mere 132 pounds I could not only reduce my carbon generation but get it all my money back in about fifteen years. When the prices are reasonable, it will be out with the old and in with the new.

I like the idea of a special option for, “I do this already”. It feels good to accept a challenge, and why not get points for something you already do? You are still cutting back carbon, and have made a decision, at some point, to change behavior. No one is born composting. A new activist group I’ve become aware of, Carotmob, is struggling with a similar dilemma. They put out contests with certain businesses to see which will green-up the most, then send out the word to hundreds of carotmobbers/consumers who show up on a given day and spend their money at that particular store. Problem, what about the businesses that have already gone to great effort and expense to be green? Why should they be left out? I don’t think they have solved the issue yet, but you can read about the conundrum on the “carotmob” web-site. Can’t remember the address off hand. Sorry. - The G-ster

Ultimately, of course, this whole exercise is about raising awareness, isn’t it? Points are fine and I’ll take all I can claim, but until affordable options become available no real change will happen.

I agree, for instance, that eating meat is a poor use of resources. I can cut back on my consumption of beef, and I have. It would help, of course, if it didn’t taste so good when it’s properly prepared, but now that Susan and I have found some excellent vegetarian meals it doesn’t feel like going without.

Change will come over time. My laptop is not quite three years old and I’ve been told the newer models are much more efficient around energy consumption.

Many of the light sockets in our house will only take a specific bulb and there is no way to substitute the low energy alternatives which frustrating. The best we can do is turn out the lights when we leave a room.

We pick our battles. In the best of circumstances we can be proactive. In the worst, the choice is made for us when the price of energy climbs.

In the meantime, if collecting points helps, I say let’s do it.

Hey Rockers,

Sorry for eavesdropping, but I’m loving this discussion here. We’ve been struggling with this issue of taking credit for elements of your lifestyle you’ve already greened-up…. according to the rules, no, folks should not take credit for a challenge unless it represents a real change in behavior. That said, we’ve heard from lots of folks who are not happy with this deal. If they are varsity eco players pre-rally, they’d like to see that somehow reflected in their score. Sooooo, we are considering a feature that lets people state “i already do this” next to a challenge. we’ll keep track of this and display this info on your profile, but not include it in your rally CO2 score… what do you think? Downside is that it makes the site more complicated. Earth Pope, can you channel in a Higher Power into this thread?

Dude, where is your competitive edge? I can’t believe you guys. It’s not about the points? Well, honestly, I did not take the fast food challenge because I don’t eat fast food, but only because the rules say that you can’t take a challenge unless it pertains to your own personal behaviors, not because I’m above claiming points for something I already do. And believe you me, I read all of the rules just to make sure! The competition is what makes it fun, also, taking a vow and then trying to uphold it, with the team in mind. I already compost, but take the compost points, because I compost, and that’s all that is required. Not eating meat two days a week, if you are already a vegetarian, now, that’s a gray area, perhaps sort of like the fast food challenge? How can you cut back on something you already don’t do? Hmmm, let’s ask the Earth Pope what he thinks. – The G-ster

I agree, it’s more about lifestyle and mindset than it is about points. But just because I made choices before the competition started doesn’t necessarily mean those choices have no value. And, if our general lifestyle is one of turning out lights, walking to the store, taking a bus, or even buying milk from a guy who takes the bottles back and uses them again, that counts for something, even if it can’t be legitimately counted in the competition.

There should be credit, I think, for people who buy their clothes in thrift shops, for people who completely wear things out before putting them in thrift shops, for using low flow shower heads and lower temperatures in washing machines. Every socket in our house that will take them has a low energy light bulb. When we lived in Forestville, every light in the house had low energy bulbs. We never paid over the minimum charge for water.

Incidentally, there’s a push here, as I’m sure there is just about everywhere, to buy local produce. It’s easy enough to do here in England but there’s also lots of stuff from Europe and Africa and the middle east. Someone pointed out that the local stuff might actually have a larger carbon impact since it’s almost always grown with heavy mechanization and fertilzers where as stuff grown in Kenya is apt to rely on manual labor. Even flying the stuff here once it’s harvested generates less carbon than some of the locally grown produce. So there it is. The best we may be able to do is to make sure we waste nothing we buy. At least then the carbon will not have been wasted.

hummm, i wonder how many of us really care about the numbers… i would guess most of us just want to save gas, electricity and such. the world is a fragile home and i think most of us naturally want to keep as small a footprint as we can. of course this is by american standards… and i recognize to most countries we, even in our most humble, may seem luxurious… but still, with our culture perhaps we are attempting to live consciously. there are no points for picking up others litter, there are no points for many things many of us do, but it is not about the points. it is about supporting how and where we live and work and play. i am always more surprised that other teams do not have more points rather then being surprised how many we do.

Part of the beauty of Carbon Rally is to change behavior, and again it’s about the earth, not who is doing the most. Look at the challenges. Most of these are about If you are doing X, then try cutting back. Not, “give yourself ten extra pounds to your score if you never go to fast food (or rarely, or whatever). Should I claim no cow and sheets to the wind since I’ve been a vegetarian and have not used a dryer. Well, maybe not. Except that it’s still a struggle TO DO these things (which seems somehow different than taking credit for things I’d never do anyway), even after all of these years. Can’t tell you how easy it would be sometimes to have clothes dry in under 4 days in the winter or buy a roasted chicken. Do you know how good that smells to some of us who stopped eating the poor little birds before you could even get a roasted chicken at the store? (oh man, my mouth is watering already)

So here’s my thought: it’s fun to see us go up in the ranks, but it’s about changing who we are in little ways one thing at a time, and giving ourselves a little extra kudo for holding to the changes. And if the competitive aspect becomes what matters first, then we’ve missed the point. Competition is a large reason for why we have global warming to begin with—US trying to out compete the rest of the world in production, in influence, in garnering up natural resources (b/c we can squash other countries’ economies if they don’t give it to us, etc.).

And hell, I’d be glad to stick only with the changes I’ve made since joining CR, if that will make everyone happier (i.e., drop the cow, drop the sheets).

And if we want to get the true lowdown, maybe G-ster could write Birdman, i.e., Jason Karas who started it, and find out how he intends this to be used.

I say if you already don’t do something that uses carbon, you get full credit. After all, you could take up these things at any time.

OK G-ster….good luck on getting Thor to go for the green lunch!! We are lucky he is letting us pack him a brown bag. However, I support you 100% in attempting to make that one happen. Hell maybe he would go for it and surprise us all?? P.S…I don’t think we qualify for the fast food challenge…how do you qualify for something you don’t do??

Okay. Susan tried to sign up but somehow she’s connected to my page, not the team page. How does she get to be part of this team?

Dude! I’ve been out of it for awhile, family in town, and not paying too much attention to the team. So sorry. But hey, we passed the 2 ton mark. How’s that for kicking ass? I know, I know, a party. I’ll work on it. - The G-ster

hey gang, what up?? i know what’s goen’ down… carbon… over two tons of he stuff as a matter of record… seems like our mighty leader might have something to crow about… what ya think? time to party??? yo ho!

G-Ster: 2 Tons and laughing all the way…. that’s some quality leadership.

hey honey, i have, in moments of great, deep and profound angst – have been known to go to burger king and get a wopper and onion rings… and it is goooood!!! so there. of course it does not happen often, but sometimes, when life seems without rhythm or reason- its an easy fix for what ails ya. i highly recommend it! of course i will be a walk up from now on, cause i took that challenge. cause thats the kinda girl.. i mean pirate.. that i am!

Dude, what’s with the new challenge? Drive-throughs? Can I take it even though I would probably have to go to the emergency room if I ate something from a drive-through? Do any of the Rockers utilize this cultural pariah? - The G-ster PS As if you would admit it now.

And for those who are inclined to seeing where our leader’s iconic wee little bum shows up in the rankings, this update: We are #16 in last 30 day scores and #29 in all scores. Go to leaderboard, all teams, view all and see us there on page 1 for both 30 days and all scores.

Wonderfully encouraging, isn’t it? In a matter of what, a month plus, we were there going about our lives, doing some of these things anyway, but now look at us. G-ster passes though the valley of the plastic bottle and fears no evil, etc. So much to do for the earth. Yet, here we are doing it, if only a small bit of it. bravo

invite me

I just cleaned up my computer using a built in “defrag” program, found under “performance and maintenance” in the “control panel”, and also downloading an free on-line program called “decrapifier”. My computer is running way faster now. Maybe you have a mac though. New digs are bitchin’. When are you coming over? Let’s drink water together out of my new 3 gallon refillable glass bottles. The well water will kill ‘ya. - The G-ster

yeah, yeah… i know the bookmark thing…. it’s also the fact my hard drive is so full it takes a huge amount of time to reboot…. it makes this funny noise… i get nervous, you know? when i get a desk top i will shut it down, for now i am just putting it to sleep…. hey – hows the new digs?

Carboneater, have you tried bookmarking your pages? I do that a lot. That way, it’s easy to return to websites I’ve visited even if I turn off my computer. It takes some getting used to, but I’ve been doing it for the last few weeks or so. Once it becomes a habit, it’s not so bad. I’m glad to hear carbonrally linked to the article. Sometimes people won’t, and then I know they hated it! Sigh, everyone’s a critic. Also, I tried to find Elmcorners waving at us in jolly old England, and no matter how much a scrolled I couldn’t see him. Though I was pleased that I managed to find England in the first place. Initially, I had my doubts. - The G-ster

hey compostmodern, thanks for the heads up about how to read the column the G-ster wrote. “do it for the team” .... wow, i had actual tears… it was beautiful!!

well, i finally broke down and got tons of new light bulbs… i would be cleaning the back of my fridge as well but it is enclosed…. if i cleaned that do you think it would count?? the biggest thing i have a bit of guilt around is turning off the computer at night…. is it wrong not to want to lose saved web pages??? anyway, i tested the water bottle thing to the max… i was with a woman who wanted me to buy her a bottled water to go with her burrito… i refused, told her i was on this program and i had agreed not to add to the consumer waste for a month, or whatever… she was very gracious, she switched instead to a lost coast brown ale, the things we will do for the good of this great mother earth!!! isn’t it grand!

Hey folks, to see G-ster’s great column about us, click the about/help button on this or any other Carbon Rally page, go to press room link and there we are at bohemian.com

And there you are waving from your toy truck picking up empty milk bottles. Great to see you again over there.

I just discovered you can move the map around. If you drag the mouse across it you can eventually get to England. Double click on London until you can see Northampton. Double click on Northampton until you can see Moulton and Brixworth. Drag the map down slightly and double click again and you can see Hannington. Keep double clicking and then choose either the satellite or the hybrid view and you can actually pick our our house. It’s just north of the main intersection on Walgrave Road. It’s the one with the bend in the middle.

So yesterday a guy came by the house ringing a bell. It was Ben, the sharpening guy. He sharpened two of Susan’s scissors and her pruners. One pound, fifty. He comes around once a year. What a deal. If sharpening guys make house calls in the states I never heard of them. So just think of the carbon saved by Ben the Sharpening Guy when people in three counties don’t have to drive someplace to get things sharpened.

A friend of mine taught his parrot to say I am in the anti-christ in a voice not unlike that of OTEP in the Warhead video.

I mean, idle. F-ing spell check. - The G-ster

Dude, Seb-Town Rockers, I went to the Leaderboard at Compostmodern’s suggestion, and, yes, there we are. But you have GOT to check out OTEP, the team currently in the lead. I wanted to find out who they were so googled them, then watched some of their videos. Enough to send chills up and down the spine. I can’t believe we’re saving the planet with such a hardcore chick! I’m totally motivated to cut my idol time. Check it out. - The G-ster

G-ster: Has your interview with the founder of CR been put on the blog yet? We are just cruising along, aren’t we? Check out the leaderboard folks, if you’re curious, and see us on page 1 of 30 day scores and page 2 of scores overall. Thanks G-ster for getting us organized and into this. I’m pretty open in times for a 1 ton party.

I love the idea of a 1 ton party. Of course, some of our members are out of town, but we could think of them while we party, and that should count for something. I just renewed my no plastic bottles challenge, pretty much off the stuff, which feels damn good, though I do get dehydrated sometimes. No bottled juices and ice teas has been harder, but I’m hanging in there. Diving slower is sort of a good way to annoy other drivers I’ve found, so that adds another fun element to the challenge. BTW, Elmcorners, I like you idea about cooking from scratch. You should suggest it as a challenge for the entire site. Do you mill your own flour as well? - The G-ster

hi everybody… just a “howdy ho” from the carboneater… what’s up with our 1 ton party?? anyone into it? let me know… cause with everyone’s busy lives it seems making an attempt at mutual date openings might be hard – so we might want to start thinking about it now. who knows… maybe by then we will be at the two ton mark! get back and everyone seems to be rocken! good for us!

Seems as if there should be some acknowledgment and carbon saving from preparing most of one’s food from scratch. We buy very little prepared or pre-packaged food. No idea how to measure that sort of impact but it seems as if it should count somehow.

By the way, after examining our team player it has come to my attention that our two top competitors, Compostmodern and Carboneater are neck and neck, but, Compostmodern has pulled ahead at last. Good work Rockers, I hope your friendship won’t suffer from this change in the pecking order. Remember, it’s all about the Earth Mother, not your egos. - The G-ster

OK, spurred on by my teams amazing kick ass commitment, I have decided to take the new challenge. I’ve been practicing, just to see if I can handle it, and honestly, this challenge could save my life. I’m on. The Seb-Town Rockers are working their way up in the ranks. You guys never let me down. Even Elmcorners in his cute little car,cannot be denied some kudos, even if he does live in England and has a milk man and a tram. - The G-ster

Go G-ster. Great article on us. Elmcorners is just jealous that he ever left us now that we’re gaining acclaim.

elmcorners: You may look damn cute in that little car of yours, but that’s no reason to get sassy Mr. I Live In England And Get My Milk Delivered In A Bottle. Some of is live in progressive communities in CA, where there is no public transportation to speak of, and no milk man either. - The G-ster

We have milk delivered in glass bottles. He takes the empties back to use again. How many of you can say that?

Thanks for the olive tree tip. I’ll check it out. But yes, Earth Pope sure is a great guy to have around in a pinch! - The G-ster

Hey folks, not sure anyone is reading this page, but in case they are, a thought. Although we cannot “buy off” large carbon expenditures—lots of problems there I heard about a great way to do a little something more, whether one is travelling by air (and needing the absolution of our own EarthPope) or conserving carbon diligently. At the website: www.olivecoop.com/trees.html one can sponsor olive trees being planted in Palestine. Pretty cool.

Elmcorners (David), how are you doing with lowrider? I’m finding it not so easy. Give me Chicago style of driving, where everyone races to the next traffic stop, and anything goes. Damn. I feel like a tortoise. Anyone else?

compostM… hey dudette, we are neck and neck at 254!! you rock! happy birthday honey!!! hugs, carboneater

OK, damn it. I took the challenge. I don’t drink soda, but I love bottled iced teas, and bottled juices on the go. Welcome to hell, and here is to the competitive spirit! Go team go! - The G-ster

Hey Seb-Town Rockers! Good to be back in town, and sorry for the lack of leadership recently. Looks like you’re kicking ass anyway. I’m stalling at the no bottled drinks one, but honestly, I don’t think wine counts. how else are you supposed to get it? Maybe there is someone around here who sells gallon jugs? We should look into it. I’m stoked to see us on the 3rd page of teams. My article for the Boho has way out of date statistics, because I wrote it a few weeks ago. But at least now we will look good when the global attention focussed on our team begins to take effect. Love, The G-ster

We totally rock. Impressive that in less than month (is that right G-ster?) we are at the 1/2 ton mark of carbon saved. How very cool.

holy shxt compostmodern, you are catchen up. you go girl!!! hugs… c.e.

Ah what carbon conscious pirate we have. Go get ‘em carboneater. You rock, leading the way for us. As your regular driniking partner, I’m concerned though about ever extending this to wine. Gotta have that.

IMPORTANT: If you want to switch light bulbs, Food Outlet in Santa Rosa, on 4th Ave, very close to where 4th and College converge, has CFI lightbulbs profoundly cheap. About 25 cents each, in fact.

Happy greening.

hi everybody… i just signed up for the soda bottle one… i had to think about it… is wine or champagne considered soda?? it kinda is the soda of the 21+ scene… nectar of the gods and all… oh well, being into words, though many times incorrectly… i am going with the challenge. another chance to make those nasty carbons walk the might plank. yo ho yo ho!!!!

Hey Team! DC is great, miss CA though. Seeing some good green stuff here, though not too much. Water bottles are working great on the go. When’s the new challenge coming out? Can’t wait! - the G-ster

Absolutely, hang up on the jerk (was going to say much worse, but given our imminent fame, thought differently).

Delightful this, partic. for developing eccentricities. Imagine us in another month, so used to doing without bags that we discover we haven’t yet unloaded the avocado, the small bottle of balsamic, or the artichoke hearts we picked up three days previously, thinking that salad might be good for dinner.

Wow, our map is starting to look a little more busy. I’m expecting a call of recognition from the President soon. I can’t wait to hang up on him. - The G-ster

Thanks for the following replies. I’ve renewed my water bottle pledge, by the way, so you guys better be right. BTW, Earth Pope, is this a joke? – The G-Ster

elmcorners: Tank up before you get on the plane. They still let you use the toilets…

Carboneater: hey, you can bring empty bottles and fill them after security… they just won’t the liquid in…

Earth Pope: I let Walter carry the metal bottles through security for me. He is very good at hiding them and hasn’t been caught yet. Also, I use Google Earth with my IPhone to map all of the water fountains on my trip. That way I don’t have to carry anything!

Hey everyone! Our teammate living in England, elmcorners, just got his daughter to join, tchase_4_05143, and she lives in Vermont. How cool is that? We’re cutting carbon all over the place. Ciao, The G-ster

Hey everyone, On Thursday, June 19, the Bay Area, including Sonoma County is offering free transit rides. To locate the bus you might want to take, schedules are at: http://www.sctransit.com/routes.htm

compostmodern: I voted for yours yesterday! Also, I agree, Earth Pope makes me feel pretty good too. - The G-ster

Better way to vote: Click on compostmodern under team roster, then click on “1” under challenges suggested. Next click on “view details” or “comments” to get to the challenge’s synopsis and comment window. Thanks everyone.

G-ster and everyone. Well, I think with Earth Pope on our team, that absolver of eco-guilt, we can all be pretty damn pleased with ourselves. After all, less than a week, and we’re already approaching the 100 lbs mark, and besides, it’s not about winning, except for the earth, the polar bears, you know the things that matter.

For a moment of shameless promotion, if folks wouldn’t mind putting a favorable comment at the Less is More Challenge under the Workshop tab, we might stand a chance at putting forward a challenge to the gathered minions of carbonrally. And a thriller of a challenge at that—buy nothing but the bare necessites for a month.

I think showering together sounds much easier than being a vegan for a week. I promised not to eat meat for two days this week, and I still haven’t pulled it off. I only have three days to go. My, God, I hope I don’t let the team down. Bruster96067, don’t let me eat any meat tomorrow at the graduation BBQ. I mean it. - the G-ster

PS Carboneater, you’re kind of an over achiever. I know I’m supposed to be urging you to do more, but you are starting to make the rest of us look bad. Especially me.

light said he would walk and ride his bike

lets all be vegans for a week

i did not shower at all the other day and today i walked my kayak to the river on my kayak kart instead of driving to the ocean or laguna. rock on!

G-ster, Oh, too much to say on this one, isn’t there? Joining one in the shower, we could all shower (shorter times) together… But yes. I’ll take it on too. compostmodernism

Seb-Town: Bring it!

I have the best friends ever. I accepted two new challenges this morning (one to cut car idling by 5 min. per week, and one for no water bottles all week – that’s hard when it’s hot). I want to do the shower one, but I’m afraid. Anyone else do it? The Seb-Town Rockers rock! - The G-ster