A new direction

We, as Americans, will never again enjoy the oil prices of past generations. Why? Unfortunately there is no simple explanation. Many factors play into account for the high cost of crude. Several causes that contribute to this increase in fuel costs surrounds the one primary cause. An increasing world population creates a constant increase in fuel demands. Cause and effect in simple terms. Other factors are, but not limited to; Mexico is cutting US supplies to one of the company’s Gulf Coast refineries by up to 15 percent. Mexican fields, including the giant Cantarell field, are drying up, and sales of crude oil to the United States have dropped to their lowest level in more than a decade. Another little known factor is India’s Tata motors, who’s development of a low cost car ($2500) the company hopes that by making automobiles affordable for people in India and elsewhere, it could eventually sell 1 million of them a year. The need for crude increases.

Developing countries like China and India, want to join the ranks of economic powerhouses and question why their oil use should be more constrained than those countries who developed before them. It is a never ending cycle of consumption and economic growth.

In a recent Washington Post poll, 51 percent of those who responded said rising gas prices are causing a serious financial hardship for them or others in their household. It was the first time a majority had said that since the poll began posing that question eight years ago. The rising fuel prices are also adding to inflation, aggravating the U.S. trade deficit by 50 percent and is taking a toll on businesses already struggling with the economic slowdown caused by the housing and financial crises.

Cheap oil has been the primary building block of the American economy and it’s society, from big gas guzzling vehicles to millions of miles of degrading interstate highways, to heating and energy producing utility companies. Everything we do is based on fossil fuel.

For the better part of a century, U.S. policy contributed to problem. Gasoline taxes were set aside for highways, which opened up more prospects for new communities. This in turn advanced more driving, more gasoline consumption and more taxes for the interstate system. Today U.S. automobiles use more than 9 million barrels of gasoline a day, which is more than any other country.

Also a factor in the US are environmental interests. The need for gasoline and the concern for the environment has no middle ground today. We are sitting on natural oil and gas reserves (Anwar and Bakken) that could make us independent of foreign oil imports, but due to the strength of environmental groups and the weakness of government policy makers, these reserves will not be employed in the near future. The outcome of this impasse is that every day, consumers pay $6 billion to $7.5 billion more for crude oil than they paid six years ago, and at this current rate, they will pump more than $1.5 trillion a year into OPEC, Russia and other oil exporting countries.

So who is at fault? Is it the governments 45 cents per gallon fuel tax, the 4 cent per gallon oil companies earnings, the environmental concerns, or the inability of government lawmakers to alter our economic difficulties? None of the above.
It is us, the consumer, who needs to take the responsibility and who has the power to make a difference. It is us who needs to solve this dilemma by changing obstructed bi-partisan government policy and special interest’s dogmatic narrow mindedness. It is us who needs to conserve, change our way of thinking, and explore alternative actions to make the changes needed to survive a drastically changing world.

www.rv-visions.com

Free alternative energy ebook

With alternative energies not only becoming “in vogue”, but reaching the level of essentials in saving money and helping the environment by being a clean renewable resource, I have a free ebook called “Free, Clean and Renewable” that I will send to anyone who is interested.  To order the ebook, log onto rv-visions.com and click on Free.  There is no catch and you will not be inundated with additional emails.

The art of dreams

Dreams are a wonderous thing. They lift you to the heavens, and bring you back down gently.  They infuse in one the perserverence, motivation, and determination to reach success, no matter how or what one defines personal success.  No, I’m not referring to the unconscience snippits of images one conjures up while sleeping, but of the conscience dreams we own of reaching a long sought after achievment, or the passion of beginning a new chapter on the road of life.

To stop dreaming is to stop experiencing life.  To live in a stagnant world without change.  To become complacent with our lives and to relinquish ourselves to the mundane.

Life lived properly consists of an ever changing chain of achievments, each a stepping stone from the previous to the impending.  Decisions are made, lessons are hopefully learned, and we hope we have a better awareness of life.

www.rv-visions.com

Revised website

Just finished revising my website. Information on solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal energies.  FREE ebook covering alternative energies.  Check it out at www.rv-visions.com

More Ramblings

Evil stalked the still and lonely stagnate night. It’s elusive presence perceived only by a chill that slowly spread up one’s backbone, evolving into a conscience and foreboding dread, and it was reinforced by a sound like a whisper of breathe from a long forgotten nightmare…..

I have always had a desire to write a book. One that would sell at least a dozen copies, and be used for an entertaining read and not only for a door stop. I believe it might also be nice to have an honorable mention on someone’s web-site other than one of a close family member. That this book has not yet been written, one can conclude that my desire has not been persuasive enough for me to write more than two or three paragraphs at a time. But the dream is there and it is alive and well.

For many people in these uncertain times, dreams now are more much important to own. Dreams represent the deepest passions in one’s life, giving the spirit vitality, courage, hope and determination. They create goals to achieve and give self esteem when accomplished.

What would life be like if not for dreams? Without dreams, change can not succeed. Without dreams, life becomes merely an existence, a daily, unvaried function of repetitive animation. Nothing to arouse the senses and nothing excites the soul.

Time and age have very little effect on dreams. When young, my dreams were of conquering the world, and now, as I grow older, my dreams are of simpler times of long ago, and are also of new destinations for my continuing trek into the future. Dreams are the foundation of life, the beginning of a sojourn into the unknown.

Dreams can also be the temporary escape we need from everyday reality. Plain, pure and simple, some dreams are our Shangri-la in a world filled with an over abundance of unhealthy, unwanted and unneeded stimuli. A respite in a storm of unending struggles.

To realize a dream to it’s conclusion takes strength, perseverance, and patience, but all effort to complete the journey will be repaid tenfold when your odyssey successfully comes to it’s end, and then with little time to rest, it is time for you plan for another of life’s sorties.

Never underestimate the power of your dreams.

Posting revisited

The long, arduous odyssey of returning to the northern frontier is finally complete.  We have returned to the western mountains of Maine where we reside during the summer and autumn months.   Our consequence of abandoning our log cabin for the warmth of the southern sun was the approximately three feet of snow carpeting our driveway.  Heavy, wet, and impossible to remove without the aid of heavy equipment. So is life. Now that the dust has settled,  I plan to resume adding to this blog for the delightful entertainment of a couple people.

Speculation

In writing, one needs to be very careful when using words to create worlds. Some words you use may come back to haunt the writer. A case for example; James Tiptree, Jr.

Short science fiction stories by James Tiptree, Jr., first appeared in the late 1960’s, and went on to be nominated for both the Hugo Awards and the Nebula Awards numerous times. The author was a complete recluse, and the unknown contains many facets, one of which is curiosity that morphs into annoyance when one cannot resolve the mystery.

Irritated by the author’s need for seclusion, Robert Silverberg, wrote an introduction to a collection of Tiptree’s short stories, proposing that James Tiptree, Jr. was definitely a male author as no female author could write in this masculine style, and vehemently stood by his speculative conclusion. After 2 years of soap boxing this claim, James Tiptree, Jr., was identified as Alice Sheldon; artist, explorer, author, painter, and art critic. So much for speculative writing……. Hope you enjoy the links.

I now have to excuse myself and continue packing for our trip north. I have been informed that I need to pack my own things. Such is life.

Rv-visions.com

 

Simple yet daunting, almost like fine whine.

I have been indulging myself in the knowledge and expressed experience of noted authors, trying to find that road map to becoming a successful writer, and digesting the hints and lessons that these artists so graciously offer to the novice. After scouring the internet, collecting tidbits of information that might possibly help me with creating something that people will actually read and enjoy, most of the advice can be boiled down into a small but still daunting list of directions.

On being talented. How does one know if they are talented enough to be a successful author? Is it calculated by the number of rejection slips one receives, or the amount of money earned from your hard work? In time you will know if you have enough talent to make a living by writing. You may have a personal note scribbled on a rejection slip, or even a phone call from an editor. This will show you that you are on the right track and some one has noticed your budding talent. On the other hand, receiving rejections in the thousands may tell you that maybe it’s time to try something else. Only you know the cut off date, but then again, do not go down without a fight. Persevere.

On being self critical. You have just finished your first draft, so the next step, after a few moments of self induced rapture that your draft manuscript is finished, is to rip it apart. Is it neat, and is the spelling and punctuation correct? Is it double spaced on quality paper? Does it have too many irrelevant words, and does your story make it’s point in the first couple of paragraphs? Is it entertaining? If this step is difficult for you, hand out some manuscripts to friends and give them the opportunity to assess your work. Listen to what they tell you, and weigh their opinions. After all, they are part of the great consumer population you are trying to win, so if you receive numerous comments about how a specific part of your work is wrong, then follow that advice, because in most cases, they are right. Fix it.

 

On knowing the markets. The only way you will come to know which markets are appropriate for submitting your work to is to read. Read what others are writing, read their books, their articles, and their blogs. Simply put, know what people want and submit your work to the proper publisher. If you write an article about raising a child, do not send it to a publisher of fashion. There are many people who make this mistake, and wonder why they received a rejection slip. Do your homework. If your work is rejected by one publisher, revise it, send it back to the publisher or to another. I have my own collection started, and use them for inspiration. You too, with time, can have your own collection to use.

On writing. As with any goal worth reaching, hard work and dedication are the crux to whether you will become the noted author that you dream of becoming, or you remain an unpublished hobby writer, entertaining only yourself and few members of your family. Write everyday, take chances with focal points, style, with new ideas that are out of the box, but always write and write some more. No time to invest? Then maybe writing isn’t your forte’. Find the time, make the time or buy the time. Many published artist will take time out of their normal routines to create. It will be a sacrifice, but most successfully completed endeavors require this dedication. Have a case of writer’s block. Then step back, and write something else. Spending hours trying to revive a temporarily dead horse will get you nowhere. Take a break and work on something else.

On being successful. Your definition to this is of a personal destination, and you will eventually know when you reach that point in your career. Expect this trip to be a somewhat bumpy ride, but if you really want to get there, you will. Never underestimate the power of your dreams.

 

.

Words

Writing is the sequential stringing of words to create a picture in the minds of the readers by catching their initial interest, and continuing to pull them deeper into your world. It does not matter what the subject is, it is still a world you have created and want to populate. Using the right words to describe your world is paramount to being able to acquire dedicated readers. Even as a child I have always enjoyed words, albeit, some words more colorful than others, and I am constantly trying to learn the finer points of grammar, punctuation, and structure, and realize I have a long way to go.

One of the tools I refer to frequently is a free thesaurus download called “Wordweb”. I can keep this program running while I string words together, and have it pop up anytime my thought process fails me. The other resource I utilize is “Dictionary.com” which offers not only a dictionary, but a thesaurus, and encyclopedia. It’s like one stop shopping. The last one I will suggest is “Quotes from Literature” which I have been known to use on occasion. There are times when inserting a quote into your writing increases your content, or may even save it…..

“There is no way of writing well and also of writing easily.” Anthony Trollope

 

“Words, as is well known, are the great foes of reality.” Joseph Conrad

“There was a great historian lost in Wolverstone. He had the right imagination that knows just how far it is safe to stray from the truth and just how far to colour it so as to change its shape for his own purposes.” Rafael Sabatini

rv-visions.com

Another excuse

Every so often an idea for a post flitters across the frontal lobe only to recede into darkness as another idea manifests itself from the original, so before attempting to list the following as one of my excuses for my deficiency in imagination, I read an article on adult ADD, or attention deficit disorder. If you are interested, here’s a quick questionnaire you can take to see if you could use this excuse also. Unfortunately, I cannot use this excuse. ADD quiz.

Symptoms commonly associated with Adult ADD include:

• Lack of focus

• Disorganization

• Restlessness

• Difficulty finishing projects

• Losing things

Trying to write a blog post or article requires, for me anyway, is a concentrated effort to examine what I would consider interesting, and correlating that interest with the question of “Will this be interesting to others?” Yes, no, maybe, I don’t know.

How can I put a spin on an uninteresting subject and make it palatable for others? There is really no way of knowing whether you have succeeded in the attempt until you have actually posted the article, and then watch the stats, or receive comments from readers who either “loved it, or hated it.” Those readers who merely “like or dislike” the post rarely will make a comment. Anyway, once that uncertainty is laid to rest, then the effort of how the idea will be portrayed comes into play. Do you place an amusing twist on the subject, or build it with an academic spin. Maybe a self-deprecating manner based on humor, or a cut and dry fact filled expose. It all boils down to how one views the world in general, and how one comprehends their own life in particular. The fashion or technique (if there is even a label for what I do) is that when I am trying to write something, I to pretend I am carrying on a conversation with someone. The only downfall to my technique is that at times I have been caught talking to myself out loud, and then I wonder if those who heard me conversing with the air would assume I had some major psychological issues. So far, so good. No one has requested the assistance of the men in white.

 

There are some things to consider and incorporate into building a successful blog. Though there are many experts and many more opinions as to how one attains the number of readers that will meet the individual writer’s level of return, there are rules, but some stand above the rest.

 

Consistency allows you to meet your audience’s expectations and in doing so, you create a secure niche for your readers that invites them join in exchange. Posing questions and responding to comments from your readers will show your readers that you value them, not only as readers, but also as contributors. The another attribute that is important is to be yourself. You and your blog are one, grasshopper. Your writings are an extension of you, and as such, reflect your beliefs, your environment, and your personality. Do not try to be someone or something you are not. Today’s readers can spot this deception. And finally, write well and post often. To build your audience you need to update frequently and with good content. Make sure that what you write is interesting and has meaning.

rv-visions.com