How to Handle Four Driving Emergencies

As most of us enter the busy Holiday Season and the driving hazards associated with it, I thought I’d share this information I recently came across on how to handle four driving emergencies:

1. TIRE BLOWOUT

Almost all blowouts happen when you’re traveling in a straight line at high speeds with an underinflated tire. So to help avoid a blowout, check your tire pressure frequently. If you experience a tire blowout, gently squeeze the gas pedal for just a couple of seconds to give you control over the vehicle and put on your hazards while directing the car in a straight line. After a couple seconds of gently squeezing the accelerator, smoothly release the gas pedal. By this time the tire is most likely to be void of air and pushing the accelerator further won’t allow the vehicle to go any faster. Coast the vehicle to a slow speed, turn on your turn signal, and gently turn toward the shoulder of the road – preferably the same side as your blowout to make changing the tire safer.

2. TREAD SEPARATION
While driving, if you hear a consistent thumping noise and/or a slapping sound, pull over and check your tires. This process can take days or often only seconds. So if you see damage prior to driving, put on the spare tire before proceeding. If your tire tread does comes off while you are driving, squeeze the gas pedal for just an instant and then gently release it. As with a blowout, drive straight on the road and put on your hazards. Allow your vehicle to coast, and then apply the brakes only slightly, just enough to help you reach a safe turning speed. Put on your turn signal and smoothly turn the car toward the shoulder of the road, ideally on the same side as the damaged tire.

3. TWO WHEELS GO OFF THE PAVEMENT
Let’s say you’re driving along a highway and you swerve to avoid hitting something in the road, and your two right or left tires drop off the blacktop. Gently remove pressure from the accelerator, but don’t touch the brakes unless you absolutely must (ie. Headed down a hill or you’ll hit an obstacle in front of you). Drive parallel with the road until you coast to about 35mph. Smoothly turn the wheel a very slight amount – no more than say 5 degrees – to get back on the road. If you must turn the wheel more than that to avoid an obstacle, then brake. Don’t try to reenter the road with more than 15 degrees of steering because if you have to turn the wheel let’s say 45 or 60 degrees to get back on the pavement, the front tires will most likely regain traction before the rears causing you to spin out. If this is the case, you could end up hitting what you were trying to avoid or even shoot across the road into other traffic. Anti-lock brakes (ABS) come in handy in this situation.

4. SKIDDING
Most of us have experienced skidding whether it has been in the rain, on ice or in snow and it’s no fun at all. If you have ABS and are starting to skid in rain, ice or snow, “stomp” on your brake, after which you will feel the pulses in the pedal and/or hear ABS kick in. You can then ease up slightly on the brake pedal until the pulsing occurs only once a second. However, if you’re skidding in a vehicle without ABS, push the brake hard until your wheels stop. Then immediately release the brake enough to allow the wheels to begin turning again. Repeat this sequence rapidly which is NOT the same thing as pumping the brakes.

Safe Travels,
Vinnie

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Reaping the "Green" Benefits

Hello All,

I'm back to tell that you the Geothermal project is ALL DONE. Final installation was completed in the middle of May 2009 and I am happy to say that the costs weren't surprisingly what one might think. With all of the Energy incentives available, it was basically the same as a traditional HVAC system but proving to be more efficient. I can't believe new home builders aren't offering them as a viable option when a homeowner will benefit in the long run especially with the rising utility costs associated with heating and cooling a home.

We've been living with the Geothermal Heating/Cooling for just under 3 months and it is defininitely proving to be a plus. Take for instance during the summer of 2008, I would normally set my thermostat at 74 degrees F during the day and then down to 68 degrees F at night which was "somewhat comfortable" for me. Now I keep the house cooled during the day at 70 degrees F and when sleeping at night, it is dropped down to 65 degrees F which is VERY comfortable for me and my pets. To top it off, my electric bills have been lower than in 2008 with less electricity consumption, and I no longer complain to my other half about being warm all the time. The house is alot more quiet inside since the unit is placed in my basement and not outside the house exposed to the elements.

Another benefit of having had wells dug to supply the water to the Geothermal System is that we had them hooked up to our irrigation system. Our water consumption has dropped tremendously resulting in a decline in our monthly water bills which means our savings continue to escalate.

I couldn't be more happier with our Geothermal conversion and I am really looking forward to our next project - Solar panels for our roof which is coming sometime in September 2009.

Ciao,

Vinnie

GO GREEN - 5 Easy Energy-Saving Tips

I came across an article in a local periodical called "South Jersey House & Home" that gets stuffed in our mailboxes each month and found these 5 easy energy-saving tips that I thought I'd share with everyone. Tip #5 is my personal favorite because we are currently in the process of doing just that which will make our home one step closer to being more GREEN. The article was written by Joe Willix and here are his tips:

Tip #1. TURN IT OFF

Somewhere along the line, we decided it would be great if appliances or devices would be on at all times ready for us to use at our every whim. That uses a lot of electricity. Save a little money each month by turning off computers, cell phone chargers, TVs and battery chargers.

Tip #2. INVEST IN A KILL A WATT

Save hundreds by investing a few bucks in a Kill A Watt monitor. Plug anything into the Kill A Watt and it will measure how much electrical energy anything in your house is using. It's a great way to find out if your old refrigerator needs to be replaced.

Tip #3. DO NOTHING

The "Do Nothing Strategy" calculates how much homeowners will spend on electricity and gas if they keep doing the same thing for the next 25 years. Remember the number $160,804.92. That is how much you will spend if your home uses an average of $200 per month on electricity including the average 7 percent annual electric rate increases over the next 25 years. It's time to think about generating your own electricity with solar or wind power.

Tip #4. PRODUCE YOUR OWN ELECTRICITY AT HOME

Invest in your own solar energy or wind energy system. A 2-kilowatt solar energy system or a 2-kilowatt turbine will produce about 3,200 kilowatt-hours a year. You can install either of these sytems for less than $20,000, and they will produce energy for the next 25 to 40 years. Start small: You can easily expand the solar energy or wind energy system size later. both solar and wind energy are clean energies with zero emissions.

Tip #5. NEVER REPLACE YOUR AIR CONDITIONER

When your air conditioner dies, don't replace it. Invest in a geothermal cooling and heating system, which will reduce your electric usage and your cooling/heating electric bill by more than 50 percent. Air conditioning and heating typically represent 60 percent of your total monthly electric bill. Geothermal uses the moderate temperature of the earth, which is 55 degrees to 72 degrees 6 feet below the surface, to cool and heat your home. These machines are up to four times more efficient than an air conditioner. They are also so quiet that they are installed indoors away from the heat and cold. A geothermal cooling system will pay for itself in a few years.

I mentioned earlier that we are in the process of having a geothermal cooling and heating system installed in our home. Not only am I looking forward to being more GREEN, but saving a substantial amount of money each month on cooling and heating bills are welcomed. Just last week, we had 2 wells (source and return) dug in our backyard which will supply the underground air and water for the system. An added bonus is now that we have our own wells, we will be able to tap into this well water to supply our underground irrigation system taking a strain from our township water supply. Later this week, the actual geothermal cooling and heating unit is to be delivered to our home. PVC pipes still need to be installed in the ground that will connect to the actual system. We are able to use the existing duct work in our home, however some minor tweaking will be needed as well as insulation of the basement ceiling to make it as efficient as possible. We were told that it should take about a week to install the unit, make changes to the duct work and run pipes to our home so the installation date will happen probably in late April. This was our decision because we didn't want to go without heat during the winter months.

As you can see I'm very happy to be able to do my part for Mother Earth by adopting GREEN technology. In the future, solar panels are also on our "To Do" list but first we must get the geothermal project done. I'll let you know how things go once it's done but enjoy the photos of the well being dug which is our ground breaking into a GREENER way of thinking.

Ciao,

Vinnie

Rubber Bracelets: Pop Culture or Awareness?

I recently read a short article from the October 13th issue of Time magazine titled "A Brief History of Bracelets" and it fascinated me. The article mentioned many types of bracelets including stainless steel, black metal, bronze metal and rubber silicone. Since I wear a rubber silicone bracelet myself, I figured I provide you some history on bracelets.

Memorial bracelets have been around since the Vietnam War when a student group, Voices in Vital America (VIVA) began a campaign on behalf of missing American soldiers and prisoners of war using silver bands with soldier information imprinted on them. Senators Barack Obama and John McCain both wore stainless steel bracelets during the Sept 26th Presidential Debate.

Rubber bracelets originated as a punk rock anti-fashion statement when punks would put black rubber o-rings around their wrists and wear them as bracelets in the late 70's and early 80's because the rubber had practically no value compared to traditional jewelry materials. Madonna and Cindy Lauper helped with mainstream popularity in the 80's when they wore o-rings (often in many colors) in their videos and performances.

In the late 90's, the colorful o-rings (or jelly bracelets) reemerged among trendy youth and got some bad press when a rumor scared many parents decreeing that the different colors of the bracelets represented different sexual acts one was willing to perform. Later into the 90's, Rubber Band Bracelets became popular after people would take the thick rubber bands that you get wrapped around broccoli and asparagus at the grocery store and wear them as bracelets. Some companies began making and selling these types of rubber band bracelets printed with a variety of commercial messages although the trend didn't last very long.

The Rubber Band Bracelet trend did last long enough for NBA players to start sporting them and Nike with their keen eye on basketball fashion improved the trend by using the silicone rubber they previously used on sports watch bands and created the Nike Baller ID Band Bracelets. These bracelets came in specific team colors and had sports messages embossed or imprinted into the rubber which many NBA players wore on and off the court.

The first consciousness wristband was shaped by the Lance Armstrong Foundation in 2004 which was essentially a Baller ID Band in yellow and imprinted with "LiveStrong", the motto of Lance Armstrong's foundation for cancer research. The bracelets were sold for $1 each to raise money for cancer research.

Rubber silicone bracelets are even more popular today as many other charities, organizations, schools and accessories producers create them in a wide array of colors and with all kinds of messages, some just for fun. Below are some of the more popular representations:

• Red: Usually for HIV AIDS, Diabetes and Heart Disease awareness and prevention.


• Orange: Signify support for Multiple Sclerosis, American Cancer Society, Asperger's Syndrome and The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).


• Yellow: Lance Armstrong's support for general Cancer research and support for our troops.


• Green: Ecology support, Leukemia, Muscular Dystropy and Kidney Disease awareness in addition to Darfur awareness.


• Blue: Autism, Crohn's disease, Fighting Childhood Bullying in the UK, Violence and Child Abuse prevention and Cystic Fibrosis.


• Purple: Alheimer's, Lupus and Domestic Violence awareness.


• White: Anti-poverty and to support Christian themes.
  
• Black: Melanoma research and Anti-Racism messages in UK (Black and White together).


• Pink: Breast Cancer research.


• Other: Red, White and Blue for American Pride, Rainbow for Gay Pride, Camouflage for troop support and multicolored for major NBA and MLB teams.
  

Now that you see how popular these rubber silicone bracelets are, you can decide for yourself if you'd like to jump on the bandwagon whether for fun or to show support. My challenge to you is to guess which band I personally wear on an everyday basis.

Ciao,
Vinnie

Anne Caputo of Dow Jones Enterprise Media Group is 2009 President-Elect of SLA

Alexandria, Virginia, October 2, 2008- The Special Libraries Association (SLA) announced the results of its Board of Directors election today. Anne Caputo, CTS Executive Director of Learning & Information Professional Programs, was named President-Elect of the 12,000 member global association of researchers and information professionals. When her term begins in January 2009, Anne will participate in the development of strategy and outreach for this key professional association which represents researchers and other information professionals within enterprise settings around the world. Members of SLA form a core group of purchasers and influencers for key CTS products such as Dow Jones Factiva, Dow Jones Insight and taxonomy solutions.

Anne said, “I am honored to be elected to this position by my professional colleagues. This is a wonderful testament to the respect Dow Jones holds in this important market and to the opportunity for me to work with my global colleagues on issues important to research and information functions within organizations.”

All of her colleagues at Dow Jones congratulate Anne on this significant recognition of her dedication and support of SLA and the information professional community.

Teenagers - Vagrants or Misunderstood?

Believe it or not this coming weekend is the last weekend before Labor Day here in the US which means the teenagers will be heading back to school and not a moment too soon. Even though some of you are in different regions, you may experience the same thing with the summer months ending and school beginning.

You see, I live in a pretty nice neighborhood down here in South Jersey that is about 12 years old. Our subdivision connects to a couple other ones and it seems as if the young teenagers were quite bored this summer as they caused havoc to some of the neighbors. It's pretty much the teenage vandalism sort of things (knocking over mailboxes, stealing bikes and lawn furniture, etc.) but I guess when it's happening to you it's not minor. To top it off, our township has a 10:00pm curvew for minors under the age of 18 but it's not enforced that strongly. To fuel the fire, there's this area behind one of the other subdivisions that they call "The Pit" which consists of dirt mounds where people ride their 4-wheel quads and dirtbikes. But at night, it becomes a hangout for the teenagers and the cause of many phone calls to the police authorities. So much, that our community has now formed a neighborhood watch program to keep an eye out for anything that is peculiar. My partner and I do patrols after 10pm each night while we're walking our dogs so it's a perfect opportunity to be the eyes and ears for the police. In the 3 weeks since we started patrolling the neighborhoods, we personally have only had to telephone the police once when it was well past 10:00pm on a weeknight. This was because we came across a group of about 6 - 8 teenagers making lots of loud noise and tossing glass bottles across one of our streets in our neighborhood. So the police were called and that was the end of that.

By no means am I an advocate of vandalism, but I have to be honest and say that if I had had a place like "The Pit" to hang out in when I was a teenager, I would have taken advantage of it also. The difference is that I would have respected my elders as well as their property and would never have caused damage or made too much noise. So in a way I feel sorry for the teenagers who don't seem to have anything to do to keep them busy. Heck, with the extremely high property taxes that we pay to live here, I think our township should offer activities that could be both eductational and stimulating to keep the teenagers occupied and off of the streets at night. So...are the teenagers true vagrants or are they sadly misunderstood?

I'm sure everyone has their own opinion and perhaps it depends on the degree of vandalizm that they cause. In any case, if they ever start to vandalize MY property I'll lump them into the vagrant category and they'll become my public enemy #1.

Ciao,

VINNIE