Jeff Woelker : Chicago SEO, SEM, and Online Marketing Consultant

So I’ve been over doing it lately with technology. Twhirling, Twittering, Vimeo-ing, Flickr-ing - it got to be a little much. For that reason, I’ve stared reading a bunch of blogs outside of those areas. Here’s some of my top 5 right now. Feel free to add your top in the comments:

1. A Hamburger Today - This is probably my favorite non-tech blog right now. Beware though, this blog is deadly if it’s before noon and you’re in need of your lunchtime fix. They have an amazing camera, which means you can almost hear the sizzle and smell the burgers every time you visit the page.
2. Shirtlog.com - This website features cool t-shirts found around the web. It’s pretty easy being here in Chicago to become a Threadless only zone, but this website provides varying coverage from around the net.
3. KEXP Song of the day - Although I have Pandora, which I use pretty much every day, it’s always nice to get some spice into my normally house music filled ears. So I have this podcast/blog coming in on a daily basis. It’s great, you should subscribe.
4. Web Urbanist - Geek art, music, graffiti, new technology. You’ll love it. Trust me.
5. Green options - For the treehugger/environmentalist/urban hippie in all of us.

So what are your top 5 non-tech blogs?

So I’ve been debating recently whether to ditch my car all together or not. Here are some of the pros and cons of both. Should be pretty obvious which is the better decision at this point:

Keep My Car:

1. Personal freedom - the ability to drive where I want, when I want and not wait for anything or anyone
2. Moving - Every so often I have to move this thing or that thing around for friends or family and it’s just nice to throw it in the car and move it, as opposed to having to think about getting a truck or having to borrow someone’s car
3. Travel - This really isn’t a big deal for me, as I prefer to take Amtrak or, as my sister is trying to convince me, the MegaBus back and forth to Michigan. But what about weekend trips or impromptu trips? I guess it just requires a bit of planning to rent a car or book travel ahead of time.
4. Supporting US auto makers - This really is the weakest reason I can think of, as I only got a Chrysler Sebring because of my grandfathers discount, and with Toyota and Honda opening more plants everyday in the US, what’s the difference anymore?

Lose My Car:

1. Car and Insurance Payments - This is really the biggest motivating factor. My car sits on the street 5 or 6 days a week and doesn’t do anything for me except suck up money.
2. I’m an enviro-hypocrite - I talk about fuel economy, environmental preservation, protecting existing resources, reusing, and recycling, but I drive a huge metal box that spews CO2? As my sister so eloquently puts it “Man Up!”
3. iGoCars - There is an iGoCar right around the corner from where I normally pick up the train every morning. So if I need a car, it’s just a short walk away and how can you beat these rates?
4. Car Rentals - There are several car rental places within quick riding, walking, busing, or training distance from my place.
5. Oil changes and upkeep - Since my car only sits on the street most of the week, it isn’t getting proper usage and is only going down in terms of resale value and money I’m going to have to invest in it eventually to keep it going.
6. Public Transportation and Biking - I have both a bike and easy access to numerous methods of public transportation to get to and from work.
7. Constantly moving your car - One great thing about living in a city that cares for the appearance of neighborhoods and streets is that there is constant street cleaning. As a result, I often have to play the parking game at least once a month and during the winters, I have to double check every time I park that I am not in a snow removal zone.
8. Cold hard economics - So the economics of my current car are $302 per month for my car payment (until Feb of next year), $160/month for insurance, and probably $10 in gas/month. That’s $472/month in sunk costs. If I were to take a cab to the grocery store and other errands, we’ll say 10 times per month (probably more like 3 or 4) for about a $10-15 cab ride on average, that costs $100. I could use an extra $370/month.

I think it’s pretty obvious. Anyone need a lightly used 2004 black sebring? 35K miles, original owner.

Any reasons I have forgotten either for keeping or getting rid of my car?

So I got my APTA buttons today. I’m such a nerd, but I love them. Many thanks to Mark Neuville for sending them over. I really appreciate it. Go visit the APTA website if you have a few minutes. It’s a great site with lots of information about how you can rediscover your city via public transportation.

There really is something nostalgic and community based about taking public transportation in that you get to see and meet so many interesting people you would not have otherwise met by driving by yourself in a car. So on that note, are you taking public transportation as often as you could? If not, give it a shot. It’s not as bad, dirty, loud, noisy, smelly, etc. etc. as you might think it is. Really it’s not. So enjoy Illinois!

So I’ve been watching Live Earth today, which is absolutely fantastic. I really hope they release this concert on DVD, since they’ve only been showing bits and pieces from each concert.

What I don’t appreciate is Microsoft’s pompous move to put something like this up:

I assume they put this up because environmentalists tend to be more into big corporate solutions (IE) instead of home grown or open source programs (Firefox). Thank you Microsoft for reinforcing one more time why you always seem to screw everything up.

10 year old Silicon Valley Startup: 1
110 year old Detroit Auto Industry: 0

Well at least somebody is concerned with getting the electric vehicle off the ground. In a recent post on Google’s blog, they have been partnering with a few other silicon valley startups to get electric vehicles into the mainstream faster than the US auto industry seems to want to do:

We’ve been working with Google engineers and Hymotion/A123Systems to build a small fleet of plug-in hybrids, adding an external plug and additional batteries to a regular hybrid car so that it runs on electricity with gasoline (or even better, biofuels) to extend the driving range for longer trips.

Be still my nerdy heart. And with Congress finally getting into high gear, we may actually be making some progress towards oil independence, maybe, sort of, kind of.

Well, you have to start somewhere, and as my Digg traffic told me, consumers are definitely excited for a car that can deliver both fuel economy, practicality, and eco-friendliness.

So I’ve been seeing these Chrysler ads lately touting 30 mpg as “great fuel economy”.

Does this strike anyone else as ridiculous? I know this guy thinks so. I mean, this is the 21st century. According to this source:

After 1920, mpg seems to have stayed in the range of 13-15 mpg until federally-mandated fuel economy standards were enacted in the 1970’s. As a result, fuel-efficiency increased from 13 mpg to 21 mpg over the next 25 years (after 1970).

For me as a scientist, futurist, and technologist, I find this fact offensive. In almost 90 years we have moved from 13 mpg to 30 mpg? That screams of laziness, complacency, and lack of American ingenuity. The Prius is getting 60 miles per gallon in the city and 51 on the highway, which is still pretty impressive, but where’s the real vision? Why not 100 mpg? 200 mpg? 500 mpg?

The next focus after getting the fuel economy to admirable standards would be to make it economical for the average person to be able to afford them. That really will be who wins in the US auto market. Or you can just go car free. Thoughts?

Update: This got dugg. BOY HOWDY!

According to a recent EIA announcement:

“Retail regular grade motor gasoline prices are projected to average $2.81 per gallon this summer, 3 cents below the average of $2.84 per gallon last summer, according to forecasts released today by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) in the April Short-Term Energy Outlook. Retail diesel fuel prices are expected to average $2.82 per gallon over the summer, down 6 cents from last summer’s average price of $2.88 per gallon.”

Well, gas prices nationwide are already at $3.19 per gallon and the summer hasn’t even started yet, so by my calculations this estimate is in the ballpark of doesn’t make any sense at all. I mean, look at these numbers:

Image copyright of GasBuddy.com

As you can see, last summer, gas prices peaked in May and stayed steady for most of the summer and then rose again in August and September with the problems associated with Hurricane Katrina. And with some minor extrapolation on the data provided by GasBuddy, it looks like if there is a minor hint of a gas shortage, crisis, or some other weather related problem gas prices could easily shoot to $4 or beyond. Even if it doesn’t necessarily hit $4 per gallon, $3.97 is pretty darn close for my tastes.

So really, what is the point of this concern over numbers and reports? Essentially, I’m telling you to drop your current means of transportation and:

• Take public transit
• Buy a bike
• Walk to work
• Ride with a friend
• Buy a hybrid vehicle
• Drive less
• Drive smarter

Do what you can. You’re wallet will thank you and the environment will thank you.

ZAP World announced yesterday that as part of their worldwide rally in Las Vegas, they approached Dominoes to deliver pizzas using their Xebra electric car. I think this is a great marketing idea as well as getting to point of electric vehicles. Since most people drive about 40 miles a day to and from work, this is mode of transit (assuming bike or public transit is not an option) is perfect. Just get to work, plug it in, and you’re all set for the day.

Here are a few more links to some other related reason why electric vehicles or using alternate means of transportation is both good for the environment and good for your wallet:

• True cost of driving
• City Decongestion
• Biking and the environment
• Gas Price Calculator
• SmartUsa Touring the US
• SmartCar
• Amount of Gas Saved by Taking Public Transportation

Image copyright Zap Electric

And if you’re looking for fantastic Chicago pizza, order from Vince’s Pizzeria on Devon!

This is great news for ZAP, but also great news for me as an electric car enthusiast. ZAP confirmed in an email today that they have received the largest order for electric cars ever and from a Chicago based startup called the Electric Vehicle Company (EVC), no not that Electric Vehicle Company. So it looks like I may have double the opportunity to secure either a Smart car or an electric vehicle from ZAP via EVC.

Whenever I bring up my excitement for electric cars though, I get the same response, “Yeah, that’s great, but where do you charge it?” That’s an easy solution to fix my friends. Electric outlets are a dime a dozen and as electric cars become more prevalent, more outlets will be added. The next question that always arises is “How can you get behind electric cars, when much of our electricity currently comes from coal fired power plants or nuclear power plants?” Well, at least the opportunity exists with those alternatives for renewable power sources such as wind, wave, solar, or geothermal energy. The oil option or some hybrid solution of part oil, part electric or part oil, part hydrogen, just isn’t going to cut it in the long term.

So EVC, if you’re listening, send me a promo kit or let me know when you are having any test drive events.

Photo courtesy of Zap of Concord.

As if everyone didn’t already know, hybrids are popular. As gas once again does its’ $3 dance, Toyota and Honda published some sales stats for March and they can’t keep these things on the lot. EVERYTHING MUST GO! I’ll do my usual spiel and say US auto makers have to wake up. Chevy Volt? Smart Car? GM Concepts? Anyone? Bueller?