Thursday, January 31, 2008

Announcing: The Almost ONE RED PAPERCLIP House turned GREEN!


Unless you live under a rock, it's hard to have missed the trend that is sweeping the planet, changing the policies and practices of entire industries. Green is in and it has come to the heart of Hobbs. The house which was purchased on Ebay a couple of years ago and passed over by Kyle MacDonald of www.oneredpaperclip.com is being morphed into a concept house of green ideas and technologies. Call Demi a treehugger if you will but even if you aren't a zealot, it is difficult to argue with the potential. Demi joined the USGBC last year and has been hitting the books . She has assembled a green team and they are making it happen! Extra special kudos to her mentor Jan McAdams of The McAdams Group for her suggestions and contacts. Check her out at www.fundinggreenbuildings.com . Stay tuned for the upcoming launch of Demi's new website Askgreengirl.com which will have videos showing cost effective renovations that are also health protective and environmentally low impact.

Sunday, January 27, 2008

The Art of Travel


Pictured above is a cockpit view on approach into Las Vegas of Red Rock National Park (photo by FO Wheels Bauder). There are often beautiful sights while inflight but let's get real about other parts of the experience. The conditions that surround us when traveling can be trying at best. In an airplane cabin, the only humidity present is that which comes from bodily respiration. Space is confined and our bodies are subject to forces and pressures that create added stress on even the most healthy. Add to this the fact the environment has so many factors out of our control from weather and mechanical factors to the mix of individuals that invade our personal space.


On a recent flight, I met Bert Snow who is the founder of a business called 10,000 Feet. Learn more at:www.tenthousandfeet.com The slogan on his business card says "Perspective changes everything". Profound, eh?

On the top of a mountain or when immersed in nature's surroundings of all types, we are reminded of what is important in life and that we are mere mortals. As the website mentions, when below you can not see what is above but when above you can see below and when you descend, you can remember what you saw. Those peak experiences we gain while traveling are also why we put ourselves through some of the torture!

Often a passenger myself, I use my mind to affect my experience. When I start feeling claustrophobic while stuck in a center seat, I think cozy. When the temperture is too hot and we are in the sterile cockpit stage of flight, I remember times I have paid for the spa experience of sweating in a Finnish sauna. I'll remark to my seat companions "Too bad they can't crank up the heat so we can have the full spa experience". Our minds are powerful and while we can sometimes change some conditions, when it's not possible, changing our mental outlook can be an effective tool.

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Gassy is a part of Legasy


For the past year, I have flown out of the Las Vegas base for Gassy. It is a lower cost (all coach) part of the larger operation of Legacy Airlines. Flight attendants sometimes refer to the passengers  as "gassy people". I have to let you in on a secret. The passengers are no more gassy than some of the flight attendants. I flew with a guy who would pass out water but said he had to go "crop dusting."  So if you didn't have enough to worry about when aloft, add something else to your list.

I only have one trip left in the Gassy operation since I've transferred to the San Francisco domicile. This will enable me to fly International once again and fulfill my dream of actually living in Hobbs! It's a bit of a commute but not that uncommon.

(Update as of June 5, 2011...that gassy flight attendant has since retired and the entire Gassy operation no longer exists. Join me in a deep breath of relief).