This is a re-post. I thought you might enjoy this little idea that originally appeared on October 7, 2011.

You know you need to exercise. I know that I do. You know that you need to run lots of errands each week.

Why not combine the two?

Riding your bicycle or walking to that place will take you more time. But you have to go there anyway! Why drive to the gym and run on a treadmill when in the same time it would take you to do both, you could save fuel, help the environment and enjoy being outside?

Disclaimer: I realize this only works if you live in a town that’s laid out where you can do your errands close to home.

- You’re saving a ton of fossil fuels, since the food has not been flown from South America or Africa.

- It’s probably fresher.

- You’re supporting local farmers.

Why not apply the same principles to local music? By asking the bands you see to drive all over the country, they are using a lot more fuel than local musicians do in bringing their art to you.

Obviously, this analogy breaks down.If you restrict your diet to only local food, in many parts of the world, you’ll never taste a mango or a papaya. And with music, if you’re an American, you’ll never hear the rich sounds of many British bands.

I do want you to come out to support your local musicians. (The band is The Bell Jar. Local to my town. And good.)

I say that fully kidding — I know that none of my readers are thinking about buying a Fisker Karma.

Anyhow, I read with interest a Car & Driver magazine review of the new Fisker Karma. Think of it as a much faster Chevrolet Volt with a super beautiful body.

The gas engine powers a generator that charges an electric motor that moves the wheels. So it can run only on electric power for about 25 miles.

Why am I comparing the $116,000 Karma to a $44,000 BMW 335d? Here are several reasons:

1. Performance? The BMW is faster than the Karma... BMW = 0–60 miles per hour in 5.3 seconds. The Fisker does 6.1 seconds.

2. Interior room? Similar.

3. Quality of materials, fit and finish? Similar.

4. Fuel economy? BMW wins... 27 miles per gallon vs. the Fisker’s 24.

5. Green? Disposing of all those lithium-ion batteries when they fail to hold a charge anymore will be a nightmare. And diesel is more dirty than gas in some measures but cleaner in others.

The Fisker is a clear winner in the distinctiveness realm. You won’t see another on your block, guaranteed — no matter where you live. But for everything else, the BMW wins.

A final note: the Porsche Panamera S Hybrid is definitely a closer vehicle to compare. It costs a closer $95,000, does 0–60 in 5.7 seconds and gets 25 mpg.

Photos are courtesy of the Fisker and BMW websites.

If you are in a wheelchair, there’s not much of a choice. But for the rest of us, I’d urge you to choose the manual side, because:

1. You will get some additional exercise that would not otherwise be part of your life.

2. You will save the energy that it would take to open the doors.

3. You will save the store the cost of the electricity it would take to open the doors.

If you make this choice enough times, you will make a difference. If everyone you know makes this choice, we’ll all make a significant difference.

AAA now has trucks devoted to charging stranded electric cars in six different US cities. At the moment, that would only be two vehicles — the Nissan Leaf and the Mistubishi i. And there are maybe 25 actual cars floating around the US. So it’s a near-future-oriented program.

Anyhow, I was amused at the thought of a relatively low fuel economy truck being driven across town to charge up an “ultra-green” car. It kind of defeats the purpose.

Another strange thing is that the trucks charge up the cars to travel another 3–15 miles ... to “reach a charging station.” Good luck finding a charging station. You might know that most fully-electric cars take about 24 hours to charge from a regular household circuit. (A devoted 240– or 480-volt outlet drops the full charge time down to 3–6 hours.)

My constructive suggestion? Use a much cheaper tow truck and tow the car to the owner’s home. Or an office or store that has an electric extension cord.

Electric cars aren’t ready for prime time. Yet.

If I’m the only one with that question, no problem. My guess is that others might be confused too. Many cumulative staff hours must have been spent on explaining which kind of objects go into each bin. And many people probably were just confused and threw recyclables into the trash bin.

The very simple solution would be to have diagrams of types of objects that go into each bin.

In 2007, San Francisco was the first American city to ban the use of plastic bags. 775,000 gallons of oil were used to make the plastic bags San Francisco used the year before. (Info from SFGate.com.) Think of what a positive impact their legislation has had!

In many parts of Europe, that has been law for an even longer time. And in some European stores, you cannot get anything to put your shopping in. (That can catch an outsider by surprise.)

The only good thing to be said for plastic bags is that they keep plastic bag manufacturers in business. And provide jobs. However, that’s the same logic as saying it’s good to keep making high-alcohol sugary pop drinks that appeal to teenagers — because those companies employ many people.

Occasionally I do get a bag, when I forget to bring one with me. I’m not trying to be legalistic — but I am hoping that if you buy and use reusable bags, you will enjoy the positive impact you’ll be making.

I give my brother credit for the idea for this post. Thanks Bill!

In this case, the repair costs $100 to 200 less than buying a “new” refurbished oven. We loved preventing our oven from ending up in a landfill. And Heather got to keep the oven she loves. But ouch! That part cost a massive amount!

I might suggest — buy an insulated mug with a handle — and wash it. Landfill contribution? Zero. Wallet depreciation? Zero.

And on their home page, they have the boldness to say, “Help Preserve Nature, Learn More”. Admittedly they try to be environmentally aware in some of what they do — but selling such a completely unneeded product is not responsible. Shameful, even.

Apologies to those of you who wanted a light and fluffy post for your Friday.

Update: See the comments. I changed the title in Shane’s honor. He has a good point. (I had titled this post, “Evil and bad” — a bit excessive.)

As it gets hot outside (for those of you in the northern hemisphere), you need something cool to drink.

My enviro-suggestion is a water with essence drink. All you do is put a herbal tea bag in the bottom of your glass, throw some ice on top, pour on some tap water, wait 5 minutes, and stir. You can add sweetener if you like, though unsweetened works for me.

It has a more subtle flavor than iced tea. The tea bag will last for at least two fills.

I paid $2 for 25 peppermint tea bags at Big Lots a few days ago, so the total cost per 14-oz glass is maybe 10c, even if I factor in the cost of the electricity it took to make the ice. (If you really want to get technical, I rode my bike to the store, so there was no fuel cost either.)

Enjoy!