Three years ago I asked myself why I work so far away.  Three years later I am asking myself the same question.  And like three years ago, the answer is the same: “I don’t know.” Although the answer is both more simple and more complicated than that.   
 
The simple answer is this - I needed to pay the rent, cover bills, and buy food.   
 
The complicated answer is well… more complicated.   
 
After looking for months for a job in the city (and with no luck) I expanded my search to the outer reaches of the ‘burbs.  I received a job and for two years I decided to reverse-commute quite a few miles to work.  What is reverse-commuting?  It’s commuting the opposite of everyone else of course.  Everyone is commuting from the suburbs into the city.  I was doing just the opposite - from the city to the suburbs.   


Many people who live in a city can walk or bike to work.  For those who have to go a little farther, some can take a bus or a train.  If you’ve read this blog at all, you know that I try to be environmentally conscious.  During my years of Chicago suburb employment, I looked into taking public transportation to work when carpooling was not an option.  If I had done that it would have been over two and a half hours from the time I left my apartment until I arrived at work.  And that’s a conservative estimate.  With all the transfers each day from a bus to another bus, to a train to another train the cost adds up as well.  And even if I did want to spend five hours commuting every day, the buses and trains don’t operate early enough to get me to work on time.  So for two years, I was asked how I could drive that far each day.  Believe me, it wasn’t easy.  But I was committed to the city.  I was dedicated to its ideals, its people, and its lifestyle.  Ultimately, I was devoted to livingand working in the city.  It never worked out.  I moved out to the south coast of Massachusetts before I could ever find a new job in Chicago. 


Now in southeast Massachusetts after six months of exhaustive job searching I found another job.  It’s a commute again.  The drive, although only a few miles shorter in distance than my last commute, is much easier.  It seems shorter, it is less stressful, and is easier on the car.  Plus, the scenery is much better than the back-end of Chicago suburbs and giant billboards. 
 
Instead I drive through Cape Cod, along a tree-lined highway.  Such is life, I presume.  Not everyone has the luxury of being able to walk, bike, or have a short commute to work.  Not all of us are able to get a job in the same town we live in (or the next town over).  Sometimes we have to commute.  Unable to find work in my own town to pay the bills –I have to commute.  Although I think commuting should be kept as short and simple as possible, sometimes life isn’t that simple.

looking beyond prevention to quality of life

[The latest post is a synopsis I've written up for Alzheimer's Services on the National Institute of Health (NIH), at the NIH State-of-the-Science Conference.]

At the end of April, the National Institute of Health (NIH), at the NIH State-of-the-Science Conference made public their independent report on preventing Alzheimer's disease and cognitive decline. There were a few statements that came up again and again: "currently no evidence", "inadequate to conclude", "insufficient evidence", "quality of evidence was low", and so on. In a nutshell the studies that have been done on prevention of Alzheimer's are inconclusive and more randomized controlled trials (RCTs) need to be done (among others).

What the research panel states without hesitation is that 'Alzheimer's disease exacts a significant toll'. There is no doubt that the financial costs and the physical and mental well-being of the caregiver are being exhausted and need support. In the recommendations, the NIH state that caregivers are a valuable source of information about the daily function of the elderly person with Alzheimer's disease.

Not only are caregivers taking the brunt of the disease, but they are also one of the keys to better research in prevention. With the NIH concluding that the current research is inconclusive, the support of the caregiver is still the key to Alzheimer's disease and other related dementias. Support services such as respite, education, and support groups are still the life-blood of people with Alzheimer's disease, their caregivers, and their families. On the Cape & Islands this is especially true. We need to provide the best care possible for the 10,000 individuals living with a dementia.

We encourage you to read the full report by the National Institute of Health. FULL REPORT

massachusetts says no to yankee fans

A recent copycat of Arizona’s immigration law, the State of Massachusetts has enacted a new immigration law of its own.  The bill, the first bill to ever be unanimously voted for by both democrats and republicans will go into effect next week.  The new law gives the right for any police office to ask any Joe (or Jane) Baseball if they are a Yankees fan.  If they are, the police officer is permitted to burn all of their Yankees gear and they are given thirty days to leave the state.  The bill has already created buzz in other New England states.  Possibly by the end of the year New England states will no longer have to deal with “resident” Yankee fans.  On the negative side of the recent bill, the New York governor has informed New York residents - and all Yankees fans - that they are at liberty to boycott Massachusetts and any other state thinking of enacting this law.  In response the Massachusetts governor retorted, “This is a ‘Red Sox Nation.’ Good luck.”

inherit the wind

I am not completely sold on the idea of putting a massive wind farm in Nantucket Sound. A hundred and thirty wind turbines are in the works to be constructed in Nantucket Sound, and would span 25 square miles. I am not sure how the new turbines will affect the fishing industry and general safety of boaters, commercial and personal. Then of course how does it affect the marine wildlife?  Is this going to affect the whales, or does something like this have no affect on their breeding and migration? And lastly, how does this affect local tribes? Is the wind farm impeding on a past or present agreement with tribes?

Of course the economical circumstances are always going to upset someone.  Are energy bills going to go up, or are they going to go down?  What will a hurricane do to the turbines?  What about tourism? 

Some of the local outcry seems to be over ruined views and a deterrent on tourism.  If you go to Cape Wind’s website (the company who is supporting the wind farm) they have made photo-shopped photos of what the turbines may look like from various points along the Cape and Islands.  If these photos are anywhere close to being accurate then the turbines that are about 5 miles out will in fact not ruin any Cape Cod sunsets.  As for tourism – I think the turbines would only create a buzz instead of becoming a deterrent.  Of course for others, imagining the idea of having to look at 130 wind turbines is too much.

Beyond tourism and economics though lies a real issue: where the future of energy is headed.  The same week that the wind farm was approved, one of the largest oil spills in U.S. history happened.  It has even caused some to rethink offshore drilling.  And just weeks before, the coal industry had another massive safety issue which resulted in 29 deaths.

We are never going to be able to depend fully on wind power.  But, if we are to ever progress in energy freedom, wind power needs to be one of the foundations so that there can be less oil spills and fewer deaths, and substantially decreased dependence on fossil fuels.