Amtrak Travel

Over the weekend, the NYT Travel Section featured a story about transportation via Amtrak.  I've been wanting to travel somewhere by train - lo and behold, Amtrak's "Cardinal Route" stops at both the Cincinnati and Charlottesville stations!  I looked into train travel from Louisville to Charlottesville once before, but the only option was the Amtrak BUS.  (No thank you, I'll drive.) 

The trip from Louisville to Charlottesville is approximately 7.5 hours.  Very drivable.  But the trip from Louisville to Cincinnati to catch the train is only 1 hour!  

Before I get too wound up, let me lay it out for you:

The Pros:

• Cheaper than flying
  
• Appears to have fewer restrictions than flying
  
• Saves gas
  
• Keeps the miles down on  your car
  
• You can get up to walk around
  
• Sleeper cars!
  
• Dining cars!!
  
• Downtime to do plenty of reading, taxes, solitaire, etc.
  
• Children under 2 ride for free; children 2-15 are 50% off
• AAA discount for adults
• For children, the AAA discount adds another 10% off to the 50% off!  (aka 60% off!)
• The train actually goes to Charlottesville and not to Louisville.  We need to take the train just so Amtrak thinks this is a high demand destination and keeps it on their route.
  

The Cons:

• 11 hours travel time (plus an hour to get to Cincy)
  
• Train seemingly always leaves Cincy at 3am
  
• Train seemingly always arrives in Cincy at 1am
  
• Sleeper cars are $200 extra :(
  
• Could get BORING if you travel alone

This is just a rough list of my first thoughts on the subject.  Maybe we'll try it once?

Eco Green vs. Green $$

In the past 2 years I have become more environmentally conscious and currently subscribe to a few blogs and newsletters about how to live your life a little greener.  I've also come across advertisements and promotions for green products that are possibly a marketing strategy for making a profit on the hip green trend.  It's true that most eco-friendly products are more expensive than their biohazard counterparts, unless of course you are performing duty #2 of the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle mantra.  (I love an antique store or consignment shop - and you can find some great quality stuff!)  

While I regularly check these eco-blogs, I also check my friend's find-a-bargain blog more enthusiastically and regularly.  Admittedly, I have purchased many a sale item I found from her blog.  I realize that while I may strive for green living, I am much more interested in saving some dough (the other green).  Until organic cotton goes on sale, I'm afraid I won't be motivated to buy it.  

For my fave eco-blogs and my friend's save-a-lot blog, see "Links I Check Too Frequently."

Shelby's New Ride

Shelby & I had been talking about selling the truck for awhile. An F-250 seemed too big for only commuting to work every day. In the evenings, we would drive my car due to the F-250's gas-guzzling tendencies. We weren't getting the intended use out of the truck, and thought something more fuel efficient could serve our needs better.


Last Sunday, we found a car worth taking a look at. After having the diesel F-250 for over a year, Shelby knew he wanted another diesel, so he started looking online for VW's TDI (the name for their diesels). He found a Passat TDI on the Carmax website. Providentially, the only one available nationwide happened to be in Louisville. We went to take a look without any intention of buying anything, but we fell in love with the car and traded in the truck that day.
We loved the fact that the TDI gets over 45 miles to the gallon. My dream would be to make our own biodiesel, but for now we're filling up at the conventional gas station. Shelby is thrilled that his cost to fuel up has been drastically reduced, and I'm thrilled due to my increasing desire to be environmentally friendly. I can't wait until we drive around town smelling like french fries. Yummmmmm...

"The use of vegetable oils for engine fuels may seem insignificant today. But such oils may become in the course of time as important as the petroleum and coal tar products of the present time."
Rudolph Diesel, 1912