Better fuel mileage
The average price of diesel fuel in the Denver area is over $6 a gallon and apparently rising. I checked on the average price of diesel fuel in Arizona, and it's around $6.50 a gallon, so it sounds like my winter travels to Arizona are going to get expensive.
This made me think about ways to save money while driving a diesel truck, and here are a few things I came up with...
1....Pay more attention to the speed I drive. When I was towing a trailer, I was always paying attention to how fast I was going since trailer tires tend to fall apart when driven too fast, but once I started living in the Lance truck camper, I can drive the same speed as the rest of traffic, so I stopped paying attention to how fast I was going. But diesel engines get their best fuel mileage at certain speeds, and if you stick with those speeds, you can improve your fuel mileage by a certain amount, which isn't insignificant.
2.... Don't let the engine idle any longer than necessary. Some diesel folks leave their engine running when they run into the store, and that's because starting up a diesel engine is worse on the engine than idling, which is why some over-the-road truckers leave their trucks running at the truck stop all night, as anyone who has slept at a truck stop can attest. But in my case, saving diesel fuel matters more.
3.... Getting rid of some weight in the truck. This is harder than you might imagine, but the lighter the load you're carrying, the better your fuel mileage. But since I've got rid of so many things that I don't actually need, it gets harder and harder to throw things away.
4.... Stop going places just to go. This one isn't such a big deal for me, because I have no problem with sitting in one place for a week, leaving only to buy food and water, but this year maybe I have to limit driving around someplace just to take a picture.
There are more ways to save fuel, of course, but that's all that comes to mind right now. When I think of any others, I'll let you know.
Theboondork
I went for a walk in the neighborhood this morning to see if the trees were changing.
The trees in the neighborhood are barely starting to change.
If you look on the right side of the hills, near the top, those two white spots are people's houses. Now I used to look at houses like that and think to myself, " What a beautiful place to live; imagine the view you would get from being way up there." But I have since gained a lot more knowledge, and apparently common sense, because when I see places like that, instead of thinking of views, I wonder how in the world those people get up there during the winter.
Imagine my amazement as I walked around the neighborhood this morning and spotted THIS sitting in a neighbor's driveway!... CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!! Not only is it for sale, but it's brand-spanking new! How often do you see a brand-new one sitting in a neighbor's driveway, of all places? I don't have to tell anyone the value of this thing, since I'm sure everyone is familiar with these, although it is rare to see one in this condition, so it's a sight I shall remember for the rest of my life, and I count myself lucky just to be able to get this close to one. I wanted to take a picture of myself next to it, but there was no one around to take the picture, so I had to settle for this one, which is still the highlight of my life!