More Random Facts

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Here are 10 more random facts about me:

  1. I started at Southwest about 2 1/2 months before September 11. With no fulltime work experience, practically no seniority, and a job (tech writer) that many in the IT business don’t value highly, I probably would have been out the door at any other airline in the country. But Southwest chose not to lay anyone off, earning my lifelong loyalty with that one action.
  2. So far I’ve visited 10 different foreign countries: Barbados, Belize, Canada, Cayman Islands, France, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Netherland Antilles (St. Martin/St. Maarten), and the UK.
  3. If you and I are grabbing a quick meal together, there’s a good chance I’ll suggest Chipotle. Try the chicken burrito with chili-corn salsa. Mmm…
  4. I think I am addicted to sugar. I crave it. Jenny got me a 1lb bag of M&Ms earlier this week. It’s already gone.
  5. I enjoy horror movies, even though I know they are terrible and I shouldn’t like them because they are so bloody and violent. Being scared is fun every now and then. Generally I have to watch them alone because they don’t work well for Date Night.
  6. When I find out someone smokes, I instantly lose a significant amount of respect for them. I wish the government would impose a nationwide ban on smoking within public buildings and triple the cigarette tax. Then they could use the tax revenue to help people quit.
  7. If I couldn’t be a dispatcher anymore, I would want to work in Schedule Planning, the department that hammers out Southwest’s flight schedule.
  8. The way our contract is set up in terms of pay and seniority, the longer I stay in Dispatch, the less likely I am to leave. Some call this the “golden handcuffs”.
  9. I constantly debate with myself whether to save, spend, or give away our disposable income.
  10. My sister and I used to catch jellyfish in sand buckets and bury them on the beach. I don’t know why that seemed like a good idea, but it was fun.

Translation Poll

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I found a slick new way to set up polls on my site. I’ll keep them at the top of the sidebar on the right, but they look nicer and are easier for me to manage. The new poll is up, so vote now!

The Future of Oil?

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Oil jumped over $16/barrel on Monday, the biggest one-day gain ever. The price of oil had dropped below $100 for a short while, reducing gasoline and jet fuel prices a bit. While reading about the jump, I found an interesting article by one of the “peak oil” theorists, who believe that the world’s oil supply either already has or soon will peak and then level off or start falling. The author believes that the Saudis have significantly overstated their reserves. He also believes that growth in demand from India and China will continue so rapidly that the world’s supply will be unable to meet demand, sending oil prices up to $300, $400, or even $500 a barrel. $500 oil would transform our economy in ways we can only begin to imagine. If $140 oil sent gasoline and jet fuel prices up to $4/gallon, $500 oil might drive gasoline and jet fuel over $14/gallon. For me in my fuel-efficient Honda Fit, my 16-mile round trip to work would cost $7. A drive to Wichita Falls and back to visit family would cost over $100. Air travel might become so expensive that few could afford it, jeopardizing the entire industry and my job. The price of most goods would skyrocket due to transportation costs.

Now, are these peak oil theorists right or just a bunch of naive pessimists? Only God knows. I hope they are wrong, but I certainly don’t know enough about the issue to know which perspective is correct. Either way, we must become more efficient with our natural resources, both as a society and individually. Otherwise, my son and niece will have to deal with a mess they didn’t create.

Comment Roll

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In case you haven’t noticed it yet, I added a running list of the most recent comments on the right. That way you can see where the discussion is most active and jump in yourself. Fire away!