V for "Victory", D for "Defeat"

OK, time to introduce you guys to my waste vegetable oil system! This is the little knob that switches from diesel fuel to vegetable oil---it's on the floor beside the driver's seat. The first time I ever switched it over I thought to myself, "V for Victory", and that's pretty much the truth. I have paid actual sweat, blood, and tears---not to mention over $6,000---to make this a reality.

This is my veggie tank---I wanted it big so I didn't have to fill up very often. It holds a little more than 50 gallons (good for about 1,000 miles). What is NOT shown in the picture is that on any given trip, I also have to carry the filtration system, a toolbox, and a plastic container to clean my filters in. (I'll show you the filtration system, along with video of pumping oil behind a restaurant, in an upcoming post.)

The veggie oil goes from the big tank to a small tank underneath the van, where it is heated to over 200 degrees Fahrenheit. This makes the oil thin enough to spray through the fuel injectors.

On my dashboard, I have a thermostat that controls the temperature of the oil, a couple of switches to turn stuff on, and a veggie fuel gauge.

The heating element runs on AC (household electricity) so I have a hefty power inverter that converts the van's battery power into AC.

The inverter is mounted behind the driver's seat. It has an extra outlet so I can plug up a power strip and run laptops, charge cell phones, etc. This is what the dude tried to steal last night---I just had to repair a couple of wires that he cut, and I feel lucky to still have it. Well, that's the system in a nutshell. Kind of an idealized picture, too...coming up, you'll hear about some of the many problems I've had, and see what it's really like to pump waste vegetable oil out of a dumpster. :) Something to look forward to... Peace,

Attempted Robbery, Attempted Grace

Tonight at about 10:30 I was in the living room working on my mailing list software when the thought popped into my head, "Did I leave the hood up on my van?" I really didn't think I did, but I just felt like going out there and checking on it anyway. Well as I walk out my door and toward the van, I see the dark figure of a MAN in my VAN! I was being robbed!

The dude hopped out and started running off. I called out, "Hey! Come here!" He turned around and said, "I'm sorry man, I didn't take nothin'." I said, "What do you need?" He kind of put his head in his hands and said, "I need help." I said, "What kind of help?" He said, "I need help, man." I asked him if he wanted some food, I said I had plenty and could go get some. You could tell he was wary and wanting to run, but he asked me if I could spare five bucks. I told him that I don't give people cash, but asked if I could help him in some other way. He said no, and that he had to go, and he left.

Thinking about it later I felt really bad that I didn't do more to help him. He didn't seem like a hardened criminal at all, and he was obviously desperate for cash. He probably owes money to some scary people, or needs it for a drug addiction. Chances are he'll just go break into somebody else's car now and get in worse trouble. At any rate, I feel like it was an encounter with someone who really needed help and all I offered them was a sandwich.

Turns out I had left the van unlocked, so he didn't damage anything getting in. The crazy thing is that he had my 2500 watt power inverted unscrewed, and had cut a couple wires in an effort to get it out. I guess it looked like the only thing in the van worth anything, and he was probably right about that. Boy, it would've stunk to get up in the morning and go out there and find that my inverter was gone. It's amazing to me that I was just sitting in the living room when the random thought popped in my head to go check on the van. Could have been God leading me to someone that needed help, and I didn't get the job done. I hope God sends somebody else to bless that man, and I intend to be better prepared next time.... Peace,

CMT

Hey folks! Just wanted to let you all know that I am the featured artist this month on CMT.com's "New Voices No Cover" section! It's really a neat section by the way, lots of other good independent music. We videotaped four songs with a live band at a CMT studio, and you can view them exclusively at

http://www.cmt.com/music/new_voices_no_cover/

And check out CMT.com's "listening parties" while you're there---you get to listen to people's entire new CDs in high quality audio.

Also, on a side note, I did drive 40 miles powered by waste vegetable oil today. But I'm out of waste oil and my pump is broken, so I'm temporarily out of commission once again. Keep wishing me luck, 'cause I need it. :) Peace,

Workin' man. Wish I had a workin' van.

I'm in the midst of writing a detailed account of my adventures trying to get the veggie van up and running. Possible titles include "Running Out of Fake Curse Words", "The Sight of Bolts Makes Me Bolt", and "My Time is Apparently Worthless". In the meantime, suffice it to say that it's STILL not running consistently on vegetable oil but (call me crazy) I still have hope that it will soon.
In other news... The college market has kind of left me hanging. I wanted to transition out of it gracefully---gradually reduce the amount of schools I was playing as I got busier and busier playing festivals and listening rooms. But I just haven't been accepted to any showcases in a year and a half, and my schedule has dwindled to 5 or 6 shows a semester. So while I wait for the festival world to accept me, last week I tried my hand at....drum roll please.... CARPENTRY!

Here I Am Cutting An Actual Board

Yup, I had all the job qualifications I needed---tape measure, hammer, and..... yeah, well... that was pretty much it.

Nothing Makes a Nail Shiver In Fear Like the Name "Rubbermaid"

I enjoyed carpentry---I really did. I made this hand rail, and it was satisfying to think I could drive by in a ten years and it would still be there.

It was my mandolin-playing friend Matt who got me the job, and when I had him take this picture I couldn't help feeling like a tourist in my own life...

And indeed, my time as a carpenter was a brief one. They really needed more of a commitment from me than I could give, and since it was only a matter of time before I shot myself with a nail gun, it's probably best that I've decided to move on to a different career.... as A COURIER!

Simulated Delivery

The courier job will allow me to work any hours I want, any day of the year. No asking off, or coordinating schedules, or whatever. And of course the icing on the cake is that I'll be running on vegetable oil and pocketing the gas money. Which brings us back to the VAN. Wish me luck...I'll post a full report soon. Peace,