Nothing About The Bakken, "First World Problem" -- June 24, 2016

If you came here for the Bakken, scroll down or go to the sidebar at the right.

Over the past few weeks, I have come across new terms -- that without the blog, I would not have noticed. Or I would have noticed, I probably would not have spend much time thinking about.

Dispatchable energy, for one.

Related, economic dispatch.

Another concept or phrase that was new to me: white privilege. It helps me put into context some of the most bizarre policy decisions made by some politicians.

With regard to Brexit, it will be interesting to see when/if some "Peggy Noonan" sees similarities of the Berlin Wall coming down.

Another phrase that was new to me: "first world problem." For example, when folks complain about fingerprints on their touchscreens, that's a "first world problem."

When I think about "first world problems" I find myself smiling out loud when I think of all the conveniences of modern life.

This is one convenience I think of almost daily when I think back to my grandfather. Every day, I simply walk out to the car, open a car door (remotely, electronically), start the car, and drive away. My grandfather had to feed the horses, harness and saddle the horse, and then ride away -- generally not very far, and when he came back, the horses needed to be cleaned, washed down, fed, and cared for. And, of course, all that was preceded by or followed by milking the cows. As it is, the closest most of us come to milking cows these days is adding a bit of white stuff to our Starbucks coffee (for clarification: I drink black coffee with nothing added, no sugar, no Kahlua, no nothing).

This week I had to have the Honda Civic inspected to get it registered in Texas, an annual event. I never look forward to the process, but once begun, I always enjoy it.

First off, I always drive by Firestone in Grapevine and schedule an appointment to have the oil changed. Texas law does not allow one to schedule the state inspection. So, everyone either just drives in unannounced to get the inspection done or they schedule an oil change, at which time they tell the servicing department why they really made an appointment.

When I made the appointment earlier this week, I learned that the Firestone folks now have a new computer application. They print off a summary of routine maintenance items that should be considered based on the mileage of the automobile. I take those recommendations home, study it overnight, and then tell them what needs to be done based on the maintenance history.

I have a very easy way of deciding what to have done. I ask myself: if I knew how, and if I had the tools and the garage, would I do it myself? For example, Firestone or Honda or someone recommends that the brake fluid be changed every three years. It's been a bit more than two years for the Civic. So, I ask myself: if I knew how to do it, and had the tools and garage to do it, would I do it? Of course, I would. So, among the many things I had Firestone do was change the brake fluid.

I always come in early and tell them to take as long as they want; I never want someone working on my car feeling pressured by me. Let them take as long as they want.

After everything is done, I simply pay with a Firestone credit card -- to do so, has certain advantages -- and that's it.

One more step: go up to re-register at the DMV. I love our DMV. It's co-located with the Southlake public library, has wi-fi, and almost never any waiting. Today I did not even have time to sit down before they called my number. The state inspection done by Firestone was already in the system: all I had to do was show my photo ID and write a check for $77 for annual registration. [Our minivans, slightly old, but definitely larger, cost less than $77 -- if I recall, about $65.]

The day after having Firestone do all that work, I always bring them two dozen donuts and a Starbucks gift card to buy $3 - $4 ice coffees for each of the employees.

Starbucks is located next door.

Which reminds me: donuts. I bought ten donuts the night before (50 cents/donut), but the next morning, I stopped to get an additional ten donuts (each for 59 cents). The individual putting the donuts in the box said he would add a couple extra to "fill up the box." He put in a total of fourteen (14) donuts, and charged me for 10.

I guess that's a "first world problem": deciding how many donuts to take to your local garage after getting your car serviced.