Ingenuity

Craig removed the old filter today by creating a new tool which combined a wrench with the rubber grippy thing used to open jars. What a genius!

Heading for Home

We're leaving for home. It probably would have been wise to store our excess oil in the MacInnes garage but that didn't happen. Turns out that the mexican oil, which is fairly clear, was too sluggish to pour into the WVO tank. On the other hand the dark Chinese oil was still mostly liquid.

As we drove down I69 the oil filter became somewhat clogged causing us to loose power. We pulled off at an exit in northern Indiana to shop the local auto parts store. Although the Autozone didn't have our filter in stock they directed us to a local NAPA Auto Parts where it was available. After purchasing the filter, Craig tried to switch out the old for the new but was unsuccessful even after much effort, skinned knuckles and the purchase of a new wrench. The highlight of this whole odyssey was seeing another converted Jetta. On the back of the car, where the TDI decal is located the owners added

Since the old - somewhat clogged - filter remained in the engine the drive home consisted of much toggling between WVO and diesel. Although we burned more diesel than I would prefer, it's nice to know our backup system is fairly reliable.

The Block Heater

With temperatures in the 20's overnight we decided to plug in the car's block heater so the engine will be warm and ready for WVO without a lengthy wait.

Turns out the people I laughed at yesterday sitting in front of Best Buy survived the frigid cold and were featured in the local news this morning. Better them than me.

Thanksgiving

We remembered to pack the camera but for unknown reasons, forgot to retrieve it from our bag so there's no visual documentation of our visit to the land up North.

Mary - the Martha Stewart of Midland - went all out with Thanksgiving dinner. Homemade rolls, two types of stuffing (wild rice and bread), green bean casserole, baked yams with apples, berry crisp, and the mandatory pumpkin pie. There was even a backup turkey. Picture around the table our three nephews home from college, John & Donna, Ira & Dora with their two daughters, and the Crissmans and their son (who fell asleep immediately after the meal).

Craig & I ran to the mall earlier in the day to purchase a new wireless router for the MacInnes home. The first store we stopped at was Best Buy which happened to be closed but there was a line of 5 or 6 shoppers already lining up outside the building in preparation for Black Friday. They were obviously expecting to spend the evening outdoors and were already covered with a light layer of snow. CRAZY!!! While I might be willing to camp all night in snow to guarantee world peace or a cure for cancer, I just cannot imagine exposing myself to the Michigan winter just so I can purchase some nonessential item.

Greasecar to the Rescue (by Uncle Craig)

There I was, just sitting there on my brother’s couch in Midland, MI when the phone rang. It was my nephew Colin seeking roadside assistance. It seems that he was driving home from college (Western Michigan University) for Thanksgiving, along with his two brothers Ryan (Michigan State University) & Ian (Western Michigan University), when the 1996 Subaru Impreza Outback they were traveling in crapped out. They were stranded in a gas station parking lot about ten miles away.

I hopped in the greasemobile, and headed on down the road. I arrived to find them attempting to push-start the car in the rain. We piled all the fellas and their stuff into the greasecar, and took them home to their momma. Colin & I went back a bit afterwards to meet with a tow-truck, and have the lame vehicle brought home for later repairs.

My nephews were not only appreciative for the help; they were duly impressed with our tales of driving for hundreds of miles without paying for fuel. Surely they will repeat this experience to their college friends, and thousands of new greasecar customers will be created as a result. I’ll keep my eyes peeled for my finder’s fee check in the mail.

Preparatons

In preparation for our Thanksgiving trip to Midland, Michigan, Craig took the grease mobile to the local garage where they rotated the tires, changed the oil and replaced a faulty relay (which was emitting an irritating clicking noise). He also went by our fish connection and picked up 15 gallons of WVO. We're planning on carrying an extra 30 gallons of WVO with us although I seriously doubt we will need that great of a supply but we have the extra room so it's better to be over prepared. The distance from our home to casa MacInnes is 443 miles which shouldn't require more than 22 or 24 gallons round trip if we continue to see 40-50 mpg.

Radio Show

Received a phone call today from my Dad and Linda. Seems they were listening to a local talk show which was discussing alternative fuels and a gentleman called in reporting that people who drive grease mobiles smell badly because their cars are stinky. Since we've driven our converted vehicle to Ohio several times, Linda called the radio station and told the listeners that she knew someone who owned a grease mobile and there was no odor associated with the automobile or driver. Someone at the radio station - I'm not sure whether it was a DJ or manager - engaged Linda in a lengthier conversation and said they would enjoy witnessing the grease mobile in person so she told them we would be visiting sometime in December. As a missionary for grease I'm always willing to expose others to our experience and told them I'd be more than happy to show the car to the interested radio employee and even give her a ride if she wasn't too afraid of being stinky.

1419 Miles

So we've driven 1419 miles since our last fill up of diesel and it's time to purchase another tank of fuel. I wish we weren't accumulating so much mileage but it's the nature of my job. On the plus side I'm averaging about $200/month in reimbursement checks from my employer which more than covers the cost of our fuel & filters.

Temperature Gauge

The temperature gauge for the oil has been on the fritz for several weeks. After Craig contacted GoodOil and explained the problem they agreed to replace the part for free. I stopped by their shop this morning and waited while they switched out the faulty gauge for a new and improved device.

Pilobolus

Drove the grease mobile to downtown Louisville for the Pilobolus show with Amy & Ron. An amazing event which simply shattered all of my expectations.

Game Night

We had several couples over this evening for our monthly Game Night. In addition to introducing a new game we took the opportunity to show our guests the homemade fuel station in the garage. Our experience is that most people think we've invested great sums or extensive energy in this process so when they view the wooden shelves, plastic containers and grease filters their first response is usually "that's it?!?"

Election Day

Schools are closed for the election so I drove to Lexington to eat dinner with Natalie. Gas is selling for over $3/gallon but that's no concern of mine. We at at one of my favorite restaurants where I succumbed to the temptation of combo pie from Missy's Pie Shop.

A Fish Connection

As I'm pulling out of my parking space at Amazing Grace when I guy pulls up beside me and starts motioning for me to roll down the window. I've become somewhat used to random strangers engaging me in conversation about the car but it turns out this individual fries fish at a local market and would like for us to recycle his WVO. Presently we have a glut of oil but I'm hesitant to refuse any supplier in case our other sources go out of business or change management or decide to dispose of their oil by other means so I hand him one of our cards, take down his phone number and tell him Craig will be in contact shortly.

Buddhism

Presently the youth at our church are studying Buddhism. Part of the class curriculum involves visiting a place of worship so we helped transport several of the students to the Buddha Community Center for their World Peace Prayer Service. Listening to the congregation chant Nam Myoho Renge Kyo in unison was intriguing although I perceived the actual service to be cultish, focussed primarily on the the admonishments of their president Daisaku Ikeda. Nevertheless, the worshipers were more than welcoming and the experience led to some lively discussions.