Work with me here for a few minutes. Think about a typical intersection you’re sitting at waiting for the light to turn green. Think how long you sit at one intersection. Just one intersection. Say it’s an average of 45 seconds. Here we go!
Say 8000 vehicles pass through that same intersection in a day (a mild figure for an arterial / more akin to a collector). That equals 8000 vehicles / day * 45 seconds / vehicle = 360000 seconds / day = 100 hours of delay / day. Assume the cost of delay in wages is $10/hour and the cost of delay in fuel costs is $10/hour as well. The cost of delay per day at this one intersection alone would then be $2,000. Over the course of 300 operating days/year the total for this intersection would be $600,000 lost. Ouch!
Here’s where traffic engineers come into play. Traffic engineers can reduce the delay from 45 seconds to 35 and even 25 seconds by optimizing and actuating the signals to meet demand. Wow! This results in a savings of over $250,000 per year (for one intersection). Think about an entire city! Again, these estimates are conservative in many ways. It’s just an example of the magic of engineering. So the next time you’re complaining about waiting for a traffic light just be thankful you didn’t have to wait longer.
Or you could just ride your bike and not give a shit about fuel costs! :)
Song of the week. Must be reverting. Don’t know what that means…I’ll leave that up for you to all psychoanalyze.
We here at the F10 watering hole are pretty proud of our classy beer drinking. We have 36 bottles hailing from the Midwest, Colorado, and Europe. Cheers!
A sampling of the brewers is listed below…
1) Iowa Collection: Peace Tree (Iowa), Millstream (Iowa), Olde Main (Iowa)
2) Midwestern Craft: Lucky Bucket (Nebraska), O’Fallon (Missouri), Schell’s (Minnesota)
3) European Brews: Spaten (Germany), Heineken (Netherlands), Italy
4) “Mainstream” and Rocky Mountain Beers: InBev/A-B (Saint Louis), Coors (Colorado), Big Sky (Montana), Estes Park (Colorado), Point (Wisconsin), Leinenkugel’s (Wisconsin)
There are only two copies of this in circulation…and there will only ever be two. Here is an excerpt from it.
9) Afterthoughts
It is January 2012. Ash is currently in India on a three week study abroad trip over winter break. I am technically in a long distance relationship (and a very long one at that). This time, however, it feels very different. It’s weird. I’ve talked to Ash quite a bit while she’s been gone (chatting and FaceTime). It doesn’t really feel like she’s gone. It feels as if she has run to the store or is at class and will be back soon. Even when she’s not back at night it doesn’t bother me too much. It’s hard to explain and I’m not sure why I feel this way. I think it is partly because I know she’ll be back soon and that’s she’s happy. At times she wasn’t happy during our freshman year. And then there’s the fact that when she does return we’ll be together again – every single day for quite some time.
This miniature LDR if you will has given me time to reflect on what was a substantial part of our relationship. Ash often says because we did that our freshman year we can appreciate more what we have now. This is true. I am so grateful for my relationship with Ash now. Everything is so much easier and we’re both much happier.
Let’s be honest…long distance relationships suck! Don’t try to put a positive spin on it – I’ve heard them all. Fact is they don’t work. The claims aren’t true. If you really love someone you’ll do what it takes to be with them and to make it work. One of the most painful things is saying goodbye. And in an LDR that is what you do – constantly.
Long distance relationships strain relationships – they make them fail. Yet many people go through an LDR at some point in their lives. My parents did after college. Two couples Ash and I are very close with have either gone through an LDR or are currently in one. Why do people do it? Ignorance? Convenience? I imagine it was a little of both for me. I had already chosen a school and I hadn’t been dating Ash long. I thought we could tough it out – I was completely ignorant of how much she meant to me. True love exists in each other’s arms – in the presence of one another.
An LDR does make you appreciate being together. But once you are settled together you are inseparable - forever. If that’s you – it’s great you’ve found your mate. Ash and I couldn’t imagine living apart now. Just cannot do it. Another couple we know echoes this sentiment.
An LDR is more painful and harder than I ever could’ve imagined. Every fight is bigger. It’s amazing how many issues an embrace can solve. I’m not sure what it really feels like to lose a close loved one. But seeing an upset loved one and you are helpless to do anything – that’s hard. You can’t truly comfort them thru a phone line or computer screen just as no one could comfort my grandfather in the nursing home.
It’s Ash’s 22nd birthday. I’m in our favorite bar in Iowa City. I’m not a big fan of IPA but I drink one anyway to honor her birthday. It’s Hop Wrangler made by Peace Tree in Knoxville – it’s her favorite. I’ll pick her up at the airport in one week. I can’t wait to see her smile and pick her up and give her a big hug and kiss! Then we’ll go eat wings because apparently she has been very deprived while in India.
So what makes an LDR tolerable? It’s hard to say. It’s really not tolerable – at least for people like me and Ash and several of our friends. Staying busy helps but it’s only a patch – it’s only temporary. The only true solution is getting together – for good. An LDR truly makes you realize what is important to you. And if she (or he) is that important – that critical to your being – you know what you have to do. Here’s to hoping that through thick and thin true love will prevail.
Best,
Jason Scholbrock
January 10, 2012
I’m a gonna have a big problem when I get some moolah. Bikes are my addiction. What’s yours?
John Hurt! Interesting he played Winston Smith in 1984 and was on the opposite side of the screen in V for Vendetta. Also played Ollivander in Harry Potter!
I know this was over two years ago but I was very pleased to learn this from Amanda Little’s Power Trip.
This is what I plan to do on my 21st birthday…Melon City Crit…Muscatine…big air!
A little ditty about me…done by IMU M+D. Great work Hanna and Scott!
