At least we can now buy petrol (gas) here in UK again, without going on a tour of filling stations. Trying to find one open, with stock and without a long queue.
The self-inflicted fuel delivery crisis caused a big hike in petrol and diesel prices whilst demand outstripped supply, which has not yet recovered.
Owners of electic vehicles are smiling, but I guess not so where Trekker lives. Ironic to have to burn gas in a generator, to charge your electric vehicle.
1 Like
Equally ironical is those bio-ethanol made from edible parts of maze to be added to the fuel. To grow those maze, we need fuel for agricultural machines. So much for the sustainable economy...
1 Like
Worse than that. Chopping down rain forest to grow bio-ethanol crops.
1 Like
Thread necromancy has never bothered me. Organizing into an existing thread makes more sense than starting a new one that ignores the helpful posts and existing thread.
Reviving a solved thread with a new problem is best avoided though.
If the solution in the solved thread did not work, different steps may be needed to solve it.
4 Likes
I am glad to hear that Aravisian appreciated my decision as being a good one. I try to do the right thing on this site, I am not always successful, but at least I try.
Zaba is right that this is a self inflicted wound caused by the oil companies not willing to straighten up and fly right. And causing high gas prices during a pandemic is rediculous.
FrenchPress, nobody in America can afford an electric car unless they are rich. Electric cars start at like 40,000 US dollars bare minimum for the cheapest of electric cars. Tesla's go for at least 60,000 US dollars and up.
Then of course you have your sporty racing electric cars that go for crazy prices, 80,000 UD dollars and up. The middle class has become the poor class, and the poor class, have become the rely on government support class or be homeless.
Electric cars, at least IMO, have never come down in price in all the years that they have been around. Maybe the best chance of getting an electric car here is to buy used. But thats a whole new adventure, cause you don't know what you are buying into.
Have the electric car batteries been abused? Have they been taken care of? How many miles of use on said batteries? Have they gone through freezes? Have they gone through multiple overheating without cooling?
Frankly, cars in general are expensive, but at least with a used car checked out by a mechanic, you can have a 90% certainty, that car is gonna be fine after a quick checkout by the mechanic unless he/she have found problems.
With an electric car, there are so many variables that are not so easily to find out, like the condition of the huge bank of batteries for example. But ya, you talk about your surprise that electric vehicles don't rain supreme in America?
Thats cause most of America is poor.
A lot of people misunderstand this. And while it is true that some in the USA are better off in some ways; it is not so prevalent as people around the world believe.
The USA is seen as the richest country. And while this statement is true it does not mean that the average US Citizen is rich, wealthy or even well off:
The cost of living in the USA Is high.
Costs have continued to rise for decades while wages stayed the same or even dropped.
The impression that Americans are rich is as strong as it is wrong.
2 Likes
This is 100% true, and this is what I have been trying to explain to others on the forum who are from other countries, like in the Europe zone for example. People find it hard to believe that things are so awful in America, when our nation is seen as the richest in the world.
Yeah sure the country might be rich, but none of us are. And you are also so right, that there are people who have 3-jobs, and still can't afford to pay their rent. The cost of living is far too high. And when it comes to building houses, they only want to build 400,000 dollars and up houses that nobody poor can afford.
Affordable housing? Not in America! Homeless people being taken care of? Not in America. Being able to afford to pay your rent? Not in America! In America, citizens are left behind, and its only getting worse as the years progress.
Social Security is one of America's government assistance programs. Would it surprise other successful countries in the world, that social security monthly benefit checks, have not gone up in 10-years to cover inflation and higher costs of living?
They are only just now starting to talk about how those on social security, will receive an increase in benefits, after 10-years of receiving no increases. It was on the news, only reason I know about that.
Something that I haven't talked about on this site cause I am ashamed about it, but I lost my mechanics business. The pandemic killed it, I couldn't afford to keep it open, the monthly bills were hemorrhaging me. And nobody was bringing in machines for me to service.
And since I am not a full dealership, that means I also don't sell equipment, so I had no income coming in. When the pandemic was in full swing, I couldn't get a job to pickup the slack of my missing income, as all shops were closed, much like mine, and some also went out of business, just like mine.
So I was forced to do the thing I didn't want to do, and get government assistance. So now I am just another statistic on the board, depended on the government, like so many other's. Anyways, it is what it is.
1 Like
Well, you know how mother nature is on the war path with our species? We became next in line. This constant hard rained we been getting nonstop? Our neighborhood is now flooded.
Water is at least 50% up our lawn. Any further and it will reach our homes siding. And nope, we dont have a boat 
. They say the rain is supposed to let up on Tuesday and Wednesday.
I sure hope so cause it's looking bad for us now. Wish us luck here. Thanks guys.
1 Like
@StarTreker I hope it stops raining for you and yor home stays dry. Do take some basic precautions whilst you can, like barrier of sandbags. Take care. Zab
1 Like
WOW, between the rain and the wind, it was hard to get some sleep. But good news is, the rain had stopped by the time I got up. And hopefully it stays stopped, so that the water can reseed, and get drained away. It was getting scary there for awhile!
I come back to the forum and it looks like there has been a ton of posts since. WOW, its amazing how popular Zorin OS is lol.
4 Likes
Well, it's just a matter of opinion or insight.
At the first glance, it could also mean there might be - Trouble in Paradise.
Well guys, I spoke too soon. Initially the water level stopped climbing and was on the beginning of reseeding. This is because the rain stopped. However, this was the calm before the storm as they say. We have a river that had crested later after I made the last post here.
A flood of new water came to our neighborhood. We are now surrounded in water that is several feet high. My garage is no doubt flooded, and I probably have stuff that is now ruined in there, like battery chargers and other items.
Who knows if my tractor, trailer, and mowers are all screwed up now. I also have a little electric scooter, its probably destroyed too. I also have a bicycle, where I am hoping, that its height, has kept the wheel bearings from being samerged.
I can't even open the freaking door, because the water pressure against the door is preventing me from opening it, so that means I can't even get out there. I am hoping the water hasn't gotten into my gas cans.
I recently bought 22-gallons of gas, cost me 102 dollars, I hope that hasn't gone to waste too. This has become a very sucky situation. The only good news is, the water level is bellow the floor of our home, so the home is safe, just the skirting is not.
But for now, we are water bound to our home. And its in the 30's-F outside, so too cold to be out there. But since the water level is above rubber boot height, the only way you'd be trucking out there, is in shorts, and water logged boots or shoes, and thats pointless to be doing.
The only sollace I can take from all this, is I still have a home, for now, and I am still alive. Stuff can be replaced, as much as awful as that is, stuff can be replaced, people can't. The flooding that India recently went through, well, were getting it on the other side of the world now.
We've had floods before throughout the years in this neighborhood even. But its never been this bad. This officially marks the worst flood that our neighborhood has ever got. I am going through a lot of emotions right now. I am not happy.
One of the neighbors houses, which is on a lower level of the neighborhood, appears to be flooded at floor level. I pray and hope for her sake, that its just bellow the carpeting and wood, and only the insulation is toast. 
I took a few pics to show you all that I am not making this up, this is real.
I have no words for this.
3 Likes
They say that friends are the best form of medicine, when things are not going well. You guys are my friends, my family. Sometimes, words are not always needed. Just you guys being there for me, means a lot. 
QUICK UPDATE:
The water level has gone down a little bit, but were still quite flooded around here. I really don't expect things getting any better until Wednesday.
3 Likes
I ended up getting around to do an initial inspection in my garage, since the water reseeded enough. What a mess, gas cans, propane tank, boxes, all were floated and moved around. The battery charger I had on my tractor, destroyed, it will need to be replaced.
Thats not even the worst of it. I was keeping my two best mowers, my newer Honda string trimmer, my backpack leaf blower, as well as an electric scooter, in a heated room space.
It of course got flooded, lifted the scooter off the ground, and made it fall into my mowers. It broke the mirror off, submerged all the electronics and the motor. The battery charger for it as well was submerged, and that was arking and sparking before I pulled the power from the wall.
The scooter is destroyed. And while the battery technically is showing a bit of a charge, its much lower then what it was, and so clearly it was getting drained from somewhere. The battery was obviously submerged, but it does have shrink wrap seal around it. But still, can't trust it.
And what good is the battery without a working battery charger, and a working scooter for it? Its all gone, several thousands down the drain. So, the only battery charger I feel like replacing, is the one for 12v batteries, cause I am still going to need that.
Somehow my bicycle was still standing at the same exact spot it was. Clearly the flood did not pick it up and make it fall, but evidence shows the water level was up to the axle's at the very least. I hope my axle bearings are good, but who knows right.
Just like the tractor wheels, and the trailer wheels, submerged, show knows if those wheels are any good anymore. And engines that get water inside them, well, unlike electric scooters that can't be fixed once submerged under water, water can be gotten out of an engine.
Yes, it involves a lot of work. But you can clean out the fuel system, replace air filters as needed, drain cylinders, replace engine oil, it can be done. I will honestly consider it a miracle of the mowers actually start up as they are with not maintenance on them yet since the flood lol.
The tractor is higher up off the ground, water level looks like it was only reached the bottom of the engine, so it maybe not have been effected. Still assessing damage, but I couldn't take it anymore I had to go back in. Trash cans picked up floated all over the place. River logs and other garbage in the yard, what a mess.
I'm hoping that because I had many of my expensive cordless tools higher up on shelves, they will be fine. Like I said, I stopped before doing a complete inspection cause my mind was just utter depressed with it all. Carpeting water logged out there.
So whats the sollace with all this? Well, I still got my house, that didn't get flooded inside. I still have my life as well. Stuff can be replaced, people can't. And if you lose your house, your kind of screwed, so I should consider myself lucky, could have been worse.
Anyways, thats the update.
EDIT: I ordered a new battery charger, its also an upgrade, can charge 4 batteries at one time, and keep them maintained.
Sounds like it is a lot of work to clean up 
I hope your household insurance policy covers flood damage.
1 Like
When I lost my business, I lost the ability to pay for insurance high premiums. Food on the table was more important then making insurance companies richer. So yeah, its one giant mess. And while the bottom skirting of the home was most certainly under water, at least the floor level was spared.
The water was low enough, I don't believe I have floor insulation damage. So thankfully my home was spared. The garage is a whole other story. And your right, its gonna be a whole lot of work.
1 Like
Sorry to hear of your flooding Treker. I assume your home is raised on piles with decorative skirting between floor level and ground level. If I am correct then that has saved your floor, floor joists and insulation from being soaked.
Also if your motors in the garage have not ingested water through their air intakes, then maybe after drying out and an oil change, hopefully you may get them running again.
2 Likes
Hello Zaba, my awesome dude from the innertubes. You are correct sir. These homes are on cement foundations with tiedowns secured to the ground. We suffer yearly storms, several times per year, so tiedowns are a requirement for the home to actually stay on the foundations.
Don't worry, I am a mechanic by trade, if those mowers need serviced, I am the right person to get the job done. Thankfully, I am not really going to have to worry about the mowers until next year. We are hitting freezing temps now, so I am pretty sure the mowing season is over.
This morning, there was frost on everything, if you weren't careful, you'd slip just walking on the porch. So yeah, I think the winter season has begun for us.
PS: Thanks for being there buddy, it really means a lot.
3 Likes
Currently, there are Net Outages in my area. Using Hotspot to log in and post at the moment - but I will probably disappear for a while.