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When it comes to driving, it’s not easy being green , even on Earth Day. After all, we need cars to commute and run essential errands. Plus, as a nation, we love the freedom cars provide. But even providing for our work and family needs, there are ways to reduce the environmental impact from our motoring. Besides buying a more fuel-efficient vehicle, here are some suggestions that can be applied today with your current vehicle:
Car pool: There are many companies that offer ride-share programs that match you with others in your area. Another option is to check with co-workers or friends in the neighborhood to see if they are going your way. Telecommute (aka work at home) if your company permits it. This will save both fuel and, another precious commodity, your time. When possible, go shopping with family and friends, rather than alone, and "chain" together multiple destinations into one trip.
Park it: Leave your car at home and take public transportation if available, or use a bike, walk, or roller skate for more local trips. The latter options will give you some exercise, too.
Get flexible: See if your employer will allow a flexible schedule, so you are not commuting during peak rush hour times. Also, run errands at off hours to avoid driving in congested traffic.
Lose weight: Remove unnecessary cargo from the trunk, such as salt, sand, or shovel left over from winter driving. Removing a roof rack, you can lighten your load, reduce drag, and aid fuel economy. For SUVs and trucks, remove (or avoid buying) heavy push bars and side steps.
Slow down: Drag rises with speed. Slowing from 75 to 55 mph boosted gas mileage 33 percent in testing performed on a sedan and in a large SUV.
What are you doing to be a greener driver? Share your experiences and tips in the comments below.

blogs.consumerreports.org

Event Details: 11:00 a.m., March 20, St. Louis Cardinal’s Red Birds Club, 700 Clark Street
Who: Saint Louis University Fourth-Year Medical Students
What: 2008 National Match Day Celebration
When: Thursday, March 20 at 11 a.m. CDT
Where: St. Louis Cardinal’s Red Birds Club, 700 Clark Street
ST. LOUIS - At precisely 11 a.m. CDT on Thursday, March 20, 150 anxious Saint Louis University fourth-year medical students will find out where they will go next year for their residencies, the next phase of their medical education, as results from the National Residency Matching Program are simultaneously released to medical students nationwide.
Match Day - as it’s commonly called - is an annual event that combines the emotional, excitement of an awards show and the yearning of the lottery. Students will receive sealed envelopes that they will open in the presence of friends and family.
“Residency matching results this year demonstrate again the strength of medical students educated by Saint Louis University School of Medicine,” says L. James Willmore, M.D., associate dean of the School of Medicine.
“Our newly graduating physicians will enter all fields of medicine and surgery and will be trained in programs all over the United States. We on the faculty of the school of medicine are quite proud of our students and we wish them well in this next step in their education.”
Match Day is the culmination of four years of medical school. Prior to the big day, medical students rank their preference for specialties and medical institutions. Likewise, hospitals and other medical institutions list their preference for residents. Students’ and the program directors’ rank lists are matched, which results in the selection of students for residency positions.
Established in 1836, Saint Louis University School of Medicine has the distinction of awarding the first medical degree west of the Mississippi River. The school educates physicians and biomedical scientists, conducts medical research, and provides health care on a local, national and international level. Research at the school seeks new cures and treatments in five key areas: cancer, liver disease, heart/lung disease, aging and brain disease, and infectious disease.

slu.edu

A FRIEND of mine who writes music opined that it all begins with a riff or a couple of bars in his head. From there, a musical piece emerges and an idea for the lyrics materialises. The words for a song need to fit the tune. This sentiment echoes Paul Kelly’s view that “you fall in love with a riff you’ve heard and you sit and try to figure out how they do it”.
So when Andrew Denton described Kelly as Australia’s poet laureate in his introduction to their interview, I disagreed. Kelly is one of Australia’s great songwriters - and there is a difference between poetry and songwriting.
His songs are characterised by memorable melodies that capture the essence of the words we read on the pages of Don’t Start Me Talking. Kelly’s lyrics are rich in offering insights and snapshots of contemporary life. The fact that he is Australian and that his songs are primarily about Australia add to their evocative nature and our enjoyment.
Although Kelly makes it clear “the goal is not to tell my story but to write a good song”, his songwriting is, nevertheless, a personal biography, which is also constructing a history for all Australians in the late 20th century.
He has often stated that his inspiration comes from the history of this land. As a compilation of songs over 20 years, it begins to help us all define something of the nature of what it means to be living in Australia in 2008. “The old stuff is nourishment; it’s how you learn to write. You can’t make a table out of air.”
The history of Australia and, in particular, the struggle of indigenous Australians, gives us a strong sense of our country. Songs such as This Land Is Mine, Maralinga, Special Treatment and Bicentennial offer different perspectives on the plight of indigenous Australians.

theage.com.au

Since there is plenty of Green for St. Patrick’s Day, I’ll include the White and Checkered Flags to boot as well because here are my Top 3 Racing Weekend Moments of the Weekend
Green Flag- Let’s Go Racing!
This is ONLY the 2nd 1-2-3 Finish by the Same Organization in NASCAR History and the 1st Since the 1997 Daytona 500 as Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer and Jeff Burton cap off Richard Childress Racing’s 1st Ever 1-2-3 Finish at Bristol Motor Speedway Today.
White Flag- 1 To Go!
Lewis Hamilton vs. Kyle Busch: Best in the World
If Lewis Hamilton and Kyle Busch are both Champions This Season, there will be a very fierce argument on who is the Best In The World as far as Auto Racing is Concerned because this could be the Battle for the 2008 Driver of the Year.
Penske Wins Sebring
All Penske needs to win is LeMans and he would be the 1st Ever Team Principal to win Daytona,Indy, Sebring, and LeMans, each gems of Permenant Racing Circuits.
Even though St. Patrick’s Day is Tomorrow, at least this is my view of Overdrive St. Patrick’s Day Green White and Checkered.
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***UPDATED AT 8:40 AM***
Obviously many areas have already had showers and strong thunderstorms this morning. Heavy rain has also already fallen in a lot of areas. The bulk of the rain has moved north of the area, but additional thunderstorm development is expected through the moning in the area I have circled below. That region of development will shift east this afternoon and evening.
A serious flood threat remains across the Ozarks! We’ll have more on our potential for severe weather around 1 PM this afternoon.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone! Remember to wear green so those folks who insist on pinching you…don’t. I am in need of a few folks to help me build an ark today - in some places you might need one or at least an umbrella. A heavy rain event will begin today (especially tonight) and last through Wednesday morning. Moisture started to increase across the area Sunday afternoon and it has continued to pour into the area. An approaching storm system will combine with that moisture and create the setup for our heavy rain.
Showers and thunderstorm can be expected on and off today areawide, however the heavy rain during the daylight hours today can be expected to the northwest of Interstate 44.

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Four-year-old Grace Butterworth’s eyes widened as the Naples 30th annual St. Patrick’s Day parade began strolling down the street Saturday.
Grace, who wore an oversized soft St. Patrick’s hat and a green beard, was among thousands of attendees decked in green enjoying a celebration of traditional Irish fare as 127 community organizations, businesses, school bands and groups marched in the parade, while scrambling to collect candy along 11th Avenue South during the parade.
Grace was at her first parade with her grandmother, Carol McKinnon, a Naples resident, who wore a cloverleaf boa. Grace, her mother, and Grace’s two brothers are visiting from Boston.
Smiling, she watched a clown and others dressed in green travel along the streets of Naples.
From St. Ann’s Catholic Church in Naples, they traveled north on Third Street South, then east on Fifth Avenue South and south on Eighth Street South to Crayton Cove.
In the front of the parade was Naples Mayor Bill Barnett, who said he enjoys the great atmosphere and attends regularly.
“It’s a great day to forget about the economy and all the controversy that you read about in the newspaper,” said Barnett, who wore an oversized green hat. “Today is a day that you are smiling whether you are Irish or not.”

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Can’t make it to the parade? 6News will have live coverage at 1 p.m. Monday on Sunflower Broadband Channel 6. Replays will air at 7 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, 10 a.m. Wednesday, 11 p.m. March 20, 9 p.m. March 21 and 11 a.m. March 22.
Rick Laughlin won’t be wearing green during the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade, but he’ll be cruising in a green fire truck wearing a big smile.
Laughlin, 60, is retiring Monday after serving 30 years as a firefighter and paramedic with Lawrence-Douglas County Fire & Medical.
“Personally, I can’t imagine having a better career,” he said. “It’s rewarding, and in so many ways you work with the best people possible; there’s a lot of camaraderie.”
He said it was fortuitous that he chose his retirement date for Monday.
“When I realized, I spoke to my battalion chief and I said it would be nice if I could drive the truck, since I’m Irish,” Laughlin said.
Typically, Laughlin is at Fire Station No. 2, which doesn’t participate in the parade, but Joe Hoelscher, Laughlin’s battalion chief, said a special adjustment was made.
Laughlin will be waving to a downtown crowd as the acting officer in a ladder truck for Station No. 5. The fire department, which always features its older green trucks, is one of 100 floats or vehicles in the parade. It’s a long-standing tradition in the community, and a great way to send off a firefighter, Hoelscher said.

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If you don’t get your fill of everything Irish this St. Patrick’s Day, a spoken-word event dedicated to the Emerald Isles comes up just nine days afterward.
South Mountain Community College’s main campus, 7050 S. 24th St., will be home to the 13th annual Storytelling Festival Wednesday, March 26 to Friday, March 28. The festival, put on by the SMCC Storytelling Institute, will feature presentations by Liz Weir, one of Ireland’s best-known storytellers.
“We’ve been offering a spring storytelling festival for over 10 years, and we always feature at least one well-known storyteller,” said teacher and event organizer Liz Warren, “although no one’s ever come this far before - all the way from Ireland.”
The highlights of the three-day festival come Thursday and Friday. March 27 is the Community Storytelling Festival, occurring 9:30 to 10:45 a.m. then again from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., which is free and open to the public. March 28 features a public performance by Weir, 7 to 9 p.m. in the school’s performance hall, called “Folktales from Ireland & Beyond.” This event is $10.
Weir also kicks off the event March 26 at 6:30 p.m. with a two-hour storytelling workshop called “Shortening the Road: Storytelling on the Path to Peace in Northern Ireland,” in which Weir will describe projects she has been involved with over the last 30 years. That workshop is $50.

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Each class from Dale House School, on Ruby Street, were given nursery rhymes and poems to perform in front of their class mates and the under-fives became the subjects of their poems.
Prizes of books were on offer for the best performances as 90 children took on the challenge, reading poems such as William Blake’s The Tiger and Edward Lear’s The Owl and the Pussycat.
Headteacher Sarah Fletcher, who judged the final, said: “They did extremely well. The standard was very high. The poetry day encourages them to read and be confident when they’re speaking and it also gives when pleasure.”

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