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February 19, 2007
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I finally bought a house and I'll be happy to post pictures here to share.  It's wonderful to have something to call my own and be able to spend time making improvements.

One of the things I'd like to change about the house is the heating system.  I've got a really old oil furnace that is actually in great shape.  What isn't great, though, is the fuel.

I've learned that I can easily use B20, a 20% blend of biofuel and oil, now, without any changes.  My next step is to convert the furnace to use B99, which is 99% biofuel.   The stuff is made right down the road and costs just about the same.

One of the reasons I chose the house was its close location to MAX, Portland's electric commuter train.  My car now sits in the garage all week while I ride into work.  I'd like to replace my car soon with one having a diesel engine and run biofuel through it as well.

There are so many advantages to biofuel over oil.  Most people think of it as the environmently friendly thing to do.  My biggest reason is to eliminate support of foriegn oil.

As an American citizen, I see many of our political problems being based on our oil consumption.   We're bound to governments on the other side of the world and have been forced to get involved in matters that shouldn't have much to do with us.

I believe the U.S. will eventually follow the lead of countries like Brazil and figure out that being energy independent should be our first priority.  But until then, I'm going to do everything I can as an individual to help the change.

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