Wednesday, the mailbox contained:
* December 2005 issue of [This Old House](http://www.thisoldhouse.com) (25 Secret Sources)
* Holiday 2005 [Dharma Crafts](http://www.dharmacrafts.com) Catalog
* An advertisement from [Havertys](http://www.havertys.com)
* A coupon from [Bath & Body Works](http://www.bathandbodyworks.com/home/index.jsp)
* A plea from [Salute America’s Heroes](http://saluteheroes.org/redesign/)
* A plea from the [Natural Resources Defense Council](http://www.nrdc.org)
Today, the gasoline prices at the [Sheetz @ 1435 Apperson Dr][SheetzApp] in Salem, VA were:
| Grade | Price |
|---|---|
| Regular | $1.899 |
| Mid | $1.999 |
| Premium | $2.099 |
Gas prices were unchanged today.
[ExxonEMain]: http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?latlongtype=internal&addtohistory=&latitude=jz7dkAcrm9Q%3d&longitude=4kfjP%2fmpwS4%3d&name=P%20%26%20M%20Market&country=US&address=1622%20E%20Main%20St&city=Salem&state=VA&zipcode=24153&phone=540%2d986%2d0021&spurl=0&searchtype=search&cat=Convenience%20Stores
[SheetzApp]: http://www.google.com/maps?li=lm&hl=en&q=sheetz+loc:+Salem,+VA&num=10&cid=37286667,-80055833,7206545345893491642&radius=0.000000&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
[SheetzMain]: http://www.google.com/maps?li=lm&hl=en&q=sheetz+loc:+Salem,+VA&num=30&cid=37286667,-80055833,6055186495788312797&radius=0.000000&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
[AmocoMain]: http://www.google.com/maps?li=lm&hl=en&q=amoco+loc:+Salem,+VA&num=30&cid=37286667,-80055833,1364145494564258260&radius=0.000000&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
Police were sent to a Stafford County, Virginia home November 14 after a neighbor complained about a naked woman standing in the front yard screaming. Police arrested the 18-year-old Stafford County, VA woman November 14 and charged her with indecent exposure, two counts of assaulting a police officer, obstruction of justice, disorderly conduct and underage possession of alcohol. When the police asked her for id, she showed the police her breasts.
Read (Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star)
I don’t think I’ve ever seen one of my neighbors do that. I’ve seen and heard them yell, but never while they were outside and naked.
A revival of the controversial strip-mining practice that decimates landscapes known for their lush, majestic peaks is stirring ire and protest from locals in Tennessee’s Smoky Mountains.
Read (The NewStandard)
The article mentions that the effects of strip mining are very visible from the air. That’s true. I flew into the [Lonesome Pine Airport](http://www.airnav.com/airport/LNP “Airnav.com”) in Wise, VA several years ago, and the deep, ugly scars of strip mining were impossible to miss.
I just received my first heating oil delivery of the season, and I paid $2.549 per gallon. Ouch! 😥 Last winter, 2004-2005, I paid $1.849 all winter, and I thought that was painful. I have records back to October 2003, and I paid $1.199 per gallon then. Prices have increased 37.9% since last winter and 112.6% since October 2003.
I noticed that my heating oil consumption has decreased as the price has increased. I have this data back to the winter of 2002-2003. Hopefully, the winter of 2005-2006 will be another warm one, and my consumption will be low this year, too.
| Winter | Gallons of Oil |
|---|---|
| 2002-2003 | 570 |
| 2003-2004 | 500 |
| 2004-2005 | 350 |
Beware if you pay at the pump. The amount that gas stations pre-authorize on your card (checking account) when attempting to pay at the pump has increased. Some stations are now pre-authorizing $75, and the pre-authorization hold can stay in place as long as 3 business days.
Read (Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star)
* Sheetz’s [policy](http://www.sheetz.com/sheetzweb/Common/Pages/pre_auth.jsp)
* An [MSN article](http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/Banking/Betterbanking/P118381.asp) about the same topic
Today, the gasoline prices at the [Sheetz @ 1435 Apperson Dr][SheetzApp] in Salem, VA were:
| Grade | Price |
|---|---|
| Regular | $1.899 |
| Mid | $1.999 |
| Premium | $2.099 |
Gas prices were unchanged today.
[ExxonEMain]: http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?latlongtype=internal&addtohistory=&latitude=jz7dkAcrm9Q%3d&longitude=4kfjP%2fmpwS4%3d&name=P%20%26%20M%20Market&country=US&address=1622%20E%20Main%20St&city=Salem&state=VA&zipcode=24153&phone=540%2d986%2d0021&spurl=0&searchtype=search&cat=Convenience%20Stores
[SheetzApp]: http://www.google.com/maps?li=lm&hl=en&q=sheetz+loc:+Salem,+VA&num=10&cid=37286667,-80055833,7206545345893491642&radius=0.000000&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
[SheetzMain]: http://www.google.com/maps?li=lm&hl=en&q=sheetz+loc:+Salem,+VA&num=30&cid=37286667,-80055833,6055186495788312797&radius=0.000000&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
[AmocoMain]: http://www.google.com/maps?li=lm&hl=en&q=amoco+loc:+Salem,+VA&num=30&cid=37286667,-80055833,1364145494564258260&radius=0.000000&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
Tuesday, the mailbox contained:
* December 2005 issue of [Dr. Dobb’s Journal](http://www.ddj.com) (Database Development)
* Holiday 2005 [Nurses Station](http://www.nursesdirect.com) Catalog
* The Path To Peace (Finding Hope In a Troubled World)
* A subscription offer from [free inquiry](http://www.secularhumanism.org)
* A plea from [Doctors Without Borders](http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org)
Dozens of wild hogs that were displaced by Hurricaine Wilma are prowling the lawns and streets of condominiums in a neighborhood in Fort Meyers, Florida. Some of the hogs appear to weigh as much as 500 pounds, and they’ve dug bulldozer-like gashes in some of the yards in their quest for food. The hogs will attack dogs without provocation, and they can also bring down deer. This has prompted fearful homeowners to stay indoors after dark and keep a close eye on their pets.
Read (Fort Meyers News-Press)
I’d like to see a video of a 500-pound hog bringing down a deer. That sounds like it’d make a good future episode on the National Geographic Channel or the Discovery Channel.
Cleaner air is being measured in Shenadnoah National Park, and it appears to be the result in part to new pollution controls on power plants and factories that took effect in spring 2004.
Read (AP via WTOP)
The northern snakehead has found a home in the Potomac River, and there is little biologists can do to slow the spread of the Asian import. The 300 snakehead caught in a Potomac River tributary last month is evidence enough the toothy fish has bulled its way to the top of the river’s food chain.
Read (AP via WTOP)
Scientists have discovered sexually altered fish off the Southern California coast, raising concerns that treated sewage discharged into the ocean contains chemicals that can affect an animal’s reproductive system.
Read (AP via WTOP)
New dams intended to provide cheaper power and support irrigation systems are destroying important water sources and causing economic disruption.
Read (AP via WTOP)
Conservation groups have put together nearly 32,000 acres of prairie into a bison preserve in Montana, the start of what they hope will be a vast reconstruction of the prairie ecosystem.
Read (AP via WTOP)
AOL and Warner Brothers are planning to put thousands of episodes of once-popular television shows like “Welcome Back Kotter”, “Kung Fu”, and “Chico and the Man” on the AOL.com Web site, where high-speed Internet users can view them on demand for free. The service is set to launch in January 2006, and it will include 4,800 episodes of more than 100 shows during its first year.
Read (Washington Post)
This is great. I haven’t seen Kung Fu on TV in years, and I can’t wait to see the episodes again. You’ve got to like how AOL is reinventing itself.