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<\/a>\nMoe and his wife have also been good neighbors to our planet. Their beautifully renovated 1711\u00a0 house (eleventh-oldest in Needham, Moe says with town-pride) has 22 solar panels; all the lights are LED; the historic windows were modified to be double-paned; the front lawn has been replaced with a water-sipping ground cover; the kitchen waste gets composted; and, just before we met for coffee at the French Press, Moe had changed his newspaper subscriptions to digital – except for Sunday.\u00a0 Moe is the first member of his board to receive his packets digitally, further saving paper.<\/p>\n
Moe enjoys life, and one of his pleasures is cars.\u00a0 \u00a0He used to drive a standard shift Miata, which his daughter\u00a0learned to\u00a0drive when she was 10 in case of an emergency.\u00a0 (For Moe’s fail-safe instructions on how to teach driving a standard shift car, see end of post.) \u00a0 He also owns a used hybrid Lexus 450h, but it has taken a definite back seat to the fully electric vehicle: a beautiful, white Tesla Model S.\u00a0 What do you like about it, I ask.\u00a0 Moe’s responses come quick. It is a thrill to drive.\u00a0 And, he says with a sly smile – you get a great App!\u00a0 It allows you remote access to your car, your trips, and information about where to charge.\u00a0 Another\u00a0enjoyable aspect, for the very sociable Moe,\u00a0is the community of Tesla drivers.\u00a0 They meet at the Tesla charging station in Dedham – where the charge is free.\u00a0 It takes about 20-40 minutes to get a full charge, but the next generation will be able to charge faster,\u00a0 Moe says.\u00a0 As they wait, the owners share bits of insider-Tesla minutiae, using their own Tesla lingo — getting “iced” means a non-EV (Internal Combustion Engine) taking up an EV charging spot.\u00a0 What about long-distance travel, I ask?\u00a0 Not a problem, says Moe. He and his wife have gone to New Hampshire and Maine, using the well-spaced Tesla charging stations.\u00a0 People go all over the country, he says.\u00a0 It’s the wave of the future!<\/p>\n
Addendum:\u00a0Moe’s method to teach a person to drive a standard in five minutes – getting over the hardest part: releasing the clutch.\u00a0 \u00a0Go to a level parking lot with space.\u00a0 Press down the brake (right foot) and the clutch (left foot).\u00a0 Put the car into first.\u00a0 Release the brake.\u00a0 Then gently release the clutch until it catches and the car starts to move slowly forward (no need to press the gas).\u00a0 Repeat this until you get a feel for the clutch.\u00a0 \u00a0Now, you can build on this skill to add gas and shift to the other gears.\u00a0 \u00a0Post-addendum: There are no EV’s where this skill is required.<\/p>\n