How clever! Like a vacation, minus the travel part. It's quickly becoming the most overused word of the summer, with 185,000 hits on Google, and climbing.

A "staycation" is a way to avoid higher travel costs and reduce carbon emissions by staying put during your time off. Because you'll be paying $4+ per gallon of gas, the thinking goes, it's unlikely that you'll be filling up the RV, SUV or minivan and taking a long road trip. Unless you can afford it, of course.

On the surface, there's nothing terribly wrong with the concept. After all, staying local has its benefits. Nearby businesses and venues would love you to spend your vacation dollars with them and you automatically save by otherwise not enduring hours on end behind the wheel.

But marketers are starting to jump on the newly-coined term, and as oftentimes happens, things are taking a bizarre turn.

Take, for instance, an email I got couple of weeks ago. It was from an electronics retailer gushing about all the fun you can have during your staycation if only you bought more gadgets. Instead of watching your money evaporate out your tailpipe, you should instead spend it on TVs, game consoles, MP3 players and the electricity to power them. And let's not forget the massive A/C bill because you're mostly enjoying them indoors.

Yeah, that makes complete sense.

Look, I don't fault anyone for trying to make a buck. I like money too. But logic here is conspicuously absent. In this USA Today report, you can practically see them patting themselves on the back for their keen marketing skills.

Here's a wild, money-saving concept: spend less.

Bike or take a short drive to town. Go on a hike; take a walking tour; watch a film; pack a picnic and play fetch with the dog and ball with the kids... Those things are generally easy on the wallet, don't require an itinerary and won't fill your home with more stuff.

Work-wise, another good thing you can do before you embark on your staycation is turn those gadgets off! The folks at 1E, makers of Nightwatchman power management software, sent me this interesting statistic.

The aggregate power consumed by PCs left on over the 4th of July weekend (three day minimum for most office workers) will cost businesses up to $46 million. In addition to this hefty price tag, these PCs will cost the planet 474 million lbs of CO2 over three days, the same emissions as nearly 23 million gallons of gas!

Their advice, turn those PCs off when you walk out Thursday for your extended July 4th weekend. You can gather more stats in 1E's 2007 PC Energy Report. And if you find yourself with a few minutes to spare, give their Flash-based Turn It All Off game a spin. Do keep your distance from the cupboard of love, however.

And, of course, enjoy your staycation! Rant over.