But when you turn it off, is it really off??? Chances are, it’s not. Plasma TVs, VCRs, DVD players, game consoles, … tons of your appliances and elctronics are actually creatures of the night, sucking down electricity when you think they’re asleep.

Just how much power are they drawing when you’re not looking? Refer to the graphic below or pickup a watt meter to measure directly.

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You see, I just read from on Environmental Grafitti that there are environmental benefits to the production of scotch whiskey.  Specifically: a by-product of whisky has been shown to clean contaminated water.

According to the articale, it cleans up heavy metals, pesticides, and chlorine polution.

I started dringingking wehisky whn i moved to europpes back in 2000.  It was a w a time that the internet bubble burt and i didn’t really know what do do but my wife thought it was gfoodf to move to there bacesuse she wanted t and then i had a friend and hisname was Stefan and he liked to drink whisky and so h told me i sjhold drink the whiskey and i never weant to insult my friends tso i said ok i will try your whsihky and then it was so good that i loiked it and thien i wanted to drinkit a lot and now i drink it after a long day at workd or when it was a short day at work or when i am particaultaly sad or maybe when i am also happy and then i lke it to drink when i am writing a blog entry too because i don;’t thingk that anyone is really reading this bloig anyway so whjy does it even fuking matter.  In fact nothing really seems to smematter anymore and that is why the whiskey is so good.

Sometimes I try to drink the  lowland whiskeys, but never ever ever do that, it will giv you such a headache and you’ll wish that you were never alive like the night i have all that vodka with Giuseppe and Igor.  What was I thinking?!??!?!  I threw up soimany times that i thouew up som any times.  But the highland whiskey are really good, but the best of all are the bourbons from USA (godfblessamerica, ami reight… who’s with me fellas?) and the scotches from Islay.  No, for realseies I mean it, I cold drink that all night long and not even notice it. oki mean sure i might strat blogging aobut stuff that i shouflgndt ve bloggin about but who cares cux no one really realds cblodgs anywhay anfd scotcht from islay is so good.

One time in germany i told stefan that i pour whisky liek i pour water but i confused the word for ‘pour’ with the ‘word’ for ‘enjoy’.  then i think stefan didn’t want to give me anymore of the schotch because it was so ecxpkebncsive. his was like 200 euros per bottle which today is like 300 dollars per bottle and i thinkg that is too much espacially whant i can djust go dontw to the liqcuoier stoe and get a bottle of mekers for 20 biucks, right?

nowi’m up to like 11 cless oes of whicky tomgnit  and i should probaly stop.  Beacuse grnealty speaking dirnking so much is not a ood thing.  i jsut want to do my part and save the world.  now i noewj trhat producing whickey cleans contaminated water.  i am isjut dsjio excited and i think i need to celebreate.  maybe just none more drink anad then i’m donig home.

Rated: from 226 votes

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But perfection is the province of only God (and maybe Obama).  The sun is not all lollipops and rainbows; too much of it can cause skin cancer. 

Well, sort of.  Too much of the damaging UV light is what causes the cancer, but our skin can actually benefit from some of the wavelengths.  But I’ll tell you what’s uebercool.  There is a way to separate the harmful UV from the skin-therapeutic wavelengths that rejuvenate skin and treat common skin disorders like fine lines, wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, and sun damage.  Avea does this with a special dense knit of polymer fibres, blocking out UV rays with a UPF of 50+.

(If this is an ad for a digital camera, I have no idea what is going on. It is supposed to be a fricking sun-protection hat.)

Now you can go out in the sun, be fit, be healthy, and look sexy.  Available for Men and Women.

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So, W the T F, I thought to myself silently.  And then not so silently, I called the power company.  They asked me some pretty stupid questions like “is your oven on all the time?” and “how much laundry do you do?”  Granted, I did have a lot of laundry (nothing beats a bed-wetting 3-year-old), and I do make a mean veggie lasagna, but I mean really, a hundred bucks a day for electricity.  I might as well be back in the Vaterland. 

Then the kind folks over at the power company made a funny suggestion: “sir, your heat isn’t on, is it?”  Hmmm.  Heat.  Good one, right?  This is Southern California; who has heat?  Well, it turns out that people do. It turns out that I do.  It actually even turns out that that funny little box on the wall in the kids’ room with the circle and the numbers has something to do with the speed at which molecules in close proximity to the ceiling are bouncing around…the kind of bouncing around associated with 90 degrees F.

I think I’ve recovered from that heating snafu, at least financially if not emotionally.  And I’ve even learned that there are indeed times when it gets chilly here in SoCal. Now, I love President Carter as much as the next guy, but sometimes wearing a sweater just isn’t enough.  You you might catch me on a cold (50 degrees F) night, cranking up the heat in the kids’ room.  They sleep sound with smiles on their little faces, and I sleep so much better when I don’t have to listen to their teeth chattering.

But the heat, like the coffee maker and the High School Musical night light, is something that I do a bad job remembering to turn off.  I’ll walk into my daughter’s room days later, and exclaim something like: “damn, girl, what the hell you cookin’?”  She’ll look up at me, puzzled that I would say something like that and probably attribute it to my need to seem young, hip, and perhaps even groovy.

So what I really need is an automatic way to deal with this whole keep-the-hot-time-hot-and-the-cold-time-cold business straight (sort of the McDLT of temporal home heating, if you will).  In fact, I need it bad.

So if I were to come across a magic lamp and subsequently find myself the master of a genie, like Barbara Eden (she is so hot!), I would wish for a world-class thermostat.  On second thought, I would wish for a really nice big house with a world-class thermostat, instead of this little 2-bedroom flat where my bike gets stolen and the bums defecate in the alley.  Now, I know what you’re thinking, dear reader, wish for a million wishes.  But honestly, I think that isn’t really a good long term strategy; it degrades the respect that your genie has for you and ultimately diminishes the passion she has for her work.  No-win for anyone, right?

So suppose I do achieve this wonderful albeit improbable opportunity (by my calculations the conditional probability of meeting the aforementioned really hot genie and not saying something that might offend her immediately is 1.73e-6), what would I ask for?  Funny you should ask.  I’ll tell you.  I’d get the Honeywell Vision PRO 8000 Thermostat. 

Why?  Let me tell you.  This ain’t your father’s thermostat, bub.

1. Real-Time Clock-keeps time during power failures & updates automatically for daylight savings
2. Change/Check Reminders- alerts when you need to replace batteries, filters, or service is needed
3. Precise Comfort Control - +/- 1 degree Farenheit
4. Programmable Fan
5. Engergy Star Rating
6. 5 Year Warranty
7. Touch Screen Interaction
8. Up to 7 Day Programability
9. Permanent Memory Retention
10. Adaptive Intelligent Recovery
11. Dual Powered - Battery and Hardwire
12. Takes 3 AAA Batteries

Is there anything it can’t do?!?!  (That was retorical for a punctuated ending.)

So, it turns out that’s all I have to say about that.  If you enjoyed reading this post, please digg it or reddit it it or stumble upon it, or whatever to make me feel loved and encourage me to drink another bottle of bourbon before writing future posts.  You could even send it to a friend or to your genie. If you are in need of a thermostat (come on, you know you are), I’d recommend you click on this one to buy it.

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So what can I do? I want to be lazy and get around town without pedaling, but conventional autos burn gas, and electrics need all that coal.

Hmmmm….now that I think about it, this town is sunny year round.  Holy crap! I have an idea.  What if I could drive a solar-powered car.  On second thought, seeing as how I don’t have a valid driver’s license for the USA, what I really need is a solar powered golf cart.  Do they exist?  Holy crap, part 2!  They sure do!

With a price tag of $9000, I won’t take this decision lightly.  But just think about it, I could do things like, I dunno, take up golf, you know, since golf courses are such reasonable ways to utilize land resources. On second thought, I could drive it around to . . . hmmmm . . . ok, I don’t really know where I would drive it, but you have to admit that a solar powered golf cart is pretty damn cool.

How about it you buy one and tell me about it?

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USAWeekend offers the following seven tips:

Read your children books with Earth-friendly topics.

Good for the environment: Early lessons teach kids to act conscientiously as adults. “There’s always the classic ‘The Lorax’ by Dr. Seuss, which is about saving the trees,” says Jen Boulden, co-founder of eco-lifestyle site IdealBite.com. Two more good ones: “Our Tree Named Steve” by Alan Zweibel and “The Giving Tree” by Shel Silverstein.

Bring your kids to the farmers market.

Good for the environment: Kids who appreciate what the Earth can provide will take better care of it.

Good for you: Free knowledge. “Farmers markets are places to learn. They’re the new public squares,” says Michael Pollan, author of “The Omnivore’s Dilemma,” who often takes his 15-year-old son to them. “I want him to know farmers and understand that carrots are a root and not a glossy orange bullet that comes in a bag. And I want to teach him not to waste food, because he sees where it comes from and how much work goes into producing it.”

Stock up on green school supplies.

Good for the environment: According to the Environmental Protection Agency, recycled paper produces 74% less pollution and uses 64% less energy and 50% less water. Other smart items: recycled or reusable pencils, pens and notebooks.

Good for you: Save money with refillable pencils and pens. Try the Woody Pen, for example, which is made of non-toxic wood on the outside — ideal for pen chewers. The Corn Pen is biodegradable.

Use flushable diapers.

Good for the environment: Each year, 3.5 million tons of disposable diapers are put in landfills. The EPA found cloth diapers to be less expensive (even considering all the washings), but they aren’t a convenient option for most parents. The new solution? gDiapers’ flushable diapers, which are safely reabsorbed into the ecosystem (gdiapers.com).

Good for you: No buildup of stinky disposable diapers in the trash can. And no loads and loads of wash from cloth diapers.

Don’t brown-bag it.

Good for the environment: Pack a reusable insulated bag with lunches instead of a paper bag that will get thrown away (more trash!). 

Good for you: “Insulated bags can be rolled up and tucked away,” Boulden says. And because they’re insulated, they’ll keep that yogurt chilled.

Take pictures of the kids with a digital camera.

Good for the environment: “We recommend going digital,” Boulden says. “Making a photo from a digital image uses fewer chemicals than making a photo from film.” Using fewer chemicals is better for the Earth.

Good for you: “With film, you’re getting all your photos printed,” she adds. “With digital, you get only the ones you want.” Plus, you can share albums with friends and family through sites such as KodakGallery.com and Snapfish.com.

Make gardening a family activity.

Good for the environment: Eating locally (i.e., from your backyard) means no gas is required to ship those blue-ribbon tomatoes (or squash, beans or lettuce).

Good for you: “Kids with exposure to gardening programs do better on science tests, do better socially and develop a sense of responsibility,” says Charlie Nardozzi, senior horticulturist with the National Gardening Association. “And they develop better eating habits.”

Here are some other good resources:

1. Natural Resources Defence Council - Kids
2. Kidsource
3. Ecomall - Kids
4. EPA - Kids

Rated: from 148 votes

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But transportation isn’t the only way we all contribute to air pollution and creation of greenhouse gases.  Electricity consumption is a big contributor, not least because over half of America’s electrical needs are satisfied by nasty coal burning plants.  So even if you drive around in an electric vehicle, when you go to plug that thing in at the end of the day, you’re burning coal!  Ugh!

It’s easy for you to see how much electricity is used in your household; just look at your power bill.  (The average household consumes about 1000 kWh per month.)   What is harder to know is which things in your house are the culprits.

The Energy Hogs

Things that heat and cool are the worst. 

1. Electric oven - 5000 watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)
2. Clothes Dryer - 5000 watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)
3. Water Heater - 3800 watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)
4. Microwave - 1500 watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)
5. Toaster - 1500 watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)
6. Coffee Maker - 900 watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)
7. Range Burners - 800 watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)
8. Window Air Conditioner - 500-1400  watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)
9. Fridge - 200-700 watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)
10. Light Bulb 60-100 watts (Find an energy efficient alternative)

Computers and TVs

Computers can drain substantial power, too. A standard desktop machine with a 17 inch CRT monitor can zap over 300 watts.  A 19″ TV can use 90 watts, and your Xbox is 165 watts.

See for Yourself

On the bottom of all gadgets and appliances, you should be able to find the wattage used.  Remember, this is the maximum power consumption.  If you want to know exactly how much power the device is drawing, I recommend getting a watt-meter.  These things are pretty cool; just plug them in between the wall and your device, and measure away.

Other Resources

1. Energy Efficient Products by Amazon
2. MichaelBluejay.com
3. Environmental Defence Fund

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By my count, I’ve changed about 4,173 diapers over the past 6 years.  Some of them were of the straightforward variety, changeable in 13 seconds with my eyes tied behind my back, and some were a bit more advanced, seemingly defying the laws of physics.  But in every case, the diaper ends up in the same place. The Landfill.

It is hard to imagine how much space a few thousand diapers takes up in a landfill.  Even more difficult to fathom is length of time required for your standard disposable diaper to decompose in a landfill.  It’s hard to know for sure, since they’ve only been around for a few decades, but experts estimate over half a millenium for decomposition to take place.  That’s a particularly long time, especially given the short length of time that the diaper is in use (say, a few hours) and the total biodegradability of the contents.

Often, folks choose to wash cloth diapers, which is water intensive, or use a diaper service, water intensive and fuel-consuming.  Perhaps, though, a better way to keep junior’s tushy dry and minimally impact the world is to use biodegradable diapers.

So, howsabout the gDiaper (not a Google product)?

gDiaper flushables breathable~comfortable~new easy fit. No landfill necessary, The best of cloth and disposable in one earth-friendly diaper.
Medium 13-28 lbs.

1. No elemental chlorine
2. No perfumes
3. No plastic
4. No inks of dyes
5. No latex
6. No garbage, no guilt

The breathable diaper you can flush. gDiapers consist of a washable, cotton outer pant and a plastic-free flushable refill. They are made of breathable material just like sports clothing. So, babies stay dry and are far less likely to get diaper rash. Can’t flush? it’s ok to toss flushable refills because they’re plastic-free. Garden compost the wet ones. They’ll break down in 50-150 days.
Is your baby having an environmental movement? 50 million disposable diapers enter the landfill every day. Each one takes up to 500 years to biodegrade. Not a very nice baby gift for your great, great, great, great, great grandbaby, now is it? gDiapers get flushed, so they don’t have to go in the landfill.

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So I have to think a little smaller.  Kinetic energy is a cool source for energy generation.  Look for anything that is moving already, and tap that motion.  The problem is finding something that requires a small enough amount of energy that the already moving thing isn’t harder to move.  I’m reminded of my first schwinn bicycle which had a generator-light, powered by my pedaling.  Problem was, riding with that thing on produced more resistance than riding up the steepest hill in town.

But set your sights lower than trying to generate a hundred watts, and you’ll find cool applications that aren’t so power hungry.  One of my favorites is the simple wrist watch.  For the longest time, I had thought that solar was the way to power a watch until I realized that I just don’t have enough time in the sun to power it.  It doesn’t, however, take more than a few minutes of swinging your arm in normal everyday life, to power a kinetic watch.

 A favorite is the Seiko Coutura, featuring:

1. Once set, the calendar automatically adjusts for odd and even months including February in leap year all the way to the year 2100
2. The Seiko Kinetic technology allows the watch to wind from the motion of your wrist and then store that energy for up to four years - no batteries to change.
3. If the watch senses inactivity for 24 hours, it puts itself into suspended animation to conserve energy, yet still keeps accurate time and date in its memory. The date continues to advance correctly while the watch is “asleep”. The minute you put it on, or shake it a few times, it quickly resets itself to the correct time. If the watch is fully charged, it can “sleep” for up to 4 years and still know the proper time including date and year.
4. Big Date window at the 12 o’clock is a great look and easy to read.
5. 24 hour dial at the 4 o’clock and and 12 month dial at the 6 o’clock
6. A small window at the 9 o’clock indicates number of years since last leap year
7. Time and date are set independently using the crown at the first or second clock and for added convenience, the perpetual calendar is pre-set at the factory, but can easily be set by the user if ever needed.
8. Seiko’s highly accurate quartz Kinetic Perpetual movement has a yearly loss/gain rate of only 20 seconds, one of the most accurate watch movements available
9. Water-tested to 100 meters, suitable for swimming or snorkeling
10. LumiBrite® hands and markers.
11. 3-Fold Push-button safety clasp
12. Solid Stainless Steel case and bracelet in the elegant styling of the Seiko Coutura line
13. Sapphire crystal is virtually scratch-proof

I know a watch is just a small thing, and nobody ever complains about the environmental impact of a watch battery, but, come on, baby steps on the path of goodness are still steps.  And besides, kinetic power is just plain cool. 

And for your rechargable battery gadgets, don’t forget to go solar:

Rated: from 133 votes

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You might think that dollar for dollar, an afternoon of Super Mario on your Wii beats the proverbial pants off of a rousing session of Grant Theft Auto IV on a PS3. But how does it make you feel that Sony has shown itself to be a progressive company investing in cleaner chemical usage and recycling programs, while Nintendo has increased its CO2 emissions in the last years?

Generally, the reason we ignore this component isn’t that we’re so selfish and sort-sighted as much as it is that the information is not so available to us. When we shop for that new printer, we hear about resolution, ink cost efficiency, printing speed, but what about cartridge recycling programs, and energy efficiency?

How can we find out more about the companies making these products? Which manufacturers care about more than just the bottom line? For answers to questions like this, I turn to none other than the objective Greenpeace, who provides the following guide to greenness of the 18 top electronics manufacturers.

It really shows that no one is perfect yet. There’s a lot of room for improvement. Where Sony Ericsson is strong on minimization of toxic chemicals, they are weak on recycling. Similarly, Dell is good on the chemical side but not on energy issues (but I really like the new Studio Hybrid, smaller, uses 70% less energy.)

Never would I argue that a consumer should pay too much or buy an inferior product, but here we are in world of increasingly contaminated water supplies and overflowing landfills. We need to think beyond ourselves and beyond the single transaction. Every purchase we make has the power to change the course of the future.

Know what you’re buying and spend from the heart.

Rated: from 102 votes

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