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No More Traditional Light Bulbs

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When last month’s energy bill passed, there was a provision that called for traditional light bulbs to be phased out over the next 4 to 12 years so that new, compact fluorescent light bulbs can take over the market. As reported in USA Today:

Under the measure, all light bulbs must use 25% to 30% less energy than today’s products by 2012 to 2014. The phase-in will start with 100-watt bulbs in January 2012 and end with 40-watt bulbs in January 2014. By 2020, bulbs must be 70% more efficient.

Compact fluorescent bulbs already meet the 70% efficiency standard. A compact fluorescent costs about $2, vs. about 50 cents for an incandescent.

While an incandescent lasts about seven months, a fluorescent burns six times longer. It also saves about $5 a year in electricity costs, paying for itself in as little as four months, says Steve Nadel, head of the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE).

This looks like a win-win situation for everyone involved. We have a compact fluorescent bulb over our stove in the apartment and it’s been there for a few years. My Mother recently switched over to mostly compact bulbs and they’re working fine at the house and saving a few bucks each month in electricity. It looks like government may have figured something out the right way for once!

Book Review: The Green Book

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While the intent of this book is to help everyday people making small, “green” changes in their everyday lives, the book is written from the stance of a person who does not have an everyday life. The Green Book by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas Kostigen has some great advice for those of you looking to go green. Please understand that the message of the book is a good one even though I was turned off by the tone of the book!

For example, each chapter ends with a little quote from a celebrity about how they have gone green in one respect or another. Well, hearing about how Will Ferrell drives his electric car to the dump to do recycling doesn’t help me. And speaking of cars, they suggest flipping to a hybrid or using flex fuel if possible. Well, that’s not possible for so many younger Americans because we just can’t afford to buy a new car!

I do like the advice that they give with respect to the “paper or plastic” question. They say to choose paper since it’s easier to recycle paper bags and you can reuse them a few times before you recycle them. A few weeks ago I purchased two canvas bags (there’s a huge “PathMark” on the side of them) and I like them even better than paper or plastic. You can fit more groceries in these bags and you can fit heavier items, too. Plus you get a whopping 2 cents off of your final bill for each bag you reuse! Ha! Making millions, baby!

Right before they get into their advanced advice for each topic, they give three “Simple Steps” to living a greener, more sustainable lifestyle. These are often simple enough to follow. For example, in the Health and Beauty section they suggest buying a reusable water bottle and filling it with filtered water from home for your trips to the gym. This is great advice and can, in the long run, save you some money. Plus, you cut down on the use and production of plastic water bottles. I went out and bought a Nalgene 32 ounce refillable bottle the other day (though, admittedly, not because I read this book – a story in the New York Times got me to thinking about buying one).

They also suggest some other great ideas that I’ve been engaged in since before I read the book Some examples are getting electronic statements from your bank or brokerage account instead of paper ones; making online payments instead of using paper checks; using compact fluorescent light bulbs instead of traditional ones (this seems to be catching on around the nation); and using natural light instead of electronic light when possible. On that last point, I use natural light in the office and in my apartment as much as possible not just for green reasons, but because it’s less stressful on my eyes and the color of the light is better and more “real” than light bulb light.

Read that last sentence again and see if it makes sense. That’s a bit confusing, huh?

For those of you who have the resources and the desire to live a more sustainable, green lifestyle, I would suggest reading The Green Book. For those of you who have more pressing issues (soaring consumer debt, a mortgage gone bad, family issues, etc) you may want to put off buying this book until you’re in a better position.

Try Out The Tanka Bar!

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While I was at the Opportunity Finance Network’s conference last month, I picked up a free sample of the Tanka Bite. As their website states, “The 70-calorie Tanka Bar delivers a slow, powerful protein punch by mixing two primary ingredients: low-fat, high-energy American buffalo meat and tasty cranberries.” This little piece of beef jerky was delicious!

I’m looking into the possibility of buying a 96-case of these little bites and keeping them as a part of my daily lunch at the office. These things are so good that I’m willing to spend the $100 or so it will cost to purchase them (it’s about $1 per bite, which is a reasonable price).

There is an added positive to this product. It is made by a Native American tribe out in the Midwest. This is what you would call a socially responsible purchase since the profits are used to benefit the tribe (the Lakota tribe). It’s a great bar, check it – you’ll love it!

And when you’re done chomping on the Tanka Bar, check out New Jersey Carpet Cleaning for the best carpet cleaning in the Garden State!

New Year’s Resolutions for 2008

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Happy New Year! First things first… It’s 2008 – can you believe it? It’s funny, I distinctly remember being a little kid and watching the ball drop to ring in 1986. But that was over 20 years ago in my family’s Manhattan apartment! Now on to the annual self-consuming resolutions!

Faith
For a variety of reasons, I did not get to attend Church as often as I would have liked to last year. I hope to have almost perfect attendance this year, but that’s not the crux of this resolution. I do not believe that it is adequate enough just to attend Church and be a warm body in a seat; in the next year I’d like to continue becoming involved in the Catholic Church through a few different avenues.

First, I purchased the Catechism of the Catholic Church over 2 years ago, but I have not read it yet. In the coming year I want to read the Catechism. Second, I have not attended confession in over a decade. In the coming year I want to attend confession. And finally, my local Church in West Long Branch has a weekly listing of other items that parishioners can give money to instead of the weekly tithe. These are all items related to the school that is a part of the Church (for example, you can buy books for a student or projection screens for classroom). In the coming year I want to purchase some items for the school through this program.

Finances
Student Loans
I’ve decided to break out my financial resolutions into a few different subcategories this year. The first of these are my omnipresent student loans. Last year I successfully paid down more than $8,000 in student loan debt. Given some of my other financial resolutions that are listed below, I don’t know if it would be wise to put a dollar figure on how much I’d like to pay down my student loans in 2008 outside of the regular payments. That said, I am certainly going to try to pay down these loans as much as possible – if possible.

Savings & Retirement
In the coming year, I’ll be fully engaged in my company’s 401k and getting the maximum possible match. That’s a first for me and I’m looking forward to seeing how it works out. At the personal level, I’ve been working towards a certain dollar amount to have stashed away in my ING Savings Account by the end of 2008 and I’ll keep that dollar amount private. I am, however, going to make every effort to reach this dollar amount and it looks as though I might be able to get there sometime next fall (I have long-term financial projections!).

Usable Web Solutions, LLC
Last year I wanted to increase my website company‘s revenue by 50%. This year, I’m going to focus on a different goal. I’ve suspended taking on new accounts until all of my existing accounts are brought current (both financially and fully designed). Once that is accomplished, I’d like to gain 2 new accounts in the next year while maintaining or renewing all of my existing accounts.

I also have a few personal website projects that I’ve kept on the shelf for a variety of reasons. I’d like to get these projects moving and completed by the end of this year.

Health
This is the resolution that most people make on January 1st and then go and break on January 2nd! Well, I’m not going to lay out a specific weight that I want to be at by the end of the year and I’m not going to lay out a number that I want to be bench pressing, squatting, or curling by 2009. All I want is to be in better shape by the end of 2008. I joined a gym last week and I’ve laid out what appears to be a decent training schedule so I’m on the right track. We’ll see how it goes.

Also, I am overdue for many check-ups. In the coming year I want to get a physical, have my eyes examined, and take a trip to the dentist. Some of this will require looking to see which doctors I am currently assigned to with my health care provider, but I’ll take care of that stuff.

Personal Advancement
Actually, I find this to be the hardest area to create quantifiable goals. Isn’t achieving all of the above some form of personal advancement? How does one quantify an advancement in their personal life? Let’s give it a try… In the coming year I want to read the stack of books that I’ve accumulated in my bedroom. Sometimes you get a book and you just don’t have a minute to read the damn thing, you know?!

I would also like to teach college courses again in the coming year. I admit that this is a “gimme” goal because I know I’ve already been scheduled to teach again in the fall. But hey, why not give myself a freebie?

One of the things that I started doing in the last year is de-cluttering my living area. This is actually dually rewarding because most of the stuff that I no longer use I just donate to charity. In the coming year I want to continue de-cluttering my “stuff” which may include purchasing an outdoor storage unit and replacing one of the existing storage units in my Family’s backyard up in North Jersey. Some of our existing stock is falling down and dangerous, so there may be more than one “good” here.

Oh, I’ve also began pushing a more “sustainable” lifestyle in the last year. What does that mean? It’s a manageable mix of recycling more, using earth-friendly materials, and not creating excess waste if it can be avoided. For example, I purchased two canvas reusable grocery bags to use at when I go grocery shopping. Now I’m not sure if there is a quantifiable way to judge if I’ve made a more “sustainable” lifestyle once the coming 12 months are over, but I’ll certainly be working towards that goal.

Professional Development
I’m actually looking for some good opportunities to learn more about my job and my industry. I attended the Opportunity Finance Network conference in Miami, Florida a few weeks ago and I was stimulated to learn more about many of the other areas of community development finance that I’ve not yet been exposed to at my job. In the coming year I want to learn more about some of these areas (native lending, rural lending) and continue to do the best that I can at my job.

So that’s my full set of public New Year’s Resolutions. We can meet back here in 12 months and see how I made out!

Introducing a New Website for Usable Web Solutions, LLC

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Over the course of the last few weeks, I’ve been able to reach agreements with a few new websites to be hosted, designed, and maintained by Usable Web Solutions, LLC. I’d like to introduce one of them now, even though there are still a few kinks to be worked out in the overall code.

  • BOLTWIC.com – This is a website focused on helping people lead better lives. I like this website for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the basic design and the ability to form (and grow) an online community.

Feel free to take a look around and enjoy what has the potential to be a great website!