My municipal energy project had a huge event today that I really couldn't miss: the presentation of the feasibility study that I wrote the grant to earn and then hired the people to do.  It was an important presentation.  ( It went well. )

We've been talking a lot locally about the various demands on the forest products; for building, for paper, for pellets, for fine wood products, for firewood, and possibly for municipal heat or electricity generation.

I've been thinking about my paperless office and the impact this movement must have on the forests.  I am buying drastically less ( Read more... )

I had two really unpleasant things happen to me today.

I was riding my bike downtown on some errands today.  At the main intersection in town the light changed to "pedestrian" so I got off my bike and walked across the intersection.  (I love having the choice!)  While I was doing that, someone going in a different direction than I was leaned out of ( Read more... )

I went to a "Community Leader Training" workshop a week ago specifically focused on "Community Based Sustainable Energy Business Development".  It focused a lot on forming a coalition and handling NIMBY issues.  Maybe it was just me, but it really built on the material I'd gotten out of an Andrus Family Foundation workshop on how to use the Bridges ( Read more... )

The person who I was most butting heads with on the municipal power project I spent months of my life volunteering on has made a concerted end run to get everything through while I'm consumed with taxes.  The end of the comment period for something, I just noticed, is April 14th.  Cute ( Read more... )

I've really been trying hard to process the movie Milk.

First of all, Sean Penn is astounding in this.  I get shivers from how good his acting was in that.  Oscars were invented for actors like that.  I don't even have to see any of the other performances, this was a standout performance for the ages.

But it's not an easy movie to see.  For one thing ( Read more... )

I've just noticed an odd correlation between guys who are interested in working on renewable energy projects and morris dancers.  Coincidence?  I think not.

I'm just not sure what it means.

http://www.google.com/trends?q=electric+generation%2C+combined+heat+and+power&ctab=454297504&geo=all&date=allRead more... )

I went on a field trip today to see a 50 MW biomass electrical generation plant.  Have you any idea how big the blast chamber is in the boiler to heat the 650 gallons of water that go through the steam turbines to generate 50 MW?

Big enough to get me warm on a day like today.

I am different than you.  Personally, I think that's okay, and I value that in other people (that they're different than me, that is.)  But if you have a problem with that, let's let it all hang out right now.

( The top ten reasons you wouldn't like me. )