Just Trying To Do My Part

It was a busy weekend. I tried to be a good mom and wife, to put the finishing touches on my family room, and of course to do my part to save “Mother Earth.” I went out on Saturday to Loews and bought 24 compact flourescent light bulbs. Yes, 24. That’s almost $200 for light bulbs.

I remember watching Oprah a few months ago and listening to Leanardo Dicaprio talk about Global Warming. The statistic quoted on Oprah was that ”if every American household replaced 5 of their current light bulbs with 5 compact fluorescent light bulbs, it would save as much energy as if we took 8 million cars off the roads.” That hit me like a ton of bricks. I feel guilty that I drive the biggest SUV out there (Diesel Ford Excursion). But I also feel like I don’t have any other options when it comes to cars. So what was I going to do?

There are only a few things a mom like me can do to help. I can’t afford to buy a Hybrid vehicle (they do not make one for a family of eight). So the one thing I could do is change some of my light bulbs. They recommended Compact Fluorescent Bulbs. I changed the ones in rooms that we are in the most. The kitchen, the playroom, and the hubby’s office were the first three on the list. It is amazing how many darn lights are in my house!. I could go by another two dozen, and the whole house could be finished. I decided I would buy a few each time I had to go into a Loews or Home Depot Store. The hit on my wallet won’t seem so bad. I felt like a good human being when I was driving home. I felt like I was doing my part to stop Global Warming.

So this is what I did. This is what you can do. You have the information. What are you going to do about it?

Muthahood Ain’t For Sissies | Motherhood Ain’t For Sissies

Comments

[John Turner]

Hi Rocky--

You do indeed rock. I'd always heard about the compact fluorescent deals & I never really messed with them until all the bulbs in our fancy new bookshop (www.mcnallyrobinsonnyc.com) started blowing at an alarming rate.

It took some time to convince my boss to throw down the cash for it, but all is well now that I've finally replaced all 200-something bulbs. The electric bill has gone down, I'm not replacing bulbs every 20 minutes & it's cooler in the store (we had a serious easy-bake oven effect going on.) I'm so glad that it's also good for the planet.

As a book guy, I'd recommend everyone read "The Weather Makers" by Tim Flannery. It's the best global warming-conscious book going.

--JohnT

[Rocky]

Wanted you all to know my electric bill went down $30 since I put in these bulbs. I added five more. I only need about a dozen more, and my house will be finished!

[John Turner]

1 year after the great bulb changeover & the bookshop electric bill is around $2000 cheaper per month compared to last year, even after we switched to the more expensive "green energy" option. Most of the original compact fluorescent bulbs are still going strong! I think I've changed 4-5 dead ones (out of hundreds.)