Bloggle

Everybody loves a parade, and in Vermont, Independence Day is so loved that towns coordinate their event schedules so you can take in more than one. Waterbury’s parade was Saturday, June 30th, and, while herself and I arrived in plenty of time for the official start of the parade, that was *far* too late to jockey for a great viewing spot as folks had been camping up and down Main Street for hours. I tell ya… they love a parade. ;)

When — with a bang! — the 3rd Regiment Vermont Volunteer Infantry arrived on the scene, I dove in front of the crowds to catch some candid shots between volleys.

Vermont Civil War Hemlocks — click photo above to view the series.

Through the filter of the lens — with the parade crowds out of view, and the smell of black powder still hanging in the air — this group of reenactors make quite the striking portrait… and a poignant reminder that we’ve got still more men (and women) in harm’s way. Let’s get ‘em home safe.

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I know, I know… a crawfish boil isn’t a native Vermont tradition. And having mudbugs flown in live from Louisiana isn’t exactly in the spirit of that whole eatin’ locally thing. But sometimes ya just gotta do what ya gotta do.

Whooee. A good time, y’all. I guarontee.

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New Castle lies on the seacoast of New Hampshire, a three hour drive from my home in Vermont. Along the way the road weaves through Vermont’s Green Mountains and New Hampshire’s Boreal forest, and most every turn reveals another postcard-perfect view of New England landscape.

That said, I missed fully half the scenery, on account of the angry gnome sitting on my shoulder, kicking me in the head. The wretched little creature called itself Disremembrance, and — just before the kicking began — it whispered in my ear that I’d left the power adapter for my computer on my desktop at home. Ouch. Ouch! OUCH!

And so began the calculus of memory — or lack thereof. Turn back, or keep going? Would my MacBook make it through a 75 minute multi-media presentation at full power, driving two displays? Could I borrow or buy a replacement? For that matter, could I find a shop that stocked the elusive MagSafe power adapter in New Castle? In Portsmouth? Could I deal with not being able to make any last-minute changes to my presentation ’cause I don’t want to burn through my batteries? Crap, how much sleep would I lose over this?

I kept driving. In the end, the friendly hotel staff helped me find a replacement power supply within a mile or two of the hotel, the presentation was wicked fun and I’ve been invited to do it again… three times now. (I think that’s a good sign!)

And that pissant little gnome? He took a header off a drawbridge on the sea coast. Didn’t even make a splash.

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I’m on the road — destination New Castle, New Hampshire — where I’ll be presenting a usability session at the annual VT/NH DMG conference.

This is a new presentation for me; a new platform (Keynote), new tools (MacBook) and lots and lots of capabilities I could have only ever wished for, before. I’m seriously stoked about what I can do on this platform. This is gonna be fun.

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While I’ve long been ecologically-minded, I’m the first to admit that such mindfulness hasn’t always translated into action. I recycle… largely ’cause my community makes it so darn easy. I choose Energy Star rated appliances. I’m increasingly a localvore — most of the food I buy and eat is grown in my own neighborhood… in season, anyway. (I imagine I could do better there.)

I’d like to think that, if there’s a continuum between the conscientious and the conspicuous consumer, I lean more toward the former than the latter. But this week, just leeward of Earth Day, I want to do more. I’m going to start with the simple stuff. And what could be simpler than changing a light-bulb?

Six months ago I replaced the bulbs in the garage and the basement — two places where somebody often forgets to turn off the lights — with compact fluorescent equivalents. They’ve been absolutely problem-free, and at this point they’ve paid for themselves in energy savings. What’s more, they’re likely to last 3 to 5 times as long as incandescent bulbs.

If every American home replaced just one light bulb with an ENERGY STAR rated bulb, we would save enough energy to light more than 2.5 million homes for a year and prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions of nearly 800,000 cars.

It’s all well and good to replace utility bulbs… but what about the spaces where we live? I’m picky about lighting. Most all of my overhead lamps are on dimmers, and my table-lamps are 3-ways so I can control my lighting pretty precisely. But there’s new compact fluorescents on the market that are dimmable, and 3-way switchable, and I guess I have no more excuses. So this week I’m replacing about 1200 watts of incandescent bulbs with about 150 watts of compact fluorescents.

The cost? About $85, which will pay for itself in energy savings in a year’s time. But over the life of these light bulbs I’ll also be saving:

• 5,500 kilowatt-hours of power generation
• 5,000 pounds of coal to generate that power, and
• 13,000 pounds of carbon dioxide that would have been released into the atmosphere.

Wow… talk about a light bulb moment.

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But not so embarrassing that I won’t post it…

The Vermont/New Hampshire Direct Marketing Group has made me a poster boy of sorts for their (19th Annual!) conference at the lovely Wentworth by the Sea Hotel and Spa in New Castle, New Hampshire.

I understand the resort is beautiful. And they have lovely spa packages. Maybe you should book now…

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