Eco-smart Swaps

A Prevention magazine article on eco-smart swaps was recently featured on MSNBC that gave some great tips on everyday items that might be full of chemicals that are bad for you—and the Earth—and the alternatives that relatively easy to find. I found a few of them surprising!

For instance, they recommend skipping canned pasta sauce and sticking with fresh or jarred sauce. Apparently, the lining found in most cans contains a chemical called bisphenol-A (BPA) and it's especially likely to leach into acidic foods such as tomatoes or tomato sauce. You can also cut more by choosing tuna canned in water instead of oil because BPA is fat soluble, causing it to build up in the oil.

Another surprising swap: shower curtains! The article suggest you ditch your vinyl (PVC) shower curtain and choose a PVC-free plastic shower curtains, or ones made of nylon, cotton, bamboo, or hemp. A recent study by the nonprofit Center for Health, Environment & Justice found that in the 28 days after hanging, PVC shower curtains released 108 chemicals, some of which are hazardous—including toluene and phenol. And a 2002 study by EPA scientists found that vinyl shower curtains could emit phenol for more than a month! You can check out Ikea for PVC-plastic curtains but cloth or bamboo is eco-friendlier. Or go with a hemp curtain that requires no liner and is naturally mildew resistant.

For more swaps, check out the interactive article 9 eco-smart swaps that will boost your health and protect the Earth, too.

Resolution Zen

Having trouble keeping those New Year's resolutions? Still trying to come up with some? Check out the great blog Zen Habits.

Zen Habits covers anything and everything to do with simplifying your life and meeting your goals, including topics like: productivity, being organized, eliminating debt, saving, getting a flat stomach, eating healthy, simplifying, living frugal, parenting, happiness, and successfully implementing good habits.

Start out with the The Beginner's Guide to Zen Habits, a handy post with links to some of the better posts to start with. Economy got you down? How about The Cheapskate Guide: 50 Tips For Frugal Living? If you are overwhelmed just thinking about making changes, give Simple Living Simplified: 10 Things You Can Do Today to Simplify Your Life a try. Or if you just want to do nothing, well, check out The Art of Doing Nothing!

If you want 2009 to be your best year yet, I highly recommend taking a look at this motivational blog!

New Wind Farm in Texas

Looks like Texas has a new wind farm that's complete and ready to go. Renewable Energy Systems Americas Inc. has just completed at $350 million wind farm, called the Hackberry Wind Project, in Shackelford County, Texas.

The wind farm consists of 72 Siemens wind turbines, which produce 166 megawatts of clean wind energy, enough electricity to power 39,000 average Texas homes. Austin Energy, the electric utility company serving Austin, Texas, will purchase the power produced by the wind farm, as they plans to power the city with 30 percent renewable energy by 2020.

DIRECTV's Grand Slam

No, we aren't talking baseball. DIRECTV recently announced that it will expand its interactive sports programming this year with coverage of all four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, beginning with the Australian Open this weekend.

For the first time, DIRECTV will offer expanded coverage of the Australian Open, featuring its six-screens-in-one Mix Channel and other interactive features during the first eight days of the tournament from Melbourne Park. In addition, the interactive application, the Mix Channel and the five court channels will be broadcast in High Definition.

The Mix Channel will offer, on a single screen, the network channel and five court channels with live coverage tuneable to full screen via remote. Each channel will feature natural sound and commentary from tennis experts.

And in a first for any tennis tournament, all live Australian Open coverage on ESPN2 and Tennis Channel throughout the tournament will be accompanied by access to the Results and Draw features.

Australian Open coverage airs on channels 701-707 on each of the first eight days of the tournament starting at 7 p.m. (ET)

DIRECTV will also offer interactive services for ESPN and Tennis Channel's coverage of the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open tournaments this year, completing the Grand Slam.

Thinking of making the switch from cable? Find DIRECTV plans and pricing available in your area.

Verizon gives Wireless Winter Tips

Did you know that winter could wreak havoc on your wireless phone? It can, and the winter blast that is currently chilling the US is one of the reasons Verizon has come up with some cool winter wireless tips to keep you fully charged and ready to go.

Read Verizon's press release.

 

NHL Network and NHL Network HD Skate on to AT&T; U-Verse TV Channel Lineup

AT&T recently announced that it is adding NHL Network™ and NHL Network HD to it's AT&T; U-verse^SM lineup.

If you have U-verse, you can now experience NHL Network’s 24-hour, all-access hockey coverage, including live games, daily highlight shows, up-to-the-minute hockey news, and exclusive hockey programming and special events. The network is available to all U-verse TV customers who subscribe to the U400 programming package or The Sports Package. U-verse TV customers can also watch NHL Network in High Definition (HD) with an HD service subscription. NHL Network is on channel 638 in Standard Definition and channel 1638 in HD.

"NHL Network is an exciting addition to our U-verse TV channel lineup," said Chris Lauricella, assistant vice president of programming, AT&T; Operations, Inc. "Year-round hockey fans can catch in-depth coverage of their favorite sport and also enjoy live games in HD. This is just one more way we’re delivering the content our customers want."

Not a U-verse customer? Find out if AT&T; U-verse is available in your area!

Obama Asks Congress to Postpone Digital Transition

Worried about the upcoming digital transition? President-elect Barack Obama is concerned about it too. He is urging Congress to postpone the Feb. 17 switch from analog to digital television broadcasting because he feels too many Americans who rely on analog television sets won't be ready.

Obama transition team co-chair John Podesta said in a letter to key lawmakers on last week that the digital transition needs to be delayed. Apparently, the Commerce Department has run out of money for coupons to subsidize digital TV converter boxes for consumers. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration recently said that it had hit a $1.34 billion funding limit set by Congress to pay for converter box coupons.

Podesta wrote, "With coupons unavailable, support and education insufficient, and the most vulnerable Americans exposed, I urge you to consider a change to the legislatively mandated analog cutoff date."

Since the Feb. 17 deadline was originally set by Congress, it would have to pass a new law to postpone it. The request for a delay is being called a victory for Consumers Union, which had asked for a postponement.

However, the National Association of Broadcasters would not comment on whether it supports or opposes pushing back the transition date and said through a spokesperson it believes the problems with the coupon program can be fixed without forcing a delay.

For more, check out Obama urges delay in digital TV transition or visit the official DTV transition site at www.dtv.gov.

More Ways Restaurants Can Save Money on Electricity

Though not everybody has access to a contraption like the Vegawatt just yet, there are many ways for restaurants to save on electricity. Especially true in state's like Texas where deregulation makes it possible to switch electricity providers to find a better rate, a recent article struck me as good advice for restaurant owners looking for a bit of relief from high utility bills. It never hurts to call your current electricity company and see if you can switch to a Time-of-Use service rate. Not every company offers said program, but it gives customers like you with high electricity usage the ability to control your bill by shifting use to mid-peak and off-peak periods. Food for thought nonetheless, and you can always shop around for a lower fixed rate to lock in your low price and avoid price spikes if the Time-of-Use program is not available in your area.

Here is the article:
Operator’s Corner: Are you on the most economical electric rate?

Vegawatt: Making Restaurants Into Power Plants

Sometimes I wish I were clever enough to be an inventor. The extent of my building ingenuity came when I was about 7 years old, when I attempted to strap a bundle of sticks to my skateboard. The idea was when I set them on fire, my skateboard would get really fast, because the burning sticks would be like a jet. Yeah, that didn't go over so well with my mom.

However, this is definitely not the case for James Peret, inventor of the Vegawatt, a brand new invention that restaurants around the country could soon be dying to get their hands on. What is the Vegawatt, you ask? Basically, the Vegawatt acts as a generator that "burns the waste oil from restaurants' deep fryers to generate electricity and hot water".

About 80 gallons of waste oil translates into about 5 kilowatts of power, which could save restaurants around $1,000 a month in utility costs. After a few years, the machine practically pays for itself, and then starts to save restaurants money both for electricity and also in the fees for hauling off waste oil, as it is a hazardous waste and can't just be dumped into the gutter.

I have to be honest, I'm totally shocked that nobody's thought of this idea before. Sounds like a great way to help dispose of waste and then turn it back around into profit for restaurant owners. To read more about the Vegawatt, head on over to Wired.

How to Game the Green Way

I make it no secret to those I know that video gaming is a huge hobby of mine. I've been an avid gamer (read: geek) since was just a wee lad, and it continues to this day. Some people have a glass of wine or read a book after they get home from a long day. I jump over turtle shells and get high scores.

Apparently, it's not exactly the greenest of hobbies. A recent study by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) reveals that about 40 percent of homes have video game consoles, and the combined power of those video game systems could power the city of San Diego for a year. Fortunately for you other gamers out there, it turns out that Discovery has put together a list of 5 Ways to Green Your Video Game System.

• Turn off the console when not in use
• Buy a Wii (it is much more energy efficient than the XBox 360 or PS3)
• Use the Power Saver mode on your system
• Don't use it to watch movies, as DVD players typically use less energy
• Dispose of old systems properly

Hopefully those tips prove to be useful for other gamers like myself. To find out more about greening your gaming, visit Discovery.