Today is April 22 and that means it’s Earth Day. Always trying to do my part to make the world a better place and to humbly respect our Universe, I replaced all of our table and desk lamp incandescent bulbs with the compact fluorescent variety. These types of lightbulbs are more expensive to purchase, however, they last much longer than regular bulbs and they use considerably less electricity. They also generate less heat. I intend on replacing all our lightbulbs with this variety as our budget permits.
I do worry that I’m starting to show my age by doing this lightbulb replacement routine, as I distinctly remember my maternal grandmother replacing all her table lamp lightbulbs with these odd mini-ring type fluorescent bulbs that flickered a little bit and made a barely perceptible high-frequency whine. She did this several years before slipping into dementia and I’m pretty certain the two weren’t related.
She was just ahead of her time when it came to saving the Universe.
I’m trying to figure out my “carbon footprint”. I think it’s too large. But, I’ve made a decision. Next December, when my car lease is up, I’m going to get a hybrid. Now, I have a six cylinder that gets on average 24 mpg. I can do better.
I also read that certain foods have a heavier carbon weight than others. For example, pineapples are costly to get here from an environmental point of view. So, they were saying, eat something else that is local. I don’t know. I love pineapples, but I’ll try.
I still use the two compact fluorescents I installed in February ’98, though they’re not as bright as they used to be. I kept track of the purchase date because I’d heard that they typically lasted five to seven years.
I too have been doing this switch. Right now there are some good sales on these bulbs.