My husband drives me insane sometimes with his green-minded antics. He turns down the water heater every night. At the first signs of Spring, he turns off the furnace and starts telling us to wear a sweater if we are cold. Our new house as air conditioning - something Neville has already warned we will never get to use. We line-dry all clothes during the summer and on any sunny days in the winter. He unplugs all small appliances when not in use and yells at us all if we leave a light on. If I walk away from my desk for more than 10 minutes without putting my laptop on sleep, I will get a stern lecture from Neville.
In other words, I think he's crazy.
But I've invested nearly 13 years with the man and put up with way crazier antics (like answering the door in his underwear) that I roll with it. Of the eye-roll variety, if you know what I mean.
This week, I attended a luncheon with PG&E and Opower to talk about energy and the technological tools they've implemented for their customers to make saving energy all that much easier.
I'm really I'm all about easy. As a full-time working mama, I do not have the time or patience for things that are not easy. I'm too busy having a power struggle with my two year old over wearing pants.
Lucky for me (and you!), Opower has teamed up with PG&E to make reducing your carbon footprint as easy as pie. Well, as easy as eating pie. It tried to make a pie once and that was not easy.
Grab your last bill and create a profile on pge.com/myenergy. If you are competitive like me, you'll either love or hate the My Usage tab. It shows you how your family's energy usage stacks up against other homes like yours.
This is where I decided our family is the Valedictorian of Energy Efficiency. I guess I have to thank Neville for getting our energy usage well below the efficient homes like ours.
Don't worry, if you aren't married to the Michael Phelps of the energy world, you can get easy to implement tips on the Ways to Save tab. All of Neville's tools of the trade are on there as well as easy things like opening your blinds in winter or closing them in summer. Or washing in cool water instead of hot. Or turning off your computer at night.
It's amazing how all these little changes can really add up in terms of savings... Savings that is both better for the planet but also better for your pocketbook.
Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of PG&E and Opower. I attended an informational luncheon and received a promotional item to thank me for my participation.