Boulder Green

Great time at Green Drinks - Boulder

So, I checked out Green Drinks last night at Redfish and had a great time. It was a perfect summer evening, so they had the garage door/windows rolled up and there were lots of people milling around inside and out. There must have been about 30 people or so and it was such a great crowd. Everyone was very friendly and approachable and I met some really interesting people.  I met a landscape designer named David Bailey, who owns Urban Oasis and has been in the business almost 9 years. Bryan Beckett, the organizer, who I didn't get a chance to talk with but owns/works for (I couldn't tell) EcoGreenOffice products.  Then I met a really cool couple from Wiser World Travel, who can help you organize your eco-sensitive travels. It sounded like a really great idea and they both seemed really excited about their work.

I went with my neighbor, who I didn't see much of because we were both flitting around meeting people. But when we did meet up she mentioned to me that someone had seem my nametag and said something like, "Sun? What does Sun do that's Eco?". I couldn't believe that. Sun only has one of the best WFH programs out there that keeps me off of 36, has a pretty aggressive on-site recyclable collection stratetgy and is continually developing new servers that run cooler and require less energy.  They have come up with a datacenter in a container idea that uses a closed-loop water cooling system making it 40% more energy efficient at cooling than a typical datacenter.

I should have tracked him down and corrected his image of Sun instead I yantered onto it to my friend and David from Urban Oasis. Very effective strategy to rail against the people who were just the messengers. But all in all great time and I'll definitely head back next month.    

Headed to Green Drinks - Boulder

Heard from my neighbor that Green Drinks have kicked off again, or perhaps I just lost the thread. So, I am headed over to the Redfish Brewery at 5:30 to meet up.

Been Busy Avoiding a Layoff and Studying for LEED (still)

It's been a busy few weeks ducking and diving to avoid a layoff at my company. Not really, I guess, but it sounds better than saying I was nervously sitting in a pool of my own anxiety-sweat waiting for a phone call to inform me whether I had a job or not. But I did make it and still feel pretty good about the place, so there we are. Coupled with the low-grade throb of tension, I am still studying for LEED and getting pretty tired of it. The more I read, the less comfortable I feel. Of course, not reading anymore would ensure my failure but would make me feel more confident about my ignorance. Difficult balancing act.

As part of my effort to avoid studying, I have been researching study guides. This act alone makes me feel like I am hard at work learning the finer points of ASHRAE.

• IntheLeed is a great site and the guy just passed so you know his study materials are good.
• LEED Test preps - this site has automated flash cards. I was unable to answer most but was thrilled by the ease with which I was able to do it. 
• And some other Test-Taking Resources, which will make you feel prepared simply by printing them out

I am signing up for the test in August and come bank failures, mortgages crisis and war, I'll be there. (Modern and tasteless twist on an old cliche).

Initial feedback on our house energy audit

The guy from LightlyTreading emailed our energy audit report yesterday. I haven't read the entire report, just glanced through a few things. I kinda got hung up on the "Your house is leaky"... feedback and didn't get much further. I'll print it out later this weekend and read through the whole thing. In the meantime, I'll sit in my leaky house and drink a glass of wine.

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