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A Couple Of Thoughts About Solstice

Yesterday the sun reached its northernmost point in the sky – marking the summer solstice here in the Northern Hemisphere. According to Sky and Telescope, we’ve traveled 292 million miles from winter to summer.

Our planet’s axis is now tilted toward the sun, our life-sustaining energy source. Gardens are blooming, and local markets are thriving. We’re basking in hours and hours of daylight and extended twilight. And the solar power business is booming.

I have a good mate who’s been installing photovoltaic panels since 2000, when it was a grassroots movement. Now he finds himself competing with multinational corporations. He’s also seen the evolution of the image of the solar panel. Early customers wanted to hide those ugly units. Now they’ve become a sexy, techie status symbol.

Over the years, this early adopter of solar technology has lost residential customers when he tells them that there are more cost-effective and efficient methods that they can apply, at least initially, to reduce energy consumption -- things like insulation, replacing doors and windows, switching to LED lighting, and efficient appliances for heat, air conditioning, and refrigeration. How often we ignore the little things that really aren’t little at all.

The word "solstice" comes from Latin and means "standing still” – which the sun appears to do as it reverses seasonal directions. Maybe we should try that ourselves at the advent of summer.

Kick back in the lawn chair, let the sunshine in, and look for the simple solutions that can get hidden by the grandiose.

I’m Paula Garrett, and that’s my perspective.

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