If there’s anything we’ve learned in recent months, it is that we should be energy smart whenever possible. There is a real payoff for  concerving energy as we drive and in our homes.  Even though oil prices have come down to half of their peak in mid-2008, we know that they could go up again in a hurry.

My vehicle is a large Yukon, which is great for hauling things.  Unfortunately it does not get great gas mileage so I have trimmed the number of trips I make to the office as much as I can. The fuel budget has been helped by that strategy.  If it weren’t for the load-carrying capacity I would look for a more fuel-efficient, smaller automobile.

We have tried to cut back on energy usage at home by installing extra insulation and double-pane windows.  The news stories do have some influence on our way of living, hopefully making us think about ways we can cut back with all the energy talk.

Talk about a waste of energy—the fuel spent on airplanes, helicopters and trucks in fighting wildfires in California is insane.  Also, think about all the gasoline used by folks vacating their threatened homes.  I found some discussion about wildfire prevention and other fire safety issues at the Minutemanfire site.  Even when fire buffers had been created, homes with tile roofs have been destroyed in fires, surprisingly.

Rebuilding a fire-damaged home likewise utilizes energy that would otherwise be saved, a further link between fires and energy usage.  We may not think about it much, but in fact there is a connection between fire prevention and conserving energy.

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