About Me
Hi, I’m Michael Jones. I’m just a regular suburban homeowner who, like a lot of people, has been growing more and more concerned about climate change without having any clear idea of what I can actually do about it.
Sure, I recycle as best I can, compost my kitchen and yard waste and drive a reasonably fuel-efficient car. But I think we all realize now that those modest lifestyle changes are not going to be enough.
What’s worse, as a 30-year resident of the suburbs, I have always felt an additional sense of guilt that the American suburban lifestyle is worse for the environment that just about any other.
I’ve hardly used public transport since I was in my twenties. I routinely drive up to 100 miles just to attend a single meeting. Heck, I drive 30 miles round-trip just to play a game of tennis.
Clearly, I need to be doing more (or maybe less).
Then, a late-in-life career change got me focused on one area that really would make a big difference, if we could just get it accomplished at scale. That something is electricity.
After my career in advertising sales fell apart a couple of years back, I took a job selling solar, or more accurately, giving solar panels away (more on that elsewhere in the site). It’s been a good move, giving me a sense of purpose that I never felt when I was selling ads for all those years.
What’s more, thinking and learning about electricity started me on a journey that eventually led me to this article by David Roberts at Vox about the need to electrify everything. Okay, so here’s something I can do to help. I could talk to all my solar customers, not just about the Energy Transition and the benefits of renewables, but also about increasing their use of electricity overall.
Oh, and as the owner of a suburban home, I could put my money where my mouth is by electrifying my own home and track the entire project step-by-step. And that’s where the idea of this website came up.
One thing I want to make clear, though. I was not an expert when I started this project. While I knew a thing or two about solar, I knew next to nothing about home heating, induction cooking, electric vehicles, charging stations and home appliances.
In some ways, that might make me the worst person to be running a website like this. On the other hand, it makes me just like 99% of other suburban homeowners.
I’ve already learned a heck of a lot and I’ll be learning more as I go. I’ve interviewed dozens of experts and I hope to share what I learn with you.
I’ll also share a few opinions about the climate change in general – the policies, the politicians, the fossil fuel companies, the utilities, the good guys and the bad guys. In fact, any climate-related subject I feel like ranting about (Hey, it’s my blog, and I’ll rant if I want to).
So buckle up for a ride into the future. Hopefully, it’s a ride to a better future, not just for our planet but for us as well.If we get this right we’ll all be driving cooler cars, living in more comfortable homes and we won’t have to feel that tinge of guilt whenever we turn the air conditioning up.
What we’re doing right now simply isn’t sustainable. Let’s work together to build a home and a lifestyle that is.