I built a new lightbox out of pvc and fabric replacing the old primitive cardboard box with holes cut out of it and covered with tissue paper. This one breaks down easily and the colors easily changed. I’m quite happy with it.

The first project using it was Milton, our miniature longhaired dachshund.  Being a black-haired dog, Milton has always been difficult to photograph since light levels are always set taking the ever-lighter background into account. The solution is to set him against a dark background with good side lighting. I really should have ironed the backdrop, but here are photos taken in the lightbox, with much better results.

Happy Holidays

Zack passed this morning.

His absence leaves a gaping hole in our lives. His life filled our hearts with his love.

When we were pondering whether to install solar at our home, I wasn’t able to find before and after comparisons using actual numbers. Our first solar PGE bill came today, so here are the comparisons I’d been curious about.

We used to be on the usual tiered rate schedule with rates increasing as usage goes up. When the solar went in we opted for net-metering: the most expensive energy is during hours when solar production is likely to be at its peak. When you produce more than you use, the excess is credited against your bill.

kWh = kilowatt hour. That means if you use a 1000-watt light bulb for one hour, you have used 1kWh.

Our electricity usage was pretty much like last year’s, although we did try to do the laundry and use the dishwasher during the cheapest off-peak ours, which are between 9pm and 10am. The savings are pretty striking.

Using a more conservative monthly savings rate, I see the system paying for itself in 8 years, give or take a year. (If we had financed the entire system cost at 6%, the break-even point gets bumped out to 10-11 years.)

If you’d like to take a peek at our current solar production in real time as well as over time, head on over here:

We finally had a good chunk of time to finish most of the work on the Airstream and now to be able to get on with the rest of our summer. To catch you up, Tom had been looking for an Airstream for years to fix up. He found this 1962 Globe Trotter in March. The plan is to leave it in the yard (forever) as a pool decoration/cabana/guest house. Here’s how things have turned out so far:

Tom has the extrerior pretty shiny now and the shelter should get it through rainy weather.

These are the interior views. Amazingly, it does have a stove, oven, refrigerator, commode, sinks and a shower (none of which we have hooked up yet.)

Tom still has to decide what to do about the floor and walls so textiles were an important part of changing the interior for now. Clockwise from the upper left: “beach boys”, “las senoritas”, “the outdoorsey type”, and the bench fabrics which miraculously made the others talk with each other. By the way both benches pull out to 2-person sleepers.

It’s been quite a trip without actually going anywhere. Here’s what things looked like a few months ago:

And now:

It’s been a while since we updated the progress on the Airstream… After working on cleaning up the exterior, Tom decided he’d rather not have to do it again after every rainy season. So up goes a shelter. It’s l-a-r-g-e. Today’s challenge was to raise a 20 foot piece of 2×12 engineered lumber 10 feet in the air, get it level, and then bolt it to the posts which are sunk 3 feet into the ground. After considering lots of approaches, the easiest, requiring the least muscle power, was the good old ratcheting strap.

After thinking getting this one piece of wood attached would take the better part of the day, 30 minutes and it was time to move on to other things..

Meanwhile, we got some fabric shopping done for the curtains and the pull-out sleeper sofas. I think it’s going to look nice when it’s all done.

From the day we signed the contract, installation took about 8-1/2 weeks. This system is estimated to be able to cover 65% our electricity bill, with a 100% payback happening sometime in 2016.

The environmental benefit is equivalent to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 7,050 pounds (3.5 tons) per year, or planting 1.2 acres of trees. When I did my own calculation using DOT numbers adjusted for our two hybrid vehicles, it’s the equivalent of NOT driving 19,012 miles per year. That neatly works out to be about how much we drive yearly.

A couple of more ways to look at this financially: the rate of return on over a 15-year period is 11.8%. Comparing this to current and foreseeable investment yields was a major positive. Also, there are rebates and tax incentives, the most impressive being the federal 30% tax credit. A tax credit comes off your total tax bill, not your adjusted income. So, assuming you’re in a 25% tax bracket, a $1000 tax credit is the rough equivalent of a $4000 tax deduction.

Whenever we have major work done, three bids is a must. In our case, only one company got up on the roof to take actually measurements. Putting the panels on the garage is as good as on the roof of the house, since passive solar water heating is already there. (The garage has panels on the eastern side as well.)

The weather was nice enough this week that Tom took a break from the buffing and polishing to relax. That airstream is getting pretty shiny…

Tom’s been making speedy progress getting Arthur Airstream all shiny again.

On Sunday, we celebrated Zack’s 12th or 13th birthday, the date he joined us 10 years ago. The dog-to-people year conversion puts him in his 60s.  Because he came to us as a rescue, we’re not sure exactly how old he is. We’re his fourth family…he terrorized two other rescue homes before ours. Early in the relationship he would bolt out the door, fence, car or whatever at the drop of a hat. Over time, he’s mellowed out, claiming us as his pack. He’s been blind for two years now and almost left us for good last fall but for emergency surgery (he has a malignant cancer). Outlasting his prognosis by months, he’s as rambunctious as always, ever vigilant against the threats of garbage truck and pool pump (he barks at those with great enthusiasm).

Sometimes the biggest gift is just someone else’s presence. Amazing what you can learn from dogs.