The Dog that Rescued Me & a 101 on Residential Solar

We had WAY too much fun in the studio last week. Eco Ed Schwartz joined us to be our resident Green Dude, and even though Green Diva Jamie and silent Jessie were not in the studio, we managed to have so much fun that we forgot to record the first 20 minutes of the show! ahhhhhhhh . . . If you didn’t listen live, you missed talking about Green Diva Mizar’s appearance on the Dr. Oz show, which will air on February 21, 2013. You also missed an excellent (as always) GD Correspondent report from Sandy Holtzman on Bixby Bars as some seriously sustainable and healthy chocolate for Valentine’s Day – and every day!.

We not only celebrated Valentine’s Day, but the addition of a new furry green diva, Gracie Mae. GD Meg rescued Gracie Mae, who came up from Texas to Eleventh Hour Rescue here in NJ. Gracie Mae is a gorgeous 5-year old dog that is ALL love, wags and licks and only had one sneezing fit during the broadcast, which you can hear in the DIY Valentine’s Day segment! She brought the spirit of pure love to the studio this week in honor of Valentine’s Day!

Green Dude Segment: Eco Ed Schwartz – Residential Solar Energy 101

This is such a huge topic. So, we’ll be doing a series of Green Dude segments with Eco Ed on solar energy. Here are the highlights from this week’s 101-level overview:

Solar used primarily for two things 1. generate electricity, or 2. heat water
Not every home is a great candidate for solar – before you even consider solar, make sure to tighten up your home and make everything more energy efficient
Questions to ask when considering solar energy for your home:

Do you have good southern exposure? It is important to have a professional come out and track the sun – particularly in the winter around mid-Decmeber when the sun is not as high in the sky – to make sure you have enough quality sun time.
What condition is your roof in? Once you have solar panels installed, if you need to upgrade roof, the panels could be destroyed, so make sure your roof is relatively new and in good condition or you will have to do a new roof with your solar panels!
Do you have unobstructed sunlight (trees, buildings, etc.)? BTW, Eco Ed does not recommend cutting down trees to make way for solar panels.

Several ways to obtain solar for your home – Leasing v. Purchasing
Financial incentives often make solar energy a good investment – Federal tax credit, State rebates, Solar RECs (Renewable Energy Certificates)
Find out about tax incentives in any state @ DesireUSA.org

Listen to this Green Dude segment on solar energy 101 for more details!

Find out more about solar and Eco Ed @ AskEcoEd.com

Green Diva Correspondent: Sandy Holtzman

Bixby Bar

We are sorry that we didn’t get to record this fun segment. Sandy is always great and this week was no exception. She talked about a great, super sustainable and healthy chocolate bar called the Bixby Bar, which made us all a little hungry! Aside from being organic, fair trade and many other cool things, these are NON-GMO! We talked last week about finding non-GMO Valentine’s Day treats last week. Here you go! And there are some exotic and yummy flavors to consider too.

Green Diva DIY Segment: Valentine’s Day Meltdown

We did get this whacky bit of broadcast fun recorded . . . we tried to talk about GD Meg’s recent Valentine’s Day post – 9 Ways to Have a Healthy, Green, Low-Stress Valentine’s Day (Whether you are in a relationship or NOT!), with some added ideas from Eco Ed and GD Mizar, between giggling and silliness!

Listen to this fun Green Diva DIY Valentine’s Day segment!

Feature Interview: John Voelcker, Sr. EditorGreenCarReports.com

John came on just after the Valentine’s Day meltdown and was worried about following that segment . . . not to worry! We talked about the latest and greatest in clean diesel cars being introduced by companies like Chevrolet, Jeep and Volkswagen. Somehow he came up with the best quote of the show, which was when he quoted Barbie (yes, the skinny blonde doll) saying, “math is haaaaard.” You’ll have to listen to the podcast to hear it in context and have a good laugh. John also answered a few questions for GD Meg about her beloved Ford C-Max Energi that she managed to keep for an extra few days. She had concerns about charging and he had some really interesting answers.

Listen to this week’s feature interview with John Voelcker, favored Green Car Dude

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Tags: animal rescue, clean diesel, dog rescue, eleventh hour rescue, ford c-max, Ford C-Max Energi, green cars, residential solar, solar energy

About the Author

The Green Divas The Green Divas share low-stress ways to live a deeper shade of green through a weekly radio show, podcasts, videos and blog posts. Working with talented partners and credible sources like myEARTH360 the Green Divas produce content on a variety of topics relating to a healthy green lifestyle. Visit The Green Divas website to learn more, and check out The Green Divas on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter too!