Casey is a longtime friend. One day a few months ago he mentioned in a call he was choosing to lower his carbon footprint to a few tons of CO2 per year. I hadn’t been trying to lead or persuade him, so I started asking him why, what prompted him, was it hard in Los Angeles where people drive everywhere and some people say they need air conditioning, and so[…] Keep reading →

These pictures are from volunteering delivering surplus food to the community center a couple months ago. I don’t usually take pictures so when I do I sometimes post them here. I like alleviating suffering. I don’t like watching TV or scrolling social media so I volunteer instead. I don’t understand how people find so much time for social media when we can volunteer.

Since people are asking me since the Daily Show segment See the Daily Show’s segment on me: “Is it Possible to Live “Off the Grid” in Manhattan?” how I live, I’m posting some of what I do. Keep in mind the number one most important start is a mindset shift, then continual improvement. When you have an attitude that you can do it, you figure the technology out. It took[…] Keep reading →

Yesterday hit close to freezing. It was cold and windy, but close to the solstice, I get what sunlight I can. For the first time I set up both panels charging both batteries and got close to filling each. I’m not good at selfies anytime. When I had to take my gloves off for the touchscreen to work and the wind, sorry, this is the best I could do: How[…] Keep reading →

Here’s just the segment with me: and the whole episode (I appear about 11:10). I liked it more than the New Yorker piece on me, though that’s not saying much. I laughed out loud several times, partly since I remember the recording. For example, after she put the Skittles in the kombucha, we saw their dye run off and they turned an unnatural ghostly white. I wanted to share about[…] Keep reading →

The Daily Show aired their segment on my disconnecting from the electric grid in Manhattan! I just learned, so haven’t seen it myself yet so can’t comment on it. I hope it was funny, informative, and inspiring. EDIT: I posted the video and some comments on it: See the Daily Show’s segment on me: “Is it Possible to Live “Off the Grid” in Manhattan?”. The point isn’t my personal impact.[…] Keep reading →

On the roof today charging my solar kit, I saw my first flurries of the season. I’m in month 18 disconnected from the electric grid, as I reported in TIME and Ars Technica. Wow, I just noticed the TIME piece appeared over a year ago. The temperature dropped to the mid-30s F (3 C) and it was windy. I’d prefer to keep indoors, but the battery was low and this[…] Keep reading →