Clean Solar Panels

I sprayed down my solar panels on Sunday morning. My production that day was over 11% higher than previous days. A light layer of dust on the panels seems to be OK, but anything more does definitely affect production.

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Sungevity Solar Panel Installation - Day 1

Brian and Andrew from Kuykendall Solar arrived at my house before eight this morning to begin the installation. The panels and mounting hardware were supposed to arrive today as well. The shipment ended up being delayed until tomorrow, but Brian and Andrew had enough items from previous installations that they were able to get started with cutting tiles and installing flashing on the roof. It was a hot day today, but they persevered until around four in the afternoon.

The shipment is supposed to arrive tomorrow afternoon, so Andrew will get started running conduit in my attic tomorrow morning. From there, he will move into the garage to get ready for the inverter installation. Brian said that the goal is to have my solar system installed by this Friday.

I don't know what caused the delay in materials being delivered, but Brian and Andrew are going to have to work hard to get my system installed in about three days. Here is what my roof looks like this evening.

Get A Free Sungevity Solar iQuote now! It only takes a few minutes.

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Solar Permit Approved

I received an email yesterday from my Sungevity project manager Ian that my permit has been approved and the installation could start as early as Monday. Today he confirmed that the installation will start on Monday, exactly three weeks from the time the permit was submitted to my city. That is fast, considering Sungevity estimated that it would take 4-6 weeks for approval.

I am really getting excited now!

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Plans Submitted for Permits

I was travelling April 13-19. It was just a business trip to Texas, North Carolina and Georgia.

I received an email from my Sungevity Project Manager, Ian, while on April 16. He let me know that the design review of my project was complete and that he would contact me to review the project in the next few days. I let him know I was travelling and asked him to call me the following week.

We finally spoke on April 26. Ian was responsible for most of the delay, but I was not even thinking about it or I would have called or sent him and email. We reviewed the plans and every piece of the system, which took maybe ten minutes at the most. My next communication from Ian was that my plans were complete and ready to be submitted for permits. I received that email on April 27. He let me know that in my town, permits can take four to five weeks. My installer, Kuykendall Solar, was supposed to submit my plans on April 30.

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California Solar Initiative, Confirmed Reservation Notice

I received an email from the California Solar Initiative on April 24 confirming my reservation for rebates. Here is the text of the letter:

Congratulations! This letter confirms that a Reservation has been approved for your proposed Photovoltaic (PV) project under the California Solar Initiative Program.

Details regarding your reservation are listed below:
Application Number: SCE-CSI-#####
Application Type: Residential
Host Customer: My Name
Installation Address:My Address
CEC – AC Rating: 5.471
Design Factor: 99.538%
CSI System Size: 5.446
EPBB/PBI Incentive Rate $350.00 per kW
Reserved Incentive Amount: $1,906.00
Reservation Expiration Date: 4/24/2013

The reserved incentive amount is determined by the proposed system listed in the Reservation Request documentation. Please note that the actual incentive payment may differ from the amount stated in this letter if the installed system changes.

Please complete the installation and submit the Incentive Claim package by 4/24/2013. Permission to Operate must be issued before the Incentive claim is submitted. To ensure timely processing of the Interconnection Application, please submit the NEM application, single line diagram and signed Interconnection Agreement to customer.generation@sce.com immediately after receiving this Reservation Confirmation. With this approach, the PTO should be issued within 2 to 3 weeks of receiving the final inspection card. The application will be CANCELLED if PTO has not been issued and the Incentive Claim package has not been submitted by 4/24/2013. For more information regarding the Interconnection Application process, please visit www.sce.com/nem.

Reservation Expiration Date extensions may be available depending on cause of delay at Southern California Edison's discretion. Please refer to the current California Solar Initiative Handbook for specific requirements and exemptions.

The Incentive Claim Form can now be completed online at: https://sce.powerclerk.com.

Please note the CPUC ordered California Solar Initiative Phase One Modifications effective July 14, 2011. One of these modifications requires all applications over 10 kW to take Performance Monitoring and Reporting Services (PMRS) and report 15-minute interval kWH production data to the Program Administrators. Please refer to Section 5.5.1 of the current California Solar Initiative Handbook for specific requirements and exemptions.

The CSI handbook has been finalized by the California Public Utilities Commission but may be subject to future changes. Obtain the latest version at: http://www.gosolarcalifornia.ca.gov/documents/

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Sungevity Welcome

I requested my free iQuote on Wednesday, March 31. A Sungevity solar associate, David, sent me an email that same afternoon. I needed to provide my last 12 months of kWh usage from SCE. He also asked me what some of the reasons I was thinking about going solar were. I told him I wanted to save money, save the planet and increase my home value. He set up a call with a Sungevity solar consultant, Brian, for the next day.

Throughout the process of evaluating solar providers, Brian was very responsive and did not put any pressure on me. He answered all of my questions and put up with my continual analysis. He was great to work with. I told Brian that I decided to move forward with Sungevity on Friday, March 30. I asked him if he knew I was going to make that decision from the beginning. He told me that he had a good idea because of the amount of analysis I was doing. Brian said it would take four to six weeks for the panels to be installed and powered on, but that it would depend on me and how fast I get done what they need me to do.

Brian sent my performance guarantee and lease agreement to me via email while we were on the phone. I reviewed the documents and esigned them very late that night or early the next morning. We had some friends over that night, so I didn't finish reviewing and signing the documents until they were gone.

My Sungevity project manager sent me an email on Monday, April 2. It outlined the next steps in the process. I needed to schedule a two-hour home visit, let me know that there was a FedEx package heading my way with documents that I needed to review and sign and that I needed to review the Sungevity Installation Overview that he attached to the email. Ian was very helpful answering any questions that I had. It turned out that they scheduled the home visit with a different installer than I had initially been told would be working on my project. This surprised me a bit because I had called the previous installers references and even visited an installation. Ian said I could choose between the installers, but if I chose the original installer I would be working with a different project manager. I chose to move forward with the new installer and asked for references and photos.

Ian set up an appointment for the home visit with Brian Kuykendall fron Kuykendall solar on Friday, April 6. He also sent me some installation photos, the link to Brian's website and some references the following day. I sent some emails to the references and they all raved about Brian. I asked Ian to have Brian bring some more installation photos with him to the meeting.

I received the FedEx package on Wednesday, April 4 and reviewed and signed all of the documents that evening. I had to complete an SCE Home Energy and Water Efficiency Survey which took about 10 minutes to complete. I also had to provide a voided check for the automatic payments. I dropped off the FedEx package the next day.

The home visit was much shorter and easier than I thought. I didn't know what would happen, but Brian showed me some photos and then started measuring. The installations looked great, so I felt very comfortable with Brian doing the installation. We talked about the inverter placement, where conduit would be run and where the disconnect would be placed. We decided to put the inverter in my garage so there would only be a small disconnect panel added to the outside of my house. All of the conduit will be run through my attic. I was very satisfied with this decision. Brian was done with all of his measurements and on the road after a little over an hour.

At this point I should be a week ahead of schedule in the process because they normally plan for a two week window for the home visit. Hopefully I can stay ahead of schedule and have the panels installed in less than 4 months.

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Ignorance

Michele Bachmann, the Tea Party favorite, made a comment to supporters in Florida this past weekend. She said that Hurricane Irene, which killed at least 40 people, and 5.8 magnitude east coast earthquake were God's way of telling US politicians to cut spending and fix the budget deficit. What?

I can't believe that someone with so much political clout can be so stupid. Do you really think that God cares so much about the budget deficit that he is willing to kill innocent people to get the message across? How can someone this dumb be so close to leading our country?

Michele and her husband own a Christian counseling center that, among other things, tries to convert gays to be heterosexuals. An undercover counseling session was filmed and aired on ABC News. The counselor actually says that God "designed" men's eyes to be attracted to women's breasts.

I am tired of all the politics in this country and the dumb people that continually support politicians that do not have any common sense. Michele Bachmann is such an idiot. Here is a link to some of her best quotes.

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Floating On

I have hit rock bottom creatively and intellectually. I just feel like I have lost a few steps. I feel overwhelmed. I feel uninterested.

At work I have realized that I would rather talk about problems than solve them. I have lost interest in most of what goes on. At home I have started running again in the morning and I feel great most days.

When I get home from work I usually cannot stop eating and I don't know why. I am at a weird point in my life and I don't know why or how to fix it. Maybe something is missing from my life. Maybe it is just the summer heat and the start of school. Maybe it is just the disappointment that I can't do what I want financially. Maybe...

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Busy and a Bit Overwhelmed

I have been very busy at work lately and I am starting to get pretty busy in my personal life as well. Soccer season is about to start. I had my first meeting last night and practices start next week, as does soccer camp. This is a good time of year, but my work schedule and the added stress there is making it tough this year.

I am a bit overwhelmed at work. There are so many small problems to fix in every department that I sometimes don't even know where to start. I know that I need to get more organized. I need a new method of logging issues and creating follow-up plans. I have even joked a few times that I need a secretary. Her sole purpose would be to keep me focused on the tasks that need to be addressed. If I could find a good one, I could do the work of five people instead of just the work of two people I do now.

I just ordered a 4-pack of Pick Four, which is an updated version of Zig Ziglar’s legendary goal-setting program, The Performance Planner, updated by Seth Godin. I can't wait to receive it and start digging in. I plan to share some of the copies with other managers in my company. I think we all need to be more organized and focus our efforts on key goals. If we can all do that, this company will return to glory.

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Thinking of Change

My eyes have been opened to the problems within my company the last two months. I have been getting more involved in all aspects of the company and I do not like what I am seeing. I feel like I am overwhelmed by the number of changes that need to be made. I feel like I am powerless to make some of the changes and am encountering resistance with most of my recommendations. People fear change!

I keep debating how much I want to talk about with the owner of my company and how much I want to volunteer to take on myself. My work is suffering because of the number of items I am trying to juggle. I can't do this alone.

On a much better note, the family and I had a great time in Seattle over the Fourth of July. It was my third trip to the city and The Queen's second trip there. We were able to see a lot of the city and surrounding area. The only think on my list that we did not get to check off was a visit to the Hoh Rain Forrest. I really wanted to go, but it was just too far for this trip. Maybe on our next trip we can make a plan to visit for a few days.

Seattle made me realize again what is missing in the Central Valley. Other than the fact that I hate the heat here, there is no sense of community. I often wonder why my cities downtown does not have the things that other cities and towns I visit have. Don't get me wrong, our downtown is great and has a lot to offer. It is just missing things that would attract more people to the area.

The entire valley is way too conservative for my tastes. Everyone is afraid to do something quirky because of the people they might alienate. The great thing about a bigger city is that it doesn't matter if you turn some people off because there are enough people that will like what you are doing to support you.

I really loved the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle. They have the famous troll under the Aurora Bridge, but they have a lot more to offer as well. There is a full sized rocket mounted on a building, a chocolate factory, a statue of Lenin and some dinosaur topiaries by the channel. It also has offices for Adobe, Getty Images and some other large offices. They claim they are the center of the universe and even have walking tour maps and funny signs posted around the area. They have created a community and I love it.

The Queen and I talked to our good friends about this and they agreed with us. They have not been to Seattle, but agreed that big cities have much more to offer. They even told us that they have contemplated moving to Portland, but that we were holding them back. They do not want to leave us. That made us feel good, but also got me thinking about a move to Portland as well. I have visited Portland once many years ago, but that was before it stated embracing technology and green industries. The city has changed for the better and I can't wait to visit again.

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Summer So Far

I want to start by saying happy birthday to The Queen. She is my best friend and a great mother to our children.

We went camping at Dinkey Creek this past weekend. I always going to this area and wonder why I don't more often. It is great to be in the mountains with creeks, rivers and a lake all nearby. It was also a refreshing change from the hot temperatures in the valley.

My only problem with camping with The Queen's family is that everything revolves around food, and lots of it. We had to take so much stuff with us, and most of it had to come back with us. We just take way too much stuff. Most of it never gets used or eaten, so we have to pack it back up when we leave.

I slept horribly for the two nights we were there, but it was still better than being home. I would gladly trade my good sleep for bad sleep if I could live in that area full time.

Tomorrow morning we are off to Seattle. I have been there twice before and really liked it the second time I visited. I can't wait to get there and show the girls all that the city has to offer. I have put together a pretty nice itinerary that takes all over the city, to the Hoh Rain Forest in Olympic National Park and on a ferry to one of the islands to hopefully see some whales.

I can't wait until tomorrow!

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Selfish Government

Candidates are now declaring their intentions to run for president in 2012. Millions and most likely billions of dollars are spent on elections every four years. It has made me think about the amount of money spent on elections in this country and what that money could be spent on.

I think we have to ask ourselves what makes more sense? We have found out this year that governments can be toppled by Twitter and Facebook. These social media websites are free to use, so why do candidates for the office of president of the most powerful nation in the world not grasp this technology and spend their campaign funds on something that will definately make our country a better place to live?

Many of these politicians who have announced their candidacy have fought against President Obama's healthcare plan and our budget and taxes. Everyone knows that our healthcare system needs reform. Everyone knows that the government has the potential to employ people that will shape the future of our country. We need good, quality teachers to teach our children so they can grow up to be leaders of the world. Budget cuts affect our ability to hire these qualified teachers, forcing our children into overcrowded classrooms that make it difficult to learn.

Our politicians need to stop being selfish. Our politicians need to embrace the technology that is changing the world. For as much as we consider our country the most wealthy, powerful nation in the world, we are still selfish and slow to change. We believe that nobody can tell us what to do. We do things the way they should be done. We cannot look at something that is successful in a third world country and make use of it here. We are better than that. I am tired of this type of thinking and call on our leaders to truly embrace change. I am asking them to stop spending money selfishly and start thinking about the greater good.

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Looking Back, Looking Ahead

My fortieth year was a great one. I am very happy with my life at this point. I am not done growing, but I am satisfied with my progress.

As I begin my forty-first year, I need to contemplate my goals. I know I want to simplify my life. I want to remove the clutter from all aspects of my life. I read a blog post in which the author was attempting to limit his personal property to one hundred items. I thing that would be a difficult goal for me to achieve, but it is something to think about.

Another selfish goal is to travel to Europe next summer. I don't know if it will happen for sure, but it is my goal. And I feel like The Queen and I deserve it.

I also have a goal of dropping ten pounds before my brother gets married in September. I not only want to lose the ten pounds, but I want to get in much better shape. This is an attainable goal and is my top priority at this point. I have been getting healthier the last few years, so this is just the ultimate goal.

In my professional life I want to take more control of other aspects of my company. Up until about a month ago I was satisfied to sit back and let the other managers run their departments. I really got tied of watching them make mistakes over and over and began to work myself into our production and standards meetings. This is where I really feel like I can make a difference in the company and make people be responsible for their own work. I am tired of the excuses and can no longer sit back and allow the company to deteriorate.

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Is The Earth Still Flat?

If you remember your history, the Catholic church used to finance and thus control most scientific studies. Most of the advancements were actually made by members of the church. Because they financed these scientific studies, they edited the findings to support their view either literally or with threats.

I think most of us today have forgotten this lesson from history. Wealthy organizations controlling what we hear. Remember, the church believed that the Earth was the center of the universe. The church also believed that the Earth was flat.

A lot of money has been spent the last decade arguing with scientific findings from around the world. Global warming is a fact and it has been brought
on by man. Since the industrial revolution we have been polluting our planet without worrying about the consequences. It has now caught up with us!

I think most people have a problem understanding the term global warming. Especially when the weather may not be warmer today. For this reason, I prefer the term global climate change. All of the rain, flooding and tornados are proof that our weather patterns are changing. Just this week there was a tornado in Massachusetts and that is not common at all.

We need to open our eyes and stop believing all of the rhetoric being spread by wealthy corporations and the politicians and political groups they control. We need to make decisions for ourselves and our children and grandchildren. It is our responsibility and we cannot afford to make the minor changes that will solve this problem we currently face.


- Posted from my iPhone

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Memorial Day

I had a pretty good little Memorial Day today. I had to work, but that was my fault for scheduling a business trip without consulting The Queen.

I called my sales agency this morning and found out that Memorial Day is also a holiday in Puerto Rico. We still worked what we had planned for today, but it is funny that all three of us failed to realize it was a holiday when we planned this trip. When we got done with what we had scheduled, they took me out for some authentic Puerto Rican food. We ended up having a plantain soup for the first course, several types of fritters and plantains for an appetizer, mofongos for the meal and sangria during the entire meal.

Restaurante Raices in Caguas, PR makes authentic food that my friends said was what the mountain people ate long ago. I have to admit that there was not a lot of flavor in the food. The sangria was brought to the table in a beat up old aluminum pitcher and we were given little aluminum cups to drink from, kind of like what you think of the California miners using during the gold rush. They were primitive, but they kept the sangria cold.

I ate mofongos from my hotel restaurant when I was here last and they were just ok. The mofongos I had today were much better. They were served in a large wooden cup. The mashed plantains were coating the inside of the cup and the beef was inside with a dried plantain for garnish. The beef just melted in my mouth and the plantains tasted just right.

After eating I headed out on an adventure to find El Yunque, a rain forest in a national park. My rental GPS unit made me do circles for a while before getting me there two hours later. I had time to hike very fast up to a waterfall and back. I hope I got some great photos to show everyone a legitimate rain forest. It was pretty amazing. There was some bamboo, a lot of ferns and a lot of palms mixed in with some other trees and vines. At times i felt like Indiana Jones on a treasure hunt. The waterfall did not compare to those in Yosemite, but not many do.

I drove back to the hotel and took some photos of the view from my balcony, then ended the day with a run on a treadmill and a walk along the rocky coast outside my hotel. Like I said before, it was a nice little Memorial Day.

- Posted from my iPhone

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Who is Responsible?

The whole rapture thing that was supposed to happen in 1988 or 1994 or last Saturday or this October 21 is absolutely ridiculous. Without even starting the argument of religion and which one is the correct one, it has no basis whatsoever.

Harold Camping is an irresponsible individual who has just been looking to make a name for himself. He has raised a ton of money, all of which comes from people who believe what he preaches. Don't get me started with believing the rantings of a lunatic.

Many people gave their entire life savings and retirement funds to his cause. The money was used to post billboards all over the world. He finally responded on Sunday and stated, "I don't have any responsibility. I don't have any responsibility of anybody's life. I'm only teaching the Bible. I'm simply saying, 'This is what the Bible says.'" He also took no responsibility for what his followers did with their money and possessions stating, "We at Family Radio never tell anyone what [to] do with their possessions. That's totally between them and God."

You must always think about your words, especially if you are a public figure. There will be people who believe what you say with all their heart. You have to be responsible and make sure you are not misleading these people. Obviously Family Radio does not think this way and does not care about the listeners it has.

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Our Choice

I downloaded the app "Our Choice" by Al Gore. It is a book that includes full sized photos, interactive charts and videos. I guess then it is more than a book, but you can get a printed version of it.

I absolutely love the idea of this interactive book. I think this is a good example of what all books should be. It is perfect for reading on the iPad.

I started reading it before I even finished "The Art of Non-Conformity." I just could not wait to start it after I downloaded it. I really enjoyed watching "An Inconvenient Truth" so I was excited to read this book. So far I have not been disappointed. I have learned a great deal about what we are doing to the planet and why our weather patterns have started to change so drastically.

We need to stop denying the science and blaming other people and just take responsibility for our actions. The West can be a good example for the rest of the world and we can even satisfy our capitalist needs by creating better alternatives to our current energy sources and industrial practices. The developing world would have no other choice but to follow us or be left behind...again.

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Perfect Day

I finished reading The Art of Non-Conformity by Chris Guillebeau. I really liked this book, but I don't know how practical it is for me. I would love to sell all my stuff and just take off to someplace in the world where I could volunteer and help people. I would love to not have to work a "normal" work day. The problem is that I have bills to pay and people to support.

After I finished the book I started thinking about what my perfect day would be. I think it would be great to start my day at eight o'clock in the morning. Wake up and drop Meg off at school. Come home and do some sort of exercise. I would prefer if I lived in the mountains on a lake. It would be great to take a kayak out on the lake every morning. A good jog or hike would also be spectacular in the morning.

After returning home and taking a shower it would then be time to get to work with whatever I would be doing. This is the part that gets a little fuzzy for me. I don't know what I am passionate about. I know that I want to do something that I love so work does not feel like work. I have thought about becoming a professional photographer, but I don't know if that is my passion. I really enjoy it when I am doing it, but I go weeks without picking up my camera. I also don't particluarly enjoy photographing people, but maybe that is because I am not good at posing people.

I would then pick Meg up from school and help her with her homework. At that point I would either do some more work or other projects that I like to do. I would exercise again in the evening after an early dinner and go to bed about midnight.

I know I have a lot of holes to fill in this perfect day, but it is a start.

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Old Fashioned or just Unfair?

Every year Administrative Assistant's day rolls around before anyone in my company realizes it, except for the owner. He is always on top of it and he always gets every lady in the company flowers and possibly something else. Last year he took every lady in the company out to lunch in a limousine.

I am glad he remembers this day, but I am not happy that he includes every lady in the company. In a few departments there are ladies who have equals that are men and the men are not treated to any gift. In at least one department there is a lady who runs the show and has men who report to her. Those men are not given any gifts. These ladies are not administrative assistants.

Is it just the owner's old fashioned way of thinking. A male chauvinist attitude that makes him do this every year? Does he think of every lady in the workforce as being a secretary? I don't have the answer, but I know if it was me and I was a female engineer or manager I would be very upset to receive a gift on this day.

We had a female engineering intern last year who gladly went to lunch and accepted the flowers, but did question why she was included. Obviously she was a little insulted, just not enough to refuse the gifts. When is it under appreciated male employee day? I am still waiting for my gift!

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Who is to Blame?

We all know that the economy has not fully recovered. Most of us know that the real estate market was out of control leading to the problems we are now dealing with. But who is to blame?

I think we are all to blame. The banks and brokers are the people who are most to blame, but home buyers deserve some of the blame as well. The Queen and I recognized that the market was out of control. We believed that home prices were artificially high and that the market could not support the prices for very long. Now, we all know that is what happened.

I now know several people who have either lost their homes or are going to lose their homes. Out of all of them, I only know of one of them that have lost their home because of a job loss. All of the others have just decided that they do not want to pay for their home any longer. They feel like if other people are able to walk away from their homes that they should be able to as well.

I guess I am old fashioned, but I believe that I signed the home loan documents so I should be responsible for paying the load back. My home is not worth what I owe at this point, but I am not in very bad shape. It is really close because we waited until we thought the market had adjusted properly. We miscalculated a bit, but I can live with it.

The problem with our society is that nobody wants to accept responsibility for themselves. There is always someone else to blame. We just need to accept our choices and take responsibility for our actions. Why are you bad America?

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