Lazy Man and Money

Climate Change is like Personal Finance

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Earth DayHappy Earth Day!

It’s amazing to me how long we’ve been talking about the importance of the environment and things rarely seem to change. Last month, I wanted to show my kids an example of great physical comedy, so I found a clip of Fire Marshall Bill (Jim Carrey) from In Living Color. He comments on the kids’ “Save the Planet” artwork. It’s hard to believe this was roughly 30 years ago:



A little more recently, I’ve been writing about Earth Day since 2009. Before that, I was writing about the environment in one-off articles, usually in a push to get people to adopt Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) bulbs because LEDs were new and too expensive. That’s still twelve years ago.

Last year I tricked you by using the song lyrics of Jack Johnson’s environmental anthem of All At Once to make it seem like I was writing about COVID-19. A few years before that I wrote about our four years of solar panels.

We’re up to 6 years of solar panels now. We’ve generated 56.2-megawatt hours. According to our Enphase panel we’ve produced the equivalent of 1016 trees saved.

Since this is a personal finance blog, let’s get to the financials, shall we? The cost of a kWh of energy in Rhode Island is 21.73 cents. Thus the 56,200 kWh we’ve generated would cost us $12,212.26. (This makes the assuredly false assumption that the price was a consistent 21.73 cents over the last 6 years. With that caveat in mind, let’s continue the analysis anyway.) We spent $16,000 on the solar panels. As I predicted when we got them, they’d pay for themselves in about 8 years… after that, we’ll enjoy savings. It is likely that the cost of energy will just continue to go up. It seems like we save around $2000 a year in electricity costs.

Now that I’ve covered just about every environmental topic except for the title, let’s get to my main Earth Day thought for 2021:

Climate Change is like Personal Finance

There are a couple of overarching principles in personal finance. One school of thought is that if you do a few of the really big things well, you’ll be fine. Examples of these include getting a high-paying job, not spending too much on house/transportation, and investing early.

Another school of thought is that if you can reduce a lot of the small, often repeated costs, you’ll be fine. Some examples of these include brewing coffee at home vs. the coffee shop and bringing your lunch to work.

Many personal finance bloggers will say that it is one or the other, but I’m a big fan of both. It’s possible to not buy a McMansion and avoid Starbucks. I had no problem bringing my lunch to work in my 10-year old car. Yes, you can walk and chew gum at the same time.

What does this have to do with climate change and the environment?

If you do a lot of the little things to help the environment they add up. This is the famous “reduce, reuse, recycle”:



(You had to have known that I was going to sneak Jack Johnson into this article, right?)

What about the other side, doing a few of the really big things? Unfortunately, many of those things are controlled by governments and big corporations. As individuals we have a vote, at the ballot box or with our wallets, to put leaders in power to create policies that will make big differences. In my town, there was a long, long fight to ban plastic bags at the grocery store, because the plastic bag lobby (who knew this existed?) inserted itself into the town’s politics.

In the end, the winning formula for personal finance or the environment is to do the little things AND the big things. Don’t get discouraged if it seems like the progress is going too slowly. Every little bit helps, neither is all or nothing.

All At Once

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All at once,
The world can overwhelm me
There’s almost nothin’ that you could tell me
That could ease my mind

Today, I’m going to exercise some poetic licence – in a couple of very different ways. In a literal sense, I’ll be quoting a famous person’s poem. In a less obvious “poetic” sense, I’ll be straying from the topic of personal finance.

That quote above invoked some feelings, right? What about this next verse?

Which way will you run
When it’s always all around you
And the feelin’ lost and found you again
A feelin’ that we have no control

Did that strengthen those thoughts? I know I’ve been feeling all this since the middle of March.

What if I told you that this poem isn’t about what you think it is?

What if I told you that this was written more than a decade ago?

(What if I told you that I’m going to stop asking these rhetorical questions?)

There’s gonna be the new hell
Some say
It’s still too early to tell
Some say
It really ain’t no myth at all

I don’t know if this is a “new hell”, but sometimes it can feel like that, right?

Recently our government has said that this situation was “too early to tell” and it was a myth/hoax.

I wanna take the preconceived
Out from underneath your feet
We could shake it off
Instead we’ll plant some seeds
We’ll watch em’ as they grow
And with each new beat
From your heart the roots grow deeper
The branches will they reach for what
Nobody really knows
But underneath it all
There’s this heart all alone

Did I take the preconceived out from underneath your feet?

This “poem” is not really a poem. These are song lyrics.

The song is “All at Once” and it was written by Jack Johnson in 2008.

It’s about climate change, not COVID-19 (coronavirus).

Today is Earth Day. It’s the best day of the year to write about our solar panels. They are still a great value – one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

A few years ago, I wrote about how Jack Johnson is the champion of environment. He created the All at Once foundation to help with environmental causes.

This may not be the time to focus on the environment. The strange thing is that it’s okay. Physical distancing and closing of businesses is helping the environment more than almost anything we’ve done in the past. For example, Los Angeles has some of the cleanest air of any major city.

We’re learning that we can make a big difference – even if it’s by accident. It certainly isn’t the path that we would have picked if we had a choice. However, the results are stunning. We’re finally making progress for the first time in decades.

It’s very difficult to find silver linings during this time. For one day, or even a few minutes, let’s focus on this one.

Jack Johnson, Earth Day, and the Environment

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On Monday, I wrote that I am declaring it Jack Johnson Week. It appears that everyone was so floored by the idea that they couldn’t muster the finger energy to compose a single comment. I didn’t realize it was that amazing until my wife said she read and liked the article.

(Sometimes I wonder if my wife reads 10% of my writing. If I sneak some kind of mention in future articles that I had an affair with Scarlett Johansson you now know why.)

I won’t rehash all the details of the previous article because this is likely to be a long article. Quickly, Jack Johnson is a musician, mostly known for a song or two in the early 2000s. That article tried to explain why I think he deserves a lot more attention than what he’s received.

What would you say if I told you that Blossom was a neuroscientist? (She is!) Or what if I told you that Winnie Cooper was a noted mathematician? (She is!)

When I became a fan of Jack Johnson’s music, I didn’t realize how much work he’s done as an environmentalist. It feels like being a fan of Michael Jordan’s baseball skills only to find out he also played basketball.

Side thought: Bialik, McKellar, and Johnson were born in 1975. What a magical year, right? (Wife, are you reading this?)

The environment isn’t a typical focus for this blog, but it is something I cover a few times a year. What better time than the week around Earth Day to cover it? Saving the environment is a cause that I deeply believe in. You can read about our solar panels here. Or you can read my article in 2008 about how the Enviromoms limit their garbage to a one can a year. I’m not nearly an extremist like them. Heck, we have two SUVs. I think it’s all about balance and mindfulness.

On Monday, I was driving my 4-year old to school and he saw the ocean. He asked me if Jack Johnson cleaned it up. He said that it was his job along with singing Curious George songs. (He also thinks Tom Brady is my boss because of this alarm I wake up to). He’s so much more intelligent than I am.

I tried to explain that cleaning the ocean isn’t Jack Johnson’s job, it’s all of our jobs.

Jack Johnson and the Environment

Where did my son get the idea Jack Johnson cleans up oceans? I must have told him about the Smog of the Sea documentary. The 30-minute film has Jack Johnson, scientists and environmentalists showing that there’s bits of plastic in the middle of the ocean. It’s everywhere… and hence the smog of the sea name. It’s eye opening, because I thought there was a plastic island where all the garbage goes.

How did I learn about the documentary? I just went to his official website looking for tour information.

That’s when I fell down the Jack Johnson environmentalist rabbit hole. For example, he created a charity, All at Once with the idea of creating global change one person at a time. That seems secondary to his Johnson Ohana charity which focuses on the environment, art, and music education. It appears that they are related in some way.

It’s one thing for a celebrity to create a charity. It’s another to see them put their career into it. Jack Johnson rarely tours. I couldn’t find the last time he came to the Boston area. However, 100% of his 2008 tour went to the Johnson Ohana charity. As All-at-Once explains 100% of Jack Johnson’s tour profits from 2010-2013 went to charity as well. Maybe he decided he needed to eat in 2009, but I’m inclined to think that only 99% of the profits were donated to charity. Or maybe he didn’t tour in 2009. Since 2013, it seems his money has gone to matching contributions to All at Once non-profit partners.

Of course his albums were produced at his Brushfire Records studio that is 100% solar with walls made up of 100% post-consumer waste (Source). Some musicians demand special colored M&Ms (or a story) before they play. Johnson demands that the concert venue adhere to strict environmental guidelines such as purchasing carbon offsets and LED light bulbs. Because of these “demands” all LiveNation venues have a Resusable Pint Program.

I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea.

I’m going to one of his concerts this summer and I’m considering wearing a burlap sack… just to play it safe. Hmmm… check that… does anyone know if burlap is sustainable? I presume the only food available will be organic golden rice. Organic golden rice may be impossible (by definition), but Jack Johnson will find a way.

I originally thought I’d share lyrics from various Jack Johnson songs about the environment. Instead, I’ll share this video:

Yes, 3 is a magic number… especially when you are referring to kid songs.

I apologize for the lack of personal finance in this article. My next article will be more topical. I also realize I let my fanboi come out. I hope this inspires you to do something meaningful outside of your core career.

Finally, I wanted to highlight some good news in the world. Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like there’s a lot of negative news out there. Celebrities shouldn’t be role models, but sometimes there’s an overlapping of two in the Venn diagram. Jack Johnson is a rare individual in that overlap.

Not all heroes wear capes, but some wear sandals and guitar straps.

Solar Panels: One Year Later

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Happy Earth Day, everyone!

Two years I underwent an adventure to Explore the Savings of Solar Power. We turned out to be perfect candidates and we moved forward. It took a few months to research. Then it took some time to find the right installer. After the winter was done, the installation could begin, and it was completed just around Earth Day last year.

I’ve written a number of posts on solar power overall. They may be worth reviewing if you think solar power might be right for you.

Conveniently this Earth Day gives me the perfect opportunity to write about what it’s like having solar panels for one year.

As a review, in Rhode Island there’s something called “net metering.” Rather than being off the grid or storing power in a battery, our electricity meter turns backwards as we produce power to give the grid and forward during the night (or cloudy days) as we use power. The plan is to move that meter backward. We can’t control the sunlight, but we can control how much energy we use.

Fortunately, there were really no significant surprises. The most eventful thing that occurred was a very little bit of snow where I thought, “Should I buy a telescoping broom to clean off the snow on the panels?” Fortunately, the weather turned better and it melted in a day or two.

The other big thing was that we actually produced more power in the summer than we used. That may sound like common sense since it’s the longest days of the year with the most powerful sunlight. However, air conditioning takes a lot of power, so usually the meter moves back the most in the spring and fall.

I was just looking at my National Grid bill and they do a good job of giving you an Electric Usage History over the last year. It’s particularly great if you happen to be a blogger writing about electric usage over the last year.

  • April 2015 – We used 387 kWh. I think that during this billing period we just starting to get online with the solar power.
  • May 2015 – November 2015 – We used 0 kWh. Unfortunately National Grid doesn’t report negatives here. However, this means that we paid $0 for electricity. In reality we were actually receiving credits that carry over to future months.
  • December 2015 – We used 59 kWh. The shorter days combined with the cold meant more heat and energy usage. This cut into our credit by a few dollars.
  • January 2016 – February 2016. Each month we used ~240 kWh. This is the first significant use that cut into credits by a good deal. I think they were like $20 or $30. So we didn’t need to send a check, we just watched the credits slip some.
  • March 2016 – April 2016 – We are back to using 0 kWh as we produce more power with the longer days. This last month, April, we built up $73 in credits as we were on vacation.

Our credit balance today is ~$270… and May should be another credit building month. It’s nice to not have an electric bill, but it’s worth remembering that we have a HELOC bill that replaces it. We won’t really break even on this for another 6 years and then we’ll start to see the financial benefits. I know that some think that’s too far in the future to plan, but we have no problem with planning for college or retirement, right?

If credits continue to build like they have, maybe we’ll look into getting an electric car someday. I’m putting that idea on the back-burner for now as I haven’t had a chance review electric SUVs with 4-wheel drive and other things that we want in a car. Also, our cars are just a couple years old, so I won’t mind if we drove them for another decade.

My Gift to Mother Earth: Solar Power Completed

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Fifteen months ago, a little after my second son was born, I was doing a routine exercise of reviewing my necessary expenses. I like to go through and see where we are with spending and if there’s any place we can save money. It’s hard to save money on car and house payments. Short of a refinance those payments are going to be set by the choices you make at the time of purchase.

I got to our utility bill and I realized there might be some room there. We’ve switched to high-efficiency light bulb and have so much insulation that it amazes home inspectors. We picked all the low-lying fruit. I knew there was Earth Day article to write in a couple of months, so I thought, “What if I looked into solar power?”

Then I got busy. Funny how that happens when a new child is born. It got to Earth Day and I hadn’t made any progress in calling any solar companies. I wrote an article about exploring the savings of solar power which represented everything I could learn in a few hours of internet research.

Unfortunately, what I learned is that it is really difficult to give people advice on solar power. Each state has its own cost of energy. If you pay a lot, solar makes more sense than if it is cheap. Each state has it’s own aid programs for those choosing to go with solar power. Great aid from your state goes a long way to making the math work. Details about your home positioning and roof condition matter greatly. There’s just so much that goes into it.

I ended the article with the following:

“As I follow the rabbit down the hole, I hope to have updates on how to save money with solar power. Right now, it’s time for me and my dog to enjoy a little of this Earth Day. As usual, hit the comments and pass me any good questions or information that you have on going with solar.”

As regular readers know, I followed up with a number of articles. I broke down how it works, and found a calculator helping me with when I’ll break even (around 7 years). I went through projections with my solar installation company.

On Saturday of this past week, my solar system got turned on.

I write this on Tuesday and we’ve generated 72.5 kWh of electricity in a few days… one of which was just pouring rain. Last month we used 598 kWh of electricity in total. I’m hopeful, we’ll generate more than we use and earn a credit. That’s always the plan for the spring months when electric use is low and the generation is high. In summer, when the air conditioners kick in, we’ll end up using more than we generate and use those credits.

The solar power company estimates that we’ll save the equivalent to hundreds of trees every year. If that’s accurate, it will have been one of the best things I could ever have done for the environment. Not a bad way to save money, is it?