Solar power the low-tech way.

Sunshine in the Northeast ... everyone look ... NOW.  Oh sorry - too slow.  Sunshine = FREE HEAT DAY!  It's a little technical:

1)  open the curtains
2)  have free heat

Through no planning of our own, our windshield points easty and our big windows point southish, and in that way we accidentally installed passive solar.

Lately (since Monday) we've been tempted by this (it will click through to AM Solar in Oregon, who sells them):





but the 120 W model.  I haven't really thought it through.  Would we use this to charge the big battery bank, or the small house battery up front?  Hold up ... Okay, I just discussed it with Pants, who reasons that we would use it to charge the big bank, which supplies the small house battery, which supplies the small house.

We have a friendly disagreement about the application of solar technology.  One of us would like to install a system right now.  One of us wants to wait until we're somewhere where people install solar systems on RVs instead of  where they say Boy, seems like you could do that somehow.  This intermediate solution might make both of us grin.

If you know anything about this company or this product, we'd like to know what you know.

Pants is home early today with something contagious.  Send tom yum soup wishes.

Free things! Not cats.

Other bloggers give things away willy-nilly (that's hip for "with wild abandon").   You're playing for very fun things in a tiny lottery that will not allow you to retire;  I can vouch for this because 1) I have won very fun things, and 2) I have not retired.

Check out the giveaway at Diary of a Midlife Cruiser, for NuNaturals Stevia.  Reading Nellie's blog is like eating Pop Rocks:  I'm not sure it's good for you, but it sure is fun.

The Organic Sister is hosting a giveaway of $20 for Hip Mountain Mama, a company that offers sustainable products that would make great gifts.  The Organic Sister site offers a mountain of resources and ideas for sustainable living, and she shares the full-time RV connection.  You should go, even if you don't enter the giveaway.  Don't even think about the fact that your not-entering increases my chances of winning.  Your happiness is all that matters to me.

ETA:  I won stevia from Nellie's blog!  And, a $40 gift certificate for Vegan Essentials from Vegan and so forth!  And, Coconut Bliss from Bitt of Raw!  And, Soap Nuts from dirty duck!  And, a glass pendant from Coleen Goralski!