Happy Holidays From blackEnergy
Posted by Sonja Ebron
It’s said you learn the most during challenging times. If so, blackEnergy earned a PhD this year. We owe our survival to the prayers of well-wishers, including our staff, our advisers, our nonprofit partners, our patient suppliers and vendors. Most of all, we are grateful for our customers — the lifeblood of any business — who send us money, good will and good cheer throughout the year.
Just this week, we received a call from a customer who’d purchased several bulbs from us for his solar shower. He wanted to know if we carried a part that would allow them to work on a 12-volt system. (We didn’t but referred him to another vendor.) He thanked us for the assistance and indicated he had two more questions:
Customer: Your answer to the first will determine the second one. You ready?
Agent: Yes, sir, go ahead.
Customer: First question - Are you married?
Agent: Yes, sir, I am.
Customer: Second question - What is the difference between an in-law and an outlaw?
Agent: There’s not a bit of difference, sir. You can’t squeeze a ray of light between them.
Customer: Wrong! You wanna know the difference?
Agent: Yes, sir?
Customer: The outlaw is wanted. You all have a Merry Christmas!
That’s the kind of love that keeps us going. Happy holidays from blackEnergy.
Save Energy At Home And Get A Higher Bill?
Posted by Sonja Ebron
We’re about to get ripped off again by our electric utility companies. Regulated utilities have sought repeated rate increases from state regulators as the costs of oil and natural gas rose the last few years. Deregulated firms have collectively raised their rates with impunity. With rare exceptions, few have lowered those rates now that prices have declined for both fuels.
The Wall Street Journal reports that consumers are using much less electricity this fall and winter than in past years. Just as we limited our driving when gasoline prices rose, it appears we’ve also lowered our use of electricity as electric rates have climbed. Perhaps the milder weather this winter reduced the need for electricity to heat homes and businesses. Or perhaps the slow economy shuttered businesses and forced people from their homes, reducing the demand on power plants. But some utilities report residential use down as much as 9%, a much greater reduction than could be caused by abnormal weather and economics combined. “Something fundamental is going on,” says Jim Rogers, chief executive of Duke Energy. Perhaps the real reason is that people are finally getting serious about energy efficiency and conservation and simply eliminating wasteful practices in their homes.
blackEnergy and Friends Present “Light Swap 2008″
Posted by Sonja Ebron
blackEnergy, along with the Concerned Black Clergy, Georgia Interfaith Power & Light, the American Association of Blacks in Energy and presenting sponsor the ChicoBag Company distributed free energy-saving compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) during “Lightbulb Swap 2008,” an annual event developed to introduce a cost-effective way of “Going Green” to the African-American community. The event took place on Saturday, March 22, 2008 at True Light Baptist Church located at 47 Anderson Avenue NW, Atlanta, GA.
