lighten up...

here's a quick, printable guide to the very best CFL's on the market, published by the environmental working group. apparently all CFL's are not created equal--some contain higher amounts of mercury that others, and don't last for as many hours.  

i'm not exactly sure what type of bulbs we're using. all i know is that, since switching all of our standard bulbs out for CFL's over the past 2 years, i haven't had to change a single burned-out bulb. it's great. and they seem to be coming out with more attractive and functional options--jeremy picked up some that look just like a regular lightbulbs and work with our dimmer switch.  of course, i don't know what these fancy bulbs rate on the ewg's list!

on a not-so-related note, it seems i may be e-cycling soon. my 4-year old laptop made some very odd clacking noises, shuddered, froze, and is currently refusing to do anything that i ask of it. including, you know, turn on. posting may become sporadic in the near future as i try to sort this all out. 

ho-hum. sad laptops are a true bummer for this valley girl.