Eco Fair in Concord

Today I went to the Eco Fair in Concord. I asked everyone I knew to go with me, but no one could or wanted to. It seemed a bit strange to drive by myself in a vehicle designed to hold five to and Eco Fair, but there I was. I realized afterwards I could have asked my mom, but too late. At least I drove the hybrid. I got to tell you, those that did not go, missed out.

It was not a large fair, but it was good. PG&E was there, just outside of the room where the booths were, they had a Plug In Hybrid and were promoting the concept. They also gave everyone who came by a compact florescent light bulb and a book entitled 30 Simple Energy Things You Can Do To Save The Earth. It is actually a pretty good book.

Once inside I got a really nice Frisbee made completely out of recycled plastic, a water bottle courtesy of the Contra Costa water district. I got some pencils and a ruler that was made out of recycled dollar bills. How cool was that?

I got some cloth shopping bags from Safeway. They were giving one per person. I asked for two and they hesitated until I explained that I have a family of six living at home. Don't you think stores should give these away for free anyway?

I got some compresses sponges that expand when they get wet. I love these for preparedness kits. Using a sponge to collect water from morning dew is a great survival technique.

I got some literature with great information. For example, I can take our old Christmas lights that have been in the family forever and trade them in for a string of LED Christmas lights in Concord for free. I also found out that EBMUD who supplies the water where I live, will give me free water flow heads for my sinks and showers. That is great since I was getting ready to buy some. Oh, and PG&E had a booth inside where they were giving out two more compact florescent lights to each person for a grand total of three. My family and friends really should have come with me.

Oh, I almost forgot, I found a company that has a conversion kit to change a normal toilet to a French toilet for only $30.00. It automatically cleans you using the water, reducing your toilet paper consumption. My wife being from Peru is very interested. Bedea's are very popular throughout Latin America.

I found a woman owned company in San Francisco that specializes in maintance on Hybrids. It is supposed to be the first like it. It is claimed that they plan to offer upgrading Hybrids to Plug In Hybrids.

One of the greatest things about the fair was the exchange of ideas and the ability to ask questions and get answers to all those things I had been thinking about. My last stop was just outside across from the PG&E Plug In Hybrid, there was a guy from a home solar company that had an Electric Car that had been manufactured by Toyota about 10 years ago. It still runs great and is still using the original battery.