Rosher.Net

Solar, like wind, is never going to provide all the power we are used to. We need the other generation if we are to continue the path of insatiable demand.  It would be fair to suggest the current government, like the previous one, has largely failed to establish a sustainable energy policy.  Perhaps in part this is down to the rise and rise of the corporations, who are now for all intents and purposes the operational government no matter who one votes for.  I blame Thatcher, but I diverge…

The autumn seemed unnaturally warm and only toward the end of November did it really feel seasonably cold.  Our Beech hedge went properly brown only recently, and even the oaks still held green leaves last week.  But the month has been filled with cloudy skies and fogs.  Not great for solar panels… this month’s bounty was a meagre 96 kWh, and the graph shows both the declining average and the turbulent up and down of good and not so good weather.  And the central heating finally went on.

So the facts of the matter this month are as follows…

As you see, the gas consumption has rocketed from a handful of units in the summer to 80 this month.  I’m weak, and I like the warmth.  Also, Miss is home all day now; having seen sense she’s stopped doing eighty hour weeks.  But that sewing machine doesn’t have a treadle… grin.  When I join her next spring the electricity consumption will either go through the roof  (hopefully, there will be an OS X version of Elite Dangerous by then)  or plummet because we are out and about.  Time will tell.

This month’s solar diary is the first that will not be posting to Facebook.  I’m retreating from that social media for several reasons and when I started to rant I cut it out of this post into a separate one, which I then deleted, but it does mean the number of people reading this may be reduced – or zero.  Do comment below if you’ve read this far.  Even bettererer, subscribe to this blog.  I’m housetrained and hardly ever send out spam.

I also very rarely visit the shops, and recent Black Friday news stories don’t enthuse me further.  It’s December tomorrow and it still feels early autumn.  It will be solstice in a few weeks and the decreasing daylight will pendulum swing into the new solar year.  One aspect of this unseasonable weather has been I’ve not needed my winter blues SAD lamp, which is a huge blessing.  But that Commercialmas thing is upon us.  I will need to do a little shopping.  Already, houses are lighting up… Bah.  I give you a 2012 doggerel.  Humbug.