Jennah

“Energy efficiency is universally viewed as the best and cheapest means of reducing carbon emissions. But the power industry was designed to make and sell as much power as possible as cheaply as possible. Repurposing the industry to both sell and save electricity raises extremely difficult financial, regulatory, and managerial questions.”
― Peter Fox-Penner, Smart Power Anniversary Edition: Climate Change, the Smart Grid, and the Future of Electric Utilities

“In other words, sale of the commodity electricity (kilowatt-hours), formerly purchased only from your local utility, can now be purchased from any nonderegulated generator at whatever price the market has set. However, this power can only be delivered to you via the transmission grid and the lower-voltage local distribution system. Both of these remain fully regulated. Thus, even though the market sets the wholesale prices for power itself, the rates for delivering it over the transmission and distribution wires are set by federal and state regulators, respectively.”
― Peter Fox-Penner, Smart Power Anniversary Edition: Climate Change, the Smart Grid, and the Future of Electric Utilities

“From the engineering standpoint, there are three vertical stages of production—generation, transmission, and distribution. Generators make the power in power plants, high-voltage lines transmit the power to substations in your neighborhood, and the small wires and equipment on the poles leading to your home or office are the distribution system.”
― Peter Fox-Penner, Smart Power Anniversary Edition: Climate Change, the Smart Grid, and the Future of Electric Utilities

“CRICKET A poor little cricket Hidden in the flowery grass, Observes a butterfly Fluttering in the meadow. The winged insect shines with the liveliest colors: Azure, purple, and gold glitter on his wings; Young, handsome, foppish, he hastens from flower to flower, Taking from the best ones. Ah! says the cricket, how his lot and mine Are dissimilar! Lady Nature For him did everything, and for me nothing. I have no talent, even less beauty; No one takes notice of me, they know me not here below; Might as well not exist. As he was speaking, in the meadow Arrives a troop of children. Immediately they are running After this butterfly, for which they all have a longing. Hats, handkerchiefs, caps serve to catch him. The insect in vain tries to escape. He becomes soon their conquest. One seizes him by the wing, another by the body; A third arrives, and takes him by the head. It should not be so much effort To tear to pieces the poor creature. Oh! Oh! says the cricket, I am no more sorry; It costs too dear to shine in this world. How much I am going to love my deep retreat! To live happily, live hidden.”
― Bill Dedman, Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune