Lately, there's been a lot of talk (especially in the political arena) about energy consumption and Global Warming. Most of this, however, has been aimed at making it less enticing for businesses to pollute or to produce inefficient products. What really needs to happen, is that the American people need to start thinking differently about energy use.

Most people think about the cost of gas because they can easily see the cost vs output, but people do not think as much about other energy uses such as home lighting. This is because you get a monthly electric bill that simply lumps together all the electric use of your house. With a car, you know all the gas is used by your car. On the electric bill, it's easy to look at it and think that a large part of the bill is due to things you "need" like a refrigerator or air conditioning.

While an air conditioner can constitute a large part of your electric bill in peak summer months, it's worth noting that people often overlook the effect of household lighting. Lighting can be a very large part of your monthly bill, especially in the dark winter months.

As I drive around looking at new houses, I notice that some of the more popular trends these days include more outdoor lighting (soffit lights, accent lights, spot lights, etc). Most don't really serve any purpose other than to highlight the house. If people thought about how much it cost to actually run these lights, they may reconsider having them.

The old rule of turning a light off when you leave a room still applies. The fewer lights on in your house, the more electricity and money you will save.