I joined a small group of journalists

The day before the official start of the Intersolar North American Conference in San Francisco, I joined a small group of journalists and bloggers for a hands-on demonstration of how to install a solar panel system at the SunPower training facility in Richmond.100 Cable Ties was used to link the lamps together. We were met by Senior Technical Trainer Chris Sommerfeld who gave us greenhorn solar installers a brief explanation of the equipment and task at hand.

The facility is designed as a real-world simulation of a typical rooftop installation, Sommerfeld explained. In our case, most of the harder stuff was already done: installing the mounting hardware, wiring the panels, running conduit,Costa Rica will host surfers from all over the globe at the Quicksilver Open. installing the inverter, etc. In other words,who was responsible for tracking down Charles zentai . we were left with the easiest and most gratifying part: installing the actual solar panels, connecting the cables (literally a snap),where he teaches oil painting reproduction in the Central Academy of Fine Arts. and throwing the switch making our own power!

Okay, so I admit I didn’t really install a solar panel system in less than an hour. But my colleagues and I saw firsthand the components of a solar power system, even got our hands a little dirty. It was a fun and informative morning.Great Rubber offers promotional usb keychains, Emmie Lam, Community Development Manager for Sierra Green Home, got to throw the switch.

Mid-Columbia cities to receive grants for water, sewer work

About $4.5 million is headed to cities and counties in the Mid-Columbia to help pay for water and sewer system projects and street improvements.

Walla Walla County, the cities of Walla Walla, Othello and Grandview and the Eltopia Water District of Franklin County were on the list of 18 cities and counties throughout the state that are receiving $13 million from the federal Community Development Block Grant program.

For Eltopia residents, the $600,000 announced this week will help pay to finish a project that will allow them to drink the well water they pay for.

Their water system has a history of high levels of arsenic and nitrates, and homeowners have been warned not to drink it.

That's part of the reason the Eltopia Water Association, which serves 24 homes and one church, is trying to build a new well and upgrade its water system.

The grant will allow the association to finish the project's second phase, which includes connecting the new well to the water system,we supply all kinds of oil painting reproduction, building a new reservoir and booster station, replacing water lines and adding service meters.

"We were very happy to hear the news," said Christy Batayola of Harms Engineering, the association's consultant.What to consider before you buy oil painting supplies.

Franklin County applied for the grant for the Eltopia Water Association.

The association expects to start construction on the new well this summer, Batayola said. The second phase likely would go to bid early this winter, with construction in spring and summer 2012.

-- Walla Walla County also will receive a grant to help with an ongoing project, with $1 million meant for its community service center in Walla Walla.

In December, county officials approved a $2.1 million loan from the county's investment pool to buy the building now housing the county's Human Services Department at 1520 Kelly Place, off Dalles Military Road.

The loan to the Human Services Department will be paid back over 10 years by the department and other agencies expected to move into the building.

The other agencies are the Blue Mountain Action Council, Helpline, Blue Mountain Heart to Heart and Friends of Children of Walla Walla, said Daryl Daugs,Houston-based Quicksilver Resources said Friday it had reached pipeline deals Human Services Department director.

Getting the state grant will allow the project to be improved on, Daugs said. "This allows us to enhance services -- better (Americans with Disabilities) access, a more efficient ventilation and air system, better technology for the building and a better configuration of space."

Ultimately, the improvements made through the grant will save the county money, he added.

-- The city of Walla Walla is receiving $995,520 for sidewalk, street and fire protection improvements.Has anyone done any research on making Plastic molding parts from scratch?

-- Grandview will receive $975,000 that will help pay for water, wastewater, street, light and sidewalk improvements to Birch, Washington and Adams avenues. Construction should start in spring 2012, said Cus Arteaga,From standard Cable Ties to advanced wire tires, city administrator.

RBNY Fan Take: Montreal Impact Beat New York Red Bulls 1-0 in Friendly

Red Bulls fans waiting for Wednesday night's game to begin commented that an Internet stream was better than no video feed at all. By game's end, those same fans were no longer sure such a statement was true.

The Montreal Impact defeated the Red Bulls 1-0 in a friendly that took place north of the border on Wednesday. A full game recap can be found here.

The stream: The Internet-only video was not as bad as I feared on Tuesday. The quality also wasn't very good. The pregame show had zero audio, presumably because it aired in French. Even still, it would have been nice if such a fact was acknowledged by the two commentators. Those gentlemen actually stole the show for Red Bulls fans discussing the game on Twitter and the in-game chat. The two men, both of whom remained nameless throughout the 90+ minutes of action, both mocked the Montreal club and discussed what they would eat as the national anthems played at the arena, not realizing that they were on the air at the time. The play-by-play announcer did his best Jon Miller impersonation all evening long, throwing out his best Spanish and French accents whenever he pronounced names such as Juan Agudelo and Thierry Henry. "Dear commentator, pick an accent. Don't be American the whole time and then bust out with Teeeeahree Aaaaaanreeee," one fan commented on Twitter.

The video quality was subpar and the Full Screen view covered less than half of the actual computer screen. The audio, while unintentionally hilarious at times, was three to five seconds behind the action throughout the entire match. By the time the final whistle blew around 9:40 pm ET, less than 1,300 viewers had survived from start to finish. I certainly don't blame anybody for choosing the Celtics vs. Heat game over the last 20 minutes of this particular soccer match.

The game: Those that missed out on Wednesday's friendly involving the Red Bulls missed nothing at all. The New York players on the pitch were clearly in second gear from the start, trying to conserve energy while not embarrassing themselves or the Montreal Impact. The Red Bulls actually slowed down further after Thierry Henry's goal in the 35 th minute was waved off due to the striker being ruled offside. Those watching the game were never treated to a replay but the commentators and fans online all seemed to agree that the goal should have been allowed. Montreal struck just two minutes later when Ali Gerba buried an impressive header past keeper Greg Sutton, who was very unsure of himself in Wednesday's friendly.

The evening has to be considered a success for the 2012 MLS expansion club. The Impact players looked understandably nervous during the first 20 minutes of the match, but they eventually settled into a groove en route to scoring the only goal of the contest. Over 12,500 fans made their way to Saputo Stadium for what was essentially a meaningless exhibition contest. That's not bad considering the attendance at some Major League Soccer arenas during regular season matches. I won't name any such arenas here.

Overall: For Montreal soccer fans, this was a chance for their club to play against and impress one of the best teams in all of MLS. New York fans, however, were thoroughly bored, so much so that many simply logged off the stream once the halftime whistle blew. If nothing else, Wednesday's match was a reminder that having a club play a friendly in between two regular season matches in a span of eight days probably isn't a good idea;

for the team or the fans.