Ray Kottner had driven a cab on New York City's streets for more than 60 years when he decided to stop charging people. Ray drove a Checker Marathon cab, one of those classic New York vehicles that are but a memory now. When I was a boy, my biggest thrill was to be able to sit in one of the jump seats that folded up and down. We rarely took cabs, but I can remember every ride that we did take. Five or six people fit in the back seat of those beauties. Read more.

That's the conclusion of this survey that Service Magic recently did. "While we show a fairly decent level of awareness for green and energy-efficient alternatives, this isn't translating to action. Over 500 service professionals told us that consumers implement green alternatives into their projects less than 10 percent of the time. The one exception to this is in window replacements, which have shown impressive growth, up 81 percent this year as compared to the second quarter of 2009." Not very good news for heating professionals.

Ah, how our perception of what an energy company should be doing has changed since the '60s. This one's right up there with the ads that once had doctors recommending cigarettes.

You'll love this site. I came across them while wandering the Web and I wish they were in the U.S. rather than in the U.K.. Everything old is new again!

Check out this story from the Gas Company in Central England. They're celebrating that this pub finally got a central heating system. Best line? "We've now got central heating which we've never had before, so that will be very useful in the winter, as it used to be freezing." Will whiskey sales now suffer? Stay tuned!

Nothing to do with heating, but I got a kick out of this McNugget Rage video. Make sure you watch it 'til the very end. And thanks to Dave Pryer for the heads up. Want fries with that?

How about this milk on the radiator? I remember that from my grade-school days. A pint of milk cost two cents and it sat on the hot radiator most of the day. Try doing that to the kids nowadays. You'd have a thousand lawsuits before the final bell.

Since iPhone apps are cool and current, these folks figure the kids will be able to talk their parents into heating the pool with a heat pump because it's greener than a fossil-fuel heater. I think it's a stretch, but crazy times call for different ideas, and this one certainly qualifies. Good luck!

Here's a report about a new product designed to protect athletes from heat stroke. It's simple, cheap and it seems to work. If you work in hot attics, get some of these and use them. They could save your life.

Nothing to do with heating, but people like this guy fascinate me. Rave on!