Hot moves

This Valentine’s Day green is the new sexy, so why not impress that special

someone by showing your more environmentally sensitive side? The Four Corners Office

for Resource Efficiency, aka 4CORE, offers the following helpful hints to lower your carbon footprint while generating a little heat of your own:

• Whip up a homemade meal using a slow cooker, which saves time and uses less energy

than the stove or oven. If using the oven, cook in a glass or ceramic pan, which holds heat better, and reduce the cooking temperature by 25 degrees. And no peeking! Opening the oven door wastes energy – just like mom always told you.

• When it comes to clean up, use the dishwasher, which actually requires less water and

time, than hand-washing. Plus, no dish pan hands for all the canoodling on the couch you

can do with all that extra time.

• No one likes a date who is more interested in the TV or their phone than the live human

next to them. Turn on your date by turning off your devices. Not only will it save energy, it will be easier to connect and maybe even remember their name. Better yet, show what a smooth operator you are by investing in a power strip to unplug with the flick of a switch.

• New and old flames alike look better by candlelight. Dim the overheads and spark a few candles. Win bonus points by opting for soy candles over paraffin wax ones, which are made from petroleum. Soy is not only a natural, renewable resource but it burns cleaner and with less soot.

• Snuggle up next to the fire, made all the more efficient (and hotter!) with the installation

of a heat-air exchange system or an energy-efficient insert. Be sure to close the damper when the fire goes out (which hopefully it won’t).

• Better yet, skip the fire and turn the thermostat down, which is a perfect excuse to snuggle under a warm blanket. There are even smart thermostats that can lower the temperature – and reduce your energy bill – right from your phone. Just make sure not to do it as your date is gazing deep into your eyes (see no 3.)