Each time we leave the house, cook, or drive somewhere there is a simple tip to follow to save electric and fuel costs, while reducing your carbon footprint.  The 10 minute rule:

If you're going to turn it off in 10 minutes, turn it off now.

This rule applies to several sitations.  First, consider the air conditioning in your home on a hot summer day.  If you are going to be leaving in ten minutes, you'll probably never notice the difference if you turn the air off now.   The same applies when you are getting close to your destination.  You can switch off the heat or air in your car a few minutes early and most likely you won't notice a significant change in your comfort level before you turn off the car.   When cooking, if you know that a dish needs only a few more minutes in the oven, switch off the power a bit before you take it out of the oven.  As long as the door is shut, most of the heat will be retained (Be careful to never undercook food though!).  By applying the ten minute rule, your savings will add up.  Over the course of the year, ten minutes a day is over sixty hours of energy and cash savings.

Before you let books collect dust on the shelf, consider some of these great green options for recycling your old books. 

1.  Donate your books to a local library - Share knowledge, foster a lifelong sense of learning, and help others in your community learn by donating to your library.

2.  Post books on Amazon or Ebay - Help your used books find a new home and make some extra money at the same time.  

3.  Contact hospitals or shelters to donate books - anywhere that people wait will be glad to have a change of reading material for patrons.

4.  Trade with Friends - Ask around and trade books to learn about new areas of interest and authors.

5.  Buy new books - Look around in your area for a secondhand book store that buys and sells books.  You can bring in your old books in exchange for new reading material.