Green Sculpture

With the ongoing saga of Cape Wind perhaps edging toward a long-awaited ruling to move ahead and Rhode Island's offshore wind farm slated to get underway soon, green wind energy is steadily making its way into New England and frankly, it's about time. Personally, I'm in favor of these wind farms not simply because they take advantage of a renewable resource we have in abundance in this region but, quite frankly, modern wind turbines are fascinating to watch. Slowly rotating (unlike the whizzing older ones that remind me of freestanding blenders), these sleek and elegant machines are hypnotic pieces of modern art. Each day on my way to work, I pass two and without fail, they never cease to amaze me.

The wind turbine at Portsmouth Abbey School in Portsmouth, RI, has generated almost 40% of the school's electrical needs since it first began turning in 2006.

The graceful 336-foot high new wind turbine erected by the Town of Portsmouth catches your eye virtually everywhere in town and along the shore. (See more about it in this CNN clip as well as this segment from National Geographic's "World's Toughest Fixes")