It's good to be aware of energy costs all year long. There are some tricks to help cool your apartment in the summer which will help alleviate the premium prices you're paying to keep cool. You can save for some sweet designer jeans or new music to take care of that.

Install compact fluorescent bulbs (also known as CFLs). They are a little more expensive than traditional light bulbs, but they last longer, drastically cut down on electricity costs AND produce less heat.

Keep the temperature as high as you can tolerate. If possible, set your thermostat at 78 degrees Fahrenheit or higher if you can. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, if every household raised air-conditioning temperatures 6 degrees, the equivalent of 190,000 barrels of oil would be saved every day. Aren't you proud of us, Mr. Gore?

Remember to set your thermostat so your apartment is warmer when you're not home. There's no reason to cool air that no one's occupying. That's like paying for a movie and then going home instead of watching it. Though this can almost make sense, depending upon which celebrities are in it. You know who they are. But wasting energy never makes sense.

Try to minimize household activities that produce heat and moisture in your apartment. You don't have to give up your daily shower, but reduce the amount of time you're in the shower and take it easy on how hot you make it.

If you're lucky enough to have a clothes dryer, use it sparingly in the summer months. The good news is that clothes will dry much faster if you hang them outside to dry (make sure your apartment building doesn't have rules against this). And they last longer without all that rough and tumbling.

Plan meals that don't require a lot of oven or stove time. Nothing will heat an apartment up faster than the joy of baking. Betty Crocker's electricity bills must be ridiculous. When it's hot outside, doesn't a delicious sandwich or salad sound better anyway?