Last winter we had a power outage that lasted for a week, and I noticed something. No, I mean besides the fact that we had no light, or heat, or running water (we have a well with an electric pump.)
It was quiet. Really, really quiet. Until the generators started running. But for the first few moments of the day I realized just how many things we plug in around here. So here's a challenge.
Look around you. How many lights are on? How many appliances do you have plugged in right now? When you turn of your lights, do you still have glowing green lights from somewhere? When everything is off, can you still hear faint buzzing?
My husband assures me that these things do not take enough energy to make any sort of a difference. But I can't make that work in my head. To me, every little bit adds up.
Last April I started unplugging things. Not everything. Not the fridge, the washer or dryer. Not lamps I use frequently or televisions that take minutes to reconnect to the cable company. But the microwave. The coffee maker. I use them maybe once or twice a day, and when I do, I plug them in. Then I unplug them. I unplugged the radio that made the faint buzzing when it was off. I plug it in to use it. I unplugged the handheld vac - it isn't charged, but I usually know when I'll need it, and can charge it up ahead of time.
I realize this can be irritating. And my husband may be right - I may be overdoing it. But at the same time, it makes me feel a little bit better because I am trying. I am making this effort. And eventually it gets so that I hardly notice it at all.
My husband says the same thing, but if everyone, everywhere pulled some plugs it would have a huge impact. And, we would feel that we were helping the cause and we would become more aware of taking care of the planet in all aspects of our lives.
ReplyDeletehey kathleen (found you via sue--met you at the wedding! i'm ted's girlfriend)
ReplyDeletewe put all our tv/vcr/dvd player stuff on one power strip and unplug that but the dvr is always plugged in so that we can record shows. since we leave for work for weeks on end, i think it's smart to unplug! i do the same with the printers and computers in the office.