Before we get started with this week's activity, I have a favor to ask. I've entered a contest and my submission has been posted. To win the contest I need comments. They can be left anonymously and without your email address. So if you have a minute, click HERE and leave me your thoughts. The contest runs through September 12th. Thanks so much!
There's a lot of great information in this post and I encourage you to read through it ... however, if you'd rather jump straight to the current challenge, you can do so by clicking here: This Week's Challenge
Last week most of us thought that the challenge, to turn off our A/C units, would be difficult if not impossible. But then, Mother Nature took pity on us ... or perhaps she chose to reward us for our hard Eco-work ... and the temperatures dropped. Cooler breezes meant that we were comfortable with the doors and windows open ... and without using air conditioning units.
This challenge, for me, was a reminder about "balance". Sometimes it's not practical or safe to take an action, no matter how Eco-friendly it is. In those situations we can still be as efficient as possible and minimize our impact. Living "green" isn't always about living without ... sometimes it's finding a balance between what we need and protecting the earth.
Our CTWW Gang talked about our challenge on Twitter using the hashtag #CTWW. If you're on twitter, these are great folks to follow:
Our Honor Society wrote wonderful posts and left meaningful comments:
Mrs. Green took a good, hard look at her energy use. If you've followed her for long, then you know that she has been whittling away at Chez Green's use for awhile now ... so much so that they have reduced it to the bare basics. But Mrs. Green is an Eco-warrior and was able to find one thing to give up for a day. Can you guess what it is? It's a small thing ... something that I'm betting many of you do on a daily basis ... something that we don't give much thought to. Guesses? Find the answer HERE. And thank you, Mrs. Green ... your opening comments totally made my day! :-)
Ann gave up using her oven and instead used the top plate to cook. She also used a crock-pot ... another energy saving device. In her weekly Save Our World post, where she includes our banner and a link to our challenges, she talks about how a favorite river from her childhood bled.
Argentum Vulgaris uses so little electricity that he's practically off the grid. In this POST he talks about what he does use and about why he doesn't use energy-efficient light bulbs.
Alicia lives in Tennessee and temperatures topped 102 degrees Fahrenheit. Wowee! So living without air conditioning wasn't practical or safe. Instead, she chose a few other energy saving methods: she used a laptop instead of a desktop computer, she prepared raw food instead of using the oven and she didn't use the washer/dryer for a day. In addition, she set her A/C high so that it wasn't coming on often. Great job, Alicia!!
Our friend Lynn took advantage of cooler temperatures to open up doors and windows. In this ARTICLE she talks about indoor air quality and includes a link with great information. Check it out ... I'm sure you'll learn a lot ... I did!
During the summer, Brian turns the A/C up (so that it rarely comes on), uses ceiling fans, and keeps lights off during the day. He's already planning for winter and thinking about ways to keep energy costs (and usage) down. One idea he has is to pull out more blankets for those chilly evenings.
Amy also lives in an area that got hit with severely hot temperatures this year so, for health reasons, they installed a window A/C unit. She's making it as efficient as possible, though, by setting it high and cleaning the unit often so that it works efficiently. She also sets a bucks under the backside of the unit (the end that is outside the window) to collect any water. She then uses that water on her plants.
Tiffany took full advantage of some cooler nights and left the A/C off. As with many of you, she worries about health issues associated with the heat so, if it gets too hot, she uses the A/C.
Last week, after heading into the dark recesses of his pantry, Rewinn seemed to disappear. We were concerned because his last words, before heading in, were to call "911" if he didn't come out in a reasonable time. I'm happy to say that he is fine. He actually didn't go into the dreaded pantry. Why? Here's a two word hint: Guinea Pig. So, are you curious? Read all about it HERE. Be sure to read "Let's Hang Out" where Rewinn shares one of his favorite ways to reduce energy use.
Marcy lives in Montana and they've had an unusually cool summer. But she shares that even on hot days they don't use air conditioning. She and her family save energy by not turning the lights on during the day, and often leave them off at night as well. She believes that there is more they can do, however, so plans to brainstorm ideas. Thanks, Marcy!
Mandi has been on vacation ... welcome back, Mandi! On our challenge to take short showers, she shares that she managed to take a 3-minute shower, only turning the water on to rinse. I loved her comment "I'm so excited that I can do this!" Me, too, Mandi. Check out her post entitled "No Electricity Day". She shares what she won't be turning on and offers a ton of great ideas for ways to spend the day.
I'd like to welcome Kelleigh to our challenges. Kelleigh lives in Alaska and lives off the grid. Wow! In her words "We live off the grid and use pretty much 100% solar most of the year. Because we live in the northern latitudes, we have to run a generator to charge batteries in the winter. But, we are very conscious of using energy efficient light bulbs making sure "ghost power loads" are always turned off. Also, we heat water for showers using wood heat in the winter. Pretty backwoodsy, but it works!" She doesn't stop there and says "For this challenge, I want to be more conscious of when I use the stove and do more baking/cooking at once to reduce propane usage." Check out this POST where she offers ways to stay cool which also make a difference ... it's a totally inspiring idea! Thanks, Kelleigh ... so glad to have you with us!
Shane lives in Florida and it's been hotter than usual this year so ... she's been using the A/C. However, she keeps the setting high and "tries" to get her kids to keep the doors closed.
I'm guessing that Rachel doesn't need A/C in Wales ... it took her awhile to read the second part of the challenge because she was laughing so hard. :-) But yep, we have something for you, too, Rachel. In looking around at her energy use, she found one item which she could (and did) convert from electricity to ... "people power". Oh you know you want to read about this clever conversion. Click HERE to read all about it including pictures and instructions. Thanks, Rachel!
McBride's Organic Farm Daily picked up one of your challenge articles. Was it yours? In addition to CTWW, the publication included pieces on weeds, honey and "Tomatoland".
Jessica said that this challenge was easy because she was on vacation in Santa Cruz and California has had relatively cool weather this year. Nice to have you back, Jessica ... hope you enjoyed your vacation!!
Wow ... as always your efforts are so impressive! If you wrote an article, I have Stumbled, Tweeted and Facebooked it! If you'd like to help spread the word, please use the share buttons at the bottom of this post!
So ... what shall we do this week? How about this ...
This Week's Challenge:
Let's tackle litter this week. Litter is not only unsightly and bad for the environment, it's dangerous for wildlife who mistake it for food or get caught in containers trying to get at food. So let's get rid of it.
This week go for a walk and pick up litter as you go. If you don't find any litter on your walk, then just enjoy being outside and "communing" with nature. By the way, this is a great activity for kids so don't forget to include them.
Or ...
If going for a walk is not doable for you, please write a post about why litter is a problem in the environment and how we can prevent it.
UP THE ANTE: Argentum Vulgaris is raising the ante on this challenge. Here it is: "Next time you see a person drop some trash, take them to task in a friendly way. If everybody did this just once, the world would stay a little cleaner, a little longer." Who's taking him up on this challenge?
RAISE THE ANTE: Harold Shaw has a great idea for us. After picking up the trash, take a picture of all the stuff collected and post it online. Let's show the world how bad litter is. Anyone up for this challenge?
RAISE THE ANTE: Harold Shaw has a great idea for us. After picking up the trash, take a picture of all the stuff collected and post it online. Let's show the world how bad litter is. Anyone up for this challenge?
So what do you think ... are you up for it?
WE'RE CHANGING THE WORLD ... ONE CHALLENGE AT A TIME!
This came at a perfect time - I am spending a long weekend in a National Park, and I am going to make it my goal to pick up trash to make it a cleaner and better place for others!
ReplyDeleteI don't think we have much of a litter problem here, but I'm going for a walk this afternoon and I'll keep my eyes peeled - I hope I don't get an unpleasant surprise.
ReplyDeletebtw, I think you mean "communing" with nature, except for those lucky enough to walk through the great outdoors on their way to work ;-)
Oh thanks, Rachel ... I did mean communing. :-)
ReplyDeleteCTWW is up and running.
ReplyDeletehttp://av1labyrinth.blogspot.com/p/eco-crap.html
An important update on last week's challenge
And, don't be squeamish. I am going to up the ante. Next time you see a person drop some trash, take them to task in a friendly way. If everybody did this just once, the world would stay a little cleaner, a little longer.
AV
Great challenge! I often have trouble persuading myself to pick up litter (because I didn't drop it, of course), but I really need to get over that feeling of limited liability. Gloves and a trash bag would make it easier on my squeamish sensibilities. :-)
ReplyDeleteWe dont have much trash here on our roads. The Prisoners pick it up. But when we go Camping or on a picinic at the creek we always bring a trash bag. We leave it cleaner than before we used it. When we are done with our activity we take the time to pick up any trash we see and then we take it with us to throw away. We challenge our selves to see which person can pick up the most in the least amount of time.
ReplyDeleteDONE! Funny this is the challenge, I actually just began do ing this a few weeks ago! You should see what I pick up yesterday...GROSS!
ReplyDeleteHi Small Footprints community! Thanks for the warm welcome!
ReplyDeleteAn update on last week's challenge: well, I did all my baking on one day. Then I used power from the sun to reheat(I know, I know, microwaves aren't the best thing ever, but...)!
For this week's challenge, I will head out on the Alaska Highway to do a little litter patrol. There are always semi tires, coolant containers, food wrappers, etc. to pick up.
You can also check out my new blog post, Have a Trashy Time!, at The Flat Homeschool on this week's trash pick-up challenge! Have fun this week!
Thank you for spurring me to start picking up trash again from the roads around our house, this morning started and did a post on it over at Simple is Working :)
ReplyDeleteThanks
Harold
Great idea! I will do this!
ReplyDeleteI've Become My Mother
I've Become My Mother facebook
I'm training for the Weekend to End Womens Cancers walk next month so this is a perfect challenge for me!
ReplyDeleteA helpful thing about this challenge is that it fits into our existing walking schedule (to and from the bus for work), in sort of a Dawn Patrol for Trash.
ReplyDeleteThere really is nothing as good (and inexpensive!) as just walking around where we live!
It is so easy when going for a walk to stick a bag in my pocket and use it to pick up any trash along the way. Most trash that I see seems to be paper and plastic which after picking it up is easy to just drop off at the recycle bin.
ReplyDeleteWow, how exciting! Thanks for the help in getting picked up in McBride's daily.
ReplyDeleteI did write about electricity last week, but maybe I forgot to post/tweet it: http://www.almostallthetruth.com/2011/08/is-electricity-natural/
This new challenge is one I have been thinking a lot about this past week. My kids have learned through the state park's junior ranger program about picking up litter, but I worry about them picking up certain things (e.g. we have found hypodermic needles on a few of our walks before). Hmm, so I may try to tackle this from a parent's perspective.
Thank you for providing such a useful information..i hope it will prove worthwhile in my business..
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