"The secret of change is to focus all your energy, not on fighting the old, but in building the new"
(Socrates)
“Energy is defined as the capacity to do work; like all
living things, we humans need it, in a biological sense to survive. But we also
need it to run out our societies – to heat and cool our homes; operate our cell
phones, lamps, laptops; fuel our cars; and power our industries” (Houtman, Karr, and Interlandi 335).
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| Wind energy |
Worldwide, every human being uses different types of
energy in his daily basins; for example, a person can drive his vehicle or take
a public transportation by using gasoline or oil that has been extracted through rocks and
reservoirs. Also, people can benefit from wind energy. Wind energy is also one of the cheapest forms of
energy available today and therefore it can be used by everyone, including poor
farmers from rural areas. The biggest benefit one can reap out of wind energy is
that it generates electricity, but does not release any harmful pollutants or
gases as by products. This therefore makes it a safer and cleaner source of
energy (http://energyprosandcons.org/)
Another form is solar energy,
in this case, the form of producing energy is very quietly, but most important
is that has the ability to harness electricity in remote locations that are not
linked with a national grid. For example, the installation of solar panels in
remote areas is more effective than laying the required voltage wires.
| Saving energy to save the planet |
Indeed, my experiment of
minimizing my energy usage started last Sunday 25 by midnight. Yes, by
midnight. First, I have talked with my daughter and explained the situation. (I
had to offer her something as a gift if she helps) Since next day was a holiday “Memorial Day” I
would be off of work & school, so it was a perfect occasion to work in our
experiment; Otherwise, I’m not sure if we would do it as much as we did it now. Later,
I have unplugged almost all the electronic devices at home:
Microwave
TV
Internet
Wireless Router
Lamps (6)
Stove
Computer
Printer
Cell phones (2)
Alarm clock (2)
IPod
Electric Kittle
Coffee maker
Electric sharpener
Contrary, I couldn’t unplug
the refrigerator since I have much food there, neither the electric water
heater, this because I cannot operate it.
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| Trying to reduce my energy usage at least for one day |
What we did?
The first step was to plan
our activities for the next day. Then we followed our plan. We woke up late on Monday. Then, we just had
breakfast by noon without cooking (yogurt, fruits, cereal, and nuts). We just
do laundry once a week, so we were free of it. We just use the community
laundry room to wash our clothes. We do not use the drier during summer. Also,
we wash many clothes by hand, yes by hand- washing.
On Monday we had an average
of 88°F we have opened windows and doors in order to ventilate our apartment.
By the time it was getting hot, my daughter started to ask me many questions of
why we were doing our experiment; especially because she loves to watch movies
on holidays. Then, I have remained her about getting her prize for helping me, then, we decided to read instead watching
movies. Also, we slept a nap…it was a long one. After that, we did a long walk
with our dog (it was a double one). Back home, we had
lunch-dinner: sandwiches, salads, hummus, fruit, and any other cold food.
Later, when started getting dark, we lit many candles. We have talked a lot
with my daughter. Also, we have played with our dogie more that we usually do.
At this moment, I have used a camera to take some pictures of our candlelight. The
camera uses rechargeable batteries.
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| Enough light for our back yard |
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| Candlelight everywhere |
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| A candlelight dinner |
Which changes I will be willing to continue? I really
loved my experiment, because we have spent more time with my daughter. We have
talk and talk, read and talk, play with the dog and talk, and I really enjoyed
it. In addition, I will be willing to cut back many things in order to spend
more time with my daughter, for example we would decide to watch movies only
Wednesday and Fridays. More, we have agreed to do not use computers, cell
phones, IPods once a week. Yet, we can do gardening together, as we did on
Monday.
Which changes I’m unwilling to gave up?
Since I have to drive to go
to school & pick up my daughter from school, also I drive my car to work
(Norco, CA) it is hard for me to give up using my car. It is not a commodity; in my
case is a necessity. Moreover, I can unplug the refrigerator; since we use it
for food purposes it is really hard to give it up. Also, the internet is
another change that I’m unwilling to gave up; since I’m full time student, I
need it for educational purposes, for example posting my blogs.
What could I do to increase energy efficiency in my
home without having to give up conveniences or technology?
1. Unplug electric devices every day.
2. Plug them back only If they are need it
3. Follow a plan; for example, agree with your
family to watch TV less than usual.
4. Read more about forms of energy, then decide
which ones you can use or support the most
5. Go shopping only once every two weeks (make a
list and do all shopping needed it)
There
are more alternatives, but the most important would be having the determination
to follow a plan and having discipline while working on it. It doesn't look
like my two short goals of “Watching TV only twice a week” and “Going shopping
twice a month” might be the solution to save energy, but at least, I feel like
we can do it, so we will do it.
“If you cannot do great things, do small things
in a great way” (Napoleon Hill)
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