Also, I really enjoy behavior that smacks of the arbitrary. So for both of these reasons, The Life and Times of Michael5000 supports EarthHour2010.
The idea is that this Saturday night, at 8:30 local time, you turn out your lights for an hour. This will save a little bit of electricity, and, I suppose, make you feel kind of like you are part of a worldwide movement for positive change. And to a certain extent, this may well be true. I suspect that it is also intended to inspire you to donate to the World Wildlife Fund, or whatever it's calling itself now. Which would be handsome of you, of course.
(There is also a map on which you can sign up to "help your state turn color, and unite with the rest of the country." You might think that this kind of thing would be right up my alley, but actually the excitement of, um, "helping my state turn color" is kind of ruined for me by the fact that the map's legend is totally weak. If you wanted to get me excited about changing my state's color, I'd have to know what the color indicated. Duh! Also, I have no particular desire for an daily email from the World Wildlife Fund for the rest of my threescore and ten.)
To be honest, it mostly just sounds kind of fun to turn out all the lights. I'm going to go all out, too -- ALL the lights are going off! Also the computers! And anything else electric! With the exception of clocks, which would be a real pain to reset! We'll be reading by candlelight like we was Abe Lincoln or something!! Um... pending Mrs.5000's approval, of course.
Have a happy Earth Hour on Saturday, y'all! Oh, and I hope you had a happy Earth Day on Monday.
5 comments:
Well, this is the one time a map legend is unnecessary. The more GREEN the more participation.
@Carto: More gross participation? More participation per capita? Does a dark green indicate that, say, 100 people have signed up? 10,000? One percent of a state's population? A whopping fifty percent of a state's population? What should be our sense of the relative participation between a state that is a handsome forest green and one that is a weak-ass chartreuse?
can't you think of anything else to do by candlelight for an hour besides read?
@Anonymous Dude: Not in the manner of Abe Lincoln. I think he left even rail splitting for the daylight hours.
When we lived in semi-rural NE Ohio, the electricity went out regularly. Sometimes it was because of a blizzard or a massive thunderstorm, but other times it was just because. We kept kerosene lanterns filled and ready, and more than a few evenings were spent by lantern-light--kids doing homework, 'pioneer' baths (water heated on the gas stove), and entertainment thanks to the wind-up Victrola. I think I've done my time, Earth-hour-wise.
M5000, you are wise to avoid signing up. After we contributed a memorial donation to Nature Conservancy, we thought they'd never stop pestering us for more. Sheesh.
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