Find Yourself in the Dark on March 26, 2011 - Earth Hour

On Saturday, March 26, 2011 at 8:30 pm, Earth Hour will begin. From 8:30 - 9:30, all lights need to be turned off, and candles need to be rediscovered - for the greater good.

Sydney, Australia kicked-off Earth Hour in 2007, with 2.2 million individuals and more than 2,000 businesses turning off their lights for one hour to take a stand against climate change (I wonder what the poor sea turtles must have been thinking while they floated along the East Australian Current). The annual practice spread across the world, and has now evolved into a record-breaking challenge every year. On Saturday, March 27, 2010, that years’ Earth Hour became the record-breaking year, where 128 countries and territories took part, joining forces in celebration of one common interest – our planet.

Now, there is no mention anywhere of turning off TV’s, laptops, computers, or gaming devices. And forget the proud new owners of the Apple iPad 2 that just went on sale worldwide yesterday – they’re too busy playing with them. Maybe we should contemplate no electricity of any kind for that hour. Why not? Oh - but then gadgets can be charged-up ahead of time - right. We don’t want to die of withdrawal from lack of screen-display.

I wonder if there is an ‘app’ (short for ‘application,’ so the trendy-folk tell me) for that sort of thing. A little icon you can touch with your finger, guaranteeing instant stress relief from screen withdrawal. I betcha there is. If there isn’t, maybe someone can invent it, and give me some of the royalties. But that wouldn’t be very Earth-friendly, now would it? Another contribution to the electric-consuming world we are in, it would be.

So back to earth hour….I write this on my laptop, plugged into the wall. Even though the silly thing has a battery, I worry about it dying, leaving me in the dark. I keep sucking electricity out of those funny-looking holes in the wall, fearful my laptop will fade to black at the most critical moment. And if it did – my GOD – how would I write?

Um, with a candle, some ink and paper – what a concept!

I just ran around the house doing chores. Laundry with my washer and dryer, baking two dozen muffins with my oven on for who-knows-how-long, washing the inside of a bacon-scent infested microwave (gag), and then washing the light switches in the kitchen that were covered in spaghetti sauce splatters – don’t ask. Am I any better?

Am I really contributing to the upcoming Earth Hour? With everyone charging up electronics in anticipation of Earth Hour, for those who are participating, that is, is our surge of electric use in the hours leading up to the event really a good idea? Heck, there is a website dedicated to it – which is a fantastic way to spread the word, modern day communication being what it is, and all. But think of the electricity needed to initially create that site. Shouldn’t Earth Hour be a continual practice of electricity conservation?

So for now, as I wallow in guilt over my electric consumption, my gasoline consumption, and the amount of water needed to clean my house, I will spend the day running around collecting candles, and make a night of it with my family, and hopefully, in my own twisted way, be able to teach them something.

There goes the buzzer on the clothes dryer – gotta run. Next load is ready to go.

I really need to re-think this.