Unplug!

So for Environmental Science class we have to choose a day to unplug all electronics and use as little or no electricity as possible…

Hmm… didn’t go so great. Living in a household of eight (yes, we’re Mexican), it was very difficult to get people to listen to me. Apparently they can’t live without TV and I couldn’t be without a toaster and blender; I love pb&j’s and fruit smoothies plus I couldn’t skip out on breakfast. I’m sure I could come up with ways of eating that do not involve electronics but it would take a lot of time and planning to do so. Even though my family did horrible at this little project, I don’t think I did too bad.

I don’t normally watch TV to begin with and we don’t have a working AC system so that helps a lot in reducing energy consumption. I did unplug all electronics but they were eventually plugged back in when they were needed which was not good. I also turned off my phone which wasn’t difficult at all but a whole week would kill me. As far as transportation goes we couldn’t depend on buses because here in Riverside County they are not reliable so my mom and I at least carpooled to work. At home we’re pretty good at turning off lights when not needed so that wasn’t a problem and we always get on each others case if we waste energy in that way. When it comes to showers, most of us are pretty fast and don’t waste too much water but three of us take about 40 minutes! I was able to take a 20 minute shower but I can’t do that all the time. When we wash clothes, we usually use cold water unless it’s white clothes or my dad’s work clothes and I usually hang dry my clothes because the colored clothing fades less and is less likely to get ruined. My sister and sister in law do this too but with a family of 8 it’s not possible to hang dry it all.

Doing all these things for 24 hours made me realize how much we depend on electronics and that it is a lot harder than I thought to let go of these luxuries but, not impossible. Some things I think I wouldn’t let go of are my lap top and printer because I need to do homework but I can minimize how much I use it, not that I use it long anyway. I also wouldn’t be able to go without a cell phone. I depend on my phone to have my family pick me up sometimes from either school or work and so sometimes the times vary. Also, I have class late so I don’t want to be out after dark without a cell phone. I see it as a means of protection; if something happens or I have car trouble I can call for help.

There are many things I can keep doing from now on. One thing is to try my best to take shorter showers. I will keep using cold water to wash my clothes and hang dry them too. I can still avoid TV and unplug all electronics even if we have to keep plugging them back in when needed.