Plant the seed: Help your children plant an indoor spice garden. Not only is this a great way to produce home grown herbs and add flavour to your meals, it also reduces food miles associated with buying food at a grocery store that may have been shipped from thousands of miles away.I had a college room mate who used to plant herb seeds all the time. We let him go about his business…until we found out that it was, indeed, a business. The last straw was when he started doing lines off the coffee table. We tossed him (literally) out the door into the snow, and never saw him again.
From an environmental point of view, however, I would have to take issue with this suggestion. Planting the herb seed is a nice little gesture. However, the growing lamps in the closet, and the toaster oven used to season the “fruit” uses quite a bit of energy. Then there is the midnight excursion to the local convenience store to stock up on Doritos, Funions, and the like.
Nope…I don’t see the wisdom in this proposal. It seems counterproductive to the usual inane efforts of inconsequence that run rampant in our scaremonger community.
Candle-lit games night: What a great time to get out the board games or play a game of flashlight tag. Get the family gathered for some old fashioned quality time to remind your children that games can be played without a computer or TV screen and that fun can be had with mom or dad.Incidentally...candles cause global warming...but only the Jewish ones...
And the fun just increases exponentially when you work a little bit of reality into the board game. Imagine that you roll the dice only to see your ever loving thimble land right on double stacked hotels gracing Boardwalk or Park Place. Fear not young ones, and learn from the best. Dip your sticky little hands into someone else’s stash of Monopoly cash and hand it over to the owner of the hotels. After all, there are no repercussions in this world for personal financial mismanagement. If you owe money due to “the roll of the dice” your neighbor will bail you out. Beautiful!!!
BONUS: Pretend you’re G. Gordon Liddy when you reach for your Community Chest card and let the palm of your grimy little hand pause over the candle flame for a bit. You can't overestimate the application of a little intimidation on mindless boardgames. Or refuse to pay the Luxury Tax by inflating your chest and insisting that the other players refer to you as Congressman Rangel.
Family Feud: Nothing like pitting mom against dad and brother against sister in some light-hearted competition to get inspired! Healthy competition, whether it's tracking and comparing the carbon foot print of each household member or creating a family challenge get your household charged, can make saving energy a sport where everyone can win!GENIUS!!!! BRILLIANT!!!!
Nothing like provoking a little family discord to get the ball rolling. If you’re truly committed, you might raise the bar a bit and consider family honor killings in the event that you have a little trouble maker who doesn’t think we should live in caves. And, let’s be honest…one less consumer is good for the environment.
_____________________
EARTH HOUR FALLS ON MARCH 28TH, AT 8:30 PM.
...and I just had headlights put on my lawn mower. Kismet!!!
|