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BANG FOR THE BITE
If 10,000 Biter households keep the lights off for one night a month, in a year we'll save $46,849.32 on our energy bills.
COCKTAIL FACT
In a 2004 poll, 51% of females said they prefer to make whoopee in the dark.
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home › tip library › Turn Off the Light
When is a turn off a real turn on?
The Bite
When turning it off means getting it on. A no-lights night is a simple way to save your energy for, um, more satisfying endeavors, so turn off the lights, and turn on your partner.The Benefits
- Cash savings. The average household spends $285 a year lighting their home.
- Energy savings. Lighting accounts for 15% of electricity used in the home.
- Oh, what a night!
Personally Speaking
Some of us tried this earlier in the month, and there's been positive feedback all around.Wanna Try?
- Do a little dance, make a little love, turn down the lights tonight. Just remember to light a candle in the bathroom.
- Big Dipper Beeswax Aromatherapy Pillars - in 9 scents ($11-$25).
- Way Out Wax - GMO-free soy candles from Vermont ($4-$8).
Jun 01,2007
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All editorial suggestions in this tip are the result of testing and a preference for the tip topic. No advertiser has paid to have its company referenced in the tip. For more information, please read our Editorial Policy.
Idle Hands
Powering down for an evening means no TV, no stereo, no Nintendo Wii. No bread baking. But just as necessity breeds ingenuity, so does boredom, and a no-lights night is just the time to cultivate a few unusual talents you can use to later spice up dull parties or impress some hunk a burnin' love: Practice imitating famous voices (Grant, Hepburn, Hitchcock), preferably in the context of a drinking game; tell ghost stories or read some E. A. Poe; or, my new favorite, try your hand at hand shadowography (that's the technical term).
My last no-lights night main event was inspired by the amazing new German Volkswagen commercial I heard about through VSL-maybe I'm a moron (no need to chime in there), but a coupla candles, a blank wall, and a few idle hands gave way to an hour of brilliant absurdist entertainment. Learn how to form different animal shadows here.
- Jenifer Morgan... off to see if I can manage the Lochness Monster...
My last no-lights night main event was inspired by the amazing new German Volkswagen commercial I heard about through VSL-maybe I'm a moron (no need to chime in there), but a coupla candles, a blank wall, and a few idle hands gave way to an hour of brilliant absurdist entertainment. Learn how to form different animal shadows here.
- Jenifer Morgan... off to see if I can manage the Lochness Monster...
Biter Comments...
No lights means going to bed earlier, getting more sleep and feeling much more grounded and happy! When I was younger my dad lived for 17 1/2 yrs. with kerosene lamps. We went to bed earlier because the low lighting wasn't good for reading or doing much. Americans are over worked, running around ragged,and half asleep every day, get some more sleep, turn off your lights a couple nights a wk. America! The simpler life is yours for the taking.
Some of us would love to turn off the lights but have no one to share the dark with. For the time being I am stuck watching TV and Net Flicks movies both of which take electricity. Sigh.
We're a group in NYC called Plug It Out!. We have a collective unplugged evening one day every month and it's a wonderful way to spend the evening. As much about saving energy as saving the mind and soul. We've gotten fantastic feedback and have hosted a pot luck unplugged dinner featuring only local foods, and illuminated by hand poured soy candles . It was a great success and we filmed some footage for a an upcoming documentary.
Please join us and spread the word. Our next Plug It Out! is on Saturday, June 16, from 6:30-10:30 pm, but you can do it for longer if you like.
It's all about enrichment, not deprivation...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PlugItOut/
http://www.myspace.com/plugitout
Why not give up driving one day a month!
You know how every so often we get emails and notices from "friends" that tells us not to buy gas on a specific day?
My husband and I were talking recently and he said that what would really help our planet as well as possibly give a wakeup to the "powers that be" is set aside a day a month, all on the same day, that no one drives! I know that it would not go over nationally that there are those who would say, "Oh I cannot do that, I have to go to work, or the store etc." However, I feel that if we could get it started that enough of us like-minded people would really embrace it and do it for our planet as well as our wallets.
Just think, walk, bike, public transportation. What a kick it might start?
www.bluemoonnl.com
Shanti
I love the idea of "give up driving one day a month" my husband and i also got the same email last month and did our part not to buy gas that day...but still saw the gas stations full. We had the same thought, one day without any driving...for our family maybe a sunday, i know we could bike to church by just getting up a little earlier. Everyone could personalize there day and choose what worked for them...lets spread the word...my family will give it a try! I'll let you all know how it goes...
How do you get neighbors to turn off their outside lights? The lights on my neighbors garage light up my whole house at night. A 747 could land in their driveway. There are many others who leave outdoor lights on all night long. If security is the issue, then use motion sensors. Unfortunately, if you say something to them about it, they just get angry. I understand it's their electric bill but it's everyone's natural resources that are being wasted.
PHOTO ALBUMS
Posted by: Brook | June 01, 2007 at 08:56 AM