10:30 a.m. - Roll out of bed (Hey, we don't have kids!). We recognize that someday we won't have the luxury of sleeping in. But for now, we will occasionally indulge. Besides, we were out last night until almost 2:00 a.m. at a concert downtown (Unknown Mortal Orchestra, if you care); the choice/convenience of being able to walk there and back is another luxury we don't take for granted.
11:00 a.m. - Begin a nice 7 mile run around False Creek on a beautiful sunny Vancouver day.
12:30 p.m. - "Breakfast": multigrain pancakes from scratch, served with sliced bananas and real maple syrup. Erin also prepped some food to eat later on in the day.
2:00 p.m. - Walk 2 miles or so to Downtown Eastside. We stopped by the home brewing shop to pick up ingredients for our next batch of beer. And the Homesteaders' Emporium for beeswax and soy wax for our next batch of candles. And Sunrise, a great Asian market where we picked up fruits and veggies for the week. We'd brought a backpack with us, so we loaded it up with all of our purchases and walked 2 miles back home.
By the time we finished all of our "To Do's," it was close to 5:00 p.m. before we could "relax."
Now, we understand that an alternate version of this day could have been:
8:00 a.m. - Wake up and run.
9:00 a.m. - Quick breakfast out or from a box.
10:00 a.m. - Hop in the car for groceries and beer.
11:00 a.m. - Start "relaxing."
The thing is, everything we did was part of a nice day. That run wasn't obligatory -- it was fun. Cooking wasn't a burden -- it was fun. Spending a few hours getting groceries and supplies wasn't a chore -- it was fun. Slowing down and enjoying every piece of the day is...fun.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Candle light Friday nights
This Friday I will be waiting for my husband to return home from a long week of travel. The sun will be setting and I will be lighting candles all over the house. Sounds romantic, hey? Well, not entirely – it’s all part of our year of living with less. We’ve introduced “Candle Light Friday Nights”.
Why are we doing this?
1. We own a lot of lamps (7 in total – remember we live in 620 square feet). I like to turn on said lamps. According to the all wise internet, using a lamp for two hours a day will consume nearly 220 kilowatt hours of electricity in a year, at an average cost of $18.
2. A former co-worker of mine, Denise, first introduced me to the concept of limited “screen time” that she used with her children, and I really liked the idea. I spend most of my day on the computer and I want to try it myself.
3. We watched No Impact Man a few weeks back. This family went 6 months with no electricity in New York. The idea is admirable but totally impractical for us, hence, we picked one night (and leave our fridge running).
How are we doing this?
Everything is done by candle light after dusk – no lights allowed and no electronic devices (no phone calls, texts, e-mails, or internet surfing allowed). We made our way through all of our candles a few weeks ago, so were faced with the choice to purchase or make our own. This made for a welcome challenge. I purchased a pound of beeswax, some wick (both for under $15), and started collecting empty votive holders and small jars. I picked up a book from the library about candle making, but as it turns out, these simple candles don’t require much instruction. Simply melt the wax in a double boiler, set the wick, pour in the wax, and let cool. I’ve made eight small and four medium sized candles, and have half of the supplies left.
The benefits?
I can’t say that I have seen a difference on our hydro bill yet, but candle light Friday nights have been a great way for us to wind down from our busy week, get caught up with each other, and make sure we spend the night focusing on what’s most important – each other. I won’t attempt to liken it to having the same religious importance, but I enjoy how it fits with the Jewish tradition of lighting candles on Friday night for the sake of harmony in the home and joy on the day of rest. We look forward to having some company over some Friday night and sharing this new found tradition. I might even send you home with a candle (this means you, Felix!!! – we’re really looking forward to having you over!).
So, Shabbat shalom! Wishing you harmony and joy this Friday, and signing off in anticipation of another great Candle Light Friday Night!
Why are we doing this?
1. We own a lot of lamps (7 in total – remember we live in 620 square feet). I like to turn on said lamps. According to the all wise internet, using a lamp for two hours a day will consume nearly 220 kilowatt hours of electricity in a year, at an average cost of $18.
2. A former co-worker of mine, Denise, first introduced me to the concept of limited “screen time” that she used with her children, and I really liked the idea. I spend most of my day on the computer and I want to try it myself.
3. We watched No Impact Man a few weeks back. This family went 6 months with no electricity in New York. The idea is admirable but totally impractical for us, hence, we picked one night (and leave our fridge running).
How are we doing this?
Everything is done by candle light after dusk – no lights allowed and no electronic devices (no phone calls, texts, e-mails, or internet surfing allowed). We made our way through all of our candles a few weeks ago, so were faced with the choice to purchase or make our own. This made for a welcome challenge. I purchased a pound of beeswax, some wick (both for under $15), and started collecting empty votive holders and small jars. I picked up a book from the library about candle making, but as it turns out, these simple candles don’t require much instruction. Simply melt the wax in a double boiler, set the wick, pour in the wax, and let cool. I’ve made eight small and four medium sized candles, and have half of the supplies left.
I can’t say that I have seen a difference on our hydro bill yet, but candle light Friday nights have been a great way for us to wind down from our busy week, get caught up with each other, and make sure we spend the night focusing on what’s most important – each other. I won’t attempt to liken it to having the same religious importance, but I enjoy how it fits with the Jewish tradition of lighting candles on Friday night for the sake of harmony in the home and joy on the day of rest. We look forward to having some company over some Friday night and sharing this new found tradition. I might even send you home with a candle (this means you, Felix!!! – we’re really looking forward to having you over!).
So, Shabbat shalom! Wishing you harmony and joy this Friday, and signing off in anticipation of another great Candle Light Friday Night!
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Bye bye, George! (We're now a one-car family)
The dust has settled and we sold George, my Honda Fit. Selling a car privately is a pain, but we Craigslisted it and got lucky; a local engineer and his wife test-drove it the day after we listed it, liked the car, and moved quickly to close the deal.
I loved that car, but Erin's car makes more sense for the future -- it's got all-wheel drive, snow tires, and is a bit bigger. And Erin doesn't drive stick shift. Fuel economy? The Suburu can't compete with the Honda -- not even close. But hey, you can't have everything.
It made sense to sell one of our vehicles on so many levels. First, with me biking to work and Erin taking the train, we only drive about once a week, anyway. Second, there's a government monopoly on liability insurance in British Columbia, so we pay about $180 month per vehicle to keep them insured (it's for this reason that my Honda Fit has sat in storage for the past six months). So there's some nice cash savings.
Anyway, sharing one vehicle is actually not a sacrifice at all. And since we only have a single parking garage space at our flat -- and George has been stored there -- it means no more battling with street parking for the our Suburu.
It feels good to be a one-car family.
I loved that car, but Erin's car makes more sense for the future -- it's got all-wheel drive, snow tires, and is a bit bigger. And Erin doesn't drive stick shift. Fuel economy? The Suburu can't compete with the Honda -- not even close. But hey, you can't have everything.
It made sense to sell one of our vehicles on so many levels. First, with me biking to work and Erin taking the train, we only drive about once a week, anyway. Second, there's a government monopoly on liability insurance in British Columbia, so we pay about $180 month per vehicle to keep them insured (it's for this reason that my Honda Fit has sat in storage for the past six months). So there's some nice cash savings.
Anyway, sharing one vehicle is actually not a sacrifice at all. And since we only have a single parking garage space at our flat -- and George has been stored there -- it means no more battling with street parking for the our Suburu.
It feels good to be a one-car family.
Friday, March 8, 2013
The Shower Timer - Friend or foe?
One idea/tool that's great in theory but made me a bit leery is the shower timer. Erin and I both love long hot showers. I'm not talking about 30-minute endeavors, but I know that I'm a regular exceeder of the 5-minute guideline we all learned about in grade school.
This winter, I was doing some consulting for a local company that involved brainstorming recommendations for an energy/water/comfort efficiency assessment for residential homes. When I stumbled across this simple, non-electric, inexpensive (< $5, check Amazon) timer, I knew that it'd be a good idea for others to implement:
-- since shorter showers not only result in less water usage (water efficiency), but a lot less energy required to heat that excess water (less electricity or natural gas, depending on your water heating system).
I admit, though, that for me, I had some resistance to the idea. I/we have made a lot of choices to reduce waste, but for some reason this one seemed a bit tougher and more personal. Nevertheless, about a month ago, I picked one up and stuck it on our shower wall.
And? It has certainly changed things for us. And it's been far less painful that I/we thought it would be. I've learned that:
This winter, I was doing some consulting for a local company that involved brainstorming recommendations for an energy/water/comfort efficiency assessment for residential homes. When I stumbled across this simple, non-electric, inexpensive (< $5, check Amazon) timer, I knew that it'd be a good idea for others to implement:
-- since shorter showers not only result in less water usage (water efficiency), but a lot less energy required to heat that excess water (less electricity or natural gas, depending on your water heating system).
I admit, though, that for me, I had some resistance to the idea. I/we have made a lot of choices to reduce waste, but for some reason this one seemed a bit tougher and more personal. Nevertheless, about a month ago, I picked one up and stuck it on our shower wall.
And? It has certainly changed things for us. And it's been far less painful that I/we thought it would be. I've learned that:
- While I didn't time my showers before, they were surely longer than 5 minutes.
- It actually only takes me about 2-3 minutes to get clean, followed by time that I just stand there and enjoy scalding-hot water running over me.
I've found out that I'm quite happy with a 4-minute (or so) shower. In fact, I frequently find myself jumping out at about the 3-minute point simply because I'm more cognizant that I'm "done" and it feels nice to be wasting less. Erin, too, has had no problems adapting.
In short, I thought it was going to suck to be "forced to" take shorter showers. It hasn't played out that way. It's not bad at all.
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