Electricity Fast Day 6 and Final Thoughts

To read the introductory post, click here.

I apologize for the late posting of this blog entry. Over the past few weeks I began applying for grad schools, wrote and had my thesis proposal approved, and applied for a job and was hired. Needless to say, unfortunately this final post kind of hit the back burner for a while.

But here it is—the last day of the six-day electricity fast: six days without electricity over six weeks. How did it go? What did I learn?

Well, to begin with, the last day without electricity was the easiest. I had by now recognized when in the day I would get restless, so planned taking a several mile walk. I knew how painful those several hours of night would be without electric lights, so I planned going to a friend’s place. It became easy to find things to do that did not involve electricity. But, the habits are still there—the turning on lights without thinking, the turning on the hot water before realizing, the impulse to get in my car and drive before remembering. All of these things have become second nature to me, so even consciously trying to avoid electricity it was still near impossible to do so.

Indeed, one of the main things I learned was just how much what is called the “Western lifestyle” is dependent upon electricity. From taking warm showers every morning to using the microwave to heat up some leftovers to having a bedside lamp to read from—these are all little things that we hardly even think about. Yet there they are, consuming electricity, supporting a comfortable lifestyle. It gets to the point that it is hard to imagine a life without electricity—indeed, many ecologists have written about how now that we’ve opened the electricity can of worms we can’t go back. Sallie McFague, for one, speaks out against some of the more radical ecologists who envision a world without electricity, saying that it is more realistic to find sustainable ways to power our needs. Her book Super, Natural Christians was a shock to me—here was an ecologist—an ecofeminist, no less—that doesn’t speak against the urban life, but rather argues for it—at very least, calling for increased urban parks and green spaces.

I also spoke about previously about being present. That has been perhaps the most personally awarding result. Without internet, without television, without the distractions electricity provides, one has the chance to be present in the moment. One is not constantly being fed news and internet memes and status updates. That is kind of the contradiction, you see: on the one hand, knowing what is happening all over the world immediately; on the other, being able to be fully present and aware with what is going on around you. There has to be some balance—certainly knowing what is going on in the world is helpful, is necessary to live in any sort of community with one another. Unless one wants to retreat to an anchorite or hermit, knowledge of both local and global communities and events is necessary. But, the ability to stop and process, to stop and think, to just be present with friends or a good book without being interrupted by tweets and status updates—there is something in that, too.

Perhaps most importantly, what does this mean for the future? I plan on using less electricity throughout the day. Keep the lights off when it’s sunny outside. Unplug appliances when not in use. Easy things, simple things. Open the windows when it’s a nice day out. All things are so simple, so easy to do. Perhaps that’s the last thing I learned—as hard as going without electricity is, it’s also really easy. The world doesn’t stop, it keeps on going. I don’t need to have a hot meal every day. I don’t need to be watching television or on my computer every day. There are books out there, there are friends, there are activities like hiking or taking a stroll through town—all these things which are fun that don’t use electricity. It’s really simple to cut back. The benefits of a day without electricity—more time being active, more time with friends, more time reading books, more time to just think--more than make up for any inconvenience, in fact, not only does it make spending some time away from the computer or television “worth it,” it makes me wonder what joy I found in spending hours in front of the computer or television to begin with.

It's like that Toyota Venza commercial (embedded below). The daughter talks about having all these friends on Facebook, and she even says "this is living," meanwhile, her parents are out there actually living.

Another writer went a week without internet, and posted some similar points. It's on cracked.com, so just a warning, some of the language and themes on this humor website are a little vulgar. But nonetheless, he came to some of the same realizations I did. If you do not mind a little bit of language, I encourage you to read the article here. Suffice to say, electricity--with all the marvels of modernity--has its drawbacks. The ecological crisis alone shows us that, in fact, that's the very reason I chose to take on this fast. But, it can also keep us from living, from being present. And, that I think is Sallie McFague's greatest point in Super, Natural Christians and the greatest thing I learned, the environmental crisis isn't just about electricity and over-consumption of resources, it's about the reality that those of us living the Western lifestyle of comfort and ease have forgotten what its like to be present in the midst of the earth. To be present in the midst of the earth, to be truly present, just may be the first step towards moving out of this crisis.

Tree of Knowledge, Tree of Liberation

The leaves were golden and reflected every bit of light, filling the canopy over head with a warm, shimmering, liquid glow that danced around on the soft moss. The entire garden was surreal, beautiful, but nobody in it realized that until it was too late. That’s how these things go, though, is it not?

And yet, there she was, naked and beautiful, not perfect like many imagined her to be, but perfect in her own way.

Her red hair was wild and shone in the golden light reflecting on her ebony skin, her wild eyes a deepest blue, deeper than the ocean which her innocent eyes had not yet seen.

Then the serpent, it’s slithering slight of hand speaking silent whispers, hissing and disrupting the sleepy stillness of the silky golden garden. A blazing light. The fruit tree looking gold, like everything else, but so much more, seen as if through a disturbed pond, ripples disrupting the light, making it glimmer like something just out of reach, something just out of sight, something just out of grasp. The forbidden fruit, the tree of knowledge.

She walked up to the tree slowly, her naked feet against the mossy grass; no brambles or pebbles here. The tree seemed to vibrate with every step she took, shaking in the slight breeze full of perfume that wafted through the gardens. She reached the tree and held up her hand for the fruit, hesitated for just a moment, then grasped it. It felt warm in her hand, and soft. She plucked the fruit, and brought it close to her nose and inhaled. It smelled like… like jasmine and thyme and clove and citrus… everything good, everything she loved.

She brought the forbidden fruit to her lips, and bit in. It was warm, and sweet. It gushed out liquid into her mouth, a liquid that tasted like everything, sweeter than music. Sweeter than He ever was, sweeter than anything she ever tasted.

And with that fruit? Knowledge. Liberation. Freedom. She was a woman, she had power, and she was strong. She laughed, her laugh rang out clearer than it had before. She opened her new eyes and saw the world for what it really was. The breeze drifted by, it was cold against her naked skin. It felt good. The golden glittering trees were too golden, she had to shade her eyes. But it felt good. The air was no longer perfumed and sweet, but it was fresh and clear.

She did not bite that fruit because of the serpent. She took that fruit because it was her right. The serpent was not the evil one. The fruit was not an apple. The woman was not full of sin. This was not some great fall of humanity, or a lesson of right or wrong. This was freedom, liberation, woman at her best, not her worst.

A Call to Honesty? Global Warming "Alarmism"

According to a post I read on Facebook earlier today, global warming being caused by human-made atmospheric emissions was once and for all debunked. I thought, "hrm... that's curious," so I clicked on the link the post was referring to and came across James M. Taylor's article, New NASA Data Blow Gaping Hole In Global Warming Alarmism, about how NASA data apparently prove that global warming is not a big deal. The article is an interesting read, and obviously an op-ed piece, full of the same sensationalized language he chastises "alarmists" of having. What gets me is not the data Taylor cites, which doesn't say much aside from the fact that the more apocalyptic-leaning predictions of scientists may be wrong since the earth's atmosphere lets a significant amount of energy into space. As far as I could tell, the data did not say that global warming is an hoax nor did it say that we should stop caring about carbon emissions. One can read the press release here or the abstract or full article here.

The article does not make conclusions about what is causing climate change, but merely says that as of right now we do not know whether or not the climate is changing as a result of human-made emissions. The data also does not explain continuing data and observations about climate change that show that the climate is changing (the article I linked to I found on NASA's very own website on climate change, http://climate.nasa.gov/). In the end, the article really does not say much other than computer models were wrong because they did not take into account this new finding on earth's atmosphere's ability to adapt. It does not say that global warming is a hoax, nor does it chastise what Taylor calls "alarmists."

But here is the interesting part. This is how Taylor ends his article:

"When objective NASA satellite data, reported in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, show a 'huge discrepancy' between alarmist climate models and real-world facts, climate scientists, the media and our elected officials would be wise to take notice. Whether or not they do so will tell us a great deal about how honest the purveyors of global warming alarmism truly are." (Emphasis Mine).

What I find most interesting about the article, as I said, is not the data it points to. What I find most interesting is Taylor's call for global warming alarmists to be honest. I say this is interesting because Taylor is the senior fellow for environmental policy at the Heartland's Institute. I find Taylor's call to honesty interesting because the Heartland Institute, a non-profit organization, received more than $600,000 from Exxon-Mobile. How can Taylor ask honesty of the scientific consensus when the company he works for received significant funding from Exxon-Mobile? A call to honesty, indeed.

There will need to be more research to see how much of a negative effect human-made emissions are making upon the planet, certainly. And I'm sure it will cause climatologists to adjust some of their findings. And, although the vast majority of data I've read and come across suggests that global warming and climate change is at least partially (if not primarily) caused by human activity, I know that carbon emissions and other greenhouse gases damage local ecosystems. Even if global warming really were once and for all debunked, as my friend's facebook status declared, it would not change the fact that humanity is having a negative impact on the earth. You need only look at polluted streams, disappearing ecosystems, rising cancer rates in urban areas, and vast islands of plastic in the ocean to see that.