Editor,
I am committed every day to saving energy resources, saving water and reducing catastrophic worldwide climate change. Imagine if all who write articles on these concerns made permanent, radical personal changes in their daily lives and challenged all of us by their public example.
I use less than eight gallons of water a day for all uses inside my home. I have washed my clothes by hand since 1988, and I hang them up to dry. I removed my shower faucet handles in 1999. Most people past and present on Earth have had no home showers to wash their bodies. I disconnected the drain pipe of my one and only sink in 1999. I use a pail beneath the sink to catch the waste water. I flush by pouring one gallon or more of waste water directly into the toilet bowl.
I have never used a swamp cooler or air conditioner in my apartment. I open the door and windows for cross ventilation, and I live naked when I am warm enough.
Although heating cost is included in my monthly rent, this is the second winter I have not had my gas furnace - not even the pilot light - turned on. The temperature is usually between 50 and 60 degrees. I dress warm and have seven blankets for sleeping.
I have owned no car since 1979. I have ridden in no cars since April 7, 2001. I love to walk. I have not traveled outside of New Mexico since my dad's funeral in Illinois in 1994.
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What good is it to study and recite Web sites and books full of environmental information if we refuse to change our stupid, selfish, lazy ways? We can change.
Don Schrader
Daily Lobo reader
