earth hour - march 26 @ 8:30pm

switch off your lights & electronic devices for one hour tomorrow, to show support & bring awareness about how we use & produce energy.

earth hour: march 26, 2011 8:30pm - 9:30pm

Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million individuals and more than 2,000 businesses turned their lights off for one hour to take a stand against climate change. Only a year later and Earth Hour had become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries/territories participating. Global landmarks such as the Sydney Harbour Bridge, CN Tower in Toronto, Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and Rome’s Colosseum, all stood in darkness, as symbols of hope for a cause that grows more urgent by the hour. (source)

what will you do for earth hour (or beyond one hour)?

here are some of my ideas:

• have some friends over for some snacks, sandwiches or beverages. make your snacks ahead of time if they need cooking (chocolate chip cookies? truffles? maple bacon party mix?), and serve beverages that don't need to be too cold or too hot, like red wine, or juice. i don't know if shutting off the lights includes not using electricity, but i think not using the oven, electric kettle, or microwave during the hour would be a good idea.
  
  
• play some cards by candlelight. with friends. or by yourself (solitaire!)
  
  
• sit in the dark in silence and let yourself be alone with your thoughts. scary, i know, but a good time for reflection.
  
  
• go to sleep early. you probably need it (i know i do)
  
  
• discuss (with friends) ways to live more environmentally responsible. simple things, like remembering to turn out the lights in rooms you aren't using (i'm horrible at this :P), bringing your own mug to the coffee shop, re-using your old clothes as rags instead of throwing them out, etc. then share your ideas (with me!).
  
  
• read a book by candlelight. alone or with friends. classics like c.s. lewis' narnia series, or children's storybooks, or your favorite book of poems.

those are my ideas. tell me yours! and tell me what you end up doing for earth hour...