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April 17th: Stepped Up

2007-04-17 · Hank · watch on YouTube · Science & nature · personal update

Hank reports keeping his Step It Up weekend (a rally in town and an electricity-free day eaten cold and read by candlelight), finds one day hard, and argues that since life without electronics would not be better, the way out is good ideas and choosing the devices that truly improve life.

What is said

00:00:00 — Greeting; a rally speech clip on using less energy; Hank and Katherine attend a Step It Up rally in town and walk home

  • ★ A voice at the rally (not identified) says using less energy more wisely is good for everybody, for the world and for the economy. — 00:00:00
  • ★★★ This weekend Hank and Katherine attended a Step It Up rally (bureaucrats, sign-waving, blues music, drum-beat dancing) and walked home, as the small town is walkable. — 00:00:00 · Katherine Green

00:00:40 — The electricity-free day: alternative transportation on the way home, dinner in the dark with battery equipment only, a cold meal

  • ★★★ Hank says the rest of their electricity-free day was pretty easy but got a little difficult around dinner time; only battery-powered equipment stayed on. — 00:00:40
  • ★★ Unable to cook without power, Hank and Katherine ate unheated food (bread, cottage cheese, pickles, olives; a tortilla with mozzarella and tofu turkey; chips and salsa), then read by candlelight and fell asleep very early. — 00:01:07 · Katherine Green

00:01:46 — Reading by candlelight and sleeping early; one day was hard and John's week will be harder; candles emit more carbon per unit of light than coal-powered bulbs; electronics define our lives; life without them would not be better, so good ideas are needed; advice to John; sign-off

  • ★★★ Hank says one day without power was pretty hard and more would be much harder; he doesn't know how John will manage it for an entire week. (hedged) — 00:01:46
  • ★★ Hank says candles are less efficient than light bulbs: per unit of light they emit much more carbon than a bulb powered by a coal power plant, and give little light. — 00:02:26
  • ★★ Hank says we are surrounded by electronic stuff all day, that it completely defines our lives, and that every piece of it carries a carbon footprint. — 00:02:49
  • ★★★ Hank thinks it is good sometimes to try to understand life without electronics, but doesn't think it would be better, so he works on how to go forward: no way out of this mess without many good ideas. (hedged) — 00:03:18 · climate change
  • ★★ Hank thinks it is good that John hasn't decided to just offset his carbon with 'some strange scheme'. (hedged) — 00:03:18
  • ★★★ Hank advises John to work out which devices actually make his life better, so he doesn't have to use all the others. — 00:03:18 · John Green
  • ★ Hank expects John's week to be a huge pain and looks forward to seeing him deal with it tomorrow. (playful) — 00:03:18

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