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Aug 30, 2007
"I have learned by some experience, by many examples, and by the writings of countless others before me, also occupied in the search, that certain environments, certain modes of life, certain rules of conduct are more conducive to inner and outer harmony than others. There are, in fact, certain roads that one may follow. Simplification of life is one of them." --Ann Morrow Lindbergh
The Clothesline Makes A Comeback
At last count, in 2005, there were 88 million dryers in the US. Annually, each dryer consumes 1,079 kilowatt hours of energy per household, creating 2,224 pounds of carbon-dioxide emissions. Concerned about global warming and her family's energy consumption, Michelle Baker wanted to hang her wash outside. She scoured stores for a clothesline durable enough to withstand Vermont winters and came back empty-handed every time. So Ms. Baker and her husband made their own: a few lines of pristine white rope hung between two Vermont cedar poles. Soon, friends and neighbors were enviously asking where they got it. Born of enterprise, enthusiasm, and wet shirts flapping in the breeze, the Vermont Clothesline Co. debuted in April. And just in time, as a national clothesline -– or "Right to Dry" -– movement escalates to override the clothesline bans often instituted by community associations.
BE THE CHANGE
In this passage, visionary Duane Elgin explores voluntary simplicity as a manner of living that is outwardly more simple and inwardly more rich. More ...
