The simple, bare necessities
Caroline Luby
Issue date: 11/7/08 Section: Opinions
"Hay que conservar el agua," my Spanish mother told me after my failed attempt to hide the shock on my face when she explained to me the shower rules. The regimen, she explained, is as follows: Turn the water off to shampoo, turn it back on to rinse, turn it off to condition and wash your body, and then turn it back on to rinse. I am sure you can all imagine my surprise when I realized my leisurely 20-minute showers to which I had become accustomed on a daily basis had abruptly come to an end. Well, I thought to myself, when in Spain one must learn to shower like a Spaniard. Shortly after, I dared to take my first shower, mentally practicing on my way to the bathroom to determine how I could be most efficient with the water I was allotted. As I turned the water off to suds my body, I realized that this method of showering was really not a burden at all; in fact, it was perfectly affective, yet minimal. During that seven-minute shower, it occurred to me that although we are in the midst of a "Going Green" phenomenon with our trendy, reusable grocery bags and Energy Star technology, maybe we are still missing the bigger picture.
Take the issue of washing clothes, for example. How many times do we change into our pajamas at night and automatically toss our clothes into the hamper? How often do we assume that because we have worn something once, it must be dirty? Just think how many fewer times you would have to trek down to the laundry room with an overflowing laundry basket if you wore your shirts two, or even three, times. Practically unheard of, I know, but during my two months here I have adapted and realized that re-wearing clothes is not only possible, but also completely sanitary. In Spain, clothes dryers are also rare household appliances. Instead, all clothes are hung and air-dried. If you think about it, natural air makes sense-it does not require anything but a surface top or a string, and it works just as well as the machine, but without the possibly of shrinking your clothes. Although I know that almost every household and dorm now have energy efficient washers and dryers in an attempt to protect the environment, we still have yet to change our behavior with regards to our water and energy consumption.
Take the issue of washing clothes, for example. How many times do we change into our pajamas at night and automatically toss our clothes into the hamper? How often do we assume that because we have worn something once, it must be dirty? Just think how many fewer times you would have to trek down to the laundry room with an overflowing laundry basket if you wore your shirts two, or even three, times. Practically unheard of, I know, but during my two months here I have adapted and realized that re-wearing clothes is not only possible, but also completely sanitary. In Spain, clothes dryers are also rare household appliances. Instead, all clothes are hung and air-dried. If you think about it, natural air makes sense-it does not require anything but a surface top or a string, and it works just as well as the machine, but without the possibly of shrinking your clothes. Although I know that almost every household and dorm now have energy efficient washers and dryers in an attempt to protect the environment, we still have yet to change our behavior with regards to our water and energy consumption.
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