Weekend Without Oil

I came across this website today...Weekend Without Oil. This Saturday and Sunday, the partners (Treehugger, Climate Counts, etc.) of the movement are asking everyone to live, well, a weekend without oil.

I have to admit, when I first read the headline, I was a little intimidated to read the list of things they wanted me to give up.

My first thought was my air conditioner. I live on the 6th floor of a 6-floor walk-up. I do not have to tell you that after hiking up the stairs, entering a warm, sticky apartment was not on my top 10 list.

My second thought was travel. I want to go to the beach this weekend...would I still be able to take the train?

Finally, the thought that frightened me the most, food! So much of our food comes in packaging made from petroluem.

I decided to put on a brave face and click the link.

It was a one-page, non-intimidating website that, along with telling us that the US is one of the largest oil consumers, was trying to get 166,000 people to lesson their oil load this weekend. Each pledge accounted for about 6 gallons of oil.

I was still nervous. But as I read their list of 11 actions, I felt a wave of relief come over me.

They weren't asking me to live in a sauna. They didn't mind that I took the train to the beach. And they weren't asking me to starve...just to eat less meat and delicious, local, organic foods which, let's face it, shouldn't I be doing anyway?

Here is what they ask...

1) Walk or ride your bike: Avoid using cars and if you must, always try to carpool. Transportation accounts for 40 percent of our petroleum consumption and is easily one of the biggest areas we need to improve upon.

2) Enjoy the outdoors: Avoid buying new sporting equipment, since oil makes up nearly 25% of rubber. Footballs or basketballs, for example, can last for many years and used equipment is often just as good and will reduce demand for oil needed to make new rubber.

3) Use reusable bags: Avoid disposable plastic. Plastic bags are a huge waste for very little benefit. Nearly 10 percent of U.S. oil consumption, approximately 2 million barrels a day, is used to make plastic products alone.

4) Be conscious about what you eat this weekend: You can reduce oil demand by changing your diet to eat less meat, more local foods that require less transportation and organic food, which doesn't use petro-based fertilizers.

5) Don't buy new make-up this weekend: The majority of cosmetics are petroleum-based, including lip gloss, face powder, nail polish, and more. So avoid buying new make-up products this weekend and research the brands when you purchase in the future.

6) Drink tap water: Avoid beverages bottled in disposable plastic, they make up nearly 1.5 million tons of plastic waste per year, so get a reusable bottle and fill it up.

7) Make your electronic gadgets last: Avoid buying new electronics. Electronics take a lot of oil to produce and the gadgets you already have can last much longer than the rate at which new ones are released.

8) Go to the movies or stream them on Hulu: Avoid buying new DVDs/Blu-Rays, as oil is a key ingredient in their production, packaging and shipping.

9) Skip buying new clothes that weekend: Swap clothes with friends or check out the local vintage store. The less new clothes you buy the less oil is used in the manufacturing process and transportation.

10) Head to your local library or read online: Avoid using a printer and buying printed material including daily newspapers. Printing doesn't just waste paper, nearly 100,000 gallons of ink each day is used on daily newspapers alone.

11) Spread the word! Get 3 friends to sign the pledge and help raise awareness on ways they can help reduce their dependence on oil-related products.

I hope you'll join me this weekend in using at least 6 less gallons of oil! Not too hard, right?