I bought a new phone last night.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

It doesn't sound like that big a deal, but I wanted to share this with you anyway.

My home phone died on me the other day. It was one of those with a power cord that plugged into the wall and had a battery charged handset you could walk around your house with. I had bought it at a Target in a suburb of SF a few years back, it had cost me around 30 bucks.

So it comes time to replace my phone and I really started to think about how I would do it. This oil spill has really galvanized me in a way that I really needed. I had already been on a good environmental path, but this has become a tipping point for me.

To replace my phone I could have driven the 5+ miles to Target to pick up another, new phone. A new phone that was made of plastic, that had to be shipped from where it was manufactured (most likely China), and that required energy to use.

I could of done that, but I didn't.

Instead, I caught the bus to my local Goodwill store, where I found a used phone that didn't need electricity to use and that would cost me a whole $2.99 to purchase. And purchase it I did.

Another pisser -- my gas dryer up and died on me after 10 years. I found out when I went to get my clothes in the morning to get ready for work and found them still all wet. I ended up wearing a terrifying combination of Disney Thumper pajama bottoms and Hawaiian print shirt to work that day.

So now I am looking at what to do about that situation. I could run down to Sears and pick up a new dryer, but I am instead picking up a clothes line system at my local hardware store. The weather to dry clothes outside will be good enough until at least late fall -- if I feel the need for a dryer as a back-up at some point, I can scout Craig's list for a used gas dryer, and onlyuse it when I absolutely need to.

Is what I am doing going to change the world? Some would say no. But if everyone across the country, across the world, decided to focus on their own consumption practices and made such changes, then yes, I think it could change the world.

When I plugged the phone in to make my first call, it worked just fine. And I can't wait to smell my clothes after a day in the fresh air.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

1. Not sure the clothesline will work based on your location in your profile

[Hell Hath No Fury]

6. Worked just fine for my Grandma.

She line dried my clother for years here in SF, just two blocks from where I live now. :) I remember the smell of those clothes like it was yesterday instead of 40 years ago. :hi:

[SPedigrees]

33. I hang up my clothes inside the house to dry.

I only use the dryer for towels and sheets, and I leave it on 'low heat' setting.

[tabbycat31]

37. I use a drying rack indoors

when the weather outside is not appropriate for drying clothes. I haven't used my dryer in 2 years.

[slampoet]

39. You're what my grandma would call an Empty Talker. She used to dry clothes in -20F winter weather

She used to dry clothes in the attic and barn during summer thunderstorms.

Stop talking about things you obviously don't know anything about.

Raise 9 children like my grandmother and/or get some knowledge before you talk.



And again YES! you can dry clothes outside in the winter even if it is below freezing.

[SmileyRose]

48. LOL

We had 7 in my family. I don't miss the days of running all over the place grabbing clothes off the line before the rain started and moving them to hang in the clotheslines strung all over the basement and the glorified shed we called a garage.

If forced to do so, I'll do it again. But I'll take my electric dryer in the meantime.

[Obamanaut]

43. Drying clothes without appliances worked for quite some time prior

to those appliances - in all areas.

We only have a washer, no dryer. Hang stuff outside in sunny weather, on the porch or inside in inclement weather. A drying rack inside works well in rainy weather in the winter, and the combination of soap/fabric softener makes the room smell spiffy.

[LisaM]

2. Love the idea of a non-electric phone and the clothesline

but as far as a new dryer, I'd go to a store and buy a new ENERGY saving one.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

8. If I decide to go for a dryer --

I think I'll hunt around for a used Energy Star model and only use it when I really need it. :hi:

Another thing in relation to the phone:

No battery to have to dispose of -- an even better deal.

[NoNothing]

10. I don't know

You could dry a lot of clothes with the amount of energy it takes to manufacture a brand new dryer.

[MineralMan]

3. If you need to replace the dryer, watch Craig's List. There are always

working dryers on there, even in the Free section. Recycle. Reuse. Wear out.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

9. I was already practicing --

Recycle, reuse, wear out a good deal of the time. Now I am going militant about it. :D I needed a new pair of work jeans and I picked up a couple of pair for around $5 while I was shoppping at Goodwill for the phone.

[MineralMan]

11. Goodwill is a great place to find all sorts of good things.

I've been going there for many years.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

13. SF is crawling with thrift stores.

I could spend a whole afternoon in them, easily. :D

[NNN0LHI]

4. Check your dryer vent outside for a lint blockage

That is usually when what happens when they stop working.

Not really much to go wrong with a gas dryer.

10 years is young for one.

Don

[Hell Hath No Fury]

12. It's something in the dial --

I thought it had sounded "off" when I dialed up my load. When I checked it afer the wet clothes incident I found there is something wrong with it -- it is no longer actually "clicking" on the various drying options. I am going to look into and see if it is just part issue/easy repair thing. Even if it is, I am going to hang that clothes line.

[Dappleganger]

22. google this phrase...

"do it yourself appliance repair"

There's a plethora of DIY forums out there. I love the ones over at gardenweb, myself.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

24. Cool, will do!

I am a really handy person -- hopefully I can figure this out. :hi:

[Dappleganger]

25. If you're handy, it's not that hard.

And if you can also look up specific search items on youtube, there are a TON of DIY videos on there. I tend to learn better by watching someone do it first so it's a big help (that's how I learned to take apart our pc's and macs to work on them).

Most dryer parts are easier to get to than washer parts so that's a plus. We tend to not be the highly-electronic models since they are more difficult to fix (we're that way w/cars, too). Good luck!

[femrap]

46. Planned Obsolescence....

this is what Engineers do now...they try to figure out ways to make a machine stop working in so many years. Wouldn't that be a depressing job?

[Tesha]

50. If nothing else is wrong with the dryer, replacing a broken timer can be a good investment.

But take Don's advice above and no matter what else you do, clean out
all the lint in the exhaust piping; that's the single biggest cause of dryer
fires (as well as low performance).

Another popular failure in gas dryers is the igniter (whose design varies
depending on the manufacturer).

Tesha

[The Straight Story]

5. Hang up the clothes in front of Radio. Turn on rush limbaugh. Hot air will dry them in no time

;)

[Hell Hath No Fury]

16. Between him and Beck --

they could power the frickin' planet! :D

[POAS]

18. But how do you then deodorize them?

[REACTIVATED IN CT]

36. If DUZY's are still being awarded, this deserves one ! n/t

[gauguin57]

7. If everyone made just one change ... think how that could affect energy consumption/carbon footprint

If everyone just made one change, as this poster did ... one change times millions of people could really make an impact.

Jimmy Carter asked us to change our habits back in the 1970s. The country said, "Screw you," and voted him out of office (lots of other reasons for that, but...).

We're fighting at least one war that was started over oil (no matter what fairy tales Unca Georgie told us initially). Pelicans, terns and turtles are dying because we keep paying BP to give us more oil. Fisherfolk are losing their livelihoods.

Thank you for your post, Hell Hath ... you've given us all something to think about today.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

19. If this spill doesn't galvanize us ---

what the fuck will? I mean, really?

I grew up with Jimmy and to this day I wear a sweater at home when it is too chilly and keep my heater turned down. But now I have a programmable thermostat -- man has that thing made a huge difference in my usage! I highy recommend one if you don't already have one.

:hi:

[femrap]

47. I moved from Ohio

to SF and lived there for many years. I never thought it was cold in SF...of course I had endured many a harsh winter in the Midwest.

How I miss SF and her lovely weather....never hot and never cold. I loved the fog. It's true...one does leave one's heart there...

I grew up w/ Jimmy as well....I'm back in Ohio: 66 degrees in the winter and 78 degrees in the summer. And I recycle everything I can.

I miss the SF attitude more than anything. :hi:

[Robbien]

14. Sleeping on sun dried sheets is heaven

You are in for a treat.

My refrigerator is on its last legs. Instead of replacing it with a like kind refrigerator, I've been researching the web for an under-counter type. It will use less than half the energy required by full sized refrigerators and some of them have good sized capacity. Usually my fridge is half to a third empty most of the time so really a full sized refrigerator is a waste.

Many Europeans raise full sized families using half sized refrigerators so it should be a breeze for us two.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

23. I find that many Europeans --

get so much of their food fresh from the markets on an almost daily basis that they have little need for the honking fridges we use here. I got a new fridge pre-spill -- it is Energy Star rated and apartment sized, really plenty of space in the fresh section, less in the frozen, which is probably a really good thing.

[LisaM]

15. The fact that it's cheaper to replace things than repair them

is really a problem. I totally agree with that. When did our society become that way?

I also have an issue with electronics and people replacing them so quickly. What's happening with all those first generation iPhones that everyone HAD TO HAVE?

Also, I really miss real phones. They had such good reception and they never wore out. I still keep a regular phone around in case of a power outage, but it's not the good old kind you could get from the phone company. I loved those.

[MineralMan]

26. You can always find one. They're great.

I collect old phones. I have a candlestick phone from the 20s, several old rotary dial regular phones, from the 30s to the 70s, and one old oak wall phone on the wall in the kitchen. You can't dial out on it, but you can answer it. It still works just fine. I just put a modular cord on it and away I go. There's a stool in front of it, just like in great-grandma's kitchen, and a notebook on a string for taking messages. I used it at least once a week to answer a call.

It's funny to watch people try to use it, though. They can't get the idea of holding the receiver in one hand while you talk into the microphone on the wall. Hilarious.

Oh, yeah, I have a couple of cordless phones, too. I use them mostly.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

30. Yes, everything is "disposable" now.

I avoid most new technology for the very reasons you talk about. I cannot stand the thought of a piece of technology being out of date within six months of me purchasing it. All those iPhones, all those iPods, all those cell phones -- and all those batteries -- all of it heading for a trash heap somewhere. :puke:

I was helping my newphew who works for Apple move and I found a still packaged, completely unused iPod -- I asked him what he wanted to do with it and he said, "Throw it a way." It was an older model, you see, and now completely worthless to him. :(

[LisaM]

34. Doesn't that bug you?

I agree, vomit.

If he is upset about the oil spill, you might point out his own consumer habits.

[POAS]

17. Try a local Habitat for Humanity "Restore"

They often have donated appliances (new and used) as well as almost anything one might need for home repair and replacement needs.

Proceeds stay in the community to help with Habitat projects.

[Dappleganger]

20. The heating element went out in our dryer last month...

cost $30 to replace, the second one which has gone out in a dryer we bought new in 2001 when we moved into the house. I would love to use a clothesline but our yard is so tiny that there isn't enough space to do the laundry of six adult-sized people. I really wish it was bigger, though.

We use a regular phone because our electricity goes out several times a year, not including if a hurricane goes through. We all have cell phones so there is no need for anything more than that.

If everyone just fixed the junk we have which breaks down (or learn how to fix it, the internet has thousands of forums for that!) we'd reduce so much of *everything*. Of course some junk wastes far too much electricity and should be replaced, but we should make sure the ROI makes sense for that product.

[asdjrocky]

21. My dryer broke a year ago, haven't replaced and don't miss it one bit.

I do have a few things that I like to dry, so once a month or so I take a trip four blocks away to the coin laundry.

Just imagine what we could do if people just threw out the dryers.

[LisaM]

28. It might work in some places

but in Seattle, it's been solid rain for months, so we can't dry things outside. I put some towels outside a week ago, and they got rained on overnight.

[Codeine]

27. I've never understood the love for line-dried clothing.

I think they smell terrible. :shrug:

[Dappleganger]

29. Don't you live in SoCal??

If the air quality isn't any good of course the laundry will stink.

[Codeine]

31. I suppose that must be it.

I live fairly near a freeway as well.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

32. It must be that freeway you live by.

I live next to a huge park and line dried clothes/bedding smell like "spring" -- very fresh, very green.

[SPedigrees]

35. Hubby and I have not reproduced. That is the single most

environmentally friendly thing one can do. While all but one of our phones are
non-electric/battery landlines and I use the dryer sparingly on low heat, these measures are a drop in the bucket to refraining from putting more humans on this earth.

[Statistical]

38. "where I found a used phone that didn't need electricity to use" = doesn't exist.

All phones need electricity to function, some just get their electricity from the line voltage.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

41. I guess I should have said --

Didn't need "additional" electricty.

[mrmpa]

40. we were talking the other day about clothes lines

my 16 year old niece wanted to know how they would dry. Her grandmother spoke about drying clothes on the line in Massachusetts' winters, and how fresh the clothes would smell. We spoke about the fun we'd have in the yard hiding behind the sheets as they blew in the breeze. My niece was still confused

[Faux pas]

42. Before you get a new dryer, try this trick that I learned from

the appliance sales lady at my local Sears. Turn the breaker switch for the dryer on and off twice. This has worked for me every time I think my dryer has 'died'. Good luck.

[femrap]

44. Wait till you put your

air-dried sheets on your bed...like sleeping on a cloud! In the winter I just hang my clothes inside to dry

And good for you! Thrift stores are wonderful!

I've been on a consumption STRIKE for a while. If I don't eat it or need it to clean, I don't buy it. And I wait until something breaks before I replace it.

Oh...a wonderful cleaner. White vinegar and water. Or Simple Green which is non-toxic and even cleans up cat vomit! No more chemicals for me.

Put your money where your heart and soul are! It's the only power we have.

[rucky]

45. Check out this site for non-electric appliances and whatnot:

www.lehmans.com

[TheFarseer]

49. awesome job on the phone!

Hope the clothesline works for you but I'm skeptical on that one. Mom would hang up our clothes sometimes when we were little and sometimes dirt would blow on them while they dried or they would blow off the line. I guess you just have to hang them up when it's fairly calm and make sure the wind doesn't pick up!