No Impact Man

I have decided to dedicate this site to the frugality aspect of good ole Ben Franklin's virtues, so here goes: The No Impact Man website has sure made an impact on me. I realize there are so many ways that I waste electricity, hence my money. His conclusion after nearly a year of doing without the glo-juice that most of us couldn't live without: "So concrete result number one: Moving forward, I'm willing to live without A/C, the TV, a freezer, incandescent lights, probably the clothes dryer, and hot water in the laundry machine. I'm not willing to live without CFL lights in winter, the laundry machine using cold water, the fridge set at 45 degrees or so, once a week use of a vacuum cleaner." In my efforts to be a more conscious consumer of electricity, I have recently unplugged unused appliances, to avoid the dreaded "phantom load." I'm also in the market for a wind-up clock, so no more batteries wasted either. How many things that now rely on electricity used to rely on just a little effort by the user? Hmmnnn...