Earth Hour in the sauna

This time we took the Earth Hour even more seriously than earlier turning off not ony the lights but every piece of electrical equipment except for the fridge. The only light on was that in our yard which has an energy-saving dusk-to-dawn light bulb.

We took care to turn the sauna heater on early enough so that we could turn it off by the time we climbed to the upper bench in candlelight when the Earth Hour started. This is how we normally bathe, the heater turned off and in candlelight if there is not enough natural light. The in-house sauna is located upstairs with a window facing the yard. Not that anyone would see us there but we enjoy sitting on the bench watching the view through the window, especially in the summertime. Moreover, most of the year lights would not be needed there in any case.

But the candle-lit shower room was something different. You could almost imagine you were in a proper outdoor sauna, such as the one we would have by the creek flowing through our lot had it already been restored. I think I’ll keep the old white lamp cover permanently on the window niche of the shower room to serve as a lantern for a tealight candle. I found it at a flea market once and couldn’t help myself. However, the nights will soon be so light that any candle will be invisible but there will be another dark season sooner than I care to remember.

Quite a nice Earth Hour we had. This should be done more often. In fact, we did it for three and a half days in late December when we had to manage without electricity due to a power outage. Of course, having a sauna was out of the question then because of the electric heater – which, by the way, is a terrible energy eater. At that time darkness fell soon after 3 pm, several hours earlier than now. A power cut this time of the year could be rather pleasant, unless it happened tonight when we are having winter again because of cold winds blowing directly from the North Pole.