Disclaimer: This post is not an endorsement of scary stuff, spider webs, haunted houses or bubbling pots of Toil and Trouble. While it is the view of the author that babies dressed up like pumpkins are utterly adorable, and that small princesses and short hobos should be given generous amounts of candy on the 31st, this in no way constitutes the support of anything that might give anyone nightmares, or reason to sleep in their parents' bed indefinitely. It is, however, to be fully understood that bags of fun-sized candy bars are the reason for the season in many minds, and however you choose to view this particular holiday, the author hopes your life is filled with lots of goodies.
Best Buy is sponsoring a "Vampire Awareness Day," today, and although I don't even like to type the word "vampire," I thought it was a worthy enough cause to work into a Small Thing.
Apparently, Vampire Power is the electricity that consumer electronics and household appliances use when they are switched off or are in standby mode. Computers, TV's, stereos, microwaves, phone chargers...all are using electricity 24/7 and it not only costs money, but harms the environment.
You can find out more by visiting Vampire Awareness Day, but I'll warn you that the brief tongue-in-cheek video has a ghoulish vampire on it....not something I'd let my children watch, but it has some good facts. I'm easily creeped out.
Today's Small Thing is ward off these evil power suckers.
You could:
- Unplug your chargers (I usually leave the charger plugged in, and just grab the phone or laptop)
- Unplug appliances or electronics that aren't in use. (Big TV's use a lot of electricity in standby mode)
- Plug electronics into a power strip and flip the switch to off when not in use.
The average house has 20-30 electronics plugged in, and even in standby mode, they use a ton of electricity. I'm going to unplug my toaster and chargers, but I can't bring myself to unplug my coffee maker. The Delay Brew setting was divinely inspired and it's what gets me out of bed in the morning.
Look around and see what you could unplug today. Being vigilant against these power predators could add up to hundreds of dollars a year!
POINTS: 40 for combating the vampires in your midst.